Chapter 33: A Girl's Thoughts—Don't Try to Guess

The three of them went straight to the police station and found the officer handling the investigation into Zhang Yan's disappearance.

After a brief exchange, the officer gave a detailed account of how the case had been handled, then handed a file to Lu Zhongxin:

"From the initial report and registration onward, all the records are in here."

Seeing Lu Zhongxin take it, the officer seemed to remember something and pointed at the file:

"There's a disc inside. I copied the traffic-camera footage from the day Zhang Yan disappeared onto it."

After saying that, he watched Lu Zhongxin hand the file in his hands to the fatty beside him.

And that fatty, who was clearly a rookie, brazenly started flipping through it as if no one else were there.

The way it felt to him, it was as if that fatty was the real leader.

What kind of routine is this?

Is the criminal-investigation squad now into rookies leading the veterans?

Judging by the looks of those two, they were clearly waiting for that fatty to finish reading the file.

Just as he was puzzling over it, Yu Dazhang suddenly looked up at him:

"Because of time, we won't be heading back for now—mind if we borrow one of your computers?"

As he spoke, Yu Dazhang picked up the disc and waved it.

Someone out there is surely confused again.

Even in 2014, discs were already outdated—many computer towers no longer come with disc drives.

Wouldn't a USB drive be more convenient?

To anyone who's confused—congratulations, it means you've had a happy life and never been caught up in a lawsuit.

Audio-visual material can be stored on other media, sure, but discs are the most widely used.

Compatibility, stability, long storage life, easy to copy and distribute—good for long-term preservation.

These qualities are ones a USB drive can't match.

The day you need to submit evidence in court, your lawyer will tell you: audio-visual material can only be submitted on disc.

It's even more so within the system—evidence has to be preserved long-term.

If the day comes when you go to retrieve evidence and find the storage device is dead, people are bound to wonder whether it was on purpose.

By then, even if you had a mouth, you probably couldn't explain it clearly.

So any officer with case-handling experience will always choose discs first for storing material.

The three of them then followed the officer into an office.

"Use this computer—I often use it to look things up," the officer said, pointing at a desktop.

"Thanks." Yu Dazhang pulled out a chair, sat down in front of the computer, then turned to look at him:

"If there's nothing else, could you cooperate with us in the investigation?"

So he really is the leader…the moment Yu Dazhang sat down, the officer was stunned.

Snapped out of it by the sudden question, the officer came back to himself:

"Oh, sure, no problem. The leadership already called and told me to cooperate with your work as much as I can."

"Sorry for the trouble." As he spoke, Yu Dazhang took out the disc and put it into the disc drive.

After a few operations, a video window popped up on the screen.

The timestamp showed it was the very afternoon, five days earlier, when Zhang Yan had disappeared.

This is much more convenient…Yu Dazhang rejoiced inwardly.

It seemed this officer had handled the case very carefully—he'd only copied the important surveillance footage onto the disc.

Doing it this way saved a lot of searching time.

This was a piece of surveillance footage from outside the school gate; the camera was positioned facing the school's main entrance.

It clearly showed Zhang Yan walking out from inside.

The instant she stepped out of the school gate, one of her movements caught Yu Dazhang's attention.

She looked back—a look that lasted a full two seconds, as if she were searching for someone.

After turning back around, Yu Dazhang saw what looked like a guilty, conscience-stricken expression on her face.

Then she shifted her backpack to her chest and took out a phone from inside it.

Yu Dazhang focused, fixing his attention on Zhang Yan's hands.

She was turning it on.

That earlier look back now made sense—she was checking whether any teacher was behind her.

Schools ban phones, and high schools in particular enforce it even more strictly.

Because Zhang Yan's attention was on her phone, her walking pace naturally slowed down too.

Just as she was about to walk out of the camera's coverage at the school gate, she swiped quickly across the phone screen a few times.

Not knowing what she'd seen, her hand suddenly stopped.

Then she walked out of frame just like that, staring at her phone screen.

"I've sorted all the surveillance footage." Seeing the video end, the officer explained to Yu Dazhang:

"Leaving school is the first segment; next is the surveillance of her route home…"

The officer spoke as he moved his hand to the mouse, about to click open the second video.

"Hold on." Yu Dazhang pressed down on his hand:

"I need to watch this segment one more time—fast-forward straight to the last five seconds." "Got it."

The officer acknowledged and did as he'd asked.

"Once more—still the last five seconds."

"Good."

"Run it again…"

After watching it three more times, Yu Dazhang had a rough judgment in his mind.

After Zhang Yan turned on the phone, the few taps and swipes were probably her checking for missed calls, and also the messages on the communication app.

That wasn't the most crucial part. What made Yu Dazhang watch it three more times in a row was the changes in Zhang Yan's expression.

Because the time was too brief, and the surveillance video's resolution was a bit low, it wasn't particularly clear.

He needed to confirm repeatedly to distinguish the specific meaning of each expression.

The moment she stopped moving her hands, Zhang Yan's face carried a hint of a smile.

This showed that the person messaging her wasn't someone she disliked — she even liked them a little.

Please... collect... 6... 9... book....!

But the next moment, Zhang Yan's demeanor changed rapidly, shifting from a faint smile to confusion and bewilderment.

In the final second before she left the surveillance area, she had already furrowed her brow in some annoyance.

A hint of displeasure had also crept into her gaze, even revealing a trace of disappointment.

What a rich range of expressions… Yu Dazhang leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes, seemingly pondering something.

Young lady, you've really had a tough time — in just five short seconds, enough material for a whole palace-drama episode.

There's a song whose lyrics are written very well.

"A girl's heart, don't try to guess — guess and guess and you'll never understand~"

Now Yu Dazhang had no choice but to guess.

Since the person messaging her wasn't someone Zhang Yan disliked, the later changes in expression must have been because of the content of the message.

What kind of content could make Zhang Yan's demeanor and expression shift from happy to confused, then from confused to displeased, and finally to a touch of disappointment?

Hit a weak spot, damn it… Yu Dazhang's worst skill was guessing a girl's thoughts.

Having lived two lives, he had never once been a player.

In his previous life, he never even got married — single the whole way through.

He did have a few relationships back in school, but they were all very brief.

The Yu Dazhang of his previous life really was the wooden, introverted type — someone who didn't know how to coax girls.

Later, when he became a police officer, he lost not only the inclination but also the time.

There was no choice — Yu Dazhang could only ask for outside help.

"Tell me, what kind of thing could make a girl switch expressions several times in just a few seconds?"

Weren't there ready-made people right beside him?

Qian Cheng and Lu Zhongxin exchanged glances, both seeing bewilderment on each other's faces.

The officer comrade was slightly more reliable — at least he struck a thoughtful pose.

Two minutes later.

"Out with it!"

Yu Dazhang noticed that the expressions on the three of them changed even more frequently than Zhang Yan's in the video.

"No idea." Lu Zhongxin wore a look that said he was just as lost.

"Can't think of anything." Qian Cheng's face was all scrunched up.

The officer comrade simply put on an "apologies" expression.

Wonderful — a whole room of late-stage straight-man cancer patients… Yu Dazhang sighed helplessly:

"Play the next clip."

It wasn't that Yu Dazhang was being stubborn — when collecting evidence, no detail could be overlooked.

Why is it that some people can repeatedly crack major cases, while others can't even pass their probation period on the criminal investigation team?

In the final analysis, it comes down to the control of details.

In casework, if you can spot details that others can't, even if you ultimately fail to solve the case, the criminal investigation team will treat you like a treasure.

Because experienced criminal investigators all know that the key to cracking a case lies in whether you can find the crucial point.

The next video was filmed when Zhang Yan was passing a shop on her way back.

In the video, Zhang Yan held her phone to her ear, walking and talking on the call.

Finally, my strong suit… Yu Dazhang unconsciously curled up the corner of his mouth.

They do say a person should keep learning — one more skill means one more edge over others.

Young lady, I hope your lip movements aren't too complicated.

(End of chapter)