Miss Forensics – Chapter 47.2

Investigate A Case

Bai Ling watched as they interacted and handed them their prepared drinks, saying, “One mojito and one lemonade, please enjoy.”

With that, she skipped over to Lin Yan’s side and whispered, “Sister, why is she being so nice to you if you’re not friends?”

Song Yuhang looked puzzled and asked, “What did she say?”

Lin Yan calmly picked up her glass and took a sip. “It’s nothing, not your concern.”

“Oh, alright then.” Song Yuhang packed the alcohol and other items she had bought into her bag, then sat down. But before she could even sit for three minutes, a phone call came through to her phone.

She got up and headed outside, saying, “I’m going outside to take a call.”

The waffles weren’t ready yet, and Bai Ling was worried she might get hungry, so she brought out a plate of snacks.

“Sister, have some in the meantime.”

“Thanks,” Lin Yan said while snacking on melon seeds and peanuts as she waited for Song Yuhang to return. The bar was empty at the moment, and the two of them engaged in casual conversation.

“By the way, I haven’t asked for your name yet, or maybe we could exchange contact information. As for that money… I’ll pay you back in the future.”

The girl spoke and pulled a thin notepad from her apron pocket, pushing the paper and pen toward Lin Yan.

Lin Yan glanced indifferently and continued munching on melon seeds, saying, “There’s no need for repayment, Sister doesn’t buy into this.”

She was used to keeping people at arm’s length, but the girl’s face clearly showed a hint of hurt.

Lin Yan hesitated for a moment, but before she could think too long, Song Yuhang had already rushed in with an uneasy look.

“Quick, let’s go!”

She urged Lin Yan, and their gaze met, understanding that the situation had escalated.

Lin Yan got up from the bar stool, pulled out her wallet, tossed a few red bills on the counter without counting much, and waved before turning to leave.

“Goodbye, little sister.”

As Bai Ling rushed out, trying to catch up with the extra money, the two of them had already gotten into a taxi and merged with the traffic.

At that moment, Lin Yan didn’t know it would be the last time she saw this girl named Bai Ling, and she would never have the chance to tell her own name.

* * *

When she and Song Yuhang arrived at the riverside of the city moat, the evening had set in. The area was cordoned off, and onlookers outside the perimeter were craning their necks, whispering among themselves.

“I heard it was another suicide, huh?”

“Yeah, people watched as they jumped from the bridge.”

“They were still holding an exam paper when they jumped, tsk tsk, such a tragedy.”

“If they didn’t do well on the exam, they could have tried again. They’re so young, what a waste.”

……

Song Yuhang pushed through the crowd, parted the police cordon, and let Lin Yan through first, following closely behind.

The various sub-bureaus and police stations under the Jiangcheng City Police Department had received orders from higher-ups to fully cooperate with the special task force on this case. So, the entire public security system in Jiangcheng City was on high alert when they heard the word “suicide.” They wasted no time, and within five minutes of receiving the public report, the nearest police officers had arrived.

Lin Yan had someone fetch a pair of gloves for her, preparing to examine the body. When she turned around, she noticed Song Yuhang was still up there.

“What’s wrong? Is Deputy Song afraid of water ghosts?”

Song Yuhang pursed her lips, walked down with determined strides, and replied, “I recognize this person; I saw them yesterday afternoon.”

Yesterday afternoon, when she was at school, she had a brief encounter with this young man in the hallway.

Song Yuhang bent down, gently lifted his chin, and a faint little mole appeared on his jaw.

As a detective, she had a photographic memory, especially when it came to recognizing people.

“That’s right, it’s him.”

They exchanged a glance, sensing the gravity of the situation.

“Another victim has emerged.”

* * *

“Lin Jie, which of these two bodies should we autopsy first?”

Due to the nature of the case, Fan Lin’s body had also been brought back from the funeral home.

Lin Yan was changing her clothes outside and turned to look. “Let’s do them together. Send the assistant forensic examiner to handle Fan Lin’s side, and I’ll take care of this one first. I’ll join you once I’m done.”

The assistant forensic examiner nodded and walked over to her, washing their hands and changing clothes. “Alright.”

She flicked the excess water from her hands, lifted her gaze to look at herself in the mirror, dressed in a white protective suit and a blue mask, making her features appear even sharper.

Lin Yan took a deep breath and entered the autopsy room. It was time to see what kind of monster was lurking.

Duan Cheng set up a camera, saying, “September 26, 2008, 20:05, the first autopsy of Fan Lin and Wu Wei begins now.”

As the autopsy on this side progressed methodically, the discussion in the training room about the case heated up.

Zheng Chengrui opened his computer, bringing up the interface from earlier in the day for them to see. “It’s like this. This is an encrypted chat room. You need a key to enter, and if you input the wrong key three times in a row, your account is frozen, and the program self-destructs.”

Song Yuhang leaned on the table, bending to take a closer look. “Can we trace the IP address of the other party?”

A cybersecurity team member shook their head, saying, “No, we’ve checked. It’s a server overseas, and we can’t trace the specific IP address.”

“So, the only way to access this secret chat room is through a key?”

Zheng Chengrui nodded, wearing a grim expression. “Cracking the key would involve thousands of variations of six-digit combinations. It’s a massive task, and by the time we decipher it, the next…”

On the first day of the special task force’s establishment, the unseen enemy had already shown the police a significant display of power.

Song Yuhang’s face reflected the changing winds. She recalled the faces of the deceased young man, Fan Lin, He Miao, and many more whose faces she had never seen but would forever live on in photographs.

She pulled up a chair and sat down, typing with determination, “Since this approach isn’t working, let’s try to flush them out.”

A spark of inspiration flashed in Zheng Chengrui’s mind. “Oh, you mean…”

He didn’t finish his sentence before Song Yuhang had already opened multiple search engines and entered “suicide.” Countless forums of various colors and styles popped up.

The others were also quickly alert.

Someone hesitated, saying, “Deputy Song, what if the other party is a dangerous criminal? Isn’t this too risky?”

“We are the police; we shouldn’t shy away from danger. Who should face danger if not us, the ordinary citizens?” She said calmly, her fingers not pausing as she posted a message on a forum, saying, “I want to commit suicide.”

The other cybersecurity team members exchanged glances, and Zheng Chengrui was the first to open his computer and start typing.

As soon as one person emulated her, the rest of them returned to their respective workstations and began posting on various forums.

In the spacious training room, the sound of keyboards clicking and clacking filled the air.

* * *

Time passed minute by minute, and Lin Yan conducted a meticulous autopsy. Bending and standing for an extended period, she began to sweat slightly on her forehead, and there were marks of sweat on the protective suit at her back.

They examined the heart, liver, spleen, lungs, kidneys, and other organs of the deceased, but found nothing suspicious.

Lin Yan picked up a pair of scissors from the tray, and her hands already looked as if they had been pulled from the blood.

“Cut open the stomach and examine its contents.”

A pungent odor filled the air.

Duan Cheng turned away and retched a few times before quickly turning back and aiming the camera at the deceased.

Lin Yan dug in with her bare hands, a series of squelching and squishy sounds accompanying the process. Red, yellow, and white substances spilled out, creating a scene akin to an epic horror or disaster movie.

Duan Cheng’s complexion alternated between shades of green and white, and he couldn’t help but retch again.

Lin Yan remained composed, her expression unchanged, not even a hint of a frown on her face. She continued digging and used a spoon to scoop out the contents, saying, “Most of the stomach contents have moved to the duodenum and have been partially digested. Visible to the naked eye, we have… rice, tomatoes…”

She paused for a moment and continued, “and beef.”

Scooping up a portion of the minced meat, she lifted her mask close to her nose and said, “And there’s more beef.”

……

The others watched her in horror, and even the intern forensic examiner responsible for taking notes had his pen frozen.

Lin Yan didn’t raise her head and said, “What are you standing there for? Keep writing!”

The young forensic examiner snapped back to attention. “Alright, alright, just as we were saying, as we were saying…”

Lin Yan continued, “Based on the degree of digestion in the stomach contents, the estimated time of death is roughly 2-3 hours after eating.”

After conducting two autopsies, Lin Yan had worked for six hours, and by the time she came out, it was already two in the morning.

The training room was still brightly lit.

After taking a shower and drying her hair, she came out and went to find Song Yuhang. Before the person arrived, the fragrance was already there.

To cover up the scent of decomposition, she sprayed a lot of perfume every time she finished an autopsy. In essence, she was someone who cared about her appearance.

Song Yuhang didn’t look up but pointed to the box of food on the table that she had set aside for Lin Yan. “Century egg and lean pork congee. Go ahead.”

At the mention of food, Zheng Chengrui poked his head out from his computer on the other side, looking somewhat aggrieved. “Why do we all have regular takeout, and Forensic Doctor Lin gets century egg and lean pork congee?!”

Suddenly, several heads all turned to look, and Song Yuhang, who had been observing this, felt somewhat embarrassed. She scolded with a smile, “Having food is good enough, don’t be so picky, get back to work!”

Lin Yan gave Song Yuhang a meaningful look as if she were deep in thought. Her hair was still slightly damp after the shower, and her curly locks cascaded smoothly over her shoulders. Water droplets traced down her collarbone.

“How did you know I like congee, Deputy Song?”

Song Yuhang couldn’t take it anymore. “With so many people of the opposite sex here in the training room, can you not come out flaunting your tank top every time you finish showering?”

Lin Yan scooted closer, opened the food container, and found the congee was still warm. She began to eat it, mouthful by mouthful, while leaning in to look at Song Yuhang’s computer screen.

“What I wear is my own business. Deputy Song, are you being too lenient or…”

She paused, biting her spoon, and raised her eyes to look at Song Yuhang. Her gaze was filled with a hint of desire.

“You just don’t want others to see me.”

Song Yuhang’s throat subtly tightened, and she turned her face away, not intending to engage further.

Lin Yan, however, smiled again and leaned back in her chair, looking nonchalantly at her. “Hey, I’ve made some new discoveries. Do you want to hear?”

Song Yuhang immediately turned back and, at the same time, grabbed her own jacket and tossed it to Lin Yan. “Speak up, if you have something to say. Also, put this on while you’re at it.”

Lin Yan caught the jacket that was thrown at her, unfazed by it. Since it was a bit chilly, she draped it over herself.

“I examined his stomach contents, which included rice, tomatoes, beef, and more. Based on that, I estimate the time of death to be within 2-3 hours after eating.”

Song Yuhang raised an eyebrow, showing her intelligence. She quickly made connections, saying, “Wu Wei was a boarding school student who had all three meals in the school cafeteria. I’ll have someone check today’s school menu. If none of these items were part of their dinner, it suggests he didn’t eat at school, and the person who dined with him could be the last person who saw him alive.”

She paused for a moment and added, “It could also be the killer.”

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