Chapter 75 - 75 74 Determining the Source

Words : 1202 Updated : Sep 12th, 2025

75: Chapter 74: Determining the Source 75: Chapter 74: Determining the Source On the way back, Wang Zhong became silent and taciturn. The streets flooded with water, with few pedestrians and not many vehicles. Yet, Wang Zhong just stared out the window, his eyes looking empty. As they were almost back at the CID, Wang Zhong asked a question, “Are we really so useless?” Jiang Yuan tactically furrowed his brows, “We?” “I mean us technicians. Look, if one condition isn’t met, we’re straightaway unable to solve the case. Take for example, when there’s heavy rain—surveillance footage is useless, fingerprints can’t be collected, footprints won’t match...” Wang Zhong muttered, saying, “I know that a lot of major unsolved cases remain so because of heavy rain. But when we actually encounter such a case, it still feels quite uncomfortable.” Jiang Yuan uttered an “Oh.” “Don’t you understand?” Wang Zhong was somewhat disappointed. They were all technicians; they should have been able to empathize. Jiang Yuan drove on, eyes fixed on the road ahead, and said, “I understand, of course, but it’s a feeling of powerlessness, isn’t it?” “Right! A sense of powerlessness. That’s a good summary. That’s exactly it, so you do understand...” “But today’s case hasn’t reached the point of powerlessness yet,” Jiang Yuan interrupted Wang Zhong’s lament. Wang Zhong sat up straight and asked, “Hasn’t it? With such heavy rain...” “It didn’t rain inside the store,” Jiang Yuan said, glancing at Wang Zhong. “Wasn’t our focus on inspecting the inside of the store?” At that, Wang Zhong had a sudden realization—right, today’s inspection focus was the inside of the store. Eagerly, Wang Zhong asked, “Did you pick up any fingerprints, or anything else?” “Probably not fingerprints. We’ll see when we get back.” Jiang Yuan had several plans in mind but didn’t voice them. Some things are too exhausting to discuss in the abstract; they can easily devolve into debates. It’s better to present results than to talk about them. Wang Zhong became a bit more enthusiastic and, after parking the car with Jiang Yuan, hurriedly followed him towards the office. As they approached the office building, Jiang Yuan took a turn and entered the K9 unit’s compound. Wang Zhong was surprised, “Using a dog?” “Have you eaten lunch?” Jiang Yuan asked Wang Zhong in response. “Oh... oh, I forgot,” Wang Zhong said, a bit embarrassed, and touched his head. “Then should we have lunch first? Fried rice or get something from the canteen?” “We’ll make it ourselves, eat with the dog. I promised Dazhuang earlier,” Jiang Yuan said. Wang Zhong’s eyebrows creased, “Out of what you just said, I only understood the first part.” While they were talking, Dazhuang already came bounding over, pulling on his leash. The sound of the chain being pulled tight instantly rang out, setting off a more sensitive trigger than gunfire by the ears of the police officers. Wang Zhong couldn’t help but step back, placing his hands in front of his chest defensively. Dazhuang barked once and, without even looking at Wang Zhong, crazily wagged his tail at Jiang Yuan. His dog face was full of expressions begging for affection—mournful, delighted, eager to please. “The vegetables and meat are ready,” Li Li also came out of the kitchen upon hearing the commotion, then looked at Wang Zhong and asked, “One more?” “Make some noodles. If you cook a bit more sauce with the vegetables, it’s also very tasty. The master and I can’t eat too much,” Jiang Yuan, with his mastery of level 5 canine cuisine, could be very flexible in his cooking. Wang Zhong laughed a bit sheepishly, “I can just have instant noodles. It’s the same.” “No need,” Jiang Yuan waved it off. Having Wang Zhong eat instant noodles next to them while level 5 dog food was being served would be more miserable than Dazhuang. Don’t have him steal Dazhuang’s food later, affecting the growth and development of the police dog. “Then I’ll help out,” Wang Zhong once again expressed his enthusiasm to help. At this moment, noticing Wang Zhong about to touch the ingredients, Dazhuang couldn’t wait and barked out loud, causing the leash to rattle loudly. “Dazhuang, sit down,” Li Li yelled. Dazhuang reluctantly sat down at the door, eyes fixed on Wang Zhong with a look that said, “Just you try and touch it.” Wang Zhong swallowed, quickly moving to Li Li’s side. Li Li looked calm, her eyebrows drooping like a Rottweiler’s, and she patted Wang Zhong’s shoulder adeptly, “Quit it. When Jiang Yuan cooks, even I’m not allowed to help. The dog has grown ups, and has his own ideas now.” Wang Zhong chuckled awkwardly. “Pass me a phone stand,” Jiang Yuan said, as he set up the phone to play the surveillance video from Xinfa Tobacco & Liquor Store on loop in front of the stove. Watching the video on the phone wasn’t very clear, but Jiang Yuan wasn’t too concerned about it. He could enhance the image or a specific point in the video by reducing noise, collaborative filtering, and other methods. Yet, for Jiang Yuan at present, it wasn’t the technique that mattered, but where to apply it. In the video, the robber was brandishing a sharp blade, wrapped up tightly in a hoodie, revealing only their eyes. From start to finish, no matter how laboriously they breathed, there was no inclination to reveal their face. For this case, techniques like noise reduction or collaborative filtering were clearly useless. Seeing a face required x-ray vision—a clearly forbidden ability! Instead, Jiang Yuan wanted to use this as a reminder for himself about where enhancement was genuinely needed. Fatty meat was being stir-fried, beef was being boiled, and seafood was being steamed... Jiang Yuan methodically handled the ingredients, and both Li Li and Dazhuang salivated as they watched. Simultaneously, he was pondering every aspect of the video in his mind, prioritizing the problems he had identified. He had many options to choose from, not a lack of clues. Many pieces of information that appeared in the video were worth investigating. For example, the hoodie could likely be purchased online, and if its origin could be confirmed, the suspect’s information might be traced. The suspect’s shoes were exposed several times, and the burlap sacks used to transport the cigarettes could provide another direction for investigation. Of course, what Jiang Yuan paid most attention to was the weapon in the suspect’s hands! A short blade, half the length of a forearm. It was apparent that the blade had been sharpened by hand, yet even so, it wasn’t easy to simply buy such a long pair of knives. However, whether the source of the knives could be determined, Jiang Yuan wasn’t sure. That would depend on the specific analysis of the images. Once the meal was ready, Jiang Yuan first dished out Dazhuang’s portion, subconsciously glancing at Dazhuang. Dazhuang instantly pursed his lips, as if wanting to show his smile to Jiang Yuan, appearing cleverer than anyone else.

Chapter 75 - 75 74 Determining the Source

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