National Forensic Doctor-Chapter 1125 - 1056: Investigation

"How was the victim Sun Xiuwen’s stepfather ruled out as a suspect?" Jiang Yuan gestured for the forensic doctor Tang Feng to sit down.

The case was still in its initial stages of understanding, even after half a month had passed. Jiang Yuan, appearing unhurried, casually inquired.

Cao Chujun shifted his posture and directly faced Jiang Yuan, saying, "The main issue is the timeline for the crime. The victim’s mother testified that between 6 a.m. and 8 a.m., her husband was with her."

"Mutual spousal testimony?" Wang Chuanxing saw that Jiang Yuan remained silent and immediately raised the question. In such small-scale discussions, even junior officers could chime in occasionally, and a slightly far-fetched remark would not typically attract criticism.

Cao Chujun chuckled and said, "Although they’re a couple, the testimony came from the victim’s mother, and there is some evidence."

"What evidence?" Wang Chuanxing asked.

"Condoms," Cao Chujun replied succinctly, then elaborated further, "Around 6 a.m. that day, the two had intercourse, and the condom was discarded in the trash bin. The evidence has been collected."

Wang Chuanxing was astonished, "They stayed at it for two hours?"

Cao Chujun glanced at Wang Chuanxing strangely and responded helplessly, "Both were awake afterward and even had a conversation later. Considering the victim’s death window, the stepfather likely didn’t have the time to commit the crime."

"The time of death requires reconsideration," Jiang Yuan suddenly interjected, cutting off the communication between the two.

Cao Chujun froze momentarily, then adjusted his seating posture.

Jiang Yuan’s accuracy in determining the time of death had long become legendary in domestic investigative fields. Years ago, he discerned an oversight by Beijing experts in a missing firearm case from a single photograph, which led to solving a years-old cold case. Since then, very few dared to challenge Jiang Yuan on the subject of time of death.

Tang Feng, the Changyang City’s forensic doctor, hastily began flipping through his notes and dared not voice any objections.

"Before the incident, it was raining in the area, which indicates a drop in temperature," Jiang Yuan began to explain. "A lower temperature affects the relationship between body temperature and the time of death. That’s one factor."

Jiang Yuan glanced at Tang Feng and continued, "The issue of rigor mortis is similar. I won’t go into detail here, but based on the external features of the corpse, the victim’s time of death is likely later than initially estimated. The most crucial evidence is..."

Jiang Yuan picked up a remote control and scrolled through the PPT images, stopping at a few specific slides. "The state of these insects more clearly illustrates the local temperature conditions, especially these juvenile insects. I judge the victim’s time of death to be around 3 to 4 a.m. that day."

This adjustment pushed the time of death forward by three hours, potentially overturning prior investigations.

Tang Feng quickly reacted, "Captain Jiang, I’m not doubting you, but measuring liver temperature seems less prone to error."

"You’ve measured liver temperature far too few times, and your measurements were somewhat delayed. Additionally, the corpse’s location is at the base of a cliff, where the temperature is significantly lower than the normal ground temperature," Jiang Yuan explained the reasons for potential errors.

Tang Feng soon understood, "The methods we used were a bit inappropriate... In your opinion, what would be the best way to determine the time of death?"

He was eager to learn.

"Currently, insects seem most reliable," Jiang Yuan replied. "Although the primary crime scene isn’t here, the victim’s prolonged disposal in the wild has attracted numerous necrophagous insects. Employing forensic entomology yields more accurate assessments."

Tang Feng gave a bitter smile. Although forensic entomology is slightly simpler than forensic botany and less demanding than forensic anthropology, it’s still a niche subject. Most forensic doctors learn only the basics and rarely delve deep into it.

In Shannan Province, most forensic doctors in smaller cities and counties lack even Level 1 proficiency in forensic entomology. Changyang City is no exception; however, in a few out-of-the-way towns, some forensic personnel might teach themselves the subject out of boredom or special circumstances.

Cao Chujun didn’t have time for Tang Feng’s feelings and immediately said, "In that case, we’ll revise the time of death to between 3 and 4 a.m. With this modification, the victim’s stepfather is back on the list of suspects."

Holding a new tablet, Jiang Yuan reviewed some photographs and nodded. "That amendment works."

If this were a current case, he could reexamine the corpse for deeper analysis. However, for a case that happened half a month ago, he no longer had that option and could only rely on photographs for judgments—making it significantly more challenging. freёnovelkiss.com

Tang Feng said nothing. Even though he was a forensic doctor for the Changyang City Bureau and occasionally assisted forensic teams in surrounding counties and towns, he carried the attitude of a humble novice compared to someone like Jiang Yuan, a national-level expert.

Cao Chujun stood up, "I’ll immediately deploy officers to bring in the victim’s stepfather for questioning. Additionally, I’ll organize a team to reexamine the victim’s house. If the stepfather committed the murder, then the primary crime scene is likely at his residence. However, during the first investigation, we didn’t find obvious traces."

As he spoke, he glanced at Jiang Yuan.

Jiang Yuan smiled and took the initiative, "I’ll go to the victim’s house myself. I’ll also inspect the corpse disposal site."

"Excellent! That’s fantastic!" Cao Chujun replied promptly.

Crime scene investigations are similar to forensic evaluations—the chances of finding new evidence on a second attempt are lower, especially after ten-plus days. If the suspect had further cleaned their premises, discovering anything incriminating would be even tougher, leaving Cao Chujun somewhat pessimistic.

Without further ado, Jiang Yuan led his team to board the vehicles, setting off for Hualing Township. The Changyang City Bureau’s Criminal Science Center dispatched two additional vehicles, and with two more from the Criminal Police Brigade, the convoy totaled ten cars.

Watching the formidable procession leave the courtyard of the Criminal Police Brigade, Yu Wenshu stood by his office window, a thought suddenly surfacing in his mind: He had never fought such a well-resourced battle.

Looking at this display, Yu Wenshu contemplated whether they’d even need the brigade’s officers for future arrests.

As the convoy disappeared into the distance, Yu Wenshu couldn’t resist reciting poetry: "Three years a wanderer by the rivers, a hundred battles across heaven and earth. Who resists the intoxication of wine and lays content in the clear stream of the Zhang River..."

It was his favorite poem by Li Shangyin, titled "Night Drinking." His fondness for Li Shangyin stemmed not only from the poet’s complex verse, which others struggled to memorize, but also his ability to recall them effortlessly at first glance.

Reflecting on Jiang Yuan’s performance in the meeting room earlier, Yu Wenshu couldn’t help but muse: "This kid is just like me!"

...

Hualing Township.

Sun Xiuwen’s home was a two-story self-built house. Its large courtyard gate faced directly onto the village road; opening the gate led straight to the pavement. Although there were few pedestrians and vehicles, the surroundings still felt peaceful.

The village itself was sparsely constructed, forming essentially a long strip. Some homes clustered closer together—usually belonging to families of brothers or previous generations of siblings.

Though the village had access to water, electricity, and internet and was only a 20-minute motorcycle ride from the nearest town and 10 minutes from the nearest market, it still felt somewhat remote and desolate. Especially with many farmlands abandoned, areas slightly away from the village were overgrown with waist-high grass.

The site where Sun Xiuwen’s corpse was dumped lay just off the roadside. In some ways, it seemed rather careless. If the killer had walked another ten-plus meters inward, the body would likely have been discovered only by smell and chance.

From another perspective, however, this approach displayed cunning. By dumping the body just a few meters from the road, the disposal left minimal traces. After a rainstorm washed over the scene, forensic teams failed to gather any useful information.

At Sun Xiuwen’s house, however, Jiang Yuan focused on locating the primary crime scene but still found nothing.

The two-story house featured a room on the east side where Sun Xiuwen lived. The interior was simple—a bed, a desk, a bookshelf, a wardrobe, and a few other furnishings. The only notable items were the young girl’s collection of dolls.

Even these dolls were taken out one by one to check for smothering marks that might have killed the victim.

"Have the bedding and pillows in this room been cleaned or replaced?" Jiang Yuan called over the victim’s mother for questioning.

The victim’s mother, who was only in her early thirties, sobbed heartbreakingly as she shook her head vigorously. "No. Since Wenwen passed, I haven’t touched anything in her room. These past few days, the room has been locked."

"What about your husband? Has he replaced or thrown away anything?"

"No, I wouldn’t let him touch anything."

With no other leads from the victim’s mother, Jiang Yuan allowed her to leave and resumed pacing inside the room.

He had already inspected the other rooms in the house and likewise found no evidence of the crime.

If the stepfather were the suspect, the odds of the first crime scene being inside the house were high, as instances of sexual assault between acquaintances often occur in a place familiar to one or both parties. A homicide occurring around 3 a.m. would likely coincide with sleeping hours, even if the crime began earlier.

Unconvinced, Jiang Yuan re-scanned the room meticulously. This time, he noticed several crumpled jeans stuffed into the wardrobe.

Taking them out, Jiang Yuan frowned.

Sun Xiuwen’s room was fairly tidy, yet these jeans weren’t folded or hung properly. Some even bore unwashed stains.

A thought crossed Jiang Yuan’s mind. He turned and pushed open the window, leaning out for a look.

The stains on the wall outside were indeed similar.

"Lettuce Girl!" Jiang Yuan called for two officers and directed them to take photographs.