"The symbol has appeared again!" several police officers said in unison.
At this moment, numerous forensic technicians were taking photos from a distance. Some forensic doctors were using wide-spectrum light sources to investigate the shoeprints at the scene, while others were using biological specimen instruments to meticulously examine surrounding fingerprints and hair.
"Why does he always stab the victim in the same area?" one officer remarked.
"This psychological tendency should be analyzed as the killer despising that part of the deceased's body. Stabbing it was an act of venting their anger. There are signs of assault on the victim's lower body, suggesting the stabbing occurred before the sexual assault," Liu Yu Ning analyzed.
"Exactly. He is pursuing a sense of perfection in the act of violation. This person enjoys necrophilia, and severely so," I chimed in.
"Necrophilia? Judging by the method, I think it might be a knitting worker," Liu Yu Ning suggested.
I gave a wry smile. "Let's not jump to conclusions. There are plenty of people skilled with needles and thread. We'll take the body back first, confirm her identity, notify the family, and then proceed with the interviews."
"Yes! Consultant He," Liu Yu Ning and the others replied in unison.
I removed my rubber gloves, stood up, approached the riverbank, struck a pose for a photo, and gazed into the distance.
I noticed that across the river was Gaogang City, our sister city to Fuming City. Nearby was a pier called Fushui Pier, no more than 500 meters from Fushui Bridge.
Fushui Bridge served as the economic link between Fuming City and Gaogang City, with a considerable number of vehicles passing through daily. The taxi driver who discovered the female corpse was one of them.
The river water here had always been very clean, but with the appearance of the female corpse, the water quality had changed drastically.
I walked up to the driver and presented my badge. "Hello! I am He Sheng from the Fuming City Police. Sir, did you discover the body?"
"Yes, Officer He. I was driving past here today, and since I needed to relieve myself, and there were no public restrooms nearby, I decided to pull over and do so. I remembered a secluded spot under the bridge."
"And then?"
"I was urinating when I noticed something floating in the water. After I finished, I walked over and poked it with a stick. To my shock, a girl's head emerged! I was so scared I almost urinated again. I scrambled out of there as fast as I could. After calming down, I remembered to call the police."
I asked the driver for his home address, and he then left.
The body had already been loaded onto the transport vehicle, and I prepared to return to the police station with everyone.
Earlier, Gao Mingqiang had returned with the surveillance video. He said, "I contacted the traffic police bureau for assistance and obtained a copy of the surveillance footage."
"Alright, take it back to the office and give it to He Xin. We'll watch it together!"
The car quickly set off. Upon returning to the police station, I instructed someone to accompany me to the forensic department. Xie Chuchu and a forensic doctor, Xiao Dong, opened the instruments in the laboratory. We began by drawing blood from the body for examination, as well as pathological checks. Fortunately, the face of this female corpse was intact, so I wouldn't need to use the restoration technique.
After taking photos, I asked the technical team to confirm the identity of the deceased as soon as possible. This time, however, I needed a special method for the autopsy.
I called Xiao Dong over. "Xiao Dong, could you do me a favor and buy some kelp, seaweed, and goji berries?"
"Sure!" Xiao Dong left without question.
Xie Chuchu, however, was curious. "Senior, what are you trying to do?"
"I'm going to prepare algae ash. It's used for autopsies."
"Oh."
Xie Chuchu proceeded to process the deceased's blood, while I stood straight in front of the body, observing its overall condition. During the examination, she used an operating lamp, opened the deceased's pupils, and then used a rectal thermometer.
I knew she was trying to determine the time of death.
Looking at the results displayed on the machine, Xie Chuchu blushed slightly. "Senior, the time of death is indeed midnight!"
"I already said that."
"I'm sorry!"
"It's alright. Help me undress the deceased."
The female corpse was now completely unclothed, her flawless white body exposed without reservation.
I had seen many female naked bodies before. Even though they were deceased, the situation wasn't that different from a living person.
Whenever I encountered an unusual corpse, I wouldn't feel scared; instead, I would become particularly excited, as if the deceased were my own experimental subject for autopsy.
I admit that this mentality is a bit perverse, but it helps me understand the body more deeply, as my grandfather used to say, "making the dead speak."
Soon, Xiao Dong returned with the kelp, seaweed, and goji berries. As soon as I received them, I began grinding them with a pestle.
Then, I placed the resulting powder in a glass dish and heated it with an alcohol lamp.
After a while, the powder turned purplish-black. Xie Chuchu asked curiously, "Senior, is this algae ash?"
"Precisely. Algae ash can reveal imprints and fingerprints on a corpse, operating on the same principle as forensic iodine staining methods, because algae ash contains a large amount of iodine."
"Moreover, your method can significantly increase efficiency," Xie Chuchu said intelligently.
"Yes, help me out. Use this brush to apply the algae ash to the deceased's body," I said.
We worked together, applying the algae ash to the entire body. After a minute, a chemical reaction began. Where the body had been white, fingerprints slowly started to appear, concentrated on the abdomen.
"When the killer stabbed the deceased's abdomen, they squeezed it several times with their hands, which is why fingerprints were left. But why weren't they there last time?" Liu Yu Ning asked, observing our autopsy.
"They were wearing gloves last time, but not this time? Could it be because they were in a hurry, or forgot to wear them? But that's impossible. Based on our previous investigation, wasn't the killer very meticulous? How could they make such a basic mistake?" Xie Chuchu wondered.
I rested my chin on my hand, lost in thought. Suddenly, I picked up the deceased's finger and used adhesive to lift the fingerprint. Upon comparison, I realized that the fingerprints were not left by the killer, but by the deceased herself.
"No wonder. It seems the deceased was in immense pain when she was stabbed, which is why she touched her abdomen with her hand!" Xie Chuchu exclaimed.
I remained silent. I manipulated the deceased's joints and tendons and tested her skin's reaction capabilities, surprisingly reaching a conclusion: "No! The deceased was stabbed in the navel while she was still alive!"
"Consultant He, are you saying the deceased was tortured to death? Then the pain she endured at that time must have been even more horrifying?" Liu Yu Ning asked.
"Yes, after being stabbed, the killer then struck the deceased's neck with a blunt object," I replied. Recalling the absence of drag marks near the bridge, I concluded that the location was likely the primary crime scene. The killer knew that area had no surveillance, making it suitable for the crime. However, because it was secluded, very few people frequented it. If we conducted surveillance screening, we should be able to find some suitable suspects.
There were no tire tracks at the scene. If my estimation was correct, the killer lured the victim under the bridge before attacking. If that's the case, did the victim know the killer?