Chapter 177: Chapter 177

At the Yanming District Branch, having spent most of the morning there, all the necessary information had been obtained. However, Fu Jichen had no intention of letting it go just like that.

Upon leaving the branch, Lu Yanzhi was about to ask him what his next plans were, when he heard him tell Qu Mo, "Go to the Third Hospital."

The at-fault driver was receiving treatment at Jiangcheng Third Hospital. From the current situation, he was the only survivor of the accident. Although there was no threat to his life, he was diagnosed with a mild concussion, a broken arm, and multiple bruises on his body.

Two police officers stood guard outside the ward day and night, questioning the driver for more than an hour as soon as he woke up.

According to the driver, he received news of a family member’s death while driving, which led to his mental distraction due to excessive grief, causing him to overlook the road conditions ahead. Anxious to rush home, he floored the gas pedal to increase speed. Coupled with the heavy rain, his reaction was slower than usual. By the time he realized he was about to collide with the taxi, it was too late to avoid it.

After field investigations and verifications by the police, it was confirmed that he indeed had an eighty-something-year-old mother who passed away in the evening on the day of the accident, and the call was from his uncle.

The at-fault driver himself deeply regretted his actions, crying throughout the record-making process, and eventually slapping his own face, expressing his willingness to compensate and take criminal responsibility.

The police outside the ward received instructions and pushed the door open to go in.

The at-fault driver, with a plastered arm, subconsciously sat up straight when he saw the officers enter: "Officer Wang, is there anything else?"

In previous questioning, he had been cooperative, and the police hadn’t made things difficult for him.

Nobody wanted such an incident to occur, not even this truck driver who caused it. His momentary negligence took two lives, perhaps more, yet he himself was also a pitiable person. His mother died, his uncle was disabled, and he had a son. According to the neighbors, his son had developmental delays, so his wife ran off early on, leaving the family behind. He alone supported the family by driving long-distance trucks. If anything happened to him, the family would collapse. He was honest and kind-hearted, always willing to help when neighbors encountered trouble, known in the community as a good person.

The officer known as "Officer Wang" spoke: "There is something we’d like to confirm with you."

"Please, mention it. I will certainly cooperate with what I know."

"At the time of the accident, did you see anyone sitting in the back seat of the taxi?"

The at-fault driver rested his other uninjured arm on the quilt, lowered his head to recall carefully, feeling dizzy immediately, he held his forehead shaking his head: "I don’t remember."

"Please think carefully; it’s crucial for us. There might have been another passenger whose life and death are still uncertain."

"Officer Wang, I really wasn’t paying attention..." The driver feigned a headache, lowering his head deeply, hiding it in the quilt, as he said painfully, "I don’t know, my head hurts a lot."

Outside the ward, another officer exchanged glances with Fu Jichen.

Only a wooden door stood between them, yet the conversation inside was clearly audible outside.

Fu Jichen’s stern face filled with clouds, he pushed the door open briskly. The driver on the bed lifted his head from the quilt, not yet seeing clearly who came in, when the person had already approached him. His hospital gown was pulled up, and it seemed his throat was being pinned, making breathing arduous with mouth agape.

The driver, in extreme terror, met a pair of menacing eyes, and the voice cutting into his heart, icy and sharp like shards, asked, "I’m asking you, was there anyone in the back seat of the taxi!"

Seeing this, the officers immediately stepped forward to dissuade, "Mr. Fu, please calm down, don’t be rash." Without touching Fu Jichen’s sleeves, they only verbally halted his actions.

Fu Jichen felt he was calm enough. From the moment he got off the plane till now, every nerve in his body was desperately controlling and suppressing itself. It only exploded now, which was already the limit.

"I’m asking you!" Fu Jichen held onto the driver’s collar tightly, undeterred by the officers’ intervention.

The at-fault driver was so overpowered by his aura that he forgot to pretend having a headache, swallowing his saliva nervously, sensing the collar around his neck tightening further, and in the blink of an eye, his face turned the color of pig liver.

"I... I remember it seemed like there was someone."

Fu Jichen abruptly released his grip and took a step back, though it seemed more like he staggered.

The driver collapsed on the bed like a rag, shivering all over, his arm painfully being pulled where it was plastered, sweat quickly beading on his forehead.

He felt no relief after surviving a disaster, truly believing at a certain moment that the man before him might strangle him to death.

Some people only feel fear when facing death.

Fu Jichen looked at the shaking culprit on the bed, wishing he could tear him to pieces. If not for him, his Jianian wouldn’t be in trouble, why should he lie here comfortably?

"Didn’t you just say you didn’t notice?" Fu Jichen’s face turned to an extreme icy coldness, picking holes in his words, "Now why are you changing your tune to say there might have been someone, huh? I’m asking you one last time, was there someone or not?!"

He gave a harsh kick to the bed’s leg, making the fragile hospital bed jolt violently.

The at-fault driver curled up in the quilt, weakly seeking help from the officers: "Officer Wang, I... I’m not sure either, the accident happened too suddenly, and it was so dark and rainy, I couldn’t even see the people in the front seat of the taxi clearly, how would I notice the rear seat. I just vaguely felt like there was a shadow moving. Just thinking of that scene makes my head hurt a lot..."

The policemen also felt troubled, he kept using words like "seemed" "uncertain" "vaguely," which, for the victims’ families, couldn’t be more tormenting.

"We hope you can recall seriously, this case is under high attention from the bureau. If you can provide useful information, it might earn you leniency at the trial." The officer offered benefits, hoping he would take it more seriously.

Fu Jichen had no patience to wait for the at-fault driver’s response, leaving the ward directly, pulling out a cigarette box from the pocket of his trousers, only to find it empty when the cap was flicked open with his thumb.

He crushed the cigarette box and tossed it into the trash can beside the elevator.

Lu Yanzhi handed him a cigarette, reminding him simultaneously: "You can’t smoke in the hospital, we’ll talk outside."

Fu Jichen turned a deaf ear, took out a lighter to ignite the cigarette, and bit it between his lips. The elevator door opened just in time, and he stepped inside, followed by Lu Yanzhi and two others.

There were other people in the elevator; seeing someone smoking, wanting to remind, yet facing such a somber and indifferent face, the words swallowed back down, angry yet not daring to speak out.

Officer Wang came out of the at-fault driver’s room, exchanged a look with his colleague, and sighed with a shake of his head.

Actually, when they watched the surveillance video yesterday, they had an ominous guess because the first passenger to get in the taxi, Shen Jianian, sat in the back. The later surveillance showed someone in the front passenger seat, but the firefighters only retrieved two people from the river, making it difficult not to think in a negative direction.

Once they came out of the hospital, the noontime sun blazed brightly on their faces, already possessing the intense heat of summer.

Lu Yanzhi hooked his hip belt with his thumb, turning his head to look at the indescribably discontented Fu Jichen, "The police are already checking the surveillance around Yangfeng Road. If there is any trace of Shen Jianian, they will certainly contact you." Pausing momentarily, he continued with difficulty but had to say it, "The salvage team expanded the search range along the downstream Songli River. If... if they bring up a person, they will notify you immediately. Go back to the hotel and rest a bit."

He had a premonition that if Fu Jichen didn’t sleep, he might collapse on the way to searching for Shen Jianian.

Lu Yanzhi repeatedly assured him: "If you aren’t reassured, Song Fang and I will take turns monitoring the police and the salvage team’s movements. We’ll wake you once there’s news..."

Wanting to further persuade, Fu Jichen’s phone rang first. Afraid to miss an important call, the ringtone was set loud. At the moment he heard it, his nerves tensed up.

Fu Jichen picked up the phone, seeing it was an unknown number, he answered without hesitation.

A gentle female voice came from the other side, probing as she asked, "Is this Fu Jichen?"

Attempting patience, Fu Jichen replied, "I am."

The girl on the other end of the phone seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, stating her purpose, "I’m Xu Youxuan. I’d like to discuss the engagement with you in person. Are you available today?"

She previously tried calling Fu Jichen but received a message about his phone being off, so she inquired among their acquaintances about Fu Jichen’s whereabouts. After hearing he had gone to Switzerland for business, she didn’t call again to disturb him.

At midnight last night, a friend from the circle mentioned seeing Fu Jichen at the international airport, so Xu Youxuan seized the midday break today to call.

Fu Jichen wasn’t in the mood to deal with her: "I’m not available."

With that, he hung up, not giving the other person a chance to speak further.