National Forensic Doctor
Chapter 590 - 536

Chapter 590: 536

Lucun Park.

Since the beginning of the year, the park’s own parking lot had never been full.

Today, cars were parked haphazardly everywhere.

When Jiang Yuan and the others got out of their vehicle, all they heard was that the fourth criminal police unit had already gone up, so they could only wait on the spot for the results.

The area he had outlined, whether it be the place where the body was buried or the place where the perpetrator hid, would need to be searched by the police before it was suitable for examination.

Mu Zhiyang, wielding a shield, stuck closely to Jiang Yuan. For him, this was already the scene.

"How is the front line? Any updates?" Cui Xiaohu asked Xu Tian.

"No news at the moment, we’re not sure what the situation is." Xu Tian paused, then said, "The captain of the fourth unit, Pang Jidong, is very experienced, and the fourth unit is also an elite force of our criminal police brigade. They have already organized an assault team."

Huang Qiangmin moved his lips but wisely refrained from commenting.

Police from different places have different response plans, and he could not apply the experience from Ningtai County to Luo Jin City.

Cui Xiaohu continued to inquire, "Have they reached the place? Have they seen exposed patches of earth... or soil mounds?"

"Not yet." Xu Tian knew what Cui Xiaohu was getting at; he was worried that the location might be where the victim was buried.

The volume of a normal adult is approximately 0.06 cubic meters. Two elementary school children put together could be roughly considered similar in size to an adult.

Therefore, burying two elementary school children would mean that at least 60 liters of soil would be displaced on the ground.

Soil is much heavier than water, with one liter of soil weighing about 2.5 kilograms, so 60 liters of soil would amount to about 150 kilograms. It would be quite difficult to remove this amount of soil all at once, and it wouldn’t be easy to do so in multiple trips either—this is why many people who bury their spouses in their backyards, especially husbands, end up with a small mound of earth. It’s not that they don’t know how to disguise it; it’s just that moving those materials takes a lot of time and effort.

In theory, under the current circumstances, if the three kidnappers chose to bury the bodies, they probably wouldn’t have dealt with it so intricately, as they wouldn’t have needed to take a long time to bury them.

Cui Xiaohu breathed a slight sigh of relief, saying, "It would be best if it’s not a burial site."

However, Xu Tian countered, "They might have also carried the soil to the flower beds or sprinkled it in the bushes. There are places like the well in the park..."

It was then that Cui Xiaohu realized he had been too simplistic in his thinking, and his expression became even more serious.

"Director Xu, Pang Jidong is requesting to deploy the assault team first," the brigade commander reported, coming over with a walkie-talkie.

Xu Tian said, "You’re the frontline commander; you give the orders."

"I’ll send the assault team then," said the brigade commander. Standing next to Xu Tian, he pressed the walkie-talkie button and said, "Old Pang, send in the assault team. Be careful and provide cover."

"Assault team, move out. Received. I’ll reinforce from behind. Stay safe," Pang Jidong quickly replied.

As the provincial capital, Luo Jin City boasted a criminal police force that was also quite skilled.

In fact, in recent years, the government departments at the provincial level had an overflow of staffing needs. Apart from the top three universities, graduates from other schools had to work hard to get in. Those who managed to break through were acknowledged for their competency and thoroughness.

The six-person assault team that Pang Jidong selected included two experienced detectives and four strong young men who had recently joined the team.

Pang Jidong had all six armed and sent them to the target location first, with the intent of surprise attack.

As for the remaining dozen people, he didn’t station them at the front. Some were sent to block the rear, while others followed the six for reinforcement.

Normally, deploying six people to catch three violent criminals would be too few, even if they were all armed, it would only cause more concern.

But Pang Jidong still made such a decision.

Although the six-person team’s assault was risky, if successful, the rewards would be substantial.

Otherwise, having more than twenty people swarm in would certainly be safe, but with the kidnappers holding two elementary students, the case would still be unresolved, and the aftermath complicated.

However, Pang Jidong had confidence in his subordinates. Especially the young ones, who had superior physical fitness and several years of training in close combat, capable of taking on two alone unarmed. With firearms, their combat effectiveness was assured.

The six-man squad approached the target area with caution.

At the same time, nearby police were evacuating the scant visitors from the park.

Continuous reports from the front line came through the brigade commander’s walkie-talkie.

"There’s an electrical substation on the left."

"Can you see clearly into the shrubbery?"

"Yes, it’s clear. No one could hide there."

"There’s a small path at the back that leads into the thicket."

"We have already sent people over."

The squadron leader and Xu Tian standing behind him listened without a word, while Cui Xiaohu, Huang Qiangmin, and Jiang Yuan, among others, were certainly not qualified to override their superiors and take command.

In fact, had it not been for Jiang Yuan’s decision to come to the scene, Xu Tian and the others would not have felt this sense of urgency and anxiety. They were not sure whether this place was where the criminal was hiding, where the bodies were buried, or some other kind of clue.

But Jiang Yuan’s attitude, especially his decision to come to the scene, indeed made Xu Tian and the others feel a sense of urgency.

Sssss...

The squadron leader’s walkie-talkie crackled to life, immediately drawing everyone’s attention.

"No one near the plot of land, there’s a manhole cover, we’re about to open it," the police officer on the walkie-talkie panted.

Even for a seasoned detective, this was an extremely tense moment, not to mention for the six members of the assault team.

At that moment, Cui Xiaohu on the other end of the walkie-talkie even held his breath involuntarily.

"Hostage found. Hostage found in the well, unharmed, no, in good health... no sign of the kidnapper, repeat, no sign of the kidnapper!"

The voice coming from the walkie-talkie was tense and exhilarating.

The squadron leader could not maintain silence any longer, grabbed the walkie-talkie and said, "Ensure safety, protect the hostage, fourth team enter the scene..."

After finishing, the squadron leader looked at Xu Tian and said, "Director Xu..."

"Let’s go there too." Xu Tian waved his hand and walked forward.

The crowd then moved together towards the target area.

Upon reaching the designated plot, they saw two elementary school students already sitting on a bench by the roadside, crying, but soundlessly, tears almost gone.

Their clothes were dirty, and their wrists showed blue marks from being bound. Their faces were similarly sullied and bruised, but thankfully their limbs were intact, their facial features all there, and there were no signs of excessive blood loss.

Looking ahead at the grass, in the midst of the unkempt wild grass, a manhole cover had been pried open. Some had already gone down to check, while about a dozen police officers had spread out to search for similar situations.

Pang Jidong jogged over, saluted, and reported, "It’s a dry well. The tunnel underneath has been blocked off, there’s nowhere else to go, only the two hostages were found in the well, bound and gagged. Our team members asked, and they were lowered down from above. They don’t know how long they have been there."

"Great! Great!" Xu Tian nodded repeatedly. Although there were still many unanswered questions, finding the hostages was a major achievement, equivalent to solving eighty percent of the case.

As for the rest, catching the three kidnappers, he thought, would not be difficult. Even if they couldn’t be caught in the short term, so what!

"Send the children to the hospital, and ensure confidentiality. Also, inform all personnel involved in the operation to make sure they maintain secrecy." Deputy Director Xu suddenly felt a pang of regret; had he known Jiang Yuan’s deductions were so accurate, he should have arranged these matters in advance.

As Xu Tian considered this, he turned towards Jiang Yuan with a smile and said admiringly, "To be honest, I’ve underestimated him. Ningtai Jiang Yuan truly lives up to his reputation, it’s unimaginable!"

"It’s good that the hostages were found." Jiang Yuan had solved many cases, but rescuing hostages was still quite rare. Especially two elementary school children, their tears were particularly heartwarming.

"I think the kidnappers placed the two hostages here, probably planning it as a getaway," the squadron leader said with greater calm, analyzing the situation. "It’s likely that after the next successful ransom demand, the kidnapper would disclose this dry well’s location to us. By then, having found the hostages, we wouldn’t pursue them too closely, and even if they were caught, they wouldn’t be sentenced too heavily."

"If I were the kidnapper, I would have kept the two children separate," Li Haochen, who had been mostly silent, suddenly spoke up. "It should not be too difficult to find two dry wells. This way, whether a family pays a ransom or whether they use one child to prove it, it would be more flexible. After all, for the kidnapper, the focus would then be on how to demand a second ransom."

The group fell into deep thought.

"We have been requesting to talk to the hostages for the past few days. Maybe that’s the reason they put the two hostages together," the squadron leader said slowly.

"Even though this place is remote, frequently entering the park would become increasingly dangerous for the three of them," Li Haochen paused before continuing, "Moreover, if I were the kidnapper, I wouldn’t want to move the hostages again after the kidnapping, unless..."

"Unless what?" the squadron leader was unable to follow Li Haochen’s train of thought this time.

"Unless I lived nearby, with the freedom to come and go during off-peak hours, ensuring I wouldn’t be caught on surveillance or by security..." Li Haochen closed his eyes in contemplation, "If it were me waiting for the ransom, indeed I might choose a place like this with few people and familiar to me; a very good choice."

Li Haochen surveyed their surroundings, "There are many roads near the park, and plenty of paths to choose from, making escape convenient. Not heading directly out of the city mainly because after the abduction, they wouldn’t want to risk going too far. This place would be both an offensive and defensive option, even if the cops got a whiff, they could hide in the park..."

"I’ll call people over." The squadron leader looked at Li Haochen and nodded emphatically.