Chapter 122 - 122 120 Isn't this a coincidence

122: Chapter 120 Isn’t this a coincidence? 122: Chapter 120 Isn’t this a coincidence? “Big brother Dog——” “Big brother Dog~” Jiang Yuan was awakened by the early crowing chickens and was stunned for several seconds before suddenly feeling as though he had traveled back in time, back to the foot of Mount Wulong. Back then, he was still an innocent youth, thinking that by climbing the mountain, with his sophisticated LV4 crime scene investigation techniques, he might find some trace evidence, and with luck, even scrape together some fingerprints, perhaps even smoothly crack the case. It must have been around three or four dozen roosters later, his files had already listed more than twenty murder cases. That’s tantamount to wiping out two and a half groups of donkey friends trekking up the mountain. He himself had even gambled with his life once! To tell the truth, Jiang Yuan, who graduated from the forensic department of a medical university, feared most the professional death modes, the first was being infected by a corpse, the second was having his neck sliced by a murderer returning to the crime scene, and the third was getting cancer from inhaling too much formaldehyde from formalin. Gunshot, this kind of mode, Jiang Yuan had never even considered. All thanks to his teammates’ effectiveness, it was thrilling, and thinking back, he still felt a bit scared. His heartbeat was still quivering. Jiang Yuan flipped out his phone and sent a WeChat message to Mu Zhiyang to greet him and thank him for the sacrificial offering to ensure safety. Then he got up and left the bedroom, just in time to see his father also groggily walking out of the door. “Dad,” Jiang Yuan called out. “Hmm,” Jiang Fuzhen glanced at his son, then out of the window, just as the rooster crowed again. Jiang Fuzhen walked to the window, took another look outside, then back at Jiang Yuan, and asked, “Want to eat rooster?” Jiang Yuan hesitated for a moment, then said, “For breakfast? We might not make it in time.” “A stir-fried chicken leg can be pretty delicious,” Jiang Fuzhen said as he took out his phone and made a call, “Old Six, is it your rooster crowing? I know it’s for worshiping ancestors, but you’ve got too many, kill a big one. I’ll come over and take two legs, fry them up for breakfast.” After the person on the other side of the phone agreed, Jiang Fuzhen went to the bathroom to wash his face twice, then ordered Jiang Yuan, “You go heat up the pan; I’ll go get the chicken and be back.” “Okay,” Jiang Yuan replied, turning to enter the kitchen. When he came out, he distinctly heard the crowing of the chickens outside had clearly changed. For breakfast, Jiang Yuan got to eat stir-fried green chili chicken legs with steamed buns and red chili sauce. With no woman in the house, the two men each brewed a cup of tea, eating with steamed buns, savoring their meal. The neighborhood was quiet, without a single crow of the chicken heard again. Around 7 a.m., teams one after another started to call out to set off. In terms of ancestral worship, the Jiang Village people are professionals. Especially in the past dozen or so years, with the process of demolition, families really had not much else to do. But the importance of ancestral worship was constantly being elevated. It went from once a year to twice a year, and then to worshiping whenever there was a chance. The head of each family, in terms of cooperation and division of labor in ancestral worship, was also continuously strengthening. What each family had to do, and what they intended to undertake, was all divvied up and vied for well in advance, on a cycle of a few years. This year, the only change was that Uncle Seventeen and Aunt Seventeen were no longer around, which necessitated a slight reshuffle. 9 a.m., at the Jiang Family Ancestral Hall in old Jiang Village. The ancestral worship ceremony officially began. First, the old grandfathers and grandmothers dressed in opera costumes danced to strange steps. Then, several elders stood in the front row, offering sacrifices to the ancestors. A big rooster, a sheep, a big fat pig. Straight after them, two pairs of newlyweds, dressed in bright red wedding attire and hidden under red veils, stepped in front of the hall. This was an opportunity to get married during the ancestral worship ceremony. In most cases, these were couples who had already registered for marriage, or even held wedding ceremonies. But the auspices of ancestral worship were good, and the villagers were happy to have people hold their weddings simultaneously. By the time this whole process was done, it was already 10 o’clock. Grandpa Three, looking at the time, shouted “top scholar bowing to ancestors,” and someone pushed Jiang Yuan forward. Joining him were the plaques of homes of second-class merit recipients. Following that, Grandpa Three had Jiang Yuan put on the medal for second-class merit and then burn three joss sticks to report the joyous news to the lineage of ancestors. Jiang Yuan dutifully followed the instructions. Amidst the swirling smoke, Jiang Yuan’s emotions were unusually calm. Suddenly, he really wanted to bow sincerely. This time when he left home, this medal for second-class merit came with the breath of death. Just like those trekkers who had died, none had truly sought death. A simple trip, ordinary, nothing more than a hike in a different place. Yet, it turned into a journey that marked the end of life. Death, often than not, lay closer and more sudden than most people imagined. The final ceremony involved someone fixing the small plaque, about 30 centimeters long, labeled “Second-Class Merit,” to the entrance hall ceiling of the ancestral hall. Looking up, the ceiling of the entrance hall, which measured about a hundred square meters, was adorned with various sizes and types of honorific plaques, some of which covered the smaller ones from previous generations. The most eye-catching plaque among them was, without a doubt, the one inscribed with the words “Graduate of Imperial Examinations,” spanning 3.3 meters in length and 2.2 meters in width, with a jujube red background, placed right at the center of the main beam. Great-uncle stomped his foot, looking up and saying, “Once our Jiang Family produces more talents, we’ll expand this entrance hall and hang up more plaques, leaving something for our descendants.” The young people by his side roared their agreement, full of vigor. But everyone knew that once they were back home, what they would contribute most to the country was their consumer spending. ... Afternoon. Jiang Yuan took a set of keys for a Raptor from the key cabinet, drove it out from the underground garage beneath his apartment, and went directly to the community canteen where he packed two boxes of cooked red eggs. Thinking it over, he also grabbed some leftover incense from ancestor worship and a few packs of Zhonghua cigarettes, before heading to his unit. He was on leave, but staying at home was too noisy, so he preferred coming here directly. Taking the familiar route to the parking lot, and because he was late, the spot was a bit far away, Jiang Yuan called Wang Zhong, laughing, “Zhong, I’ve brought some eggs over; do you want to come and help carry them?” “Oh wow, Jiang Yuan, you’re back, perfect timing as I was thinking of stretching my legs.” Wang Zhong replied while sounds of moving a chair could be heard from his phone. Shortly after, Wang Zhong came running down, his face beaming with delight. Jiang Yuan stood on the truck bed waving and then lifted another box of red eggs, saying, “Been away on a trip for a while, brought back some red eggs for everyone.” “Forensic expert’s red eggs, can’t go wrong with that.” Wang Zhong laughed heartily, then looked Jiang Yuan up and down, clicking his tongue and saying, “Jiang, next time you have something urgent, just holler at me. This trip you completely blitzed through Shannan Province’s fingerprint stations; who could have seen that coming? 10 murder cases; you have no idea how much saliva Captain Huang shed each day.” “Aren’t the fingerprints I took part in the fingerprint operation included in our team’s achievements?” Jiang Yuan raised an eyebrow. “Of course, they count, and you get full marks for that, it’s just that everyone gets a share, right?” Wang Zhong shouldered a box of the cooked red eggs, striding energetically. Jiang Yuan also carried a box, along with some Zhonghua cigarettes, and followed Wang Zhong to the lobby where he set the box down and told the officer at the service desk, “These are some red eggs I’ve brought, anyone who wants some can just take them.” “Oh, okay.” The officer was somewhat surprised. Wang Zhong, still carrying the box, said, “This is our bureau’s Forensic Expert Jiang Yuan, the one mentioned in the fingerprint operation briefing for matching 10 murder cold cases.” Jiang Yuan nodded in greeting and went upstairs with the Zhonghua. In the office. Wu Jun had reclined his chair all the way back and was dozing off. Jiang Yuan stopped Wang Zhong from waking him, opened a pack of Zhonghua, lit one, and waved it in the air a few times. Slowly, Wu Jun’s eyes opened. “Did you have a dream?” Seeing Jiang Yuan, holding the lit Zhonghua, Wu Jun felt a mix of surprise and disbelief, like a double blessing. “Master, I’m back at work now.” Jiang Yuan handed the Zhonghua to Wu Jun. Wu Jun took a few puffs, instantly alert, and sat up, “Good kid, you’ve finally come back.” “I was called away by Director Liu at the provincial hall, got held up a bit,” Jiang Yuan explained. “Yeah, Mount Wulong’s wild man case, in the end, you guys turned it into the Hunter series of murders. Getting back this quickly is already pretty good. I saw the bulletin, did over twenty people die?” Wu Jun was always paying attention to Jiang Yuan’s side of things. Jiang Yuan nodded, then added, “The trials aren’t over yet; probably more.” “Have you had red eggs yet?” “Had some. I brought plenty over to the office too.” Jiang Yuan couldn’t help but smile. “Eat a couple more, and I’ll have one as well,” Wu Jun cracked an eggshell, then asked again while eating, “Did you jump over the fire yet?” “Not yet.” “Well, do it in a while, need some joss paper?” Jiang Yuan was speechless: “You still have joss paper?” “Whenever I encounter more than two bodies, I usually burn some joss paper.” Wu Jun said, pulling a stack of joss paper from the bottom drawer and fishing out a Xuande burner from beneath the radiator. He locked the office door, set them up in the middle of the room, and lit them, “Do both at once, we’re in a new era, let’s be efficient.” Jiang Yuan did as instructed, but he was skeptical about what Wu Jun called the new era. When the office door reopened, the officers who had received word came one after another to gawk, though officially they came to offer their regards. For a small place like Ningtai County, not just 10 murder cold cases but even a single one would be a big deal. Jiang Yuan also made a point of visiting each office on the fourth floor, solemnly presenting the red eggs. As a member of the criminal investigation squad, Jiang Yuan was very keen to foster good relations with his colleagues. And so, making his way to the image investigation office, Jiang Yuan witnessed an interesting scene. Two officers were going all out to help a young woman who was likely the victim, trying to find a clear image of a face from street surveillance footage. They were struggling because the resolution of the surveillance cameras in Ningtai County was generally low, and finding a clearer image was a real challenge. This was actually a common issue. Regardless of the increasing number of surveillance cameras in the country, they were installed at different times. And since the costs of high-definition cameras are several times higher than those of standard ones, they are only installed at important intersections and checkpoints. Moreover, cameras exposed to the outdoor elements have to endure wind, sun, rain, and all sorts of changes in lighting and environment, so it’s normal for their footage to be unclear. Officers involved in image investigation typically have to sift through plenty of unclear footage to find a clear image, which could often crack the case wide open. However, for Jiang Yuan, who had just upgraded to LV5 in image enhancement, wasn’t this just the opportunity he needed?