Chapter 261: Secret

The conference room gradually fell silent.

Several members of the Elite Team glanced at Jiang Yuan, who was staring blankly, then turned their eyes to Wan Baoming, their gazes clearly filled with doubt: What's this guy up to, staying silent like this?

Wan Baoming had spent with Jiang Yuan no more time than it takes to watch a few Japanese films—skipping through them at that—and he had no idea what Jiang Yuan was actually doing.

So Wan Baoming turned his gaze toward Wei Zhenguo.

Wei Zhenguo had been lounging with his feet up, waiting for results, but now he sat upright, hesitated, then whispered: "Wait a bit—Jiang Yuan might have thought of something."

Wei Zhenguo and Jiang Yuan were already quite familiar with each other.

In his understanding, Jiang Yuan right now wasn't just thinking of something—he was likely already drawing closer to the killer inside his mind.

But he couldn't say this to others; the words themselves weren't wrong, but such speculation was too provocative.

This was also a common problem in cold case investigations: the work you complete with time and effort is something others simply cannot accomplish, no matter how hard they try.

Watching novels, especially when others are doing the same work under better conditions, simpler tasks, and with more resources, this imbalance in capability feels deeply hard to accept.

Relatively speaking, if they saw Jiang Yuan straining himself, exhausting his mind, their psychological discomfort would ease a little.

But Jiang Yuan couldn't pretend to be exhausted every time just to make everyone feel better.

And if such a performance were exposed, the backlash would be just as severe.

Thus, the conference room sank into an odd silence.

Fortunately, it didn't last long.

Jiang Yuan exhaled, breaking the stillness:

"All these bloodstains are very calm."

Wan Baoming had been waiting impatiently; at the sound, he immediately asked: "What do you mean, 'very calm' bloodstains?"

"Look at these bloodstains," Jiang Yuan pointed, and an officer promptly zoomed in the projected image.

Jiang Yuan thanked him, then continued: "Most are round droplets, with only slight tails—and even those tails are tiny, the droplets very plump."

Everyone nodded. Someone with some knowledge said: "That suggests the victim was either motionless or moving very slowly, with light steps—was she severely injured?"

"No, she was stabbed once in the abdomen—her bodily functions weren't significantly impaired. And right after being stabbed, adrenaline would be surging; many people feel no pain at all. Such calm droplets are abnormal."

Wan Baoming instantly understood: "So she suddenly started moving—maybe resisting, or hiding?"

"Something like that. Such calmness shouldn't happen," Jiang Yuan said.

At this point, Tang Jia, slumped in the back, whispered: "Suicide?"

Jiang Yuan glanced at Tang Jia and shook his head slightly: "Not quite. First, the weapon's missing—someone must have taken it. Second, in China, people who use knives to commit suicide tend to slash their wrists; stabbing the abdomen is unlikely to be fatal. Hmm… did the victim have any medical background?"

"No," the detective who had given the initial briefing answered firmly:

"We did consider this angle. But the girl was studying Chinese language and literature; no one in her family had medical training or exposure to anatomy. Her social circle was mostly classmates, and according to them, she was a very quiet girl."

"Also, the cause of death was a severed artery. The forensic expert said it's not easy to stab precisely at that spot. By the way, you're also a forensic expert…"

Jiang Yuan nodded: "Continue."

"Also, the stabbing posture doesn't look like self-inflicted. And the victim showed no signs of suicidal tendencies—her purchase records show she was still shopping online and picking up packages on the day she died." The detective concluded: "That's all."

Jiang Yuan nodded again: "Very thorough. Let's set aside the suicide theory for now."

Several people frowned.

"Let me re-describe the scene," Jiang Yuan stood up and walked to the screen's base.

He stepped back slightly, then placed his right hand over his abdomen and gestured with his left: "Here, the suspect stabbed the victim. Based on the location, I believe the suspect didn't intend to kill."

"The victim, wounded, used her right hand to grip part of the blade. Blood began to flow—but not much, only staining the right side of her pants."

"The victim took a few steps, slowly—she must have started feeling pain. At this point, she likely stopped, standing relaxed, suggesting she was talking to the suspect, not under threat or coercion."

"From here, we can infer the suspect and victim were quite familiar—or even very close. Then…"

Jiang Yuan paused, leaning slightly forward: "These bloodstains show the victim's body tilted. I believe the suspect helped her onto the bed. That's why no blood dripped here—it flowed onto the suspect's body. And during this process, the victim didn't struggle; otherwise, there would've been flung droplets."

"Stabbed once, yet still willing to be helped? So it's a relationship of deep trust?" Wan Baoming suddenly understood.

Jiang Yuan remained noncommittal and continued objectively: "The victim lay flat on the bed, with a flow of blood along her right abdomen, forming a pool. The area around the bed remained clean and tidy—this also proves homicide, because if she had pulled out the weapon at this point and tried to discard it, she would've left blood traces."

Wan Baoming understood: "The killer left with the weapon at this point."

Tang Jia, now fully engrossed, stood up: "The suspect and victim had a trusting relationship, but it's not in our investigation's social network. Does the victim have a secret lover?"

The detective originally handling the case frowned: "From what we know, the victim was a well-behaved girl—no bad habits, never went to nightclubs, didn't use luxury goods, and her daily spending was average. She rented a cheap apartment near campus, mainly because her advisor had a project nearby. Besides, she's only 25—she doesn't even have a boyfriend, and now you're suggesting a secret lover?"

Tang Jia said: "At 25, if she waits any longer, she won't be able to be a secret lover anymore."

The detective sighed helplessly: "We checked everyone in her contact list, including all social media connections—no indication she had a boyfriend or lover…"

"It's called a secret lover," Tang Jia glanced at Jiang Yuan and added: "If the suspect is a man with social status and identity, a girl like Ruan Sijing might agree to secret contact and conceal his existence…"

The detective previously in charge of the case frowned: "According to our understanding, the victim was a very well-behaved girl, with no bad habits—she never went to nightclubs or used luxury goods, and her daily spending was average. The apartment she rented was also cheap, right next to her school, mainly because her advisor had a project nearby... Besides, this girl was only twenty-five and didn't even have a boyfriend, yet she had a secret lover?"

Tang Jia tilted her head, thinking: "If he's a prince, there would be many obstacles. Concealing his identity is just one of them."

"What's the point?" the stoic detective asked again: "No money, no gifts, no romance, not even daily help. She rented the apartment herself, and it's this shabby? That's a prince?"

Tang Jia glanced at him coolly: "Money, gifts, and romance are compensation ordinary people offer princesses. True princess-style romance is sharing hardship with a prince, clinging together in the toughest moments."

The stoic detective stared, dumbfounded: "Is that how it works?"

Wan Baoming clicked his tongue twice, looking at Jiang Yuan: "Forensic Jiang, what do you think?"

Jiang Yuan slowly said: "It's possible. I suggest approaching this from two angles. First, re-interview the victim's relatives and friends—see how she interacted with those around her. It might not be a lover—perhaps a relative. Second, regarding romantic relationships…"

Tang Jia glanced at him and said coolly: "Money, gifts, and a sense of ceremony are compensation ordinary people offer to a princess. True princess-style romance is sharing hardship alongside a prince, clinging together through the hardest moments."

Tang Jia picked up: "We can look at their communication methods. If Ruan Sijing was a graduate student, her English should be good—maybe she used foreign social apps? Like Snapchat, or Quora—the foreign version of Zhihu—or Tinder."

"What's Tinder?" the stoic detective asked.

Tang Jia grew wary: "Why are you asking about that specifically?"

"You explained Snapchat and Zhihu, didn't you?"

Tang Jia fell silent for a few seconds, then said: "Tinder suggests four people daily based on location. If both sides add each other, they can chat. If one deletes the other, the entire conversation disappears…"

The stoic detective was astonished: "It can do that? How are we supposed to investigate this?"

Wan Baoming added: "This kind of hook-up app is ridiculously convenient."

"But how do we investigate? There are so many foreign apps."

"What about the victim's phone? If she installed these apps, we should be able to see them—even if deleted, traces should remain."

The detectives in the room opened their minds, brainstorming ideas.

The stoic detective immediately doused their enthusiasm: "The phone was thoroughly searched—deleted apps leave records. If there were any weird apps, I'd remember them…"

"They still had to communicate, right? Even secret lovers need to talk and arrange meetings."

The stoic detective hesitated, then sighed: "There might be a second phone. We didn't mention it in the official case file—only a few people brought it up."

Detectives handling major cases often keep minor details hidden—sometimes because there's no time to document them, sometimes because they're deliberately omitted.

Someone skeptical went to retrieve evidence, trying to find possible apps.

But back in the conference room, discussion continued on investigation directions.

Tang Jia asked again: "What about surveillance? Nothing found there?"

The stoic detective replied: "No. We reviewed plenty of footage, but we weren't considering a secret lover back then—we focused more on people connected to her work and studies, her environment…"

"No moments alone with a man?" someone asked.

"Does being alone mean a romantic relationship?" the stoic detective countered.

That left everyone speechless.

After a long pause, someone reorganized their thoughts and asked: "No hotel records, no abortion records, no gifts, no transfers? Is this lover that transparent? Too exaggerated…"

This was still opposition to the secret lover theory.

Jiang Yuan fell into thought.

Tang Jia looked at Jiang Yuan: "Things that make someone face death calmly are rare. Love is one. And only this sweet, dazzling kind of love—so public that everyone would envy it—is worth dying for."

The men in the room didn't know what to say.

Jiang Yuan cleared his throat twice: "I suggest a different approach. Suppose the victim had a secret lover who communicated via foreign apps, avoiding public places and hotel records… they must have eaten together, right? Otherwise, how would they date?"

Everyone in the room turned to look at him.

Though technically, you can date without eating, logically—even a prince and princess would dine out.

Jiang Yuan said: "I suggest sending a few people to tour the upscale restaurants in the city. Changyang doesn't have many high-end ones. See if anyone remembers them. A prince might not give gifts, but at least he'd eat well."

Jiang Yuan remembered his own yesterday's takeout of dried abalone. From a restaurant's perspective, customers like him were rare—they'd definitely remember.

Then Jiang Yuan looked at Wan Baoming: "I suggest re-examining the DNA samples, especially in the bathroom. If the suspect and victim were lovers, their DNA and fingerprints would be everywhere."

Wan Baoming had no objection, but his scalp itched—as if his brain were growing.

This case was starting to feel like it might be solved.

Jiang Yuan said: "I suggest sending a few people to stroll around the upscale restaurants in town—Changyang City doesn't have many high-end ones. See if anyone remembers them. As for a prince, even if he doesn't need to give gifts to the woman, he'd still have to eat something good, right?"

Jiang Yuan still remembered the dried abalone he'd ordered yesterday. From the restaurant's perspective, customers like him were rare enough to leave a strong impression.

Then Jiang Yuan turned to Wan Baoming and said: "I think we should retest the DNA samples, especially in the bathroom—if the killer and victim were lovers, there'd be DNA and fingerprints everywhere."

Wan Baoming had no objection, but his scalp suddenly itched, as if his brain had grown out of his skull.

This case seemed on the verge of being solved again. Remember the original publication domain: 99mk. Mobile reading URL: 99mk