Murder Call

Wang Yue had just gotten into the car when a WeChat message from Director Zheng popped up.

[I’ve reviewed your application for excellence, but it lacks highlights. Keep working hard.]

He turned off his phone, put it back in his pocket, and instinctively started looking for a cigarette. But all his cigarettes had been taken away by Meng Lan, and a feeling of frustration spread from his throat.

He had no choice but to loosen his tie, lower the car window, and let the cold wind ease his craving for a smoke.

Half a year ago, Wang Yue was appointed as the captain of the major crimes team. The previous captain, Xiao Ze, had been transferred to Lin City. Wang Yue had served as the deputy captain for half a year, solving strange cases, and with his achievements, he quickly became the official captain.

His smooth promotion to captain was largely thanks to Teacher Mo’s help.

Although each case was solved smoothly, Director Zheng thought Wang Yue was still too young and that his success in solving cases was due to Mo Lin’s assistance, so he didn’t take him seriously.

Moreover, Wang Yue’s actions were not steady enough, and his aggressive approach to handling cases led to several of his applications for excellence being rejected by Director Zheng.

In fact, Wang Yue didn’t care much about those honors. He always felt that it was only a matter of time before he solved a case independently. He needed a chance to prove his strength.

A group of young, energetic guys hurriedly got into Wang Yue’s car, one of them being Zheng Mao, a fresh graduate from the police academy.

Zheng Mao was very excited: “Will we see Teacher Mo today? I’m a huge fan of his!”

Li Meng lit a cigarette and smoked by the car window: “Weren’t you there when Wu Zhi was arrested? Teacher Mo came to the police station then and solved the case that had troubled us for a month in just one day!”

Wang Yue drove silently, not joining the conversation.

The Wu Zhi case (Note 1) was one he had handled personally. Teacher Mo indeed solved it in a day, but many clues had already surfaced by then, and they were just one step away from solving it.

He couldn’t help but admire Teacher Mo’s methods, but there was also a bit of disappointment in his heart. Why couldn’t he be as excellent as Teacher Mo?

Zheng Mao said regretfully, “I reported for duty the next day, and Teacher Mo had already left by then.”

Li Meng flicked ash out the window: “Don’t worry, you’ll definitely see him this time. With Teacher Mo’s help, we’ll solve this case quickly too!”

Wang Yue made a 360-degree turn with the steering wheel: “Put out your cigarette.”

Li Meng and Wang Yue had been friends for many years, and Wang Yue never got angry about smoking. So, Li Meng grinned cheekily and said, “Your wife won’t let you smoke, so you won’t let me smoke? Is there no justice?”

Li Meng then handed over a cigarette: “Let’s all smoke together, don’t worry, I won’t tell your wife!”

Wang Yue reflexively took the cigarette, sniffed it, but didn’t light it, just held it in his hand: “Don’t offer me cigarettes anymore.”

Li Meng: “Why?”

Wang Yue: “Meng Lan is preparing for pregnancy.”

Li Meng: “Looks like I need to prepare a full moon gift for the baby!”

With this topic, the car was filled with chatter, the city’s streetlights flashing past, reflecting young faces.

These young faces were about to face hellish realities.

***

The police car sped down the road, red and blue lights flashing mysteriously. They drove on this narrow road for over ten minutes without seeing a single person or car.

The location wasn’t far from Yanhai City, and after half an hour of driving, they reached the vicinity of the location.

While they were on the field, an invisible net was already in operation, with all surveillance and networks searching for suspicious individuals passing through this road.

With advanced electronic information technology and mature image investigation levels, it was hard for the culprit to escape through the layers of checkpoints.

Moreover, the checkpoints leading from Panzhou County to various places had intensified inspections, and any suspicious individuals would be immediately detained.

So Wang Yue felt that solving the case wouldn’t be too difficult.

The police car drove along the only road, becoming more remote as they went. Fortunately, the GPS was strong enough that even in the wilderness, they didn’t get lost.

The headlights switched between high and low beams on the road, with no one around and complete darkness, making it an ideal place for crime.

From the moment their car entered this section of the road, Wang Yue had a bad feeling.

Li Meng, with excellent eyesight, spotted a patch of mottled marks on the road from afar. He stuck his head out of the passenger window and smelled a faint scent of blood in the air.

He immediately became alert, pointing to the road ahead: “See that? It looks like bloodstains!”

Wang Yue immediately stopped the car, and the group walked forward with flashlights. Indeed, there was a faint scent of blood in the cold wind, mixed with the smell of grass and soil from the fields.

As they got closer, they saw a large patch of thick bloodstains, with a few flies buzzing around.

Flies are extremely sensitive to the smell of blood and corpses. Every time they arrived at a crime scene, the first thing they saw were flies, as if they had established some sort of connection with them.

Wang Yue’s premonition was confirmed, but a more ominous feeling brewed in his heart.

Judging by the bloodstains on the ground and the scene, it looked very much like the crime scene in the photos.

But where was the body?

They didn’t see any sign of a corpse, only chaotic and mottled bloodstains where the body should have been.

“The body has been moved.”

Wang Yue crouched by the bloodstains, carefully searching for clues.

Surrounded by overgrown fields, where could the body have been moved to?

Wang Yue noticed a drag mark at the edge of the bloodstains, stopping at a place with horizontal and vertical stripes, resembling the marks left by a woven bag on a cement surface.

Besides the drag marks, there were also two clear bloody footprints.

The footprints were large, and Wang Yue compared them to his own foot, finding them almost the same size.

From the footprints, he could roughly estimate the suspect’s height. Wang Yue estimated the suspect to be over 180 cm tall, likely male. After committing the murder and taking photos, the suspect probably put the body in a woven bag and dragged it away.

As Wang Yue thought and observed, he followed the drag marks forward, noticing the grass at the edge was flattened, as if something had pressed it down, creating a depression.

Based on the scene, Wang Yue deduced that the suspect likely dragged the body towards the fields.

At this moment, the new officer Zheng Mao pointed at the shoe prints and said, “These footprints look a lot like our work shoes.”

Wang Yue recalled his own shoes, and indeed, they looked similar. But these shoes were common and not particularly special, except for being especially cheap.

Wang Yue shone his flashlight around, instructing others to set up a cordon and seal off the scene. He then led the team, wearing shoe covers and holding flashlights, to follow the drag marks.

He walked along the fields, which were still damp from rain a couple of days ago. Stepping on the soil left footprints, and he found some fresh ones with the same pattern as his shoes, with crushed fresh grass on them.

Suddenly, a hair-raising phone ringtone came from deep within the grass. The sudden sound startled Wang Yue, sending a chill down his spine.

The sharp ringtone cut through his sensitive nerves like a knife. He tensed up and moved towards the source of the sound, his flashlight beam sweeping across the fields like a searchlight, missing no corner.

Finally, in a secluded corner of the field, he found a phone with its screen lit up.

He picked it up with his gloved hand.

It was a very old and worn-out phone, and the caller had already hung up. It was an unfamiliar number with no notes.

He put the phone into an evidence bag and called back.

The other side didn’t answer.

Wang Yue suddenly realized something was wrong. Could this call have been from the suspect?

Wang Yue took out his phone and called Meng Lan: “I need you to check a number for me. It might be the suspect’s!”

Wang Yue entered his number into the old phone and then sent a screenshot of the incoming call number to Meng Lan.

After handling the phone number, he continued leading the team to search for the body.

The flashlight beams swept across the fields, strange creatures darting out of the grass, disappearing before they could be seen clearly.

The fields had been abandoned for a long time, with wild grass growing up to their waists. As the flashlight swept over a pile of grass, a large red woven bag suddenly appeared in their sight.

Because the bag was bright red, Wang Yue couldn’t immediately confirm whether the stains on it were blood.

Flies buzzed above their heads, and instinct told Wang Yue that the body they were looking for was inside!

His heart raced, and he put on gloves, carefully unzipping the bag…

The first thing he saw was a patch of black hair, followed by a pale neck stained with blood.

As the zipper was pulled open, a body gradually came into view…

A strange posture, twisted limbs, pale skin, and clothes stained with blood, along with the overwhelming smell of blood from the nasal cavity…

Behind him, the rookie Zheng Mao suddenly covered his mouth and retched into the grass.

Wang Yue looked at the body in the bag, sweat rapidly forming in his palms.

In this silent night, the body curled up in the bag, its cold-toned skin like a chilling light, freezing Wang Yue’s burning heart.

His hand hesitated for a moment, his heart still racing, but he tried to steady his emotions and pulled the zipper to the edge.

He confirmed that the body in front of him was the same as the one in the photo, as the deceased was wearing the exact same clothes.

A barely recognizable pink sports T-shirt and black sports shorts pulled up to the calves.

The smell of blood was overwhelming, making Wang Yue’s stomach churn. He stood up to catch his breath, but remained in a state of high tension: “Who’s on duty in the forensic department today?”

Zheng Mao, having just finished retching, quickly replied, “It’s… Section Chief Gu.”

[Author’s Note]

Note 1: See the sister series “Forensic Intern.”