National Forensic Doctor
Chapter 404 - 404 371 Autopsy

404: Chapter 371 Autopsy 404: Chapter 371 Autopsy Everything in the county town was basic.

The administrative level of the county, the equipment of the vehicles, including the bars in the county, were all simplified versions of what you’d find in big cities.

Even the criminals seemed to be a basic model, with thieves who couldn’t make it in the big city, gang leaders who couldn’t mix well there, and even perverts who couldn’t stay put—all setting up their lives in their hometown county.

The only exception were the homicide cases; those in small county towns often came up with something new, reaching or even exceeding the level of those in the big cities.

Cases like Lu Tixie killing Zhen Guanxi with three punches, Pan Jinlian poisoning Wu Dalang to death with a single bowl of medicine, and Sun Er Niang committing serial murders and dismembering bodies were all cultivated in small towns.

Jiang Yuan felt that the body before him was anything but basic.

The deceased was dressed in a handmade casual suit, a Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Ultra Thin Moon watch on his wrist, and a glossy piece of jade on his chest, hung with a gold chain—and he was definitely not from Jiang Village.

With such attire, he must have been worth enough for an ordinary person to afford two months in the ICU—the kind without medical insurance.

One could say that even in death, he had a strong sense of class.

“Time of death was around three thirty in the morning,” Jiang Yuan’s Level 6 time-of-death assessment came into play, and for the current case, it was like bringing a gun to a knife fight.

A normal forensic doctor would be considered excellent if they could narrow it down to between two and five o’clock.

Many would just vaguely refer to it as a night-time death.

Arriving at the scene at the same time, Wu Jun instantly trusted Jiang Yuan’s judgement, jotting it down in his notebook without asking why, and said, “The bars at three-thirty in the morning, wonder if they were closed yet.”

“Our county’s bars usually stop letting people in around two and start clearing out around two-thirty,” Mu Zhiyang casually replied.

He was standing by Jiang Yuan’s side, assisting and simultaneously atoning for his sins.

Wu Jun let out an “eh” and said, “You frequent bars, kid?

Seem to know your way around.

Can your salary even cover it?”

“When I was with Master Wu Jun, there was a period where we specifically targeted thieves who scavenged for corpses in bars,” Mu Zhiyang explained.

“Scavenging for corpses isn’t just for stealing, right?” Wang Zhong, who was making backups in the corner, chimed in.

Although his trace evidence analysis skills were only at Level 0.9, he was still a full-fledged trace examiner, simply waiting for Jiang Yuan to lead the way before he could follow suit.

Having worked with Jiang Yuan on numerous major cases, including homicides and complex cases, and having solved even the challenging serial killings at Mount Wulong, Mu Zhiyang faced a solo death case in Ningtai County without any psychological burden, speaking in a light, casual tone, “In the big cities, scavenging for corpses is for taking people back to have some fun.

Here in our county, sometimes they aim for a double win, especially those targeting male corpses; many hope to recover the cost of the hotel room as well.

That counts as theft too.”

“There are people who scavenge male corpses?” Wang Zhong’s face changed, his mind possibly racing to some terrifying possibilities.

Mu Zhiyang, looking at Wang Zhong as if he were naive, said, “Anyone under 180 pounds is a potential target.

What’s so strange about that?”

“Scavengers don’t like big guys?”

“It’s mainly because they can’t lift them.

If two people had to lift one, then three would have to play together.

Our county folk usually don’t get that extravagant.”

“What, and that’s not extravagant enough?”

“Cough, cough, cough…” Wu Jun cleared his throat four times, “Are we done here?

The corpse is still waiting.”

Wang Zhong and Mu Zhiyang quickly drew their heads in.

Wu Jun continued, “Bars close and clear out by two-thirty at the latest, and the victim’s time of death was at three-thirty in the morning.

Later, we’ll have to check the locks and such.

If there are no signs of forced entry, then we’ll have to consider the hotel owner and the staff.”

“We’ve already sent people to look for the hotel owner and staff,” Huang Qiangmin said as he entered, glancing at Jiang Yuan and asking, “Can you solve this case?”

Mu Zhiyang couldn’t help but roll his eyes at the question, finding it rather inappropriate.

Even for Director Huang…

and even if he was asking Jiang Yuan, and despite Jiang Yuan’s ability to solve cases, they were dealing with homicides, which usually required the concerted effort of hundreds of people for a successful resolution.

They had only just seen the body and here was the question of whether the case could be solved…

“Should be possible,” Jiang Yuan replied.

He had dared to methodically solve backlog cases in other cities; this was a show of confidence.

Now, faced with a current case from his own county, Jiang Yuan naturally felt even more confident.

Director Huang was obviously pleased and cheerfully said, “Good, good, good.

Let’s aim to solve this case before the New Year so we can have a peaceful celebration.

Of course, I’m not imposing a deadline for solving the case, just saying.”

Jiang Yuan simply nodded, then added, “The murder weapon is a type of dagger, about 4 centimeters wide at its broadest point.

The murderer got blood on them, so send a dog to sniff it out.

Mainly look to see where the killer went, then check the surveillance.”

Ningtai County had just installed a surveillance network, and from the current configuration, it would be virtually impossible for an average person to avoid.

Liu Jinghui also followed, and as he approached the body, he slipped his hands into his pockets and asked, “Is the dagger sharpened?

If it’s four centimeters wide, it should be considered a controlled knife, right?”

“Definitely, it’s sharpened.

It struck deep, hitting right against the guard of the dagger, and there should be something retrievable from the wound here,” Jiang Yuan replied.

“Then this case still has some substance,” Liu Jinghui, thumbing the lint in his pocket and smoothing out his coat, frowned slightly and said, “At a bar after 3 AM, there definitely wouldn’t be any customers.

So it was either a conflict with bar staff or something to do with the victim’s associates.

To bring a dagger and show up at a closed bar after 3 AM to deliver a fatal blow—ordinary people wouldn’t do that.”

Wu Jun straightened up and said, “Anyone willing to kill is certainly not ordinary.”

“My point is, both the killer and the victim seem pretty professional, don’t you think?” Liu Jinghui requested a pair of tweezers and plucked at the gold chain around the victim’s neck.

“An 18K gold chain with a piece of icy jade, and he didn’t hide it deeply; it was absolutely visible from the collar.

Someone with even a slight greed, like a two-bit thug from the bars, wouldn’t have just left it there.

And the watch looks pretty expensive too.

The killer didn’t even get tempted.”

“There really are professional assassins?” Mu Zhiyang said in surprise.

Liu Jinghui glanced at him and said, “Not the kind that roam the world taking bounties, but there are certainly no shortage of those willing to kill for money.

Though they aren’t much professional, at least I haven’t seen many.

Today’s is a bit different; someone willing to kill for money but leaves behind a six-figure necklace and watch—doesn’t that seem irrational?”

Jiang Yuan nodded slightly and said, “So it’s premeditated murder, and it’s not for money.

Is it a grudge then?”

“Possibly.

Or it may be for a benefit so large that we’re talking seven figures and above.

Or maybe, it’s for love?” As Liu Jinghui said this, he observed the victim’s face.

“He’s quite handsome—the sort that could be worth killing over jealousy.”

Jiang Yuan said, “The killer is most likely male, given the enormous force used.

We can’t see inside right now, but pay attention during the autopsy; I suspect the rib bones may have been severely damaged.”

Females are significantly weaker than males in terms of absolute strength.

Take UFC champion Zhang Weili, a female who can deliver a punch with around 500 pounds of force, much higher than the average man’s 400 pounds, but akin to that of a trained amateur male boxer.

So, from the strength required, one could pretty much determine the killer’s gender.

Liu Jinghui, unmoved, took another look at the victim’s face and said, “With looks like that, having a male lover wouldn’t be strange.”

Those who believed Liu Jinghui and those who did not both fell silent.

…

The mortuary.

Jiang Yuan and his master Wu Jun were dissecting the body together.

It had been a while since Wu Jun had worked with Jiang Yuan, and he was in a good mood.

When they began, he stuffed a red talisman into the collar of Jiang Yuan’s coat and then took up the position of assistant.

Although Jiang Yuan could guess what it was for, he still asked, “Did you draw this?”

“It’s specially obtained for you from Mount Siningshan,” Wu Jun said.

“I’ve heard it’s quite effective.”

Mount Siningshan was just behind Old Jiang Village.

Jiang Yuan thought for a moment and said, “The master from Siningshan, is he the one with a birthmark on his neck?”

“Right, have you been there?”

“He would be kind of like my uncle,” Jiang Yuan said.

Wu Jun waved his hand dismissively, “No great man beside the pillow; when he’s back in the village and interacting closely with folks, that’s when his cultivation shows.

And when he’s in the temple offering salvation to the masses, that’s another ability.”

Jiang Yuan bowed his head in respect.

“Let’s start the dissection,” Wu Jun said as he handed the scalpel to Jiang Yuan.

Jiang Yuan nodded, made a slice downward and opened a large incision on the body lying before him.

“Subcutaneous fat is very thin, body fat percentage is quite low, likely a result of regular exercise,” Jiang Yuan made the initial assessment.

Wu Jun jiggled his own belly and agreed, “Indeed, it’s a rather healthy body.”

“The heart is good too.

Cardiovascular system is healthy, with no signs of arteriosclerosis.” Jiang Yuan had dissected quite a few young bodies, and in comparison, the frequency of atherosclerosis was still quite high.

Wu Jun also nodded, “Apart from not withstanding stabbing, this heart has no problems at all.”