Chapter 46
Before the aftermath of the pollution had subsided, a shocking murder case rocked a neighborhood in S city.
The deceased were a couple. They were lying peacefully in bed, their faces rosy and expressions normal, as if they were simply enjoying a dream, but they were already lifeless. Their neighbor discovered the bodies; the two families' children were about the same age and attended the same school. Every morning around seven o'clock, he could hear the sound of their door opening across the street. At the same time, the couple's fifteen-year-old daughter also mysteriously disappeared, leaving no trace on the security camera footage.
Logically, this should be more of a criminal case than a pollution case. However, after the autopsy, the forensic doctor found that all of the couple's organs were in a state of failure. Organ failure usually only occurs in the elderly, not in middle-aged people in their thirties. Moreover, it wasn't just one organ; the heart, liver, lungs... were all no longer functioning.
This bizarre manner of death almost overturned the court's understanding, and the case was quickly reported to the action department.
"Xiao Shengyun, Huang Yu, Chen Buyan, Yang Xiao, the four of you will be investigating this case. Although no traces of contamination were detected at the scene, we still need to be careful."
Ye Ting's order was issued quickly.
"No, is this something we should be handling? Since there are no signs of pollution, it's not contaminant. It should be handed over to the criminal investigation department." Chen Buyan shouted as soon as he got the information.
"This guy talks even more than me. He shouldn't be called 'silent,' he should be called 'talkative.'" Huang Yu whispered in Xiao Shengyun's ear.
"Hello, I can hear you."
Ye Ting rubbed his forehead, feeling a headache coming on. He knew that agreeing to transfer Young Master Chen here was a mistake; he should have transferred him to City C.
The head of the C City Operations Division is Ye Ting's mortal enemy.
"Alright, your grandpa said you can go back as long as you successfully complete ten pollution incidents. If you can do it this time, maybe he can approve more annual leave for you."
"real?"
It's fake. Let's keep this little tyrant calm first.
Ye Ting thought about the recent frequency of pollution incidents and regretted mentioning twenty more.
"Alright, then bring me a few skilled teammates, the kind who are good at solving cases."
Chen Buyan's talent "Amaterasu" has a huge destructive power against pollutants, but he is not very bright and cannot handle things like investigation.
"You're pretty capable, aren't you? How about this time, Young Master Chen takes the lead, and we'll listen to you and do whatever you say?" Huang Yu said sarcastically.
"You—" Chen Buyan's face turned bright red, but he didn't know how to refute her.
Just as tensions were building, the door creaked open, drawing everyone's attention.
The newcomer had short, parted hair, wore a pink shirt, a black suit jacket, and loose-fitting sweatpants. With striking features and sharp eyes, he appeared to be someone not to be trifled with.
"Captain Ye." Upon seeing Ye Ting, the person raised his hand in greeting, "I'm not late, am I?"
"You're late! We've already finished making arrangements, and you're only just arriving? Besides, what's with you, a guy, wearing a pink shirt? It looks so effeminate." Chen Buyan shifted his focus.
"Can't men wear pink shirts? Besides, I'm a woman." The person looked completely innocent.
A woman?
Not only did Chen Buyan choke on his breath, but the others also cast surprised glances. This person's face was androgynous, and his overwhelming aura gave the others the impression of being the master.
Yang Xiao was used to such gazes and openly allowed others to look him over.
"Let me introduce you. This is Yang Xiao, whose talent is 'Rewind,' which allows him to see scenes that happened nearby through objects. I specially invited him to assist in the investigation. Xiao Shengyun will be the team leader this time, and the rest of you will follow his instructions."
Chen Buyan finally fell silent.
The victim's family lived in an upscale residential community, which was unremarkable except for its high price. The husband, Shen Xiuping, was a manager at a company with a substantial income, while the wife, He Yun, was a full-time housewife. Their daughter, Shen Yao, had also gone missing a few days prior.
The body was discovered on Wednesday. There was a missed call on Shen Xiuping's phone on Monday. It was from Shen Yao's homeroom teacher, because Shen Yao hadn't gone to school that day.
Shen Yao's school has regular weekends off, so her disappearance occurred between Friday afternoon and Monday morning.
The Shen family's house is quite large, nearly 200 square meters, with one bedroom, three living rooms, and a balcony of about ten square meters. This space is more than enough for a family of three.
"How rich must someone be to buy such a big house in the city center?" Huang Yu exclaimed as he entered the door.
"You bumpkin, this whole house probably isn't even worth as much as my toilet," Chen Buyan sneered.
"What does it have to do with you if your money wasn't earned by your parents?" Huang Yu retorted bluntly.
"Shut up, both of you." "Stop arguing!" Two voices rang out simultaneously; the former was Yang Xiao, and the latter was Xiao Shengyun.
The sound was truly loud, and the other three people were startled. This woman lived up to her name; she was indeed brave.
Now no one interrupted. To prevent Chen Buyan from talking, Xiao Shengyun led his men to search for clues in the three bedrooms, while Yang Xiao and Huang Yu searched in the living room.
"If he bullies you, tell me. If I can't argue with him, I'll bite him to death," Huang Yu said indignantly as he left.
The three rooms are Shen Yao's room, the Shen couple's room, and the study.
Shen Yao's room was the largest and had excellent natural light. As soon as you entered, you could see sunlight shining on the pink pillows and blankets. There was a wardrobe and a small bookshelf next to the bed. A few steps further on was a desk with some scattered books and stationery on it.
"Her parents seem to treat her well," Chen Buyan remarked indifferently, seemingly having recovered from the shout.
This was not quite like Young Master Chen's style. When Xiao Shengyun looked over after hearing the voice, he was surprised to find a hint of melancholy in Chen Buyan's eyes.
You must have misread it.
It was somewhat awkward for two grown men to rummage through a girl's closet, especially since the entire house had already been searched by the criminal investigation team; they were just looking for some unusual items to trace back.
After quickly checking the wardrobe and bed, there was still a desk and a bookcase left.
There were some textbooks and workbooks on the table. This girl's grades must not be very good. Her workbooks were full of ridiculous mistakes.
There's a diary in the drawer. The earliest entry is about eight years ago, when the child first started school. The entries in those early years shouldn't really be called a diary; they were just some fragmented sentences.
“Mom bought a lot of dresses in different colors, including red, green and pink. She asked me which color I liked best, and I said red. Mom looked a little angry.”
"Today I got scolded by the teacher because I couldn't memorize the text, but I just couldn't memorize it. Even though she scolded me, I still couldn't memorize it. She said I was the dumbest child she had ever taught, but my mom said I was the smartest. I believe what my mom says."
“When we eat out, my mom says we should eat at home from now on. Do I have too big an appetite? The lady at the restaurant said I should eat more to grow stronger, but I seem to eat more than everyone else.”
“Dad said I would only need to go to school for two more years, but Mom seemed very angry. She left without eating breakfast, and I secretly put some snacks in her bag.”
"Mom writes every day. Do adults also have to copy texts? I helped her copy them so she doesn't have to write anymore. The day after tomorrow is my birthday, and I want to go out and play with my mom and dad."
He was young, and the things he remembered were all trivial little things. This diary is thick, filled with entries from when he was eight to when he was fourteen, all of which are these petty things.
"There's nothing much here," Chen Buyan said, somewhat annoyed by the shelf full of books.
Below the diary was a children's book—Andersen's Fairy Tales, which was quite fitting for the girl's age. The book looked like it had been frequently read, with a small fold on the page for "The Little Mermaid".
This is a well-known story. Next to the page where the little beauty turns into bubbles, there is a line of crooked words: Mom and Dad love me, I love Mom and Dad.
A girl who grew up surrounded by love.
All the tiny traces in the room pointed to this.
"Have you found any clues?" Huang Yu asked, peeking out. He and Yang Xiao had quickly searched the living room, which was several dozen square meters, but it was empty except for some large furniture. There was nothing to check.
"No." Xiao Shengyun tidied up his desk.
Chen Buyan seemed to want to speak, but after glancing at Yang Xiao, he angrily shut his mouth.
The adjacent bedroom was the couple's living quarters, and also the room where they ultimately died. Inside, there was a double bed, next to which was a two-meter-tall brown wooden wardrobe. The bed was covered with a thick mattress and soft sheets. In the center of the light green sheets, there was a slight indentation, through which two figures could be vaguely seen—this was where the couple's bodies were found.
Unlike other crime scenes, this place was too clean, without a trace of blood. A few pieces of clothing were hanging on the balcony connected to the bedroom, and the tender green leaves of the potted plant by the bed were swaying slightly, as if the owner had just gone on a long trip.
"Let's go back here and see if there are any clues." Xiao Shengyun looked at Yang Xiao. When the latter calmed down, his beautiful face was not so aggressive, and one could vaguely see some of his girlish delicacy.
"Hmm," the latter said, his hand sweeping across the edge of the bed, and the image instantly appeared in their minds.
Yang Xiao's talent can only rewind events from the past three days at a time, and he needs to rest for a week before he can use it again.
The first day, which was Tuesday morning.
Shen Xiuping and He Yun were lying in bed, in the same condition as when they were found on Wednesday, pushing back the time of their deaths by one day.
The next day, which was Monday morning.
The phone on the bedside table vibrated, likely a call from Teacher Shen Yao, but no one answered. It vibrated three times before falling silent. The two people on the bed remained still.
The third day was similar to the first two days.
"Gone? That's it?" Huang Yu was shocked. "I thought I could find some clues by going back in time, but all I saw were two dead bodies lying there for three days."
“At least we know they died before Sunday,” Xiao Shengyun comforted them.
"What's the use of knowing this? Can it bring someone back to life?"
"It seems that Shen Yao's disappearance and the deaths of the two Shen family members can be narrowed down to Friday and Saturday. Moreover, when we were investigating the living room just now, we discovered a suspicious point..."
“Look, there are some holes in the roof.”
The others followed Yang Xiao's gaze and saw that there were indeed several small holes along the edge of the Shen family's luxuriously decorated ceiling. They were so small that they were almost invisible unless you looked closely.
"So what if there's a hole?" Huang Yu asked, puzzled.
“Idiot, that’s where cameras are installed,” Chen Buyan finally found a chance to speak. “But it’s not strange, most people install cameras in their homes too.”
"But isn't this too many?"
After all, most people would only install one in each room, but there are five or six in the living room alone.
Those holes looked like several dark eyeballs, giving one a feeling that there was nowhere to hide.
The timing of the camera's removal is uncertain, and apart from the hole, no further clues can be found.
They arrived at the last room, which was a study. Inside, there was a large computer desk, and behind it, cabinets were neatly arranged with a large number of books, forming a wall of books.
"The computer can still be turned on."
Xiao Shengyun opened several cloud storage services and recycle bins, which seemed to contain only ordinary files.
Computers generally contain a lot of information, but unfortunately, Shen Xiuping's computer was set to automatically refresh upon restart.
Files used when the computer was last started will be automatically cleaned up and shredded.
Just as Xiao Shengyun was about to shut down the computer, he suddenly noticed a line of text.
"Look here, it shows the last time the computer was turned on was last weekend evening."
“But Shen Xiuping passed away last weekend.”
Staring at the date, the group of people felt a chill run down their spines.
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