Chapter 55 - 55 54 Trace Evidence

Words : 1609 Updated : Sep 12th, 2025

55: Chapter 54 Trace Evidence 55: Chapter 54 Trace Evidence Early morning. Jiang Yuan woke from his bed, feeling energized and relaxed, almost as if he hadn’t participated in the special case team. In fact, there wasn’t any part of it he could participate in. As far as forensic work was concerned, the city bureau had experienced forensic doctors who would attend green corpse scenes wearing only masks; there were also dedicated ones, doctorate holders in forensic medicine who could perform an autopsy in two weeks’ time. When it came to detectives, there was no shortage of stellar individuals in the city’s criminal police detachment who had cracked major cases, as well as rough men who were social butterflies. The likes of Jiang Yuan from Ningtai County, however, weren’t used like beasts of burden but were instead under the care of the detachment leader. Knowing they had been on stakeout for many days, he granted them a few days to catch their breath. Wuu wuu wuu... Wei Zhenguo’s phone call came through, the moment it was answered, he shouted, “Come down for breakfast. The fritter shop at the door.” Jiang Yuan let out a wry smile, turned over, and nonetheless got out of bed. After the case was cracked, the accommodations had drastically improved. Typically, detectives on business trips would share a twin room and stay in budget hotels. This time, Wei Zhenguo booked single rooms for everyone, and the decision about where to stay was no longer guided solely by cost. At the very least, this indicated that their budget had increased somewhat since the case had been escalated to the special case team. Downstairs, the fritter shop was the liveliest spot. In the boiling hot oil, the dough strips stretched and kicked, constantly expanding and growing several times their original size in just a few seconds. The hot oil, like rising desires, used the most intense methods to make the duo of dough strips swell up, increase in size, change color, become fragrant, and also lose their moisture, stickiness, and the original appearance of flour. “Three fritters, a bowl of tofu pudding, a bowl of soy milk. Some side dishes, and an egg,” Jiang Yuan ordered a bunch as he patted his stomach. Wei Zhenguo sipped on his soy milk, clicking his tongue in admiration, “It’s great to be young, I can’t eat like that anymore.” “Since there’s not much going on,” Jiang Yuan paused, then asked, “can I go do an autopsy?” “It’s all bones now.” Wei Zhenguo looked at Jiang Yuan and said, “Captain Yu over there will definitely trust their own forensic doctor more than anyone else; even if you did the autopsy, he wouldn’t acknowledge it.” “I can work on bones now,” Jiang Yuan had just acquired the skill of Forensic Anthropology LV3, and he was definitely capable. Wei Zhenguo, however, advised against it, “Better not go. If you did and something went wrong, you’d be the easy scapegoat.” Next to them, Mu Zhiyang said, “They won’t baby someone else’s livestock. Moreover, they don’t know you.” “Exactly, when I was on loan here before, they used me ruthlessly,” Detective Wen Ming, who had come with them, also expressed his sentiment. Everyone might be used like beasts of burden, but those at home were handled with more care. Jiang Yuan could only bow his head and drink his soy milk. In Ningtai County, his skills were far superior to his colleagues, but in a provincial capital like Changyang City, that was no longer the case, so there was no need to rush to do an autopsy. The detectives quietly had their breakfast, and for a fleeting moment, they even savored the tranquil passing of time. “I want to follow their crime scene inspection, to check the evidence,” Jiang Yuan said, having finished his soy milk and come up with a new idea. “Director Liu doesn’t seem to have made any arrangements for us. Is it possible for us to do it?” “You can certainly do that,” Wei Zhenguo replied, puzzled, “But what exactly do you want to do?” Jiang Yuan thought for a moment and said, “I want to see Tan Yong’s car.” “His car? Are you thinking of finding out where he might have been through his car?” Wei Zhenguo quickly grasped the idea, but he wasn’t optimistic, “The Changyang City Criminal Police Detachment must have already scrutinized his car.” “Even better, we can check it again without disturbing their own inspection.” Tan Yong still had no intention of confessing, so relying on the current evidence to investigate was the most direct approach. Moreover, the LV4 skill in crime scene inspection was Jiang Yuan’s strongest skill at the moment. By examining Tan Yong’s car, Jiang Yuan might find more clues—the likelihood of solving a case increased with more clues unearthed, bringing him closer to breaking the case. Wei Zhenguo contemplated for a moment, then nodded and said, “Then I’ll accompany you to find the crime scene investigation team.” ... Two hours later. Jiang Yuan, Wei Zhenguo, and Mu Zhiyang were standing in front of Tan Yong’s Pajero. The captain of the crime scene investigation team, Cao Zhouquan, received a call and came out. He had a good impression of Jiang Yuan and greeted him with a traditional smile, which seemed very hearty. He then joked half-seriously, “What, you’re not convinced? We’ve cleaned every inch of Tan Yong’s car; it’s not like we left it untouched.” Jiang Yuan stood outside the underground cell, able to resist going in, a matter that Cao Zhouquan had brought up for the past two days. It was also the topic he was now addressing. Wei Zhenguo chuckled and replied, “Our Xiao Jiang has some ideas. Captain Cao, don’t take it the wrong way.” “No problem, if you want to do it again, I have no objections. Besides, you’ve left that huge basement to us; cleaning the car for you again is no big deal.” Cao Zhouquan was always generous in his actions and words. Finishing, he shouted, “Du Lei!” Turning back to them, Cao Zhouquan introduced, “The one who cleaned Tan Yong’s car with me before was Du Lei. This time, he’ll clean it with you.” Though Cao Zhouquan said he didn’t mind, it seemed he still minded a little, hence why he called out for his reliable subordinate. Anyone tasked with cleaning evidence from a murder case, especially in a place like Changyang City, surely couldn’t be a novice. Beep beep beep. A balance scooter rolled up directly in front of Jiang Yuan. “Du Lei.” On the balance scooter, Du Lei was dressed in uniform, his spine thin and long, seemingly so fragile it could break with a kick. “Xiao Jiang and the others want to clean Tan Yong’s car again. You go with them,” Cao Zhouquan instructed straightforwardly. Du Lei frowned as he looked at Jiang Yuan and the others, saying, “We’ve basically dismantled everything inside, even the wheel fenders underneath...” “I want to look for trace evidence,” Jiang Yuan said, making no attempt at concealment, as he gestured and added, “Because this car has driven over rough roads, it’s more likely to have retained debris from the scene, such as fragments, seeds, pollen, or hair and feathers. If we take a look inside, we might find something.” His level LV4 crime scene investigation skills were demonstrated at times like these. Jiang Yuan spoke with confidence, and more importantly, his reasoning made sense. Cao Zhouquan asked in slight surprise, “Does your county bureau have a Trace Evidence Laboratory?” Forensics laboratories tend to be simple, many of them on par with high school chemistry labs; usually only the DNA laboratories are a bit more expensive. The establishment of any laboratory depends on the needs and the staff within the unit. Many laboratories are set up around the personnel available – if there are specialists in a certain field, a corresponding laboratory is built, just like the drug testing laboratory in Ningtai County, which was established due to the demand at the time and because the captain of the criminal investigation team, Lu Jianfeng, had the talent in this area. Hearing Jiang Yuan confidently mention the Trace Evidence Laboratory, Cao Zhouquan couldn’t help but be taken aback, considering the expense associated with such a facility. Jiang Yuan simply shook his head at Cao Zhouquan, “Ningtai County doesn’t have a Trace Evidence Laboratory.” Cao Zhouquan, a man of calm demeanor, almost laughed, “If you don’t have one, then what are you talking about?” “We can use the one in Changyang City, or send it for inspection to the provincial Trace Evidence Laboratory,” Jiang Yuan suggested. “The one in the city is just for show. Trace Evidence Laboratories are complicated, costly, and require a lot of equipment; even the provincial lab doesn’t do a very good job,” Cao Zhouquan shook his head and said, “That’s why I said there’s no need to dismantle it further. There’s no point in exerting all that effort for nothing.” “Whether trace evidence is usable mainly depends on the extraction process. There’s a lot of room for error in laboratory operations.” Jiang Yuan, no longer holding back, emphasized again, “As long as we can extract something, any laboratory stands a chance of making it work.” “Alright then,” Cao Zhouquan had no further objections and blandly agreed. After all, he wasn’t the one doing the work.

Chapter 55 - 55 54 Trace Evidence

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