National Forensic Doctor
Chapter 519 - 519 478 A Small Oversight

519: Chapter 478: A Small Oversight 519: Chapter 478: A Small Oversight The police siren wailed continuously.

The lights were bright.

The wind blew, and the trees in Shiting County all swayed as if surrendering with raised hands.

Officers and armed police from Qinghe City Bureau, Qianjin District Bureau, Pingfu District Bureau, Qu’an County, Longli County, Ningtai County, Miao He County, and the local Shiting County, along with officers from Jianjiang City, Changyang City, Qingbai City, Wan Xiang City, Luyang City, and other places, set out at 9 PM and continued arresting people until 7 AM the next morning.

That night in Shiting County, not a single frog dared to croak.

Several restaurants, including Zhengyang Tower, had suspended their regular business, serving breakfast only for the police reinforcements.

“Thank you for your hard work.”

“Thank you, everyone.”

“Thank you all!”

The director of Shiting County Bureau, along with a group of committee members and Bai Jian, the head of the Criminal Police Brigade, went around shaking hands and expressing their thanks, continuously muttering, “There’s warmth in the world, and the brothers are so caring”…

Everyone responded enthusiastically:

“It’s what we should do.”

“Captain Jiang, you’ve also worked hard.”

“Captain Jiang, come visit us when you have time.”

Apart from when they saw Huang Qiangmin, whose presence caused a mix of complicated expressions—regret, anger, discomfort, confusion, and doubt—everyone’s faces lit up with happiness and welcome when they saw Jiang Yuan.

Jiang Yuan hadn’t expected to meet so many “old friends” and couldn’t help but smile, greeting each one: “Captain Zhang, Captain Hou, Captain Xu…

Commissioner Wang…

Captain Li…”

Over two years, Jiang Yuan hadn’t become acquainted with many police officers in other positions, but he truly came to know quite a few heads of the Criminal Police Brigades.

Of course, the reinforcements weren’t necessarily led by the heads of the Criminal Police Brigades.

The majority were made up of commissioners and deputy heads.

The main task of these senior investigators was to lead the team on missions, holding a status somewhat similar to that of Prince Charles during his time, representing a certain attitude.

People were very willing to interact with Jiang Yuan; while two years is a short time, there were counties and cities that Jiang Yuan had already visited two or three times.

And in some counties and cities, even though Jiang Yuan only visited once, he managed to arrest all their criminals in one sweep.

In the evening.

The Shiting County Bureau hosted a banquet at Zhengyang Tower to express gratitude to the police reinforcements from the brother units.

The frogs that had dared not croak the previous night were all captured and brought over, skinned and chopped into chunks prepared in a Sichuan-flavored style—the traditional Shiting steamed frog method had become inappropriate as the reinforcements came from various places.

But precisely because of this, the deliciousness of the frogs received unanimous approval, and everyone ate to their hearts’ content, feeling that the trip had been worth it.

Bai Jian walked around with a cup in his hand, successfully avoiding the drinking spree by saying, “I have to lead an interrogation tonight and can’t drink.

Everyone was courteous to Captain Bai, each conveying that “You go your way, we came mainly to meet Captain Jiang,” and they successfully escorted Bai Jian out of Zhengyang Tower.

Behind him, the bureau leaders were still holding wine glasses, toasting each other.

In front of him was an old manual transmission Santana, its dashboard lit up with red warning lights, emitting a clattering noise.

Bai Jian plopped down in the car: “I was almost trapped by those offering toasts.

Alright, let’s head back to the station.

Any news on the interrogation?”

“Not yet, that…” The driver hesitated for a few seconds, then said, “We might have to wait a moment.

I haven’t driven a manual for a long time, and I need to remember how.

The engine just died.”

Bai Jian gave a noncommittal hum and remarked, “This damn car’s engine light is on.

A lot of lights are on.”

“It’s okay, I’ll pull the wires at the repair shop tomorrow, and then the lights won’t come on,” said the driver, starting to attempt to drive off.

Bai Jian reclined in his seat, looking drained, but in reality, he had lost hope for the future.

This trip had all been funded by police expenses, and although a portion of the “confiscated” assets could be recovered for expenses, hoping to get back to the original state was impossible.

On the other hand, the suspects caught the previous night had been interrogated overnight, and another group had been interrogated during the day, but they had still not found the individual responsible for burying the corpses.

This made Bai Jian start to worry.

Having been a seasoned criminal police officer, he usually had a sense of whether a case could be closed or a criminal investigation path could be successfully followed.

He couldn’t predict what the others might do, but as for the strength of the Shiting County Criminal Police Brigade, 20 hours had passed without yielding any results from the interrogation, and Bai Jian thought that was a bad sign.

This time was a thorough arrest, the four brothers who ran a small supermarket at the train station were all caught.

Based on Bai Jian’s understanding, the social organizations with some vitality in the county shouldn’t dare to commit murder.

Of course, such things are uncertain.

Even old farmers wouldn’t dare to murder, but once they talk about rebellion, they might just rebel.

Pfft

The old Santana left behind by the previous generation of criminal police chiefs let out two breaths of filthy air, lurching forward abruptly before settling back down again, much like Bai Jian handing in his public grain.

Bai Jian, clutching his chest in discomfort, couldn’t help but feel a wave of irritation rise within him, akin to how his wife felt after handing over the public grain.

“How is it going?”

Bai Jian entered the interrogation center, once again adopting the stern and serious demeanor of an iron-blooded leader of the criminal police.

Yet not a single teammate was smiling.

“They’ve confessed to all sorts of criminal activities, but no one’s taking the death penalty,” his lieutenant muttered as he came over.

“Isn’t there anyone willing to earn a reduced sentence?” That’s what Bai Jian was hoping for.

It was very demanding for socially active organizations to cover for each other.

In ancient China, when hiding crimes within the family was the norm, even familial protection wasn’t foolproof, so it was unrealistic to expect members from the social stratum to suddenly become the most moral in society.

True scoundrels remain scoundrels, and hypocrites are even more likely to be practitioners of unity between knowledge and action.

The code of silence maintained by the Sicilian gangs was based on the organization both inside and outside the prisons paying monthly dues.

Without these, the once tight-lipped party members almost universally turned traitor.

Shiting County was not a transportation hub or a strategic location; on the contrary, it was probably the most backward and least accessible county in Qinghe City.

So naturally, the vitality of the social organizations there left much to be desired.

When times were good, nobody would say anything, but now, faced with adversity, there should be some real villains stepping forward to do what villains do.

However, it was the villains who were jumping, yet none of them were implicated in a murder case.

“What’s the deal with these ghosts now?

They don’t kill people?” Bai Jian lit a soggy cigarette with one bite.

He didn’t even go home, instead sitting and waiting in the interrogation center.

By the next morning, Bai Jian was almost falling asleep when his lieutenant hurried in.

“Any news?” Bai Jian immediately looked up at the sound of the voice.

“It’s from Captain Jiang, from the forensic squad,” the lieutenant swallowed hard.

Bai Jian had a bad feeling and asked, “Don’t tell me they’ve dug up another body!”

“Another body has been dug up.” The lieutenant had no choice but to tell him, as this information needed immediate reporting, with the chief and deputy chief also heading to the site.

Bai Jian arose to grab a cigarette, lit it, and began dressing, then said, “I really give up.

If this case isn’t solved, I’ll pin the blame on Huang Qiangmin.”

“Well…

Doctor Jiang seems to have found some evidence,” the lieutenant quickly said.

“Couldn’t you have said that sooner?

What evidence?” Bai Jian hurriedly asked.

“A paper tissue, found in the soil that was backfilled,” the lieutenant replied.

“Is there something on the tissue?”

“It’s not certain yet.”

“Understood.” Bai Jian was a bit disappointed.

Tissues can only be preserved for a limited time, and even if they were buried in backfill, it was not certain that they would yield any clues.

Despite that, Bai Jian finally perked up a bit, hurriedly left the building, and took a car to the West Mountain crime scene.

Several criminal policemen from other regions arrived even earlier than him, there to observe the scene, looking somewhat bored.

The scene was indeed like that.

If it was someone’s first time there, they might find the sight of trace evidence technicians in protective suits and masks interesting, but after seeing it enough times, it just became a hassle.

Unlike Bai Jian’s anxiety, Jiang Yuan’s mood remained consistently good.

His face bore no trace of the hardship after attending a banquet.

As a technician, he believed that as long as the investigation persisted, the case would eventually be solved.

As the saying goes, there’s always a loophole, and if a criminal commits crimes frequently enough, they are bound to slip up somewhere, if not on a tissue, then on something else.

However, Jiang Yuan didn’t hold much hope for the tissue, as it was too fragile to protect any DNA that might be present, which could easily be decomposed by bacteria in the soil.

The key was that the criminal had made a mistake, a development that not just Jiang Yuan, but also several other experts, found uplifting.