National Forensic Doctor-Chapter 883 - 821: Out Then Becomes a Dragon

The body had already been autopsied, with a long surgical suture running through the chest and abdomen, splitting the person in half before stitching them back together.

On the head, a white towel was wrapped around, because the head had truly been cut into two halves, now bound with the towel.

Jiang Yuan looked over the autopsy report and had decided not to perform a third autopsy.

Coroner Jacob had just performed the second autopsy and found nothing, which was why he called Jiang Yuan over. And there wasn’t much left to autopsy for a third time.

As of now, the victim’s three body cavities had already been emptied, with the heart, liver, spleen, stomach, kidneys, brain, and so on already removed, and the necessary specimens had all been sliced. Reopening would be meaningless, as all that would be seen were bones and flesh.

And important organs like the brain were processed in a highly standardized way by Jacob and others, first preserved with paraffin before being finely sliced into dozens of pieces to make specimens. Through this process, whether the brain had petechial hemorrhages or thromboses became immediately obvious.

It was also through this process that forensic doctors ruled out the possibility of the victim having a cerebral infarction.

Therefore, the focus of the examination was actually on the surface of the body.

Jiang Yuan thoroughly examined the body from head to toe. The muscles were already in a relaxed state, and there were minor abrasions on the neck, but like the injuries to the heart and lungs, they could only serve as evidence and could not explain the cause of death.

While Jiang Yuan conducted his examination, Coroner Jacob and others also looked closely.

Some puncture marks, which might appear smaller when a person has just died and are easier to miss, might become more visible after a few days. Of course, it’s possible that they were created with an extremely fine needle for injection, like counterfeit Moutai. But in that case, the victim usually would not cooperate, and if detected, there should be signs of struggle or restraint injuries.

The group carefully checked areas like the axilla, the bends and roots of the legs, and the neck, but found nothing.

Jiang Yuan then pried open the victim’s mouth for observation. With the head that had been split in two, opening it for examination was somewhat inconvenient, so Jiang Yuan casually used a flashlight to inspect it. As he turned it in all directions, a dark purple circular mark became visible on the left cheek.

The area of the circular bloodstain wasn’t large, but its location was very interesting.

Jiang Yuan recalled the autopsy report, confirming that this circular bloodstain was not mentioned in the report.

In fact, despite the plethora of information detailed in autopsy reports, they cannot possibly encompass all injuries. A real body and its autopsy report are like a doctor’s diagnostic report, describing mainly major findings, and even serving to substantiate an argument.

The comprehensive autopsy report that ordinary people imagine, much like a meticulous and thorough investigation, belongs to an ideal standard that is unachievable in practical police work. Domestic murder investigations might be slightly better, but in places like Dama where the murder rate and police force allocation are concerned, meticulously handling one case would leave no resources for others.

"Take a picture here," Jiang Yuan instructed the photographer to capture the circular bloodstain.

After the photographer, led by Coroner Jacob, had finished taking photos, they all examined the bloodstain closely.

"What does Doctor Jiang think caused this mark?" Jacob asked directly.

"It was originally a blood blister that burst and left this mark," Jiang Yuan paused for a moment, and before Jacob could ask further, continued, "The blister was caused by smothering."

This pointed directly to the cause and method of death and turned this negative autopsy case from a suspected criminal case to a confirmed criminal case.

Not only Coroner Jacob and his disciples but also the policemen nearby became serious.

"If it was death by smothering, the typical signs on the eyes and face don’t seem to be present," Jacob paused for a moment, then hurriedly said, "I’m not doubting, we’re just... "

"Discussing forensics," Jiang Yuan’s Indonesian language was quite good; Level 2 was basically unobstructed for communication.

Jacob nodded repeatedly, "Right, just plain discussion. Because with this case, we actually suspected the possibility of murder, but there were indeed contradictory points in the forensic evidence."

"The atypical signs on the eyes and face, from my understanding, could be for two reasons. First, I believe the victim had taken drugs, and under the influence of the drugs, the sympathetic nervous system was inhibited, the heartbeat and blood pressure were stable, and there was very little power to struggle and resist, or even possibly no struggle or resistance at all."

"Just like being under anesthesia," Jacob’s disciple couldn’t help but say.

Coroner Jacob just solemnly nodded. While answering questions, Jiang Yuan simultaneously threw out another argument, suggesting the cause of death included the effect of drugs. So, the question circled back to the beginning, "How were the drugs ingested, and what drug was it?"

Jiang Yuan, regardless of how the minute details were considered, continued, "The second reason for the atypical symptoms is probably that the mouth was covered for a very short time, roughly three to four minutes. After releasing the grip, the purplish swelling in the facial blood naturally subsided. To give an example, some people die from hanging, but if they’re found quickly and taken down within a few minutes, the facial purplish swelling isn’t very apparent."

Jacob nodded gently, mostly with a hint of surprise. This was purely based on Jiang Yuan’s experience, and given their ages, he should have been the more experienced one.

The senior police officer next to them, Ni Cha, started to get anxious. Unable to understand Jacob’s thoughts, he couldn’t help but ask, "So, was the victim drugged first and then suffocated to death by covering the mouth?"

"Yes," Jiang Yuan gave a clear answer, adding, "The difficulty with this case lies in the unclear cause of death. Currently, there’s no detection of drug poisoning, the deceased had no apparent diseases, no signs of electrocution, no marks of strangulation, but mouth covering is certain. The petechiae on the surface of the heart and lungs match with the symptoms of asphyxiation. Of course, acute sudden death can also cause bleeding in the heart and lungs, so there is indeed room for discussion regarding the cause of death. However, from all the circumstances considered, asphyxiation after being drugged is the most consistent with the characteristics of death."

Ni Cha looked at Jacob to double-check, "Coroner Jacob, do you agree?"

Even if Jiang Yuan was a "god," Ni Cha needed confirmation from their own forensic doctor.

Jacob looked somewhat abstracted, slowly saying, "Jiang Yuan’s judgment is the most consistent, and I agree."

Honestly, for a forensic doctor, giving a verdict of a negative autopsy requires great courage. In terms of frequency, a normal forensic doctor might go several years, even a decade, without giving a single negative autopsy.

The conclusion of a negative autopsy by Jacob meant they truly couldn’t solve it. And, he understood better than anyone the repercussions this conclusion would have.

If it’s a negative autopsy, it essentially means that the cause of the victim’s death cannot be found, which theoretically is tantamount to the non-existence of murder. Because how the victim died is unknown.

Of course, practically speaking, the police can still pursue the case from the angle of a homicide, considering the motive or other aspects, but the pressure is inevitably there. This situation is like a murder case where the body hasn’t been found; there’s always a possibility that after all the investigations, it may turn out there wasn’t a murder at all, which means no real perpetrator exists.

Ni Cha could no longer worry about Jacob’s thoughts, and upon confirmation, immediately said, "We now know that the death occurred after the victim went to bed to sleep. The victim’s wife slept in the same bed and claimed to have not woken up in the middle of the night, and upon waking up in the morning, did not notice anything unusual about her husband. It was the maid who went upstairs to call them for a meal and discovered he was dead..."

At this point, Ni Cha looked at Jiang Yuan again and said, "Additionally, the victim had long-term extramarital affairs and a poor relationship with his wife, often arguing. The wife has a motive for crime."

Ni Cha continued, "Although there is no evidence of the wife’s involvement in crime yet, she undoubtedly has strong suspicions, at the least as an informed party... I recommend the arrest of the victim’s wife, Dun Xiti."

Several senior officers present expressed their agreement.

They had previously been suspicious of Dun Xiti as well, but as there was no evidence, and the mere existence of the murder case was doubtful, they could only request that Dun Xiti was not allowed to leave the city, but could not put further pressure on her.

Now, the information provided by Jiang Yuan completely changed the passive situation.

Ni Cha left hastily with his team.

Jacob and his disciple concluded their work with much reflection.

Zhong Renlong escorted Jiang Yuan and the others all the way out of the autopsy building.

The family members, still dressed in heavy mourning, were unaware of what had transpired in the autopsy room.

"Doctor Jiang, what would you like to eat tonight?" Zhong Renlong asked with a smile.

Before Jiang Yuan could answer, the system interface had already appeared before his eyes:

Mission: Out, Then Soar as the Dragon

Task Content: A place with a high incidence of cases is suitable for the forensic doctor to exercise their abilities, solve cases, until 100 foreign colleagues see you as a detective god.

Task Progress: (8/100)

Jiang Yuan didn’t expect that among the Dama police, there were already 8 people who considered him a detective god, prompting a smile.

After another thought, Jiang Yuan said to Zhong Renlong, "Let’s go for durian, and also, bring a few case files so I can read them while eating."