Chapter 328: More Than One Victim

"But." Xu Mo looked at Wang Dachuan, then suddenly changed his tone: "You're right about one thing: the victim is a female, about 20 to 24 years old."

Hearing that, Wang Dachuan immediately felt much better; at least he wasn't completely wrong, and his self‑study must have yielded some results.

Between Xu Mo's and Wang Dachuan's statements, Xu Mo's was clearly more credible.

Han Fei chose to trust Xu Mo and gave a brief summary.

"The victim is a female, aged 20 to 24, and died roughly two weeks ago, right?"

"That's about it; this is all we can discern for now." Xu Mo nodded.

Wang Dachuan flushed, "That's all we can see? Just that?"

Just from a single skull he could infer so much—far beyond his own ability.

He guessed that even a professional forensic doctor would reach the same conclusions.

From Xu Mo's tone, it seemed he was still not satisfied.

"Female, 20 to 24, missing for about two weeks; re‑investigate using these details." Han Fei turned to a police officer and ordered.

Wang Dachuan's earlier estimate of a two‑year death interval was wrong; searching the victim's identity with that condition would only drive them farther from the truth.

Han Fei thought, "Good that Xu Mo is here today; without his timely insight, their investigative direction would have been completely off, wasting precious time."

At that moment, the salvage crew returned to shore with bones freshly recovered from the water.

Looking at the newly recovered bones, Wang Dachuan said nothing, fearing he might misinterpret again…

Glancing at the bones, Xu Mo furrowed his brow; he had spotted another issue.

Seeing Xu Mo's expression, Han Fei guessed Xu Mo might have another discovery.

He promptly asked, "Did you notice anything else amiss?"

"Hmm, these recovered bones don't belong to the same person."

"The bones aren't from the same person…" Han Fei instantly understood, "You mean there's more than one victim?"

Xu Mo nodded again.

"Yes. The hip bone and fibula are female, while the tibia and femur are male, and the handling of all the bones is identical. This shows the killer is the same person. So far, there are at least two victims—a man and a woman—but more cannot be ruled out."

"Identical handling, same killer… meaning both victims suffered Cooking the Corpse, and their bones were dumped in the same spot. They were likely killed together—perhaps a cohabiting couple or spouses." Han Fei followed Xu Mo's line of thought.

Earlier they only knew the victim was a female aged 20 to 24, with a death time of about two weeks.

Now, with this added information, their search range has narrowed considerably.

……

After the underwater salvage crew resurfaced for a short break, they swapped an oxygen tank and dived again.

This time they also swept the previously unsearched area, retrieving another skull, a hip bone, two femurs, a fibula, several ribs, and a ulna… all, without exception, slightly larger bones.

"Officer, we've inspected every underwater area; these are all the bones visible to the naked eye. Any remaining ones are likely buried in the silt. To retrieve more, we'd have to turn over all the silt, which would take weeks… Should we keep salvaging?"

Hearing that, Xu Mo asked the divers, "Is the underwater silt thick?"

"Hmm… not really; the deepest spot is only about a finger's thickness."

"Did you miss any spots during the underwater search?"

"No. We're professionals; we've inspected every corner. Apart from bones buried in silt, we've recovered all visible ones."

After the divers finished answering, Xu Mo turned his gaze back to Han Fei.

"Han Team, I think we should stop. The thickest silt is only a finger deep, covering only small bones. Large pieces like skulls can't be hidden. If there were more than two victims, there should be three skulls, but we only have two, so there are likely just two victims."

"Hmm, in that case we really don't need to continue salvaging." Han Fei nodded.

The earlier decision to keep diving was only to confirm whether there were more than two victims; if not, they could proceed with the investigation.

Now the question is clearly answered: only two skulls lie underwater, so there are likely only two victims.

……

Police Station.

After some time, the officers identified two people who matched the victim profile.

"Han Team, we've found them: a newlywed couple who disappeared a little over a week ago, still missing. The wife is 22, the husband 24, and their details align with all known clues. They must be the ones."

The officers gathered and examined the couple's detailed records.

"Murdering a newlywed couple and Cooking the Corpse—that's a huge grudge!" Wang Dachuan suggested, "Should we investigate their social connections? See who might hold a vendetta against them."

Wang Dachuan believed the case was most likely a homicide.

Moreover, judging by the killer's actions, his grudge against the newlyweds must be deep; otherwise he wouldn't commit such an outraging act.

"This case isn't necessarily a homicide…" Han Fei said, slowly shaking his head as he stared at the couple's photos.

He had a different perspective on the case.

"I also think it may not be a homicide, and regardless, that's not what we should be tangled up in now. The file mentions they own a marital home; let's check it—there should be clues there." Xu Mo's and Han Fei's thoughts aligned.

He likewise thought the case might not be a homicide.

Because the slain newlyweds were both quite attractive.

Another possibility, aside from homicide, is a crime of passion sparked by their looks.

Given their simultaneous death times and the same killer, it can be inferred they were likely killed at home.

Their marital home is probably the original crime scene…