Chapter 437: This Case Can Be Solved Lying at Home

Although he hadn't personally investigated this case in his previous life, he knew how it ultimately ended.

Because the case was very famous at the time.

After two months of in-depth investigation, the task force still failed to find conclusive evidence to pin down the true killer, and ultimately had no choice but to disband.

Just when everyone thought this case would become a cold case, an unexpected turning point appeared.

The killer actually surfaced on their own!

However, this killer wasn't discovered through the police's meticulous investigation, but was reported by someone.

That reporter was none other than the killer's wife.

That's about right... Yu Dazhang quietly took two more deep breaths.

Only when his hands stopped trembling did he open his eyes.

"Go upstairs."

Hearing his strong, resonant voice, Wei Qian and Lu Zhongxin couldn't help but feel a bit more confident.

The three of them went upstairs.

Yu Dazhang glanced at the plaster molding beside the bed.

The victim's posture clearly showed signs of a violent struggle... he muttered to himself.

Then he looked around.

The bloodstains on the bed and floor had already turned black, and the blood spatter on the wall showed a splatter pattern.

Although the body was no longer at the scene, the distribution of bloodstains still revealed the brutality of what had happened.

Yu Dazhang pursed his lips.

This house would definitely be a haunted house from now on; if word got out, the property values of the entire building would drop along with it.

It was also his first time at the crime scene, but actually he could have solved the case without coming.

But to avoid arousing suspicion, he had to put on a show.

If he solved the case just by lying at home, the task force would surely find it suspicious, and might even think he had some connection to the case.

Therefore, he had to come to the crime scene and find some convincing new leads.

"Get Qian Cheng from the technical division over here." Yu Dazhang turned and ordered Lu Zhongxin.

Once they entered work mode, the dynamic between master and disciple would naturally shift.

Lu Zhongxin was now used to being directed by his own disciple.

"Got it."

After agreeing, he immediately walked aside, took out his phone, and made the call.

There was no other reason for calling Qian Cheng over; with such a good chance to earn merit, of course he had to look out for a familiar face.

"Call the task force people over too."

Yu Dazhang said to Wei Qian in a consultative tone:

"If there's work to be done, they can't just sit around either."

Toward Captain Wei, he naturally didn't dare be too casual; after all, the man was his direct superior, and the respect was still due.

"You're really that confident?" Wei Qian sounded a bit uncertain.

He had only seen Yu Dazhang come to the scene, glance around casually, and then start calling people in.

It was obvious this fatty had found new leads.

Wasn't this too hasty?

Bro, you just got here.

If the case were this easy to crack, the task force wouldn't have made zero progress in the past half month.

"Solving a case doesn't rely on confidence."

Yu Dazhang smiled confidently, then pointed at his big head:

"Real leads have to be deduced with your brain."

Now he's putting on airs... Wei Qian was left speechless by his words, but had no way to argue back, and could only nod.

"I'm calling the people in, so you really do have to work."

He was still a bit uneasy, so he offered a reminder.

If everyone showed up and Yu Dazhang didn't come up with any new leads, that would be utterly embarrassing.

"I know, hurry up and make the call." Yu Dazhang replied, seemingly casually.

Seeing that Wei Qian had also gone off to make a call, he walked to the balcony and looked around, then moved to the right side and stared at the neighboring balcony for a while.

The seventh floor was indeed a bit high, but it wasn't entirely impossible.

People are different; in the eyes of certain people with special skills, this height meant nothing. Coming out from the balcony, Yu Dazhang went to the corridor outside the apartment.

He paced back and forth a few times; it looked like he was walking and thinking, but in reality he was observing the neighbors' doors.

Sure enough, there's a surveillance camera installed... this made Yu Dazhang feel even more confident.

About ten minutes later, Qian Cheng arrived at the scene.

When he saw Yu Dazhang, he walked up and punched him:

"I've been worried sick these past few days. You really don't let people rest easy—saving someone and you still end up running into a scumbag."

Perhaps because their personalities clicked, they had a very good relationship, and whenever they met, they couldn't help but joke around a bit.

"Just bad luck." Yu Dazhang replied, somewhat helplessly:

"Brother Qian, you know me—I'm just soft-hearted by nature. Even if a dog fell into the lake, I'd still jump in to save it."

You? Soft-hearted? Qian Cheng was stunned by the claim.

Trying to fool a ghost?

He had seen the scene after Yu Dazhang fought an enemy with his own eyes.

Even the forensic pathologist frowned at that sight.

If you kid go soft on them, how do you think those people died?

"Alright, cut the crap." Qian Cheng waved his hand:

"Why'd you call me here? I know this scene — the tech division's already examined it."

Yu Dazhang suddenly reached out, grabbed his arm, and dragged him inside:

"Of course we found a new lead. I called you here to collect footprints. If there's a chance to earn merit, I'd definitely give you first priority."

Quite the loyal brother… hearing that, Qian Cheng felt a small touch of warmth.

When he'd worked with Yu Dazhang before, he'd genuinely benefited from it — he'd even earned one personal Third-class merit.

Combined with the collective merits, his police rank had been promoted a grade out of turn.

So he never doubted Yu Dazhang's ability; he just felt something was off this time.

Qian Cheng was bodily hauled to the balcony by Yu Dazhang.

"The footprints are right there."

Yu Dazhang pointed at a reserved concrete slab between the two balconies and said:

"Go collect them."

Qian Cheng followed the direction of his finger and looked closely.

It was an air-conditioner outdoor-unit space deliberately reserved during construction, meant to let residents place the outdoor unit there when installing an air conditioner.

Its size was just right to fit one outdoor unit.

In practice, this reserved space wasn't very useful.

Nowadays, when installing air conditioners, installers usually use a triangular bracket as support and mount the outdoor unit directly on the building's outer wall.

This is actually safer and more convenient.

So this reserved space became mere decoration.

When Qian Cheng saw it clearly, he flew into a rage on the spot.

"Let go of me!"

He shook his arm hard, trying to break free of Yu Dazhang's grip, and shouted at the same time:

"This is the seventh floor!! How the hell do you expect me to get over there — jump? You fucking—!"

The balcony wasn't actually far from that reserved outdoor-unit space — eyeballing it, about a meter or so; even a woman could easily leap onto it.

The only difficulty was the height of the floor.

If you slipped, the odds of surviving weren't great; even if you did, you'd most likely end up disabled.

"Easy, easy."

Yu Dazhang soothed:

"I never told you to jump up there. I brought you here just to let you take a look first."

At that moment, Wei Qian and Lu Zhongxin also crowded over.

They first glanced at that reserved slab, then exchanged a look.

Both being criminal investigators, the two immediately guessed Yu Dazhang's intention.

"You suspect the killer jumped onto this balcony from that reserved slab?"

The one asking was Wei Qian — he was familiar with the case's direction, so he thought of that angle first.

"Exactly." Yu Dazhang nodded:

"When the killer left, he used the same method."

Hearing him state it so certainly, Wei Qian couldn't help asking again:

"But the task force already checked the outer wall before, and there were no climbing marks. So how did the killer get up?"

That's the most interesting part of the case… Yu Dazhang pointed at the neighboring balcony:

"The killer jumped over from home."

(End of chapter)