Chapter 169 - 169 162 Coming Out in Full Force

169: Chapter 162: Coming Out in Full Force 169: Chapter 162: Coming Out in Full Force Dawn. Dewdrops lingered on leaves before disappearing. Time to go to work. A senior police officer from the ministry, several detectives from Binhai City, along with Director Liu Jinghui, a senior police officer from the provincial department, and two leaders from the Qinghe City Bureau, all arrived at the Ningtai County Bureau. The entire county bureau was mobilized, demonstrating their high degree of importance. In recent years, there had not been a single case supervised by the ministry in Ningtai County, hence it had been some years since any senior officials from the ministry had visited. Even Director Guan Xi had a hint of curiosity in his eyes. Similarly, Comrade Zhang Zhihong from the ministry was quite curious about the Ningtai County Bureau. After a somewhat restrained meeting, Zhang Zhihong asked, “Which detectives solved the Seaside Case?” This person clearly understood the intricacies of the system; as a superior officer, if you push someone lower down in the hierarchy to come forward, it would embarrass both them and yourself. It’s uncertain what the outcome would be. Foreigners simply don’t understand this principle, and that’s why the Nobel Prize was awarded to just Tu Youyou. On the Ningtai side, they were very alert. At the sign from the director, the Deputy Director in charge of criminal investigation, Detective Captain Huang Qiangmin, along with Wu Junhao from the First Team, Liu Wenkai from the Second Team, and the young forensic doctor Jiang Yuan, all stood out. Zhang Zhihong spotted the tall and fair Jiang Yuan instantly. It is well known that if there’s someone on the award podium for honors whose credentials and qualities do not match those of his colleagues, it goes without saying that the work accomplished must be his. “This young comrade, come here and tell us about the case,” Zhang Zhihong beckoned Jiang Yuan over. Jiang Yuan stepped forward without any sign of stage fright. He had been involved throughout the case, and if he had to talk about it, he could comfortably narrate it from beginning to end. “This is our Forensic Expert Jiang Yuan,” Huang Qiangmin said with a smile as he introduced him. “Oh, I’ve heard that the criminal suspect’s shoes were identified by a police officer surnamed Jiang through footprints. Was it Doctor Jiang?” asked Zhang Zhihong, feigning ignorance. “I was the one who identified them,” replied Jiang Yuan without a trace of modesty; in the system, once you learn the art of tit-for-tat, you’re pretty much one of us. Zhang Zhihong nodded in approval, “Not easy at all, the footprint identification is self-taught, right? I’ve found that many people in our police system are self-made, and often have stronger adaptability than those formally trained experts...” Zhang Zhihong was also around 50, wearing glasses, with every button on his collar done up meticulously, and he stood very straight. Jiang Yuan listened attentively, thinking indeed it was self-taught, or rather crammed into him by the system. “Narrate the process of how you solved the case for us,” said Zhang Zhihong, easily steering the conversation back on track. At this point, the detectives from Binhai City also gathered around. The ministry supervises around 300 cases each year. Like the provincial department, the ministry also does not handle cases directly. With a few hundred people and several hundred cases to handle, it’s obvious that it would be impossible for them to undertake all of them. In reality, once a case enters the “supervised handling” list, there will be additional funding for handling the case, corresponding technical support, and even guidance for solving the case. These three support mechanisms decrease in order. Moreover, besides the handling funds provided by the ministry, the latter two might likely be coordinated from other regions. In any case, having resources to utilize is already a major advantage. However, cases included for supervision but not solved remain quite problematic. Like the Seaside Case. Due to the vile nature of the crime, the brutal methodology, and also because the body was unearthed on a vacation beach, it caused considerable social panic. It was precisely within the scope of the ministry’s supervised handling. But supervision doesn’t necessarily lead to a solved case. Criminal cases often have such situations, and in the end, some cases can never be cracked. A case overseen by the ministry that cannot be solved naturally leads to greater disappointment among the victims’ relatives and society. It also means the waste of funds and manpower earmarked for supervision. Looking to restart an investigation would only be more costly. Therefore, for cases under ministry supervision, local police do whatever they can to solve them. It’s also the time when a detective can truly exhaust every possible means to solve a case. In a way, it’s an opportunity to have whatever support is needed. However, the more it is so, the more frustrating it is when a case remains unsolved. Tang Yazhan, one of the detectives from Binhai City, was the one with the most mixed emotions among those present. Tang Yazhan, 48 this year, had disheveled hair and was still an ordinary detective. Among those present, he had the lowest rank and was the least like a leader. By well-understood reasoning, he was the detective responsible for the Seaside Case. He had been in charge since the first body was found, through the consolidation of cases, to supervision by the provincial office and the ministry, and even after the special task force was withdrawn, Tang Yazhan remained, continuously tracking DNA comparison results from various regions. Looking at the young figure of Jiang Yuan, Tang Yazhan felt very complicated emotions – a mix of bitterness and relief. He had always held a belief that the Seaside Case would be solved. One reason for that was a considerable loophole left by the suspect of the Seaside Case. During his final crime, he was interrupted, and in addition, the victim scratched him, leaving DNA evidence behind. Making a DNA match would solve the Seaside Case; this was what Tang Yazhan thought would be straightforward. However, ten years went by in the blink of an eye. Tang Yazhan was still waiting for news of the DNA comparison, but at this point, he had become quite despairing. The murderer might have died, might have assumed a new identity, or might have left the country... Whichever it was, Tang Yazhan didn’t feel happy about it. Ten years, how many decades does one have in a lifetime! At this moment, a call from the ministry reached Binhai City. Tang Yazhan arrived in Ningtai County at the fastest speed, yet he had no idea what mindset to maintain. “Let’s talk while walking,” the director said, leading everyone toward the conference room. Meanwhile, he instructed to have the interrogation room’s footage streamed to the projector in the conference room. After everyone took their places, the young Forensic Expert Jiang Yuan, under everyone’s gaze, began to give a presentation that was not exactly a report. “After suspecting that the criminal might return to the crime scene, we adjusted our investigative approach...” “I searched around the commercial street and, luck would have it, found the very pair of shoes worn by the suspect. Afterwards, we focused on the footprints and shoes and did some work...” “After our attempts to find the person through the shoes proved futile, we started targeting hotels in search of the suspect...” Jiang Yuan did not follow the typical report format, and people like Huang Qiangmin felt there was no need to do so. On one hand, the ministry’s people arrived quickly, and it’s impossible to produce a standard yet impressive report in such a short time. On the other hand, Jiang Yuan and his team had indeed made a significant contribution by capturing the Binhai case criminal. Rather than churning out a bland and formulaic report, it was better to let Jiang Yuan present a raw and authentic account. It would allow the senior leadership to see, hear, and understand the tremendous effort put in by the Ningtai County Criminal Police Detachment. Zhang Zhihong, Tang Yazhan, and others were indeed listening very intently. Liu Jinghui even adopted a “he’s one of our own” expression, leaning back comfortably in his chair with a blissful look on his face. However, when it came to the criminal returning to the scene, everyone involuntarily changed their postures, their bodies tensing up without control. Some murderers and even thieves tend to return to the crime scene. But such incidents, while not uncommon, do not happen frequently. Or to put it another way, it’s not often that a crime suspect is caught returning to the scene—once they’ve become criminals, they don’t voluntarily reveal all their criminal acts. Zhang Zhihong and Tang Yazhan, who were familiar with the Binhai case and had tracked it for ten years, knew even more about the criminal’s brutality. When the topic turned to the “KPMG” shoes, those present let out a few light chuckles before falling into silence. Tracking down a person through a shoe pattern is something many have heard of but seldom seen. Zhang Zhihong couldn’t help but exclaim softly, “He’s got the spirit of Detective Zhou.” The local media reporters from Qinghe City quickly jotted down this comment. “Shall we go see the suspect?” The director said, after Jiang Yuan finished his presentation, without offering any summary. This meeting wasn’t meant to be very formal to begin with, and the purpose of Zhang Zhihong and others was to take away the murderer Li Jianye. The Ningtai County Bureau had no major objections to this, though they were not exactly thrilled either. Jiang Yuan had no need to concern himself so much; he simply followed along. During the walk, Zhang Zhihong quietly posed some questions to Jiang Yuan, who responded fluently. He was already skilled in several areas and had gained experience from multiple cases, now rapidly progressing through a phase of swift growth. Li Jianye’s demeanor became even more outrageous. Upon seeing the Binhai City’s criminal police, he completely entered the “I am invincible under the heavens” state. The reality was true: a person can’t be killed twice, and when fear peaks, there is no more fear left. And Li Jianye’s most fearful and exhilarating moments had ended a decade ago. The few criminal police officers from Binhai City proceeded to start the handover process with the suspect. Zhang Zhihong from the ministry took charge of the coordination, occasionally making phone calls. Liu Jinghui leisurely strolled up, following Jiang Yuan closely, then whispered, “Don’t be swayed by him; the ministry is not a good place to stay.” “He didn’t sway me to join the ministry,” Jiang Yuan glanced at Liu Jinghui. When it came to swaying people, this one was top-notch. Last time Liu lured him into the mountains for a chicken meal, the owner of the farmhouse at the mountain’s base nearly turned into a chicken trafficker. The memory was still fresh. Liu Jinghui immediately sighed in relief, then looked at Jiang Yuan with disdain, “They can’t take advantage of anything anyways.” Before Jiang Yuan could speak, Liu Jinghui added quickly, “Jiang Yuan, I’ve arranged for you to be part of the expert group at the provincial office. You won’t have to run around; we’ll invite you whenever there’s a case. Can you do that?” Jiang Yuan hesitated for a moment, then nodded, “That works.” He was always willing to work on cases. “Good. It might start with fingerprint-related matters because you made your mark in the fingerprint battle. Later on, we can add other types of cases.” “Alright.” As he said this, Liu Jinghui revealed a warm smile, handing Jiang Yuan a small box, “I brought you an ultra-small earpiece. It’s convenient to hang on your ear. You can answer calls without interference from ambient noise, and it doesn’t go inside the ear, just sticks to it.” Jiang Yuan: ... He gave Liu a peculiar look. Last time he had even given him an eye mask. “It’s free, a reward from the department. I thought you might need it. You helped me a lot last time, and I haven’t thanked you yet. I don’t have as much money as you do, so take it.” Jiang Yuan: ... During the last crime scene inspection, there had been a moment when he considered getting a single-ear headset... What a terrible old man. Nonetheless, he found himself involuntarily taking it from him. Liu Jinghui showed his fox-who-stole-the-hen grin again, then handed over a USB drive to Jiang Yuan, “Since you’re here, there’s a case to look at. Have a look.”