What was Mo Yun's real cause of death?
Asphyxiation!
This was indicated by subconjunctival hemorrhages, facial swelling, and bleeding from the teeth found on Mo Yun's body.
Further detailed examination revealed no mechanical injuries to Mo Yun's neck, meaning he was not strangled.
Hu Jia deduced that the cause of death was suffocation by having his mouth and nose covered.
It seemed the killer was clever, knowing that strangulation would leave marks, making it difficult to fake a stabbing.
...
A day later, Li Yang leaned back in his chair, his small feet swinging. "Little Yueyue, I want an apple."
Yu Yue smiled and peeled the apple, cutting it into small pieces.
"I also want some water, not too hot and not too cold."
Yu Yue then got up and brought him warm water.
Watching Li Yang's smiling eyes, Hu Jia sighed, "It's good that Li Yang has found blessings in misfortune."
Lü Qingqing watched from the side, "Heh, I'm afraid it will all be misfortune soon."
Hu Jia was puzzled.
"Little Yueyue, bring me a plate of peanuts."
"What about the shells? You need to crush them for me. Just give me the peanuts directly."
"Hey, is this how you take care of patients?"
"Ah... it hurts, it hurts... let go, I was wrong, let go..."
Lü Qingqing looked at Hu Jia, "See, misfortune has arrived."
...
The murder case at the learning institute was successfully handed over to Ouyang Wen. After a re-examination of the body, the police discovered a large amount of barbiturates, sleeping, and tranquilizing drugs in Mo Yun's system.
This meant the deceased had lost consciousness before his death, explaining why Chen Keqin did not hear any unusual sounds from next door.
By the way, a small public service announcement here.
The hallucinogenic drugs that cause instant unconsciousness in movies and TV shows do not exist. If such a drug truly existed in reality, anesthesiologists in hospitals would be out of a job.
Inhaled anesthetics are highly volatile and require a sealed environment with specialized equipment to enter the human body, and two conditions must be met: a sufficiently high drug concentration and a long enough duration for the anesthetic to take effect.
However, drugs that cause unconsciousness with a single drink do exist, such as oral triazolam, estazolam, and flunitrazepam.
Therefore, not accepting food and drinks from strangers and staying vigilant are the keys to preventing "being drugged."
Alright, enough of that digression.
Let's return to the case.
Based on the scene, it was inferred that another person was present in Mo Yun's room at the time. This person first drugged Mo Yun, rendering him unconscious, and then smothered him with a wet cloth, causing asphyxiation.
Some might ask, why didn't the killer just stab Mo Yun to death instead of going through such trouble?
The answer is simple: stabbing Mo Yun would have undoubtedly woken him up due to the intense pain. Once Mo Yun woke up, the situation would have been uncontrollable. For one thing, if Mo Yun had called for help, Chen Keqin would have heard him.
After killing Mo Yun, the perpetrator deliberately inflicted some abrasions and scratches on his body to fake signs of a struggle.
Regarding the figure closing the door that Chen Keqin saw at 9:30 AM, Ouyang Wen asked again. Chen Keqin stated she did not see the person's face, only saw someone closing the door.
Since it was Mo Yun's dormitory, she assumed it was Mo Yun.
If this were the case, then the person closing the door at that time was definitely not Mo Yun, but the killer.
He deliberately created a noise to attract Chen Keqin's attention, aiming to make her a witness proving that Mo Yun was alive at 9:30 AM.
Therefore, finding the person who was in Mo Yun's room at the time is the most crucial next step.
...
Focus the investigation on Ma Cong!
This was the unanimous opinion of Ouyang Wen and Hu Jia.
According to their analysis, the killer and Mo Yun must have been acquaintances; otherwise, they wouldn't have had the opportunity to administer the drug. Secondly, this person was very familiar with the environment of the learning institute; otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to time the crime so precisely.
Besides Chen Keqin, Ma Cong was the only other person present on campus that night. Compared to Chen Keqin, Ma Cong was more suspicious.
Everything seemed to be related to him, and he was present at all the coincidental moments.
It was highly possible that the person who reported the incident was the suspect.
Since a target was identified, the investigation became much easier.
First, they started by examining the flour dust in the victim's room. It's important to note that the duty teacher only occasionally stayed in the dormitory, and with the canteen available, Mo Yun had no reason to keep flour in his room.
Therefore, this bag of flour was likely brought by the killer, intended to imprint Li Yang's footprints.
Ma Cong would not have brought ten jin of flour from far away, as it would have been too conspicuous. He could only have purchased it nearby.
Soon, Hu Jia obtained what he was looking for at a shop one street away from the learning institute. The shop owner recognized Ma Cong from a pile of photos.
However, this alone was not enough to conclude that Ma Cong was the murderer.
So, Luo Wenwu went to the hospital. He learned that Ma Cong had a habit of taking sleeping pills due to chronic insomnia. According to the doctor's prescription, Ma Cong was taking barbiturate-based sleeping pills.
Regarding Li Yang, he questioned the noodle stall owner. Ma Cong had indeed ordered a bowl of noodles that evening but left without finishing it. At the time, the stall owner found it strange, thinking his noodles didn't suit Ma Cong's taste.
Thinking back, Ma Cong going to eat noodles was just to establish an alibi. The reason he didn't finish it was that he was in a hurry and needed to appear before Li Yang at the opportune moment when Li Yang climbed over the wall.
...
"Uncle Lian, they are investigating Ma Cong. I think that kid won't be able to hold on."
"If he can't hold on, then let him break."
"Ah? What if they trace it back to us?"
"That's why if he can't hold on, he should choose to remain silent and not implicate more people."
A cold glint flashed in Tong Hua's eyes. He understood Uncle Lian's meaning.
Meanwhile, Tong Meng's heart churned with turmoil. In the past, she merely threw tantrums. No matter how spoiled she was, she would at most resort to physical actions, never contemplating taking a life.
But listening to the brief exchange between Tong Hua and Uncle Lian, which decided a person's fate, left her feeling disoriented. When did her brother become like this?
Lost in thought, her actions with the grapes in her hand stopped. With a slight cough of displeasure from Uncle Lian, Tong Meng snapped back to attention and smiled, offering the grapes to him.
After Uncle Lian left, Tong Meng said coldly, "Those who kill must pay with their lives. Your death is deserved, just don't drag me down."
Tong Hua paid no mind to Tong Meng's attitude. "If he doesn't die, then I will."
"What leverage does he have over you?" Tong Meng had always had a question. Tong Hua and Hu Jia didn't have any deep-seated enmity; it was merely a competition for a position. How could it escalate to bloodshed?
There was only one possibility: Tong Hua was being forced.
"It's none of your business. You should know that if it weren't for me, you would have died long ago." Tong Hua turned and returned to his room, refusing further communication.
He sank into a soft chair, the cold-blooded demeanor vanishing from his face, replaced by a look of hatred.
Tong Meng had actually guessed wrong. It wasn't that Uncle Lian held any leverage over him, but rather that he had witnessed a murder, and the person about to be executed was Li Zhenhui.
Initially, Tong Hua had considered calling the police, but when he was surrounded by numerous gun barrels, he completely caved.
He said he could pledge allegiance to them.
The other party said, "Alright, you will be the one to kill this person."
Thus, Li Zhenhui ultimately died under Tong Hua's gun. From that day on, Tong Hua could not turn back.
Life is full of crossroads, and not every path leads to the desired destination.