Zhang Yi held the scalpel and slowly cut open the corpse's abdomen. Halfway through, he said, "What are we having for dinner tonight?"
"I invited you here to help today. Whatever you want to eat, I can treat you," Jiang Yu replied.
Zhang Yi looked up and smiled, "How about we have sausage tonight! Does the police lady want to join?"
The intern police officer immediately rolled her eyes, unable to help but imagine the scene, feeling a bit nauseous.
Zhang Yi looked at Zhao Yan and asked, "And you, Miss?"
Zhao Yan said indifferently, "Anything is fine."
Seeing Zhao Yan's extreme composure, Zhang Yi chuckled, "This beauty is interesting. What's your major? Where did you study?"
Zhao Yan replied, "Stay-at-home University, specializing in Talisman Arts! I spent two and a half years at a psychiatric hospital."
"My measurements are 85, 61, 91. I'm twenty-four years old, no boyfriend, and no plans to get one. I'm in the lone wolf system." kuAiδugg
"My favorite thing to do is to tell people who are showing off 'no'!"
"My habits include drawing two talismans every night before sleeping. I snore, and quite loudly."
"That's all for now. Anything else you'd like to ask?"
Zhao Yan had read Zhang Yi's face; the man was a bit of a busybody.
Zhang Yi was stunned for a moment, "You've covered most of what I wanted to ask."
"I have one more thing to ask. Do celestial beings like you poop?"
Zhao Yan answered seriously, "Yes, and quite a large piece!"
"Hahaha!" Zhang Yi burst into laughter, holding his stomach.
Zhao Yan had answered his idiotic question so seriously.
"So, do you look at your poop when you poop?"
"Damn it! Can you stop being so disgusting!" Jiang Yu exclaimed, speechless.
From talking about enemas to defecating, his mind was full of crap.
"Hurry up and focus on your work, or I won't call you for any more autopsies in the future."
Jiang Yu's words struck Zhang Yi's weak spot.
"No! You're going to kill me!"
Zhang Yi's expression turned serious. He made another incision in the abdomen and extracted something with medical forceps.
With a "clink," a piece of glass was placed on a plate.
More and more shards of glass accumulated on the plate.
Zhao Yan was counting the glass fragments as Zhang Yi extracted them.
There were twenty-two shards of glass in total. Li Mulan was also twenty-two years old.
Was this a coincidence?
Zhao Yan stroked her chin.
"Twenty-two shards of glass."
"Old Jiang, do you know about the 1996 serial murder case?" Zhang Yi asked.
Jiang Yu nodded, "I do. That murder case shocked the nation, and the killer was never caught. My master's biggest regret was that the killer wasn't apprehended before he retired."
As he spoke, Jiang Yu's gaze sharpened, "You're not suggesting that the victim was killed by the 1996 serial killer, are you?"
"It's very similar. The modus operandi is extremely similar."
"That serial killer favored using glass fragments, inserting them in a retrograde manner, and always targeting young women between 20 and 27 years old."
"After the insertion, he would leave a letter on the victim's ankle."
Zhang Yi spoke as he extended his hand, pulling back the sheet slightly to expose the female corpse's ankle.
Indeed, there was an imprint of the letter 'h'.
Zhao Yan asked, "Does this letter have any meaning?"
Zhang Yi explained, "It signifies the number of people he killed, arranged alphabetically like a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h..."
Zhao Yan deduced, "So, Li Mulan is the ninth victim."
"Yes."
Zhao Yan's brow furrowed.
"That killer stopped after his eighth victim. The last murder occurred in 2002."
"Heaven's net is vast and its mesh is fine; I will definitely catch this beast," Jiang Yu stated solemnly.
So many years had passed, and the families of the victims had waited in vain. Several victims' families had already passed away.
Jiang Yu felt increasingly distressed. His master had been most concerned about this matter.
Li Mulan leaned close to Zhao Yan's ear and whispered something.
Zhao Yan's expression turned serious, and she immediately said, "Officer Jiang, could you please provide me with the case files for the murders between 1996 and 2002?"
"Certainly."
Jiang Yu turned and called out to someone behind him, "Xiao Xue, bring me the files for the 1996 serial murder case."
After two minutes, the female officer brought over a thick stack of documents.
Jiang Yu took out his phone and said, "I'm going to bring my master. He'll definitely want to know about this."
Zhao Yan took the files and quickly reviewed them, with Li Mulan looking on beside her.
After more than half an hour, Zhao Yan placed the files on the table, rubbing her temples.
Jiang Yu returned, followed by an elderly man in his sixties. Although over sixty, the old man stood remarkably straight, appearing to be in his fifties.
"Hello, Uncle Qin," Zhang Yi said respectfully.
"Mm, Xiao Jiang told me. Have you finished the autopsy? What are your findings?" Uncle Qin asked as he approached and examined the body.
"No doubt about it, that killer has struck again," Zhang Yi declared.
Zhao Yan, after a long period of contemplation, spoke up, "You're mistaken. This is not the 1996 serial killer."
"This is a case of copycat crime!"
"This killer is imitating the 1996 serial killer."
"The 1996 serial killer committed his first crime on July 11th, and his second on July 14th. The interval between the first and second crimes was three days. This means the killer is likely to strike again tonight."
"Oh?" Uncle Qin turned to look at Zhao Yan intently upon hearing her words.
"I invited her," Jiang Yu whispered in Uncle Qin's ear.
"Impossible. The body doesn't lie. All the evidence points to the 1996 serial killer," Zhang Yi countered, shaking his head.
Zhao Yan stated seriously, "You're wrong. The body can also deceive. It's precisely because you're so professional that you believe this is the work of the 1996 serial killer."
Who could know a killer better than their victim?
She had a victim right beside her.
Based on the information provided by Li Mulan and the data Zhao Yan had gathered, she quickly walked to Li Mulan's body and lifted her head.
"When the killer dragged the victims, he didn't pull their hair. He habitually gripped the victim's neck from behind."
"This killer has imitated him perfectly, but the grip direction is different. The original killer was right-handed, but this killer is left-handed."
"Therefore, this is not the 1996 killer, but a copycat crime!"
When Li Mulan mentioned the killer gripping her neck with his left hand, Zhao Yan seemed to understand something. The killer believed he had done an impeccable job, but he certainly wouldn't have expected a woman who could see ghosts.