S.C.I Mystery Series Volume 3 Chapter 32

Smiling Murderer 30 - The Truth

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“What ‘yan’?” Bai Yutang asked puzzledly.

“Actually, what Deng Che wanted to tell us is the word ‘eye’.” Zhan Zhao said, “To put it simply, what Deng Che wants to tell us and Zhao Jue is about the man who uses the electronic eyes. In other words, to remind us that this person exists.”

“En.” Bai Yutang nodded and asked, “And then what?”

“And then there was the misunderstanding we stepped into while handling this case.” Zhan Zhao said. Smiling, he asked, “Do you remember the last time you read the newspaper, there was an interesting piece of news in it?”

Bai Yutang raised an eyebrow, signalling… There’s often interesting news coming out, Cat, which one are you talking about?

After thinking about it, Zhan Zhao said, “There was an actor who often played the role of a homicidal maniac in horror movies, and one day, after he was stopped by a traffic cop, the cop saw him and ran, he even called the police, remember? And you laughed out loud when you read it.”

“En…” Bai Yutang nodded, “I remember.”

“Half of the cases we’re following this time are, in fact, staged.” Zhan Zhao smiled, “They were deliberately mixed in in order to conceal the word ‘eye’.”

The group frowned and Bai Yutang asked, “Staged?”

“En.” Zhan Zhao nodded and asked Jiang Ping, “Those CDs, you’ve watched them all, right?”

“I’ve watched them.” Jiang Ping nodded, “It’s all pretty much the same content as the last video we got, the Nazi flags, and the people who died with death smiles, like some kind of ritual, all over the world.”

“Why do you guys think that such experiments are done all over the world?” Zhan Zhao laughed, “If we analyze it carefully, we will find that it is more like some kind of experiment than a ritual.”

“Experiment?” The group was puzzled.

“It's like a National Geographic feature series where a film crew tracks a certain phenomenon and thus travels around the world to film it.” Zhan Zhao laughed, “The funding and professional team required for this is not something that an ordinary organisation can afford.”

“That’s true!” Jiang Ping nodded, “The way I see it, the filming seems to have been done by the same group of people, it does feel a bit like a Natural Geographic series.”

“According to the recording time of the videos, it can be seen that a group of people were following a certain pattern, going to different parts of the world and finding different groups of people to experiment with, with the aim of recording the results of the experiment.”

“Right.” Bai Yutang nodded, “The same group of people that goes around the world…. Do they do it in order to test different races?”

“People from different regions have the biggest gap in terms of psychological condition and thinking logic, but physically they are in fact not too far apart.” Zhan Zhao said, “For example, we will die if we ingest cyanide, and foreigners will die if they ingest cyanide, there’s nothing to test and there is no way to run an experiment for this.”

“Then they are experimenting with… the electronic eye?” Bai Yutang asked.

Zhan Zhao nodded, “That’s right… For a poison like the death smile, its existence is already known to many people, which means that as a poison, its value is already positioned to a certain extent and there is no need to invest too much in experiments to study it. It’s not worth the investment, as this is just an ordinary poison that spreads through blood and by consumption, it’s not likely to be some kind of lethal weapon of mass destruction.”

“But the electronic eye is different.” Gongsun nodded, “Once that electronic eye succeeds, a person may be unknowingly placed under suggestion, and at that time, their death may not be from the death smile, but it could be that when the determined time of death comes, the victim just dies inexplicably as per the hypnotist's request… Heh, similar in nature to the Death Note, I guess.”

“Gongsun, you also read that manga?” Bai Chi asked with wide eyes, “I like it too.”

Gongsun looked at Bai Chi and reached out to touch his head… Bai Chi's tail, which hadn't appeared for a long time, wagged again.

“But today’s electronic eyes are out of the experimental stage, and the dead are all imitating a death caused by the death smile poison… But what is the purpose of that?” Zhan Zhao continued.

“To confuse the public and make us think that it’s just neo-Nazi extremists at work?” Bai Yutang asked.

“Do you remember Guo Cheng and the others?” Zhan Zhao asked, “They died while smiling.”

“En.” Gongsun nodded.

“The nature of their deaths is the same as the others.” Zhan Zhao said, “They are different causes of death that are all pretending to be the same. At the time, we were thinking that it was OCD, and of course, with that reasoning, the performance at the time of death can also disguise the killer's true intentions.”

“En,” Zhan Zhao nodded, “neo-Nazism is nothing more than a game for some students, one that some have overplayed, taken too far, and got people killed because of, just like Liu Song… However, Liu Song, as well as the others who participated in the act and eventually died… all of them are the real murderers, brought in to act, to confuse us, and they can be discarded at any time!”

“This is indeed an excellent way to deceive people.” Bai Yutang frowned, “Until we traced it to the end, we only thought that some organization was taking pleasure in killing people, and never doubted… that it was for another purpose, and that the killing was just a distraction… No, to be precise, the use of Nazism to kill was a cover-up, but killing the people involved in the clues to the case was to silence them so that everything went smoothly. It’s just that something went wrong with Deng Che… he used Yellow Wolf to inform us!”

“Is it because they were afraid that the information about the electronic eye would be exposed, which is why they wanted to assassinate Brother?” Bai Chi asked.

“It was after the Yellow Wolf incident happened yesterday.” Zhan Zhao smiled faintly, “If they wanted to kill me, they could have done it when I made the call, why did they wait until Deng Che died? In other words, the word ‘eye’ that Deng Che told me was the key, they knew that I would link the case and the electronic eye together.”

Everyone couldn’t help but frown.

“Because you heard the word ‘eye’?” Bai Yutang asked, “How did the sniper know? Did someone give him instructions?”

“En,“Zhan Zhao smiled, “the problem is here. Who can quietly minitor the details of what happened in the prison? Hear the words Deng Che said to me?”

Everyone was stunned – A thought flashed through all of their minds: could it be someone in the prison staff?

“Deng Che’s behaviour is similar to imprisoning himself.” Zhan Zhao smiled, “He was in the middle of a prison that is under police protection, and because this is a special prison, most of the people who go there know something.”

Bai Yutang nodded, but his eyes looked at the prison staff outside the room… His eyes met Wu Meng’s, as he was also looking at him.

When their eyes met, Bai Yutang’s heart stirred and he felt something weird.

“Cat…” Bai Yutang frowned.

“Deng Che was caught while in prison. He had previously been in solitary confinement for a while, and that was the best time to put him under hypnosis.” Zhan Zhao said, “Other than at this time, no one would be able to lay their hands on him!”

“The mole is inside the prison?” Gongsun thought about it and said, “That’s right, with Deng Che in prison, even if he really knows something, they can’t kill him directly, so the best approach is to send someone to keep an eye on him, and when they discover him doing anything abnormal, they can kill him directly…”

“After the Yellow Wolf incident happened, weren’t there some personnel transfers in the prison?” Zhan Zhao looked at Bai Yutang.

Bai Yutang turned his head to look at Wu Meng and the others, and suddenly said, “Uncle Wu, come here.”

Wu Meng was stunned and seemed to be hesitant.

Everyone felt the same way in their hearts: something’s weird.

“Uncle Wu?” Bai Yutang waved to him and smiled, “Come here, I have something to ask you.”

As soon as Bai Yutang’s words fell… Wu Meng suddenly turned around and ran away.

“Wu Meng!” Bai Yutang yelled. The two prison guards beside Wu Meng didn’t know what was happening but one of them stood in Wu Meng’s way so he couldn’t run out in a hurry.

Zhan Zhao took two steps and pressed the emergency button next to him…

In an instant, the alarm bell sounded and all of the iron doors throughout the entire prison closed automatically. Seeing that there was no hope of getting out, Wu Meng pulled out his gun with his backhand, grabbed a prison guard next to him with his other, and took him hostage, then looked back at Bai Yutang and the others.

Bai Yutang and the others had long since drawn their guns on him.

Zhan Zhao, who was shielded by Bai Yutang, spoke to Wu Meng, “Uncle Wu, are you old and confused? You haven’t put your gun down yet?”

Wu Meng stared at Zhan Zhao and said, “Amazing, worthy of being Qitian’s son… as amazing as Zhao Jue was back then.”

Bai Yutang frowned slightly, feeling that Wu Meng’s situation was odd, and Zhan Zhao whispered to him, “Yutang, he is an important clue, and it is very likely that he is connected to the organization… The electronic eye is the type of thing that organisation is more enthusiastic about!”

Bai Yutang nodded slightly, Zhan Zhao meant that Wu Meng can’t die!

At this time, a large number of prison guards had already surrounded him. Bai Yutang held up his gun and said to everyone, “Everyone retreat, go outside, don’t come in!”

The prison guards looked at each other and had no choice but to back away.

Bai Yutang waved to the other prison guard who was stunned, motioning for him to come over.

The prison guard hurried over, and Bai Yutang and the others scattered. Zhan Zhao had been held back by Bai Yutang because there was someone who wanted to kill Zhan Zhao earlier, so it was natural for him to be more on guard.

Wu Meng looked very nervous. He looked at Bai Yutang and said, “I also face difficulties.”

Zhan Zhao suddenly frowned and said to Bai Yutang, “Yutang, be careful of him committing suicide.”

Bai Yutang was taken aback.

Sure enough, Wu Meng suddenly pushed the little prison guard and pointed his gun at his temple.

Bai Yutang had been long prepared, and when he raised his gun, he shot him in the wrist…

The gun in his hands fell as he stumbled and fell to the ground, fortunately unable to pull the trigger, and the little prison guard stepped back. Luo Tian and the others rushed over and grabbed him, and Bai Yutang hurriedly said, “Send him back to the police station! He needs to stay alive!”

The SCI members escorted Wu Meng out of the prison, got into their cars, and left.

“I didn’t expect that!” Bai Yutang said to Zhan Zhao as he put away his gun, “For it to be him!”

“Let’s go to Lan Gui Ren and arrest some people.” Zhan Zhao said, “There should be another stronghold there, be careful of personnel transfers.”

Bai Yutang nodded and smiled at Zhan Zhao, “Cat.”

“What?” Zhan Zhao raised his eyes to look at Bai Yutang.

Bai Yutang raised an eyebrow and spoke with admiration, “Sure enough, no one is smarter than you.”

Zhan Zhao was stunned, he felt a little awkward, but he also felt really good in his heart. Smiling, he walked out with Bai Yutang.

After that, SCI’s arrests proceeded non-stop, starting with a surprise raid at Lan Gui Ren, which was already on fire when the police arrived, but because they arrived early enough, the fire was put out in time and Zhan Zhao and the others recovered a lot of information.

There was also a large number of records on electronic eye tests related to the research on nose-walking beasts.

Zhan Zhao packed all the materials in boxes, several boxes in total, and brought them back to the SCI office to study them carefully. This discovery was the first and most significant clue they had obtained since they had discovered the existence of the mysterious organisation.

Wu Meng and Jia Yuhua were put on trial under the protection of SCI.

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang personally carried out the interrogations, and this time, the interrogations gained them a lot of clues.

It turns out that Jia Yuhua and Wu Meng were hired by a certain organization. Jia Yuhua organized psychology experts such as He Lan to conduct the experiment of electronic eyes through teleconference. And by inducing multiple personalities in Liu Song, Xu You, and others, creating serial killings to confuse the public, Jia Yuhua created the neo-Nazi death smile organization.

They have used this trick all over the world, and it was because of this that Leonard’s attention was drawn to them and Eugene was sent to investigate the matter.

In addition, they accidentally learned the address of the electronic eye production factory during the interrogation, which turned out to be in the south of the city, in an area that was deserted and rarely frequented by people.

As soon as Zhou Hu got there, he yelled to Ma Han, “The last time I said that I would come up here if the world was ending because some of the sewers here have compartments with hydraulic doors. I thought that it was a former military factory… but it turned out to be a fucking electronic eye factory!”

“What kind of mindset would bring you to a place like this in the middle of nowhere? And to go into the sewers?” Ma Han asked in a puzzled manner.

Zhao Hu blinked and seriously said, “To find shelter.”

……

Inside the underground factory, the group not only found the production laboratory of the electronic eye, but also found the cultivation centre of some odd plants, in addition to several staff members, all foreigners, and all experts in biochemistry.

The case, after a series of twists and turns, finally came to a close with the death of the prisoner Deng Che.

Zhan Zhao continued to study the information. He was ready to follow the clues and trace them back, hoping to follow the trail and find the mysterious organization… but the trail was cut off when it reached Jia Yuhua and Wu Meng, as the other side was still quite professional and cautious.

The sniper who attacked Zhan Zhao was never found. Ma Han analyzed his path of attack, pointing out that he should be a professionally trained killer, and should be a foreigner. The gun he used was not locally available, and his techniques are more like the habits of foreign killers.

Zhan Zhao wanted to contact Interpol to follow up on the lead of the electronic eye, but Bao Zheng ordered him to stop the investigation, and the case was transferred to the higher-ups to be dealt with after a decision was made.

Zhan Zhao’s protests fell on deaf ears, so he could only sulk.

Liu Qing and Shen Zhongyuan showed a good performance this time, so Bai Yutang wanted to let the two stay in SCI, but since the area south of the city was still rather chaotic, the bureau built a new police station there, similar to the previous branch office, only with a complete restructuring of the personnel. Liu Qing and Shen Zhongyuan, on Bai Yutang's recommendation, went back to head the criminal police team there, leading the new group and investigating cases independently, and would always be available to work with SCI.

The nose walking beast was so valuable that Gongsun gave it to some professionals in high places, those who will properly protect and study it.

If the beginning of a case is fulfilling and intense, then the end of a case means emptiness and boredom, especially for Zhan Zhao… This time the case is indeed over, but that organization still hasn't completely surfaced. What exactly do they want? What does this matter have to do with Zhao Jue? It is always uncertain. Zhan Zhao also knew that he couldn't be in a hurry to deal with that organisation, but they had already taken a relatively large step forward. Fortunately, he had asked Jiang Ping to back up all the information, so he could still look into it.

After a week of peace and quiet, Zhan Zhao unexpectedly received a parcel from Zhao Jue.

The parcel was heavy and when Zhan Zhao opened it, he found only a stone inside, brown and ragged, looking very ordinary, similar to some kind of ore.

“What is this?” Zhan Zhao held the stone in bewilderment and ran to ask Gongsun.

After roughly analyzing the composition of the stone, Gongsun said, “It's some kind of meteorite, I think.”

“A meteorite?” Zhan Zhao picked up the stone and studied it for half a day before calling to ask Zhao Jue, “Why did you send me a meteorite?”

The reply he got from Zhao Jue was – Put it in your home to ward off evil spirits and to keep your love life stable and harmonious.

……

When Zhan Zhao’s face darkened and he was ready to fight with him, Zhao Jue hung up the phone with a mischievous smile.

After Gongsun did some examination, it was determined that it was just the most common kind of meteorite and did not contain any harmful substances. The stone was put into a box and left at home. Since Zhao Jue would give him such a stone, there must be some reason for it, right?

As for what the reason was… Zhan Zhao was in no hurry to find out. In the end, the truth would always come out, so he waited.

‿︵‿︵ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ・❉・ ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ‿︵‿︵

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Translator Notes

And case 10 is officially complete!

Please feel free to comment any mistakes I made so I can improve and do better as I go through the book.

I've decided to start putting my kofi at the end of every case (not chapter, just the case). I've always had it on my main page, but I know a lot of people read this on a mobile device, so many people would not see the sidebar where the link is always up. I'm not translating this to make money (hence why I have not put ads on my blog and why I chose to upload it independently rather than on an established site), but I love and appreciate every one of you who have supported me, whether it be by commenting or by donating $1 to my kofi. I am glad you are all along for the ride with me, and I hope we can continue this journey for a long time ❤ (Wow, why did that sound like something I should have written at the end of a volume instead of at the end of the first case of the book 😂)

Translated: September 27/28, 2021