Chapter 207 - 207 199 Visiting

Words : 1704 Updated : Sep 23rd, 2025

207: Chapter 199: Visiting 207: Chapter 199: Visiting As the case investigation progressed, relatives of the deceased began to arrive at the Qinghe City Bureau one after another. After Wangguoshan was arrested, the officials also started to slowly release the news. The bones could not yet be claimed, nor was there any need to see them; they were all bone frames soaked in people’s essence. Even if they were arranged to look a bit more presentable, most people couldn’t bear it. However, that evening, a couple lit a pile of ritual paper money above the autopsy room and cried out their daughter’s name. An old Taoist priest stood behind the couple, performing a spirit summoning. The autopsy room was within the funeral home, but its specific location should not be known to outsiders. The couple must have been guided to the exact location by someone. Now, the only remaining forensic doctor from out of town was Jiang Yuan. Along with the three local forensic doctors from Qinghe City and him, their task would be complete once they finished processing the last two bodies. In the evening, with the outside atmosphere so eerie, Wang Lan didn’t want to go out alone and called Jiang Yuan for protection. Dressed in white lab coats, the two emerged from underground, walked to the couple’s side, and startled the spirit-summoning Taoist priest so much he nearly lost his own spirit. The couple kneeling on the ground saw them, placed the paper money in their hands into the fire, and stood up. The couple appeared somewhat frail, with the woman speaking first, “We are Zhang Xiaoyun’s parents. Are you the forensic doctors here?” Wang Lan and Jiang Yuan looked at each other and nodded. “You have our thanks,” the woman forced a smile and said, “Oh, my name is Li Yun, Zhang Xiaoyun’s mother. Can we... can we have her come out to talk to us?” “It’s an improper request, but we just want to see her...” the father said softly. Jiang Yuan couldn’t bear to look at them, and he couldn’t help thinking if he were in their shoes, his father would probably be in a similar state. Perhaps Wu Jun might hire a Taoist priest like this mother did, to summon the spirit and burn a pile of valuable paper cars and airplanes. Wang Lan’s eyes reddened slightly, yet she said, “It’s better not to see her. Keep the thought of her in your minds...” “No matter what Xiaoyun has become, I can accept it,” Zhang Xiaoyun’s mother said anxiously. Her eyes were very determined, filled with a mother’s resilience. But Wang Lan remained unmoved. She had seen many bereaved families before, understood their pain, admired their resilience, but the boundary between life and death can’t be crossed in such a way. Sometimes, it’s more appropriate for loved ones to live in one’s imagination than to witness with their own eyes or touch with their own hands. “I... I just want to see my child... I just want to look at her...” Zhang Xiaoyun’s mother looked at Wang Lan’s expression, her sensitivity made her realize the pity, and at the same time, the refusal. This kind of rejection pained her more than a simple denial. Heart-wrenchingly painful. “I shouldn’t have let her go to school alone. I shouldn’t have...” Zhang Xiaoyun’s mother broke into loud sobs. Her husband held her tightly in his arms. In the evening at the funeral home, the wind was always unceasing, scattering voices, cooling the warmth, and extinguishing life. “Bow in this direction,” Jiang Yuan estimated the location of Zhang Xiaoyun’s container and directly steered Zhang Xiaoyun’s parents in a different direction. He had personally put the box in place; the direction was accurate. Zhang Xiaoyun’s mother paused, then hurried to express her gratitude, quickly gathered the remaining paper money, lit it, and murmured to herself. After a considerable delay, the couple finally left. Looking at the time, it was already past eight in the evening. Jiang Yuan and Wang Lan returned to the autopsy room without a word and continued their work. Solving the case is one thing; there’s still a long way to go before the case is closed. Two days later. Jiang Yuan brought the rice soup with shepherd’s purse he had simmered to visit Mu Zhiyang. Rice soup with shepherd’s purse, also known as soda powder soup, is made with simple ingredients, primarily rice soup and shepherd’s purse, with the addition of baking soda to tenderize the vegetable stems. Based on the new skills Jiang Yuan had learned, it was known that when resistance was low, green fodder, increased water intake, and baking soda were key. Additionally, pay attention to eating smaller meals more frequently, and just don’t overeat. Baking soda broth almost perfectly suited the post-recovery bodily needs. Upon arriving at the ward, Mu Zhiyang, with one leg in a plaster cast and hoisted up, really loved the rice soup with shepherd’s purse that Jiang Yuan brought, praising it non-stop, “My family just knows to feed me millet porridge, talking about stomach nourishment and nutrition. Eating it every day, I’m really on the verge of collapse.” “Drink half of the soup now, and save the other half to warm up and drink tonight. This kind of vegetable soup isn’t afraid of being cooked longer, the more you cook it, the better it tastes,” Jiang Yuan said, focusing on the food allocation instead of joining in Mu Zhiyang’s complaints. Afterwards, Jiang Yuan checked the bed, surveyed the disinfection situation, and reviewed the nursing chart hanging at the foot of the bed before asking, “Looks like you’re recovering well. Does your leg hurt?” “It doesn’t really hurt, it’s just inconvenient to walk,” Mu Zhiyang sighed. “Just as I was getting better, I got hit again. Talk about bad luck.” “If you say that, some people might not be happy. This time you should at least get a third-class merit,” Jiang Yuan retorted. Mu Zhiyang chuckled sheepishly, admitting somewhat embarrassed, “Actually, I didn’t really do much. I just went there on the day of the arrest and didn’t really play a role...” “The criminal, Wangguoshan, was discovered during our investigation, and you were injured during the arrest. That’s your contribution,” Jiang Yuan pointed out, then added, “Your injury protected me. Given the situation, if you hadn’t been in front, the criminal would have probably targeted me.” “Not necessarily, not necessarily,” Mu Zhiyang smiled broadly, waving his hand modestly. Jiang Yuan sincerely praised him for a few sentences. As he had said, the criminal Wangguoshan was indeed discovered during their investigation. Though it’s true that anyone entering that agricultural machinery cooperative could potentially have found Wangguoshan, on the other hand, anyone could also have missed him, right? No matter how the criminal was confirmed, Mu Zhiyang definitely earned merit in the arrest phase. Beyond that, his warning shot, “bravely struggling with the criminal” and getting injured, ultimately led to the successful conclusion of the arrest operation. Even if Mu Zhiyang hadn’t made a great achievement, he certainly had a “foot contribution” to the effort. A third-class merit was not at all excessive. For such a major case, with over ten bodies, awarding two or three second-class merits and five or six third-class merits was very reasonable. Otherwise, future cases would become hard to handle. In a normal year, a city bureau might not encounter such a big case even once in five years. Once in ten years was more likely. Of course, looking across the nation, one should never underestimate the depths of human evil. “I’ll bring you some ginseng soup tomorrow, and you’re allowed to request one dish,” Jiang Yuan said compassionately, deciding to nourish him further as he looked at the pitiful Mu Zhiyang. Mu Zhiyang had been on a bland diet since his surgery, and his sense of taste had long since become bland; he couldn’t help but swallow, saying, “Would ginseng soup be too much trouble?” “Not at all, I’ve learned some new tricks, and this kind of plant-based stuff isn’t hard to prepare.” Nowadays, ginseng, sold by the root, wasn’t necessarily more expensive than white radishes and could indeed be considered a vegetable. One of Zhu Jin’s secrets to caring for a sow was to boil ginseng soup. Four sows sharing a 20-yuan ginseng root didn’t add much to the daily food expenses. It also indirectly increased the sows’ water intake; and sometimes, when the ginseng was big enough, his family could also have some, which was quite suitable. Mu Zhiyang, feeling touched and a bit greedy, thought for a moment and then said, “Then I’d like to have that big mixed stew you make.” The big mixed stew was basically dog food, and in terms of taste, it seemed to surpass Zhu Jin’s skills. Was it partly due to being LV5? Jiang Yuan pondered casually and then agreed, replying, “You can’t eat too much of the big mixed stew. I’ll adjust the ingredients.” “Great. That’s wonderful,” Mu Zhiyang said excitedly, patting his leg. His mood lifted, and he couldn’t help but mimic the tone of comedian Guo Degang’s crosstalk, “Jiang Yuan, one day when I become the head of the Criminal Police Squad, I’ll make sure to appoint you as the head of the Crime Unit!” Jiang Yuan couldn’t help but laugh, responding, “Squad Head!” Not expecting Jiang Yuan to play along so readily, Mu Zhiyang burst into loud “hahaha” laughter, saying jokingly, “No need for formalities, at ease...” Jiang Yuan maintained his smile. Suddenly, as if something occurred to him, Mu Zhiyang frowned slightly, asking in a low voice, “Is there another squad head behind me?” Jiang Yuan nodded slowly. Mu Zhiyang gathered a week’s worth of smiles, turned his head to look, and indeed he saw Huang Qiangmin, his mouth twisted into a 44.4-degree smile. Huang Qiangmin lifted his chin slightly, smiling and saying, “I happened to come to Qinghe City on a business trip, and I thought I’d visit Mu’s squad.”

Chapter 207 - 207 199 Visiting

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