Miss Forensics – Chapter 67

Volume One: First Scroll

Liking

“Is it wrong to like someone?”

Song Yuhang undid the handcuffs and, with a few teammates, lifted the person up. Lin Yan threw herself into her arms, rested her chin on her shoulder, and slightly closed her eyes.

It felt so good to be on solid ground.

Song Yuhang held her tightly, gently patting her back. The tear tracks on her face hadn’t faded yet, but a smile appeared on her lips, her heart filled with the joy of having her back after almost losing her. If others hadn’t been around, she would have kissed her long ago.

They hugged for so long that the surrounding criminal police officers started looking over. Lin Yan felt a little embarrassed and gently loosened her hold. Just as she was about to speak, she coughed twice.

Song Yuhang’s expression changed.

Lin Yan felt a lot of blood trickling from the corner of her mouth. She wiped it with the back of her hand and forced a smile, “I’m… I’m fine…”

Before she could finish, her vision went black.

Song Yuhang scooped her up horizontally and ran out.

That day was an unforgettable one for all the police officers of the Jiangcheng City Public Security Bureau. Not just because they had cracked the decades-spanning, bizarre “White Whale Case,” not just because of Zhang Jinhai’s sacrifice, and not just because of the killer’s death and the story behind it. Everyone seemed to understand something from this rain, and then they were reborn.

That day held such significance not only for Duan Cheng but for everyone in Technical Investigation.

Later, Duan Cheng worked for decades and, like Lin Yan, became an experienced and resourceful forensic doctor. But when he recalled that day, even Zhang Jinhai’s sacrifice and the rain became blurry. All he could remember was this moment.

Song Yuhang ran, carrying Lin Yan. Both were heavily injured. Her leg was bleeding; every step she took in the puddles splashed water that turned light red.

Lin Yan’s arm hung limply, her head resting against Song Yuhang’s chest, her face as pale as paper. Blood dripped from her fingertips. She was lifeless, like an exquisite but inanimate porcelain doll.

The world was utterly silent; even the sirens of the police cars seemed to dim. Behind them, the sky was gradually clearing, and the eastern horizon showed the first light of dawn.

And the usually calm person lost her composure and calm, her sobs even drowning out the noisy sirens of the ambulance.

“Save… save her… Doctor! Doctor!”

Several doctors in white coats rushed over, and the group from Technical Investigation also swarmed around.

“Forensic Doctor Lin, Forensic Doctor Lin, wake up!”

But no matter how they shouted, the person on the stretcher showed no response.

Song Yuhang’s tears fell like a broken string of pearls.

A luxury car screeched to a halt outside the police cordon. Lin Ge flung open the car door and jumped out, directly pushing aside several criminal police officers who tried to stop him and rushing into the circle.

Seeing Lin Yan on the stretcher, covered in blood and unconscious, the tall, strong man’s eyes also reddened slightly. He reached out a trembling hand to touch her face, “Lin Yan… Yanyan… Big bro is here… You… look at me…”

“Don’t… don’t touch her… don’t touch her…” Song Yuhang hadn’t yet recovered from the crisis, her eyes bloodshot. Whenever she saw someone not in a white coat touch Lin Yan, she instinctively lunged forward to shield her with her body.

Lin Ge was startled and was pulled up by several criminal police officers. Song Yuhang, along with Lin Yan, was put into an ambulance heading to the hospital.

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Doctors pushed the gurney, running, while Song Yuhang limped after them, “Doctor, doctor, save her, save her, please save her…”

“Don’t worry, we’ll do our best.”

The doors to the emergency room closed, and the light above it turned on, leaving Song Yuhang outside.

She still wanted to rush in but was stopped by Fang Xin and Duan Cheng. “Captain Song, Captain Song, Lin-jie will be fine…”

Several people tried to drag her to a hospital bed, but Song Yuhang struggled. Several male doctors couldn’t hold her down. Duan Cheng was pushed aside, and Fang Xin quickly steadied him.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.”

Duan Cheng patted her hand and went to pull Song Yuhang again.

Song Yuhang had already rushed to the emergency room door, standing on her tiptoes to look inside.

“I’m not going anywhere until Lin Yan comes out… nowhere…”

She muttered, and the emergency room door slid open. A doctor took off his mask, looking anxious, “Which of you is family?”

They looked at each other. Song Yuhang grabbed the doctor’s sleeve, “I… I’m her friend… She’s a police officer… police… Save her… save her!”

The doctor pulled her hand away. “It’s no use even if you’re her superior! Guillain-Barré syndrome¹, plus combined internal and external wound infections, she’s already in shock from multiple organ failure! Quickly find a family member to sign the surgical consent form² so we can operate!”

This string of medical jargon made Song Yuhang’s head spin.

Gui… Guillain-what syndrome?

Why had she never heard her mention it?

Song Yuhang staggered back two steps, then again grabbed the doctor’s collar, lifted him up, and pinned him against the wall. “I don’t care! I don’t care! You save her! Save her!”

“Captain Song, Captain Song!” Several people rushed over to stop her, afraid she would strike him next.

Lin Ge ran over, panting, from the end of the corridor, “I… I’ll sign!”

Song Yuhang climbed up from the floor. Before she could stand firm, the world spun, her vision went black, and she completely fainted.

It was another chaotic scene. Feng Jianguo and Mother Song also rushed to the hospital. The lights of two operating rooms lit up simultaneously.

Mother Song sat in the corridor, anxious and wiping her tears. Upon closer look, her whole body was trembling slightly.

Ji Jingxing got the news, sent the child to school, and hurried over. She squatted down, held Mother Song’s hand, and comforted her softly, “Mom… it’s okay… Yuhang will definitely be okay…”

Lin Ge was also pacing anxiously at the end of the corridor. He wanted to smoke, saw the ‘No Smoking’ sign on the wall, and put the cigarette away, crumpling it into a ball and throwing it into the trash can.

Mother Song looked over and immediately stood up. “Lin… is that Lin Ge? Why are you here too?”

Lin Ge came back to his senses, nodded slightly at the old woman, and also gave a slight nod to Ji Jingxing as a greeting.

He pointed to the operating room next to them, his smile somewhat forced. “My younger sister.”

The old woman suddenly understood, and a sad expression appeared on her face. “I hope they’re both safe.”

“They will be.” Lin Ge nodded. Seeing the old woman still standing unsteadily, he came over to help her sit down.

“Please sit. I heard from their director, Officer Song’s injuries are lighter; she should be out soon.”

Just as he finished speaking, the door of the adjacent operating room opened, and a doctor ran out. “Who is Lin Yan’s family? Come and sign this.”

“I am, I am.” Lin Ge hurried over. “What needs signing? I’ll sign it.”

“Critical illness notice.”

Lin Ge’s vision suddenly went black, and the world spun.

The doctor was still urging, “Sign it quickly. Her condition is very tricky; we can’t stop the bleeding right now, and she needs massive blood transfusions. Sign it quickly, so we can get blood from the blood bank.”

Lin Ge took a deep breath, picked up the pen with a trembling hand, and shakily wrote his name.

Mother Song watched the situation over there, also feeling anxious. “How did she get hurt so badly? I heard she’s three years younger than Yuhang, so pitiful…”

Ji Jingxing gently massaged her arms and legs to ease the old woman’s tension. “Mom, you barely have time to worry about yourself, how are you already thinking about others?”

Mother Song came back to her senses and lowered her voice, “I haven’t told you, huh? Oh, right, you probably haven’t met him. That’s Yuhang’s blind date. If it works out, wouldn’t his sister be…”

Ji Jingxing smiled, let out an “Aiyo,” and leaned against the old woman. Because of her amusing words, the tense atmosphere immediately lightened.

“Mom, this is still completely up in the air³, and you’re already worrying about Yuhang’s relationship with her sister-in-law.”

Mother Song patted her hand and sighed deeply. “Sigh, how can I not worry? On the surface, she seems to get along with everyone, but actually, she’s very solitary. Her brother is gone too. She only really talks to me and you. I still hope she can have more friends, brothers, and sisters.”

As they were talking, the elevator doors opened, and a group of elite-looking people in suits poured into the corridor, surrounding an elderly man in a wheelchair at the head, and a beautiful young woman pushing the wheelchair. They swept past them like a gust of wind, bringing waves of pungent perfume, heading straight for Lin Ge.

Lin Youyuan, leaning on a cane, sat in the wheelchair, his tone calm and undisturbed. “How is she?”

Lin Ge shook his head, his face gloomy. “Still in emergency surgery, just received a critical illness notice…”

Before he could finish, several middle-aged people behind Lin Youyuan started whispering.

“How did Miss suddenly become critically ill?”

“Then the subsidiaries under her name…”

“President Lin, you should make plans early.”

Someone advised.

A flash of anger crossed Lin Ge’s face, while the woman laughed with delight. “Aiyo, she’s not dead yet, why are you all so worked up? Even if… the general manager position wouldn’t go to you.”

She touched her stomach, secretly resentful: Why isn’t there any movement yet?

Lin Youyuan waved his hand, stopping the conversation, and looked up to ask the hospital’s Department Head who was accompanying them, “What illness?”

“Guillain-Barré syndrome.”

Lin Youyuan frowned, clearly not understanding.

The Department Head deferentially explained, “It’s a neurological disease caused by damage to the immune system. Plus, Miss Lin also suffered a gunshot wound, so it’s very difficult to stop the bleeding…”

He carefully observed Lin Youyuan’s increasingly grim expression, choosing his words carefully. “However, we have already mobilized all the core medical staff in our hospital to do everything possible to save Miss Lin. I believe Miss Lin will be blessed by fortune, blessed by fortune…”

He wiped the cold sweat from his forehead; he said this without much confidence himself.

Lin Youyuan toyed with the jade thumb ring on his finger, his expression unreadable.

“When did she get this illness?”

This question was clearly directed at Lin Ge. Lin Ge was taken aback and wiped his face. “I don’t know either…”

Lin Youyuan’s lips gradually tightened. “Absurd!”

After saying that, he pushed his wheelchair himself, turned, and left. Lin Ge chased after him for two steps, but the large group of people swarmed around again, as if they had just come to the hospital to make an appearance, to see if Lin Yan was dead or not, unwilling to even wait patiently for the surgery to end.

“Uncle Lin…” Lin Ge chased him to the elevator. The elevator doors closed and descended rapidly. His hand dropped dejectedly.

When Lin Yan was four, he had been seriously ill, lying in the hospital day and night. Mother Lin took care of him around the clock, changing his clothes, feeding him, playing with him, and telling him stories to relieve his boredom.

Little Lin Yan would hide behind the door and watch.

Mother Lin waved for her to come in and wiped the sweat from her forehead with a handkerchief after she had been running around all day.

At that time, Lin Yan had only been at Lin Ge’s home for a year and wasn’t very talkative, but they all liked this somewhat quiet little sister.

Lin Ge sat on the bed, a cold compress still wrapped around his head to reduce the fever, and teased her, “What’s wrong, Lin Yan? Unhappy? Wait till big bro gets better, I’ll play with you.”

Lin Yan looked at him with her pure, innocent eyes. “Big brother, if you get sick, will Mom and Dad stay with you?”

The smile on Mother Lin’s face faded. She didn’t know how to answer this question. Lin Yan had already pushed her hand away and run out. When the butler found her, in the dead of winter, Lin Yan was standing under the garden hose, drenching herself like a drowned rat.

The next day, she got her wish and developed a high fever, but Lin Youyuan still didn’t come to see her.

This time was no exception. Actually, if Lin Yan could wake up, the person she’d want to see most wouldn’t be him, her brother, but her father.

Someone wanted to use the elevator. Lin Ge stepped aside and walked back. As he passed the two women sitting on the bench, he nodded slightly.

Mother Song stood up. Seeing his haggard face, bloodshot eyes, and stubbled chin, and having heard and seen the scene in the corridor just now, even though they had never met, Mother Song felt some sympathy for the young girl lying inside, her fate uncertain.

“Lin Ge, don’t worry, she’ll be okay.”

At this moment, a word of comfort from a stranger was enough to bring tears to his eyes. Lin Ge forced a smile. “Mm, thank you, Auntie Song. Miss Song will be okay too.”

Perhaps heaven heard his words, as the operating room door slid open.

Several doctors came out pushing a gurney. Mother Song and Ji Jingxing went up to them. “How is she?”

“The shrapnel embedded in her leg has been completely removed. There’s no major danger for now, but she needs bed rest, and it’s best to avoid strenuous exercise for three months.”

Song Yuhang lay on the bed, not yet awake from the anesthesia, a respirator tube in her mouth, her body wrapped in gauze, and her right hand in a cast.

The doctor spoke to them as they walked, “Her right hand was injured more severely than we thought; it was fractured from the shoulder. It’s hard to imagine how she endured for so long before being sent to the hospital…”

Mother Song’s tears immediately fell as she reached out to touch her face. “Yuhang…”

“Mom.” Ji Jingxing’s eyes also reddened as she pulled her. “As long as she’s okay, that’s all that matters. Rest well, and she’ll recover.”

The doctors sent her to the ICU for observation and rest. Mother Song then meticulously asked the doctor about nursing precautions and foods beneficial for wound recovery and things to avoid, before Ji Jingxing finally pulled her away to go home and cook for Song Yuhang.

But the light in the other operating room remained on.

Lin Ge either sat or lay down, or walked to the balcony to smoke, waiting from dawn till night. During this time, Mother Lin called three or four times, even saying she wanted to come over herself, but he strongly dissuaded her.

Lin Ge hung up the phone, sighed deeply, and buried his face in his palms.

---

Lin Youyuan watched the sky outside gradually darken. The major and minor shareholders in the conference room had dispersed, and the secretary was tidying up the reports and materials on the table.

His fingertips tapped lightly on the tabletop, then suddenly stopped. The secretary understood. “President Lin—”

“Please ask Professor Wang to take a look.”

The secretary was startled. Before he could react, Lin Youyuan had already pushed his wheelchair and moved away. The secretary then slapped his forehead and hurried after him.

Professor Wang Xing⁴, Director of Neurology and President of a top Grade A Class 3 hospital⁵ in the country, was a good private friend of President Lin.

After leaving the conference room, the secretary arranged for a driver to take Lin Youyuan home and then hurriedly made calls to contact him.

---

Professor Wang Xing, who was attending a meeting in distant Beijing, flew to Jiangcheng City overnight after receiving the notification.

The surgery had just concluded a phase. The monitor beside the bed beeped continuously. A constant flow of plasma was drawn from her body, filtered and replaced by a centrifuge, and then transfused back in.

Lin Yan’s entire blood volume had essentially been replaced, but she was not yet out of danger.

The doctor used a penlight to check her pupils, listened to her heart sounds, and carefully examined her brain CT scans and chest X-rays. A thick stack of examination reports lay beside him.

After a long while, Professor Wang shook his head. “This is troublesome. Guillain-Barré syndrome has caused her overall immune levels to be extremely low. Coupled with the gunshot wound, widespread infection, multiple organ failure, and combined pleural and abdominal effusions… this is precisely when her immune system needs to work, but unfortunately, her entire immune system is almost paralyzed.”

“It’s a vicious cycle.”

He tried his best to explain in plain language that ordinary people could understand. Lin Youyuan sat in his wheelchair, his facial muscles twitching slightly, showing no other expression.

“What are the chances of survival?”

“Less than 20%.”

Professor Wang paused. At this point, there was nothing to hide. “And even if she survives, the prognosis is extremely poor. Her physical condition will decline drastically, and she’ll inevitably need lifelong medication.”

He handed the examination report back to him and took off his glasses. “Old Lin, you still need to make plans early.”

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Three days later, Song Yuhang woke up from her deep sleep. Her vital signs were stable, and she was moved back to a regular ward. She struggled to get out of bed but was pressed back down.

Ji Jingxing and Mother Song were both looking at her, their eyes red. Mother Song didn’t speak, but Ji Jingxing had already started.

“You barely escaped death, and now you’re acting recklessly again?”

She had never spoken to her so sternly. Song Yuhang was taken aback, her voice still hoarse. “I… I want to see Lin Yan… Is her surgery over? How is she? Is she out of danger?”

A barrage of questions tumbled out. Ji Jingxing’s lips trembled. Seeing Song Yuhang covered in injuries, wrapped in bandages, yet still concerned about someone else, she couldn’t help but flare up, “Song Yuhang, it was like this in the provincial capital, and you’re still like this now! Can’t you just take care of yourself first?!”

“I…” Song Yuhang tried to speak but started coughing uncontrollably. It was Mother Song who came to her rescue.

“If you want to go, then go. Nurse, please bring a wheelchair.”

By the time they reached the ICU entrance, visiting hours were over. Song Yuhang grabbed a passing medical staff member.

“Doctor, doctor, excuse me, there’s a patient inside named Lin Yan, how is she?”

The doctor flipped through the medical records in his hand. “Lin Yan… let me see, she’s been transferred to another hospital.”

Song Yuhang felt as if struck by lightning. “Transferred… how is that possible… she was so badly injured…”

“It’s true.” The doctor, seeing she was a patient and one the police had specifically asked them to look after, patiently answered her questions. “Her condition is quite complicated… our hospital’s medical capabilities are limited, so she was transferred to a higher-level hospital.”

Song Yuhang’s heart was in her throat. “Complicated? What does complicated mean? Is she still not out of danger? Or does it mean…”

“Sorry, that’s patient privacy. We can’t disclose that.”

“Hey—Doctor, doctor!” Seeing him walk away, Song Yuhang tried to chase him but lacked the strength in her hands and feet to turn the wheelchair. She lurched forward and fell to the ground.

Mother Song was horrified. “Yuhang, Yuhang…”

Song Yuhang struggled to get up, wincing in pain as her wounds were disturbed. She comforted her mother while forcing a smile, “It’s okay, it’s okay, I’m fine…”

As she spoke, her eyes reddened, and tears dripped onto the floor.

A pair of leather shoes stopped in front of her. She looked up along the well-creased trouser leg; it was Director Feng.

Feng Jianguo reached out and helped her up. “Do you have time? Let’s talk.”

Song Yuhang nodded blankly. Several people helped her back to her hospital room. Mother Song and Ji Jingxing settled her in and then stepped out.

---

“I know you want to ask about Lin Yan.” Before she could speak, Feng Jianguo had already started the conversation.

“The Lin family sent people to transfer her. After all, they are her family; we can’t interfere in this.”

Song Yuhang nodded. She was afraid, afraid that the Lin family members would treat her like they did last time, afraid that she would suffer at the Lin family’s hands.

“I’ve told you what I know. Now it’s your turn to tell me, what exactly was Lin Yan doing running off that day?”

Song Yuhang’s hand tightened on the bedsheet. Her instinctive reaction was not to say.

In front of an old fox⁶ like Feng Jianguo, the slightest change in Song Yuhang’s expression did not escape his eyes.

“I only have one piece of advice: with Lin Yan’s family background and connections, even she can’t find out what she wants to investigate. Song Yuhang, don’t overestimate yourself.”

Song Yuhang suddenly looked up, her pupils contracting. “Director Feng, do you know something? Also, why did that sniper open fire?”

Feng Jianguo turned his back to look out the window and sighed deeply. “I don’t know. I just feel that where there’s smoke, there’s fire⁷. Although Lin Yan is impulsive, she’s not brainless. And you’re even less the type to wear your heart on your sleeve.”

Song Yuhang’s heart skipped a beat. That scene when rescuing Lin Yan, I wonder if Duan Cheng and the others saw it? And later, when Lin Yan was held hostage, those vague confessions and turbulent undercurrents.

The people at the police station weren’t fools; they had probably been speculating for a while.

Feng Jianguo’s visit today was both a questioning and a reminder.

Smart people know when to speak and when not to. Song Yuhang chose to remain silent.

“That sniper is already under investigation, but it probably won’t yield any results. You know that in that kind of situation, firing was standard procedure. Nobody knew your gun wasn’t loaded, right?”

Song Yuhang pursed her lips. “I just think it’s a bit of a pity.”

A pity they couldn’t dig out more information from them.

Feng Jianguo, however, let out a soft chuckle, turned around to look at her, a trace of sorrow on his face. “A pity about what? A pity that the sniper shot and killed the child?”

Song Yuhang looked up.

He continued, “You were unconscious before, so I didn’t get to tell you. Captain Zhang is dead. That child killed him. Slit his throat, cut the main artery. He didn’t make it before the doctors arrived…”

Feng Jianguo couldn’t continue towards the end. He pinched the bridge of his nose, took a deep breath, and turned back again, looking at the clear sky outside. The last autumn leaf fell.

Song Yuhang gritted her teeth, her still-functional left hand gripping the bedsheet tightly, the veins on the back of her hand bulging.

It took her a long time to calm down.

“The commendation applications for you and Lin Yan have been submitted. Old Zhang is gone; you’re the most senior in the bureau now, with rich investigative experience and numerous extraordinary achievements. At this critical juncture, don’t go stirring up any romantic scandals.”

He had spoken cryptically. Song Yuhang suddenly looked up at him, her gaze firm and unwavering.

“Is it wrong to like someone?”

Feng Jianguo looked at the young face before him. In terms of age, she was no longer young.

Thirty-five years old, middle-aged, the mainstay of the Jiangcheng City Bureau’s Criminal Investigation Detachment.

When he was her age, he already had a beer belly, scheming to climb higher, his eyes no longer clean and pure.

But Song Yuhang’s eyes still shone with a light hazel color in the sunlight, her gaze so clear it was like seeing to the bottom, without a trace of impurity.

Moreover, she possessed a youthful spirit hidden beneath a gentle exterior, a solitary courage of “not returning until Loulan is conquered⁸.”

She could even express her affection for someone of the same sex so openly: “Is it wrong to like someone?”

“No, it’s not. But to protect someone, you need money, power, and influence. Which of those do you have?”

“You couldn’t even stop her from being transferred. Song Yuhang, stop daydreaming. This is something that would never be allowed in the organization.”

He had said all he could; he had done his utmost.

Feng Jianguo picked up his wide-brimmed hat, put it on, and turned to leave.

Song Yuhang looked up from the sunset, her blue and white hospital gown bathed in the sunlight. “Lin Yan said, ‘The brave, when angered, draw their swords against the stronger; the timid, when angered, draw their swords against the weaker.’ I don’t have much ability, just a heart full of solitary courage. Rules are made by people. If a person obstructs me, I will surpass them. If a rule obstructs me, I will break it.”

“One day, I will become the one who makes the rules. And one day, I will walk openly on the street with the person I love.”

Feng Jianguo’s hand, about to open the door, paused for a moment. He snorted coldly, “You don’t know the immensity of heaven and earth⁹!”

But as he walked out, a faint smile quietly appeared on his tightly pressed lips.

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LP: Re-translated on May 24, 2025

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