Chapter 7: The Suspect Identified

This suspect possessed highly distinctive features: slightly long and curly hair, dark skin, and a plump build. The most conspicuous trait was a slight limp in one leg.

If not for that leg, his physique would have resembled that of Jia Chunfang's husband. He was simply somewhat darker and his hair was longer. After the victim’s family members identified the portrait, all claimed never to have seen the person depicted. Only Jia Chunfang’s husband hesitated briefly upon seeing it, but ultimately denied any acquaintance with such a person.

Soon after, the suspect’s portrait was disseminated through various channels, publicly soliciting clues from society at large. As time passed, there was no progress in uncovering any information about the suspect’s identity. It was as if this man didn’t exist; no one had seen him.

That day, as Su Tianmu and his team investigated those close to Jia Chunfang, they suddenly noticed that the features of the “Top Supporter” bore some resemblance to the suspect’s portrait!

Since most interactions occurred online, fans and streamers—indeed even fans among themselves—might not have met in person despite knowing each other for a long time. With filters and beauty effects now pervasive on every platform, discerning someone’s true appearance became even more difficult.

Thus, even among Xiaofang’s fans, although they communicated, it was hard to truly recognize a person’s face. Still, everyone had some impression of the “Top Supporter” in Xiaofang’s fan group. He often showered Xiaofang with gifts and occasionally interacted in the chat. He never concealed his physical defect, so everyone knew he had a limp.

And it was precisely this physical trait that matched the suspect’s portrait.

Although the “Top Supporter’s” appearance had yet to be confirmed, his special relationship with the victim and the significant detail of his limp quickly made him a prime suspect for the police.

However, lacking genuine identity information online posed a great challenge to the police’s efforts to apprehend him.

Su Tianmu summoned Jia Chunfang’s husband once more, hoping to glean more information about the “Top Supporter.”

“Take a closer look at this portrait. Are you sure you’ve never seen this person?” Su Tianmu placed the suspect’s portrait before Jia Chunfang’s husband. The topic was awkward, but for the sake of the case, it could not be avoided.

“Do you know what relationship your wife Jia Chunfang had with this man?” Su Tianmu asked, expressionless.

The husband picked up the portrait and scrutinized it, seemingly wanting to speak but hesitating, his face somewhat unnatural.

“Although I can’t be certain, I think it’s him!”

Jia Chunfang’s husband suddenly grew agitated.

“It’s him—he destroyed my family. It must be him, he must have killed my wife!” he exclaimed, reaching to tear the portrait apart, but was restrained by Xiao Wang beside him. Gradually, he calmed down.

“You say he ruined your family. Then why would he want to kill your wife?” Seeing him calm, Su Tianmu continued.

“Could I have a cigarette?” he asked. Su Tianmu glanced at Xiao Wang, signaling him to hand over a cigarette. After a couple of deep drags, as if making a decision, the husband spoke fiercely.

“Because, just like me, he ended up abandoned!”

The man was slightly balding. If not for differences in hair and skin color, sitting here he almost felt like the suspect in the portrait.

Perhaps Jia Chunfang’s taste was consistent, even her lover resembled her husband. Clearly, the husband knew about his wife’s illicit relationship with the “Top Supporter” and had endured it for a long time.

“What’s his name? What does he do? Where does he live? Do you know any of that?” Xiao Wang asked, notebook in hand, ready to record.

He shook his head. “I know nothing, only that they met several times behind my back.”

It was difficult enough for a man to discuss his wife and her lover.

“How did you know they met?” Su Tianmu avoided prying for details, focusing only on clues relevant to the case.

“One time, I accidentally discovered their online chat records. I followed her in secret to see what she was doing. Unexpectedly, they went to a hotel…”

As he spoke, he suddenly began to sob.

“It’s my own fault for being useless. If I’d confronted them then and there, maybe things wouldn’t have ended up like this…” He cried, pounding his own head with his fists.

Seeing his unstable emotions, Su Tianmu concluded the day’s questioning.

Yet, the husband had provided a vital clue—the occasion when he followed his wife. With a clear time and place, it became much easier to search for traces left behind.

After reviewing surveillance footage from the hotel, the police quickly captured the suspect’s true appearance. Comparing it against the database, they swiftly locked down his real identity.

Su Tianmu immediately organized the suspect’s apprehension, but was a step too late. When the police searched his residence, they found it deserted. Interviews with neighbors confirmed he had been on the run for some time.

Could it really be that this major explosion was triggered by a crime of passion? Why did he choose to commit the crime on a bus, personally bringing the explosive aboard?

Su Tianmu remained perplexed about aspects of the case.

Given the serious suspicion, the police promptly issued a warrant for the “Top Supporter.”

When Xia Wuyou learned of this, she was stunned. She never anticipated the case might be rooted in a crime of passion, and deeply mourned the innocent victims caught in its wake.

Especially for Liu Dong. He should have had a bright future, a wife, and adorable children. Yet, before he could truly savor the beauty of the world, he bore consequences for another’s mistake—consequences he should never have had to face.

Life is unpredictable; perhaps this is the true nature of the world. It allows no room for regret or sorrow, and never offers a second chance.