I See Murders Before They Happen

Chapter 219: Chapter 217: I Feel Like You Guys Are Isolating Me Again

Yan Cheng was not at the meeting.

Liu Shitang’s body had completely thawed, and he was performing the autopsy.

"One more thing." Su Miaoyi tapped her notebook a few times with her pen. "Kang Hong’s fingerprints were found on Liu Shitang’s clothes. The prints only prove that Liu Shitang and Kang Hong were in contact, but assuming Kang Hong is connected to Liu Shitang’s death, could he have had an accomplice? Or what if Kang Hong *was* the accomplice?"

Zhuang Yanzheng nodded. "Kang Hong isn’t capable of pulling this off alone."

"That’s what I think, too," Su Miaoyi said.

"I still find it strange. Why would Zhang Bai help Kang Hong over and over again?" Qi Feng still felt something was off. "There’s nothing special about Kang Hong. Is it just because they were good friends? I could see helping him deal with getting reported as a favor between friends, but disposing of a body? Kang Hong is also a drug addict, and has been for years. What kind of friendship runs that deep?"

"It’s not that he has no special qualities," Lu Zhishen said. "Kang Hong is very smart. He had great grades, was a top student in the chemistry department, and won several scholarships."

’Making drugs.’

The thought surfaced in Su Miaoyi’s mind.

She had considered this possibility early on, and she was sure she wasn’t the only one.

But Kang Hong hadn’t confessed, and there was no evidence to prove it.

"Wanxiang Village," Zhuang Yanzheng said. "The village isn’t very large. Coincidentally, they’re doing natural gas inspections right now. Our people will accompany the maintenance crew and check every house. It should take about two days."

Su Miaoyi raised her hand.

Zhuang Yanzheng glanced at her. "The personnel have already been arranged. They’re all professionals and have some maintenance knowledge."

Su Miaoyi lowered her hand.

"Everything has been coordinated and arranged," Zhuang Yanzheng said. "Confidentiality will be strictly maintained."

It was just the few of them in the meeting.

They all nodded.

"Zhang Bai’s residence hasn’t been lived in for many years," Zhuang Yanzheng said. "But he buried the body two years ago, which means he was active in the country, maybe even in Jinghai. We need to intensify the investigation."

Su Miaoyi jotted notes in her notebook.

Lu Zhishen glanced at her notebook.

The last time he’d seen handwriting that illegible was on a doctor’s prescription.

’She probably never needed to lock her diary as a child,’ he thought. ’No one would have been able to read it anyway.’

Zhuang Yanzheng outlined the direction of the investigation, and then the meeting was adjourned.

Half the day flew by, and they had missed lunch again.

Just as they were about to see what was left in the cafeteria, Shen Shilan arrived.

She had brought food.

A lot of it.

After passing some out to everyone, Su Miaoyi and Shen Shilan went to Lu Zhishen’s sketch room.

Lu Zhishen was a little reserved at first. He only started to relax after Zhuang Yanzheng showed up.

Then it hit him that something was very wrong.

’Last night it was the Department Head, today it’s the Department Head’s wife...’

Lu Zhishen looked at the Department Head’s wife and Su Miaoyi.

The two sat next to each other, with Shen Shilan watching Su Miaoyi eat.

"Your voice is still hoarse. I brought some more medicine—some you can eat, and some to dissolve in water," Shen Shilan said. "Try it later."

"It’s fine," Su Miaoyi said while eating. "It’s just the heat. I’m a little run-down."

One bite was all it took to know that Shen Jun had cooked this meal.

"You still need to take care of yourself." Shen Shilan looked toward Zhuang Yanzheng and Lu Zhishen. "Yan Zheng, you two should drink some later as well. This weather is too hot, and you’re all so anxious. It’ll help you cool down."

"Okay," Zhuang Yanzheng replied.

Lu Zhishen also smiled and agreed.

Shen Shilan looked at him and returned the smile.

She hadn’t met Lu Zhishen many times, but she had heard Qin Chengyuan mention that the Municipal Bureau had a very talented sketch artist.

She was probably just used to the sharp intensity of men like Qin Chengyuan and Zhuang Yanzheng.

Seeing someone so well-behaved was a bit of a change she wasn’t quite used to.

"Where’s Yan Cheng?" Shen Shilan asked.

"The autopsy room. He hasn’t come out yet," Zhuang Yanzheng said.

Shen Shilan nodded and tucked a strand of Su Miaoyi’s hair behind her ear. "Eat slowly, don’t choke."

Su Miaoyi nodded, and the strand of hair fell forward again.

Shen Shilan looked at her hair, found a hair tie in her purse, and, standing behind her, tied her hair up.

"It’s a little greasy," Su Miaoyi said, turning her head to look at her.

Shen Shilan turned her head back forward. "It’s better tied up."

Su Miaoyi didn’t say anything else and went back to eating.

Lu Zhishen glanced at them again, then looked over at Zhuang Yanzheng.

Zhuang Yanzheng kept eating without even looking up, his expression completely unfazed.

Lu Zhishen felt that something was even more wrong.

He glanced at them one more time and suddenly noticed that, from a certain angle, Su Miaoyi and Shen Shilan looked a little alike.

A jolt went through him, and goosebumps erupted on his skin.

He almost couldn’t swallow the food in his mouth.

After the meal, Shen Shilan left right away, worried she was interrupting their work.

Su Miaoyi walked her out. When she returned, she planned to head over to the autopsy room.

"Aunt Shen left?" Zhuang Yanzheng asked casually.

"Yeah," Su Miaoyi replied just as casually.

Then the two looked at each other.

For Zhuang Yanzheng, this feeling of natural ease was all too familiar. In that instant, he found himself missing it terribly.

It felt familiar to Su Miaoyi, too, but only slightly. She still couldn’t remember anything.

They continued to look at each other.

Suddenly, Lu Zhishen stepped into the space between them.

Their gazes landed on him at the same time.

Lu Zhishen looked at her, then at him. "I’ve discovered something."

Su Miaoyi and Zhuang Yanzheng just looked at him, neither saying a word.

Lu Zhishen continued, "I’ve discovered that you two are ostracizing me again."

"Discover less," Zhuang Yanzheng said.

Lu Zhishen: "..."

Su Miaoyi clapped him on the shoulder. "Hope you can integrate with us soon."

Zhuang Yanzheng said, "I’m going to get back to work."

"I’m heading to the autopsy room," Su Miaoyi said.

"I’ll go with you."

The two of them walked toward the forensic center together.

"When did you figure it out?" Su Miaoyi asked.

Lu Zhishen looked at her, knowing what she was asking. "After we got back from Jiangcheng, when you failed the facial recognition scan."

Su Miaoyi glanced at him. "You could tell just by looking?"

Lu Zhishen nodded.

"Impressive." As someone who found drawing incredibly difficult, Su Miaoyi had immense respect for Lu Zhishen.

"So... you’re..." Lu Zhishen didn’t say it outright.

Su Miaoyi nodded. "Incredible, isn’t it?"

Lu Zhishen had never met Qin Leyan during his time at the Municipal Bureau.

Her later sacrifice... it was a deep-seated grief that he didn’t want to get involved in, or even know too much about.

That was why he knew so little about Qin Leyan.

"It is incredible, but it happened," Lu Zhishen said.

"Can you tell that my appearance has changed a little?" Su Miaoyi asked.

Lu Zhishen studied her for a moment, then nodded. "There are changes, but not many. In fact, the kinds of changes you have are ones that can happen to a person naturally. If I hadn’t done the skull reconstruction on those remains... even with you failing the facial recognition, I wouldn’t have considered this possibility. After all, I’ve seen people fail facial recognition just from gaining or losing weight."

Su Miaoyi looked at him.

Lu Zhishen said, "Does this mean I have to be more polite to you from now on?"

Su Miaoyi smiled. "From now on, I’ve got your back. If Zhuang Yanzheng steals your snacks again, we’ll report him to the higher-ups."

Lu Zhishen opened his mouth. "..."

...