The deceased could not have eaten after death, so I used a mouth gag to force open the victim’s mouth. Indeed, there were signs of it being forcibly opened, along with remnants of vegetables and chicken. The victim was indeed force-fed after death.
This murderer is truly inhuman. But why force the victim to eat? Did he think he could mislead us about the time of death using stomach contents?
That was the only thought I could have at the time. Zhang Keying and Xie Chuchu, who were present, seemed to share my thought but remained silent. I then asked them to test the blood, urine, and check for rope fibers. During the process, I remembered that Xiao Dong was gone, but a new forensic doctor named Ling Xiaotao had arrived. Ah, so it was her.
We had met before, though I couldn’t recall which case it was. In any event, she was now part of our provincial department.
“Ling Xiaotao, can you run a platelet distribution test for me?”
“Sure thing, Detective He.”
“Uh, don’t call me that. Just call me team leader.”
“Alright. Since I’m part of the Punitive Justice team now, I’ll follow your rules.”
“It’s good that you know… I wonder how you got in. Was it through Director Zhang…?”
“What are you talking about? Director Zhang and I have a purely professional relationship.”
Perhaps you all don’t know, but in our provincial department, everyone says Director Zhang and Ling Xiaotao are involved in… well, let’s just say, I won’t elaborate. Five hundred words omitted here…
When the lab results came back, we found no signs of drug poisoning in the victim. In fact, I had already tested it using the bamboo leaf extractor. However, concerned about potential errors in the autopsy technician’s work, I asked Xie Chuchu and the others to retest, to further verify the findings.
Now that all four senior forensic doctors have tested, and the results are identical, there’s nothing more to debate.
As I examined the area below the victim, I noticed that his private part appeared to be in a state of prolonged decay. The edges bore marks of long-term… activity. It’s likely that Old Chen had a promiscuous private life. If he hadn’t met his unfortunate end, I would never have imagined such a thing about him.
Truly, you can know a person’s face but not their heart. Old Chen always appeared so honest and simple, yet behind the scenes, he was so sordid. If this were to get out, people would be utterly shocked.
But that’s his private matter, why should I care so much? The autopsy work here is almost complete. I don’t need to personally handle the rest. However, I did notice incised marks on the victim’s eyelids. This wound looked like it was made by a small knife. This was likely because a complete agate could not fit into the eye socket, forcing the killer to make this cut. I should have observed this earlier during the autopsy, but I overlooked it. Perhaps it’s a case of "the lamp shines brightest at its base."
Upon closer inspection, the knife marks extended from the eyelid all the way to the temple. Even if they intended to place the agate, such a large incision wouldn’t have been necessary. The wound seemed intentionally made by the killer. If the victim had been alive at the time, the pain would have been unimaginable.
Besides exhibiting a performative personality, this individual also seemed to have a necrophilic tendency. Once the agate’s material was identified, it turned out to be quite valuable. This further supports the theory that the killer has good financial standing and a stable job. As for the motive, it’s still unclear.
As I left the forensic laboratory, I arranged the remaining tasks for Xie Chuchu and Zhang Keying. However, as I was leaving, a hand suddenly grabbed my arm from behind.
I was startled and turned around to see it was none other than the new recruit, Ling Xiaotao.
“What’s up?” I asked, curious as to what was going on. The next second, Ling Xiaotao replied innocently, “You haven’t assigned me any tasks yet.”
“Oh, I forgot to mention. Your task is to assist Xie Chuchu and Zhang Keying. Got it?”
“Ah, that’s it?”
I remembered the Ling Xiaotao of the past to be quite arrogant. Unexpectedly, she seemed… I didn’t want to say more.
Perhaps my reputation has spread far and wide over the years, changing many people’s attitudes towards me. Even Director Zhang has become more respectful towards me.
I finally turned and left Ling Xiaotao. Upon reaching He Xin, she informed me that Liu Yuning and Gao Mingqiang had already gone out to investigate the victim’s family and workplace.
“Old Chen’s workplace is a police station??”
“No, theoretically he’s part of the provincial department, as the police cemetery is managed by the provincial department.”
“So, is there anyone here who knew Old Chen well? He was stationed alone; he probably had little contact with internal affairs, right?”
He Xin sighed, “Yes. Perhaps among the provincial police, Old Chen was the most pitiful. And…”
Although He Xin didn’t finish her sentence, I understood her meaning.
I patted her shoulder. Despite Old Chen’s past indiscretions, they couldn’t erase his contributions.
He Xin managed to find Old Chen’s residence. However, due to his work, he rarely returned home.
Many times, he slept in the security booth. Although there were several security guards on rotation, Old Chen stayed in the booth for convenience. His colleagues who came to relieve him didn’t disturb his sleep, and they were happy to talk to him when he was awake.
This was because Old Chen was the type of person you could confide in about anything. His expression always conveyed a sense of “I can accept anything,” so anyone in the provincial department with troubles liked to find him to pour their hearts out, even though he was just the lowest-ranking security guard.
This profession is also called a guard, but we still habitually call them security guards. This is information I learned from the guards stationed at the cemetery.
Such a person, Old Chen, theoretically wouldn’t have offended anyone. So, what reason would the killer have for murder?
On the way back from the police cemetery, this question lingered in my mind, refusing to leave. After an unknown amount of time, I returned to the provincial department, and the car stopped directly in front of the Criminal Investigation Team office, nearly crashing into it.
Damn it! I wiped the sweat from my forehead nervously. I really wanted to slap myself twice. Fortunately, my reason told me that doing so would be futile, and it would be better to quickly call Liu Yuning or someone to inquire about their situation.
So, I quickly changed my mind, abandoning any thought of self-abuse. I picked up my phone and dialed. Liu Yuning answered quickly: “Hello!”