Proofreader:Sandra

Chapter 164

At seven in the morning, on Nansha Island, the sky gradually brightened as the night was replaced by daylight. Light rain continued to fall, and the wind had diminished significantly.

Traces of the storm’s ravages were still evident everywhere: scattered, broken branches, leaves, plastic bags, and various unknown debris.

After burning for three hours, the fire in the cake shop had consumed most of the flammable materials inside. The flames had been completely extinguished, leaving behind scorched black earth with some areas still emitting faint white smoke.

The rampant wind and rain had undoubtedly made things worse, soaking much of the debris and damaging many traces.

The island’s police force was insufficient, often with a few officers responsible for managing several small islands, known as island patrol officers. They traveled between the islands only by boat, frequently enduring the rough seas. Sometimes, they had to remain on guard amidst the tumultuous waves.

Due to the long distances and inconvenient transportation, by the time these officers arrived, the crime was often over. If high winds halted ferry services, they might not reach the scene in time, making it harder to gather useful information and solve the case.

Islands were challenging to monitor; often, people exploited them for illegal activities. There had been previous cases involving animal and drug smuggling, and the nitrous oxide sold in the cake shop was also a loophole.

The previous explosion was sudden and strange. After some discussion, they decided to come and investigate the explosion site.

As soon as Lu Siyu and Song Wen woke up, they headed straight to the site. Lu Siyu had even brought his new, expensive camera for the inspection.

This morning, they found themselves still at the fire scene. What was once a blazing inferno now lay desolate and quiet.

The light rain continued to fall as they donned raincoats, stepping across the scorched earth where they could still feel some residual heat. Each step made a crunching sound.

As of now, the phone signal was still down.

With dawn breaking, countless seabirds woke up and began calling out.

Lu Siyu, holding his camera without the telephoto lens, took photos of anything of interest, pressing the shutter as the camera emitted a crisp sound.

The cake shop, which had seemed small before, now appeared sizable. Its several hundred square meters had turned into ruins, marked by traces of the fire. Only the two of them were here inspecting the scene.

Song Wen broke the silence while searching for clues, saying, “I used to enjoy watching movies about islands, from *Island of the Dead* to *Shutter Island*. When we arrived at the guesthouse yesterday, I thought it looked quite cozy. Apart from that couple, the other travelers seemed quite reliable. I didn’t expect to encounter such a thing that night.”

Lu Siyu put down his camera, his handsome face expressionless. “I also like stories about islands,” he said, reminiscing, “I especially remember *And Then There Were None*, *Battle Royale*, and *The Case of Kim Bok-nam*…”

Song Wen almost choked, replying, “Alright, you’re the one with the dark taste. I’d like to live a few more years…”

Jokes aside, the island’s relatively closed environment and sparse population meant that urban conveniences were lacking.

Once accidents like fires occur, rescue and medical aid are often delayed. Even communication can be limited, which is why many young people choose to leave for big cities, contributing to the declining island population.

Because of this, the island remains far from urbanization and pollution, preserving its most primitive appearance.

They first went to the explosion and burning’s core point, the storage room behind the cake shop.

The fire had almost completely destroyed this small storage room, causing it to collapse. Only some metal supports remained upright.

Lu Siyu looked at the corners, where some unburned areas still had remnants of packaging boxes. “This was likely where materials were stored and a large amount of nitrous oxide was kept.”

Song Wen moved a fallen wooden beam, and the charred wood released a burnt odor, causing him to cough a few times. “There’s a corpse here!” he said, then crouched down to examine it closely. “The body seems to be quite small…”

Lu Siyu walked over to examine the body, the first they had discovered. Due to the explosion and fire, the body was entirely blackened and incomplete, but some features could still be discerned.

“It’s been carbonized by prolonged high temperatures, causing the body to shrink. The deceased is female, likely Yan Min…” Lu Siyu carefully examined the body, took several photos, then, using gloved hands, briefly checked the mouth and nose. The body was charred and extremely hard to touch, making it very difficult to move or inspect.

The deceased’s mouth had been deformed by the fire, making it hard to see the condition of the throat without an autopsy. He concluded, “Preliminarily, it appears death was caused by the explosion, followed by the body being burned. We’ll need an autopsy for further details…”

Lu Siyu then looked at the deceased’s hands, which were clenched into fists. This was due to muscle contraction from high temperatures, giving the appearance of a defensive posture like in a boxing match. This was one of the characteristics of high-temperature burns but did not help determine if the burning occurred before or after death.

Song Wen had seen burned bodies before, but none were as severely burned as this one. It was hard to imagine that the once lively landlady had become such a small, charred lump.

Song Wen then began to inspect the surroundings. This storage room, located at the back of the cake shop, was a separate building, at least five meters away from the living area.

He wondered aloud, “With the typhoon yesterday and the power being out early, why was she not in the house sleeping but here instead?”

Lu Siyu looked around and suggested, “Perhaps she came to check if the storage room had been flooded…” He added, “Many baking materials are sensitive to water. There could be other possibilities, such as she was drawn here by some noise or someone.”

Among the ruins, some bags that once held coffee powder, sugar, flour, and other materials, as well as packaging for nitrous oxide and balloons, were barely distinguishable. However, everything inside had been destroyed by the fire and explosion.

Song Wen looked down at the body again and said, “Her body is here, and I suspect the fire was not accidental but caused by something she did, leading to the explosion…”

If it were due to an electrical short circuit, the victim would likely have been in bed. The explosion was sudden and violent, so even if she had come from the house to investigate, it would have been too late.

Lu Siyu nodded, took a few more photos, and looked around. His attention was drawn to a few plastic items amidst the rubble.

The scene was very chaotic, but these plastic pieces caught his eye.

The plastic had melted and deformed from the high temperatures, turning into strange, pancake-like shapes. He was unsure what these items were before being burned, as plastic basins didn’t usually come in such small sizes.

Song Wen leaned over to take a look and said, “The color reminds me of something…”

Lu Siyu asked, “What is it?”

Song Wen thought about how to describe it: “It looks like those small buckets kids use to play with sand,” and then he added, “It could also be molds used for baking cakes.”

Lu Siyu’s interest was piqued. He picked up a larger piece of plastic, brushed off the surface soot, touched the remnants inside, and smelled it, frowning slightly.

Seeing his changed expression, Song Wen asked, “What is it?”

Lu Siyu did not answer immediately. He used his finger to probe further and discovered some white powder on the bottom edge of the bucket beneath the blackened surface.

Song Wen’s eyebrows furrowed, “Could this be…?”

Was it possible that the cake shop sold other illicit goods besides nitrous oxide?

Lu Siyu tasted a bit of the powder with his finger and sniffed it. “He shook his head, “It’s not what you think. It’s likely flour.”

Song Wen also touched some of the powder and confirmed it had the texture of flour. He questioned, “Why is the flour not stored in flour bags but in these small buckets? Is it used for baking cakes?”

Lu Siyu was also puzzled and said, “Perhaps it has some special purpose?”

The storage room was located at the very back of the cake shop. After inspecting this area, they moved to the front, which was clearly the residential area. The extent of the fire damage here was not as severe as it had appeared last night. The ceiling was also not completely destroyed. To protect the scene, Lu Siyu handed shoe covers to Song Wen.

Lu Siyu and Song Wen entered a nearby room, which contained a double bed. On the side of the room was a small bathroom. On the floor lay a body, which had clearly not been burned as severely as in the storage room. Although the deceased’s face was unrecognizable, from the remaining hair and fragments of clothing, it was apparent that this body was Yang Ling, the cake artist they had seen before.

After the explosion, the fire quickly spread to this area. The deceased was not wearing shoes and was sprawled on the floor with only a few signs of struggle.

Lu Siyu took several photos from various angles and then squatted down to examine the body. “The deceased’s hair is curled due to the fire.”

He then examined the deceased’s eyes, noting, “The outer corners of the eyes show creases from squinting, and there is no smoke residue on the cornea. It appears the fire happened while he was still alive. Being in the area affected by the fire, the flames and toxic gases quickly led to his death.”

Song Wen carefully inspected the room and summarized, “There are two pillows on the bed. This is the master bedroom. The wardrobe contains women’s clothing. The adjacent staff dormitory has been almost completely emptied. After the original owner died, Yang Ling must have moved in with Yan Min.”

There were still some items in the room that had not been completely burned. He pointed to a few opened silver canisters on the floor, adding, “It seems they also inhaled nitrous oxide…”

Lu Siyu nodded and took photos of the evidence.

Seeing this, Song Wen concluded, “It doesn’t look like a short circuit or a typical accident. I’m increasingly curious about how this explosion occurred. Surely, the woman didn’t wake up in the middle of the night in a daze and accidentally set the house on fire, did she?”

As Lu Siyu continued to take photos, they passed by a small storage room that resembled a cupboard. Song Wen opened the door to find mops, brooms, and toolboxes.

As Song Wen was about to close the door, Lu Siyu called out, “Wait.”

Lu Siyu then took several photos of a saw inside.

Song Wen looked puzzled. “What’s this?”

Lu Siyu looked up and asked, “Do you remember the bone we found at the seaside?”

Song Wen nodded.

Lu Siyu explained, “In school, I conducted an experiment where we used various types of saws to cut bones and observed the resulting marks. The saw marks on that bone from the seaside are similar to those left by this type of saw…”

This meant that if the missing girl was related to the cake shop, the saw in front of them could be a tool used for dismemberment.

Song Wen said, “I’ll make a note of this and ask the police to test it for blood and fingerprints when they arrive.”

Although the saw had clearly been cleaned repeatedly, traces on such saws are hard to completely remove. Once tested, it would help confirm if the cake shop was connected to the missing girl.

Next to the toolbox, they walked into a small room with a half-open door. The undamaged parts revealed some pink decorations, indicating this was the girl’s bedroom. This room was indeed closer to the kitchen and front area. It was likely why the little girl survived.

The bed was messy with some burn marks, blackened fragments, and ashes scattered on it. Lu Siyu gently said, “Hmm,” and took several photos.

Song Wen asked, “Is there a problem?”

Lu Siyu nodded, “The bed is somewhat orderly, which doesn’t fit with someone hastily getting up in the middle of the night.”

Song Wen understood that if someone was startled awake, the immediate reaction would be to pull back the covers and get out of bed. Although the bedding here was somewhat disheveled, the corners were neatly spread out, indicating a careful arrangement.

Song Wen said, “It’s also possible that she took a bit longer to react and covered the bed before leaving.”

Lu Siyu finished taking the photos, looked at the floor, and asked Song Wen, “When you rescued her yesterday, was she wearing shoes?”

Song Wen recalled and said, “Yes, she was.”

Lu Siyu commented, “That suggests there was enough time, so we can’t rule out misjudgment. After all, these traces can only provide some auxiliary reasoning.”

If there was enough time for the shoes, the traces on the bedding would not be very valuable as reference.

The roof in this area was relatively intact, with limited water damage. There were no noticeable footprints or significant traces on the floor.

Lu Siyu then walked to the desk in the room. The desk had some elementary school textbooks and extracurricular books, which were scattered due to the explosion and typhoon.

Song Wen also approached and casually flipped through them, revealing two drawings. These drawings had been somewhat scorched by the fire yesterday.

The drawings seemed connected to those in the front hall, but their content was rather disturbing.

The first drawing showed many people, each with their eyes closed, their mouths pressed against balloons, with a man smiling beside them.

The second drawing had been burned to a corner, with red paint covering it, resembling blood and fire. Next to it was a figure in a Grim Reaper costume holding a long scythe.

“These drawings…” Song Wen noted that drawings often reflect the artist’s mental state and pointed them out. Lu Siyu took photos of these drawings as well.

The two left the children’s room and moved towards the kitchen. Song Wen pointed to a table and said, “I found the girl here last night.”

Further along was the place where Song Wen had broken in yesterday.

Aside from a few rooms at the back, the damage to the front area was relatively light.

The main structure of the cake shop remained largely intact. The decorative lights had fallen to the ground, and several sofas were burned beyond recognition.

Having nearly finished inspecting the scene, Lu Siyu walked back down the corridor.

The corridor had collapsed in most parts, and the main beam that had fallen yesterday was charred black. The floor was in disarray.

Lu Siyu walked back to the storage room, which seemed to be the core of the crime scene.

He looked around, trying to calm himself.

The sound of rain had become almost inaudible, while the sound of the waves grew clearer.

The morning sunlight shone down, illuminating his delicate face. Raindrops fell on the camera in his hand, providing a slight chill.

They had been in this very fire scene yesterday, and recalling it now still left a lingering sense of fear.

The fire had claimed two lives. Though those two were not exactly virtuous, such deaths were still pitiful.

His surroundings were in ruins, reduced to blackened charcoal by the fire. The smell of charred remains lingered in the air as Lu Siyu’s gaze swept across the wreckage, missing no clues.

If this was man-made, who could have caused it? Was the perpetrator dead or alive? What kind of mindset led to such a tragedy?

Song Wen discovered some traces ahead and called Lu Siyu over. Looking up, he saw Lu Siyu standing alone in a green raincoat amidst the ruins and light rain.

Lu Siyu stood tall and slim in his green raincoat, slightly tilting his head, lost in thought. He appeared like a solitary figure, almost like a spirit from the wilderness. The charred black fragments and dust swirled around him like black butterflies from hell.

Song Wen called out, “Siyu, come over here and take a look!”

Lu Siyu quickly crossed the wreckage and joined Song Wen. Passing through a particularly messy area, Song Wen reached out and pulled him along.

The two moved to the front area with less fire damage. Lu Siyu followed Song Wen’s gaze, examining the traces on the ground—white, shallow marks that were hard to notice without close inspection.

After a moment of silence, Lu Siyu said, “I believe we can now confirm that this was a meticulously planned murder…”