Chapter 1: The Female Corpse in the School Building (1)

The small city in the early morning was like a drowsy beast, shrouded in mist.

Meng Siqi woke from her sleep and stared out at the gray, foggy window. She suddenly remembered—this was her tenth day as a trainee police officer.

She changed into her olive-green police uniform from the late 80s and layered a beige trench coat over it.

Looking at her reflection in the mirror, she saw that her appearance had not changed. In her previous life, she had drowned unexpectedly, but when she woke up, she found herself back in the 1990s as the daughter of the Meng family.

As she walked downstairs, the first thing she saw was a man in the dining room, about twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old. At the same moment, he lifted his gaze and looked at her.

His eyes carried a casual sharpness as he greeted her in a familiar tone. Meng Siqi remained expressionless, lowering her gaze slightly.

This man was, in name, her older brother.

After she was lost, the Meng family had been devastated. To ease their grief, they adopted a boy from an orphanage and named him Meng Tingzhe.

Her father, Meng Hui, was a businessman. Over the years, his ventures had flourished, and when Meng Tingzhe graduated, he was directly placed in the family business as the general manager.

There was still time before she had to leave, so Meng Siqi sat down and started eating the hot porridge that Aunt Chang, the housekeeper, had prepared.

Meng Tingzhe took his time sitting beside her, smiling as he said, “Sister, there’s a big investor coming to inspect our mall tomorrow. Join us for dinner.”

Though he made it sound like a simple meal, Meng Siqi knew better.

In the past, he had arranged similar dinners for the original Meng Siqi, not as a guest, but to entertain and drink with the investors. She had always despised this.

“I’m not going. I have work at the station,” Meng Siqi refused without hesitation.

Just then, her mother, Ye Xiuhui, walked into the living room.

“What’s so bad about having a meal? Your brother always thinks of you, yet look at your attitude.”

“I think my attitude is just fine.”

Ye Xiuhui let out a bitter laugh. “I thought you’d mature after graduation, but you’re still the same.”

Meng Tingzhe spoke in an unhurried tone. “Mom, let it go. She’s grown up now and has important work to do.”

“Important work?” Ye Xiuhui scoffed. “She’s just a trainee officer. All she does is serve tea and run errands. Do you really think she’s solving cases? I’d bet she won’t even find a decent man to marry at this rate!”

She looked at Meng Siqi, frustration evident in her expression. “The pay is terrible. Just quit. It’d be better if you worked as a receptionist at your brother’s company.”

Meng Siqi remained calm. She leisurely finished her bun, drank the last sip of porridge, then stood up and looked at Meng Tingzhe.

“I think if you personally entertained the female investors, we might get even more funding.”

“……” Meng Tingzhe’s face darkened instantly.

As she walked out of the house, Ye Xiuhui frowned. “What did she mean by that? She has no manners at all.”

Aunt Chang spoke gently. “Don’t be upset, sister. Siqi grew up in the countryside. She’s different from city kids.”

“It doesn’t matter where she grew up. She still needs to have proper manners.”

Meng Tingzhe smiled and reassured her, “Mom, she’s just at that rebellious age. Don’t take it to heart. I’ll buy her some new clothes later. Now that she has a job, her fashion sense has gotten worse.”

Ye Xiuhui waved her hand dismissively. “Don’t waste your money. A country bumpkin will look the same no matter what she wears.”

Even as she spoke, she peeled an egg and placed it on Meng Tingzhe’s plate. “Eat more.”

Meng Siqi walked down the road for a while before catching a bus.

She gazed at her reflection in the window as the events of the morning replayed in her mind.

The original Meng Siqi had been lost by the Meng family as an infant and was later adopted by a rural couple who raised her. Fortunately, with the help of the public security system, she was reunited with the Meng family during high school.

At first, the Meng family was overjoyed to have their biological daughter back, but that happiness was short-lived. Once Meng Siqi’s habits—deemed “bad” by Ye Xiuhui—began to surface, she was gradually pushed to the sidelines. The only space she truly occupied in the Meng household was her bedroom on the second floor.

Her father, Meng Hui, was an experienced businessman who had seen much of the world. He did not initially care about her habits, but one particular incident changed his attitude.

That year, Meng Siqi performed well in her college entrance exams. Meng Hui had high hopes for her to study finance at a prestigious university so she could assist with the family business in the future.

He had instructed Meng Tingzhe to ensure she followed this plan.

However, Meng Tingzhe told her that the family preferred she not study too far from home, so he enrolled her in the nearest police academy instead.

The original Meng Siqi had a weak personality and knew little about society. Despite having the grades for a full-fledged university program, she ended up attending a police academy.

After graduation, she was assigned to a police station in a remote area. Ever since the university application incident, there had been a growing rift between her and Meng Hui. When questioned, Meng Tingzhe had simply told their father that his sister had no interest in finance. This led Meng Hui to believe that she did not truly acknowledge him as her father.

Later, an incident completely shattered the Meng family’s attitude toward her.

She once sent money to her adoptive parents in the countryside—money she had earned through part-time jobs. However, the Meng family found out and assumed she had taken their money and secretly given it away.

From that moment on, their treatment of her became increasingly subtle. While they still provided tuition and living expenses, they cut off all other financial support. They even started calling her an “ungrateful traitor” and blamed her whenever something in the house went missing, suspecting she had stolen and sold it.

Meng Siqi had been in this world for ten days now, but through fragmented memories, she had managed to piece together the original owner’s past. If she had more money, she would have rented a place near the police station to avoid contact with the Meng family as much as possible.

For now, though, she was still a trainee. Her priority was to secure a permanent position by working hard.

As soon as she sat down in the office of the Second Criminal Investigation Unit, Captain Han Changlin suddenly walked in, clapped his hands, and shouted, “We’ve got a case! Go to the scene immediately!”

The once-quiet office instantly became busy.

Someone asked, “Captain Han, what case is it?”

“I’ll explain on the way,” Han Changlin replied crisply.

Three officers had already gotten up to prepare their gear. Meng Siqi, however, remained still.

As a trainee, she had been at the station for three months but had never been to a crime scene. Most of her tasks involved serving tea and delivering documents.

She did not expect to be included this time either, but she still looked up at Han Changlin. If she spent her entire internship doing nothing, she might not even have the chance to become a full-time officer.

Maybe her gaze carried a sense of longing. Han Changlin hesitated briefly before slowly raising his hand.

“Xiao Meng, you come along this time.”

Meng Siqi’s heart skipped a beat. Finally, she had an opportunity.

The police car had five people, including her. She sat by the window in the backseat. Beside her was a young officer, Zhao Leiting, and a middle-aged officer, Feng Shaomin. Han Changlin sat in the front passenger seat, while a young officer, Tang Xiaochuan, drove.

Han Changlin quickly briefed them on the case.

It was a homicide involving a female high school teacher. The school’s security guard had reported the incident half an hour ago. Since it was Saturday and the school was on break, local patrol officers had already sealed off the crime scene.

After finishing the briefing, Han Changlin turned slightly and addressed the backseat.

“Old Feng, I’ll leave Xiao Meng to you. No problem, right?”

Meng Siqi understood that Han Changlin had just assigned her a mentor. Every rookie officer was supposed to be guided by a senior.

She leaned forward slightly and glanced at Feng Shaomin, who was seated one spot away. “Hello, Master.”

From the corner of her eye, she noticed his expression was cold—just as she had expected.

Even after a few minutes, he did not respond to her greeting.

Was she really his apprentice now? Meng Siqi was not sure.

No one in the car brought it up again, and if Feng Shaomin refused to acknowledge her in the future, there would be nothing she could do about it.

For the rest of the drive, the car remained silent. Most officers closed their eyes for a short rest.

Meng Siqi also stared out the window in a daze.

She understood why the entire team treated her with indifference.

Another rookie had joined the department at the same time as her, but he was a graduate from a prestigious university—tall and strong. He had been immediately assigned to the First Criminal Investigation Unit.

Meanwhile, she, a graduate from an unremarkable school, had been pushed around before finally being placed in the Second Unit.

The Criminal Investigation Division was split into two units. The First Unit had always outperformed the Second, securing the best resources and recruits each year.

Because of this, the Second Unit had been declining, with fewer officers and outdated technology. Even training assignments for leadership were always given to the First Unit. There were even rumors that the Second Unit might be disbanded soon.

This year, Han Changlin had staked everything on turning things around. He had promised results and fought to secure resources, only for the department to send him a female trainee instead.

It was no surprise that the entire team resented her presence.

The crime scene was at a high school in the suburban district. The road became bumpier in the second half of the journey, and Meng Siqi started feeling a little nauseous from motion sickness.

She clenched her teeth and endured it. This was her first time rushing to a crime scene—she could not afford to embarrass herself.

Beside her, Zhao Leiting seemed to notice something was off.

“Are you feeling unwell?” he asked.

She forced a pale smile. “I’m fine.”

The car finally pulled up at the school entrance.

As soon as she stepped out, she felt slightly better. Without pausing, she followed the team toward the crime scene.

Between the red-walled, black-tiled school buildings stood a two-story teacher’s dormitory, likely a resting area for the faculty.

A police cordon had already been set up outside. Officers and forensic investigators moved swiftly between the floors.

The team arrived at the entrance and put on shoe covers and gloves. Someone called out to Han Changlin, and as he stepped inside, a female forensic doctor began her report.

“The deceased is a woman around thirty years old. Her corneas show mild clouding. Based on the formation of livor mortis^[1]Livor mortis, also known as postmortem lividity or hypostasis, is the pooling of blood in the lowest parts of a body after death due to gravity. This results in discolored, purplish-red patches on … Continue reading, the estimated time of death is around 10 PM last night.”

Her voice was gentle yet firm and precise.

“The victim’s conjunctiva^[2]The conjunctiva is the thin, clear membrane that covers the white part of your eye and the inside of your eyelids. is densely covered with petechial hemorrhages^[3]Petechial hemorrhages are tiny red or purple spots caused by small blood vessels (capillaries) bursting under the skin or mucous membranes (like in the conjunctiva).. Her nail beds have turned cyanotic^[4]Cyanotic means bluish or purplish discoloration of the skin, lips, or nails.. There is a deep ligature mark around her neck, but no other visible injuries. Preliminary assessment suggests death was caused by mechanical asphyxiation due to manual strangulation.”

Han Changlin walked straight into the room. “Is this the primary crime scene?”

“It is currently confirmed.”

“Who reported the incident?”

“The school security guard. He found the body during his morning patrol and immediately called the police. The victim was a teacher here. Her name was Zhou Jieli.”

Meng Siqi followed the rest of the team inside. The building was an old-style school dormitory that had been repurposed as housing. The space was large, with two separate rooms.

She stepped into the bedroom on the right. The first things she saw were a sofa and a bookshelf—there was no bed. The furnishings were minimal.

Near the sofa, a forensic investigator was crouched beside the body of the deceased teacher.

Meng Siqi’s gaze quickly locked onto the victim. The woman lay on the cold floor. Her long black hair was spread out in disarray. Her red knitted sweater was slightly disheveled, with visible signs of tearing. A white sheet partially covered her lower body, though the reality of what lay beneath was likely far worse.

She stepped past Zhao Leiting to get a clearer look.

There were no visible injuries on the victim’s face, but the deep ligature mark on her neck was prominent. Her skin had taken on an eerie, dull grayish hue, with patches of dark cyanosis.

Then, from beneath the strands of scattered hair, the victim’s eyes met hers.

The pupils were dilated, staring blankly in a way that was hard to describe. Like the lifeless eyes of a dead fish, yet carrying an unsettling sense of resentment.