Chapter 206 - 206 198 Review

Words : 1831 Updated : Sep 23rd, 2025

206: Chapter 198 Review 206: Chapter 198 Review Morgue. The dissection room was as quiet as a classroom during final exams. Two corpses emitted a chilling coldness, as if they were strict invigilators, watching closely over the forensic doctor moving them. Jiang Yuan took out a plastic box, placed it on the autopsy table, examining each bone one by one before carefully returning them to the box. With Wangguoshan’s arrest, the 724 Qinghe major murder case was declared cracked. The focus of work was now shifting towards prosecution. Bodies that hadn’t been matched with a source, such as number 6, were also concluded upon through interrogation, and merely needed to be verified now, eliminating the need to spend a large amount of money and manpower on checks. However, a newly discovered partial corpse still needed to be autopsied separately. Even though Wangguoshan had already confessed, the autopsy was still deemed very necessary. A faintly glowing blue dumpling fell into Jiang Yuan’s hand. Ma Hongyan’s legacy—the local mountain goods appraisal (LV2): Roaming the forest paths, tasting every kind of mountain goods was not only a hobby but also a responsibility. If it weren’t for the bonds of kin and friends, with so many obligatory life tasks and comparisons, Ma Hongyan would be happier devoting her time to the mountains... Jiang Yuan gathered Ma Hongyan’s remains, covered them with a large plastic lid, and while writing a label, asked, “Was Ma Hongyan killed by Wangguoshan because she asked him to transport goods?” “More or less. Wangguoshan had a small truck and often couldn’t find much work. When he finally got a big client like Ma Hongyan, he wanted to earn more. They had agreed he’d unload the goods, but after unloading some and finding it exhausting, he made up excuses to get Ma Hongyan to pay someone else to do it, even asking for more than the market rate. When Ma Hongyan refused, he killed her...” Wang Lan was the one in communication with the prosecutor, hence she was the most informed. Jiang Yuan was surprised and asked, “Did Wangguoshan give such an account? Didn’t he offer any explanation?” Ordinary people always try to embellish their mistakes when chatting, let alone a criminal. The dead cannot speak for themselves, so the murderer can say as they please about the motives, no matter how unreasonable their personal feelings may be, since these feelings often stem from selfish reasons. But Wang Lan’s expression turned odd as she said, “Once Wangguoshan entered the interrogation room, he started to confess. He had become religious.” “Shouldn’t he be confessing to a priest if he’s religious? He’s been killing people non-stop...” “The priest who converted him, after listening to his confessions twice in a row, wanted to report him. He was killed. After that, Wangguoshan had nowhere to give his confessions.” Many in the dissection room heard this story for the first time and murmured in amazement. “Which one was the priest?” Niu Tang pointed at a thawing corpse, curious. Wang Lan’s expression settled to a calm, “He was burned to ashes long ago.” “Then... with the priest included, that makes nine lives taken.” Niu Tang’s expression could no longer hold its composure. At that moment, Jiang Yuan said, “What about the first body? Ma Hongyan disappeared eight years ago; she wasn’t the first person he killed. Number 3, Yu Jun, disappeared ten years ago, but probably wasn’t his first victim either.” Wang Lan, however, shook her head, “He refuses to say who was his first.” “That makes ten then,” Niu Tang counted. The atmosphere in the dissection room became even quieter. After a while, Wang Lan finally said, “It’s normal for him to refuse to talk about it. Many serial killers are not keen to describe their first kill; there’s too much personal emotion involved, and many don’t want the police to find out.” “There are also those who really want the police to find out,” Niu Tang corrected. The other forensic doctors joined in and began discussing among themselves. Jiang Yuan finished the label for number 1, moved on to handling number 2, Zhu Jin’s, and asked Wang Lan, “Why was number 2 killed? Six years ago, had Wangguoshan started renting out agricultural machinery?” “He had just started renting. According to Wangguoshan’s confession, when he was working for Zhu Jin, Zhu Jin complained about his poor work and wanted to deduct from his pay. Wangguoshan did not act out at the moment but later harbored a grudge. A few days later, he ambushed Zhu Jin by the roadside when he was leaving the house.” Jiang Yuan looked down at the label and said, “Number 2 was a farmer all year round, he must have been strong.” “Yeah, Wangguoshan gave a detailed description of the ambush and killing; this guy must have had some special training.” “What about the motorcycle?” “He sold it to a second-hand car dealer who came up to the grasslands.” Jiang Yuan began to understand, “Because it was a disappearance, by the time the police got involved in the case, there were no traces left at the scene, and the motorcycle had already been sold...” Wang Lan nodded, “I called Zhu Jin’s family. His wife has remarried, and the child stayed back in the village. He’s grown up now and may come to look later...” While they were talking, a second glowing dumpling fell into Jiang Yuan’s hands. Zhu Jin’s legacy—Postpartum Care for Sows (LV4): The 4 breeding sows were the only major source of income for the family. Throughout the year, whether sows gave birth to many piglets, whether those piglets were healthy, and the market price for pigs would signify a rise or fall in the family’s living standards. Even when planting corn, Zhu Jin’s mind was occupied with how to take good care of them... Jiang Yuan silently made Zhu Jin’s remains a bit tidier. Although the name wasn’t very pleasant, a skill level of LV4 was still quite rare. Moreover, considering the experience with dog food, Jiang Yuan felt that postpartum care for sows might actually play a significant role... For starters, he could try it out with Mu Zhiyang. After arranging the second box, Jiang Yuan organized the third set of remains. Wang Lan spoke up without needing Jiang Yuan to ask: “The third one, Yu Jun, has been dead the longest. Yu Jun was a coal miner, and it was unlikely that he would encounter Wangguoshan, thus the chance of conflict was even lower. But according to Wangguoshan, he met Yu Jun in the town, had an argument, and harbored resentment afterward, which led him to get rid of the man.” “Did he mention any details?” “He did, but not many. Wangguoshan’s implication was that it’s been too long, and he can’t remember.” “The earlier the body, the more memorable it should be,” Jiang Yuan objected. “Director Liu analyzed it the same way,” Wang Lan said. “And his analysis was even bolder.” “Oh?” “Director Liu speculated that maybe Wangguoshan ran into Yu Jun while hiding bodies in the coal mine. And the body he was hiding might have been the first person he ever killed.” Jiang Yuan was stunned for a moment; this speculation was indeed quite bold. And there was no evidence to support it. “Director Liu also wanted to bring police dogs to check the coal mine, but he was stopped,” Wang Lan paused, then continued, “Now that the case is solved, the detachment leader’s opinion is to focus on the trial and litigation phase.” Shen Feihong’s suggestion did not have any major issues. Unearthing every factual detail in an investigation is almost impossible. Not to mention the cost of investigating a case, but the facts themselves are also limited. For the police, accomplishing their goal of finding the murderer means the task is done, and whether there are any hidden issues in the case generally does not concern anyone. How many cases are there where even the murderer cannot be found? Who has the time to care about a minor detail in a solved case? Even Liu Jinghui did not keep pressing Wangguoshan about the details of his first killing, did he? When there isn’t a shred of collateral evidence, relying solely on information from the murderer is very dangerous. Moreover, the domestic judicial system traditionally does not delve into the thoughts and motives of murderers—the murderers can think what they want; our institutions of repentance are mainly distributed within the eighteen levels of hell, and we are merely responsible for sending you there. The third and fourth bodies did not leave behind any legacies. It wasn’t until the fifth body that Jiang Yuan once again received a glowing sticky rice ball: Zhang Xiaoyun’s legacy—Dance Posture (LV2): Zhang Xiaoyun’s greatest dream was to stand on stage, dance a perfect piece under the envious gaze of everyone. The dance didn’t need to be too difficult, the technique didn’t have to be too good, but the posture of the body had to be beautiful... Jiang Yuan silently gave thanks and then proceeded to collect the fifth and sixth bodies. Both the fifth and sixth bodies were decapitated which marked the period when Wangguoshan’s desires were expanding, his vigilance waning, and he became increasingly accustomed to resolving issues with violence. Thus, he chose to rape victim number five and killed number six, a fellow in the agricultural machinery business... Number six was from another province, carrying out an agricultural machinery leasing business, competing with Wangguoshan to a certain extent, though not fiercely. Yet, Wangguoshan chose to kill across the board. “Right, Wangguoshan’s parents worked on a reservoir, didn’t they?” Niu Tang, who hadn’t gone to the meeting, asked directly. Wang Lan acknowledged with a hum, “But his parents were only temporary workers at a small reservoir; usually, they only needed to keep an eye on it. During rainstorms, they had to clean the canal, which was very dangerous, so they settled near the big reservoir, coming back once every week or two. Later there was a mudslide, and his father died; his mother remarried with his older brother.” “We should have searched the staff records of the reservoir further back in time.” “It’s untraceable, the small reservoir is privately owned, and the boss, who has connections here and owns property, simply placed them here,” Wang Lan stopped, then added, “Besides, it’s been too long. Wangguoshan swam in the reservoir when he was young, and that was 30 years ago.” The power of time is more formidable than imagined. Data from 30 years ago, even if it exists, is likely buried in archives. Even data from 20 years ago, due to changes in databases, often loses much of its information.

Chapter 206 - 206 198 Review

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