You're supposed to be a security officer, what case are you solving?

Chapter 338, Case One!
Inside the Third Brigade's office.

Night quietly descended outside the window, spreading out like ink.

Feng Xiaocai tiptoed to turn on the fluorescent light on the ceiling, afraid of making a noise that might disturb Yang Jinwen and the others as they reviewed the case files.

Yao Weihua had a cigarette between his fingers, and the smoke drifted slowly from his head.

Cai Ting and Maozi sat facing each other, each holding a case file in their hands, flipping through it every now and then. In the middle of the table was a newly bought money tree; no one knew what Maozi was thinking when she bought it.

Yang Jinwen's desk was a little further away, next to the window, with a two-meter-high iron cabinet behind him. He was also staring intently at the report filed by the person who filed the report.

In the tranquil atmosphere, space and time seemed to suddenly ripple...

When Feng Xiaocai turned on the row of fluorescent light tubes above Yang Jinwen's head...

Stimulated by the light, Yang Jinwen closed his eyes, and time seemed to return to the night of the incident on July 11, 1996, at the scene of the crime on the north side of Xiangyuan Road Park.

"...The woman lay collapsed under the iron fence, blood bubbles constantly bubbling from her neck, like a pig being slaughtered during the Lunar New Year, strings of blood bubbles, scarlet red..."

A row of police cars with flashing red and blue lights on their roofs were parked on the road on the south side of the park; these were police cars belonging to the local police station.

The two vehicles from the Third Brigade were parked behind, looking very ordinary and blending into the traffic, making them difficult to spot.

Five people from the Third Brigade arrived in total: Gu Jun and Feng Xiaocai, who were on duty, and three others, including the brigade leader Gao Jie.

Gao Jie, with a cigarette between his fingers, listened to the person who called the police while looking around at his surroundings.

The crime occurred in Xingye District. Qincheng District has 11 districts, and Xingye District happens to be within the jurisdiction of the branch.

According to the usual case-handling procedures, the criminal investigation team of Xingye District Public Security Bureau should have come over, but because the three teams of Qincheng Branch were so good at handling cases, the local police station directly called the branch.

Xiangyuan Road is a mixed bag, home to many migrant workers from other places, and surrounded by factories, arcades, billiard halls, and video arcades.

Especially in the buildings around Xiangyuan Road, most of the residents are unemployed people.

Gao Jie turned his head and focused his gaze on the person who had called the police.

"What's your name?"

"Kou Tao".

After the other party answered, Feng Xiaocai quickly opened her notebook and wrote it down with a pen.

Where are you from?

“From Qincheng.”

"Where to stay?"

"I live in the dormitory up ahead." Kou Tao pointed to the low buildings not far away, but it was late at night, so it was unclear which building he was referring to.

Feng Xiaocai interjected, "Give me the specific address."

Kou Tao nodded and gave a detailed account of his residence.

Gao Jie continued, "Are you the only one on night duty in the park tonight?"

"Yes."

"Why is it just one person? Shouldn't there always be two people with them?"

"No one comes to the park at night, and the gates are all locked."

We always assign one person to work the night shift, mainly to prevent people from climbing in; it's not a big deal.

Gao Jie narrowed his eyes slightly: "So that means you were the only one who saw that woman?"

Kou Tao didn't think there was anything wrong with what he said and nodded: "Didn't I just say that I'm the only one on duty?"

Gao Jie glanced at the woods behind the guardhouse; the forensic and technical staff had been inside for some time.

He instructed Gu Jun, who was standing to the side, "Ask him again, and have him come back to the detachment with us in a bit. I'll go over first."

"Okay, Captain Gao." Gu Jun nodded and waved to Kou Tao.

Go around the south gate, and you'll find a small grove of trees on the north side of the park.

It was past midnight, and in the middle of summer, the woods were filled with the chirping of crickets and the occasional chirping of cicadas.

The lights focused on the iron fence, where two forensic doctors in white coats were inside, and on the outside were on-site investigators wearing blue disposable caps. The Qincheng Public Security Bureau generally referred to them as 'technicians'.

Gao Jie found a round-faced, overweight director of the technical department.

"Old Wei, have you found anything?"

"Yes, there are used condoms, broken beer bottles, toilet paper, chewing gum wrappers, and lots of other things."

"Then we'll have to take them all back, right?"

Wei Ming glared at him: "Are you trying to kill me with your work? The case happened tonight, and the things I mentioned are all old physical evidence, not things left at the scene."

Gao Jie said with a forced smile, "Thank you for your hard work."

"Your Third Brigade is just one case away from surpassing the First Brigade?"

Gu Jun, standing to the side, replied happily, "If this case is solved, our Third Brigade will be the leader."

Wei Ming curled his lip: "Don't be too happy yet. I've dealt with Lu Ruixiang my whole life. He's an old fox. He won't just stand by and watch your Third Brigade win the rotating red flag. Besides, Shen Wenzhu from the Second Brigade is a graduate of the Public Security University. She's a proper professional. She's only one and a half cases behind you."

Gao Jie asked in confusion, "One and a half? What do you mean?"

"It means that the suspect in the case she's handling now has been identified, and the arrest has been arranged in the last two days. As long as the person doesn't escape Qincheng, the case will be solved."

"Holy crap, I've never heard of that."

"Heh, the Second Brigade is keeping the news very well under wraps. All this fighting between the three brigades is pointless. I think it's better to cooperate."

Gao Jie chuckled, his mood starting to grow impatient: "Alright, if you find the primary crime scene, let me know right away. If the case is solved, I'll treat you to drinks."

It is obvious that the area outside the guardhouse window was not the primary crime scene; the victim must have run to the guardhouse intending to call for help.

The forensic doctor at Qincheng Public Security Bureau is named Li Yuanquan. He is in his fifties and is nearing retirement age.

He and his apprentice were examining the body, the light from a flashlight shining on the victim's neck.

The woman's neck was covered in blood, which had already begun to congeal, making the wound completely invisible.

Her hair was permed, seemingly recently, and her lips were scarlet, whether from lipstick or blood, it was hard to tell. A crescent-shaped gold earring hung from her left earlobe, but her right earring was missing.

Most importantly, the woman was not wearing pants, not even shorts, and was barefoot, so there was no doubt that she had been assaulted.

Gao Jie raised his head and looked around.

The woods here are very dense, and there are roads on both sides and behind, making it a crossroads, but it is more than 100 meters away from the roads.

Gao Jie looked straight ahead. In front of where the woman had fallen was a thicket of bushes, which was right next to the park's iron fence.

The rusty iron fence has gaps about three fingers wide and is more than two meters high. There is also a wire mesh on top to prevent outsiders from climbing.

Inside the iron fence is the park's guardhouse.

There is a certain distance between the window of the guardhouse and the iron fence. Because of the bushes blocking the way, people cannot get close to the iron fence at all. The iron fence is also out of reach of the window of the guardhouse with one hand.

At this moment, the window on the left side of the windowsill was open, and newspapers that had turned yellow from being exposed to the sun were pasted on the window glass, so the situation inside on the right side could not be seen.

A light bulb was on in the guardhouse, and the table and the black-and-white television on it were clearly visible.

Of course, the TV is now off, and the picture looks dull and gray.

On the roof of the guardhouse, a television antenna was mounted, pointing towards the star-studded night sky.

"Master, what did you see?" Feng Xiaocai asked.

“There are many…” Gao Jie squinted, and then he saw Gu Jun stepping into the guard room.

He called out, "Jun'er, measure the distance from the window to the iron bars."

Hearing the sound, Gu Jun looked up at the woods and said, "Okay, I'll go get the measuring tape."

After bringing the measuring tape, Gu Jun went around to the window of the guardhouse, unrolled the tape, and measured the distance from the windowsill to the iron fence.

Someone shone a flashlight on him, and he glanced at the markings and replied, "Captain Gao, 2.3 meters."

"2.3 meters, and with the bushes, it's a little over three meters."

"Captain Gao, is there a problem?"

"I can't explain it." Gao Jie glanced at his watch, then added, "Gather everyone on our team."

"Okay," Gu Jun replied.

Following this, forensic pathologist Li Yuanquan completed his examination of the body and informed the deceased of the cause and manner of death.

Veteran technician Wei Ming also gained some information from the scene.

Half an hour later, outside the park, next to the police car, dozens of people from the Third Brigade and the local police station gathered together, with Gao Jie at the center.

"It's 2:30 a.m. The surrounding residents and vendors have already gone to sleep. Everyone should go to their cars and get some rest first."

After 6 a.m., everyone began to search the surrounding area.

First, we need to find eyewitnesses to the incident. According to the clues provided by the person who reported the crime, Kou Tao, the incident occurred at 10:30 p.m., so 10:30 p.m. is a very important time.

Second, find out the identity of the victim.

The victim died from a sharp object piercing his throat three times, which punctured the major artery, causing blood to gush out and form blood bubbles.

Old Li hasn't identified the weapon used in the crime yet. You've all seen the crime scene; it's only about 50 meters from the iron fence north of the guardhouse and 30 meters from the road on the left.

Why did the victim run to the guardhouse to call for help instead of running to the main road?
The road on the left has very little traffic at 10:30 pm.

Therefore, the victim was very familiar with the situation in the grove and the park, and she should have known that someone was on night duty at the guardhouse.

Moreover, men and women often come to this grove to meet, and the victim's belongings are missing, and there are signs of assault.

In short, the victim most likely lives in the vicinity. If you can't find her, try asking at a nearby hair salon. She just had her hair permed, so you might be able to get some clues.

"Remember, this case needs to be solved quickly. Our Third Brigade only needs this one case to catch up with the First Brigade. Whoever finds clues about the murderer gets my share of the reward! Understand?"

(End of this chapter)