AD | Chapter 3

“Alright.” Tao Yu opened the notebook handed to him by an officer nearby, though he didn’t really look at it. “At 7:30 this evening, we received a report. A couple claimed they found a female corpse while walking on Taining Mountain. The person who first discovered the body was the old lady from the couple, surnamed Li.”

As he spoke, Tao Yu continued flipping through the thick notebook beside him. “The specific cause of death and details of the injuries still require the forensic doctor’s official report. However, judging solely from the scene—”

He moved the tip of his pen toward the photo of the corpse on the whiteboard. “There is a stitched incision wound running from the chest to the abdomen. There are also abrasions on the body surface caused by dragging. After investigating the surrounding area, no footprints, bloodstains, or other remnants left by the perpetrator were found. Preliminary judgment indicates that this is not the primary crime scene.”

“How is the investigation into the deceased’s interpersonal relationships going?” Lu Qingfeng asked.

“Jiang-ge and I roughly canvassed the residents living near Taining Mountain. The people around Taining Mountain are truly strange. Upon hearing about the case, they either immediately shut their doors and refused to speak, or they rambled on about curses. However, we can confirm that no one in the vicinity recognizes this deceased person.”

Lu Qingfeng nodded. “Currently, our urgent tasks are: First, confirm the identity of the deceased as soon as possible. Second, confirm whether Taining Mountain is the primary crime scene. The traces on the deceased’s body are very clean. Even with last night’s rain, it wouldn’t be this clean. Focus on checking the surveillance cameras around Taining Mountain to see if there have been any suspicious individuals nearby recently. Third, search for the deceased’s clothes, especially her mobile phone…”

Lu Qingfeng was assigning tasks when the landline in the conference room rang. He paused for a moment, frowned, and then answered the phone. “What is it? Alright, I understand. I’ll come over in a moment.”

“There are important findings from the forensic side. I’m heading over now,” Lu Qingfeng said to everyone in the conference room before leaving. “Tao Yu, you and Xiao Jiang have worked hard. Once the deceased’s identity is confirmed via DNA comparison in the database, go investigate her social connections again. Also, check the deceased’s phone. Distribute the remaining tasks among yourselves. Everyone get moving. We have a deadline to solve this case; we don’t have much time. This matter cannot be delayed.”

After speaking, he went out to find Lin Shuyao. The forensic office and the conference room were on the same floor, but the actual autopsy room was in the basement. Therefore, Lu Qingfeng guessed that Lin Shuyao was currently in the autopsy room. However, he couldn’t figure out why the other party had chosen to major in forensic medicine at university. Was it because of the incident with Lin Wan?

Before Lu Qingfeng could ponder it clearly, he had already arrived at the door of the autopsy room. Helplessly, he suppressed the doubts in his heart and walked inside.

Entering the autopsy room, there was a partitioned area outside. At this moment, Lin Shuyao was sitting there, slowly drinking hot water, pausing occasionally, seemingly lost in thought. The corpse lay naked on the autopsy table, having been cut open from the center, spread wide open.

“Wait a moment.” Lin Shuyao glanced at the cabinet beside him, then signaled for Lu Qingfeng to put on a mask and a white coat.

Through the glass outside, Lu Qingfeng quickly looked at the corpse lying on the autopsy table. A sense of unease vaguely rose in his heart. His intuition told him that this case was not as simple as it appeared on the surface.

After quickly finishing the last sip of water, Lin Shuyao turned and walked to the side of the corpse. He pointed to the deceased’s stomach for Lu Qingfeng to see. “Come and see what is inside this female corpse’s belly.”

Lu Qingfeng was somewhat confused, but he put on gloves and reached into the abdomen to feel around. As a result, he pulled out a dark red internal organ slightly larger than a fist. Part of the organ had already begun to decompose. When he took it out, he looked at Lin Shuyao in disbelief. “Is this… a heart?”

“Yes, there is a heart in the belly.” After speaking, Lin Shuyao casually picked up the water cup beside him and took a sip. Then, he raised his chin toward the corpse’s chest. “However, this heart does not belong to the deceased. Her own heart is still intact inside her thoracic cavity.”

As everyone knows, a person cannot have two hearts. This means that there is more than one victim in this case.

“In addition, I suspect that the time of death is likely within forty-eight hours, but the exact time cannot be fully determined yet.” Seeing that Lu Qingfeng remained silent, Lin Shuyao continued. “Look here. Apart from the heart in the abdomen, unequal postmortem green discoloration has already appeared on the lower right abdomen of this corpse, and symptoms of it spreading throughout the body are present. Generally, postmortem green discoloration occurs when hydrogen sulfide, a decomposition gas from the intestines, combines with hemoglobin in the blood to form sulfhemoglobin. Furthermore, because the feces in the ileocecal region are liquid, bacteria multiply easily, leading to earlier and more extensive decomposition.”

“And here,” Lin Shuyao said, using his hand to slightly pry open the female corpse’s eyelid. “The cornea of the corpse appears cloudy and semi-transparent, and the pupil is still visible. The livor mortis has basically formed and does not fade when pressed. All these prove that the time of death is within forty-eight hours.”

Lu Qingfeng frowned, thought for a moment, and then said, “So, the time of death is more than twenty-four hours but less than forty-eight hours. The deceased was most likely killed the day before yesterday?”

Lin Shuyao nodded.

He was about to continue speaking when the sudden sound of the door opening interrupted both their trains of thought. They turned around and found that Tao Yu had walked in at some point.

Seeing the two discussing the corpse on the autopsy table, Tao Yu quickly glanced at the body in front of him, then covered his mouth in pain and ran away.

Lin Shuyao couldn’t help but tease Lu Qingfeng. “Captain Lu, your team… if they can’t handle it, maybe change a member? I think this young guy’s psychological quality isn’t up to par. Or are all the officers in your municipal bureau like this?”

Lu Qingfeng: “…”

Seeing that he didn’t speak, Lin Shuyao smiled. “Captain Lu, don’t be so unromantic. I was just joking. But on another note, the cause of death can basically be determined as suffocation. However, I need to examine it carefully to determine the specific cause. For now, this is all I can show you. How to arrange the rest is your affair.”

“Alright, take another look. The cause of death is crucial for solving the case. Contact me anytime if you make any discoveries. I’m online twenty-four hours a day.”

Lu Qingfeng looked at the heart in his hand again, then placed it into a tray. He asked, “Do you think this heart belongs to a male or a female?”

“I roughly compared these two hearts. I suspect this heart also belongs to a female. Moreover, my comparison revealed that both hearts show signs of staying up late. Their ventricles are slightly enlarged compared to ordinary hearts. However, this is just my speculation. This heart could also be male, because essentially, there is little difference between male and female hearts.”

“I didn’t expect you to be able to tell habits of staying up late. That’s quite impressive,” Lu Qingfeng couldn’t help but praise.

Lin Shuyao glanced at Lu Qingfeng and pushed the test report in front of him. He tapped on the abnormal data with his finger. “The blood and bodily fluid results all point to the same thing—the owner of this heart had a habit of staying up late.”

After speaking, he raised his hand to rub his swollen temples and glanced at the clock on the wall. “Captain Lu, look at what time it is. Even public servants serving the people need to sleep. So, can I get off work now?”

Hearing this, Lu Qingfeng raised his hand to rub his ear and frowned. “Eh? What did you just say? Strange, why can’t I hear clearly all of a sudden?”

As he spoke, he walked out of the autopsy room. Lu Qingfeng saw that Tao Yu hadn’t finished vomiting yet. He silently walked to Tao Yu’s side and waited until the other party had completely finished before speaking. “Xiao Tao, what’s going on with you?”

The suddenly appearing voice startled Tao Yu. He turned around and, seeing it was Lu Qingfeng, breathed a sigh of relief. “Boss, why do you walk so silently? That’s too scary.”

“You kid, stop giving me lip service. Tell me, what did you come to the autopsy room to find me for just now?” Lu Qingfeng patted Tao Yu on the head.

Tao Yu rubbed his head and said with a bitter expression, “It’s like this. The identity of the deceased you asked Jiang-ge and me to confirm has been determined. Moreover, not long ago, we received another report from the public. Another deceased person was found on Taining Mountain.”

Hearing this, Lu Qingfeng dropped his casual demeanor and became serious. “What happened?”

“The deceased currently lying in the autopsy room is named Zhuo Jia. She was a streamer under the Rongguang Group, often broadcasting at night. She was 23 years old and had some fame on Douyin. It is said that she dropped out of school after junior high to work.”

“What about her family? Have they been contacted?” Lu Qingfeng asked.

Hearing this, Tao Yu’s expression became even worse. “We contacted them, but the family refused to claim the body. It is said that the deceased’s family valued males over females. After she finished junior high, her family arranged for her to marry a man more than thirty years older than her. The man had just been released from prison. Although he had a criminal record, his family was wealthy. To get this money, the deceased’s family threatened her multiple times and even locked her in the woodshed. Despite this, the deceased still managed to leave home and came to Rongzhou City to work.”

Pausing here, Tao Yu continued, “I was just about to come and tell you this, but I saw you and the new forensic doctor, Lin, discussing the corpse. Boss, you don’t know. The method of death of the second corpse that suddenly appeared is exactly the same as that of Zhuo Jia, who is lying in the autopsy room. After receiving the call, Jiang-ge and I went to the scene again. When we returned, we saw this scene. I really couldn’t hold it back, so I…”

Hearing Tao Yu’s words, Lu Qingfeng understood. It was just as he had initially thought. This case was indeed not as simple as it appeared on the surface.

“I understand. Go call the brothers who went to the crime scene and have them transport the body directly to the autopsy room for Doctor Lin to dissect. Then gather everyone in the conference room for a brief meeting. Let’s keep it short,” Lu Qingfeng said to Tao Yu.

Tao Yu said yes and left quickly. For a moment, only Lu Qingfeng remained at the door of the autopsy room. He frowned and began to think.

The current case was too strange. Two consecutive cases occurred on Taining Mountain, and there was the talk of the pregnant woman falling off the cliff mentioned by the witness couple. Could there be some unspeakable secret on Taining Mountain?

Just as he was pondering, a pair of hands suddenly rested on his shoulders. Lu Qingfeng was startled, then turned his head. He found Lin Shuyao standing behind him, looking at him with a smile. “What’s wrong, Captain Lu? Do you have any troubles regarding this case? Why not tell me? Maybe I can help analyze it.”