Police officer Chen Shu

Chapter 766 Re-examination Ended
Ma Rongcheng looked at the angle and lighting he had adjusted with satisfaction. The shoe prints on the ground would look messy to others, but with his decades of experience and skills, everything was very clear and quite simple.

Perhaps it's because his perspective is dictated by his position, but after spending so much time on trace evidence, Ma Rongcheng became more focused on reconstructing the crime scene and extracting evidence, and he became less concerned about whether the case could be solved in the end.

I don't know what's wrong with me today, but after being egged on by these three young guys, I got a little carried away, and my energy suddenly surged to my head.

It feels like I was rushed into putting it on the shelves, but it's actually pretty good.

And so, another perfect shoe print extraction was achieved, and they even uncovered a second person who was originally hidden behind the scenes, so it can be considered a small success.

Chen Shu coughed a few times, briefly interrupting Ma Rongcheng's reverie.

He decided to approach the problem from a different angle. While shoe prints could provide a new perspective as evidence, their impact on the course of the case was somewhat limited.

"Fingerprints would be best." Chen Shu coughed a few more times, trying to subtly draw Ma Rongcheng's attention back to the scene.

He said in a deep voice, "Expert Ma, see if you can extract fingerprints from the rope used for hanging, the window handle, and the countertop. The door frame in the bathroom where the deceased was hanging, and the light switch are also places you can try."

“Scanning fingerprints in a hotel room? That’s quite a lot of work. But it’s fine, let’s give it a try.” Ma Rongcheng agreed.

The skills the other party mentioned were all his strongest abilities; to be honest, he could master them in the time it takes to drink a sip of water.

Before getting to work, Ma Rongcheng shared some of his previous knowledge about fingerprints with Jiang Hai.

Ma Rongcheng found the tall and strong police academy student quite pleasing to the eye and was willing to share his experiences with him.

He had met a pretty ruthless guy over a decade ago who, for the sake of convenience, simply wiped his fingerprints with sulfuric acid. That wasn't just painful; you could easily ruin your hand if you weren't careful.

Even after being caught by the police, the man seemed quite pleased with himself, saying that his method resulted in excellent fingerprints.

Since then, everything has become convenient, and I'm no longer afraid of anything.

"But in the end, he still ended up on our tiger bench." Ma Rongcheng smiled smugly, presumably considering that case one of his proudest achievements. "Don't underestimate modern technology, and don't simply assume that modern crime-solving is still stuck in the era of DNA and fingerprints, such as trace substances."

“Teacher Ma, I learned this at the police academy!” The young man, still eager to show off, quickly said, “Locar’s law of exchange of matter! When the surfaces of two objects come into contact with each other in motion, a small amount of matter will always be exchanged, that is, a small amount of matter on the surface of one object will be transferred to the surface of the other object.”

"That's about right." Ma Rongcheng was as harmonious as an old man, showing no annoyance at being interrupted, and looked at the police cadet who vaguely resembled him back then with a smile.

Jiang Hai, mimicking the teacher on the podium, said with a dream: "There are no truly perfect crimes, only undiscovered clues."

"Heh." Chen Chuan, predictably, poured cold water on the idea. "So, there are no unsolvable cases, only..."

Once Jiang Hai and the others turned their attention to him, Chen Chuan grinned and said, "Police officers who can't solve cases. Haha, does that make sense?"

Jiang Hai was speechless, thinking to himself how could this senior brother, who was much older than him, be so childish?

Ma Rongcheng lost interest in chatting, hummed, and continued fiddling with his work.

However, after overhearing their conversation, Chen Shu unexpectedly discovered something they had overlooked: Locar's law of exchange, which means that the curtains and the lawn downstairs must have some intersection. If this intersection could be determined, the case might be solved in one fell swoop.

Curtain fabric.
Muddy grass.
upstairs
downstairs
Ma Rongcheng turned on the light, waved it a few times at the windowsill, breathed on it, and then took out a magnifying glass to examine it for a moment. He then proceeded to experiment with powder, tubing, smoke, and chemical reagents one by one. Under the expectant gaze of the group, Ma shook his head and said regretfully, "No fingerprints, too clean."

Chen Shu nodded, unsurprised.

Since it's a murder case, and even the shoe prints were faked to resemble the victim's, the suspect would definitely have erased any other traces of themselves at the crime scene, and fingerprints would naturally be the first choice.

However, there wasn't a single fingerprint on the windowsill, which only made it seem like they were trying to hide something.

As hotel rooms are used for accommodation, guests come and go, and people are constantly opening and closing the windows. Since the cleaning ladies can't wipe the windows while cleaning the rooms, they will inevitably leave a lot of fingerprints on them.

Especially since stainless steel windows are prone to fingerprints, the fact that no fingerprints were found makes it hard not to suspect that someone deliberately removed the marks from the window.

Jiang Hai leaned closer, fiddling with the window handles with his gloved hands, and whispered, "Brother Shu, since the window is locked from the inside, how did the suspect get out of the room?"

"A locked-room murder must involve some technique. Once we figure it out, the case will be solved. Let me think... is it possible that the person was hiding under the bed, and then crawled out and left after we left?" Chen Chuan, who had just finished watching a few episodes of a detective anime, offered his opinion in a seemingly professional manner.

Chen Shu bent down, lifted the large bed, glanced at the dusty area under the bed, and shook his head: "It's all dust, there's no way it could be hiding here."

"That"

Apart from the clicking of Ma Wing-shing's camera, there was no other sound in the room.

"Officer, I have something to do downstairs, should I leave for a bit?" The hotel staff member who was standing at the room door, acting as a witness, took leave after receiving a phone call.

After watching the staff leave, Chen Shu thought for a moment and said, "How about this, Jiang Hai and Chen Chuan stay here to cooperate with Expert Ma, and I'll go back to the Criminal Investigation Brigade to review the video surveillance again."

"Is everything alright here? Brother Shu, how about I go back to the brigade with you? I took a video investigation course, so I should be able to help!" Jiang Hai found on-site investigations incredibly boring, and found it much more fun to be with Brother Shu.

Chen Shu glanced at Ma Rongcheng, who was meticulously wiping a teacup with a cotton swab, and then turned to Jiang Hai and said, "This is a rare opportunity. You can learn a lot of practical things by following Expert Ma. I can handle the video investigation on my own."

Jiang Hai was still a student and lacked experience, but Chen Shu considered Ma Rongcheng's methods to be extremely sophisticated. The techniques and methods used in crime scene investigations involving murder cases were also extremely complex.

In a normal case, it would be almost impossible for Ma Rongcheng to operate in this way.

Police officers like Chen Shu, who are usually busy with cases and shifts, rarely have time to study or pursue further education. They rely on their daily accumulation and experience, which limits their options.

If Chen Shu hadn't been on a mission and focused on helping Huang Mao solve the murder case, he would have stayed by the horse expert's side to learn a few tricks.

These on-site investigation techniques, if an expert reveals even a few of them, can be a lifelong skill for any police officer who learns them.

Chen Chuan immediately understood Chen Shu's meaning, stepped forward, put his arm around Jiang Hai, and said in a drawn-out voice, "Xiao Hai, this is a rare opportunity, don't miss it."

Jiang Hai slapped his forehead and realized he understood.

(End of this chapter)