National Forensic Doctor
Chapter 656 - 600: Medical University Professor

Chapter 656: Chapter 600: Medical University Professor

"Yongxin, get an Alphard over here and send a driver to take us to Siningshan." Jiang Yuan scooped up half a pot of fried rice for them to take along, and casually packed a stack of disposable lunch boxes.

Jiang Yongxin responded and made a call for the car, then laughed, "No need for a driver, I’ll drive."

"Suit yourself, just put the car expenses on the tab." Jiang Yuan waved his hand, then added, "Pack up some dishes from the table; we’ll eat them in the car."

"Righto." Jiang Yongxin actively got to work. As a second-generation tear-down mogul, he didn’t need to work so hard; by merely coasting through life, the cost of an Alphard every few months would have been a negligible dent in his savings.

But as the entrepreneurial star of Jiang Village, he had to bend down and get his hands dirty, taking every chance to chat with the police officers from the jurisdictional station, always seeming happy to do so.

A bunch of them stuffed their faces in the luxuriously furnished Alphard’s back seat.

It was getting dark, and many officers hadn’t had lunch; their stomachs growled with hunger. With Uncle Seventeen’s fried rice and some mutton and beef cooked by Jiang Fuzhen, it all tasted incredibly good.

The truth was, it was indeed quite delicious. Uncle Seventeen’s fried rice was classed as LV3 human food, and the beef and mutton cooked by Jiang Yuan’s father in Jiang Fuzhen had to be at least LV2.

A decent restaurant’s chef would be doing well to achieve this level with their signature dish. Sometimes, certain specialties from smaller eateries could break through the LV3 threshold.

The Alphard had been on the road for a little under half an hour when it arrived at the restaurant where the incident occurred.

The restaurant was situated next to Taquan and was a standard tourist eatery, which had later been found wanting in several areas—a fact that Jiang Yuan recalled quite clearly.

The restaurant’s owner didn’t sell counterfeit cigarettes or liquor, but they did use gutter oil and a large number of nearly expired goods, including expired ones, especially meats, flour, and rice, with few items actually within their expiration date.

Dealing with cases like this involved a joint operation with multiple departments, such as the business and tourism authorities, a process that was quite cumbersome, but the results were significant; the restaurant was very likely to be transferred to new ownership, and quite a few employees had been laid off.

However, a homicide occurring under these circumstances was something Jiang Yuan and the others didn’t want to see.

By the time they arrived, the criminal police team’s vehicles were already there, and the police tape was properly erected. Several police cars were parked at the entrance, and members of the criminal investigation squad were going around with cameras, filming and taking photos.

The mountain restaurant was deserted, and now lacked even a single patron, but people from the nearby shops were out looking around, all captured by the cameras of the police.

Jiang Yuan wiped his mouth clean, dressed neatly, and entered the restaurant, accompanied by another camera.

There were other police tapes inside, and the officers on site greeted Jiang Yuan warmly.

For the officers from Ningtai County Bureau, Jiang Yuan now had an aura of distinction; he seemed close but wasn’t someone they had much interaction with.

After all, it had been a long period since Ningtai had seen a homicide, so much so that the full-time forensic expert Jiang Yuan didn’t have to appear on-site.

The restaurant, "Sining Mountain Free-Range Chicken Specialty Store—Sining Mountain Pot Chicken," belonged to the slightly more upscale dining options on the mountain. If you hadn’t seen its kitchen and refrigerators, you would think it was a restaurant that cared about flavor and specialization.

The restaurant was also quite spacious, not to mention indoors, with several hundred square meters, and an outdoor yard where dozens of tables and chairs could be set up during the peak season. Of course, during that time, you wouldn’t be able to eat the pot chicken but would have to settle for "large-pot fried" braised chicken pieces instead.

The body was lying near the kitchen door.

There was fresh blood all over the floor and overturned tables and stools. The plastic chairs had been thrown or kicked with great force, ending up seven or eight meters away.

Looking up, the ceiling was spotlessly clean with no blood shed on it.

There were blood stains on the walls too, mostly coagulated, which meant some time had passed since they were made.

Jiang Yuan was scrutinizing this, when he heard the sound of someone running toward him from behind.

Jiang Yuan’s brow furrowed instantly, and as he turned his head, he saw it was Director Chai Tong, who was a bit out of breath from running.

"Director Chai..." Jiang Yuan was unsure what to say. He silently handed Chai a face mask and added, "There are cameras everywhere."

"Fine then." Chai Tong looked around. More than just the cameras, all the law enforcement recorders were turned on in front of everyone. There wasn’t much to discuss, so he put on the mask.

Jiang Yuan turned back, ready to continue examining the scene.

Chai Tong said, "Good timing, Jiang Yuan, I’ve invited an expert to work with you, okay?"

He was quite polite.

Jiang Yuan looked over in surprise.

It was clear Chai Tong had something in mind, and his reasons were quite transparent—if this homicide was due to Jiang Yuan and the Zoumadao Police Station’s irregular operations, there would be no question that someone had to take responsibility.

One could say that Chai Tong’s instincts were exceedingly sharp, as if waiting through an ebb tide for an opportunity to counterattack.

Several people who heard him speak turned their curiosity towards the person behind Chai Tong.

They were curious about which expert would dare to compete with Jiang Yuan.

Given Jiang Yuan’s current reputation within the province, an ordinary expert simply wouldn’t have the credentials to challenge him, besides, a somewhat famous and more capable expert would least be seen as unnecessary.

In anticipation, an elderly man with graying hair, wearing a transparent head cover, came over with a serious expression.

"Professor Chen is an anatomy professor at Changyang Medical University, and he used to be a forensic doctor for a while. Later, due to the intense teaching responsibilities, he gradually stepped back from the front line... Professor Chen has already reached the age of retirement, but has not retired because he is too excellent, and the school has been unable to find suitable talent. Therefore, they have repeatedly requested Professor Chen to re-employ..." Chai Tong introduced the candidate.

This was a contact he had known before, and as soon as the incident occurred, he immediately arranged for a car to bring Professor Chen over.

Calculating the time, it was basically as soon as he received the news that he started making calls and arrangements. Being able to make arrangements and arrive promptly was also a testament to Chai Tong’s abilities.

"Nice to meet you, Professor Chen. I graduated from Changyang Medical University," Jiang Yuan said with a smile, greeting him.

Professor Chen was taken aback, then recalled and said, "Right, right, right, I remember, you graduated just two years ago, didn’t you?"

"Yes. I even attended your lectures."

"Formidable young talent indeed."

"I’ve been rather lucky," Jiang Yuan admitted frankly.

"Hmm... Let’s examine the body first," Professor Chen decided. He was aware of Jiang Yuan’s situation, a rising star in the field of forensic medicine, and also a local graduate from the province and university.

However, after reviewing the cases Jiang Yuan worked on, Professor Chen and the other teachers at the school all agreed—formidable young talent indeed!

Had it not been for Chai Tong using his strong connections to find him, Professor Chen wouldn’t have taken the field.

Nevertheless, since he was there, Professor Chen didn’t shy away; he started pondering over the body.

Jiang Yuan followed along and observed, maintaining a respectful distance.

The officers who arrived earlier explained: "The victim was a waitress at the restaurant, a female, 22 years old, from Ningtai County. Another waitress from the restaurant discovered the body, and upon seeing blood all over the floor, she immediately reported it to the police."

"Upon our arrival, we found the body breathless, lying on its back with the face upward, possibly bleeding from the back of the head."

"One of the restaurant’s windows was smashed by a chair. There were no eyewitnesses nearby, and no obvious murder weapon or other items were found..."

As Jiang Yuan listened to the officer’s report, he began to bend down and examine the body for himself.

Professor Chen, not as familiar with such a scenario, fell a step behind.

The two of them assisted each other in examining the condition of the skull, exchanging a few words from time to time.

Soon, they grew familiar with each other’s methods.

Then, Jiang Yuan’s speech gradually shifted from respectful to casual:

"Could you move the head over here, please? Look at this."

"Take a look at this bloodstain..."

"I’ll take a sample; could you collect that one over there?"

At first, Chai Tong kept a smiling, hopeful demeanor, but soon he couldn’t keep smiling.

Even to an outsider, it looked as though Jiang Yuan was the one leading Professor Chen in their tasks.

Meanwhile, Huang Qiangmin arrived in a hurry. He had gone to communicate with the prosecutor’s office that day, as Jiang Yuan had a slew of cases to handle all at once, and the entire chain of work needed to be smoothed over to continue functioning properly.

However, Huang Qiangmin had already learned about the situation at the scene while en route, and originally, he too had a grave expression.

But upon actually reaching the site, Huang Qiangmin saw nothing unusual. It was just like any other scene with Jiang Yuan present—more people, more activity surrounding Jiang Yuan, more comprehensive use of investigative equipment with people capable of using it, a noticeable increase in consumables like evidence bags being delivered, and specialized evidence room personnel managing them. Moreover, Mu Zhiyang was nearby, and that was it.

"Didn’t they say Director Chai brought in a professor from the university?" Huang Qiangmin whispered to Liu Wenkai, the captain of the second team.

Liu Wenkai mumbled, "That one, crouching beside Jiang Yuan, striking like a snake—that’s him."

Huang Qiangmin took a closer look and, apart from the white hair and frail frame, he really couldn’t see any difference between this expert and those from before.

Huang Qiangmin turned to look at Director Chai, whose expression seemed increasingly haggard.

They couldn’t understand; as a leading figure in anatomy, Professor Chen would surely have been able to showcase his talents on the dissection table.

But at a crime scene, with Jiang Yuan’s significant level 5 crime scene investigation skills looming overhead, even if they split open Professor Chen’s head, he wouldn’t have been able to showcase his own abilities. Naturally, he could only follow Jiang Yuan’s directions and act accordingly, much like any other criminal investigator.

Chai Tong soon couldn’t bear to watch anymore and was about to retire when a message came through:

"Someone has turned themselves in."

...