C22 Who Was This Man?

Du Le came from a poor family, so she couldn't afford a taxi and had to rely on the bus to get home.

Later, Yang Hanh inquired with Du Le's classmates and discovered that her commute was quite inconvenient; she had to transfer buses, which was a significant hassle.

"Du Le was acting really odd that day. Her expression was off, like she was terrified and in a state of panic. Even on the bus, she kept looking over her shoulder, peering out the back window as if she was watching for something. I asked her what was wrong, if something had happened, but she insisted that everything was fine. She claimed she was just anxious to get home and tackle a mountain of homework," Yang Hanh recounted.

He paused, then added, "But that excuse just doesn't hold up. If it was only about the homework, why keep looking back? Was she worried a ghost was following her?"

Lu Wangshu and Qiao Liang exchanged glances before asking Yang Hanh, "When did all this take place?"

After a moment of reflection, Yang Hanh replied, "Hmm, about three months ago, before Du Le passed away."

Lu Wangshu nodded, signaling his understanding. Lin Xiangyi, who was nearby, couldn't resist asking Yang Hanh, "So, do you have any connection to Du Le's death?"

Yang Hanh shook his head, asserting, "Of course not. I've always been faint-hearted, too scared to even watch horror movies, let alone commit murder. You're giving me too much credit."

Yang Hanh's demeanor was entirely devoid of suspicion as he spoke; his tone, expressions, and gestures all appeared genuine. Lu Wangshu felt assured that Yang Hanh had no direct involvement in Du Le's death.

"Alright, I have no further questions. You're free to return to class and get back to your studies," he concluded.

He then turned to address the principal, "Principal, I'd like to review the surveillance footage from three months back."

Upon hearing this, the principal responded with a warm smile, "Certainly, I'll take you to the surveillance room now. Yang Hanh, you may head back to class; we have other matters to attend to."

With that, Yang Hanh nodded to the principal and exited the conference room.

The principal escorted Lu Wangshu and two others to the surveillance room. Having visited earlier that morning, the teacher in charge of surveillance still had a vague memory of Lu Wangshu and his companions.

"Back again? Are you looking to review more surveillance footage?" inquired the surveillance teacher.

Lu Wangshu nodded affirmatively and requested, "Could you retrieve the surveillance footage from the school gate from about three months ago?"

The surveillance teacher appeared shocked, questioning with disbelief, "Three months ago? That's quite a vague timeframe. How am I supposed to locate that?"

Lu Wangshu considered the difficulty of the request and silently pondered the situation. Yang Hanh had mentioned that Du Le had consented to let him take her home before her tragic leap, and since they typically resided at the school, they only went home on weekends.

Piecing the information together, Lu Wangshu deduced the event likely occurred on the Friday preceding Du Le's jump. She turned to the principal, who was standing behind them, and asked, "Principal, can you recall the exact day Du Le jumped?"

While others might struggle to remember the specific date of Du Le's jump, the principal certainly wouldn't forget such a significant incident within the school year. He was bound to remember.

After a brief pause, the principal confirmed, "Three months ago, on the seventh."

With the date in mind, Lu Wangshu quickly pulled out her phone, accessed the calendar, and pinpointed the exact date. She relayed this information to the surveillance teacher.

The teacher nodded, fingers flying over the keyboard, and swiftly located the footage Lu Wangshu was seeking. He adjusted the video to the time when students were dismissed from school, and before long, Yang Hanh appeared on the screen.

In the footage, Yang Hanh was about to enter a car when he suddenly turned back and waved, as if signaling to someone behind him. Lu Wangshu and the others understood that Yang Hanh must have been waving to Du Le.

Indeed, Du Le soon appeared on screen, her behavior mirroring exactly what Yang Hanh had previously described to Lu Wangshu and the others.

Du Le was visibly anxious, fidgeting with the straps of her backpack and frequently glancing back as if someone were pursuing her.

She then quickly bent down and slid into Yang Hanh's car. In her haste, Du Le's head bumped against the car frame.

Yang Hanh leaned in, his expression tense, seemingly inquiring whether Du Le was hurt. She shook her head, gesturing for Yang Hanh to hurry up and get in.

Shortly after, Yang Hanh joined her in the car. As soon as the door shut, the vehicle sped off.

Through the clear rear window, Lu Wangshu observed that Du Le still appeared uneasy even after the car had pulled away, continuously looking back with a face etched in nervousness and panic.

Du Le's reaction was definitely cause for concern.

Upon witnessing this, Lu Wangshu turned to the monitoring room teacher and requested, "Could you please pull up the surveillance footage from the school gate's camera?"

There were two cameras at the school entrance: one facing outward to capture the road beyond, and another facing inward towards the school grounds.

Lu Wangshu, having seen that the footage was limited to the school boundary, immediately surmised the presence of another camera.

Initially puzzled by Lu Wangshu's knowledge of the dual cameras, the surveillance room teacher later assumed Lu Wangshu must have noticed them upon arrival and dismissed his curiosity.

Promptly, the teacher accessed the footage Lu Wangshu had asked for.

Students, backpacks in tow, were seen chatting and laughing as they made their way to the school gate.

Then, a girl appeared in the distance, walking briskly and alone, without any companions by her side.

She periodically looked back over her shoulder, and at one point, nearly stumbled due to not watching her step.

Even though the distance made it difficult to discern the girl's face, Lu Wangshu was certain that she was Du Le.

As the girl approached, the surveillance camera provided a clear image of her face, confirming it was indeed Du Le.

Lu Wangshu requested the monitoring room teacher to slow down the footage so he could scrutinize each person trailing Du Le. After a while, he noticed something was off.

While most of the individuals behind Du Le were students, there was one man who stood out. He had been consistently following her, keeping a safe distance.

If Du Le quickened her pace, the man would do the same. And if Du Le stumbled, he would slow down accordingly.

The critical clue was that when Du Le looked back, her gaze seemed to fix on this man.

It appeared that the man Du Le was trying to avoid was likely him.

Lu Wangshu had the monitoring room teacher pause the video and zoom in on the man's face. Once it was sufficiently enlarged, Lu Wangshu called out "Stop," then turned to the principal and inquired, "Principal, do you know who this man is?"