S.C.I Mystery Series Volume 6 Chapter 77

The Culinary Murderer 29 – Suspicious Vehicle

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The twins were so taken by Bai Ye's nickname that they rolled on the sofa, and even Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang thought it was a bit cool, Uncle Ye is truly the best!

Once the forms were filled and the agreements signed, the twins presented a prepayment cheque with both hands. The deal was done, it was time to grab their bags and go.

Bai Ye took the cheque and glanced at it, not bad at all. Issel and Eleven obediently handed their cheques over to Kalin and Zhao Jue – Living expenses and rent... Accept it Wife and Boss!

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang took the seats the twins had just vacated and gave Bai Ye a rough outline of the undercover operation and the leads they were investigating.

The mission itself was fairly straightforward: look into Guan Xiaoyue and Fang Beibei.

Issel was curious. "What's the issue with those two?"

It had actually been Bai Ye and Zhao Jue who first came across the suicide case at the garage. They'd seen the news too and knew Fang Beibei was part of that love triangle with Zhang Wei and Guan Xiaohong. In other words, it was the same case.

However, they'd missed quite a lot in between, so Zhan Zhao summarised everything they'd uncovered so far.

After hearing the mess of overlapping names, Zhao Jue started getting agitated. "Who is who?!"

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang simply spread their hands helplessly.

Bai Ye, however, caught the key point. "Fang Beibei, Zhang Wei, and that Shi Yanshuo, they could all have been involved in harming Guan Xiaoyue's family back then, right?"

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang nodded repeatedly – That is the main point. And of course, there are still plenty of other odd characters, like that pair of fake landlords.

Bai Ye looked at the two and said, "If that's true, then Guan Xiaoyue's revenge is entirely justified."

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang blinked.

Then they glanced around the room, everyone else was nodding in agreement. "Yeah, enemies like that should all be caught and skinned alive, not one should be spared."

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang suddenly realised – Bai Ye, Eleven, and Issel might actually be more unmanageable than Xu Lie, Lin Ruo, and Mingdi... To put it plainly, a hundred of those younger ones wouldn't be as much trouble as these three.

The two of them had an odd, creeping feeling, like they'd just lifted a stone and were now looking at their own toes... Which toe should they sacrifice first?

Kalin also supported Guan Xiaoyue's revenge, but she had a slightly different view. "I think that kid might be innocent."

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang looked at her – How so?

"Well, if he really is the vengeful type who takes justice into his own hands, then why bother teaming up with the police, going undercover to gather evidence against Shi Yanshuo and getting him prosecuted through the system? Why not just kill him outright?"

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang had considered that possibility. But then again, maybe he was still investigating. In any case... nothing was certain for now. Everyone involved in this case was a potential suspect and worth looking into.

"This Fang Beibei really is worth looking into," Bai Ye took Zhan Zhao's tablet as he skimmed through the case files, casually checking out the food competition contestants and their videos at the same time.

Eleven and Issel weren't particularly interested in the case, but they were feeling just a little self-conscious about their role as Bai Ye's assistants.

Sure, the two of them were thick-skinned, the sort who wouldn't flinch even in boiling water, but going on TV to cook, well, that required knowing how to cook, right... These two big men couldn't even tell the difference between spring onions, chives, and garlic! How exactly were they meant to assist Bai Ye in the kitchen?

Still, the two had already paid the deposit for their living expenses and rent, so now that the money was in play, they were determined to do the job properly. And the final payment would be pocket money! Their long-buried professional ambition was suddenly reignited.

The two of them turned to Bai Ye. "What dish are you planning to make? Do you want to practice at home?"

"Ahem." Zhao Jue and Kalin both coughed at the same time and pointed at Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang. "Practise at their house!"

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang fell silent – This plan, is it cost-effective...

Just then, they noticed Bai Ye frowning at something on the tablet.

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang leaned over to look. He was examining a photo of the dead landlord couple hanging in the slaughterhouse, zooming in on the injuries, and... the tattoo on the back of the landlord's head.

After a moment, Bai Ye handed the image to Eleven.

Eleven glanced at it, raised an eyebrow in surprise, and said, "Dutch?"

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang stared at him in confusion – Dutch? What does that mean?

Bai Ye turned to Zhan Zhao. "The most famous ghost ship in the world..."

"The Flying Dutchman?" Zhan Zhao tilted his head – These landlords were sailing a ghost ship? But that doesn't make sense... Ghost ships don't have crews.

"Dutchman is a slang term for a certain type of person," Bai Ye pointed to the tattoo on the back of the landlord's head. "Those who tattoo parts of ships on the back of their heads are usually 'Dutchmen'. The name came from that famous ghost ship. And how do ghost ships usually form?"

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang thought for a moment. "Encountered pirates?"

"Pirates are one reason, there are others too. But basically, if a ship ends up drifting at sea without a living soul on board, it's a ghost ship." Bai Ye explained, "There's a lot of shady business in maritime shipping these days. Those who hurt or kill people at sea, or are up to something criminal, are commonly referred to as 'Dutchmen'... and most of them have this sort of tattoo on the back of their heads."

"Crimes committed at sea..." Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang immediately thought of Shi Yanshuo's diving hobby and that luggage he used for money laundering. Their suspicions about the landlord couple's identity seemed to be on the right track...

"He was subjected to severe torture before he was killed," Bai Ye noted, seeing the severity of the landlord's injuries. "More precisely, it looks like he was deliberately made to suffer."

"Does that mean someone wanted him to die in pain?" Bai Yutang asked.

"Mhmm... the method was rather creative," Bai Ye replied, motioning for Issel and Eleven to take a look as well.

Both of them also found the killer's methods extremely cruel, though they couldn't tell who might have done it.

Zhan Zhao's gaze drifted to the cluster of dogs lying beside the sofa, the little one called Pupu was among them.

Zhan Zhao asked Bai Ye if he'd seen the video of the uncle in the alley who'd rescued the dog.

Bai Ye nodded, saying he had. His opinion was that the man was no ordinary person – he was someone with genuine combat experience.

"What exactly counts as combat experience?" Zhan Zhao whispered to Bai Yutang. "Like some kind of street thug?"

Bai Yutang found it amusing and asked, "If a street thug got into a fight with a professional martial artist, who do you think would win?"

Zhan Zhao thought for a moment. "The martial artist, right?"

Bai Yutang and Bai Ye both nodded. Bai Ye added, "Then what if it were a professional killer fighting a martial artist?"

Zhan Zhao suddenly felt like this was outside his area of expertise. "Well..."

"Unless the fighter knows his opponent's a killer, or he's killed before himself, the odds wouldn't be in his favour," Bai Yutang pointed at the uncle in the video. "His moves are precise, like a trained athlete. But there is a certain practicality to them, like someone who's fought hundreds of real-life battles."

Bai Ye looked at the pile of files on the tablet and sighed. "Such a complicated case..."

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang both nodded – And the worst part was there was no place to start!

So Zhan Zhao gave a quick summary to Zhao Jue and the others, describing the suitcase, the possible human remains, the ship anchor, last night's dripping water call, and Bai Chi's nightmare.

Kalin immediately reached out to cover Mia's ears and shook her head at Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang in sympathy – You two are so young, so handsome, and not short on money, yet you live like in a horror movie every day, staying up late and not sleeping. You'll start losing your hair! Once you're bald, you won't be handsome any more!

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang instinctively reached up and touched their heads, then glanced at Zhao Jue and Bai Ye, then at Issel and Eleven. The two of them patted their chests in relief – Thankfully, no signs of balding yet...

"This anchor," Bai Ye said, pointing to the anchor in the same suitcase as the suspected remains of Pei Wen, "it's new."

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang exchanged a glance, then looked at Bai Ye. "What do you mean by new anchor?"

"This corpse is from over a decade ago, right?" Bai Ye asked.

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang nodded. "Roughly twelve years."

Bai Ye shook his head. "This anchor is no more than five years old."

Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao stared at him in confusion – Uncle Ye, how do you know that? Are you some kind of anchor expert?

Bai Ye didn't answer and continued looking at the documents.

Zhao Jue, who was flipping through a newspaper nearby, curled his lip and muttered, "Otherwise, what do you think he was trying to win all that prize money for?"

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang glanced at each other, then sat down on either side of Bai Ye's sofa armrest.

"Uncle Ye, are you planning to buy a boat?"

"A yacht?"

"What kind?"

"Have you already bought it?"

......

Bai Ye waved them off, as if it was nothing special – Just a small boat for a bit of fishing.

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang began to reflect on their lives. Kalin is right, we just work hard all day without any enjoyment, Bao Sir is totally manipulating us!

Bai Yutang asked Bai Ye in detail how he could tell whether the anchor was new or not.

Bai Ye pointed at the weight marking on the anchor and asked, "See this font?"

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang both nodded.

"This font is a recent one. The manufacturer that makes these anchors only started using it five years ago."

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang gaped – Really? That's a major discovery! But the time of death for those remains was around the same as Tan Wen's, wasn't it? So, was this a second disposal of the body?

Bai Ye returned the case file to Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang, saying it was giving him a headache.

Just then, Zhan Zhao received a text from Bai Chi, saying Wen Mao had provided a few leads related to the case back then.

So the two of them decided to head back to the station.

As they were leaving, both Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang were still a little concerned. Uncle Ye looks genuinely serious about winning the prize money to buy a yacht... but Issel and Eleven don't seem to have any cooking experience at all. Will they really manage...?

On the sofa, Mia and Kalin both nodded at the two – Don't worry, you two go handle your own work.

The two glanced back once more, only to see Eleven and Issel in the kitchen, even more invested than Bai Ye, declaring that if they were going to enter the competition, they'd win first place or nothing at all!

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang looked at each other – These two... are unexpectedly competitive, aren't they...

......

Outside an apartment building in S City, Luo Tian parked the car, and Gongsun and Ma Xin got out carrying toolboxes. The three of them headed upstairs together to collect the gold medal from the Wen household.

Wen Xiaorou's parents lived in the same complex as she did, just two buildings over, and it was also close to the SWAT base, just a short walk away.

The apartment buildings here were all low-rise, only three or four storeys. The Wen family lived on the third floor in a duplex apartment spanning the third and fourth floors. There was no elevator, only stairs.

The staircase was spiral-shaped, located along one side of the apartment building. Outside was a circular wall of floor-to-ceiling glass, making the stairwell very bright during the day and offering an excellent view.

Ma Xin and Gongsun hurried upstairs, with Luo Tian following behind.

When they reached the second floor, Luo Tian suddenly turned back to glance out the window.

Down below, a car had pulled up. It was a plain red compact car, and somewhat dirty, as if it had often been driven long distances and hadn't been washed for quite some time.

Luo Tian frowned slightly...

The car slowly stopped beneath the building. Its windows were tinted with privacy film, pitch black, making it impossible to see who was inside.

Yet Luo Tian had an inexplicable sense of alertness... he felt as if the people in that car were watching them.

Luo Tian took out his phone, intending to snap a photo of the vehicle.

At that moment, the car suddenly drove away.

Still, Luo Tian managed to capture a photo of the licence plate.

Watching the car drive off from the second floor, Luo Tian turned and continued upstairs. By now, Ma Xin and Gongsun were already knocking on the door.

The door soon opened, and Wen Xiaorou's mother warmly greeted the two of them.

Inside the house, Xiaorou's mother had already found the medal, carefully placing it in a box and handing it over to Gongsun.

Ma Xin shone her flashlight on it and thought, This layer of film is a stroke of genius!

After entering the entrance hall, Luo Tian knelt down to pet a husky that came over to greet him.

Xiaorou's parents kept a husky and a Russian blue. The Russian blue was rather fat and lay motionless on the cat tree, while the husky was very enthusiastic, strolling over to sit in front of Luo Tian, who knelt and petted its head.

After taking the medal, Gongsun and Ma Xin were eager to leave and study it, so they said their goodbyes to Xiaorou's mother.

Just before leaving, Luo Tian took out his phone and showed Xiaorou's mother the photo of the red car he'd taken earlier, asking if she had ever seen it.

Xiaorou's mother nodded. "Ah, I've seen this car a few times when I walked Rou Meimei! It's probably a nearby neighbour's car."

Gongsun and Ma Xin looked down at the husky – So your name's Rou Meimei?

The aunt covered her mouth and laughed, saying it was Xiaorou who had named her. This is her little sister, so she called her Rou Meimei.

Luo Tian had only asked casually, but Xiaorou's mother's response made him a little uneasy. Was he just being too sensitive? Could the car be surveilling the area?

Luo Tian sent the photo to Jiang Ping and asked him to check the licence plate number.

By the time Ma Xin and Gongsun had put on their shoes and were ready to leave, Jiang Ping's message arrived – The registered owner of that car was Fang Beibei.

‿︵‿︵ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ・❉・ ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ‿︵‿︵

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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: June 4, 2025 by Angel

Edited: August 24, 2025 by Soojin