Chapter 9: Might be a peer
When He Wei returned to the bureau, it was already dawn. Cheng Zesheng’s family came to identify the body. His father was in Canada and had already booked the fastest flight ticket to come back. Only his mother, Ding Xiang, had been running around with her son, accompanying him on a concert tour. Now seeing her son’s dead body before her eyes, Ding Xiang collapsed, throwing herself on the corpse and refusing to let go.
Today’s city bureau was more lively than usual. The major media got the news from nowhere and squatted at the door together. He Wei opened the blinds, saw the crowd downstairs, and sighed: “The pressure is too high now; should we deal with them?”
“The deceased was a celebrity and was shot dead, which has a negative social impact. There must be instructions from above.” Zheng Furui held a thermos in one hand and touched half of the top of his shiny head, “There is also media staring. These people who play with pens are not easy to deal with; if we do something wrong, they will immediately start to pass judgment.”
He Wei smiled: “You still have a sense of humor. Okay, I’ll investigate the case first, and if you have any ‘instructions’, you can just issue them.”
After finishing speaking, he was about to leave the chief’s office but was stopped by Zheng Furui: “Hey, Xiao He, there is one more important matter.”
When He Wei turned his head. Zheng Furui opened the drawer, took out a key, and threw it over. He Wei reached out to catch it and saw 404 written on it with a water pen. Zheng Furui unscrewed the thermos cup and took a sip: “This is the key to the new apartment; you should know the address, right? Next to the New City Plaza, it is called ‘Future Domain’. “
“The house prices there are not cheap; why are you willing to build a dormitory for us?” He Wei shook the key, “There are no other floors? This number sounds unlucky.”
“Aren’t you the one who doesn’t believe this the most?” Zheng Furui smiled, “That building is a small high-rise building with seven floors. I went to see it. The 4th floor is neither high nor low, with adequate lighting without dampness. Almost all the buildings next to it are given to the people on the provincial government’s side. I was able to win this for you because of my reputation.”
“And the normal allocation is two people in one apartment. I know you like cleanliness and quietness; that’s why I have given you an apartment for one person. Isn’t that enough?”
He Wei laughed out loud, nodded, and said yes. He was just joking. He was definitely not picky, and he didn’t care where he lived.
Zheng Furui asked him to move there within two days. The original dorm room had to be vacated; there were still people waiting to live there. He Wei didn’t know whether to laugh or cry: “Lao Zheng, I haven’t solved the case at hand; how can I have time to move? Why don’t you find someone to help me move my things there? I don’t have anything to bring, just the basketball and the gaming console can’t be left behind.”
“My boy, I have arranged a new house for you. You didn’t even say thank you and are still depending on me to move things.” Zheng Furui waved his hand, “All right, all right, spring is the season of high crimes, and your criminal investigation team has been so busy recently. As a leader, I must fully understand!”
He Wei thanked the leader three times for his meticulous care and then pointed downstairs, implying that the leader should send the public relations department to deal with it and that reporters were in the way of investigating the case and their hands were tied.
The crying in the morgue finally stopped, and Ding Xiang went through the formalities of identifying the body and was taken to the reception room to rest. She was crying out of breath, and a female police officer was comforting her. When she saw He Wei walking in, she greeted him, “Captain He.”
When Ding Xiang heard this address, she immediately raised her head, stared at He Wei with red eyes, and threw herself on the ground with a “plop”.
“Unit Captain, I beg you to find the murderer as soon as possible. Find out the truth and avenge my son!”
He Wei hurriedly helped her up: “Please get up quickly. Fighting crime is what we should do. The chief just talked to me about it. Our criminal investigation unit will definitely do our best in this case.”
“I only had this son, and it was hard to raise him up. I haven’t even seen him start a family yet, and in a blink of an eye, Yin and Yang are separated…” Ding Xiang’s tears rolled down, drop by drop. She took out a handkerchief to wipe them and said in a hoarse voice, “Our family child was good-looking, had a good temper, and was gentle and polite. God has no eyes, letting him go ahead of us at a young age. I want to go down to accompany him. My life is meaningless now.”
“Mrs. Cheng, the dead are gone, and the living is still here. The most urgent thing is to find a way to solve the case.” He Wei poured a glass of water and handed it over, “Can you talk to me about Cheng Zesheng’s recent whereabouts?”
———
Du Ruanlan sat on a chair, holding a small piece of square mousse cake in her hand, chewing and tasting it slowly. There was an album in front of her with dazzling pictures of all kinds of corpses; she was looking at it as she ate. This is not their “Illustrated Book of Corpse Changes” textbook of forensic medicine, but an illustrated book made by Du Ruanlan for many years of practice. It would be revised every year, adding pictures of corpses from new cases that had been handled.
The door was pushed open, and He Wei walked in: “Lan-Jie, sorry to bother you while you’re admiring corpses, but when shall we start?”
“When I finish eating, there are still two bites left.” Du Ruanlan pointed to the dissection table behind her, “You change your outfit first, then go there and wait.”
Luo Ying poked her head out from the small door connected to the dissection room: “Captain He, since you are here, do you still need me to take notes?”
He Wei picked up a blue protective suit from the hook and put it on: “Yes, I’m not here to be a spectator, and I can’t make a record for Lan-Jie.”
Luo Ying came out of the small door with a voice recorder, pen, and paper and smiled shyly: “Captain He, you are very good at everything. I heard that there was a special situation in the past. Now you can do everything from dissection to investigation. One person can form a whole criminal investigation team.”
“That’s right, A-Wei rose from the lowest level of the police station and grew up among the people. What has he never seen or done?” Du Ruanlan finished the last bite of cake and threw the box into the trash can, “Now that the technology is advanced and the auxiliary equipment for investigation is advancing with the times, the new batch of police officers all have technical knowledge greater than practical experience, and the police force also requires a meticulous division of labor and specialization in one area. Where can you cultivate a panacea like him that can work anywhere?”
“It’s not that exaggerated.” He Wei said indifferently, putting on a mask, “This only shows that technical talents are becoming more and more perfect, which is a good thing. Individuals cannot match the strength of the collective, after all. It sounds much more powerful and awesome when all in one person’s hands, but in reality, one mistake and everything will be a mess.”
Du Ruanlan gave Luo Ying a meaningful glance. Did you see it? With this awareness, he still worked so hard to investigate the case. If he went to pursue an official career, what would Chief Zheng do?
After paying attention, the dissection officially began. The white cloth was lifted, revealing Cheng Zesheng’s handsome face, which looked even paler under the cold light. To say that a person was good-looking was an understatement. Even if he turned into a corpse, it was still a corpse that would not make people feel frightened but pity.
“The deceased Cheng Zesheng, male, 29 years old, 185 cm in height, 68 kg in weight, healthy limbs, normal nutritional status…”
In the dissection room, there was only Luo Ying’s voice talking into the voice recorder. Du Ruanlan squeezed Cheng Zesheng’s arm to the palm of his hand, carefully touched a few knuckles, and suddenly looked up at He Wei: “He is a pianist, right?”
“Um.”
“Under normal circumstances, long-term piano practice will lead to slightly rounder fingertips, thicker distal phalanges, thicker palms, and a slight outward turning of the little finger.” Du Ruanlan raised Cheng Zesheng’s well-defined hand, “His fingertips are thin, and there is no thickening of the flesh caused by long-term tapping of the keys. What has changed is the middle knuckle of the index finger and the proximal knuckle of the thumb, and there are also friction marks on the palm near the thumb and between the thumb and forefinger.”
He Wei reached out and groped for Cheng Zesheng’s cold hand, touched his forearm along the palm of his hand, and pinched it: “It is true, his arms are stronger, and the nails are also cut very clean. You mean, his hand does not conform to the characteristics of someone who has played the piano for a long time?”
“This is just my personal opinion. It does not rule out the possibility that, in some cases, long-term piano practice will not cause finger changes. Just like the high school student, I dissected last time, she has practiced piano for ten years, and her fingers are still slender and white and can be used as a hand model.”
He Wei nodded and turned to look at Luo Ying: “Xiao Luo, record it.”
Luo Ying took the camera to take pictures and then hurried to make records. Du Ruanlan took a cotton swab to examine. He Wei was curious: “Now men also have to do these checks?”
“Of course, the times are different, and men and women are the same. In the past, only female deceased were examined for s*xual assault. Since last year, male deceased will also be examined in this regard.”
He Wei smiled: “Does that mean we men have successfully protested?”
“When the government promulgates a protection law on male s*xual abuse, the protest will be considered a success.” Du Ruanlan pointed at He Wei with a scalpel and said, “Especially good-looking men, they are more in danger, so be careful.”
After the physical examination was over, Du Ruanlan picked up the scalpel and finally got to the point. The cold and bright blade sliced open the skin on the chest. He Wei rarely avoided his sight, and for the first time, a strange feeling appeared in his heart after seeing Cheng Zesheng’s corpse, making him feel regretful, unbearable, and a little uncomfortable.
“What’s the matter with you? Don’t dare to look at the dissection?” Du Ruanlan moved smoothly and skillfully. She had already taken out the bullet, rinsed it, and put it into the tray. He Wei picked up the bullet with tweezers, and the cold light came down from above, reflecting the sharp, cold light unique to metal.
“9 mm, jujube-shaped bullet with full metal armor, lead-steel composite bullet core, old friend.” He Wei put the bullet aside, “DAP92-type bullet.”
Du Ruanlan raised her eyebrows: “You recognized it at a glance?”
“This kind of ammunition is used in our bureau. Even if I don’t see it every day, it has been loaded many times.” He Wei put the tray on the table, “If you think my deduction is not accurate, just go and test it. Lan-Jie, if I guess correctly, the murderer may be a colleague.”
———
He Wei was eating dinner alone in the cafeteria when suddenly his shoulders were heavy, Chong Zhen’s face appeared, and he asked mysteriously, “Hey, Lao He, I heard that the gun used to kill that person is a Type-92; is it true?”
“I’m still not sure if it’s Type-92 or 92G, it depends on the analysis results of the technical department.” He Wei sized him up, focusing on the leaf above his head, “…you walked all the way with this?”
Chong Zhen was stunned, obviously not understanding what he meant. Following He Wei’s gaze, Chong Zhen stretched out his hand to touch it, then picked off the leaves and immediately cursed: “Those little bastards, they didn’t say anything when they saw it. They made me look bad. I’ll peel off their skins after I get back! No wonder the door was opened! When I met the policewoman from the public relations department, she smiled at me like a flower!”
“Maybe she really likes you.” He Wei suppressed a smile, picked up the bowl, and pretended to drink soup. Chong Zhen sat down beside him and poked his arm: “Tell me the truth; do you suspect that an insider did it?”
“That’s how I feel, and I’m going to apply for a gun inspection. There are only a few Type-92 and 92Gs in the city, and the inspection is not too troublesome.”
“What if it’s not from our Shengzhou city?”
“Then continue to investigate.” He Wei shrugged, “This is an important clue. If the gun can be identified, it will be much easier to find the person.”
Chongzhen stretched his waist and put his legs on the stool: “It has nothing to do with the local police station anyway. What was popularized there is still Type-64 and the women’s unit. Didn’t they also try using the 9mm police revolver a few years ago? Still, a pit compared to Type-92.”
“There is no choice, even if it’s a pit. Although the cartridge will get stuck and break the firing pin, this time it killed someone with one shot, didn’t it?” He Wei put down his chopsticks and wiped his mouth, “If you think Type-92 is unsuitable, you can apply to Chief Zheng to buy a batch of Glocks from overseas. If you succeed, the entire police force will support you.”
Chongzhen was not fooled, but he let it go, and the funds for handling the case are tight, so why not buy a gun? I didn’t hear the economic detectives always complaining that undercover players have to pay for the entry fee out of the team’s own pocket, so he didn’t look for this bad luck.
“By the way, I got the apartment, and Chief Zheng notified me to move.”
Chong Zhen’s expression gradually became excited, and He Wei poured cold water on him: “But I’ll live alone. I won’t serve you who throw socks around in the house like it’s a pig’s nest.”
“…I can’t stand you who want to clean up the house when you have time!”
Will that apartment be where their worlds intersect, I wonder? 🤔
Thanks for the chapter!