[ Ding ~~~ Congratulations to the host for unlocking the keyword 'Xingfu Road Toilet Dismemberment Case'. A limited-time mission has begun. Please assist the police in solving the case and restore the deceased's identity and innocence. Time limit: 7 days. ]
Lin Shuyue drank the half-empty bottle of water in her hand and followed Hang Jiabai and the others over. By the time they arrived, the forensic pathologists had also arrived. They were examining the body parts in several trash cans.
Lin Shuyue took a few photos, then turned on the good and evil identification system and looked around.
Ye Xueyu stood beside her: "There are so many of these things, I don't know how many people they belong to. It's really cruel." Ye Xueyu gritted her teeth.
Lin Shuyue nodded. It was indeed a ruthless and antisocial person. She asked, "Have we found any information about the victim?"
"We've already checked the DNA database. Jiangzhou is still investigating missing persons from the past year, and the results haven't come back yet." We now have a rough idea of the identities of several victims, all between 20 and 40. If these young people vanish without explanation, their relatives will undoubtedly report them to the police. Once their identities are confirmed, the case will be much easier to handle.
After Ye Xueyu finished speaking, she took out her notebook and began to check on the people around who were watching the excitement.
Xingfu Road and Xinmin Road are not far apart, just two alleys apart, and are surrounded by a rambling mix of residential buildings. The road is lined with small restaurants and shops, and in the mornings and evenings, people come to sell fruits and vegetables, making for a busy crowd.
Lin Shuyue listened as the caller told Hang Jiabai about the circumstances surrounding his discovery: "I sell vegetables. Every time I sell vegetables, I always clean up my stall. Today, when I was taking out the trash, I saw something in the trash can. It looked like meat, and it immediately reminded me of what happened last night, so I called the police."
The person who called the police was a man in his forties, with a good and evil value of about 10%.
"I think it's abnormal. Meat is getting more and more expensive. Who would have nothing better to do than throw such a big bag of meat into the trash can? Aren't they afraid of getting struck by lightning?" The uncle had lived through hard times and he hated waste the most. Even if he hadn't heard about what happened on Xinmin Road last night, he would have called the police after seeing this wasteful behavior.
Hang Jiabai expressed his understanding and asked them several more questions. They had all been setting up their stalls since around six o'clock, while the stalls on Xingfu Road closed around ten o'clock. Now that something like this had happened, those who hadn't left after packing up their stalls were coming around.
When asked if she had encountered any unusual people, an elderly woman selling soy milk said, "I came here to set up my stall a little after four o'clock. When I was pushing my cart over here, I saw a small vehicle parked at the door over there."
Breakfast shops on Xingfu Road usually open around 5:00 a.m., and no earlier. But some people who work the fourth shift or are still awake get hungry around 4:00 or 5:00 a.m., and the old lady's soy milk and fried dough sticks become one of their few options.
The old lady has been setting up her stall at 4 a.m. every morning for years. Her husband is quiet, but has a good memory. After his wife spoke, he added, "Yes, we saw it last night, too, but it was a little later because it rained. We arrived a little later, around 4:40, at the intersection ahead."
The old man is sixty years old this year. As people get older, they sleep less. In addition, he gets up too early in the morning, so he has developed the habit of observing the cars on the road around him.
"When we came this morning, a vehicle was parked opposite, and a young man was putting things into the vehicle. They were wrapped tightly. I thought the young man was abnormal at the time, but I didn't expect he was really abnormal." The old man slapped his thigh, feeling extremely uncomfortable.
Upon hearing this, Hang Jiabai immediately asked more detailed questions about the small truck and the young man.
The old man was honored to be able to help the police and immediately began to recall his past. Lin Shuyue listened to the conversation and took a look at her good and evil values. They were both low and within the normal range. She retreated to the reporter circle and analyzed the situation with the reporters.
They are all acquaintances, so they can get down to business without much small talk.
A reporter from Southern Daily said: "I just took a close look and saw that the cuts on those things were very smooth. I'm sure a normal kitchen knife or axe would never be able to cut that smooth."
"Yes, it's impossible to cut bones so smoothly with normal tools." Many of the body parts found today were still attached to bones. The largest piece was a human calf, with tissue, flesh and bones all inside.
The Southern Newspaper reporter said, "So I'm certain the murderer must be working with fresh food. And he must have high-tech cutting tools at home."
"Not necessarily? There are so many tools that can be used for cutting, you don't have to be a butcher, right?" Someone replied, and then there was a heated debate, and gradually everyone joined in.
Lin Shuyue didn't say anything, but observed the surroundings, with the good and evil radar always on, but still found nothing.
Suddenly, Lin Shuyue's eyes fixed, she picked up her phone and sent a text message to Hang Jiabai. After a moment, Hang Jiabai raised her head and looked towards the nine o'clock direction. On the top floor, she saw a camera hidden in the blooming bougainvillea.
The camera was very hidden, only a round black sphere could be seen. If Lin Shuyue hadn't seen so many cameras before, she would probably have overlooked this one. It was so inconspicuous, especially hidden among the flowers.
The camera is facing this direction.
Hang Jiabai's face lit up with joy as he walked towards the building. Ye Xueyu immediately followed, and Lin Shuyue also followed. Ye Xueyu held her hand and walked together.
The camera is located on the fourth floor, which is also the highest floor of the building. According to the label on the first floor, the family living on the fourth floor is the landlord of the building.
Hang Jiabai knocked on the door. A few moments later, a twenty-year-old girl came to open it. She didn't seem surprised to see Hang Jiabai and his friends. She turned around and shouted into the house, "Dad, the police are here."
A middle-aged man walked out of the room. The good and evil values of both father and daughter were only 10%, but the middle-aged man's was higher, at 11%.
The middle-aged man let the police in and led them to sit on the wooden sofa in the living room. Then he pointed to the computer in the corner and said, "The surveillance cameras are all there, police comrades, please take a look."
The girl hid in the room.
Ye Xueyu went to check the surveillance footage while Hang Jiabai chatted with the middle-aged man: "Hong Jianxi, right? You don't seem surprised by our arrival?"
When they just walked in, the middle-aged man introduced himself.
Hong Jianxi smiled happily: "I'm not surprised at all. We are the only family on Xingfu Road that has cameras. It's only a matter of time before you come looking for us."
Hong Jianxi installed this camera secretly and never let anyone know. When he knew there were body parts in the trash can on the street downstairs, he watched the camera footage from last night and it did capture a sneaky person.
He had already prepared for the police to come to his door. He said: "I installed this camera because I thought it would be the end of the year and theft would be rampant. It has only been installed for less than two months."
Hong Jianxi's rental apartment was robbed during Chinese New Year last year, costing him a considerable sum. He was devastated. Most of his tenants were factory workers who lived frugally, but this one burglar had wasted at least two weeks' work. Surveillance equipment is expensive these days, and he spent months mulling over the purchase.
This thing was really not cheap, it cost him a month's rent. But Hong Jianxi never dreamed that he could capture a serial killer instead of a thief.
"Found it." Ye Xueyu's voice came from the computer. Hang Jiabai didn't bother to chat with Hong Jianxi and walked over immediately.
The image on the computer screen had frozen. A young man wearing a hooded shirt and gloves was standing in front of a tricycle, pouring a garbage bag into the trash can that Hang Jiabai and others would never forget.
Hang Jiabai clicked play and watched him put away a bag and then ride his bike to the next trash can. Hang Jiabai looked at his feet, which were covered with trash bags.
Hang Jiabai immediately realized that this was a very cunning, arrogant criminal who had a certain anti-detection awareness.
The young man rode a three-wheeled bicycle and disappeared from the surveillance screen. Lin Shuyue followed him over, but her eyes fell on a prototype logo on the rear of the tricycle.
Ye Xueyu took out a USB drive and copied the video footage. Hang Jiabai thanked Hong Jianxi and his daughter, and then the three of them went downstairs.
After reaching the street below, Hang Jiabai found the elderly couple selling soybean milk and fried dough sticks. The elderly couple were about to go back, but when they were questioned by the police, they came over again.
Hang Jiabai's main point was to ask the old man, "Uncle, you said you saw that young man loading something onto a vehicle. Was he loading it in a tricycle?"
The old man was already old, but his eyesight and hearing were still sharp. He thought carefully and said, "If you hadn't told me, I wouldn't have remembered it. The young man must have been using a three-wheeled bicycle, and the exposed iron rod must be the handlebar of the bicycle."
"The more I think about it, the more similar it is." The old man confirmed again and again.
After thanking the old man, Hang Jiabai called Jiangzhou and asked him to check for the same white tricycle that appeared near the park early yesterday morning and early this morning.
The interviewers from the city TV station arrived, carrying cameras. Hang Jiabai's face suddenly turned serious. After replying a few words in front of the camera, he left. Without any clues for a while, Lin Shuyue returned to the newspaper office.
It was lunchtime, so Lin Shuyue went straight to eat. Today's meal was stir-fried pork with bean sprouts, with very few slices of meat, just bean sprouts and soup. There was also a chicken stew with potatoes, half chicken and half potatoes, which was delicious and perfect with rice. Lin Shuyue got her food and sat down with Li Mingfang and the others.
Li Mingfang and the others were still talking about the gossip in the building. As they talked, they started talking about Shengda Trading next door, and the topic mainly revolved around Zhong Jiali.
"Have you noticed that we haven't seen Zhong Jiali for half a month?" The speaker was Xiao Huang from the advertising team.
As soon as she finished speaking, Xiao He at the front desk took over, "Yes, I haven't seen her for half a month. It's strange. Zhong Jiali treats Shengda Trading as her own private property. She feels uncomfortable if she don't come for a day. How could she endure it for so long this time?"
Li Mingfang: "It's better that she doesn't come. If she comes, all the women in Shengda Trading will be bullied. What's wrong with her? How can she be so two-faced towards men and women? I can't figure it out even in my dreams."
Lin Shuyue had seen Zhong Jiali many times, often crossing paths on the stairs. She rolled her eyes at women but became instantly gentle with men like a fool, Lin Shuyue and Li Mingfang frequently complained about her. After Yuan Shuzhen joined Shengda Trading, she often told her about Zhong Jiali's bizarre behavior.
"How old is she? She's not married yet?"
Li Mingfang bit her spoon and said, "She's about 27 or 28, right? She's probably not married yet. I heard she studied in France and learned about the culture. She wants to be a single-child family and has no plans to get married. But she probably has a French boyfriend, an older man."
Li Mingfang's words made Lin Shuyue remember that when Lin Jianxin approached her and wanted her to follow his arrangements and marry the person he chose, he took her to a French restaurant where she met Zhong Jiali and her French boyfriend.
"He looks old, but he shouldn't be that old?" The flowering period of Caucasians is very short, and after reaching a certain age, they age very quickly.
"Who knows. Never mind her, let's just have a meal. There's a milk tea shop in the basement of Xijiang Apartment across from us, it's called something like Subway. Why don't we go buy a cup? I heard it's delicious." Li Mingfang suggested.
They mentioned wanting milk tea, and Lin Shuyue was also tempted. She hadn't thought about it before because, back in 2004, milk tea hadn't become widely available. The ubiquitous milk tea shops of later generations were practically nonexistent.
Milk tea became popular on a large scale in cities and towns across the country about 10 years ago.
"I'm going too, take me with you." Lin Shuyue raised her hand actively.
Milk tea isn't expensive, and everyone can afford it. After Lin Shuyue responded, they followed suit. Li Mingfang beamed. Since moving into Xijiang Apartment, her desire to explore the area has skyrocketed. This shop began renovations at the end of last month and just opened today. The sign was put up last night, and Li Mingfang spotted it immediately on her way to work today.
While eating, Lin Shuyue thought for a while, found Yuan Shuzhen's chat box, and sent her a message.
Yuan Shuzhen was eating out. The boss of Shengda Trading wasn't as powerful as the Pengcheng Metropolis Daily, so they ate lunch out and received a ten-yuan daily meal allowance.
When Lin Shuyue finished her meal, washed her lunch box and went downstairs with Li Mingfang and the others, Yuan Shuzhen was sitting in the lounge on the first floor waiting for her. When she saw Lin Shuyue, she came over.
Li Mingfang and the others greeted her warmly. They all worked in the same building and knew each other.
Because they had just discussed it, they were talking about Zhong Jiali before they even left the building.
Speaking of this person, Yuan Shuzhen had a lot to say: "Our young CEO Zhong seems to be living in the last century. In the company, men can be forgiven for making mistakes, but if a woman makes a mistake, even if it's just a small punctuation mark, he will scold her if he finds it."
Yuan Shuzhen thought her previous boss was eccentric enough, but she didn't expect this new boss's sister to be even more bizarre. It really lived up to the saying, "Money is hard to earn, but shit is hard to eat."
"Last time, Luo Teng from their sales department messed up a client, causing the company a lot of losses. The boss was furious with Luo Teng, but she went up to him and said that Luo Teng didn't mean it. The boss is also stupid and just listens to her."
"Luo Teng really didn't do it on purpose, but he made a lot of low-level mistakes. Different companies have different quotations. He took the contract given to another company to sign with the current contract company. When they saw that the quotation was so much lower, they thought he was easily taken advantage of. It's really making everyone speechless. A big client is gone, and everyone's efforts are in vain." Yuan Shuzhen got angry when she talked about this. They worked overtime for this client, but it was ruined at the last minute.
But the big idiot still has a talisman.
"The men in our company all call Zhong Jiali a goddess, and the women all call her an idiot," Yuan Shuzhen scoffed. For men, how could Zhong Jiali not be a goddess? She was practically their patron saint. If they made a mistake, they could always go directly to Zhong Jiali.
Li Mingfang and her friends have heard similar stories many times, but every time they hear them, they can only shed tears of sympathy for the women of Shengda Trading.
"Can your boss lady bear it?" Lin Shuyue couldn't help asking.
"No, that's why they quarrel in the company every day. Our boss's wife is only in her thirties and she already has breast hyperplasia." As soon as Yuan Shuzhen said this, everyone felt more sympathetic.
As the group waited to cross the street, Yuan Shuzhen said, "During the past two weeks that Zhong Jiali was away from the company, our boss's wife was in a particularly good mood. She even smiled as she walked. She even treated us to a meal and sang with us."
Of course, the boss lady's shows were all about the men in the company. The gender divide at Shengda Trading was particularly severe.
"The men in our company have a hard time these days. They still work according to their previous work habits, and they get scolded every time. After the boss scolds, the boss's wife scolds them. Now they talk about Zhong Jiali every day." Yuan Shuzhen felt relieved when she talked about the life of the men in Shengda Trading during this period.
They are all colleagues, doing the same job and getting the same salary, so why do women have to be under so much pressure?
Lin Shuyue: "Where did Zhong Jiali go?"
From the various incidents Yuan Shuzhen had described, it was clear that Zhong Jiali was extremely power-hungry. Lin Shuyue didn't believe such a power-hungry woman would give up her power for so long. The power landscape was ever-changing; even a day away could completely change the situation.
"She said she went back to France to attend a meeting. Anyway, she has been gone for more than half a month. She doesn't answer the phone calls or video calls made by our boss, and his temper is getting worse and worse." After Yuan Shuzhen finished speaking, they entered the milk tea shop.
There were a few wooden tables, green leather chairs, and a few popular sentimental quotes and small decorations on the walls. There was a lot of powder on the bar, a freezer behind it, and a girl with an afro was doing a Penguin Dance. The music in the shop also had some biubiubiu sound effects.
There is a menu and prices on the wall. The prices are not expensive. The original milk tea is two yuan a cup, and the prices of other flavors of milk tea vary depending on the ingredients added.
Lin Shuyue had been mentally prepared for this. When milk tea first appeared, it was mixed with milk tea powder. It was only later, when there were more and more milk tea shops, that various milk teas with real ingredients appeared.
Lin Shuyue ordered a cup of original flavor with ice and less sugar. Li Mingfang and others were very curious and asked the owner a lot of questions before choosing the flavor they wanted.
The owner stopped dancing and stood up to make milk tea for everyone. In less than twenty minutes, five cups of milk tea were ready. No one wanted to go back as it was still a long time before lunch break. It happened that this place was close to Lin Shuyue and her friends' residence, so Li Mingfang asked everyone to go upstairs and play.
As they chatted, they boarded the elevator and headed to Li Mingfang's apartment. As soon as they entered, everyone exclaimed in surprise. After the tour, everyone asked to see Lin Shuyue's apartment. Although the layout of the two apartments was the same, Lin Shuyue still granted them the opportunity to see it.
As soon as they entered Lin Shuyue's room, her colleagues at the newspaper expressed envy. Li Mingfang's apartment was also decorated and furnished in the same way, but that was bought with Li Mingfang's real money, while Lin Shuyue's was won in a lottery.
Lin Shuyue listened to their envious words but smiled without saying anything. She sat on the sofa and talked to Yuan Shuzhen, letting them look around.
The topic unknowingly turned to Zhong Jiali. For some reason, she always had an inexplicable intuition that Zhong Jiali was related to the dismemberment case. This intuition was very subtle, but Lin Shuyue would not let any intuition go.
Because of what Zhong Jiali did, Yuan Shuzhen and her group almost pulled out Zhong Jiali's underwear.
She glanced at the people who were looking at the layout upstairs, then secretly approached Lin Shuyue and said to her, "Ah Yue, do you know SM?"
Lin Shuyue's eyebrows jumped: "I know."
Yuan Shuzhen said: "People in our company said that Zhong Jiali is from this circle. She is also a 'M'. It is said that Zhong Jiali came to work several times with whiplash wounds all over her body. Sometimes she came to work very weak."
Lin Shuyue's heart was beating like a drum. Originally, this was just her intuition, but now that Zhong Jiali was in the SM circle, this intuition became even stronger.
"How do you know she's from this circle?"
"Someone in our company heard what the boss said to her. Our boss said that if she continues to play around like this, she'll end up killing herself one day."
Lin Shuyue didn't plan to ask any more questions after this. Xiao He and the others didn't stay at Lin Shuyue's house for long. They sat and chatted for a while, drank a cup of milk tea, and it was almost time to go to work, so Lin Shuyue followed.
After turning on the computer, Lin Shuyue browsed the forum as usual and sent a message to Hang Jiabai. Hang Jiabai was at a loss as to where to find the vehicle, as the license plate was obscured. After driving on a monitored road for a while, it entered an area without surveillance cameras and disappeared without a trace. They had visited several places today but had not found any useful information.
Hang Jiabai didn't reply yet. Lin Shuyue opened the forum, where the dismemberment case was a hot topic, but also included the report she'd written yesterday. Yao Hongyi and Jiang Yele were nailed to the pillar of shame.
In that post, many homosexuals spoke out for their group. Lin Shuyue took a look at it, then closed the post, found the reply she saw at night, and clicked on the poster's personal homepage. Most of them were speeches on the forum. Judging from his past speeches, he was quite violent and his tone was very aggressive.
Lin Shuyue kept scrolling down and asked Ye Xueyu a few questions. Ye Xueyu's reply was faster than Hang Jiabai's: We didn't find the person who spoke on the forum.
Lin Shuyue was not surprised until she scrolled to the bottom and saw a historical post from three years ago when the forum was first established: Pengcheng S is looking for M.
Lin Shuyue stood up suddenly, ignoring the surprised looks of her colleagues, she walked to the tea room and called Hang Jiabai.
"Ah Bai, I suspect the deceased was from the SM community. I even more strongly suspect that the person speaking in the forum screenshot I sent you last night is the murderer."