S.C.I Mystery Series Volume 4 Chapter 108

The Murderer Who Returned From Hell 08 – Subtle Connection

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That night, S City seemed a little tense, and the number of traffic police at all intersections increased.

The SWAT team searched until midnight, but the mysterious dry corpse was still nowhere to be seen, while the major news headlines could not wait to start analysing this "monster".

Bai Yutang and the others investigated overnight at the police station. Xu Sun, Cheng Mu, including the dead Liu Yu, all three have complex backgrounds and broad social relations, and there were no clues in the case, making it quite difficult to investigate. They needed to look at a large amount of information to find a connection, which was equivalent to finding a needle in a haystack.

Bai Yutang asked Jiang Ping if Cheng Mu's dream girl had been found, and Jiang Ping shook his head, "So far we haven't found her, Gongsun said that this woman has had plastic surgery, and she wasn't that good looking originally."

Bai Yutang had no choice but to have him continue to look for her, but the sea of people was so vast... there was no place to start, and they were considering whether or not to put out a missing persons notice.

Zhan Zhao sat on the armrest of the swivel chair, holding a paper and pen in his hand, and spinning in place.

Everyone was busy in their own way, but only Zhan Zhao seemed to be very idle... but no one bothered him.

Because Xu Lie was homeless, he was temporarily staying in the SCI's lounge.

Ma Xin went to buy a few bags of late night snacks and distributed them to the crowd.

She handed a burger to Xu Lie.

Xu Lie took the burger and stared at Zhan Zhao, who was roaming alone outside, and asked Ma Xin, "What's he doing? Performing a ritual?"

Ma Xin gave him a blank look, unwrapping the paper wrapper and nibbling on the burger, "That's called using your brain!"

Xu Lie bit into his burger, "That, I heard that Zhan Zhao is very smart, right?"

"That's right." Ma Xin nodded.

"How smart?" Xu Lie raised his eyebrows.

"The kind of smart that can be ranked among the best on this planet!" Ma Xin's face was serious.

Xu Lie looked at Ma Xin with his burger in his mouth and was silent for about ten seconds, then collected the paper bag and slipped out.

Ma Xin looked at Xu Lie in puzzlement, and saw him approach Zhan Zhao's side and grasp the armrest of the swivel chair, "Come out for a while!"

Zhan Zhao looked at him in confusion, and Xu Lie dragged the swivel chair to an unoccupied corridor to the side.

Bai Yutang was reading a piece of information Jiang Ping had given him. He glanced at them from the corner of his eye, reached out, and gently stroked his chin, as if he had some sort of plan.

Ma Xin continued to distribute the snacks. Everyone got junk food, except for Luo Tian who received beef sandwiches and egg drop soup made by Ma Xin with love. Everyone looked at that biassed girl with contempt. Even Ma Han's treatment was not as good as Luo Tian's, it's true that girls are born to leave their family ah, Ma Han shook his head with a burger in his hand.

When it was distributed to Bai Yutang, Bai Yutang shook his head, indicating that he didn't want a burger.

"Captain, are you afraid of getting fat?" Zhao Hu probably wanted to take a break and ran over to joke, picking up a spicy chicken wing to nibble on as he did so.

Bai Yutang glanced at him, "Don't you think that the wrinkled skin of that chicken resembles that dry corpse?"

"Pfft."

Zhao Hu sprayed Jiang Ping, who was tapping on the computer, with chicken, and Jiang Ping slapped his head as he rescued the keyboard.

Ma Han dragged the disgusted Zhao Hu away and continued to read the information.

Bai Yutang took an apple and nibbled on it while looking at Zhan Zhao and Xu Lie in the doorway, and asked Ma Xin who was torn between having an extra burger or an extra meat roll, "Who is Xu Lie interested in?"

Ma Xin smiled, "Xiao Yu's brother."

Bai Yutang raised his eyebrows slightly, as if he was expecting it yet was somewhat surprised, "It's really Chen Mi?"

"Yes!" Ma Xin nodded.

"You're so familiar with Chen Yu, do you know how Chen Mi is doing?"

"I know, Xiao Yu and her brother have a great relationship." Ma Xin said, "Brother Chen is very traditional, and his company is quite good, so he always tells Xiao Yu to hurry up, get married and have a child with Lan Xi, and to be a happy little housewife instead of running around all the time, he can support Grandpa without Xiao Yu having to work hard to earn a living."

Bai Yutang nodded, " Are you familiar with Chen Mi?"

"Quite familiar, we often have his company arrange the firework effects for our concerts, and the film crews often look for him to do the explosions. His company's explosion effects are superb! There is no danger at all, but the scene is super nice! Brother Bai's company cooperates with him a lot."

Bai Yutang stroked his chin, his brother really has a wide network of friends...

"But Brother Chen doesn't like Xu Lie." Ma Xin shook her head, "I don't know what Xu Lie is up to. After Brother Chen helped him with a concert stage effect once, he stuck to him like glue on a cowhide, he couldn't shake him off."

Bai Yutang was a bit curious, "It doesn't seem like the two of them have any chemistry."

"That's true! One is especially serious and the other is especially out of tune!" Ma Xin nodded.

Bai Yutang nodded slightly, lowered his head, and spoke to Jiang Ping.

Jiang Ping held a burger in his mouth and tapped on his keyboard.

......

The doorway.

Zhan Zhao looked at Xu Lie in confusion, "What are you doing?"

"I have something to ask you!" Xu Lie said seriously.

Zhan Zhao stared at him for a while and asked with a sympathetic face, "Chen Mi is ignoring you?"

......

Xu Lie's eyes were moved to tears, "You really are the saviour! Buddha should have this expression!"

Zhan Zhao was speechless, Xu Lie's behaviour really disillusioned his idol image, and he helplessly spread his hands, "I can't do anything about this, it's not my field of study."

Xu Lie put his hands together, "Please!"

Zhan Zhao instead asked curiously, "You really fancy Chen Mi?"

"Yes!" Xu Lie nodded.

"What do you see in him?" Zhan Zhao was even more curious.

"He's handsome!"

The corner of Zhan Zhao's mouth twitched, "Yutang is more handsome than him."

"Bullshit." Xu Lie bristled.

Zhan Zhao narrowed his eyes and pointed at him, "There's eye mucus."

Xu Lie rubbed his eyes, his skin as thick as a city wall.

"Then just keep stalking him." Zhan Zhao was also helpless, "This kind of thing can't be helped by others."

"I can't, I've been following him for a year and he won't pay attention to me." Xu Lie was bitter.

Zhan Zhao thought about it. Chen Mi used to be secretly in love with Qin Ou, but look at Qin Ou and then look at Xu Lie, one walks the route of sunshine and being a good father, and one walks the route of being handsome, cool and wildly domineering... it seems like there is no crossover! If you have to say something, both of them are considered people who attract others, right? Qin Ou attracts perverted murderers, and Xu Lie is not much better, as the dry corpse was attracted to his door...

"Hmm?" As Zhan Zhao thought of this, he suddenly stroked his chin, "Common ground? Speaking of which, do Cheng Mu and Xu Sun have something in common?"

Xu Lie looked at the sky as Zhan Zhao thought about the case.

"Do you want to take the parental route instead?" Zhan Zhao asked Xu Lie.

The corner of Xu Lie's mouth twitched, Zhan Zhao's thinking was really jumpy, but he shook his head, "I don't dare, Elder Chen might ruin me."

Zhan Zhao sighed, "Then how do you want me to help you?"

"Help me think of a reason for him to accept me!" Xu Lie had a serious face.

Zhan Zhao stroked his chin and looked at the sky, "Hmm..."

Zhan Zhao hummed for half a day, and Xu Lie squatted until his feet were numb, so he couldn't do anything...

At this time, they heard someone speak behind them, "People always have a hobby."

Xu Lie and Zhan Zhao raised their heads together.

They saw Captain Bai elegantly leaning against the glass door of the SCI office, holding a burger in one hand and a piece of paper in the other.

Zhan Zhao sat on the swivel chair and sighed – So handsome! No matter how you look at him, he is very handsome! Even holding a hamburger doesn't make him look like a loser!

Bai Yutang looked at Zhan Zhao's expression and gave him the burger.

Zhan Zhao glanced at the packaging, "I want spicy, not crispy!"

Bai Yutang narrowed his eyes slightly – The weather is dry, eat less spice!

Zhan Zhao took the burger and thought it would be better to just settle with it.

Xu Lie stood up, stretched his numb legs, and asked Bai Yutang, "Do you have any ideas?"

Bai Yutang's slender index and middle fingers held a folded A4 piece of paper and handed it to Xu Lie.

"What is this...?" Xu Lie took it and opened it.

"Chen Mi used to be the head of the bomb squad, Jiang Ping collected all of his personal data, including likes and dislikes." Bai Yutang raised an eyebrow.

Zhan Zhao nibbled on his burger while reaching for the piece of paper and reading through it, patting Xu Lie's shoulder sympathetically, "Based on the behavioural analysis of your personality, you're the type Chen Mi hates the most without a doubt. Give up, there's no place where you can't find grass."

Xu Lie's mouth opened wide, "There is no hope?"

Zhan Zhao nodded, "Data doesn't lie."

Xu Lie rubbed against the wall, "I don't want to! I won't accept it."

"Nothing is absolute." With his other hand, Bai Yutang handed a phone over to Xu Lie.

Xu Lie hugged a green plant by the wall, looking at the phone in Bai Yutang's hand in disbelief, "There's a turning point?"

"If soft doesn't work, then go hard." Bai Yutang smiled.

Xu Lie's mouth opened wide, "You're telling me to force him?"

The corner of Bai Yutang's mouth twitched, "I'm telling you to threaten him."

"Threaten how?" Xu Lie didn't understand.

"Tell him that if he doesn't accept you, you'll gather the major media to show your love for him first thing tomorrow morning." Bai Yutang raised an eyebrow, "And you'll even go to his building and sing a love song at his window!"

Xu Lie held the phone, "This..."

Zhan Zhao clapped his hands, "Wonderful idea!"

Xu Lie thought about it, took the phone and ran to call Chen Mi, following Bai Yutang's words, and sure enough...

Xu Lie ran back with joy, "He's willing to accept me!"

Bai Yutang took the phone back.

Lou Waigua ran out, "Brother Lie, so when are you moving?"

"What's the point of moving ah, I'll just go live there." Xu Lie was about to leave happily.

"Hey." Bai Yutang patted him, "Cat and I will send you there."

Zhan Zhao looked at Bai Yutang with some surprise.

"That's a good idea." Lou Waigua smiled, thinking that this Captain Bai looked so cool and was actually quite nice.

"In the process, we can catch up with Chen Mi." Bai Yutang indicated that he would go get the car key.

Xu Lie gathered up his belongings obediently and prepared to go to his new residence. Lou Waigua didn't need to follow him, he could go home on his own and pick him up from Chen Mi's house early tomorrow morning.

Zhan Zhao curiously followed Bai Yutang into the office and asked, "You're rarely so enthusiastic and gossipy, what are you doing? Does Chen Mi have something to do with this case?"

Bai Yutang smiled and handed a document on his desk to Zhan Zhao.

When Zhan Zhao opened it, he saw that it was an open case file, and the signature of the police officer in charge of the case was clearly written – Chen Mi.

Zhan Zhao looked over the case in detail, and it turned out that three years ago, Chen Mi had handled an explosion case.

It was a case of blowing up a car, and the owner of the car that exploded was Xu Sun. But Xu Sun was very lucky, he was not killed by the explosion and escaped. Chen Mi led an investigation into the case, but could not find the source of the bomb... His investigation mentioned that the production method of this bomb was quite old and rare, and that he had not encountered this kind of bomb in all the similar cases that had occurred in the country. However, because it did not cause casualties, and Xu Sun did not seem to want to pursue, when the bomb squad was short of resources and understaffed, Chen Mi stopped investigating, and it became an open case.

Zhan Zhao took three seconds to read the information and looked up at Bai Yutang, "Someone tried to murder Xu Sun in the past? Using the same method of blowing up a car?"

Bai Yutang nodded and said to Qin Ou, who was reading information not far away, "Qin Ou, you come along as well."

"Oh." Qin Ou nodded and walked to the doorway, exchanging a wide-eyed glance with Xu Lie who was standing there, as Zhan Zhao walked out and gave the information to Qin Ou.

The crowd went downstairs to get into their car.

Bai Yutang borrowed Zhao Zhen's big jeep. On the way, Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang sat in the front, and in the back, Xu Lie and Qin Ou sat side by side, with a somewhat strange atmosphere.

Qin Ou finished reading the information and frowned slightly, staring at the bomb's profile, "I've seen this bomb once before."

Zhan Zhao was surprised, "Where?"

"It wasn't something I came across while working on a case." Qin Ou explained, "It was at an exhibition."

"Exhibition?" Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang were curious.

"Mhmm, I remember this case, I was no longer working as a police officer when it happened." Qin Ou said, "I also remember that it was raining heavily that day, and Chen Mi ran to me and showed me this picture."

Zhan Zhao stroked his chin, thinking – Chen Mi managed to finally catch a chance to go and take a look at Qin Ou, right?

Xu Lie glanced at Qin Ou and went back to glancing at the bomb in the document.

"This bomb is virtually impossible to defuse, and it wasn't detonated by a timing device, but by a signal." Qin Ou said.

"Signal..." Bai Yutang frowned slightly, "That means that Xu Sun didn't escape back then, but that the people didn't really want him dead?"

"You could say that." Qin Ou nodded, "The other party probably just wanted to scare him or give him a warning. About half a year later, one time Yang Fan and I went to the United States to see Xiao Yi, there happened to be an exhibition hall that was having an antique weapons exhibition, and I saw this bomb in person. The bomb was a semi-finished product found in a war zone in Eastern Europe, and I asked the private collector who was organising the exhibition about it. He said that this bomb was found for him by a Ukrainian friend, and that this technology is that of the old bombs made during World War II, which are hardly used anymore. However, this one was quite new, so it's possible that there are still people making them now, for black market trading and whatnot."

Zhan Zhao raised an eyebrow slightly.

Bai Yutang drove the car near the neighbourhood that Xu Lie told him about, and found that it wasn't Chen Yu and her grandfather's residence, and was a little puzzled, "Chen Mi doesn't live at home?"

"It's a studio apartment." Xu Lie nodded, "It's closer to his company, and he sometimes stays here when he's working too late so he doesn't have to go home and wake up his grandfather and sister."

Everyone nodded.

Bai Yutang frowned slightly and looked at the intersection in front of him. There were two traffic police officers checking the passing vehicles, and a patrol car was parked on the side of the road.

Bai Yutang drove the car near the patrol car, and a police officer ran over, "Captain Bai?"

Bai Yutang asked, "This is not part of the search area, why are you guys here?"

"Just now, a citizen reported that a dry corpse was seen around here, so we came to take a look, the SWAT team will be here soon." The police officer replied.

"When was it?" Zhan Zhao asked.

"We just received the order five minutes ago, we were the closest so we came over. It was one of the security guards in that neighbourhood who reported the incident." The police officer reached out and pointed.

Xu Lie was a little nervous, "The neighbourhood where Chen Mi lives."

Bai Yutang frowned and exchanged a glance with Zhan Zhao – coincidence?

"Where's that security guard?" Bai Yutang asked.

"Over there." The police officer pointed to the security room ahead. A security guard was standing in the doorway, a police officer was questioning him, and the security guard reached out and pointed to the location of a flower bed not far away. This neighbourhood had a lot of good greenery and trees, and there were a lot of hiding spots. Moreover, many of the residents were white-collar workers who worked in the neighbourhood, so their cars weren't in the garage at night, and they were parked directly by the flower beds.

Bai Yutang stopped the car, walked to the door of the security room, and asked the security guard to tell him what happened.

The security guard pointed to the flower bed in front of a building not far away and said, "I just went to help a resident check his reverse parking when I suddenly saw a figure swaying and running past the back of the flower bed. I saw that its back was particularly thin and sneaky, so I called out, and it turned back to look at me... my god! Scared me to death!"

The security guard patted his chest as he spoke.

Bai Yutang asked him, "Which direction did it run in?"

"That way." The security guard reached out and pointed to the very same small high-rise building that Chen Mi lived in.

Xu Lie was nervous, "It can't be such a coincidence, right? Does he know us?"

Bai Yutang signalled for him not to make any wild guesses and led the group in the direction of the building. Xu Lie took out his cell phone to call Chen Mi, but the call didn't go through, "Aiya, why does he never answer his phone."

Qin Ou took out his phone to call SCI for backup. Luo Tian and the others were also on their way out at this time and were about to call Bai Yutang when they received Qin Ou's call, and hurriedly said, "Bao Sir came to notify us just now... the SWAT team received a report that that dry corpse appeared... and its location is in the neighbourhood where you guys went to."

......

At this time, on the eleventh floor of the high-rise, Chen Mi, who finished working overtime, just finished showering and wiping her hair and felt hungry, so he went to the kitchen to cook noodles.

On the sofa in the living room, his cell phone, which had been turned to vibrate, was buzzing, but it was covered by the suit Chen Mi had taken off, and the sound was muffled.

The small TV on the kitchen table was playing the news about the wanted dry corpse, and the sound of the news broadcast completely covered the vibration of the mobile phone.

Chen Mi looked at the picture of Xu Lie's house where the corpse broke in on the news, shook his head, and thought that that kid could really be caught up in anything.

At this time, the doorbell rang.

Chen Mi turned down the heat, thought that Xu Lie came quite quickly, and walked over to open the door...

‿︵‿︵ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ・❉・ ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ‿︵‿︵

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Translator Notes

I am one chapter away from finishing the entirety of volume 4! It's been a long process, but volume 5 will be even longer... 😭

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

Translated: November 15, 2023 by Angel

Edited: November 23, 2023 by Angel