Chapter 107 - 106: The Relationship Between the Killer and the Victim (Second Update)

Chapter 107: Chapter 106: The Relationship Between the Killer and the Victim (Second Update)

Xiao Yi and Xu Jing, though silent, both stopped in front of the curtain leading to the sleeping quarters, carefully observing the scene inside.

This was evidently the primary crime scene; every item could be crucial evidence in tracking down the killer, so they couldn’t just barge in recklessly.

Xu Jing suddenly looked down, furrowed her brow, and said, "Someone’s been in here, the floor is covered with footprints."

In the high temperatures of summer, unless it’s a large pool of blood, blood usually dries completely within twenty to thirty minutes of leaving the body.

However, the footprints on the ground, aside from the dirt, clearly have faint traces of blood, indicating the deceased was discovered soon after her death.

The only consolation was that today, the sun was shining brightly and there was no rain, so those footprints weren’t dirty enough to completely obscure the original marks on the ground.

Xiao Yi glanced at the footprints, his eyebrows slightly knitted, then his gaze slowly shifted to the dressing table beside him. He said, "The items on the dressing table are in disarray, and the jewelry box has been opened."

The items on the dressing table were originally trivial, and those bottles and jars were now tipped over the table, with powders of various cosmetics scattered everywhere.

The three-tier jewelry box placed in the upper right corner was now wide open, completely empty inside.

Could it be that a thief came in to steal and accidentally stumbled upon the mistress, so he killed her?

No, that’s not right. Things aren’t that simple.

Xu Jing thought for a bit and said, "Vice Minister Xiao, could you please help me over to examine the body?"

Xiao Yi glanced sideways at her, nodded, and assisted her to the bedside.

This time she went out, she didn’t bring any forensic tools, so it’s estimated that an autopsy couldn’t be conducted.

But the surface condition of the corpse can also reveal a lot.

Even while watching from a distance earlier, Xu Jing already had some judgments. Now, being closer, the condition of the body became clearer.

The bloodstains on the deceased were mainly concentrated around the neck and the right shoulder. The clothing on the right shoulder and the mattress beneath were soaked with blood, glaringly red.

There was a deep knife wound on the right side of the deceased’s neck, cutting upward from near the throat, the wound ghastly, looking at the muscle contraction and blood flow, it was formed while she was alive.

This was clearly the fatal wound for the deceased.

Xu Jing wanted to examine that wound with her hands but was unable because she didn’t have gloves, making it inconvenient to touch with bare hands.

Just as she was about to mention this to Xiao Yi, a sudden commotion of footsteps outside and a harsh, unfriendly voice shouted, "Make way! Make way! The authorities are investigating the case. All unrelated persons, clear out! Why are you two still not moving?!"

Immediately after, a warm and smiling voice of Xiao He sounded, "Apologies for interfering with the investigation. We happened to be lodging at the Xinghua Inn in Jingning County with Vice Minister Xiao of the Ministry of Justice. Due to his official duties, Vice Minister Xiao is examining inside, and we two idlers can only wait outside."

The initial cold voice sarcastically retorted, "Are you trying to fool me? Why would a dignified Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice suddenly visit this small county? You claim he’s the Vice Minister, but even if the Heavenly Emperor came to obstruct justice..."

Suddenly, his voice halted eerily, and in the next breath, a chorus of respectful and terrified salutes followed, "We...we greet the Commander, unaware of the Commander’s and Vice Minister Xiao’s grand arrival. Please don’t take offense!"

Xu Jing slightly raised her eyebrows.

Commander? Which of the two outside was that referring to?

She wasn’t clear on what the position of the Commander entailed, but it sounded quite impressive.

Most importantly, it saved them a lot of explanation.

Xu Jing couldn’t help but marvel once more that power was useful no matter the era.

At this moment, Xiao Yi suddenly glanced outside and said in a deep voice, "Did the county government send someone? Did they bring a forensic doctor? Have him come in."

The initial voice immediately replied, "Yes, yes, Sun Wuzuo, hurry in and assist Vice Minister Xiao with the investigation!"

Soon, a bent, unimpressive old man timidly walked in. Xiao Yi glanced at him and said, "Leave your forensic tools behind and then head out."

The just-preparing-to-salute Sun Wuzuo: "???"

What did Vice Minister Xiao mean by this? Did he intend to perform the autopsy himself?

A high-ranking official from the Capital City, yet he knows how to conduct an autopsy?

He also noticed Xu Jing, but under Xiao Yi’s imposing presence, he didn’t dare express any of his numerous confusions. He quickly acknowledged, placed the toolkit he was carrying on the ground, and then exited.

Xu Jing immediately understood Xiao Yi’s intention, raised her eyebrows, and without needing him to say anything, she brought over the toolbox, opened it, took a look, and said with satisfaction, "The forensic tools are quite comprehensive."

She quickly found and put on gloves, bent down, and carefully examined the fatal wound on the right side of the victim’s neck. From the amount of bleeding from the wound, she could tell that the artery was severed, leading to a rapid death.

The wound was very clean, about 1.6 inches (5 centimeters) long. The perpetrator likely used a very sharp knife to swiftly and cleanly cut through the victim’s neck.

Judging by the upward-sloping angle of the wound, the perpetrator was obviously taller than the victim, or was positioned higher when the crime was committed.

Moreover, the wound extended from near the throat to behind the victim’s ear, indicating the culprit attacked from behind.

Since the victim’s hair was loose, many strands were stuck to the wound and skin by blood. Xu Jing had to carefully clear them aside to fully view the wound.

As she continued to work, Xu Jing frowned slightly.

Throughout the process, she didn’t find a single broken strand of hair!

Any hair that had fallen was whole and intact.

Under normal circumstances, this was almost impossible!

What kind of situation would result in such a clean wound?

At this moment, perhaps noticing they had been inside for too long, Wei Dadong’s voice rang out, "Vice Minister Xiao, may I ask... how is the case progressing? Can the murderer who killed Wan be found?"

Xu Jing glanced up at Xiao Yi. Having worked together many times, Xiao Yi could tell from Xu Jing’s look that she must have discovered something.

He raised an eyebrow slightly, helped Xu Jing up, and asked, "Do you need to continue with the autopsy?"

Xu Jing nodded and said, "Yes."

She had only examined the victim’s fatal wound and not yet checked the rest of the body.

Xiao Yi nodded in response and coolly told Wei Dadong outside, "Please wait a moment longer."

Xu Jing immediately took advantage of the time to remove the victim’s clothing and examined her thoroughly from head to toe.

Very soon, she discovered an unusual spot—the back of the victim’s head felt slightly sunken, yet upon parting the hair, there were no lumps or wounds on the scalp.

This could only mean one of two things—

First, the victim might have accidentally hit her head during her life, causing serious enough damage to slightly indent the skull, though the wound had healed, leaving only the sunken bone.

Second, this was caused after death, with someone striking her head hard with a heavy object, thus the wound showed no signs of life, and only the bone was indented.

Xu Jing clicked her tongue lightly, realizing that a dissection would reveal much more.

But under the current conditions, she could only use other methods to compensate for the inability to perform an autopsy.

Apart from the slight indentation at the back of the head, there were no other suspicious spots or wounds on the victim’s body.

After completing the examination, Xu Jing helped dress the victim and nodded to Xiao Yi. Xiao Yi immediately understood, supported her, and walked outside.

As expected, there were more people outside than when they had entered. The middle-aged man leading them wore a light green official uniform. Upon seeing Xiao Yi, he immediately approached to pay his respects with a fawning smile, "Officer greets Vice Minister Xiao. Your presence truly brings glory to our humble county. I wonder what discoveries you’ve made? I’d love the opportunity to learn."

Xiao Yi gave him a glance and said, "I just happened to be passing by and thought it wouldn’t do to ignore a homicide. Please carry on with your duties. This lady is a forensic doctor I specifically requested. She just conducted an autopsy on the victim and is about to report the results."

The County Magistrate looked at Xu Jing in astonishment, it was his first time witnessing a woman working in such a lowly job as a forensic doctor!

If the speaker weren’t the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, he’d have thought it was some kind of joke!

However, the next words out of the lady’s mouth shocked him even more.

"The victim has started to show slight rigor mortis with no livor mortis present. It’s estimated the time of death is within half an hour ago.

The lethal wound is a knife cut on the right side of the neck, clean and deep to the bone. The murder weapon is likely a small, sharp dagger. The wound angles upward, suggesting the perpetrator attacked from behind and was taller than the victim, or was positioned higher during the act of killing.

And..."

Xu Jing paused, her cool gaze sweeping slowly over the crowd in front of her, and she said calmly, "The murderer was someone very familiar, or rather, a person the victim would not have guarded against!"