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

Yang Lin then used a net to scoop up a piece of black plastic from the water east of the bag. "The fragment has obvious cutting marks on the edges, and the material looks like a part of some kind of plastic bucket," he said, putting the fragment into an evidence bag. "There are a few dark red stains on the fragment, and we can't determine what it is yet. We need to take it back to the branch for further testing. In addition, there are a few brown fibers floating in the water. They are rough in texture and look like they came off the bag or the deceased's clothing. We collected those as well."

The two continued to expand their search area and found a fresh drag mark under a willow tree on the north side of the riverbank. "The drag mark extends from the road to the riverbank, about 10 meters long, and the width of the mark is roughly the same as the width of the canvas bag," Yang Lin said, probing along the mark with a probe. "The soil at the edge of the mark shows obvious signs of compaction, and there are still a few canvas fibers remaining, which should have been left by the suspect when dragging the body. In addition, there was a plastic bottle cap scattered next to the mark. The bottle cap was branded as 'a certain brand of mineral water,' and there were no obvious fingerprints on the surface. It was covered with soil, so it may have been discarded by the suspect."

On the other side, Wang Shuai led Chen Jian to a temporary rest area outside the cordon and handed him a cup of warm water: "Mr. Chen, don't be nervous. Tell me slowly and describe in detail how you found the body." Chen Jian held the cup in both hands, his fingertips still covered in mud from the riverbank. His voice was filled with lingering fear: "I came to the river to fish around 5 a.m. When I got to this bend and was about to cast my line, I saw a cloth bag floating in the water. At first, I thought it was trash and wanted to use my fishing rod to hook it to the shore and throw it away. But when I touched it, I felt something was wrong. It was heavy, and I saw some clothes sticking out of the bag. I immediately called the police. I didn't even dare to touch the fishing rod."

"When you saw the bag, did you notice any unusual details? For example, were there any markings on the bag, or were there any suspicious people or vehicles around?" Wang Shuai took out his notebook, his pen moving quickly across the paper. Chen Jian frowned as he recalled, "The bag was dark-colored, and looked like it was made of canvas. I didn't see any markings on it, just that it was a bit torn, and the clothes that were showing seemed to be dark-colored. As for suspicious people, I didn't see anyone else when I came, but yesterday afternoon when I came fishing, I saw a black sedan parked on the road by the river. The driver was wearing a hat and a mask and was sitting in the car without getting out. I thought it was strange at the time, because cars rarely come to this place. When I came this morning, the car was gone."

"Was there anything unusual about that black sedan? Like stickers, license plate number, or obvious scratches?" Wang Shuai pressed. Chen Jian scratched his head: "The car was quite new, looked like a joint venture brand sedan. There seemed to be a silver trim strip on the side of the car. I couldn't see the license plate number clearly because we were a bit far away, and the driver had the windows tightly closed. Oh, and there seemed to be a black bag in the back seat, it looked bulging, I wonder what was in it."

Just then, Yang Lin's voice came from the riverbank: "Team Leader Wang, come here for a second, we've made a new discovery!" Wang Shuai settled Chen Jian down and quickly walked to the riverbank. Yang Lin pointed to the binding rope of the canvas bag: "We carefully examined the knotting method of the binding rope. It's a rather special 'double overhand knot.' This knotting method is more common in logistics transportation or outdoor operations, but ordinary people rarely use it. Perhaps we can use this to pinpoint the suspect's occupation. In addition, there's a hole at the bottom of the bag. We used a net to retrieve a metal button from the water below the hole. It's about 1.8 centimeters in diameter and has wear marks on the surface, as if it came off the deceased's clothing."

Yang Sen added, "In addition, we found a small amount of dark red stains in the soil at the end of the drag marks. We cannot determine whether it is blood at the moment. We have taken a sample and need to take it back to the branch for testing. We also checked the surveillance cameras along the river. The cameras on this section of the riverbank broke down last month and did not capture the suspect dumping the body. We can only check the surveillance cameras on the highway to find the black car that Mr. Chen mentioned."

Lu Chuan walked to the investigation site and looked at the preliminary investigation results: "Based on the initial assessment, Beihe River is not the primary crime scene. The body was transported here by a vehicle and then dumped, before being washed to the bend by the current. Judging from the traces at the scene, the suspect is 170-175 cm tall, wearing size 41 sneakers, and may have driven a black sedan. He was familiar with the riverbank environment and knew that the surveillance camera was broken. The identity of the deceased cannot be confirmed at the moment. The body was wrapped in a canvas bag, and no identification documents were found, which suggests that it was deliberately cleaned by the suspect."

He turned to Wang Shuai: "Confirm with Chen Jian again whether the black sedan he saw yesterday afternoon had any other characteristics. For example, whether there were any collision marks on the front of the car, or any unusual sounds. Also, contact the traffic department to retrieve the surveillance footage from yesterday afternoon to early this morning on the roads around Beihe, and focus on finding traces of the black sedan."

Wang Shuai returned to Chen Jian's side and continued to ask, "Master Chen, think about it carefully again. Did you see any signs of a collision on the front of the black sedan yesterday afternoon? Or did you hear any strange noises while driving it?" Chen Jian thought for a moment, then his eyes lit up: "It seems so! The right rearview mirror of that car seemed a bit crooked, as if it had been hit. Also, I heard the engine was a bit loud, not like the sound a normal new car should make. At the time, I thought it had been modified."

This information gave Wang Shuai a jolt. He immediately instructed his team to record the characteristics of the black sedan: it was a new car, the silver trim on the body, the right rearview mirror was crooked, and there were abnormal noises from the engine. He then sent the information to the surrounding police stations to assist in the investigation. At the same time, he contacted the water resources department to find out the speed and direction of the Beihe River's current, determine the possible drift path of the body, and find the first dumping point.

As the sun rose higher, the mist along the riverbank completely dissipated, and a gentle breeze rippled across the water, carrying the faint scent of aquatic plants. Several villagers, alerted by the commotion, gathered outside the police cordon, discussing the situation from a distance. Chen Jian stood in the rest area, watching the officers bustling about, still shaken: "How could such a beautiful river become a hiding place for a body… I hope you find the murderer soon, so the deceased can rest in peace."

Wang Shuai patted him on the shoulder: "Thank you for the clues. They are very helpful to us. We may need your cooperation to verify some details later." After saying that, he turned and walked towards the scene of the investigation to meet up with Yang Lin and Yang Sen. Although the identity of the deceased is still unknown, the clues of the black car, the sneaker print, and the metal button have provided an initial direction for solving the case.

Standing beside the police cordon, Lu Chuan looked at the calm Beihe River before him, knowing full well that the investigation into the Beihe River floating corpse case had only just begun. (End of Chapter)