Chapter 2 Trash Bags
The black garbage bag dripping with blood made Wang Lixia shudder. She grabbed the police officer standing beside her and begged in tears: "I called the police. Now Doudou has been found. Do I need to go back to the police station to fill out a form and sign? Take me back. I don't want to see that thing."
But none of the police moved.
Everyone's feet seemed to be nailed to the ground. They stared at the black plastic bag in Xia Mufan's hand with wide eyes, their heartbeats quickening and their mouths dry.
——What is that?
——Is it meat? What meat?
Yu Jing didn't expect Xia Mufan to be so brave! Not only was he not afraid of dirt and stench, he even dared to stand straight holding the bag dripping with blood, without a trace of fear on his face.
Without thinking too much, Yu Jing walked up, took the bag from her hand and put it on the ground.
The bag was tied in a knot, and Yu Jing tore it open.
A pile of flesh and broken bones appeared before my eyes.
The strong smell of blood was nauseating.
Sun Xianbing, who always shouted about solving big cases and making great contributions, felt as if his throat was stuck and his face turned pale when he actually saw the flesh and bones being chopped into pieces.
"What kind of meat is this?"
"It's not human flesh, is it?"
"A dismemberment case?!"
Sun Xianbing became very talkative when he got nervous. He started to talk non-stop: "Oh my god, this is a big case. We must report it immediately. Report it to the Criminal Investigation Brigade of the Municipal Public Security Bureau. We can't handle this case. Let me think about it. The most important thing in a dismemberment case is to find more body parts, discover the characteristics of the victim, and identify the source of the body..."
Xia Mufan has always been bold and was not affected by Sun Xianbing's nervousness at all. He remained calm and took out four black bags from three trash cans.
Heavy piles of flesh and blood were lying on the ground. Two bags were torn apart by wild dogs. The meat pieces were stained with garbage, blood and sewage, and the scene was gloomy.
Cats and dogs have extremely keen senses of smell and can smell the odor of protein. They can smell the pieces of meat discarded in the trash can even if they are hidden at the bottom.
If Xia Mufan had not heard the animals' discussion, the pieces of meat would probably have been divided up and eaten by the wild dogs, and even the bones would have been eaten clean. Just wait for the garbage truck to come and all the evidence will disappear. What a good plan!
Yu Jing didn't dare to start eating directly. He picked up a wooden stick and turned it over. He lowered his head to check for a long time. He suppressed his nausea and looked up at Xia Mufan: "What do you think this meat is?"
Xia Mufan's eyes flickered, as if there were small flames dancing in them. She shook her head and didn't express her opinion.
The strict military training kept Yu Jing alert. He looked at his watch and thought quickly.
First, the sanitation workers in the area collect garbage twice a day, in the morning and in the evening. It is now 9:32 in the morning, and the garbage cans are full of various household garbage. It seems that the garbage in this neighborhood has not been taken away yet. Judging from the depth at which the meat was buried, it must have been discarded between last night and early this morning.
Second, the weather is hot and the meat goes bad quickly. This pile of minced meat had only a faint smell of decay, indicating that the meat was still fresh when it was discarded. If it is meat for daily consumption, who would be willing to throw away so much meat that is not spoiled?
There is definitely something fishy about throwing away so much fresh meat secretly in the dark.
Thinking of this, Yu Jing stood up, frowning: "We must report to the Municipal Bureau Criminal Investigation Brigade and ask the forensic doctor to come and check."
Director Wei Yong received the news and rushed to Huajiao Lane.
Seeing the five garbage bags lined up side by side, the red ones in the bags contained unevenly sized chunks of meat, the yellow ones contained fat mixed in the meat, and the white ones contained bones chopped into small pieces, mixed with blood and dirt. The scene was so shocking that Wei Yong's face turned pale. He took a half step back, supporting himself on the wall with his right hand before he could stand firm.
Xia Mufan raised his eyes and glanced at Wei Yong, his gaze moving from his pale face to his slightly trembling legs. I heard that Chief Wei is a veteran criminal policeman who retired from the Criminal Investigation Brigade of the Municipal Bureau and was transferred to work at the police station when he was in his forties. An old comrade who has experienced countless major cases should be knowledgeable and experienced. How could he be afraid of blood?
After a few breaths, Wei Yong suppressed his trembling and said in a hoarse voice: "Seal off... the scene, report it." He had worked in the police station for ten years, and he just wanted to have peace and tranquility for the rest of his life.
But now it seems that Anning Road can no longer be peaceful.
Blue trash can, black trash bag, minced meat mixed with bones...
It was extremely weird, as if there was a black fog covering this quiet and peaceful Huajiao Lane.
After reporting to the Public Security Bureau and setting up the cordon, Yu Jing and Sun Xianbing looked at the director at the same time: "Captain Wei, what should we do next? Just wait?"
Wei Yong tried to calm himself down. After finding out the situation, his years of experience in handling cases allowed him to react quickly: "Dayu, contact the Environmental Sanitation Bureau and stop collecting garbage this morning."
Yu Jing stood still immediately: "Yes!"
Wei Yong looked at the three pale-faced community police officers and asked: "Can you please ask the surrounding residents whether they have seen anyone throwing such black garbage bags between last night and this time in the early morning?"
It is impossible to carry and throw away five bags of such heavy garbage in one go. They must have been transported one after another, or pushed with a cart. If there are eyewitnesses, even if they just see a back, it can provide clues to solving the case.
Three community police officers responded in unison, walked into the crowd and began to ask questions.
Wei Yong turned his gaze to Sun Xianbing again: "You and Xiaoxia search along Anning Road to see if there are any similar garbage bags."
"yes!"
Sun Xianbing turned around and motioned Xia Muchan to follow.
Wei Yong reminded them: "If you find anything unusual, don't move it to avoid damaging the scene."
At this time, Xia Mufan also realized that he was not wearing gloves when he took the bag out of the trash can. If there are fingerprints on the garbage bag, it may have been destroyed.
Sun Xianbing asked: "But, the trash can is full of those black bags. If I don't open them, how do I know which one contains meat?" The word "meat" triggered the fear in his heart, and he began to retch.
Wei Yong was silent for a moment, then nodded: "Then wait a moment, let's protect the scene and notify the Municipal Bureau to send a police dog."
Sun Xianbing immediately said, "Okay."
But Xia Mufan's eyes were filled with eagerness: "Wei Suo, the weather is hot and the meat cannot be kept for long. I can smell it. Let me go find it." The opportunity to make a contribution was right before his eyes, how could he let it go?
Wei Yong looked at Xia Mufan, who was usually lazy and carefree. "Is your nose more sensitive than a police dog? Come on, tell me. There are so many dirty things piled together in the trash can. How can you tell that there is something wrong with the meat?"
Xia Mufan straightened his back and looked Wei Yong in the eye.
"There are stray dogs wandering around the trash cans. They are unwilling to leave even when they see people coming. This is obviously wrong. Generally speaking, stray dogs in cities are afraid of people. What makes them risk being driven away and search in the trash cans?"
"I took a closer look and smelled a faint smell of blood. Although the smell was masked by the rotting smell of garbage, it was clear that it was fresh. I thought at the time that this must be what the wild dogs were obsessed with."
"When I got to the trash can, I saw a black trash bag that had been pulled to the upper layer by a wild dog. It smelled very bloody. When I picked it up, I could tell from the shape of the bag that it was not useless bones with the meat removed, but that there was more meat than bones. The bag was heavy, at least five kilograms."
After talking about his discovery, Xia Mufan looked around the surrounding environment of Huajiao Alley and said, "Look, the road surface of Huajiao Alley is seriously damaged, and there are electric and telephone wires everywhere above the alley. It is obvious that the living conditions of the residents here are not very good and they are used to living frugally. Who would throw fresh meat into the trash can?"
Xia Mufan was tall, with bright eyes and a clear voice. He concluded, "There must be something wrong when something is out of the ordinary. Therefore, I believe that there is something wrong with the meat. If these are human body parts, then five bags are definitely not all of them. There must be more. A bag of five kilograms is not light. The other party must have used tools to carry them. He was afraid of being discovered, so he would not extend the route for dumping the bodies too long. Therefore... the other body parts are still nearby."
Yu Jing and Sun Xianbing exchanged glances.
Usually sitting in an office, Xia Mufan is quiet and doesn't like to communicate with others, so people thought she was introverted and not good at speaking. I just realized today that she is not untalkative, she just hasn't found anything that interests her.
Wei Yong was a little surprised.
This newly assigned female police officer has a clear mind and careful thinking, which is rare.
"Well, if you find something unusual, you should investigate it immediately. This is the professional quality of a criminal police officer. Since you want to find it, then go find it."
Xia Mufan raised his head and chest, stood still and saluted: "Yes!"
There were so many people here just now that the birds were scared away. Now the situation is gradually under control and a few sparrows have flown in from the tree.
What are humans doing? So lively. 】
[There is meat in the black garbage bag, they are looking for it. 】
[The wild dogs have gone to Guihua Lane, Hongjia Lane, Changfeng Lane and Shuangtong Lane. I guess there are still some there. 】
Hearing this, Xia Mufan curled his lips, turned his head and said to Sun Xianbing: "Let's go!"
Following the birds' guidance, Xia Mufan and Sun Xianbing walked west along Anning Road. They found several black garbage bags in the trash cans at the entrances of the four alleys connected to the main road: Guihua Lane, Hongjia Lane, Changfeng Lane, and Shuangtong Lane. Xia Mufan picked up the bags wearing gloves.
The bag was heavy and oozing with blood.
It is exactly the same as the one found in Pepper Alley.
Verifying their guess once again, Xia Mufan and Sun Xianbing looked at each other, asked their colleagues to seal off the scene, and returned to Huajiao Lane to request reinforcements.
Before the two men reached the alley entrance, they heard sirens and officers from the Criminal Investigation Brigade of the Municipal Public Security Bureau had arrived at the scene.
As more and more police cars gathered, the surrounding people stood outside the cordon with nervous expressions, asking questions and talking curiously.
"What's going on? So many policemen are coming."
"See? So many garbage bags, it smells so bad~"
"Could it be murder and dismemberment? Oh, that's too horrible! I've lived in Pepper Lane for so many years and I've never heard of anything like this."
Two forensic doctors came to the scene carrying test boxes.
Walking in front was Gu Shaoqi, a senior forensic doctor from the Municipal Bureau, and the one carrying the box was his apprentice Zhou Wei.
Gu Shaoqi was a tall and thin man with broad shoulders and long legs, wearing a white coat. He took small steps, but walked with a breeze and a cool and stern demeanor, which immediately attracted the attention of the people present.
Zhou Wei opened the inspection box, Gu Shaoqi put on rubber gloves, squatted down, and focused on examining the piece of meat on the ground. His eyelids drooped slightly, and his eyelashes trembled, casting a shadow on his eyelids, giving a sense of depth and mystery.
Sun Xianbing, who was originally planning to ask someone to move the black garbage bags, was quickly diverted. He approached Xia Mufan and whispered, "Did you see that? That's the only forensic doctor with a master's degree in our Municipal Public Security Bureau, Gu Shaoqi. He's so good, there's no cause of death he can't find out!"
Xia Mufan narrowed his eyes and looked at Gu Shaoqi.
It was already past ten in the morning, the sun was scorching and the ground was baking.
Countless onlookers were crowded together, the trash can was filled with a foul smell, the pieces of meat in the garbage bag began to stink, and under the steam, all kinds of smells mixed together, which was not pleasant.
Gu Shaoqi was like a breeze that blew away all the heat.
Xia Mufan couldn't help but feel a little curious. How could a man with such an outstanding appearance, and a master's degree, be willing to come to Hui City Public Security Bureau to be a forensic doctor? Hui City is not a big city, so why would he be willing to take root here?
Gu Shaoqi is very famous in the Huishi Public Security System. Sun Xianbing knows a lot about him: "I heard that forensic doctor Gu is very good at studying. He studied clinical medicine for both his undergraduate and master's degrees. He should have been assigned to Kyoto Hospital when he graduated, but for some reason he took the initiative to ask to work as a forensic doctor in our Huishi Public Security Bureau. The leaders of the Municipal Bureau were so happy at that time that they wanted to worship him as a treasure. He was admitted to the doctoral program in forensic medicine at Southern Medical University last year. He studied under the forensic master Liu Huangen. He is amazing!"
Liu Huangen? Xia Mufan often heard this name from his teachers when he was in school.
Liu Huangen is the first generation of forensic doctors trained in New China. He graduated from Kyoto Medical College in 1952 and completed the senior teaching class of forensic medicine for cadres in 1953, laying a solid foundation in forensic pathology. After that, he worked as a grassroots forensic doctor in the Kyoto Public Security Bureau for more than 30 years and experienced countless cases. He was rigorous, neat and meticulous in his work. Even in the ten years of chaotic management, the inspection records and appraisal reports written by him were standardized, accurate and comprehensive, making him a model in the forensic field.
Xia Mufan raised his eyes to look at Gu Shaoqi, thinking to himself: He has such a great mentor, but he is willing to stay in the small city of Huizhou and work as a grassroots forensic doctor? It's so weird.
Soon, Yue Yuan, the leader of the serious crime team of the Municipal Bureau’s Criminal Investigation Brigade, brought people over.
Yue Yuan is of medium height, with dark skin and a voice as loud as a bell. The first thing he did when he arrived at the scene was to shake hands with Director Wei Yong: "Old Wei, long time no see."
His voice was a little excited and his eyes were eager, and it was obvious that he respected Wei Yong very much.
"Yeah, long time no see." Wei Yong said gently, pointing at Yu Jing, "Let Xiao Yu introduce the situation to you. He is the head of the case team of our police station."
Sun Xianbing came two years earlier than Xia Mufan and was very familiar with the celebrities in Hui City's public security system. He once again whispered to Xia Mufan: "Our Wei Suo used to be a member of the Criminal Investigation Brigade of the Municipal Bureau, and he was a colleague of Yue Yuan, the head of the serious crime team."
Xia Mufan nodded, his eyes closely following Yue Yuan's figure.
After studying criminal investigation theory for four years, I finally have the opportunity to practice handling cases, which I absolutely cannot miss. Since Yue Yuan is the leader of the serious crime team, he must have strong investigative capabilities. I will definitely gain something if I follow him and learn more.
After learning about the case with the police from the police station, Yue Yuan walked over to Gu Shaoqi and squatted down, observing the five black garbage bags in front of him: "Can you tell what kind of meat this is?"
Gu Shaoqi picked up a piece of meat the size of a mahjong from the bag and observed it in the sunlight: "The skin tissue is tight, the pores are fine, there are many layers, and the fat is yellowish. It doesn't look like beef, lamb, or pork."
His voice was like a spring hitting a rock, clear, clean and calm.
The sun rose and shone on his head, casting a thin layer of soft light on his facial features, making him look more like jade and his white shirt more like snow.
The originally beautiful scene turned horrifying because of the dark piece of meat in his hand.
After hearing what Gu Shaoqi said, Yue Yuan had a bad guess in his mind: "People?"
Gu Shaoqi shook his head: "It's too fragmented, hard to say, I need more samples."
Hearing this, Sun Xianbing stood out from the crowd and reported loudly: "Report, there are still ten bags in Guihua Lane, Hongjia Lane, Changfeng Lane, and Shuangtong Lane."
Yue Yuan stood up and said, "Hurry up, take us there!"
The first thing that needs to be confirmed is whether the piece of meat belongs to humans or animals.
If it is a human, it is a murder and dismemberment case, the nature of the case is extremely serious and must be investigated immediately.
If it is a rare animal, a case will be opened for investigation if it is suspected of illegal hunting and killing of precious and endangered wild animals.
If it was meat that was consumed on a daily basis, it would be just a minor matter and not enough to warrant a case. At most, we can ask the police station to investigate and find out the truth. Once the person is found, they can be criticized and educated, and asked not to waste food.
There were a lot of footprints around the trash can at the entrance of the alley, and stray dogs had rummaged through garbage everywhere. There was no point in continuing to stay at the scene. Yue Yuan directed the police to collect all the pieces of meat and bones thrown into the trash cans and bring them to Huajiao Lane.
Fifteen bags in total.
No fingerprints were found on the plastic bag.
There were no large bones or skulls, just pieces of meat and bones chopped into two-inch pieces.
Gu Shaoqi dug out a human finger from a pile of unrecognizable pieces of flesh, his face became solemn, and he turned to look at Yue Yuan: "We can open a case now."
A vicious murder case.
Yue Yuan felt a little heavy-hearted. He looked at Xia Mufan, Yu Jing and Sun Xianbing who had been guarding the scene. "You did a great job. Thank you for your cooperation and support. I will report the truth."
The dismemberment case is of a serious nature and is a major case.
There are procedures to follow for filing a case, and Yue Yuan also needs to report to his superiors. The serious crime team and others leave the scene.
Huajiao Lane, which was bustling just now, suddenly became quiet.
Watching the members of the serious crime team leave, Sun Xianbing finally had the opportunity to express his excitement: "Great! Team Leader Yue said he would report the truth. Dayu, do you think we have done a good deed?"
Yu Jing was a pragmatic person. He glanced at Sun Xianbing and said, "Only if we solve the case can we achieve merit."
Sun Xianbing was a little shocked, his shoulders slumped. "Ah, this case looks difficult. The body was chopped into pieces, how do we know who it is? The community police just asked everyone, but no one knew who threw the garbage bag. We can't even confirm the source of the body, so how can we find the murderer?"
Xia Mufan was not discouraged: "It's difficult, why be afraid? Killing and dismembering a person usually requires planning and preparation, so there will definitely be a lot of traces left. As long as we are careful, we will always find clues."
Sun Xianbing liked her fearless spirit and her courage to move forward, and he wanted to put his arm around her shoulders and shout "hello, brother". It's a pity that there are differences between men and women. He raised his hand, but eventually retracted it and scratched his head: "Okay! Then try your best to solve the case."
Yu Jing was also infected by Xia Mufan's enthusiasm and laughed: "Xiao Xia is right. The serious crime team has taken over the case, and our grassroots police stations should work hard to help solve the case."
As soon as he returned to the police station and made records as required, Wei Yong called a meeting of all the police officers in the police station and began to arrange work.
"It takes some time for the serious crime team to file a case, so our grassroots police stations need to do the work in advance."
"First, we set up a three-kilometer radius around the garbage bin and interviewed nearby residents to see if there were any suspicious people throwing garbage out at night."
"Second, sort out the files of the residents of Huajiao Lane, contact the security department of the sewing machine factory, and search for the missing persons."
“Third, keep in touch with the municipal bureau at all times to obtain first-hand information.”
Xia Mufan and all the police officers stood up at the same time, stood still, and shouted loudly: "Yes!"
Looking at the young faces in front of him, Wei Yong felt a long-lost sense of pride surge in his heart. He used to be a warrior who would become more energetic when seeing a big case, and would rush forward the more difficult it was, but...
Wei Yong stopped reminiscing and looked at Xia Mufan: "You were the first one to discover the abnormality today, and you and Xiao Sun found more body parts. You did a good job." The new generation pushes the old generation forward. To be honest, Wei Yong was very pleased to see young people bravely moving forward.
Sun Xianbing also praised her: "Yes, Xiaoxia was very brave today. She just picked up the bag of body parts like this! Blood was dripping..."
Yu Jing's eyes were full of admiration: "Xiao Xia not only has a keen sense of smell, but is also bold and careful. If she hadn't been so vigilant and discovered these body parts in time, by the time the garbage truck came, all the evidence would have been destroyed, and there would be one more innocent person dead in our jurisdiction."
Wei Yong nodded: "This is what our police should do. We will never let a bad guy go, and we will never miss a bad thing. As long as it is suspicious, we will track it down to the end!"
It was as if a seed was quietly sprouting in Xia Muchan's heart.
Although immature, it is full of vitality.
Xia Mushige straightened his chest and responded quickly: "Yes!"
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