Chapter 277 Let me take you to dig for gold. The big guys who were just lazily gathered around obediently, their wet noses twitching slightly, very cooperative!
"I remember this taste!" a spotted camel spoke first. "That person is awful; he never lets us rest."
"Yes, yes, yes," the young camel beside him nodded repeatedly. "He always took us to the same place, really, really far away, and then he and three other people would dig and dig."
Three people, exactly matching three mummy corpses!
Xia Zhining's heart skipped a beat. She immediately pulled out a sketchbook and charcoal pencil from her brother's backpack and looked intently at the camel herd: "Do you still remember the height and appearance of those three people?"
Camels are incredibly intelligent creatures; they not only know the way, but they also recognize people. They can firmly etch a person's appearance, scent, and subsequent experiences into their memory.
An elderly male camel slowly approached and calmly spoke: "[That tallest man is half a head taller than me when I'm standing.]"
Another female camel came over and gestured with her neck: "[The second one is a bit shorter than me; her shoulders just cover my hump.]"
The youngest camel squeezed to the front and eagerly added, "[The third one is the shortest; he only comes up to my neck!]"
Xia Zhining observed intently, her charcoal pencil scratching softly. Based on the height the camels were gesturing, she quickly sketched the outlines of three people on the paper.
The tallest was about 178cm, the middle one was about 170cm, and the shortest was about 165cm. Amidst the camels' chattering "descriptions," the characteristics of Jianyan's three companions began to emerge.
Xia Zhining then asked, "Did you see what they were digging for?"
[It's gold dust, sparkling gold dust!]
Xia Zhining's eyes lit up immediately. She squatted down and looked at the camels at eye level: "Do you remember how to get to the place with the gold dust?"
"I remember, I remember," the spotted camel eagerly answered, "It's very far! He first used that moving iron box—"
[It was a small truck that took us to a very remote highway.]
[The car drove for a very long time on that road before stopping by the highway. Then we got out and carried the four of them into the desert.]
The camel trader stared wide-eyed as Xia Zhining whispered to the camels while rapidly jotting down notes in her sketchbook, and couldn't help but marvel.
"Girl, your skills are truly amazing! I knew you were an animal communicator, but seeing it in person still gave me quite a shock!"
At this moment, the camel merchant leaned closer to take a look and suddenly pointed to one of the portraits and exclaimed:
"Hey! I've seen this person before!"
Ji Shuyun immediately pressed further, "Have you spoken with him? Do you know his identity?"
"He was an adventure enthusiast who came specifically to do desert trekking," the camel trader recalled.
"He came alone, wanting to rent my camel. He was quite generous, offering me a foreign cigarette, a brand I'd never seen before!"
"Oh dear! I suddenly remembered something strange!" The camel merchant slapped his forehead.
"Not long after the explorer left, Jian Yan came to lead the camels. He spotted the foreign cigarette tucked behind my ear, and his face instantly changed!"
The camel merchant mimicked Jian Yan's expression, his entire face scrunching up. "He grabbed my arm and demanded fiercely, 'Where did this cigarette come from?'"
"I got angry and pushed him away, saying, 'What's it to you? A generous tourist gave it to me!'"
The camel merchant scratched his head, still looking puzzled: "Isn't that strange?" After hearing this, Jian Yan was like a punctured balloon, and walked away with a cold face without saying a word.
"I was wondering at the time, maybe this kid is just jealous that I'm smoking nice cigarettes?"
Xia Zhining frowned as she listened: "Why is Jian Yan reacting so strongly to a cigarette?"
A knowing glint flashed in Ji Shuyun's eyes as he quickly pieced together the clues: "I suspect that Jian Yan and the three of them were originally partners in a gold rush, and they had agreed beforehand that Jian Yan would be in charge of renting camels."
"But when the explorer wanted to travel privately and came to the owner to rent a camel, he casually handed out cigarettes, giving the owner this distinctive foreign brand of cigarettes."
Ji Shuyun's voice became increasingly certain: "Jian Yan knew that only his accomplices smoked this brand of cigarettes. When he saw this cigarette, he understood that someone wanted to break away from the team and go solo."
"His anger at the time stemmed from discovering the betrayal of his accomplices."
"This matches Sand Fox's testimony perfectly!" Xia Zhining clapped her hands excitedly.
Just then, Ji Shuyun's phone rang; it was a call from the forensic doctor.
He immediately pressed the speakerphone button so that Xia Zhining could hear him too.
“Officer Ji,” the forensic doctor’s voice came through the receiver, “the identities of the three victims are still being verified, but the cause of death has been determined.”
"One person died from being strangled with a rope; another suffered severe injuries from a fall and was then strangled; and the last person died from a severe blow to the back of the head that fractured the skull."
Xia Zhining immediately read out a series of data into her phone: "Forensic doctor, were the heights of these three deceased individuals approximately 178cm, 165cm, and 170cm?"
There was a two-second silence on the other end of the phone, followed by the forensic doctor's incredulous voice: "...Yes! Dr. Xia, how did you do that?!"
"That's right!" Xia Zhining said cheerfully. "Now please send police to meet us immediately, and we'll go and arrest the murderer right away."
"Catch the murderer?!" The forensic doctor's voice trembled noticeably, filled with seven parts shock and three parts ecstasy. "It's only been one night! Our autopsy report has only just come out..."
Are these...the legendary twin stars of the Jiangcheng police force?!
"Coming right now!!!"
After hanging up the phone, Xia Zhining turned to the camels and gently asked, "My dear camel friends, do you remember the way to that place? Could you show us the way?"
"Miss, are you going to dig for gold too?" A camel with exceptionally large eyes approached. "I remember the way! I can take you! There are lots of sparkling stones there!"
Another camel squeezed in: "Yes, yes! We'll give you gold as payment! You just cured the thorn in my foot, you're a good veterinarian!"
Xia Zhining was so charmed by these innocent and enthusiastic creatures that her heart melted. She touched each of their noses and said, "Thank you! But we're not going to dig for gold; we're going to catch someone who did something wrong."
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