Attending ex-girlfriend's wedding, arresting the groom's officer on the spot

"Dig!" Yang Lin grabbed his entrenching tool, and as the dirt flew up, a rusty iron box gradually came into view. Several coils of wire were wrapped around the box, and there were pry marks on the keyhole. Yang Sen used pliers to cut the wire, and the moment the lid was opened, both of them held their breath—inside was a complete torso, the chest cavity had been cut open, the internal organs were gone, leaving only an empty cavity.

“The deceased suffered cruel treatment before his death.” Yang Lin’s voice was low as he focused the camera on the cuts on the torso. “The cuts are smooth, so the killer may have a medical background or be familiar with autopsy procedures.” He noticed a tattoo on the waist of the torso, a burning lotus flower. “This tattoo is unique and may be a clue to identify the victim.”

Yang Sen took out a portable X-ray machine and scanned the torso: "There are multiple rib fractures, injuries sustained before death." He pulled up the images and pointed to the shadow in the chest cavity, "There is a metallic object here, shaped like a bullet." The two exchanged a glance and realized that the complexity of the case was far beyond their imagination.

As dawn broke and painted the sky red again, Yang Lin and Yang Sen had been working tirelessly at the scene all night. The severed limbs and torsos were carefully packaged and prepared for transport to the forensic center; dozens of soil and blood samples were neatly arranged in the investigation kit; and the 3D modeling data of the scene had been transmitted to the criminal investigation team in real time.

“We’re still missing the head.” Yang Lin gazed at the sky, which was beginning to lighten. “Without the head, it will be very difficult to identify the victim.” Yang Sen wiped the sweat from his face, his gaze resolute. “Keep searching. Since the murderer chose to dismember and dispose of the body, they must have left some clues.” The two packed up their equipment and headed back towards the abandoned factory. Perhaps the final key to solving the mystery was hidden there.

At two o'clock in the morning, the operating lights in the autopsy room illuminated the stainless steel workbench. Zhang Kai, wearing an N95 mask and splash-proof goggles, soaked his hands in ethanol disinfectant until his fingertips turned white. When he lifted the white sheet covering the torso, the empty cavity in his chest cavity stared at the ceiling like a pitch-black eye. The burning lotus tattoo on his waist was twisted and deformed due to the loose skin, its ink color standing out starkly against the pale flesh.

"First, assemble the body." Zhang Kai spoke into the recorder, his voice muffled through layers of protective gear. "The right lower limb is missing, the left upper limb is severed at the elbow joint, the right hand and torso are intact, and the pubic symphysis is separated from the sacrum. We need to determine if they are from the same body." He put on surgical gloves, his fingertips lightly touching the cross-section of the severed limb. The bone fragments from the chainsaw cut gleamed white in the cold light. "The signs of life on the cross-section are not obvious, suggesting that the dismemberment occurred 2-4 hours after death."

The assistant placed the torso and severed limbs within the outline of the human body on the dissection table. Zhang Kai used orthopedic forceps to grasp the pubic symphysis cartilage and observed it under a stereomicroscope: "The ossified tubercles on the dorsal edge of the pubic symphysis have fused, and the ventral oblique surface has been formed, which is consistent with the Suchey-Brooks classification stage 5." He retrieved the database for comparison, "The corresponding age is 45-55 years old, but it needs to be adjusted in conjunction with other indicators."

Next, the skull—although the head hasn't been found yet, Zhang Kai can still estimate the age based on the vertebral morphology of the cervical spine cross-section. "Osteophytes on the uncinate process of the fourth cervical vertebra and narrowing of the intervertebral space," he points to the white shadow on the CT image, "consistent with long-term strain changes, suggesting an age over 40." Under the microscope, the number of bone units in the rib cross-section is reduced, and the diameter of the Haversian canal is widened, "indicating weakened bone remodeling activity, suggesting an age over 45."

The most crucial factor in determining age was the teeth. Although the deceased's mandible was missing, Zhang Kai found a dislodged molar at the metacarpophalangeal joint of his right hand. "The crown wear reached deep into the enamel," he observed, fixing the tooth on a microsurgical table. Under a 100x objective lens, the exposed dentine area on the occlusal surface showed irregular depressions. "According to Smith's tooth wear grading system, it belongs to grade four, corresponding to an age of 40-50 years." Under ultraviolet light, the thickness of the transparent dentin layer on the root surface reached 0.3mm, "further supporting the 45-50 age range."

When determining his height, Zhang Kai measured the length of his entire left humerus: "34.7cm. According to the regression equation for long bones in Chinese people," he quickly entered the data into the calculator, "Height = 2.97 × humerus length + 62.56 ± 3.72, calculated to be 173-179cm." Considering the development of the muscle attachment points in his trunk, he added in his record: "Slender build, weighing approximately 65-70kg, likely engaged in light physical labor before death."

Determining the time of death was fraught with challenges. Since the body had been dismembered and thrown into the water, traditional post-mortem temperature measurements were meaningless. Zhang Kai instead observed the putrefactive venous network on the liver's surface: "The formation of dark red reticular blood vessels, combined with the odor of hydrogen sulfide in the intestines," he noted, referencing the recent average daily temperature of 22°C. "The rate of decomposition in water is about half that on land, suggesting the time of death was 3-5 days before discovery." More precise evidence came from insect larvae in the severed limb muscles—Yang Sen found second-instar water fly larvae in samples brought back from reed beds. "Accumulated developmental temperature calculations show the larvae survived for 48-72 hours, revising the time of death to 72-96 hours prior."

The determination of the cause of death left Zhang Kai frowning. The bullet, 7.62mm in diameter, was lodged in the chest cavity, its trajectory diagonally tracing the space between the 3rd and 4th ribs, yet it did not damage any major organs. The binding marks on the right wrist indicated that the victim had been detained before death, and the DNA profile of the skin tissue under the fingernails did not match the severed limb, suggesting it might have been left by scratching the perpetrator during resistance. Ultimately, he wrote in the autopsy report: "Mechanical asphyxiation combined with hemorrhagic shock; dismemberment occurred in the early post-mortem period; the perpetrator possessed basic anatomical knowledge or had access to relevant tools."

As the first rays of morning sunlight climbed through the blinds of the autopsy room, Zhang Kai removed his goggles, the fog on the lenses leaving human-shaped watermarks on the glass. He gazed at the still-intact corpse on the operating table; the lotus tattoo on his waist seemed to bloom anew in the firelight—this unique mark might be the key to identifying the deceased. And the age data derived from the pubic symphysis, tooth wear, and the microscopic structure of the bones were gradually piecing together the deceased's life like pieces of a puzzle, waiting for the investigators to find his name in the vast sea of ​​people.

In the blue light of the disinfection lamp, Zhang Kai opened his new notebook and began recording the next test: "Extract skin tissue from the tattoo site, analyze the melanin granules, and check if it's ink used by a specific tattoo shop." The stainless steel instruments on the dissection table still carried a lingering warmth, while outside the window, Lu Chuan's investigation team, characterized by a "male aged 45-50, approximately 175cm tall, with a burning lotus tattoo on his waist," embarked on the long journey to find the source of the body.

The morning mist lingered over the irrigation ditches, and Yang Lin's survey boots sank into the mud, making a squelching sound. (End of Chapter)