Diary of a Criminal Investigator-Chapter 274: Sincere and Honest Persuasion

Interrogation room.

Chen Feng sat opposite Wang Guojun once again.

This time, he voluntarily lit a cigarette for Wang Guojun.

Only those who smoke can understand the feeling of being forced to go without a cigarette for a long time.

Wang Guojun understood this feeling more than anyone else, yet he still hadn’t quit smoking or mended his ways.

In prison, smoking isn’t an option, you won’t even see a cigarette butt.

Over the years, management inside has become more regulated. In the past, some well-connected figures could still get their hands on contraband items, like cigarettes, even on the inside.

In earlier years, there were even people sentenced to death with reprieve who remained inside for over a decade before getting out.

But now...

Wang Guojun greedily took a puff, muttering to himself, "Once inside, I won’t be able to smoke anymore."

"Director Chen, give me another one."

Chen Feng didn’t mind Wang Guojun’s laid-back attitude and handed him another cigarette.

Once the first cigarette was finished, it could be followed by another.

"You also know there are no smokes inside now?"

"Times have changed. When I first went in, you could get anything inside as long as you had money."

"But not anymore. Some friends who just got out told me you can’t even find a cigarette butt now."

Chen Feng smiled. Although he was a police station chief, he may not be as informed about the inside as Wang Guojun.

After all, this guy had been inside twice and had personal experience.

"Knowing it’s tough inside, and you still dared to do this?"

"It’s because I’m broke. If I had money, why would I commit a crime?"

Wang Guojun shrugged and pointed at himself, "Look at me, at this age, still haven’t snagged a wife, most of my life is over without even a child."

"Tiger, your mom is still around."

When Chen Feng mentioned his mother, Wang Guojun’s expression stalled.

He finally sighed, "The person I’ve let down the most in this life is my mom."

"She gave birth to such a disappointing son, hasn’t enjoyed a single day of happiness, and worries because of me."

"Isn’t your mom sixty-two this year?"

Wang Guojun nodded, "She just had her birthday last month. I bought her a big cake, but she only took one bite and said she didn’t like it. The rest was left for me."

How could she not like it?

It was the only time she ever had cake in her life. 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

"We’re about the same age. My mom is sixty-four and isn’t in good health either, she has diabetes."

Chen Feng seemed not to expect anything useful from Wang Guojun, just casually chatting.

"Now that you’re going in again, have you thought about what will happen to your mom?"

"What else can happen? The government has nursing homes, Director Chen..."

Wang Guojun looked at Chen Feng, "You guys won’t abandon her, right?"

"I know the policy. If people like us get incarcerated and our parents can’t take care of themselves, you have to help."

This is work that police stations everywhere are doing.

A method of transformative education.

Every criminal has various reasons for wrongdoing, but most weren’t willing to go down this path at first.

Moreover, the vast majority of inmates perform well in reform inside.

As for family, they become the most cherished thought for these people.

In the past, care for inmates’ families wasn’t particularly thorough.

A very small part of the released individuals returned with stronger urges to retaliate against society.

In recent years, due to rapid economic development, funding in this area has become more sufficient, plus there are related policies, which have made attention to prisoners’ families, especially children and elderly parents, very thorough.

The work of some grassroots police stations revolves around these people.

And practice has shown, since these policies came into play, compared to before, the probability of reoffending for released individuals has significantly decreased.

Initially, some officers didn’t quite understand, but as public security indicators in their jurisdictions increased and recidivism decreased, most people have come to accept this work.

After all, the ones frequently causing trouble in the area are those same people.

Once these individuals stabilize, crime naturally decreases, making police work easier.

This forms a virtuous cycle.

Even though Wang Guojun had been inside twice in these years, his mother had been well taken care of, so he was clear about these policies.

"Your crime has nothing to do with your mother."

Chen Feng shook his head, "You go in, your mother will be taken care of, so you can rest assured."

"But," Chen Feng looked intently at Wang Guojun, "given your mother’s current health, even with our care, if she knows you’re back inside, how many more years can she hold on?"

"While a nursing home can care for your mother, could its care be as good as yours?"

"Have you considered this?"

Wang Guojun slowly put down his smoking hand and didn’t speak further.

The swirling smoke blurred Wang Guojun’s face.

Chen Feng didn’t say anything more, just sighed.

"Wang Guojun, I know what you’re thinking right now."

"Liu Bai’s abduction has been exposed, and you won’t get the money, so you’re thinking everyone should suffer."

"But have you considered that by struggling like this, you’ll most likely end up with a life sentence."

"If that happens, you might truly never see your mom again."

Wang Guojun’s mother had partial paralysis and difficulty speaking. At sixty-two, how could she visit him in prison?

So, if Wang Guojun were sentenced to life, even if he behaved well inside, he might get out in this life.

But his mother definitely wouldn’t wait that long.

"However, if you cooperate now and tell us where Liu Bai is, this situation still has room to change."

"If, and I mean if you can gain Liu Bai’s forgiveness and achieve some merits, there’s a chance for a lighter sentence, and if you get five years, behaving well inside, getting out in three or four years isn’t impossible."

"In three or four years, your mom could still wait for you, right?"

Three or four years?

Chen Feng’s words touched on Wang Guojun’s deepest desires.

"Really... it could be three or four years?"

The reason Wang Guojun refused to cooperate was that he believed he was facing either life imprisonment or a death sentence.

That’s why he made a wreck of things.

But if what Chen Feng said about three or four years was possible, Wang Guojun wasn’t foolish.

He was not yet forty and had decades left to live well.

Moreover, in three or four years, his mother could indeed wait for him.

"I can’t be sure, but your legal knowledge inside is just dead text."

"I’ve been a cop for many years; I’ve seen all kinds of criminals and all kinds of cases."

"In your case, kidnapping, the minimum sentence is five years imprisonment."

"That’s the minimum; I think it’s worth striving for that minimum."

"Otherwise, if Liu Bai really dies, what good does it do you?"