Miss Forensics – Chapter 38.2

Autopsy

She no longer spoke to defend herself. She watched as Lin Yan took out a dissecting knife from the toolbox and was about to make an incision. She grabbed her wrist forcefully and shouted, “What are you doing?”

The dissecting knife hovered over the deceased’s chest, and Lin Yan struggled, saying, “Dissection, what else can I do? Based solely on an external examination, we can’t determine whether he drowned while alive or was thrown into the water after death.”

Song Yuhang didn’t yield an inch. “That’s still not allowed. We’ve already crossed the legal line by coming here tonight. We can’t make another mistake.”

Lin Yan chuckled, irritated by her words. “He’s already dead. Why talk about legal lines? I can just sew him back up after the autopsy. Do you still want to know the truth? Do you want to know how he really died and who the mastermind behind this is?”

Song Yuhang held her tightly, not allowing her to move. The slender wrist in her grasp quickly turned red. Lin Yan gritted her teeth and, with no other choice, used her other hand to pry Song Yuhang’s fingers.

“Of course, I want to know, but not in this way. Even sewing him back up will leave traces. Once discovered, Lin Yan, your career will be over.”

“Why do you care? Let go of me, let go!” Lin Yan’s eyes turned red with frustration. She roared in a low voice and pounded on her fiercely, but the person remained unmoved.

“You put down the dissecting knife first, then I’ll let go.”

Breathing heavily, Lin Yan’s chest heaved up and down. “Fine, I’ll put it down! I’ve run into a stubborn mule like you in my miserable eight lifetimes.”

Saying this, she moved her hand in her direction, and Song Yuhang followed her lead.

Lin Yan discreetly reached for a pair of hemostatic forceps with her left hand from below. With a glint of cold light, she aimed them towards Song Yuhang’s face, attempting to force her to let go.

Song Yuhang was well-prepared and tilted her head to dodge. She had the intention to give Lin Yan a taste of her own medicine. She grabbed Lin Yan’s wrist and pulled it toward herself, causing Lin Yan to nearly lunge onto the corpse.

Lin Yan gritted her teeth and tried to retrieve her hand from the fridge, but Song Yuhang’s grip on her fragile wrist became overly slippery.

Her heart softened as she looked at Lin Yan’s eyes in the darkness. They were clearly filled with unwillingness, grievances, and resentment. Perhaps she had gone too far; even the corners of Lin Yan’s eyes were turning red.

Song Yuhang pursed her lips, unable to continue the struggle. When this thought surfaced in her mind, the strength in her hand weakened, and she saw Lin Yan lose her balance and fall backward.

She was too late to stop it.

When Lin Yan fell to the ground, the instruments in her hand collided with the cold floor, producing a sharp sound, as if she had dropped a timed bomb into a calm lake.

Song Yuhang could already sense the ripples in the water intensifying. She quickly helped Lin Yan up, lowering her voice and shouting, “Hurry, let’s go!”

Lin Yan snapped back to reality, swiftly removing her jacket and using it to wipe the floor and the areas they had just touched, as if she were a pro.

“Wait, that’s enough. Quickly close the fridge door!”

Just as Song Yuhang closed the door, there was already a commotion of footsteps outside the morgue. “Who’s in the mortuary? Come on, let’s check it out!”

She looked around and realized there was nowhere to hide. In a single leap, she rushed to the window, using her shoulder to push against it, exerting all her strength, but it remained immovable.

Lin Yan limped over and gasped, “Don’t waste your energy. Morgue windows are usually sealed from the outside.”

Song Yuhang, unwilling to give up, continued to ram her shoulder against it several times, but there was no gap. She could hear the footsteps getting closer, and cold sweat started pouring down her forehead.

“So, what do we do then?”

Lin Yan rummaged through her bag and said, “Use this to break it.”

Song Yuhang assessed the weight of the makeshift window breaker and spat into her palm twice. “Step back, stand farther away!”

With a loud crash, the glass shattered. Song Yuhang’s hand was now covered in fresh blood, but she didn’t pay much attention to it. She took the rope Lin Yan handed her and tied a tight knot on the window sill, giving it a firm tug.

She glanced at Lin Yan’s leg. “Your foot…”

She had noticed it a while ago.

Lin Yan held a fruit knife with the blade facing away from her, and the flashlight’s beam had already penetrated through the airtight door’s gap, illuminating the floor of the morgue.

She remained composed and calm. “I’m fine. You go first, and wait below to catch me.”

Song Yuhang nodded, wasting no more time. She climbed onto the window ledge, gripping the rope. She looked at the back of Lin Yan’s head. “Listen to my command. I’ll tell you when to jump.”

Lin Yan nodded in acknowledgment. She glanced back, but Song Yuhang had already disappeared from view. The rope tied to the window ledge was stretched taut.

Lin Yan swallowed nervously, her palm sweaty and almost losing grip on the knife.

Just as the beeping sound of the airtight door began, a whistle came from below, and Lin Yan knew she had safely landed. She quickly slid the knife into the inner side of her backpack and leaped onto the window ledge, experiencing a sharp pain in her ankle.

Large beads of sweat rolled down her forehead, but Lin Yan endured the pain. She grabbed the rope with both hands and descended rapidly.

The pursuers broke through the door, and the entire factory area echoed with a shrill alarm, while searchlights swept across the surroundings.

Song Yuhang stood on the earth mound below, arms outstretched, and shouted, “Jump!”

Lin Yan closed her eyes and let go of the rope. She was, of course, nervous as well. Even though she had descended halfway, it was still a two-story drop, and there was the possibility that Song Yuhang might not catch her, or worse, that Song Yuhang might run off first…

The consequences were too dreadful to contemplate.

However, Lin Yan didn’t have to wait too long in nervous anticipation before she landed in a warm embrace.

Lin Yan instinctively hooked her arms around Song Yuhang’s neck. Both of them had ample military experience and knew how to minimize the impact to reduce injury.

In a whirlwind of motion, Song Yuhang cradled her head against her chest, using her own body to shield Lin Yan from the debris and dirt that came tumbling down.

This was a nearly 35-degree vertical slope, and their momentum carried them down further, allowing them to escape the pursuers effortlessly.

Lin Yan was held tightly, unable to see anything. She could only feel herself spinning around countless times, her hands sore from scraping against the ground. But apart from her hands, she was completely unharmed.

It wasn’t until Song Yuhang’s back solidly collided with a large tree, causing leaves to fall around them, that Lin Yan regained her senses.

She spat out the sand in her mouth, feeling dizzy. She turned her head slowly and said, “Song Yuhang?”

She called out but received no response, causing her to tightly purse her lips.

Lin Yan was lying on top of Song Yuhang, and in the dim forest light, she couldn’t see the extent of her injuries. All she could make out was Song Yuhang’s back pressed against a towering tree, her head drooping to the side, with no clear indication of whether she had hit her head or not.

Lin Yan struggled to lift her upper body and gently patted Song Yuhang’s face. “Song Yuhang, Song Yuhang, wake up.”

With no immediate response, her heart leaped into her throat.

The hand wrapped around her waist still hadn’t loosened, and Lin Yan’s voice quivered slightly as she cautiously touched Song Yuhang’s breath. “Song—”

Before she could finish her sentence, Song Yuhang coughed twice, expelling the blood that had accumulated in her throat. Her whole demeanor relaxed significantly.

Lin Yan sat up, still holding her, and leaves fell from above. A smile graced her lips, and her eyes sparkled in the darkness.

“Cough… cough… I’m fine,” Song Yuhang managed to say.

Lin Yan slapped her with frustration. “Damn it, pretending to be dead again!”

Song Yuhang, covering her face, stood up looking quite pitiful. “No… I really fainted… I did… let me explain!”

Without looking back, Lin Yan limped downhill. “Get lost!”

Song Yuhang followed slowly. “Don’t walk so fast. Your leg looks swollen like a steamed bun…”

“You mind your own business, go away!”

Ahead, there was a small steep slope, and Lin Yan cautiously tested it by leaning against a tree. Soil started rolling downhill, but she was suddenly pulled back.

Song Yuhang wrapped one hand around her shoulder and the other around her waist, just like that day when Lin Yan had supported her.

“Take it slow, no need to rush. They can’t catch up to us.”

She rarely smiled, but when she did, she revealed two tiger teeth, looking both sunny and adorable. All she needed was a tail behind her to wag and please everyone.

Lin Yan let out a grunt but didn’t struggle further. “What’s your Chinese zodiac sign, by the way?”

“I’m a Monkey. Why?” Song Yuhang glanced at her.

Lin Yan turned her face away, but a slight smile tugged at her lips. “I think you’re probably more of a Dog.”