Chapter 51

After a night of relentless effort, the remaining body parts were finally recovered. In the autopsy room of the Municipal Bureau’s Forensic Identification Center, forensic technician Xiao Zheng and a tall, silver-haired elder, dressed in protective gear with gloves, mask, and cap, carefully examined the gruesome, dismembered corpse on the autopsy table.

Lu Haoxuan, captain of the Jiangdong Branch Criminal Investigation Team, arrived at the autopsy room with his apprentice, young detective Gu Changzheng, both fully suited in protective gear.

“Old Lu, thank you for your hard work! We dread cases like this—without an identity, we can’t move forward.”

The tall elder was veteran forensic expert Lu You’an. At the sound, he looked up and gestured for him to come closer. Lu Haoxuan stepped forward and stood beside him. Lu You’an pointed to the grotesque head on the corpse and said: “The victim was poisoned first, then dismembered. Look at his lips—deep purplish, his earlobes cherry-red. Post-mortem, the stomach and thoracic cavity reeked of bitter almonds. He died of massive potassium cyanide poisoning.”

He then pointed to the cut surfaces of the body parts: “All limbs were severed at the joints—not hacked with blades or cut with saws. The person who dismembered him had expert anatomical knowledge.”

At this, Gu Changzheng couldn’t help asking: “Master Lu, when you say ‘the person who dismembered him,’ do you mean the killer isn’t the same as the poisoner?”

Lu You’an glanced at Gu Changzheng. Though masked, his expression was unreadable, yet he showed no irritation at the interruption. Instead, he replied patiently: “This is merely my personal judgment—a hunch. I hope it doesn’t steer your investigation wrong.” He paused, sensing he hadn’t made himself clear, then added: “From my perspective, someone with such skilled anatomical knowledge has countless ways to kill. If I were the killer, I wouldn’t bother with poison.”

“Ha!” Lu Haoxuan suddenly spoke up. “Old Lu, you’re right—this is likely a gang job.”

“That’s for you to investigate. I have another discovery: among the victim’s hair, I found some non-human tissue fragments…”

“Oh? What kind?” Gu Changzheng asked eagerly.

Lu You’an, unusually patient with this detective who had interrupted him twice today, replied directly: “Lab tests confirmed they’re pork fragments.”

“Heh!” Gu Changzheng grinned, casting a hopeful, seeking-praise glance at his master Lu Haoxuan—as if to say, See? I was right!

Lu Haoxuan smiled faintly and asked Lu You’an: “Old Lu, is the victim in the fingerprint database?”

“No. He has no prior criminal record. But blood tests revealed he suffered from gonorrhea.”

“Oh? Good. Thanks! Let’s go!” Lu Haoxuan nodded thoughtfully and took his leave.

Outside the identification center, Gu Changzheng brought over a three-wheeled motorcycle and carried Lu Haoxuan back to the Jiangdong Branch.

“Master, shouldn’t we check missing persons reports? A man vanishing like this—his family must be frantic. Maybe they’ve already filed a report!”

Lu Haoxuan stayed silent, lost in thought. After a moment, he murmured: “Looks like we’ll have to rely on the public again. For unidentified bodies, there’s no shortcut—only the old, slow way.”

Gu Changzheng asked: “So we’ll issue a public notice for the unidentified corpse?”

“No. Return to the station first. Print the victim’s photo. We’ll focus our search on a few key areas first—might yield big results.”

Soon, the dismembered victim’s photo was in the hands of every detective in the Criminal Investigation Team. In the team meeting room, Lu Haoxuan stood before his men, laying out the operation plan.

“Rapidly investigate the designated areas. Identifying the victim is critical to our next steps. Stay sharp. Complete the sweep within 24 hours.”

The team chorused, “Yes!” and split into groups, heading to their assigned zones.

The body—more accurately, the body parts—had been found already dismembered into chunks, with no clothing on them. This made it impossible to infer the victim’s economic status from attire, complicating the profile. Forensic examination revealed the victim’s hands were soft-skinned; his right pinky had a long nail, while the others were neatly trimmed, barely protruding beyond the fingertips. No ring marks were present. Near the Hukou on his left wrist was a pea-sized depression, as if worn by an object. Combined with the slightly paler skin there, it was judged he had worn a watch regularly.

Examination of other body parts showed he maintained good personal hygiene: no obvious scars, a balanced build. His teeth were white, free of tobacco stains; his hair was thick and strong—indicating attention to appearance and nutrition. Though his facial expression was distorted from cyanide poisoning, it was clear he had been a handsome man. Overall, he was likely a non-physical laborer: a government or corporate employee, possibly a wealthy young man, or one of society’s rare specialized professionals.

After synthesizing these details from the corpse, Lu Haoxuan narrowed the key search areas to three: 1) Government agencies and public enterprises; 2) Wealthy merchant families in Zizhen City; 3) Nightclubs and dance halls—anyone who might recognize the victim.

He believed the victim was almost certainly among them.

While Lu Haoxuan led his team in the investigation, in Jiangnan District, Wang Heshan’s wife was raging at home.

The cause: her husband, Wang Heshan, owner of Victoria Wedding Photography and one of Zizhen’s first successful entrepreneurs, had been missing for two days. His new phone was off. No trace of him.

His wife, Wu Yuxian, knew her husband liked to chase other women, but as long as he came home before dawn, she turned a blind eye. This time, however, he’d vanished for two full days, phone dead. Wu Yuxian was furious. She and her brother Wu Yuhe had scoured every hotel in Zizhen—nothing. Now, back home, the more she thought, the angrier she became, smashing bottles and jars in rage.

After her outburst, Wu Yuhe whispered: “Sis, don’t jump to conclusions. Brother-in-law isn’t that kind of man…” Before he finished, Wu Yuxian slapped her own thick chest and wailed: “Don’t defend him! I know you’ve been out with him! If you don’t bring him back, I won’t recognize you as my brother!”

She had meant to say she’d divorce Wang Heshan—but feared he might return and hear her, so she changed it to disowning Wu Yuhe. Wu Yuhe was caught between laughter and tears. He said casually: “I’m not defending him. But look—he’s never been gone this long without telling anyone. I’m worried something’s happened to him.”

At this, Wu Yuxian fell silent. She tilted her head, thought hard, then suddenly screamed: “Oh no! Could something have happened to your brother-in-law?”