The man in black pulled out a book from somewhere, examined it by the candlelight, and then muttered to himself, following the descriptions in the book.
"One of the techniques in autopsy is to examine the body for external injuries in order to determine the cause of death..."
After saying that, the man in black began to examine the corpse.
Su Yan, hiding in the shadows, could tell at a glance that the man in black was a novice who didn't know anything about autopsies.
Since the men in black had come to the morgue late at night with the same purpose as her, Su Yan felt there was no need to continue hiding. "This isn't how you conduct an autopsy..."
As soon as Su Yan finished speaking, the man in black had already placed a dagger against her neck.
The icy touch on her neck sent chills down Su Yan's spine. "Mercy, sir..."
Beneath the black-clad man's cloak was a very young face, seemingly a seventeen or eighteen-year-old boy, but the murderous intent in his eyes still frightened Su Yan.
"Who are you?" the boy in black asked.
"I am a coroner and also a member of the Surveillance Bureau. My name is Su Yan. I solved the courtesan case a while ago."
"You're an official, and you've seen my face before, so it seems I can't let you live..."
Just as the boy in black raised his hand, preparing to deal with Su Yan...
Su Yan immediately begged for mercy, "Hero, please have mercy! I'm here to examine the body. Even if you kill me now, you won't be able to determine the cause of death..."
After listening, the young man in black did seem hesitant; autopsy was indeed a complete novice for him.
"Are you really able to verify this?"
Su Yan nodded vigorously, "Of course it's real, a genuine coroner. Young hero, judging from your demeanor, you don't seem like an assassin, but rather a chivalrous knight-errant. May I ask your name, young hero..."
Hearing the praise, the young man in black put away his dagger. He also sensed that Su Yan meant no harm, and his smugness practically reached the sky. "The carefree swordsman Bai Yunfei..."
Su Yan felt a strange sense of familiarity upon hearing the name, as if she had heard it somewhere before.
Su Yan quickly remembered that a righteous and righteous martial arts figure had appeared in Chang'an City, but she was quite surprised to find that the person was the seventeen or eighteen-year-old boy in front of her.
But that's understandable; young people are always full of passion...
Bai Yunfei looked at Su Yan's surprised expression and felt a little confused. "You know me?"
Su Yan shook her head, "No, but I did hear about your deeds of helping the weak and punishing the strong in Chang'an. You truly are a hero among the young. I admire you..."
Bai Yunfei was a little embarrassed by the praise, a blush rising to his face. He waved his hand and said, "Not at all, not at all. My father said that a real man should serve his country and its people, stand tall and upright... This is what I should do..."
Su Yan smiled slightly, having roughly guessed why Bai Yunfei had sneaked into the Surveillance Bureau at night.
"Young Master Yunfei, are you also here tonight to investigate this dry well case?"
"Hmm... I heard that Fan Shangwen, that corrupt official, has killed more than twenty people. But he's an official appointed by the imperial court, and I'm afraid of officials protecting each other, so..."
"So you plan to investigate the case yourself and expose Fan Shangwen's crimes?" Su Yan chimed in.
Bai Yunfei looked surprised. "How did you know?"
Upon hearing this, Su Yan sighed and rubbed her forehead in exasperation. Bai Yunfei was quite ambitious and idealistic, but he was just a bit too simple-minded.
"Young Master Yunfei, you can't solve this case by yourself. Besides, who told you that Fan Shangwen is the murderer?"
"The body was found in the Fan family's dry well, so how could it not be Fan Shangwen?"
"Young Master Yunfei, do you know when the murderer first disposed of the body?"
Bai Yunfei shook his head innocently. He really didn't know, and since he hadn't examined the body, most of what he knew were rumors circulating in the streets.
"The murderer first disposed of the body five years ago... Five years ago, Fan Shangwen was still an unknown nobody, and he had bought that house three years prior. How could he be the murderer..."
"Really?" Bai Yunfei seemed somewhat skeptical of Su Yan's words.
Su Yan nodded, "Of course it's true. I was the one ordered to investigate the dry well case, and I was the one who examined those twenty-odd corpses..."
"Have you found out who the murderer is?" Bai Yunfei asked excitedly.
"No... Investigating a case requires solid evidence, not just wild guesses..."
After hearing this, Bai Yunfei looked slightly disappointed, as if his enthusiasm had been doused with cold water.
Su Yan could understand Bai Yunfei's feelings at this moment. After all, he was inexperienced in the ways of the world and his inner thoughts were revealed without reservation.
Su Yan smiled and walked towards the corpse on the ice bed. After the body was degassed and frozen, the giant appearance had clearly disappeared.
Seeing Bai Yunfei's dejected figure, Su Yan called out, pointing to the lamp beside the ice bed, "Young Master Yunfei, could you please light this lamp for me..."
"You want to perform an autopsy?"
Su Yan nodded, "Otherwise, why would I come here in the middle of the night..."
Upon hearing this, Bai Yunfei's eyes immediately lit up. He walked up to Su Yan and enthusiastically picked up the lamp, saying, "Brother Su, you don't have to call me Young Hero Yunfei. Just call me Yunfei..."
"Alright... I won't stand on ceremony with you anymore. I'm going to perform a dissection later. Are you scared?"
"I'm not afraid. My dad says a real man can bend and stretch, so I'm not afraid of corpses..."
"good……"
Su Yan smiled, looking very pleased. She knew she hadn't misjudged Bai Yunfei; he was a promising talent worth nurturing.
"Yunfei, would you like to learn autopsy techniques from me?"
Bai Yunfei pointed at himself, his face filled with disbelief, "You're going to teach me how to perform an autopsy?"
Su Yan nodded. Although it was their first meeting, Su Yan liked Bai Yunfei, this seemingly simple-minded but actually naive young man, very much. He was courageous, patient, and most importantly, had a heart that was not afraid of power and pursued justice.
"Alright... From now on, you'll be my master." Bai Yunfei agreed without hesitation, immediately kneeling down and kowtowing, "Master, please accept my bow..."
During his time in Chang'an, Bai Yunfei had naturally heard of Su Yan's reputation. He had always wanted to become Su Yan's disciple, but he never expected to meet her here.
"Not bad, not bad, you're a quick learner..." Su Yan quickly helped Bai Yunfei, who was kneeling on the ground, up. "I'll start the autopsy right away, so you'd better take a good look..."
"Uh-huh……"
Bai Yunfei nodded expectantly. He then saw Su Yan lift the white cloth covering the deceased. In the candlelight, the corpse was deathly white, like dull ivory. The contrast between the candlelight and the darkness made it appear extremely eerie and terrifying.
Fortunately, the body had been in a low-temperature environment, so the decomposition was not significant.
The deceased was a girl, aged between ten and thirteen, about three feet tall, with obvious lividity on her back. She was likely in a face-down position. There were obvious whip marks on her chest, bruises on her neck, a broken cervical vertebra, obvious tears in her private parts, and her hymen was missing. She died two months ago, and the cause of death was a broken neck.
After hearing Su Yan's account, Bai Yunfei clenched his fists in anger and gritted his teeth, saying, "Heartless... how could they harm a child?"
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