Chapter 327: The Truth Emerges

The conference room was quite large, but it was sparsely populated, with only six or seven people sitting there.

Deputy General Team Leader Sun, Branch Captain Yu, Yan Wenjing, and the branch captain and deputy branch captain in charge of the Major Crimes Division.

Besides them, there was one other person, very young, about thirty-something, even younger than Yan Wenjing. His rank was also the lowest: among a crowd of police inspectors and police commissioners, he was the only Level Two Superintendent.

Yet he sat in a very forward position; in front of him was the deputy general team leader, and he was directly below that, sitting even further forward than the two branch captains.

Liu Kaichun flipped through the documents in front of him, a strange look appearing in his eyes.

It was a receipt from the Shaanxi Provincial Department, a reply to the "Special Duty Protection Assistance Letter." He had seen the original letter; not only was the classification high, but the content was also complex, and the items were detailed to an extreme degree.

It was equivalent to Beijing having drawn up all the boundaries and requirements, asking the Shaanxi side to make arrangements exactly like that.

To be honest, it was difficult. Because this wasn't going to a restaurant where you could order whatever you wanted to eat. This was requesting assistance from colleagues in another province; one had to adapt to local conditions and look at the actual situation.

Furthermore, it was a voluntary favor; it would be good enough that they were willing to help, yet you demanded so much and made such a big scene? You couldn't just drop local cases and specifically pull police force to protect a special duty person for you, could you?

Liu Kaichun felt that this coordination letter would one hundred percent be rejected.

Unexpectedly, not only was it not rejected, but they replied immediately and made arrangements on the spot. Even the speed was this fast?

With such a high security classification, and a coordination level at the Provincial Department, it certainly required meetings, discussions, and research. It also required consulting lower-level departments, such as the Xijing Municipal Bureau, and even more so, coordinating police forces from various units. According to normal procedures: five days at the least, a week at the most.

And how long did Shaanxi take? Two days in total.

Looking at the specific content: the previous coordination letter was complex enough, right? Xijing could make it even more complex.

The previous requirements were numerous enough and the items detailed enough, but Xijing could make them even more detailed.

Drawing inferences and checking for omissions, many things that the Beijing side hadn't been embarrassed to bring up, or perhaps had overlooked, were all listed out. It could be said: three hundred and sixty degrees without dead ends, twenty-four hours all-weather.

They even subtly reminded Beijing: if there wasn't enough manpower, they could provide friendly support.

Liu Kaichun suddenly couldn't understand it: since when did coordination between localities become so smooth and so efficient?

He had worked in the Ministry for ten years, and this was the first time he had seen it...

Seeing his puzzled expression, Deputy General Team Leader Sun Liancheng explained: "When in Xijing, Lin Sicheng cooperated with the police many times and solved several major and important cases. It is not strange that local departments value him a bit more."

Liu Kaichun was noncommittal: at the Ministry, he had read Lin Sicheng's file and, entrusted by leaders, had organized internal study of relevant cases: such as the Uranium Porcelain Case, such as the Zhang Anshi Tomb Robbery Case.

The young man was indeed excellent, but to be honest: this level of protection and this commotion were slightly exaggerated.

Beijing was exaggerated, and Xijing was even more exaggerated; this was the kind of setup usually reserved for the family members of leaders.

But he didn't say anything: the leader sent him here to assist the General Team in coordinating with the locality and various departments; if the General Team could solve it themselves, he would be ten thousand percent willing.

As he secretly turned his thoughts, a knock came from outside the door, and the Office Director pushed the door open and led in two men.

The one in front was in his thirties, with a dignified appearance; the one behind was very young, with handsome features, in his early twenties.

Everyone stood up, greeting them warmly, and then, the General Team leaders introduced the two sides.

Liu Kaichun took the initiative to reach out his hand: "Professor Wang, Teacher Lin, the leader entrusted me to come here to assist the General Team in coordinating with the locality..."

Entrusted... by the Ministry?

The leader, which leader? Huh, Tang Dingping?

Wang Qizhi shook his hand: "Secretary Liu!"

Then it was Lin Sicheng, just a simple handshake and a plain introduction. But it felt like the look in Liu Kaichun's eyes when he looked at Lin Sicheng was exceptionally different.

Why the case started, the role this young man played in it, why the leader paid special attention to it, and why he sent him to assist, Liu Kaichun knew clearly.

As a secretary, he could also guess some of the reasons why the leader had been troubled during this period. So when he saw Lin Sicheng, his gaze was rather strange.

He didn't look bad, his personality seemed quite steady, and his ability was strong. The key was that, not to mention taking a few stabs for Nan Yan, he had also saved her life.

Women are naturally sentimental, and that girl's personality was so straightforward; now this is a fine mess...

But it passed in a flash.

Lin Sicheng pretended not to see it and asked a greeting with a smile.

Once seated again, Yan Wenjing began to report; he pulled over a whiteboard and drew on it for a while.

One circle, two circles, three circles... a full six or seven layers; on such a large whiteboard, he drew thirty or forty circles.

This was the criminal suspect organizational relationship chart. Although paperless office work and scientific deduction had been advocated for the past two years, old criminal police still liked this method: direct, simple, and visually impactful.

At first, Liu Kaichun didn't pay much attention, but when Yan Wenjing started filling the circles with question marks, he gradually realized something was wrong.

One question mark, two question marks, three question marks... on such a large blackboard, there were only a few that weren't question marks.

Then, he started pasting photos into the circles without question marks: Ma Shan, Ma Long, Ren Danhua, Yu Jichuan, Yu Jiyao... and the highest, Ma Shan, was only on the third layer; the two layers above were all question marks.

What did this mean?

It meant it was hard to investigate.

But that was secondary; the point was the area next to Ma Shan and Ma Long: the top three layers were question marks, the fourth layer: Ren Danhua. The fifth layer: Yu Jichuan, Yu Jiyao. The sixth layer: Qianjin Lu...

What did this represent?

It represented that new clues had been found; these people should all be key figures, including the final Qianjin Lu.

But Liu Kaichun had been here these past few days; although the leader only sent him to coordinate, whether it was the General Team or the branch, no matter what progress the case had or what clues were discovered, they would inform him immediately so he could report to the leader.

Liu Kaichun hadn't heard at all that the branch had found any clues these days. So how were these related people, suspected group members, found?

While he was suspicious, Yan Wenjing opened the file:

"Ren Danhua, original name Dan Hua, thirty-three years old, from Tangshan, Hebei. Graduated from a Beijing vocational art college in '97, worked as a shopping guide at a calligraphy and painting shop in Liulichang. Registered as an individual business owner in '99, engaged in antique business. Established a company a year later, currently the legal representative of Shanyu Ju Antique Culture Co., Ltd., with a registered capital of one million..."

"Yu Jichuan, original name Li Jilin, forty-two years old, from Tangshan, Hebei, cousin of Ren Danhua. In the early nineties, worked as an Apprentice at an antique shop, later learned antique restoration, currently the legal representative of Xicheng District Guanlan Antique Restoration Co. Yu Jiyao, original name Li Yao, twenty-eight years old, sibling of Li Jilin, currently the Vice President of Guanlan Company..."

"Qianjin Zhai, gold and silver antique restoration company, legal representative Feng Shizong, Partner Li Jiansheng, registered capital... business scope..."

Yan Wenjing introduced them one by one, emphasizing the connection information between these people and Ma Shan and his group. The more Liu Kaichun listened, the more he felt something was wrong.

So, these weren't clues found by the branch at all, but information Lin Sicheng had inquired about through social connections?

And they were all speculations, and only Lin Sicheng's speculations: the relationships between these people, the professions they engaged in secretly, the roles they played within the group, and the connection to the Ma Shan and Ma Long group.

Using social connections to find clues and advance a case was not strange. Any unit responsible for criminal and major cases basically had this or that kind of "informant," and it wasn't as if they hadn't had miraculous effects at critical moments.

Criminal investigation deduction, so-called solving a case, basically meant reconstructing the crime scene based on clues such as behavior, traces, and timing, and then anchoring the investigation direction based on the criminal suspect's psychology and motivation.

To put it bluntly, over sixty percent of the work relies on deduction, including interrogations and the correlation of physical evidence; this is nothing strange.

What is strange is that the police were not involved at all in searching for clues based on the social connections of natural persons?

No investigative direction was provided, no technical support was provided, and even less were information and data support provided.

What is even stranger is that without any professional support, relying solely on extremely one-sided information obtained by a natural person, and the character relationships constructed through imaginative speculation, it was presented so grandly at the General Team's case analysis meeting.

It is not that there are no social experts assisting the police in handling cases; there is no need to look far, just take the ready-made examples: the few cases where Lin Sicheng assisted the Xijing police are typical enough, sensational enough, the role played was significant enough, and the results were good enough.

But he only provided assistance, not leadership.

Therefore, how high is the accuracy of these deductions, how strong is the professionalism, and will they mislead the investigative direction and waste limited police resources?

Or even worse, will it be a case of acting in opposition to one's goal, resulting in all previous efforts being wasted?

At first glance, it feels both absurd and ridiculous.

But Liu Kaichun did not dare to make a sound; even though he felt incredibly strange inside, he could only endure it firmly, not daring to show it on his face.

Because he knew enough: he would not dare to say that Lin Sicheng led the detachment forward from beginning to end, but as the case stands now, for it to have such great progress, he deserves at least half the credit.

The flaws of the main suspect were bluffed out by him, the fact that Mu Mausoleum was robbed and the gang had internal strife leading to murder to silence witnesses was inferred by him and also found by him, and that includes the five corpses.

Even the organizational structure and modus operandi of this gang were borrowed from his line of thinking.

But being right once does not mean being right every time. No matter how learned or comprehensive a person is, it is impossible to dabble in all industries and understand the modus operandi of all criminals.

There are many types of grave-robbing; just in Beijing, whether in the open or in the shadows, appearing or not appearing, the cultural relics involved in looting number at least several million, if not ten million.

Relying only on a few limited cultural relics and only on the similarity in time period to infer that these people have a connection with the already arrested Ma Shan, or even belong to the same gang, Liu Kaichun felt it was too rash.

It was not just Liu Kaichun who thought this way, including Deputy General Team Leader Sun, Branch Leader Yu, and even the two leaders of the Major Crimes Division.

Being quite familiar, Branch Leader Yu did not stand on ceremony: "Little Lin, what is the basis?"

"Cultural relics!"

Lin Sicheng was concise and comprehensive, "I have seen three pieces at Qianjin Lu: one Jade Bear, unearthed in the southern Hebei area, the tomb level is at least that of a super-grade Duke. One Gold Filigree Inlaid Turquoise Plate, unearthed in the Shijiazhuang area of central Hebei, the tomb owner was a Prince or Beile.

There is also a Gold Engraving Flowers Inlaid Pearl Lock-style Incense Burner, unearthed in northern Hebei or southern Inner Mongolia, which should be a burial object of a Mongolian prince..."

"If I remember correctly, the core members of the Ma Shan gang confessed: roughly from the end of 2006 to the beginning of this year, nearly a year and a half, the cultural relics Ma Shan transported out were basically unearthed from these major types of tombs: early Qing princes, mid-Qing imperial clan, late Qing Mongolian princes..."

"One piece could be called a coincidence, but all three come from the same type of tomb; the possibility of coincidence is too low, too low..."

Several leaders were subconsciously stunned.

They had also read the confessions; Ma Shan's subordinates, including Ma Long, nicknamed Maguan, had confessed this, and not just one of them.

But because their rank was too low, they could not access information such as funds and accounts, and they knew nothing about who specifically they were sold to, where they were dug from, or how much money was sold.

Ma Shan refused to confess, and no relevant evidence had been found for the time being, which meant there was no way to investigate, so these confessions basically had no investigative value.

But according to what Lin Sicheng said: these cultural relics were very likely all stolen from within Hebei Province.

It cannot be ruled out that the pieces Lin Sicheng saw at Qianjin Lu were also unearthed in Hebei, or perhaps from the same tomb, or even belonged to the same batch as those transported by Ma Shan.

Then Ren Danhua, who sent these pieces to Qianjin Lu for Artifact Restoration, likely has a certain connection with Ma Shan.

Of course, this is just Lin Sicheng's speculation, and it is not very solid: because the items were sold long ago, and Ma Shan's subordinates do not know where he sold them to, there is currently no relevant physical evidence to corroborate it.

Connecting them based solely on one-sided confessions is too far-fetched. Moreover, they are just a few lackeys with limited knowledge, and it is even possible that Ma Shan deliberately misled them...

While secretly pondering, Lin Sicheng spoke again: "This is the first point; the second point is that the protective measures for these cultural relics after they were unearthed are exactly the same: wrapped in acid-free tissue paper and aluminum foil, protected from light and oxygen. Then nitrogen-filled and sealed to block the sulfur and chlorine Erosion caused by sudden oxygen enrichment.

It just so happens that this is the same handling method as Ma Shan's Xinjiang Red Coin. So I speculate that these items were all stolen by the same group of people..."

The leaders looked at each other: they had just said it was a bit far-fetched, but in the blink of an eye, Lin Sicheng threw out a clue of sufficient weight?

Basically everyone present had witnessed how he inferred that the copper coin was unearthed at Mu Mausoleum based on that one coin, and how he found the twelve wild graves in the fields without any markings based solely on a Compass.

And how he found the robbed one under a cattle pen, and dug up the five corpses.

He didn't know about others, but at least Lin Sicheng's appraisal ability was absolutely top-notch: production era, time of unearthing, burial location, oxidation environment, protective measures... and so on and so forth.

If he concluded that the same handling method was used, then it would basically not be wrong.

And this time it is much easier to verify than last time: find a way to get back the pieces Lin Sicheng saw at Qianjin Lu, test them, and compare them with the copper coin to know.

As long as the result matches his deduction, even if it cannot prove that this Ren Danhua and Ma Shan are accomplices, there must be a direct connection.

While secretly pondering, Liu Kaichun's heart stirred, and he stared in astonishment at the question marks on the whiteboard and those arrows.

What was said just now?

Without technical support, without information support, relying on a weak social connection to ask for a little messy information, and then constructing such a complex relationship diagram, it is truly a bit of a farce.

Relying only on a few cultural relics of similar age to forcibly connect two groups of people with no connection is no longer far-fetched, but ridiculous.

What about now?

He watched for a long time, then suddenly turned his head and stared at Lin Sicheng.

Subconsciously, the scene from just now appeared in his mind, and the voice of Deputy General Team Leader Sun echoed in his ears: When in Xijing, Little Lin cooperated with the police many times and solved several major and important cases; the Xijing department attaches great importance to him...

More than just attaching importance?

Nine times out of ten, the Uranium Porcelain Case and the Zhang Anshi Tomb Robbery Case were solved this way. Otherwise, Xijing would not be so cooperative and active.

Put yourself in his shoes: if he were a public security leader in Xijing, he could worship him like a grandfather...

While in shock and doubt, Deputy General Team Leader Sun tapped the table: "Little Lin, is there any more!"

"Yes!" Lin Sicheng nodded, "There is also a Pocket Watch... gold casing, twelve layers of Enamel, twelve colors, standard imperial level. According to the material, it should have been produced in the mid-Kangxi period, and it has the English inscription of Nan Huairen, Taichang Temple Minister and Tongfeng Grand Master. If nothing goes wrong, this Pocket Watch was handmade by him..."

"Secondly, according to the degree of oxidation, it is estimated that the burial time was during the Jiaqing and Daoguang periods. But according to the corrosion mechanism and rust composition, the burial soil was a weak acid environment, while Mu Mausoleum is a weak alkaline environment. So I suspect it was likely unearthed from Jiaqing's Chang Mausoleum, and the unearthing time is no more than two years..."

Lin Sicheng stated it plainly; the leaders were stunned at first, and then their expressions stiffened bit by bit.

Jiaqing, Daoguang?

At first glance, they are father and son, but one must be clear: Daoguang's Mu Mausoleum is in the Western Tombs, while Jiaqing's Chang Mausoleum is in the Eastern Tombs; the two people's tombs are separated by hundreds of kilometers.

The key is, a pure gold watch, twelve layers of Enamel and twelve colors?

There is no need to doubt it at all: it is either the Emperor or the Empress, or perhaps the Empress Dowager.

A Mu Mausoleum imperial Concubine robbery and murder case has not been sorted out yet, and suddenly another one has emerged: it is very likely that Chang Mausoleum has also been robbed?

The sky is falling, isn't it...

Are we to say Lin Sicheng saw it wrong?

At the mere thought of that copper coin, the concubine's tomb beneath the cattle pen, and the five skeletons, the several leaders felt like shaking their heads.

The probability of being wrong wasn't zero, but it was definitely much smaller than the probability of being right.

This wasn't a concubine's tomb, but a true imperial mausoleum...

While they were in shock and doubt, the Branch Captain suddenly discovered something wrong: "Wait... Teacher Lin, you just said that gold watch was produced in the mid-Kangxi period and had Nan Huairen's name on it?"

"Yes, Branch Captain!"

The Branch Captain's face was no longer just stiff; it was as black as the bottom of a pot: When was the Kangxi period?

More than three hundred years ago.

Even if this watch had nothing to do with Nan Huairen, it was still the first pocket watch in Chinese history. Even if it were imported, it was still the first imported watch.

It was even more likely to be the first domestically produced watch.

He stiffly turned his head: "Yan Wenjing, look up for me which year Kangxi ascended the throne, and which year Nan Huairen came to China?"

There was no need to look it up at all; Liu Kaichun was a liberal arts student and blurted out: "I remember, Kangxi ascended the throne in the 1660s, and when Nan Huairen arrived in China, the Shunzhi Emperor was still on the throne..."

The Branch Captain gritted his teeth, a final shred of hope remaining in his heart: "Teacher Lin, could it be that Nan Huairen brought it from Europe?"

"It's possible!" Lin Sicheng paused, "But only the movement. The watch case and the watch chain are both domestically produced..."

The Branch Captain gritted his teeth: What the hell is foreign about it?

Twelve layers of enamel in twelve colors—where in Europe at that time had such technology?

Alright, no need to doubt: the first mechanical domestic pocket watch.

To use the words of an old Beijing local: whether in terms of representativeness or historical value, it's damn well top-tier. Never mind whether it was stolen from the Changling Mausoleum; even if I have to dig into the ground, I must find this watch first.

"This shouldn't be difficult. At most, within this week, that General Manager Ren will show up and bring this watch over at the same time..."

After a slight pause, Lin Sicheng thought for a moment, "Calculating the time, they must have already investigated my information. If there are no leaks on the Xijing side, and if nothing unexpected happens, Ren Danhua's superior might surface..."

The several leaders nodded in unison: Let them surface, surface hard. The faster and the more they surface, the better.

But one must eat a meal one bite at a time, and do things one task at a time...

The Branch Captain let out a sharp breath: "Teacher Lin, how long will it take you to fix this watch?"

"If fast, three to five days; if dragging it out, half a month to twenty days!"

"Drag it out, drag it out as much as you can!"

Deputy General Team Leader Sun said decisively, pointing at Yan Wenjing, "Yan Wenjing, don't say I didn't give you a chance: you protect Teacher Lin well for me. After this case is closed, I will personally go to the Bureau Chief to plead for you, I'll even kowtow. If you don't handle it well, get your ass to the First Prison to watch inmates early..."

"Old Yu, you keep an eye on things; this idiot's brain isn't always bright!"

More than just sometimes? He was never bright...

The Branch Captain sighed secretly and nodded.

"Old Yu, you arrange for people now to investigate... investigate this Ren Danhua, Yu Jichuan, and Yu Jiyao. But be careful, move lightly, enter the village quietly, and don't fire any shots..."

The Branch Captain puffed out his chest: "Yes!"

"Also, continue interrogating Ma Shan... tell him directly: Ren Danhua has already been caught. If he doesn't confess now, he won't have another chance to confess... It doesn't matter if he doesn't confess; ask the experts to keep an eye on him, ask them if they are in the same gang, and you'll know with one bluff..."

The several Branch Captains and Deputy Branch Captains nodded in unison.

Past mistakes are lessons for the future; Lin Sicheng had paved the way for them, they just needed to copy it.

The case was so big and the nature so serious that they could no longer worry about whether it was compliant or not. Even if it violated regulations, they had to solve the case first.

Deputy General Team Leader Sun tapped his temple, probably still wanting to give instructions. Just as he was letting his mind wander, Lin Sicheng's phone buzzed with a "hum."

He took it out and looked: Yu Jiyao?

It wasn't a call, but a text message. It said to invite him for tea and, by the way, introduce an old friend.

He and Yu Jiyao had only just met for the first time, so where would an old friend come from?

Unless, that General Manager Ren.

Lin Sicheng's thoughts shifted: "They've surfaced!"

The Branch Captain's spirits lifted: "Who, Ren Danhua?"

"Probably not just her! If it were Ren Danhua, she would have come directly to the shop; there's no need to arrange another place!"

Lin Sicheng thought for a moment, "It should be Ren Danhua's boss..."

The several leaders turned their heads in unison and stared at the whiteboard.

Listed alongside Ma Shan, in the box above Ren Danhua, was a huge question mark...

(End of chapter)