Chapter 49: Hunter and Prey

I don't know what else Xiao Fang said to Du Meisha, but I saw Du Meisha giggling and covering her mouth repeatedly, clearly amused.

Seeing that it was already nearly 11 o'clock and that Du Meisha was becoming increasingly relaxed in his presence, Xiao Fang suggested, "Shasha, you must be hungry. Let me take you for a late-night snack! I know a place that makes exceptionally authentic clear broth. Let's go try it together!"

Du Meisha looked at Xiao Fang with a longing expression and nodded, "Mm, okay. I am actually a little hungry."

Xiao Fang gave a smug smile and reached out to take Du Meisha's hand. Du Meisha was instinctively startled; she pulled her hand back halfway before stopping, letting Xiao Fang hold it. Xiao Fang looked down and saw her face was flushed red—even in the dim light of the dance hall, it was perfectly visible!

At this moment, Xiao Fang was convinced that this girl was completely under his control. Perhaps, today would be the day... Haha! His heart couldn't help but flutter again!

After leaving the dance hall, they arrived in front of a red Xingfu 125 motorcycle. Xiao Fang hopped on, tossed his hair with a flourish, and said coolly, "Princess, please get on!"

Du Meisha widened her eyes in surprise, leaned over, covered her mouth, and exclaimed, "So handsome!"

Her adorable expression made Xiao Fang even more confident, as if he could already see this beautiful girl lying obediently in his arms...

Eating a late-night snack was never Xiao Fang's true goal; the program after the snack was what he was looking forward to! After hurriedly finishing the clear broth, Xiao Fang intended to suggest that Du Meisha go to his place, but he heard Du Meisha say in a coy, naive tone, "Brother Fang, it's too late. Why don't you take me back? I live alone, and I'm a little scared when it's this late."

Xiao Fang was delighted to hear this—how could he refuse? And so, the two of them rode the motorcycle toward the place where Du Meisha lived!

————

Gu Changzheng and Hu Jinquan, who had rushed to the scene with Lu Haoxuan, also felt their stomachs churning from the waves of foul stench. The beef and cake they had just eaten seemed to have turned into rotting, foul-smelling flesh in their bellies!

The two saw their master, Lu Haoxuan, wearing a mask and completely unaffected by the odor, squatting on the ground to examine a package of human tissue dug out from a pit.

"Team Leader Lu, the bag contains the lower limbs of a male. They were detached at the leg joints by a sharp tool, bagged, and buried here." The young forensic doctor, Zheng Guogiang, reported the situation at the scene while pointing out the body parts to Lu Haoxuan.

In a dirt pit about a meter deep, a thick black plastic bag revealed a pile of pale human tissue to everyone: two furry, thick lower limbs dismembered into six pieces. From the muscle definition and the density of the leg hair, it was easy to distinguish that they belonged to a strong, young man!

"Based on the degree of decomposition of the body parts, the time of death should be between 24 and 36 hours ago. As for the other parts of the body, we haven't found them yet!" Xiao Zheng continued.

Gu Changzheng looked up at Lu Haoxuan and said, "Master, this kind of murder and dismemberment case has the characteristic of 'throwing far and burying near.' The killer should be not far from the burial site, right? This is a suburban-rural fringe area with a complex population. Should we immediately launch an investigation in the vicinity?"

Lu Haoxuan was staring intently at the black plastic bag, as if there were some treasure inside.

He didn't answer Gu Changzheng's question directly. Instead, he pointed to the plastic bag containing the body and asked, "Look closely, everyone. This plastic bag has already told us many clues. Who can tell me what it says?"

Hearing him say this, Gu Changzheng and Hu Jinquan ignored the overwhelming stench and squatted down to observe carefully. The forensic doctor, Xiao Zheng, also curiously leaned in, wanting to see what clues were in this bag that he hadn't discovered.

Just as he leaned in, he suddenly gasped, "Eh?!" Then he reached out his gloved right hand to grope at the bottom of the bag. A moment later, he opened his palm; his glove was wet and covered in blood!

"I'm sorry, Team Leader Lu. I almost misled you. The time of death for these body parts might need to be redefined!" Gu Changzheng and Hu Jinquan were observing the bag intently, trying to find the clue their master mentioned. Hearing Zheng Guogiang's words, they stared with puzzled eyes at the young forensic doctor.

Lu Haoxuan smiled at Zheng Guogiang and said, "Xiao Zheng, tell us, what new discovery have you made?"

Forensic doctor Xiao Zheng cleared his throat and pointed to his open palm with his left hand: "I previously judged the time of death based on the degree of decomposition, but that was a judgment made in an undisturbed natural environment. However, these body parts have been processed!"

"Oh?! They've already been dismembered like this—how else were they processed?" Hu Jinquan exclaimed.

"The body parts must have been frozen before being transported out for burial! And judging by the cutting marks on these two lower limbs, the body was first dismembered, then packed and frozen. As for the killer's purpose in freezing the body, I think one possibility is that it was to make it easier to store the body. Second, it could also be intentional, aimed at confusing the time of death and increasing the difficulty for us!"

"Not bad! Forensic doctor Xiao Zheng's analysis makes sense. I often say that when solving cases, one must dare to hypothesize, reason rigorously, and collect evidence cautiously! As long as we are serious and diligent, there is no case that cannot be solved!" Lu Haoxuan seemed to be praising Xiao Zheng, but he was actually admonishing Gu Changzheng and the other young criminal police officers.

Gu Changzheng and Hu Jinquan scratched their heads in embarrassment! The two of them were still studying it, while Forensic doctor Xiao Zheng had already found the crux of the problem!

Gu Changzheng thought for a moment and said, "Then can we infer some characteristics of the killer? For example: First, the killer should have their own freezing equipment; to fit these body parts, they would need at least a large freezer. Second, the killer is a butcher or a doctor, because the cutting wounds on the body parts are complete and smooth, basically done in one stroke; without a certain level of professional ability, this couldn't be achieved. Third, this plastic bag used to hold the body parts is significantly thicker than ordinary plastic bags..."

"That's right! Changzheng! I said this bag looked familiar. Isn't this the special bag used for seafood in the market?" Hu Jinquan suddenly interrupted.

"Yes! Ordinary families and vendors wouldn't use this kind of bag. In our Zizhen City, only a few shops specializing in seafood have them!" Gu Changzheng added.

Lu Haoxuan nodded with a smile: "Good analysis! So, do you have a direction for the investigation now?"

In fact, he knew these signs could also be intentionally displayed by the killer for the police to see. But in reality, solving cases involves no divine foresight; one must see the essence through the phenomena. Even if all this was a trap set by an opponent, as long as the other party acted, they would definitely leave traces. And what they needed to do was be calm, meticulous, and endure the boring and tedious search process until they broke through the layers of fog and found the truth!

He often joked with this group of young criminal police officers that they were like exorcists, dealing with demons every day, relying on firm conviction and a sense of mission to subdue the "demons"! ===== CHAPTER 50 =====