Case 2: Deadly Chocolate

Chapter 15

When Song Wen returned home by taxi, it was already 8 o’clock in the evening. The lights in the neighborhood were on, creating a brilliant starry scene. Following the path, he walked to the bottom of the building. As he raised his head, he noticed the lights on in his own home. Song Wen wasn’t too surprised. He went upstairs, opened the door, and found his mother diligently mopping the floor in the living room.

As he changed his shoes, Song Wen said, “Mom, why did you suddenly come? Couldn’t you have given me a call in advance?”

His elderly mother raised her eyes and said, “What’s this? Do I need to submit an application report before visiting my son?” In order to conduct a surprise attack, his mother even specifically held onto the key to Song Wen’s residence.

One must never use the same approach with their mother as they do with subordinates. Song Wen, who was usually reserved, now showed a polite and standard smile. “Of course not, Mom. I would have picked you up.” As he spoke, he friendly took the mop. “Let me do it.”

Mother Song snorted and sat on the sofa, still somewhat unhappy. Her real name was Li Luanfang. She turned fifty-eight years old this year. Since retiring from the hospital at the age of fifty-five, she had been dreaming of holding her grandson. However, after waiting for three years, despite graduating from the elderly university for several terms, Song Wen still had not settled down, making his mother extremely anxious.

*the word used to refer to Mother Song is 老太太(lao tai tai). Which is elderly lady(respectfully) or esteemed mother.

Song Wen knew why his mother came for a surprise visit. This habit was learned from his father, who had worked in criminal investigation. They must witness the crime scene firsthand, not missing any trace. He knew what his mother hoped to find, like strands of long hair on the bed or cosmetics in the mirror cabinet. Judging by the micro-expressions on her face, the results this time were equally disappointing.

After mopping the floor, Song Wen organized the portraits, pencils, and picture albums on the table. “Mom, have you had dinner? Should I order something for you?”

Mother Song seemed uninterested. “I ate on the way here.” Then she thought of something and asked Song Wen, “Why aren’t you having dinner at home tonight?”

Song Wen honestly replied, “I went out to dinner with colleagues.”

“Male or female?” Mother Song’s eyes lit up, and she leaned closer to him, sniffing. “Did you drink?”

TN: Ma’am…your son is gay. If not now then he will be in the future

“A little red wine.” Song Wen dodged backward. “Of course, it was a male colleague…”

“I thought you had come to your senses and would have dinner with a female colleague. Why would you drink red wine with a male colleague?” His mother complained, and Song Wen saw the gossip spark extinguish in her eyes.

“Mom, I just finished a case. A woman dismembered her husband. It shows that marriage is too dangerous.” Song Wen looked at his mother, trying to dissuade her from the urge to find a daughter-in-law.

The old lady looked at him and said, “So, if there’s a chance of getting hit by a car when you go out, are you going to stop going out? People die every day in hospitals; are you going to avoid hospitals too?”

Song Wen was momentarily stunned, unable to respond, and continued to focus on tidying up.

The restless Mother Song, who hadn’t even warmed the sofa, got up again and said to Song Wen, “Give me your pants. They’re dirty; what kind of appearance is this?”

Protesting, Song Wen said, “Where is it dirty? I just took a shower this afternoon, and they’re brand new.”

Mother Song pointed to his pants’ cuffs and said, “Clean? There are still dog hairs on them. What’s that black thing?”

Song Wen: “…”

Suddenly, he craved dog meat hotpot even more.

In the end, unable to resist Mother Song, Song Wen obediently took off his pants and changed into a pair of casual pajama pants. The captain of the criminal investigation team sighed as he held up the pants and turned to ask Mother Song, who was stuffing clothes into the washing machine, “Mom, why did you give me such a nickname?”

“Xiao Liang?” Mother Song looked up and said, “Back then, your dad and I gave you the name ‘Wen,’ but we were afraid of making your temperament too quiet. So we gave you a wild nickname, thinking of balancing it out. Who would have thought that it would turn out so wild? At that time, your dad and I joked that you were probably born a wolf.”

Song Wen recalled that when Mother Song was angry, she would hold a broom and call him Song Xiaolang, his full name, chasing him around the yard.

Seeing that he remained silent, Mother Song raised her eyebrows and asked, “What? Don’t like it?”

Song Wen smiled awkwardly and said, “No, not at all. It’s exceptionally tasteful, a name chosen with great sophistication.”

Nancheng’s University city was located to the east of the entire city. Here, with vast land and sparse population, several universities stood side by side, injecting fresh vitality into the area. Gradually, it transformed into a bustling city. At midnight, Nancheng University was like it had fallen into a deep sleep, no longer buzzing with the lively atmosphere of daytime.

The campus was extremely quiet, occasionally interrupted by the meow of a stray cat, disappearing into the grass.

The sky, originally clear, suddenly became covered with dense clouds. When the wind blew, the clouds rolled as if hiding some ferocious creature within.

This summer seemed to have arrived earlier than previous years. Sunny days in May were warm enough to wear only a single layer. However, the temperature suddenly dropped now. Moonlight shone through, casting a gloomy hue across the campus, eventually projecting onto the corridor of the female dormitory building, leaving behind a mottled shadow.

In the tranquility, the door of Room 108 creaked open suddenly. A slender figure struggled to run out, stumbling forward. A strange smell emanated from the closed room. The door behind her shook for a moment and closed again.

The figure ran a few steps in the corridor but lost strength and fell to the ground. She knelt at the entrance of Room 107, extending a weak hand and scratching at the door of that room. It seemed as if invisible hands were tightly gripping her throat. Blood mixed with foam uncontrollably spewed from her mouth as she tried to cry for help, turning into a few whimpers.

Inside Room 107, Bai Xiaoxiao was awakened by the sound. She lifted her head to see Deng Jia, who was on the adjacent bed, turning over and opening her eyes.

Originally, there were four people in their dormitory, but one successfully enrolled in a postgraduate program and moved to the graduate student dormitory. Another had recently taken leave and returned home, leaving only the two of them in the room.

“What’s that sound? Did you hear it clearly?” Bai Xiaoxiao asked Deng Jia.

“Could it be a cat?” Deng Jia’s hearing was not very clear. This campus used to be a wilderness, with not much else but many insects and cats, some of which were becoming quite cunning and would scratch at doors at night.

“Why do I feel like someone is shouting for help? Am I dreaming…” Bai Xiaoxiao sounded a bit frightened.

The two in the dormitory fell silent. They listened carefully, and though there was no cry for help outside, a sound of friction against the door persisted, accompanied by heavy breathing, as if someone were struggling to catch their breath.

“It can’t be a ghost, can it…” Bai Xiaoxiao was on the verge of tears. Various ghost stories circulated on campuses. This place was rumored to be a place of exile in ancient times, where many prisoners were buried on the spot. When construction started, countless bones were unearthed. Even now, in one corner of the campus, there was a large walnut forest, rumored to suppress the evil spirits and ghosts.

“Nonsense! I’ll go and take a look.” As the dormitory head and also an atheist, Deng Jia climbed down from the upper bunk. “Xiaoxiao, light up the place for me.” To prevent students from staying up late and affecting their studies, Nancheng University would forcibly turn off the lights at midnight. Even if they wanted to turn on the lights now, they couldn’t.

Xiaoxiao adjusted her phone to a flashlight, casting a white beam toward the direction of the door.

Feigning courage, Deng Jia opened the door a crack. By the moonlight and the light behind her, she could see a figure crouching at the entrance of their dormitory. As she opened the door, something originally hung on the door fell onto her feet—a bleeding, pale hand!

Deng Jia couldn’t help but let out a scream, waking up everyone in the entire dormitory building. The horrifying scene outside became a nightmare that would haunt her for the rest of her life.

Song Wen found himself in a dim corridor. He walked forward, stumbling along, and outside, rain fell heavily with the accompaniment of thunder and lightning. At the end of the corridor was a half-open iron door with light inside, emitting a somewhat warm orange glow. He could smell a foul odor emanating from the room, a stench like that of fish left in a market for a long time, mixed with the musty smell of the old basement. It was nauseating, making it difficult to breathe. In this dark basement, something was decaying.

Song Wen stood at the door, hesitating, unsure whether to enter. He placed his hand on the door handle, and inexplicably, the seemingly heavy door opened silently.

In the light before him, he first saw bloodstains on the floor—dried, viscous, dark red bloodstains. Then, he saw people lying on the ground inside. Not just one person, and they were unlike any he had seen before. They were motionless, not breathing, without a heartbeat, and even in a state of decomposition—corpses.

Among those corpses was a female body, with long hair and wearing a white gown. The beautiful body had already decayed, accompanied only by maggots.

In ordinary circumstances, Song Wen wouldn’t bat an eye at such a scene, but in the dream, that genuine fear from the depths of his soul was beyond physiological control.

Song Wen felt a chill starting from the soles of his feet, cold sweat constantly oozing out, as if a pair of hands tightly grasped his neck, preventing him from calling out. It seemed like millions of ghosts were screeching in his ears, and in that moment, it felt like his soul was being dragged into hell.

In the midst of this excruciating sensation, a clear voice seemed to pull him out, and then Song Wen realized it was his phone ringing.

It was a call, interrupting his dream.

Song Wen opened his eyes, gasping heavily. He felt his heart beating rapidly in his chest. Despite nearing summer, his whole body felt cold. The images from the dream lingered, and every time he closed his eyes, he could see the orange light and the blood on the ground. He had dreamed this dream more than once, and every time, it ended right here.

After a few rings, he pressed the answer button on his phone. Song Wen asked, “Hello?”

On the other end of the phone was Xiao Wang, responsible for receiving emergency calls. His voice was urgent, rapidly reporting, “Captain Song, something happened here, Commissioner Gu appointed you to take charge. The specific location is…”

Song Wen felt like he was still trapped in a nightmare, trying hard to wake up. He rubbed his forehead and hoarsely asked, “What case, and where?”

Xiao Wang organized his thoughts, “A homicide, at least two victims. The deceased are university students. The location is in Chengdong University Town, the female dormitory of Nancheng University.”

“What do you mean by at least two?” Song Wen seized on the key word.

“It means there are others still being rescued.”

“Cause of death?”

“It seems to be poisoning…”

Multiple students poisoned on a university campus? Two dead? This was definitely a major case. After hearing these few sentences, Song Wen snapped fully awake. He sat up in bed, then saw the cartoon sleep pants he was wearing and cursed, “F*ck!”

On the other end of the phone, Xiao Wang was momentarily stunned.

Song Wen urgently said, “I’m sorry, it’s not about you. Notify Lu Siyu and Fu Linjiang to go to the scene. Lao Jia and Zhu Xiao should stay at the police station, ready to cooperate. I’ll be there soon.”

After hanging up the phone, he got up from the bed, glanced at the time on his phone—it was just before one in the morning, the time when people sleep the soundest. Song Wen quickly washed up with cold water and then turned back to knock on the door of the guest room.

Mrs. Song woke up with sleepy eyes and opened the door, asking, “What’s happening? Are you going on a mission?” As a family member for many years, she was already familiar with such scenes; crime scenes and criminals never picked a convenient time.

Song Wen nodded urgently and asked, “Mom, where are my pants?”

His mother pointed to the balcony, saying, “I just organized your wardrobe today. Aren’t they all washed? After hanging them out at night, they should be almost dry by tomorrow morning.”

Song Wen looked outside, and on the balcony, a row of pants, from long to short, fluttered like flags in the night breeze.

His first reaction was to remember his police pants that he hadn’t worn in a long time, and then he recalled that he had left them at the city bureau after receiving the annual award. Song Wen was a bit speechless. “At least leave me one. What am I supposed to wear?”

“Then wait a moment.” His mother went back to the room and, a few seconds later, fumbled out a colorful loose capri, the kind used for square dancing, handing it to Song Wen. “How about this for now? This style isn’t gender-specific.”

Song Wen felt embarrassed and didn’t dare to take it.

His mother shook the pants again. “This one is your pajama pants. Choose between these and your unwashed jeans.”

Song Wen felt a bit frustrated. After all, he was the handsome and decisive captain of the criminal investigation team.

Seeing Song Wen’s dilemma, his mother smirked. “Whose fault is it that you didn’t find a wife? If you had someone to take care of you, would your mother have to come all the way here to help you with your laundry?”

Song Wen noticed that for his mother, every topic could be turned into a discussion about finding a partner, as long as she wanted.

Heading out for duty in the middle of the night, Song Wen needed to get to the scene promptly. He took out his phone, checked the time, then looked at his sleep pants. He bit his teeth, took the pants from his mother, changed out of his sleep pants, and put on the offered pants. Once worn, they were tight around the waist and hips, with loose legs that turned the originally nine-tenths into seven-tenths, hanging on his legs.

Mrs. Song closed her eyes and encouraged him, “Quite suitable, makes your legs look long. Go quickly, don’t delay the important matters.”

Song Wen couldn’t worry about that much anymore. He put on a coat, kicked his police badge into his pocket, changed into a pair of tourist shoes, and went out.

Outside, the sky was pitch black, the entire city seemingly in a deep slumber. Even the main roads had not a single soul, not even a shadow. Song Wen opened a taxi app, tried for a minute with no available cars, and decided to grab a shared bike directly. Riding on the empty road in the dead of night, he pedaled madly and managed to reach a speed of seventy miles per hour on the shared bike. Twenty minutes later, Song Wen, panting heavily, arrived at Nancheng Normal University.

Entering the school gate, the security guard treated him as a student and didn’t even ask him. Song Wen rode in, thinking he didn’t know the way and turned back, asking the guard, “Where is the female dormitory?”

The guard looked at Song Wen and then at his floral pants, hesitating.

Song Wen knew he was being considered strange. He took out his police badge, proving his innocence. “I’m a cop.”

The guard compared Song Wen’s face with the photo on the badge, finally believing it and knew he came for the incident at the female dormitory. “I received a notice about it too. I’ll take you there.”

While speaking, an ambulance drove out from inside. Due to the late hour and no other cars on the road, it didn’t turn on its siren. Watching the ambulance gradually move away, the guard shook his head and sighed, “It’s a tragedy, a real tragedy. I heard the victims were seniors, about to graduate in a few months, but ended up dead here.”

Nancheng University is a comprehensive university with a history of thirty-eight years. It is the highest institution in Nancheng, with over nine thousand students divided into eight colleges and a faculty of over seven hundred.

With so many people gathered in one place, it’s impossible to avoid incidents. Every year, there’s a quota for deaths in each school, and it’s an off-the-record number. Jumping off buildings, suicides, as long as within the quota and properly handled without causing a societal impact or affecting the students’ families, there won’t be any problems. If it exceeds the quota, leaders will be held accountable. Nancheng University had been relatively stable until this incident occurred, making it a big event that could have significant repercussions.

The guard led Song Wen to the female dormitory building. Song Wen looked up and saw figures moving by the windows upstairs, and he could feel eyes looking down at him. The structure of the building was simple, with a corridor on the shady side and rooms on the sunny side. The room where the incident occurred was on the ground floor, not far from the building’s entrance. At this time, the school staff had exceptionally turned on the electricity. The entire dormitory building was brightly lit, but to protect the scene and prevent student disturbances, all students were strictly prohibited from leaving their dormitories and were required to keep their windows closed.

Tonight was destined to be a sleepless night. Such a major incident had naturally alerted the school president, and all available staff and teachers were called to duty. Some were maintaining order, some were comforting the students. These female students, originally living in an ivory tower, had never seen such a scene. With panic, anxiety, fear, a bit of gossip, and curiosity, the campus intranet and some class groups had already exploded. Everyone was speculating about the situation.

The entire dormitory building had been sealed off by the police. Several police cars were parked downstairs, including one belonging to Lin Xiuran. Song Wen knew his team had already arrived. Walking towards the crime scene, the affected room was 108, at the end of this corridor. By now, the area outside the door was cordoned off with a yellow caution line. The on-duty detectives, police assistants, and forensic experts had all arrived. Seeing Song Wen approaching, they greeted him.

Lin Xiuran was standing outside the door, about to brief Song Wen. He lowered his head and first noticed Song Wen’s pants, shocked by the style. He asked in a low voice, “Why did you come wearing this?”

Song Wen gritted his teeth. “My mom washed all my pants. Wearing this is better than nothing.” He suddenly remembered what Zhou Yining had said earlier—don’t pressure yourself and your colleagues too much. Today’s unexpected outfit made him unexpectedly approachable.

Lin Xiuran was drawn to the colorful pants and couldn’t take his eyes off them. “I thought you came wearing your girlfriend’s clothes in the dark.”

“In that case, my girlfriend’s taste is really bad.” Song Wen waved his hand. “Stop talking nonsense. Take a look at the case quickly.”

Lin Xiuran then pointed to White Xiaoxiao and Deng Jia, who were sitting in the corridor talking to two on-duty detectives. “Those two discovered the incident. They are neighbors of the deceased, staying in the room next door. They called the security and the dormitory manager, and then the police. The time of the call was a little after one in the morning.”

“What’s the specific process?” Song Wen spoke with a slight frown. He saw that the two girls had pale faces, draped in coats, obviously still scared.

“They live in room 107, and the incident happened in the adjacent 108. One of the victims ran to their door for help, waking them up. The security opened the dormitory, discovering three more victims. Two were already dead, one was unconscious, and one had mild poisoning but remained conscious. Currently, the two with signs of life have been sent to the hospital for rescue.”

As he spoke, Lin Xiuran lifted the yellow caution line, guiding Song Wen into the dormitory, which was the first crime scene.

TN:
New case check!

I’m just trying to picture Song Wen in those pants haha.

Also, the sequence is different from the first translation. I think they misnumbered the chapters while splitting them up. This is how Chapter 15 is supposed to start. Their 15.1 started somewhere in the middle while 15.2 is the actual beginning of the chap.