Preliminary Assessment of Homicide

"What are you doing, Sun Yujie? Back to work!"

A criminal police officer from the trace evidence unit barked sternly when he saw Sun Yujie creeping around like a thief. He was Sun Yujie's mentor.

"Oh, oh... Understood!"

Sun Yujie replied, casting one last glance at Tong Feng, who had vomited until he looked like an absolute fool, before joining the trace examination team to search the surrounding area for suspicious objects and footprints.

The ground was packed hard, and a considerable amount of time had passed, making the likelihood of finding clear footprints very low, but the search had to be conducted regardless.

Fieldwork in trace evidence collection was extremely tedious and involved a heavy workload. Leaders would even demand that you scour a designated radius for fallen hairs on the ground.

Searching for a strand of hair in the middle of a barren wilderness was enough to give anyone a headache.

Yet, this was the reality of being a criminal investigator.

While forensic pathologists faced decaying corpses and detectives peeled back layers to find clues while constantly courting danger, the duty of trace evidence personnel was to exhaust every effort in retrieving physical evidence and minute traces.

Investigating a homicide was not something a single person could accomplish. Even when Han Ling directly locked onto a suspect previously, subsequent evidence fixation still required the joint efforts of forensic pathologists and trace examiners.

Han Ling dragged Tong Feng back within the inner perimeter of the cordon for the fourth time. This time, Tong Feng did not vomit—perhaps because his stomach was entirely empty.

"Han Ling... Did I... owe you money in a past life?" Tong Feng panted, his words coming in fragmented gasps.

Han Ling said earnestly, "I am helping you grow. You should be thanking me."

Tong Feng swallowed hard. "Fine! I... I thank your entire family!"

Han Ling replied, "I am the entire family."

Tong Feng: "..."

At that moment, Yang Rui was meticulously collecting insect and soil samples. Once taken back, they needed to be identified by species. Since the active temperature threshold varied for each type of fly, this would help pinpoint the exact time of death.

The current season was too close to winter, and with the corpse exposed in the wild, flies could not directly tell the forensic pathologist the time of death. However, flies could accurately indicate how much time had passed since the ambient temperature rose high enough to attract flies to lay eggs.

As a forensic pathologist, one had to extract all available information to issue the most comprehensive autopsy report, thereby providing vital clues for the detectives on the team.

"Han Ling, you really helped Captain Fang out a huge deal," Yang Rui said, glancing up at the two men as she spoke offhandedly.

Fang Chi hesitated to subject Tong Feng to harsh training, so Han Ling had stepped in to help.

"Just happy to help others," Han Ling laughed.

Tong Feng cursed, "Damn your grandfather!"

Ji Bowen and Hu Lihui looked on from the side. To them, this was just juniors fooling around, which was quite amusing.

The two chief forensic pathologists and the attending forensic pathologist remained unfazed by the external distraction, earnestly carrying out their work. By now, the preliminary autopsy was making headway.

"Internal mucosal damage in the oral cavity, petechiae present, some teeth loose," Jiang Haichuan stated, while the deputy forensic pathologist recorded the notes. "There are fibers in the gaps between the teeth and inside the nasal cavity. The nasal bridge is suspected to be fractured."

After examining the mouth and nose, Jiang Haichuan proceeded to check the deceased's hands. No foreign objects were found under the fingernails for the time being; a more thorough examination would have to wait until they returned to the branch bureau.

Forensic work could not be completed within a short span of time. New clues could emerge with each passing day, advancing the case collaboratively with the detectives and trace evidence team.

"Let's wait for the dissection to check the condition of the internal organs," Jiang Haichuan said.

Seeing this, Ji Bowen inquired, "Old Jiang, before the dissection, do you have any preliminary hypothesis on the cause of death?"

Jiang Haichuan and Ji Bowen were old friends, so he did not bother with overly rigid formalities at the moment and replied, "Preliminary assessment points to mechanical asphyxia. I'll give you the autopsy report after the dissection."

Hearing this, Ji Bowen's expression turned grave. "You just mentioned fibers in the dental gaps and nasal cavity, partially dislodged teeth, and a fractured nasal bridge. Was she smothered?"

Jiang Haichuan answered, "If it truly is mechanical asphyxia, it should be smothering. Look, the neck is completely intact. I just checked and found no signs of a fracture."

Learning that it was very likely a homicide, Ji Bowen turned on his heel and strode away.

"Old Hu, mobilize the personnel. Expand the search radius for this area—make the radius as large as possible! If we hit residential settlements, inquire if anyone has gone missing."

"I'll call the captain."

Hu Lihui responded, "Got it, I'll go coordinate right away."

Han Ling and Tong Feng also joined the search party, radiating outward from the corpse as the center, leaving no corner unchecked. The local police station's criminal investigation group was not idle either and was conducting parallel searches.

What were they looking for? They didn't know. Anything that had no business being out in the wilderness had to be brought back—what if it was left behind by the killer or the victim?

Simultaneously with the search, neighboring residential areas were being canvassed.

Although the autopsy results had not yet yielded a definitive conclusion, judging from the conversation between Jiang Haichuan and Ji Bowen, it was all but certain.

The surface traces completely matched the modus operandi of murder by smothering. The murder weapon could be everyday items such as clothing, a quilt, or a pillow.

This was a homicide involving the disposal of a body.

It was a severe case, and the branch bureau would undoubtedly establish a special task force to crack it with full force in the near future.

"You guys are going to have your hands full," Han Ling chatted with Tong Feng while meticulously searching the ground.

Investigating a body-dumping homicide was terribly troublesome. At present, they didn't even know the identity of the deceased.

The perpetrator's choice of dumping the site indicated that their psychological fortitude was strong enough to execute counter-investigation measures. Most other evidence had likely been destroyed, compounded by the significant amount of time that had already elapsed.

It sounded like a marathonic endeavor, not something easily resolved in a short period.

Tong Feng was feeling much better now, his complexion gradually returning to a healthy flush. Though he still harbored resentment over Han Ling's earlier antics, he also understood that the other man had been helping him adapt quickly. "You won't be having an easy time either," he muttered resentfully.

Once the branch bureau established a special task force to investigate the murder, they would inevitably draw police officers from the jurisdiction's substations to assist. Given the operational capability Han Ling had demonstrated recently, even if they only needed one person, his name would likely top the list, alongside Zhu Yue.

As for other substation officers, they only needed to fulfill their obligations of confidentiality. If assistance was required, those assigned to the task force would relay orders on behalf of the task force.

Except under special circumstances, regular police officers and auxiliary officers did not need to sign additional confidentiality agreements because they had already signed professional confidentiality pledges upon employment. Those were standard and universal, carrying severe penalties for any breach.

Soon, backup officers arrived, and the search and canvassing radius was expanded once again, tentatively set at a five-kilometer radius.

Was the victim a local resident? The possibility was slim. Usually, killers disposed of bodies far away while burying them close to home—or vice versa. Under normal circumstances, a murderer was unlikely to dump a corpse right in their own backyard.

Yet even with a low probability, it had to be investigated. What if?

Dumping bodies far away while burying them close by was a typical behavioral pattern in how suspects handled corpses.

Dumping far away severed geographical connections, created environmental secrecy to delay the discovery of the body, and alleviated immense psychological pressure.

Burial close by mitigated transportation risks and reduced the likelihood of personal exposure.

Of course, there were also instances of burying far away, depending on the circumstances of the crime.

At present, the ground was hard-packed earth, and the dumping of the body likely occurred during winter. Trying to dig a grave-sized pit under immense psychological pressure was difficult to execute; a desolate location did not truly mean no one would ever pass by.

The notion that [burying a body is the safest route] was merely an idealized state. In reality, it was influenced by objective conditions and the killer's subjective assessment of risk.

Simply put, burying was normal, dumping directly was also logical, and encountering either scenario was entirely unremarkable.

The forensic team had already withdrawn, transporting the body back to the branch bureau.

Only the branch bureau's trace evidence team, investigators, and the supporting substation officers remained at the scene.