Chapter 156 - 156 151 Manner of Death

Words : 1893 Updated : Sep 19th, 2025

156: Chapter 151: Manner of Death 156: Chapter 151: Manner of Death Wanghe Building. These high-rise buildings in the city center are the most bustling area of Ningtai County and also the location of the county CBD. They house the county branches of various banks, the “headquarters” of numerous financial companies, as well as real estate companies, hotel companies, some government departments, and local branches of state-owned enterprises, and so on... The high-rise buildings had never been fully rented, and naturally, the variability of the rents was substantial. The worst managed of them all, Wanghe Building, had become a haven for pet cats and dogs. Ostensibly for breeding, they had made the entire floor reek unbearably. Jiang Yuan had previously joined a friend to play escape room games and practice archery at Wanghe Building. Compared to those arranged by local folks, the escape rooms seemed rather rudimentary. Jiang Yuan had managed to squeeze his way through from behind a wall to what he saw as an unrenovated, pitch-dark plot of land. Much more terrifying than the escape room itself. The first officers on the scene had cordoned off the area of the high fall. The yellow caution tape, the smooth plaza, and the naturally high-end stone wall surfaces appeared somewhat like a scene out of a TV drama. Outside the caution tape, a group dressed like office workers, young people from the county town, were frantically capturing videos and photos with their cellphones. Perhaps they sought to inject some excitement into their otherwise sparse social feeds. The victim was also a young white-collar worker. Dressed in a white shirt and black trousers. Lying on his back, facing to the right, his face had turned into an indistinguishable mess. Fortunately, his brains had not spilled out but had splattered inside his skull, which would have been enough to deter most of the onlooking white-collar workers. “Stretch the caution tape further. Drive away anyone taking pictures. If they don’t leave, confiscate their phones,” ordered Huang Qiangmin, who had also arrived on the scene in his old Pajero, barking orders at the criminal investigators who had just arrived. Reinforced by their colleagues, the officers quickly extended the perimeter further, especially dispersing the onlookers nearby. People were still stretching their necks and taking pictures from the building above, until they were pointed out and persuaded to go back in. Jiang Yuan and Wu Jun were observing the body with caution. Wu Jun, holding a ruler, was measuring on the ground, directing positions, while Jiang Yuan, acting as an assistant, was taking shots with the camera. Every now and then, Wu Jun needed to remind him, “Here, here...” Unlike previous cases, for this one, both men were particularly diligent about taking photographs and measuring distances. This was because they were both well aware that the first thing to determine in a high-fall case was whether it was suicide, accidental, or homicide. Additionally, the possibility of the body being thrown had to be considered separately. With so many criminal detectives dispatched, it was virtually an arrangement fit for a homicide investigation. There was no choice, really. Without taking an initial stance, like foreigners who’d send only two regular detectives to take a look and call for backup upon finding suspicious points, wasting several hours of the golden 72-hour window would not be allowed. Under the pressure of solving every homicide, the detectives couldn’t afford to waste those crucial hours. At this moment, if the forensic doctor declared it a self-inflicted high fall, the entire detective division could clock out two hours early. But coming to that conclusion was anything but comfortable. It was precisely because Wu Jun and Jiang Yuan understood this that they approached the matter with such gravity. “The injuries basically match the characteristics of a high fall,” Wu Jun announced after he had taken all the necessary photographs, just beginning to turn over the body to inspect the wounds. The features of high-fall injuries are actually easy to understand. The most significant aspect is that the damage is usually caused by a single instance of intense force. Of course, someone like Jackie Chan, who would tumble down from a building entangled in a mess, would not suffice, and further examination would be needed. But for a regular person, falling from a building is primarily about the impact of hitting the ground. At that moment, even if the body has multiple injuries, the direction of the applied force is supposed to be consistent. If it isn’t consistent, then one must consider the possibilities of injury before death or the body being thrown. It essentially shifts the investigation towards considering homicide. Of course, there are other characteristics of high-fall injuries, but most of those are observed during autopsy. As long as Wu Jun could confirm it was indeed a death by high fall, he could feel somewhat relieved. In the city, most high-fall deaths are by suicide. That is, an abnormal death, but not necessarily a murder case. Jiang Yuan was taking notes nearby, reminding him, “Doesn’t the arm have a posture that looks like it was shielding to the side?” “Yes, that suggests it was not a thrown body,” Wu Jun concurred. Being conscious during the fall clearly means it wasn’t a body thrown down. Determining whether a body was thrown post-high fall at the scene isn’t always easy. And generally, a thrown body indicates a murder. If you didn’t kill them, why throw them—this line of reasoning is usually accurate in the context of thrown bodies. Furthermore, being conscious during a fatal fall suggests it wasn’t a state of intoxication such as being drunk. This brings it one step closer to being a suicide. As for whether it was an accident or suicide, from a forensic doctor’s point of view, these are not easily distinguished. Even differentiating whether it was a voluntary high fall or if someone was pushed from a building is not an easy distinction for a forensic doctor to make. Although one could indeed infer a thing or two from the distance of the fall, what if the push wasn’t far enough, or if the deceased had jumped on their own accord? To determine whether it was suicide, a more simple and accurate approach would still be to judge from the deceased’s state before death, as well as the investigation of the fall scene. Wu Jun then asked the police officer beside him, “Has the fall scene been confirmed?” “Not yet, we are still inquiring and checking the surveillance.” The officer’s reply was somewhat unexpected. Wu Jun frowned slightly, “Didn’t they jump from the rooftop?” Wanghe Building is an office building with a glass curtain wall. Its facade doesn’t have design elements like residential balconies. Therefore, the most convenient place to jump from would be the rooftop. Most of its windows are of a half-open design and are also positioned quite high. Given such a suffocating window design, it wouldn’t likely be the choice of suicide jumpers. The officer grunted an “Mm,” and said, “There’s a witness who saw someone jump from a high floor, but the exact floor is uncertain.” “Alright, let’s discuss that once it’s found.” Wu Jun returned beside the body with furrowed brows. His feeling at the moment was rather unsettling. Ordinarily, someone committing suicide, even if leaping through a window, would have some time to wrestle with their thoughts; some people wander around the fall scene for several hours or even more. If even the witness couldn’t discern the floor they jumped from, it indicated the time spent in front of the window was definitely short. Those who rushed over immediately, not pausing for a moment before climbing out the window to jump, weren’t unheard of, but were indeed rare. In other words, the case was starting to look less like a suicide. Huang Qiangmin, who had received the same information, looked rather grim as he walked over and asked, “Is there anything you can tell from the body?” If there were defensive wounds, or any obvious injuries, one could directly consider homicide, and thus avoid the wild speculation. However, there were none. Wu Jun squatted down and said, “First, let’s examine the exterior of the body. Let’s see if we can find anything, shall we?” Examining the exterior in cases of high falls is not straightforward to decipher due to too many accidental factors; the body might also have bounced a second time on the ground, making it even more complex. However, that’s what forensic doctors are there for. In the absence of better methods, they must resort to using the next best thing. Jiang Yuan was the one who remained stable. He was a lone dog with no specific tasks to tend to at home. Solving a murder case was just another task for him. Instead of joining Wu Jun in examining the body, Jiang Yuan said, “Master, I’d like to wipe some adherents first.” “Go ahead with the wiping,” Wu Jun readily agreed. Jiang Yuan then diligently took what was in front of him and began to wipe off trace evidence from the deceased’s body. He was mainly looking to collect trace evidence. If the deceased had had a struggle or a physical altercation with the killer, there was a good chance that trace evidence would have been exchanged. Even if the killer had only given a push, it was possible to find traces. Of course, it was difficult. Jiang Yuan bowed his head to search for evidence, occasionally tilting his head to check in the sunlight. The tool he most frequently used was a forensic mirror. This device, often referred to as a forensic miracle worker, was used by fingerprint experts, crime scene investigators, bloodstain pattern analysts, DNA specialists—in fact, it was used for almost everything. Broadly speaking, it was just a magnifying glass not easily affected by light, but in the domestic forensic field, for a long time, it was basically the only tool they had. If forensic experts had more authority, different voices might have elevated it to the level of a PCR machine (an apparatus used for DNA analysis). “Someone has taken a video.” A police officer ran to Huang Qiangmin’s side, speaking loudly. Jiang Yuan and Wu Jun both looked up. Huang Qiangmin turned around and with a group of others, began to watch the video on a smartphone. The video on the phone was short; it basically captured someone falling from a window as soon as the camera focused on it. There appeared to be no one behind the window, in other words, was it an accident? Jiang Yuan’s brows were tightly knit as he spoke, “Keep the phone, don’t give it back to its owner. I’ll magnify it when I get back.” Huang Qiangmin agreed immediately and also reminded them to protect the scene upstairs. Jiang Yuan even insisted, “After I finish here, I’ll immediately scan for trace evidence. Keep the cordon as wide as possible.” Huang Qiangmin furrowed his brows and asked, “Do you think it wasn’t suicide? That someone was hidden in the video?” “I don’t know; I just want to take another look,” Jiang Yuan really didn’t know, but he just felt uneasy.

Chapter 156 - 156 151 Manner of Death

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