National Forensic Doctor
Chapter 593 - 539 Designation

Chapter 593: Chapter 539 Designation

Trap Squad.

Pang Jidong and the others lay hidden in the bush, perched on tree branches, nestled under dry wells, with detestable insects crawling at their feet and annoying mosquitoes swarming around them, all amidst an unbearable silence.

When Pang Jidong’s phone silently buzzed for the seventh or eighth time, he finally noticed. He checked the message, frowned, and dialed back in a very soft voice, asking, "Captain Wang?"

"Jidong, I just sent you a message. The three kidnappers have been arrested. Clean up your side and send someone for the investigation. The team can withdraw now," the squadron leader said with a laugh on the other end of the phone.

"Ah... cracked it?"

"Yes, solved. Jiang Yuan followed the footprints and pollen to locate the residential area where the kidnappers were hiding, and later found their specific apartment. When the team stormed in, the kidnappers were still boiling noodles," he explained.

Pang Jidong’s temples throbbed as if electrocuted; images of dogs, bees, and hanging noodles fluttered through his mind...

"Just like that, the suspects were caught?" Pang Jidong sought confirmation again.

"Yes, the kidnappers were captured, no doubt about it. You can call back your team now."

"This... is this how cases are cracked now?" Pang Jidong said, glancing at Li Haochen, who lay beside him covered in dirt and grime, then slowly stood up, "Well, then I’ll take down the arrangements here."

"Right. We’ll talk more back at the police station. Thank you for your hard work." The squadron leader was aware that Pang Jidong and his team had labored in vain, but that was just how it went—no need to overemphasize it.

For the entire team, as long as the case was cracked, it was grand news. Pang Jidong’s team had set a trap that no one sprung, but that wasn’t a big deal. Setting a snare in the forest doesn’t guarantee catching prey.

With a sense of resignation, Pang Jidong put away his phone, then turned to Li Haochen and said, "Let’s go, the kidnappers have been caught."

Then, Pang Jidong raised his voice and called out, "Everyone, regroup! The suspects have been captured, come on out. I need two people to help pull our brother out of the well."

"They got caught?" Li Haochen could only get up and look around, "Such a pity, it was a good trap."

Indeed, it was an excellent trap; had it caught a robber, it would’ve made quite the story.

Pang Jidong sighed and said, "The kidnappers must feel pretty much the same as us—hiding the hostage so well, only to have them pried out without a clue, still boiling noodles in the room while they themselves were about to be hung up to dry!"

"It’s a bit outrageous, this forensic botany..." Li Haochen nodded, recalling the story of Jiang Yuan researching pollen.

The whole story seemed related to the criminal suspect, yet, in reality, it was unrelated.

Solving the case without any contact with the criminal suspects or even the informants went against Li Haochen’s philosophy of crime-solving—ever since he joined the ministry, Li Haochen had practiced immersing himself among criminals, using their mindset to solve cases, leveraging their connections, and utilizing their power...

In this kidnapping case, Li Haochen had thought he would get a chance to demonstrate his abilities. What he didn’t expect was to witness a case being solved with zero contact.

It was as if the wheels of technology had rolled right over his face.

"Let’s go back," Pang Jidong’s mood began to lighten.

He had been involved in this case from the start and had seen the parents of the two children cry until they collapsed more than once. As a police officer, being able to solve this case was enough for him.

Although he felt a bit disappointed that the trap hadn’t been utilized in the final phase, overall, his emotions were quite positive.

And the closer he got to the police station, the better his mood became. The former days, when returning to the station, he always worried about encountering the hostages’ families; now, he was not only unworried but also somewhat eager to meet them.

Back in the office, there was laughter and cheerful chatter.

From the director to the deputy directors, along with officials from the ministry and the provincial department, as well as the squadron and platoon leaders, they all gathered together, as warm as if hosting a tea party.

In fact, that was the setup: everyone had a cup of green tea in front of them, along with apples and pears that no one dared to eat, and the genuinely offered local cigarettes, chatting as if they were in high spirits.

The case was cracked, the criminals caught, and this was the happiest time.

Of course, it was also the perfect time for mutual flattery.

In this regard, Comrade Huang Qiangmin was also quite adept, seamlessly joining in the ambiance with a few words.

Pang Jidong, as the captain of the Fourth Squad, took a modest place, merely giving a brief introduction when today’s operations were mentioned. To him, it felt a bit like a case analysis meeting, or more like a crime-solving bragging session.

As the conversation progressed, everyone became interested in Jiang Yuan’s forensic botany. An experienced squadron leader, after speaking a few words, went as far as to directly ask, "In that case, as long as there’s evidence, can’t you always find the location?"

"You need a rough area, but that’s about the gist of it," Jiang Yuandao replied.

"Can always find it?" the squadron leader pressed.

Jiang Yuan exchanged glances with Huang Qiangmin and smiled, "Pretty much. I can’t guarantee a hundred percent, but the chances are quite high."

"Indeed, when I saw you working, you were quite quick too."

"Whether it’s quick or not also depends on the type of pollen and spores, as many pollen can be quite complicated to differentiate, like whether the spines on pollen grains are straight or slanted, and the helical pattern on top could belong to either the Plantaginaceae or the Rosaceae family. If you’re not familiar with them, looking up the information can take a lot of time," Jiang Yuan said with a smile.

The captain was surprised, "I couldn’t tell... I heard you’ve only graduated a few years ago, and in addition to forensic and trace evidence skills, you’ve also studied botany..."

"I guess I’m self-taught," Jiang Yuan said, smiling.

If he had said this before solving the case, everyone would probably have just laughed it off. But now, Jiang Yuan had cracked such a difficult case, finding the hostage alive with almost no other evidence to go on. With such proven ability behind him, no one dared to underestimate Jiang Yuan’s "self-study."

"If that’s the case, then many past cases may still have a chance of finding new clues," the captain said, glancing towards the directors.

The director and the deputy director both looked at Huang Qiangmin, then nodded slowly to the captain.

Seizing the opportunity, the captain immediately said, "Captain Jiang, it just so happens that we have a few cases over here that could use..."

"Ahem." Huang Qiangmin interrupted the captain, "Let’s discuss the specific cases later, it’s getting late today, we should also head back and rest."

He knew that interrupting the conversation so directly wouldn’t please the Luo Jin people, but Huang Qiangmin didn’t care. If he couldn’t handle even this small matter without offending someone, he wouldn’t be able to command a price.

The Luo Jin people could only say their farewells in chorus, maintaining a friendly attitude.

Legal Botany indeed; now you really have to hold it high.

On the road, Huang Qiangmin gave Jiang Yuan a few more words of advice and then started taking calls.

Once they reached the hotel, Jiang Yuan went to take a shower and rest, changing his clothes, while Huang Qiangmin began preparing to welcome visitors.

As night fell...

Xu Tian and his men made their way into Huang Qiangmin’s room.

A quarter of an hour later, Captain Wang also made his way into Huang Qiangmin’s room.

Then some office personnel, also in casual attire, sneaked into the elevator and looked around furtively as they entered Huang Qiangmin’s room.

The young men in the hotel’s surveillance room watched this scene, their commonplace and numb expressions slowly turning into a very new kind of smile.

...

Dawn.

The hotel’s breakfast was nothing special, but there was a pot of beef soup, fragrant and tempting.

The chef must have been instructed, for upon seeing Jiang Yuan enter, he said with a beaming smile, "Good morning, Mr. Jiang. Today’s special is unsalted beef soup. Would you like to try a bowl?"

Feeling the other dishes were bland, Jiang Yuan immediately nodded and asked, "Is it similar to Luoyang’s beef soup?"

"Yes, indeed. I’m from Luoyang, and my family used to make beef soup. We pride ourselves on its fragrant, sweet, and refreshing taste. You don’t need to add salt to beef soup; it won’t have any odd taste," the chef boasted confidently.

Hearing him say this, Jiang Yuan took a bowl and drank on the spot.

"Indeed, it’s really good..." Jiang Yuan smiled and nodded as he took two bowls at once, sat down at a nearby seat, sipped the soup, and thought that, in terms of level, the beef soup would probably rate an LV3 or LV4; if it were to go up by +1, one’s taste buds might truly be spoiled.

Moreover, the beef and vegetable flavors in the beef soup were also excellent, enough to stand alone as a dish.

After finishing a bowl of beef soup and just putting down the bowl, his phone rang.

Jiang Yuan answered and heard Huang Qiangmin’s weary voice, "It’s settled. We’ll start by setting up a Trace Evidence Laboratory for you. Director Song from the ministry has also agreed to establish a project plan. We just need to recruit people on our side, and the lab standards are high, matching those of Changyang City. What do you think?"

"I have no objections. Are we working on cases from Luo Jin City?"

"Yes, that’s the way it is here in Luo Jin. We’ll handle three cold cases with homicides; they want to specify one, two of which must be completed within a year, all three within two years. I’ll send you the details of the case they specified to take a look at," Huang continued.

Jiang Yuan then opened his phone to skim through the case summary and thought for a moment, "I have no objections. Are we deciding on the other two ourselves?"

"Yes."

"And we’re not necessarily using Legal Botany, right?"

"Of course not. What do you have in mind?"

Jiang Yuan took a sip of his beef soup and smacked his lips in appreciation, speaking his thoughts candidly, "I’d like to work on a case where the victim was a chef."

The chef, bringing a dish of soup dumplings over, heard Jiang Yuan’s words and trembled, causing the vinegar in the condiment bowl to spill out.