Miss Forensics – Chapter 17
by Little PandaPart One
The Search
He can’t afford a diamond ring, but I can give you one.
Song Yuhang tapped the tip of her pen twice on the lab report she had submitted. “Tell me about this cyclotella1.”
Lin Yan had been sitting opposite her, but with a sharp swoosh, she slid her chair right next to Song Yuhang’s. Leaning in slightly, she said, “You’re so capable, aren’t you? You know everything. Beg me. Beg me, and I’ll tell you.”
She had changed her clothes after returning. Her police uniform was worn loosely without a tie, the top two buttons undone to reveal her slender collarbones.
Her delicate nape was half-hidden beneath her loose, brown curls.
Song Yuhang shifted her gaze imperceptibly and opened her laptop, having no intention of wasting words on her.
Lin Yan reached out and snapped it shut again. Since the office was completely empty, she lowered her voice, her tone carrying a distinct hint of gritted teeth.
“You knew all along that Zhou Mo would run, so you sent people to intercept him.”
It was a statement, not a question.
Song Yuhang raised her eyes to meet Lin Yan’s deep gaze. “And weren’t you also watching the fire from across the river?”
Lin Yan smiled faintly. The thin layer of frost that had gathered in her eyes instantly melted away, and she resumed her usual nonchalant expression.
“That’s because I knew you’d definitely be able to handle them, Captain Song.”
Song Yuhang also curled her lips slightly in response. “You’re too polite. I also knew that even if I didn’t step in, you would’ve found a way to resolve it on your own, Forensic Examiner Lin.”
Lin Yan withdrew her hand and propped her chin in her palm. She tilted her head to look at her, her gaze rippling with a flirtatious charm.
“You really think too highly of me, Captain Song. If that’s the case, why bother saving me at all?”
Song Yuhang pressed her lips into a thin line and said nothing. Lin Yan, however, let out another soft laugh, her eyes narrowing like a smug little fox.
Without looking at her again, Song Yuhang opened her laptop. “If it were anyone else, I’d have saved them too.”
“Oh… then you really are broad-minded.” That faint, fleeting trace of perfume drifted over once more as Lin Yan reached out and closed her laptop yet again.
Song Yuhang frowned. “You—”
But she had already spun around and opened her own laptop. “As for cyclotella, it is a type of centric diatom. It mostly grows in seawater and is found everywhere along our country’s southeastern coast. There’s nothing unusual about it.”
But in the context of this case, it was highly unusual. The hypothesis that the killer drowned the victim in a seaside park and then returned to dump the body didn’t hold up. Therefore, there was only one possible conclusion.
She drowned right inside Jiangcheng, and that place has seawater.
The two of them exchanged a look.
“An aquarium.”
“Captain Song, they’ve arrived,” an officer knocked on the door and entered.
Song Yuhang stood up and put on her wide-brimmed police hat. “Alright, I’ll be right there.”
Lin Yan also stood up. “I’m coming too.”
Song Yuhang turned back to look at her. “You should rest.”
Lin Yan curled her lips slightly. “Worrying about me?”
Song Yuhang offered a fake smile. “You’re always so blindly confident. Isn’t it only natural for a superior to care about their subordinate? I, Song Yuhang, am not that heartless.”
In terms of their positions, she was the deputy captain of the Criminal Investigation Detachment in charge of solving cases, while Lin Yan was the head of the Technical Investigation Division. They were technically of equal rank.
But looking at their police ranks, Song Yuhang had served longer and was already a Second-class Police Supervisor. One rank higher was enough to crush a subordinate.
Lin Yan snatched up a folder, intending to hurl it, but Song Yuhang had already stepped out of the office.
The moment Song Yuhang crossed the threshold, the playful smirk vanished from Lin Yan’s face. Restoring her composure, she stretched, stood up, and rubbed her aching neck.
“Ah, time to go home and sleep.”
“Driver, Qingshan Villa,” Lin Yan gave the address, then sat back in the rear seat and closed her eyes to rest.
Before long, they arrived. As Lin Yan got out of the car, the butler and the servants were already waiting at the entrance, and he took her belongings.
“You’re back, Miss. Why didn’t you let us know in advance? You haven’t eaten a proper meal in two days, have you? I’ll have someone prepare something right away…”
Lin Yan waved her hand to dismiss the offer. “I’m going to sleep for a bit. Don’t let anyone come up to disturb me.”
She took a couple of steps, then turned back to look at the jacket in the butler’s hands—it was Song Yuhang’s.
“Wash that jacket. Don’t throw it away.”
“Yes, Miss,” the butler lowered his head deferentially, but he was secretly astonished.
Lin Yan had so many clothes that her walk-in closet could barely hold them all. She would often wear something today and throw it away tomorrow; she couldn’t even be bothered to put things away, let alone wash them. This was the very first time she had actively requested to keep something.
Whenever she returned home, she would always spend some time in the attic. Lin Yan poured herself a glass of red wine and leaned against the table, sipping it slowly.
Once her drowsiness passed, her mind grew clearer.
As her fingertips gently caressed the slender stem of the glass, the red wine drained to the dregs. Ultimately, Lin Yan dialed that number anyway.
By the time she woke up again, the sun was setting. Her phone was vibrating on the table. Lin Yan stretched her arm out to grab it, her voice still hoarse. “Hello?”
Song Yuhang took the phone from Fang Xin. “Hello, it’s me. Song Yuhang.”
Lin Yan rolled her eyes in annoyance and began getting dressed. “I know it’s you. What’s the matter? Speak.”
“We searched every aquarium in Jiangcheng, but we couldn’t find any trace of Ding Xue ever visiting them.”
Once the call disconnected, Fang Xin happily leaned in and flashed her phone screen to show her the number. “Captain Song, you should save her number too. It’ll make contacting her much easier in the future.”
Song Yuhang glanced at it but instinctively refused. “Forget it, there’s no need. If anything comes up at the bureau, I’ll just call the Technical Investigation Division directly. Besides, don’t I have you guys when we’re out on field assignments?”
Fang Xin covered her mouth and giggled, her expression clearly a bit peculiar.
Song Yuhang asked, “What’s wrong?”
Duan Cheng and Zheng Chengrui turned around and chimed in unison, “Forensic Examiner Lin said the exact same thing the other day!”
“…”
“See? What’d I tell you? I guessed right! Your chicken drumstick tomorrow is mine.”
“I said it first, so it should go to me!”
“Why does a girl like you need to eat so much meat anyway?”
“Since when can’t girls eat meat? Why are you still stereotyping?”
…
Watching them bicker heatedly, Song Yuhang shook her head slightly and walked over to the side.
“How’s it going?”
The frogman had just come ashore, completely drenched. He pulled off his diving mask, taking deep gulps of air. Resting his hands on his knees, he panted for a moment before speaking. “It’s no good. The water isn’t deep, but the conditions underneath are too complex. There are undercurrents and jagged rocks. Plus, it’s getting dark, so we can’t see a thing. It’s a tough job.”
According to the statements of Zhou Mo and Chen Hao, after they found a plastic bag in a nearby trash can and packed the body inside, they threw Ding Xue’s personal belongings into the water. The police had been searching along this river all afternoon, but they had made zero progress.
The assault boats operating on the river had also stopped. Song Yuhang had rushed over right after investigating the aquariums across Jiangcheng. The weather was sweltering, the summer heat yet to dissipate. Inside the reed beds, mosquitoes swarmed through the thick, oppressive air.
Wiping the sweat from her brow, she picked a clean spot to sit down. Holding a bottle of mineral water in her left hand while gnawing on a piece of dry bread in her right, she looked no different from a down-and-out migrant worker on a construction site.
At this stage of the case, every time a new clue emerged, it would always be cut short. A thousand tangled threads seemed to connect everything, yet in reality, they had nothing to do with one another.
She closed her eyes slightly, feeling the last rays of the setting sun warm her eyelids, turning her entire world orange-red.
Back in high school, she had loved mathematics. Had things gone as planned, she likely would have entered the math department at Peking University and eventually become a professor or a teacher.
Her teacher had once told her, “If you can’t solve a problem, why not go back and read the question again? Perhaps you’ll find something new.”
Winding back the clock, everything returned to the starting point.
Almost all homicides boiled down to three motives: passion, revenge, or financial gain.
Financial gain and revenge had already been ruled out in the course of their subsequent investigation.
Ding Xue had emotional entanglements with Ge Jun, Zhou Mo, and Sun Xiangming.
Based on the time of the crime, Ge Jun and Sun Xiangming were ruled out.
That left Zhou Mo and Chen Hao. At the time, only the two of them were present. It wasn’t impossible that they’d colluded to stubbornly insist that Ding Xue accidentally fell into the water.
Yet she still harbored a lingering question: why here? Why Lianchi Park?
Was there anything special about this place?
And her expression when she ran out of her own home was highly unusual.
Song Yuhang sat with a piece of foxtail grass dangling from her mouth, tasting its slight bitterness. Suddenly, she scrambled to her feet. That’s right—the ring!
Sun Xiangming wasn’t wearing his wedding ring!
He was lying.
A wedding ring carried extraordinary significance. How could an affectionate, harmonious couple choose not to wear their rings?
She had, however, seen plenty of couples whose relationships had broken down discard these things like worn-out shoes.
“Fang Xin,” she called out, standing up.
Fang Xin jogged over in response. “What is it, Captain Song?”
“Any new findings regarding the ring from last time?” She’d been so busy these past few days that she’d actually forgotten such an important matter.
“Nothing particularly special. The material is just a very ordinary white gold ring.”
Song Yuhang frowned. “Let me ask you: if you were getting married and your husband gave you a white gold ring, what would you think?”
“Why marry someone so cheap? Even if he can’t afford diamonds or gold, the very least he could do is get platinum.” Before Fang Xin could reply, a voice chimed in from a distance.
Lin Yan pushed aside the willow branches brushing against her face and made her way through.
“What’s this? Is Captain Song getting married? As long as your partner isn’t my cousin, if he can’t afford a diamond ring, I’ll give you one.”
She smiled wickedly as she spoke, her flirtatious eyes repeatedly darting toward Song Yuhang.
Fang Xin clutched her chest, her heart fluttering wildly.
This… this was way too exciting!
Captain Song’s partner was Forensic Examiner Lin’s cousin?!
And Forensic Examiner Lin was going to give her a diamond ring???
What should she do? Having uncovered such a scandalous affair, was she going to be silenced?!
Meanwhile, Fang Xin’s mind was running wild, conjuring up a melodramatic soap-opera of wealthy family feuds, leaving her utterly thunderstruck.
Song Yuhang had already turned around to look at her. She remained completely unperturbed; she was used to it.
“No need. If it’s from you, Forensic Examiner Lin, I wouldn’t even want a soda can ring.”
The blooming smile on Lin Yan’s face shattered instantly. She was a hair’s breadth away from taking off her high heels and beating her with them.
“Fang Xin, don’t hold me back! Her mouth is so venomous, see if this old lady doesn’t…”
“However, you did get one thing right,” Song Yuhang said, thrusting her hands into her pockets and looking at her calmly.
“Why marry someone so cheap? So, while this ring was her cherished possession, it wasn’t necessarily given to her by Sun Xiangming.”
As they parted the willow branches to make their way out, Song Yuhang pulled out her phone to make a call. “Sun Xiangming is heavily suspected. Apply to the Procuratorate for a search warrant immediately! Have the field team watch all the gates of the residential compound. If you let even a single fly escape, none of you need to bother coming back!”
A drop of water fell onto Lin Yan’s forehead. She looked up. Unbeknownst to them, the previously clear and pleasant sky had already filled with dark, heavy clouds.
Rumbles of distant thunder rolled in, and lightning split the sky.
The typhoon was coming.
Police lights flashed as the patrol cars sped through the streets like lightning, rain snaking down the windows.
Lin Yan stepped out of the car carrying her forensic kit. Mud instantly splattered onto her trouser cuffs. The members of the Technical Investigation Division followed in single file behind her.
Song Yuhang wasn’t wearing her uniform to make it easier to make the arrest in case he resisted violently. However, Lin Yan knew that the holster at her waist held a gun—and it was loaded with live ammunition.
Lin Yan licked her dry lips and plunged into the stairwell as well.
An investigator disguised as a property management staff member went up to knock on the door. “Hello, property management. Could you open the door? The downstairs neighbor says there’s a leak coming from your bathroom.”
Sun Xiangming put down the child, glanced through the peephole, and placed his hand on the handle. Just as he turned the knob to open the door a crack, several investigators lunged forward, slamming the door open and pinning him firmly to the floor.
Song Yuhang cuffed him, holding the search warrant right before his eyes. “Police. You’re heavily suspected of a major crime. Please come with us.”
To everyone’s surprise, Sun Xiangming didn’t resist at all. He remained silent as he was pulled up from the floor, his face completely devoid of expression.
Just as he was about to step out of the apartment, he looked back at his daughter, who was still sitting on the sofa playing with her toys. His lips parted. “My daughter…”
Song Yuhang nudged him out the door. “Don’t worry, we’ve already notified the child’s grandmother to come and pick her up soon.”
Lin Yan stood outside the door. The rain was pouring heavily outside, and half of her uniform was already soaked from her walk up. Yet this only served to make her posture appear all the more erect and her gaze all the more piercing.
The moment their eyes met, she gave a slight nod: Leave it to me.
Song Yuhang understood and nodded back, then escorted him away with large strides.
Once everyone had left, Lin Yan took out a pair of gloves from her forensic kit, snapped them on, and flexed her fingers.
“Search thoroughly for me. Pay special attention to easily overlooked details like under the rugs, on top of the furniture, and the rims of cups—don’t let a single trace of blood or a single fingerprint slip past you.”
“Yes, Ma’am!”
The team answered in unison and threw themselves into the work.
The author has something to say:
Here is the second update of the day.
Thank you for reading.
The sweetness is real, completely natural, and absolutely angst-free—I swear2.
Footnotes
- Cyclotella is a genus of single-celled diatoms with circular valves. While some species exist in freshwater, certain marine species are key indicators in forensic investigations to determine if a drowning occurred in seawater.
- The author uses '我发4' (wǒ fā sì) as a playful homophone for '我发誓' (wǒ fā shì), which means 'I swear' or 'I cross my heart'.
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