Miss Forensics – Chapter 96

Volume One: First Scroll

Jingzhe¹

Lead them out to see the light of day again.

The temple fair was in a market not far from the Song family home.

Duan Cheng held his phone, showing a photo as he ran from stall to stall. “Hello, have you seen this child?”

The stall owner shook his head, and Duan Cheng quickly ran to the next one.

Fang Xin was also holding a photo, splitting up with him to cover more ground. She stopped a man selling tanghulu².

“Hello, sir, have you seen this child?”

The man leaned closer to the phone for a look. An image flashed through his mind: a middle-aged man hurrying past him, holding a child. The tanghulu in that child’s hand was bought from his stall, which was why he’d taken a second look.

“I’ve seen her. She bought a tanghulu from me. Looked like she was with her father. They went in that direction, I think.”

Father?

Ji Weiyi’s father had passed away many years ago.

Fang Xin’s heart sank. It was a kidnapping, just as they’d feared. After thanking the man, she immediately called Lin Yan.

“Lin-jie, I have a lead. A man took Xiao Wei.”

“Which direction did they go?”

Fang Xin glanced around. The temple fair was crowded and chaotic, located in the middle of a bustling downtown area with roads leading in every direction. The path the vendor had pointed to also had several forks.

She shook her head. “I don’t know the exact location, but I can confirm she was taken from the temple fair, and Captain Song’s mother wasn’t with her.”

Mother Song.

Lin Yan’s heart felt as if it had been pricked by a sharp needle. The pain left her speechless, and it took a long moment for her to recover.

“Old Zheng?” she called into her communicator.

“I’m on it.” Zheng Chengrui’s fingers flew across the keyboard, the blue light of the computer screen and lines of code reflecting off his glasses.

Jiangcheng City Bureau.

Technical Investigation Department, Cyber Security Division.

“Warning, warning, server is being infiltrated—” A red exclamation mark flashed on the massive electronic display screen.

A thin sheen of sweat broke out on a technician’s forehead. He turned and said, “Hurry, report to Chief Feng! The firewall is under attack by an unknown hacker.”

Feng Jianguo slammed his palm on his desk, making his teacup jump. He paced back and forth in his office.

“Damn it, what the hell is that Song Yuhang playing at? She’s not answering her phone, and no one can find her! And this Lin Yan—”

The mention of Lin Yan stoked his anger even further. He slammed his hand on the desk again, breathing heavily.

“What kind of stunt are they pulling?!”

“Chief Feng, we just got a report from Tech Invest. Our servers are under attack.”

Feng Jianguo was a veteran detective, after all. He finally sensed something was off.

They took leave at the same time, disappeared at the same time, and Lin Yan had forced her way into the airport’s central control room to check surveillance footage.

Who was she looking for?

Then came the car crash on the street. The black car that had been following her was hit, and the injured driver was now in police custody.

And now, their internal server was being attacked.

A sudden chill ran down Feng Jianguo’s spine. “Track their IP, lock onto their position, and follow Lin Yan.”

“Sir, we’ve spotted Forensic Doctor Lin’s car on the Tongyuan Expressway.”

It couldn’t be helped. Her car was just too recognizable. The informant stationed on the expressway had spotted it almost instantly.

“Intercept her. Bring her back.”

The officer tasked with relaying the order froze for a second, but seeing the grim severity written all over Feng Jianguo’s face, he snapped a salute and hurried away.

“Yes, Chief Feng.”

In the distance, police sirens began to wail again.

Lin Yan stomped on the accelerator. The heavily damaged car let out a strained groan as it lurched forward.

“Lin-jie, I’ve found them. Two vans went in different directions. One is headed for the Yeling Mountain Tunnel in the north of the city, the other is near the Tongyuan Expressway.”

It was just as she had expected. To force Song Yuhang to submit, they had kidnapped her family members separately and were holding them in different locations.

It was all to misdirect them and buy more time.

Song Yuhang was already on her way to Yeling Mountain.

The other location wasn’t far from her.

Lin Yan opened the navigation app on her phone and studied the map.

The place they were hiding them couldn’t be in a crowded area. There were no residential zones near the Tongyuan Expressway. If they had entered the expressway, they would have had to pass a toll booth. It would be easy enough to lie about a child, but two tied-up adults would never escape the notice of the staff. So, they definitely hadn’t gotten on the expressway.

Then where could it be?

What kind of hidden place without surveillance cameras was near the expressway?

Lin Yan zoomed in on the map with two fingers. Her gaze fell on a lumberyard near the expressway entrance.

She pressed the micro-earpiece in her ear. “Go to the hot pot restaurant at the end of the street from the temple fair—the one we ate at before. Get a private room and a large pot. The server will lead you out the back door. Remember to change your clothes. After you’re out, head to these coordinates: 25° North, 104°10″ East. Wait for me there.”

Duan Cheng knew she was creating an alibi for them. He asked anxiously, “Lin-jie, what about you?”

Lin Yan wrenched the steering wheel to the left, making an illegal U-turn. Horns blared around her as she weaved through traffic, then smashed straight through the toll booth barrier and sped off the expressway.

“Me? I’m going to save them.”

---

“I’m here. Let them go.” Song Yuhang parked her car on the access road next to the Yeling Mountain Tunnel.

The voice on the other end of the line chuckled softly. “Not so fast, Captain Song. Did you bring what I asked you to?”

Song Yuhang gripped the file folder in her hand, her voice hoarse. “I did.”

“Very good. Tear out the page of the testimony with Guo Xiaoguang and his mother’s signatures and fingerprints, and throw it off the cliff.”

Night had fallen. The only light on the access road came from her car’s headlights. Beside her was a cliff that was an abyss of impenetrable darkness.

Song Yuhang gritted her teeth. “Let me see my mother first.”

There was a pause on the other end, then Mother Song’s crying voice came through. “Yuhang, Yuhang…”

Before she could listen closely, the call was cut off again.

The man’s voice took over. “How about that? She’s still alive. But…”

He paused slightly. “It all depends on what’s more important to Captain Song: this testimony, or your family.”

It was at that moment that Song Yuhang suddenly sensed something was wrong.

She hadn’t thought much of it before hearing her mother’s voice, but now, thinking back, her mother’s voice sounded slightly distorted compared to the man’s. It wasn’t like a face-to-face conversation, but rather like a voice coming from an electronic device.

Furthermore, she had keenly detected a somewhat noisy background sound when her mother spoke, one that sounded very much like the hum of large machinery.

The man’s voice, however, was exceptionally clear and quiet.

Thanks to the sharp instincts honed by years of police work, she managed to remain calm and analyze these details even under extreme pressure.

Song Yuhang didn’t let on.

“Fine, I’ll tear it. But honestly, this game is getting a little tiring. Let’s play one last round to decide it all, how about it? You pick a place. I’ll bring you the USB drive directly, and you release my family. I’ll even go with you, if you want.”

The man on the other end burst into loud laughter. “Excellent! As expected of Captain Song, so direct! In that case, come into the mountains. I’ll be waiting for you in Yeling Mountain.”

After the call ended, the screen showed her tearing the paper to shreds and flinging them violently, scattering them all over the mountain.

“Lin Yan is already on her way to the lumberyard,” another voice said through a communicator.

“I know.” The man took a sip of red wine, his expression unreadable.

“Aren’t you afraid she’ll rescue them? If she does, Song Yuhang won’t give you the item.”

The man set his wine glass on the table and leaned back in his comfortable office chair.

“If she didn’t go to the rescue, then she really wouldn’t be Lin Yan.”

He had set the trap, calculated their every move, and even predicted every step they would take.

The other voice paused for a moment. “You really are…”

Truly venomous, with the heart of a viper.

The man seemed to understand what he wanted to say and chuckled softly. “A man must be ruthless to be great. To be honest, I’m really looking forward to seeing the look on her face when she gets out and hears the news of Song Yuhang’s death.”

---

Lumberyard.

“Mom, Mom…” Ji Jingxing whispered, crawling forward with her hands and feet bound. Her face was smeared with blood and grime; she had clearly been tortured as well.

Mother Song was tied securely to a radiator, her head lolling. The ventilation fan above whirred, and fine dust motes floated in the workshop air.

Ji Jingxing’s eyes turned red. She sniffled and nudged the older woman’s leg with her shoulder.

“Mom, Mom, wake up. Are you okay?”

Seeing no movement or response, Ji Jingxing began to sob, tears streaming down her face.

The old woman’s silver hair was a disheveled mess. She was painfully thin, her clothes were stained with blood, and her face was just as dirty.

Before finding the child, Ji Jingxing had harbored a trace of resentment toward her. If she hadn’t taken Xiao Wei out, she wouldn’t have gone missing. But now, seeing her in this state, that trace of resentment vanished without a trace.

What grandmother in the world didn’t dote on her own granddaughter?

Ji Jingxing knelt up and leaned over to bite at the ropes on the woman’s wrists, trying to gnaw through them with her teeth.

A thick, metallic smell of rust emanated from the radiator, and the cold metal made her shiver.

The rough rope made her teeth ache, and she tasted a hint of blood on her tongue, but the rope wouldn’t break.

Screech— The large door opened, and several men in black rushed in.

Ji Jingxing was terrified. Before she could speak, she was grabbed by the collar and thrown violently to the ground.

“F#cker, still trying to escape? Beat her!” A whip as thick as a thumb came crashing down on her.

Ji Jingxing writhed on the ground, screaming in pain as the ventilation fan cast chaotic shadows over her.

She sobbed and begged for mercy, on the verge of passing out. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I’ll give you however much money you want! I’ll give you everything! Let me go… let me go…”

The men stopped. The masked man in the lead bent down, lifted her face, and studied it closely.

“This isn’t about money. It’s about you messing with people you shouldn’t have, understand?”

“Also, I advise you not to provoke Lin Yan again. Otherwise, you won’t even know how you died.”

Song Yuhang’s warning flashed through her mind, and tears instantly welled in Ji Jingxing’s eyes.

The man let go, grabbing her hair and slamming her head against the ground.

“Think about what you’ve done. Close the door.”

With that, he and his thugs left.

The heavy door was locked again.

One of the subordinates leaned in to whisper, “She’s here.”

“As the Young Master instructed, let her in. Don’t make it too obvious.”

The subordinate nodded and quickly departed.

Lin Yan scaled the wall with her bare hands and landed softly. Before she could duck into the darkness, searchlights flooded the area, turning everything stark white.

Several men in black, brandishing machetes, charged at her.

Lin Yan drew a retractable baton from her waist. With a click, she flicked it straight and, using her reach advantage, swung it at the head of the closest man.

The vibration from the impact traveled up the baton into her palm. The man staggered back two steps and touched his forehead, blood gushing from the wound.

A gleaming blade sliced toward her from the side. Lin Yan blocked it with her baton, the clash of metal producing a sharp, piercing sound.

She lifted her leg in a lightning-fast roundhouse kick, her leather boot smashing into her opponent’s head and sending him flying.

The man spat out a mouthful of blood and crashed against the wall.

Catching a flash of a blade in her peripheral vision, Lin Yan’s hair stood on end. She spun around, dodged, and grabbed the man’s arm with her left hand while her right brought the baton down hard on his wrist.

The man cried out in pain as his machete clattered to the ground. Before he could recover and defend himself, the tip of the baton changed direction and jabbed viciously into a vital point on his abdomen. The man let out a cry and vomited some foul substance. Lin Yan followed up with an elbow that left him dizzy, then slammed his head against the wall.

Song Yuhang showed mercy and left her opponents alive. Lin Yan was different. If she didn’t act, she didn’t act, but when she did, every move was a killing blow.

Specks of blood dotted the thin layer of snow at the base of the wall.

Lin Yan released her grip, and the man slumped to the ground.

Her cold gaze swept over the remaining men, blood still dripping from the tip of her baton.

She had changed into practical clothes for the operation: a black combat uniform and tactical boots, with her brown, curly hair tied back in a ponytail. Her eyes, stained with blood, held a murderous aura.

The men exchanged a look and charged forward again, fearless of death.

“She can’t last much longer! Go!”

A cold smirk touched Lin Yan’s lips. She wielded the baton so fast it became a near-impenetrable blur, weaving through the men like a dragon. But she was still outnumbered, and mistakes were inevitable. A moment of carelessness left another gash on her body.

She clutched her shoulder and retreated, only to be kicked hard in the back. She stumbled forward and, just as she hit the ground, a blade slashed toward her!

Lin Yan’s pupils constricted. She twisted her body to dodge. The gleaming blade sliced off a lock of her hair, and her cheek stung with pain.

Someone kicked her square in the chest. Lin Yan rolled in the mud, raising her baton with both hands to block as her arms were gradually forced down.

She clenched her jaw, her arms aching. Blood flowed freely from the wound on her shoulder, staining a large patch of the ground where she lay.

Another man staggered up from the ground, grabbing a machete and thrusting it toward her chest.

The point of light in Lin Yan’s pupils grew larger and larger. She gritted her teeth, barely able to hold on.

The man standing on her kicked her wrist, sending the baton flying from her grasp.

He stomped down, pinning it securely under his foot.

Lin Yan’s brows furrowed in pain. She coughed twice, a trickle of blood escaping her lips. Her internal organs felt like they were being torn apart. She desperately grabbed his foot, trying to push it off, her face pale.

The worst part was the descending blade. She could already feel the sharp, piercing pain on her skin.

Lin Yan gasped for breath, her body tensed. But then, the blade merely tore through her clothes and stopped.

She looked up, stunned, as the man was yanked back by his collar and thrown aside.

The one pinning her was forced to turn and defend himself. The person who had saved her was empty-handed, having snatched the machete from his opponent.

He glanced at her. “What are you staring at? Go!”

Lin Yan clutched her stomach and scrambled to her feet. She picked up her baton and limped toward the workshop.

She glanced back. The mysterious man was already locked in combat, single-handedly holding off two skilled opponents.

His wine-red hair was especially striking in the darkness.

“Jingzhe,” she said his name, giving a slight nod.

“Be careful.”

With that, she plunged into the workshop without looking back.

“Is anyone here? Anyone?” she yelled, banging on each door. The sound echoed far in the empty space.

Ji Jingxing lay on the cold floor, her tears having already run dry. Her usually beautiful eyes had lost their light as she stared blankly at the chaotic shadows on the ceiling.

When she suddenly heard footsteps, she instinctively began to tremble, curling into a ball.

“No, don’t kill me…”

Dust and wood shavings flew about in the lumberyard workshop. Lin Yan coughed twice, leaning on the wall to walk, leaving bloody handprints wherever she touched.

“Is… anyone here?”

She leaned against a door, gasping for breath, her head tilted up at the ceiling. Blood dripped from the tip of her baton, drip, drip, drip.

It was dead silent here, save for the hum of the ventilation fan and her own ragged breathing.

Lin Yan closed her eyes and took several deep breaths to calm her racing heart. In the moment she held her breath, the world fell silent, and she suddenly heard a tiny cry for help.

She heard it clearly.

“Don’t… don’t kill me…”

Lin Yan shot up from the door. “Who? Who’s in there?!”

The cry for help grew more shrill.

“Please, don’t… don’t kill me. Don’t kill my child…”

With her hands and feet bound, Ji Jingxing watched the door shake violently. Tears streamed down her face as she banged her head on the floor, begging for her life.

The door was padlocked. Lin Yan slammed into it a few times, sending dust and wood chips raining down.

She tried kicking it, but it wouldn’t budge. Finally, she raised her baton and smashed it down on the lock.

The sharp screech of metal on metal sent sparks flying.

The paint on the baton began to chip away, revealing the white material beneath.

Every time she lifted her arm, a fresh gush of blood poured from her unhealed shoulder wound.

She had been standing there for so long that a pool of blood had formed at her feet.

“Break!” Lin Yan raised her arm high and, with a furious roar, brought it crashing down. The overburdened lock finally snapped and fell at her feet.

Lin Yan pushed the door open.

A beam of light pierced the dusty darkness.

Ji Jingxing squinted, seeing a tall, lean figure running toward her. Her heart leaped with joy, thinking it was Song Yuhang. But as the person reached her, the name “Yuhang” died on her lips.

Lin Yan tossed her baton aside and knelt, frantically tearing at the hemp ropes binding Ji Jingxing.

“Why is it you?” Ji Jingxing stared at her in disbelief.

Lin Yan ignored her, quickly stripping the ropes off and tossing them aside.

“Go straight out, turn right, and take the side door. My friends are there to meet you. Where’s Auntie Song?”

Following Ji Jingxing’s gaze, Lin Yan turned her head. Her lips tightened instantly. She ran over in a few strides, helped the woman up, and swiftly untied her ropes.

“Auntie, Auntie, Auntie Song, wake up.” Lin Yan gently shook her shoulder, then placed a hand under her nose to check her breathing. A wave of relief washed over her.

Ji Jingxing ran over as well. “My mom… is she okay?”

“She’s fine, just passed out.” Lin Yan gently helped her up and patted her on the back to help her cough up whatever she had choked on.

“Cough, cough…” Auntie Song coughed violently and opened her eyes. Seeing them, tears of relief streamed down her face.

“Jingxing, Mom has let you down…” Mother Song’s trembling hand reached out to grasp hers.

Ji Jingxing shook her head, tears falling freely. “Mom…”

Lin Yan slid an arm under Mother Song’s waist and lifted her. “Alright, stop with the melodrama. Let’s get out of here, now.”

Flanking her on either side, they helped Mother Song run toward the exit. But before they could reach the main door, a heavy, bulletproof steel door came crashing down.

Lin Yan’s pupils shrank. She let go of Mother Song and ran, but it was too late to lift the door by herself.

The steel door hit the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust. Mother Song watched in horror as Lin Yan barely snatched her fingers away from being crushed.

Lin Yan got up and surveyed her surroundings. The small workshop had another side door, likely leading to an employee area that connected to the outside.

“This way,” she said, leading the way.

Ji Jingxing struggled to support Mother Song, her high heels causing her to twist her ankle on the uneven ground.

“Aiya.”

Lin Yan rolled her eyes at the incredibly inopportune moment and tossed her baton to her. “Take this.”

Ji Jingxing looked at the blood-stained baton with horror. “Ah!” she cried out again. She tried to pick it up with one finger, but it was too heavy and almost fell on her foot. She quickly grabbed it with both hands.

Lin Yan turned and hoisted Mother Song onto her back.

“Yanyan, this…”

“It’s fine. We have to get out of here quickly.”

If they were too late and Song Yuhang handed over the USB drive, it would all be for nothing.

Decades of hard work would be wasted. Just the thought of it made Lin Yan’s blood boil with rage.

The men waiting outside heard the commotion and pressed a switch on the wall. Another bulletproof steel door began to descend slowly, its purpose to trap them inside.

Lin Yan gritted her teeth. She shoved Mother Song into Ji Jingxing’s arms, and her eyes fell on a round log nearby, as thick as a bowl. Using every last ounce of strength, she picked it up, charged forward, and slammed it against the door. The log fell away, but the steel door didn’t move an inch.

A sharp pain shot through Lin Yan’s shoulder. Her fingers went limp, and she fell to her knees, gasping for breath, each one heavier than the last.

Ji Jingxing and Mother Song stared at her, and she stared back at them.

In their eyes, there was misery, despair, sorrow, and also a sliver of a plea.

They were begging her to lead them out to see the light of day again.

Ji Jingxing wanted to live to see Xiao Wei. Mother Song wanted to live to see Song Yuhang.

Lin Yan knew, in that moment, she was their only hope.

Lin Yan looked at them, at the shifting light on the ceiling, at the dust floating in the air, and swallowed hard.

Alright, then there’s only one last way.

Her right hand was already shaking, barely able to grip anything. Lin Yan felt the sawdust on the floor, grabbed a handful, and threw it violently into the air.

Ji Jingxing’s vision was obscured. She coughed violently. “Cough, cough… What are you doing? Are you trying to choke us to death?”

Lin Yan said coldly, “Cut the f#cking crap. If you want to live, do as I say.”

As they spoke, the temperature in the workshop dropped rapidly. The ventilation fan began to spin in reverse, pumping out cold air.

Ji Jingxing shivered, her fingers growing so stiff she could barely move them.

Lin Yan’s eyes were red. She frantically threw more sawdust from the floor, even tearing open the burlap sacks piled in the corner and shaking them out, filling the air with a thick cloud of dust.

The workshop was wide open, with nowhere to hide.

She pulled a lighter from her pocket and looked back at them. “Run!”

The moment Ji Jingxing saw the flame in her hand and the blinding cloud of dust, she finally understood. She dragged Mother Song backward, scrambling for their lives.

A flash of light cut through the dark workshop.

Lin Yan flung the lighter. It smashed against the steel door, the plastic casing cracking open. Liquid butane mixed with the massive amount of dust, a dust cloud ignited, and sparks flew.

Lin Yan turned and ran back, but the shockwave threw her off her feet.

Ji Jingxing and Mother Song also fell to the ground.

Lin Yan grabbed both of them, pulled them back, and shielded them with her body.

BOOM! The blast wave from the explosion kicked up all the dust on the floor. Flames rapidly devoured the wood, spreading in all directions.

The men waiting outside heard only a massive explosion. Before they could understand what had happened, the steel door was blasted open, a huge hole torn through it. A tongue of fire shot out, and upon contact with the fresh air outside, it created a backdraft that mixed with the airborne dust, triggering a secondary explosion.

Fire was everywhere.

Ji Jingxing was pinned to the ground, her ears ringing. Her nose was full of dust, and she quickly choked and passed out.

Outside the factory, Duan Cheng and the others, who were waiting to provide support, saw the thick smoke billowing from within. A terrible feeling washed over all of them.

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LP: Re-translated on June 28, 2025

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