September 1, 2013, 11:53
In front of Mailetianian Mall, the traffic was extensive, with people heading out for weekend shopping trips in an unending stream. Zhou Ning was driving, waiting to enter the top-floor parking garage. However, the red Mazda 6 in front, with the conspicuous license plate "Lu B 85885," kept signalling to turn. The car shook a bit and then simply stalled.
Zhou Ning didn’t honk to urge the car forward, while Mr. Zhao behind craned his neck, looking ahead.
"There’s no car in front, and the light is green, so why isn’t this person moving?"
"I’m guessing they’re a newbie with ’Lu B 85885.’ I don’t dare to honk, fearing it’ll only make it harder for them to start the car."
Zhou Ning was puzzled too, but seeing the reversing lights of the car co on, he quickly glanced in the rear-view mirror, noticed a good distance to the car behind, honked, and then reversed, making way for about three to four ters. The car in front suddenly reversed at speed, heading straight back and bumped into Zhou Ning’s car front with a moderate thud.
Zhou Ning sighed, realizing he still couldn’t avoid it; Mr. Zhao got anxious and got out of his car.
Zhou Ning unbuckled his seatbelt and looked at Xia Momo and Zhu Xingxing.
"You two okay? Stay in the car and don’t co out. I’ll call 122. It’s probably a newbie, got the gears mixed up. Looks like our lunch is going to be late."
Zhu Xingxing grunted twice.
"Hurry up and deal with it. Momo will give you so chips."
As they both snacked, Zhou Ning got out of the car and noticed the female driver of the red Mazda 6 had already got out. She wore a pair of slippers and a bright red spaghetti strap dress, with a figure comparable to a professional ballet dancer.
The woman, visibly angry, stord over to Mr. Zhao. Though not particularly tall, she had an imposing air, and slapped Mr. Zhao on the arm, bursting into a tirade.
"Are you sick? I just stalled for a few seconds, how could you rear-end ?"
Mr. Zhao’s temper flared up instantly as he took out his police ID and waved it in the woman’s face.
"Do you realize you’re assaulting a police officer? If you can’t see well, go to an ophthalmologist. If you can’t drive, go get your money back from your instructor. Don’t go scaring people on the road. You put the car in the wrong gear and hit us, then start raging. What do you want? I’m telling you, don’t give that talk, I’ve already called 122!"
"A police officer, so what? Police officers can just ram into cars whenever they like? You’re a joke. You think you can bully people, huh? Co on then, hit !"
As she spoke, she leaned her face towards Mr. Zhao, who pushed her away. The woman took out her phone and dialed a number.
"I’m outside Mailetian Mall, being bullied by a bunch of n, hurry up and co save , husband."
Zhou Ning saw that this woman was trouble and pulled Mr. Zhao back, knowing it’s useless to reason with the unreasonable. People from the car behind also got out, brandishing their phones in Mr. Zhao’s direction.
"Don’t worry, buddy, I was just recording. I’ll be your witness."
As they spoke, a traffic police car arrived. The woman’s deanor changed as she cried to the officers,
"I was trying to turn, but the car stalled, and he just ramd from behind. He hit and then claid he’s a cop, and still has the nerve to say it was my fault..."
Before she could finish, Zhu Xingxing and Xia Momo had already co down, holding a dashcam, and directly handed it to one of the traffic cops. The video was very clear, starting from waiting in the parking line to when the car in front reversed directly toward them, hitting Zhou Ning’s car. The evidence was clear and needed no further explanation.
After watching the video, the traffic cop asked the woman for her driving license and vehicle registration. She continued crying and stamping her feet as if she were the victim. The driver from the rear car ca forward to vouch for the story as well.
Mr. Zhao pointed to the surveillance cara across the street and also showed his credentials.
"We are forensic doctors from the Criminal Police Squad’s Technical Departnt; here are our IDs. If the dashcam footage isn’t clear enough, there is surveillance at the intersection. If there are any objections, it would be better to check the surveillance. Of course, I can get a colleague to pull it right now."
The traffic cop smiled and nodded, then gestured towards the woman. She showed her driver’s license in Mr. Zhao’s direction and he, with sharp eyes, saw the woman’s na.
Her na was Li Li, 28 years old, certainly looking like a socialite when her mouth was closed.
One traffic officer started taking pictures, while another was arguing with Li Li. At that mont, a chubby man with a big belly ran out, pulled the woman behind him, asked the officers what had happened, cald down Li Li, and then ca forward, grinning:
"My wife doesn’t know any better, so let apologize first. I have already called the insurance company; they’ll be here soon to deal with this. Don’t worry, we will handle the compensation by the book; don’t stoop to arguing with a woman."
The woman seed upset, trying to get out of the car, but the man held the car door shut. His words seed to calm Mr. Zhao down; in fact, Zhou Ning’s car had only a bent license plate and two scratches on it. The bumper was fine, whereas the Mazda 6’s rear end was severely cracked.
"Your wife has quite the temper. Alright, I won’t say any more; just hurry up and deal with it, and don’t block the traffic. I won’t fuss about that slap either."
The traffic officer said a few words, and just then, the insurance company representative arrived. It took a total of ten minutes to resolve everything. To avoid further contact, Zhou Ning didn’t use their services for the repair and accepted the compensation directly. The group then drove to the top-level parking garage at Mailetian Mall.
The two girls had lost their enthusiasm for shopping, so they had a quick al and held a brief eting before deciding to drive to a furniture store. After all, the renovation was done; now it was just a matter of picking out so additional furniture and appliances, a perfect opportunity given the day off.
Just as they left the parking lot exit, a loud bang ca from above. Everyone in the street, as well as those around, looked up at the direction above Zhou Ning’s position. Amidst the screaming, another loud bang echoed as a red car plumted from a great height.
Head down, it was nailed straight into the ground. Zhou Ning felt the car looked familiar. He quickly drove to the side of the road. Before he could stop completely, another loud explosion resounded, boom—a fire erupted from the car, and the wave of heat forced Zhou Ning to lift his arm quickly to shield himself.
An unidentified object clanged to the ground beside Zhou Ning’s feet. Xia Momo and the others had already rushed down, with Mr. Zhao standing directly in front of Zhou Ning. Seeing the car license plate, Zhou Ning was stunned.
Mr. Zhao’s eyes bulged in a reproachful expression.
"Ancestor, you better not go up there. It’s been months; your ribs had just healed. You don’t have to be the first one to act in every situation, you know? Zhu Xingxing, hurry, call the police. How stupid can the driver be, crashing down from the fourth floor, smashing through the wall? Was it drunk driving?"
Zhou Ning patted Mr. Zhao’s arm and squatted down to look at the tal object that had fallen beside his feet, taking out a tissue from his pocket to pad it and flipping it over.
Mr. Zhao looked puzzled, but he leaned in as well. He realized that it seed to be a license plate. Seeing the flipped license plate number, Mr. Zhao’s jaw nearly dropped in shock.
"Damn, damn, Lu B 85885 is cursed! Isn’t this the car number of that Li Li who just hit ours while reversing?"
Zhou Ning’s eyebrows knitted tightly. The burning car ignited quickly and was engulfed by massive flas within a minute or two. Many people were holding fire extinguishers, trying to fight the fire, but the blaze was too intense and utterly ineffective. The mall’s security guards had dragged over a fire hose and began spraying it, finally getting the fire under control.
Seeing Zhu Xingxing had already called the police, Zhou Ning sighed.
"It seems today’s shopping is utterly over. You guys wait in the car; Mr. Zhao and I will take a look. Whether it was an accident or intentional, we at least need to protect the scene."
Xia Momo shook her head, pulling Zhu Xingxing without getting into the car.
"You guys go first. I’ll go to the trunk to get the survey box for you. Be careful not to get burned. There are gloves on the driver’s door side."
Zhou Ning nodded. Mr. Zhao had also dialed the forensic doctor Zhang Qiangmin to explain the situation, then walked forward with Zhou Ning.
"Please don’t get too close. Although the fire is under control, it’s still very dangerous. If you want to get your car, please wait a mont."
The security guard stretched out his hand to stop them. Mr. Zhao and Zhou Ning showed their badges; upon seeing that they were police officers, the guard visibly relaxed. A manager-looking person rushed over and, seeing the survey box Zhu Xingxing had brought over, inevitably gave Zhou Ning and his group a second look. A security guard quickly spoke up.
"These are police officers!"
The individual realized, and Mr. Zhao hurriedly said:
"We’re off duty, just taking our families out shopping when we noticed the accident and ca to look. What’s the situation on the parking deck above? Have you temporarily sealed off the scene?"
The manager nodded.
"I’ve already asked the security to close off the fourth floor parking deck temporarily. All stairwells and elevator entrances are prohibited from entry. However, there are so custors inside the parking deck who were understanding at first, but it will be difficult to maintain cooperation if it takes too long."
Zhou Ning glanced at the accident vehicle. The front part was entirely crushed, and the driver’s seat had embedded into the ground. He could feel the heat even from a short distance away.
Although the fire was under control, the sll of cooked at was clear from several ters away. It was obvious that the person had died beyond any doubt. However, on the passenger and rear seats, there were clearly no passengers, only a charred round mass on the driver’s seat, with the lips missing and teeth exposed.
There was only one person in the car. Zhou Ning narrowed his eyes.
It appeared that this Li Li’s husband had driven alone, perhaps leaving after dealing with the insurance company. However, the car had already been in one collision; especially since the rear bumper was smashed, yet she had not called for a tow but continued shopping in the mall. This certainly raised suspicions.
As he was pondering, the sound of police sirens pierced the air. Several police cars stopped next to the scene. Two traffic police officers jumped out first, followed by Fang Mu and the others. As they walked over, the two traffic officers saw Zhou Ning and their group and were visibly startled.
"How co it’s you guys again?"
Zhou Ning remained silent, rubbing his nose, while Mr. Zhao had already stepped forward, nodding slightly to the two officers and to Fang Mu, who was following them.
"We’re forensic doctors from the CID Technical Unit; you must have forgotten. And there’s an acquaintance over there; let’s go inspect the scene. The car smashed through the fourth-floor parking deck wall and plumted straight down, then caused an explosion. The fire was extinguished in two minutes, but we didn’t manage to rescue the person.
We’ve already notified the mall to prohibit guests from entering or leaving the fourth-floor parking deck. We haven’t checked the situation there yet. As for the nature of death, we haven’t made a judgent yet. Should you start taking pictures first?"
The two officers nodded, looked back at Fang Mu as he approached to shake hands, and they both breathed a sigh of relief. Their gaze towards Zhou Ning also softened quite a bit, and they affird with each other with a glance. One went to take pictures while the other approached the group.
"Do you think it’s a criminal case?"
Fang Mu looked toward Zhou Ning, who shook his head slightly.
"I’m waiting for our people. We’ll survey later. Whether it was a traffic accident can only be known after examination and autopsy. You should start organizing personnel. We need to control the scene here, and Mr. Dui will check the parking deck situation."
While they were talking, another police car arrived. This ti it was Zhang Qiangmin and his team. Seeing Zhou Ning at the scene, they hurried over.
"Director Zhou, we’re late. The intersection ahead was blocked. We’ll survey the vehicle. Or should we go to the parking deck? You give the orders."
User Comments
0 comments from readers