The Forensic Doctor Better Than a Detective

He looked particularly at Mr. Jiang and continued, ”Especially the three suggestions Mr. Jiang proposed at the meeting just now, they are very forward-looking and practical. We have communicated them immediately, and now all team members are actively advancing in this direction. Everyone feels the approach is clearer, and the motivation is stronger.”

Jiang An smiled slightly and replied, ”Mr. Qin, you are too kind.”

”To be honest, I have reviewed the case materials. Your investigation process is very thorough, and each task has been done quite solidly. The clues that needed to be investigated have basically been checked out.”

He paused slightly and continued, ”However, in criminal investigation work, I have always thought that while professional ability is required, a bit of luck is sometimes indispensable.”

”It’s not like laboratory experiments, where you can proceed step by step according to plan.”

”Often, breakthroughs occur at unexpected points.”

He further explained, ”For example, in the process of identifying suspects or when searching for crucial physical evidence, unexpected turns often occur.”

”These contingencies are actually also a real part of criminal investigation work.”

Director Hou, hearing this, replied with a bit of emotion in his tone, ”Indeed.”

”I once encountered a case before where no matter how we looked, the key physical evidence couldn’t be found. We turned all possible places inside out.”

”Later, through an inadvertent look back, it turned out to be in a corner that had long been checked but was somehow overlooked.”

”Sigh, that really fulfilled the old saying—’What you seek with worn-out iron shoes cannot be found, but comes effortlessly without any labor at all.’”

The three exchanged a smile, and the atmosphere lightened a bit.

Jiang An took up the topic, his tone becoming serious, ”You are absolutely right. Luck is important, but solving cases cannot rely entirely on luck.”

”Even the most coincidental opportunities require solid groundwork to support them.”

After finishing, he turned to Mr. Qin and said, ”Mr. Qin, if the scene is not too far from here, we had better go there in person.”

”After all, the scene photos in the materials are just two-dimensional. Many details, spatial relationships, and site atmosphere remain a layer apart without being there to experience them in person.”

Mr. Qin immediately responded, ”No problem! The scene is about an hour’s drive from our bureau.”

He glanced at his watch, ”We still have plenty of time, I’ll accompany you there.”

Then, the three of them finished their cups of tea, set off together, and drove out of the Qinzhou City Public Security Bureau.

About an hour later, they arrived at the entrance of a village on the outskirts of the city.

Mr. Qin led the way while introducing, ”This village isn’t small. The local registered population plus the external population exceeds 10,000, making it one of the largest settlements in the surrounding area.”

After walking for about a quarter of an hour, Mr. Qin raised his hand and pointed ahead, ”Look, that cornfield over there is the specific location of the crime.”

Jiang An turned around and looked back, noticing the village was already far behind. He couldn’t help but ponder, ”This place is indeed a distance from the residential area.”

Mr. Qin nodded in agreement, ”In our early investigations, we conducted extensive visits around the village, trying to find witnesses or anyone who heard any unusual sounds, but unfortunately, we found nothing.”

”Not to mention witnesses, not even a suspicious sound was heard by anyone.”

Jiang An said, ”I didn’t feel it when looking at the photos, but being here in person, I truly sense the remoteness of this place.”

”The killer chose this location for the crime after careful consideration.”

He turned to ask, ”Is the deceased Wang Xiu’s family plot nearby?”

Mr. Qin gestured toward another small path, ”Wang Xiu’s family plot is further ahead, just past the rise over there.”

”And this plot here is actually tilled by his cousin, and the one next to it is his younger brother’s.”

Jiang An nodded and once again gazed at the cornfield.

”Let’s go explore the center of the crime scene.”

Soon, the three of them walked along the ridges, gradually entering the depths of the cornfield.

After 10 minutes, they arrived at a cornfield.

A lone blue-gray stone sat conspicuously in the soil at the end of the field.

Mr. Qin stopped, brushed aside the interwoven corn leaves in front of him, and said heavily, ”Here it is!”

”At the time of the crime, the surroundings were virtually the same as now. We placed this stone here to mark the exact location specifically.”

Jiang An bent down to closely examine the stone, then looked up at the corn stalks nearly as tall as a person, asking, ”Mr. Qin, was the corn this tall at the time?”

”Yes, the height is quite similar,”

Mr. Qin nodded, gesturing, ”At this height, an adult crouching inside would be almost completely concealed.”

”Choosing this location, the killer must have observed—it’s both secluded and an easy place to hide.”

Jiang An followed up, his voice unconsciously lowered, ”If the killer moved quickly enough, the victim might not even have time to call for help.”

”Even if someone passed by on the ridge, unless they intentionally peered into the depths of the cornfield, they wouldn’t notice any disturbances inside.”

”Moreover, with the rustling of corn leaves in the wind, any slight noise could easily be obscured.”

Due to the passage of time, it was impossible to reconstruct the traces at the scene through regular surveying.

In Jiang An’s mind, images from the initial crime scene photos kept appearing—flattened corn stalks, scattered items, and those faint traces.

After some thought, Jiang An turned to survey the surroundings.

The morning mist had not fully dissipated, with the distant village looming faintly.

He asked gravely, ”During the time of the crime, what was the flow of people around here like?”

”Was there any regular traffic?”

Mr. Qin sighed, ”Rural folks get up early, usually heading out to work by around six.”

”Especially in the summer when it’s hot, people leave even earlier.”

”But the situation for the deceased Wang Xiu’s family is somewhat special—her husband works away from home for long periods, leaving her to tend five acres of land alone, which is quite labor-intensive, so she would typically start even before her neighbors.”

”We have verified these situations with her neighbors and relatives.”

He paused and added, ”She has a child who boards at a school in town, so it’s usually just her at home.”

”Regarding her social relationships...” Jiang An phrased cautiously.

”We have thoroughly checked,”

Mr. Qin immediately understood his implication, ”We initially considered the possibility of a crime of passion and conducted a comprehensive investigation into her social interactions.”

”But whether among local villagers or external contacts, nothing suspicious was found.”

”Her reputation in the village is quite good, and no one has heard of any animosities.”

Director Hou, who had been quietly listening, slightly pursed his lips and interjected, ”Cases like these ’three no’s’ are the most troublesome—no eyewitnesses, no surveillance footage, no key physical evidence.”

”Every investigator frowns at these words.”

He turned to Mr. Qin, asking, ”Was there really nothing at the scene that didn’t belong to the deceased? Even the slightest thing?”

Mr. Qin shook his head helplessly, ”After the crime, we conducted three rounds of carpet-style surveys at the scene, even using the latest micro-trace evidence detection technology.”

”In terms of footprints, although we retrieved a few incomplete shoe prints, suggesting the killer wore size 43 shoes, standing about 1.7 meters tall, to be honest...”

He smiled wryly, spreading his hands, ”In rural areas, there are too many males that fit this description, so the value of this lead for further screening is limited.”

”Moreover, we expanded the screening radius to ten kilometers around the village, focusing on those with previous criminal records, but still found no suitable suspects.”

After a long silence, Director Hou sighed deeply.

”It seems this is indeed a tough nut to crack.”

”Now, as time has passed, the golden period for solving the case is long gone. Achieving a breakthrough may be harder than climbing to heaven.”