Qiming Chapter 21

Chapter 21

---

At nine in the morning, he arrived at the criminal investigation team in the Shangnan District. Xu Chengyue had sent him a WeChat message saying it was fine if he forgot the autograph, as there would be plenty of opportunities in the future. He had classes all day today, so he told Captain Gu not to worry about him.

The autopsy results for Cao Yan were already out, and the forensic lab told him to wait for the analysis report to be ready before collecting it. He received the case file from Huang Chen, the captain of the Shangnan District criminal investigation team, which included information about the informant, transcripts, and on-site investigation records.

The deceased, Cao Yan, was a forty-seven-year-old female. She had been released from prison two months ago after serving an eighteen-year sentence in Lanqiao Prison for the crime of trafficking women and children.

Cao Yan's body had been discovered at seven-thirty yesterday morning by an elderly woman in the area. The old lady had been picking vegetables by the Pudian River when she noticed clothes floating in the water. Upon closer inspection, she realised it was a person. The informant, her son, called the police a little after eight o'clock and then went to the police station to give a statement.

Cao Yan had lived in the central part of the Shangnan District since her release, about twenty kilometres from where her body was found. The Pudian River, running east to west, cuts through Nanpu City, starting at Dianshan Lake and ending at Donghai Bay.

"Have you confirmed the time of death?" Gu Yunfeng asked.

"Preliminary estimates place it between one and three in the morning, but we're waiting for the autopsy report for specifics."

"And the cause of death?"

"There's a horizontal ligature mark on the neck and facial swelling, suggesting mechanical asphyxiation." Huang Chen handed him several photos taken at the scene, clearly showing the ligature marks around Cao Yan's neck, which closely resembled those in the Guan Jianhua case. Mechanical asphyxiation, similar neck ligature marks, and a concealed primary crime scene.

"There are indeed many similarities with the case our team had a few days ago. Shixiong, how about you join..." (Angel: Shixiong is a term used for a senior male fellow student.)

"No." Huang Chen quickly waved his hand. "Director Zhao specifically instructed me to hand this case over to you."

He sat in the office, holding a cup of water while waiting for the autopsy report. Once it was ready, he could apply to merge the Cao Yan case with the 6.19 Guan Jianhua case.

Before coming here, he had instructed Shu Pan and Wen Xin to contact their colleagues in the economic investigation team to look into Liu Yan's bank credit card and third-party payment transactions. Unlike the other two deceased, who had spent a long time in prison, Liu Yan hadn't committed any imprisonable offences since his release five years ago. Although he was repeatedly publicised by the court as a dishonest defaulter, he had a stable consumption record.

These transaction records could help identify Liu Yan's primary activity areas, making it much easier to apprehend him.

He opened WeChat and saw that Xu Chengyue had posted a report link in his Moments. It was about constructing regional population profiles through urban surveillance.

He read it carefully but didn't fully understand it. He casually forwarded it, tipped ten yuan, and sent Xu Chengyue a message.

There was no reply, not even a typing indicator. He stared at the screen in frustration for a long time until, an hour later, the autopsy report was finally handed to him.

Eagerly, he flipped open the cover and saw the cause of death at first glance.

Drowning.

There was a horizontal ligature mark on the neck, indicating mechanical asphyxiation. However, the autopsy found diatoms and other plankton in her lungs and liver that matched the water samples from the scene, confirming drowning as the cause of death.

There were no aquatic plants or other floating organisms on her hands, and there were no signs of struggle. She was unconscious when she drowned.

He had thought it was a case of mechanical asphyxiation disguised as drowning, but it turned out she had been strangled unconscious and then thrown into the water.

However, since drowning was the cause of death, determining the time of death would reveal how long the body had been in the water. By calculating the water flow rate, they could estimate where the body had been thrown into the river.

The autopsy report indicated the time of death was between two and two-thirty in the morning. Assuming Cao Yan was thrown into the Pudian River at two-thirty while unconscious, five hours had passed until her body was discovered at seven-thirty.

The cross-sectional flow rate of the Pudian River had been previously measured in a field survey. Back at the lab, they could use hydraulic model tests to get an approximate speed. Knowing the general location of the primary crime scene was crucial. If they were lucky, they might find evidence the killer left behind. At the very least, they could retrieve some surveillance footage and, through image processing, find clues from the night's poor visibility.

He examined the materials provided by the physical evidence department: a pair of women's leather shoes found two hundred metres from where the body was discovered, a woman's wallet containing the deceased's ID and bank cards.

One inconspicuous piece of evidence caught his attention, two clumps of cotton found in the victim's hair and clothes pocket. The victim was dressed in summer clothes, so large clumps of cotton shouldn't have been present. Could it be that debris from the water just happened to get caught in her hair and pocket?

—————

At the time he received Gu Yunfeng's WeChat message, Xu Chengyue had just finished two consecutive classes. Feeling unwell, he didn't respond. By then, the cafeteria had already started serving lunch, and he navigated against the increased campus traffic, heading outside.

With only one afternoon class, he decided to go home for lunch. Recently, the food in the faculty cafeteria had become subpar, perhaps the chef caught a cold. The dishes were either too salty or too oily, upsetting his stomach.

He bought vegetables and beef from a nearby supermarket and threw them into his steamer at home. This steamer, which he had improved himself, could automatically clean and chop ingredients, and after setting different programs for various dishes, he could enjoy a meal in just half an hour. It wasn't gourmet, but it was convenient, especially for someone like him who was hopeless at cooking.

Sitting on the sofa, he held a Kindle and read. The bookshelf had gained another row of books on criminal investigation, newly discovered while he was sorting through his parents' belongings a few days ago. He displayed these books prominently, but he preferred reading the electronic versions.

Steam rhythmically escaped from the kitchen steamer, and the floor-cleaning robot diligently worked. He yawned and propped his head with his right hand. He intended to stand up, however, the next second, everything went black before him.

In an instant, the world spun, and he found himself kneeling on the floor.

He almost collapsed, breathing heavily, feeling weak all over and trembling uncontrollably.

In that moment, he had no extraneous thoughts, only desperately gasping for air to alleviate symptoms resembling low blood sugar. He grabbed a handful of candies from the table and stuffed them into his mouth, but minutes passed with no improvement. Instead, his headache intensified, his heart raced, and his consciousness began to blur.

With trembling hands, he opened WeChat and, with all his strength, tapped on the top contact. Without even seeing who it was, he pressed the call button, his weak voice pleading, "Help me."

His consciousness began to falter amidst the chaos, and in this haze, a memory suddenly surfaced, a scene he had never seen before.

In the scene, he lay on the ground just like now, unable to move under tremendous impact. His head and torso suffered severe blows, with fractures shattering bones in his hands and feet. A piece of glass lay on the ground, cutting into his muscles like a sharp blade.

That night, there was no moon, only a lone star hanging in the west.

After what seemed like an eternity, footsteps grew closer until someone crouched before him, wearing a white coat with long hair brushing against her cheeks. The hem of her coat fluttered in the wind. She quickly dialled for emergency services and skilfully began CPR.

He heard an incredibly familiar voice, sobbing incessantly while continuing resuscitation and repeatedly whispering in his ear, "You must hold on. Don't die, don't die."

Her face blurred and became clear again in his eyes. She gently held his hand until he finally lost consciousness. This memory felt like a broken nightmare, abruptly ending.

The girl in his memory was Ying Xizi, his personal doctor. In this fragment, Ying Xizi seemed to have known him for a long time, rather than meeting through Professor Lu's introduction.

She tightly held his hands, appearing helpless and tearful, as if fearing the loss of an important family member.

‿︵‿︵ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ・❉・ ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ‿︵‿︵

Previous Chapter | TOC | Next Chapter

Translator Notes

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

Translated: July 2, 2024 by Angel

Edited: July 11, 2024 by Angel