Chapter 105 - 105 103 Again a Hiking Enthusiast

Words : 1704 Updated : Sep 17th, 2025

105: Chapter 103 Again a Hiking Enthusiast 105: Chapter 103 Again a Hiking Enthusiast Jiang Yuan got the conclusion that it was Marfan Syndrome, yet he continued to perform the autopsy slowly and meticulously. Performing autopsies in a different location wasn’t easy. Once the body was thawed, it was best to finish the job in one go, because freezing and then thawing it again would be even more troublesome. Furthermore, second and third autopsies could increase the difficulty for oneself and others who followed. That was because the forensic doctor conducting the repeated autopsies had to additionally determine whether the injuries were caused by the case itself or by the previous forensic doctor. On one hand, confirming the identity of the body was one matter, but he still wanted to find more evidence. It couldn’t possibly be that he had to walk the old hunting trail again. Jiang Yuan genuinely wished his workplace could be more permanent. The autopsy lasted until mid-afternoon, and Langgu County’s forensic doctor, Li Zhen, couldn’t hold up any longer. He leaned on the dissection table, resting his weight on it as if to draw on it for support. Jiang Yuan watched the semi-turbid liquid that had soaked the body dampen Li Zhen’s clothes and after soaking through, it started to drip steadily. “Mr. Li, your clothes are wet,” Jiang Yuan couldn’t help but remind him, while rinsing the floor below with water. Li Zhen stood up somewhat groggily, waving his hand and saying, “I’m old and tired from not having a nap after lunch. I’ll be fine after washing my face.” In the current environment, even washing one’s face was difficult. Of course, having any desire to sleep in such an unpleasant environment was also impressive. Jiang Yuan didn’t know what to say and simply suggested, “I’ll speed up. Let’s get this finished as quickly as possible.” “That would be best,” Li Zhen replied, and then added, “Actually, just finding the identity of the body should be enough.” “Hmm, relying solely on the identity of the body probably won’t solve the case,” Jiang Yuan didn’t go along with his suggestion, adding, “The killer likely killed at random.” “Random killings are troublesome,” Li Zhen commented. “Indeed,” Jiang Yuan agreed. With that, the dissection room became much quieter. Despite talking about finishing quickly, it still took another hour to wrap up. Li Zhen then went to call the part-time technician from the funeral home to help out, and with three people working together, the body was put back into the ice coffin and the dissection table and floor were cleaned. The strong stench subsided, and Jiang Yuan looked again at Li Zhen’s clothes, saying, “Cleaning those clothes is going to be a hassle.” “No problem,” Li Zhen claimed, before blinking and then adding, “Actually, let me teach you a trick of mine.” “A trick?” “For clothes like these, don’t rush to wash them right away. It’s best to hang them up for a day before washing,” Li Zhen explained, tugging at his surgical gown and smiling. “This way, the smell diminishes as much as possible.” “Oh, really?” Jiang Yuan said, surprised. Li Zhen nodded, saying, “There’s not much I can teach you about autopsies, so consider this a little secret from me.” Feeling satisfied after sharing his tip, Li Zhen felt he had regained the demeanor of an experienced forensic doctor and happily went off to shower. Once Jiang Yuan had tidied everything up and returned to the guesthouse, he smelled the familiar scent of chicken soup. “Jiang Yuan is back. Just in time for chicken,” Liu Jinghui called out from the kitchen on the other side of the courtyard, welcoming Jiang Yuan with enthusiasm. “There’s more rooster?” Jiang Yuan was surprised. Shouldn’t normal people switch up their meals? Liu Jinghui, seeming to have anticipated the reaction, jovially responded, “There’s other food, too, but chicken has its own appeal. I bought some chili peppers. This time I’m making spicy chicken, it’s delicious. That’s all Liu and the others know how to cook right now.” The guesthouse in question was composed of a four-story building and a two-story building, forming a simple but functional courtyard. Following Liu Jinghui out of the kitchen were several technicians who had come along. During the journey, they had forged friendships and honed their skills in preparing rooster stew, now putting their expertise to good use. “And this time, I even bought an old hen, especially for making soup. It’s been boiling for four or five hours,” Liu Jinghui said with a smile that carried hints of exhaustion. Jiang Yuan sat down politely, took a sip of the soup courteously, and asked politely, “Have you identified the victim?” “We have,” Liu Jinghui’s expression grew more serious as he sat across from Jiang Yuan and said, “The victim’s name was Su Qin. She was from another province. She had Marfan syndrome, so she kept up with physical exercise and enjoyed hiking. She was a backpacker. But as far as social relationships go, she was quite lonely. Her immediate family is all gone; her mother passed away, her father divorced and remarried, losing contact as well, and it was her cousin who reported her missing.” “Another backpacker?” Jiang Yuan shook his head and then asked, “What about her child? She had given birth before.” “She got divorced, and the kid stayed with her ex-husband. They hardly had any contact and didn’t live in the same city,” Liu Jinghui paused and then added, “Another important clue is that Su Qin didn’t come here on her own.” “Did her travel companion return?” “No, the travel companion is the one who reported her missing, which then informed her cousin.” “No one knew they were at Mount Wulong?” “They filed a report locally; it was probably just recorded.” “What about after that? They could have checked phone records.” “They traced it as far as Pingzhou. The family later filed a missing person report there as well,” Liu Jinghui said with little else, clearly having not delved deeper into the questioning. Jiang Yuan uttered, “Hmm.” One tends to realize with a bit more experience in handling cases, the majority of cases that are solved are simply solved. Those that aren’t solved are full of all sorts of unfortunate coincidences, difficulties, and inconveniences. Investigating a case always involves a mixture of serendipity and inevitability. It’s like when a day is particularly bad, you find that everything you do from the morning on goes wrong. On a particularly good day, everything seems to go right. Of course, as a detective, you don’t need things to go smoothly all the time. It’s enough if things go right just once at a critical moment, and the case can be cracked. As for a criminal, they might get away with it once or twice, for a year or two, but all it takes is one slip-up and they’re caught. However, like most cases, someone definitely pulled a fast one in this one too, but Liu Jinghui wouldn’t talk about that, and Jiang Yuan couldn’t be bothered to ask. In this world, most of the time, everyone is cutting corners, including Su Qin’s relatives, her cousin, her ex-husband. They are all just as deceitful. “What’s the situation with the travel companion?” Jiang Yuan pressed on. Liu Jinghui pursed his lips and said, “Sun Jingyi. That’s her name, also divorced, also has a child, but her family relations are a bit closer. She was reported missing about three days later. Under normal circumstances, both of them likely met with misfortune together.” “Hmm.” From the information available now, the number of unjust dead in Mount Wulong was probably not small. “What’s our next step?” Jiang Yuan looked at Liu Jinghui. At this point in the case, things had started to become a bit clearer. If this were a criminal investigation unit, it would be time to determine the investigative approach. They could opt for a stakeout, a sweep, or a broader inquiry. However, no matter which strategy was chosen, it was hard to say it was a sure thing, and there were always certain risks involved. For instance, staking out an old hunting trail was betting that these people would continue to come and go along that path, but this was just a guess, not a certainty. If the other side stopped using that route or only passed by every few months, it would be a waste of manpower. Furthermore, if they did happen upon this desperate group, wouldn’t they have to engage in a jungle warfare? No matter if the firepower of this group matched the Vietnamese or if the jungle in Mount Wulong was as complex as those in tropical regions, the police always aimed for a peaceful arrest first and foremost. Liu Jinghui, who had clearly put thought into it as well, skipped the life-threatening choices and said, “I’m planning on organizing a search team, starting from where Su Qin’s body was found and searching toward the direction of the old hunting trail. We’ll see if we can find any more bodies or remains. Also, since both Su Qin and her companion were out as backpackers, their personal gear and food are likely to have been taken. Maybe we can look into that.” Jiang Yuan nodded in agreement. Although a sweep was time-consuming, labor-intensive, and not cost-efficient, at this point in the case, it was a rather reliable option. At this moment, Jiang Yuan understood why Liu Jinghui was drinking chicken soup so contentedly. Organizing a relatively large search team with some level of expertise would definitely not be completed within a day. In fact, it took three days of waiting before Pingzhou managed to put together a search team. Together with a civilian search party from Shan Nan Province that had been waiting in Langgu County, they slowly advanced into Mount Wulong. Liu Jinghui and Jiang Yuan followed the team from Pingzhou, armed with plentiful supplies.

Chapter 105 - 105 103 Again a Hiking Enthusiast

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