SFTD -Chapter 139 A Drop of Blood (Part 4)

This was the first time Zhao Xinli had seen Zhou Hai speak so sharply when reprimanding someone. It was clear he was truly angered.

Such an attitude toward work had crossed Zhou Hai’s bottom line. Zhao Xinli also felt a bit frustrated, because this trace examiner known as “Big Zhao” usually acted like a senior expert and even Pang Director couldn’t do much about him—rumor had it he practiced some kind of “special technique.” Although he had reluctantly shown up today, he had been perfunctory the entire time, which also made Zhao Xinli feel embarrassed. He stared at him coldly.

The man hadn’t expected Zhou Hai to speak to him like that and stared back at him for a long moment before lowering his head.

“My skills are just like this. I’ve never handled a scene like this before. If you think I’m not good enough, just find someone else,” he said.

Zhou Hai nodded without hesitation and pointed toward the door.

“Fine. Put down your tools and get out.”

The man’s face burned with embarrassment. He dropped his forensic kit and turned to leave the main room.

Zhao Xinli walked over, looking awkward.

“Should I call Xu Biao?”

Zhou Hai nodded. “This scene isn’t difficult, but the amount of bloodstain sampling is huge. Every blood droplet needs to be identified. Bring your assistants and follow me to search. Xu Biao can come a bit later to help with comparisons—he’s more professional with bloodstains and footprints.”

“About what you just said… I’m still a bit confused. What exactly are we looking for in the blood droplets?”

Zhou Hai pulled Zhao Xinli to sit on the edge of the bed.

“For example, if I were the killer, I tie you up here. No special weapon was prepared at the scene—just a pig-slaughtering knife taken from the house, and it doesn’t have a guard. During the assault, I stab you. At the same time, I might also cut my own hand. Your blood would drip densely around where you were sitting, forming clusters or even a pool. The killer’s blood, however, would appear around those drops or pools. Even if it’s been stepped on, we can still reconstruct the original pattern. Different force levels create different droplet shapes and directions. This is extremely labor-intensive work.”

Zhao Xinli was deeply shaken. He immediately called the others over and repeated Zhou Hai’s explanation. The team then began carefully searching for blood evidence on the floor.

Seeing that they had started working, Zhou Hai did not rush. Instead, he carefully observed the scene.

The toxicology report on the victim’s blood had not yet arrived, but the fact that the victim had not resisted was puzzling. Could the killer have given him some kind of drug?

The most chaotic area was the large main room of the house. Boxes, cabinets, and everything that could have hidden something had been completely rummaged through. Although chaotic, it felt almost too chaotic—like deliberate disorder meant to vent anger or confuse investigators.

The bloodstains on the floor were messy, but careful observation still revealed patterns in the droplets and pools. In particular, near the northern wall beside the cabinet, there was a large blood pool surrounded by heavy footprints. Most of the bloody shoeprints seemed to have originated from there.

There were also scattered torn papers on the floor. Zhou Hai picked up several larger fragments and examined them. It was a lease agreement between Zheng Hongtao and a man named Zhang Jian, signed with the village. It concerned leasing dozens of acres of land north of the pig farm on the east side of the village.

Zhou Hai did not remind Zhao Xinli; letting him analyze it himself would bring greater insight.

He stepped out of the bedroom and entered the main hall. The space was quite large. The back area was partitioned into a kitchen, while the south side had a sofa and television. On the coffee table were several scattered teacups, a plate of peanuts, and a plate of braised beef, along with two pairs of chopsticks and two bowls.

Because many people had likely entered the room, the coffee table was slightly tilted, and the cups and bowls were all askew.

Zhou Hai walked over and carefully collected the bowls, chopsticks, teacups, peanuts, and braised beef, sealing each item into evidence bags and placing them into his forensic kit.

The west room had fewer bloody footprints—only partial prints. Zhou Hai walked around to take a look; this should be the room of the victim’s son, Zheng Yuan. The old iron lock was still hanging on the door, but the door had been forcibly kicked open. There were smear-like blood traces on the hanging curtain at the entrance.

The room had been ransacked carelessly: a bookshelf was knocked over and items from the cabinets were dumped out in bulk, but not scattered in all directions—everything was simply piled in the center of the room.

Just as Zhou Hai was about to step over the clutter on the floor, he noticed a bloodstain on a book. He quickly crouched down to examine it—unfortunately, it was a bloody glove print with clear texture patterns.

His expression sank.

The killer was wearing gloves.

After committing the murder, the killer staged the scene, searching every room to confuse the police, wearing gloves throughout, and even locking the door before leaving. Such meticulous planning made it hard to believe this was the work of an ordinary villager. It was too professional.

Zhou Hai left the room and looked at the other three rooms in the main house. None of them were locked. Like Zheng Yuan’s room, everything inside had been thrown into the center. Even the victim’s father’s portrait had been tossed onto the ground.

Zhou Hai’s eyes narrowed slightly.

Neither the family nor the killer had paid attention to this room.

Captain Xu walked over toward Zhou Hai.

“Captain Xu, how is the external investigation going? Have you clarified Zheng Hongtao’s social connections? Who was close to him, and who had conflicts with him?”

Captain Xu removed his hat. Despite the winter cold, he was sweating heavily—clearly, the external investigation had not gone smoothly either.

“Zheng Hongtao had a bad reputation in Suntan Village. He would turn hostile at the drop of a hat, especially when drunk—he wouldn’t even recognize his own relatives. His close family rarely interacted with him. His younger brother is working in Shanghai with his son; only his sister-in-law is still in the village. A man named Zhang Jian, who cooperated with him, had a decent relationship with him—we’ve contacted him and he’s on his way. As for enemies… more than half the village has argued with Zheng Hongtao before.”

Zhou Hai frowned deeply. How could they possibly narrow this down?

Suddenly, he thought of the incomplete bloody footprints in the west room. He quickly returned there to take photos.

Seeing Zhou Hai’s reaction, Captain Xu hurried after him, sensing he had discovered something. Zhou Hai held up the phone and showed him the image.

“There is only one type of bloody footprint in the west room. Although it’s only a partial print, it’s still very identifiable. Since there was no unrestricted movement in the room and there were smear-like blood traces on the curtain at the entrance, only the killer could have entered. Look at the pattern on the shoe sole—it’s quite distinctive, shaped somewhat like a half sea star. There’s also a triangular mark, likely a logo.”

Captain Xu leaned in, staring at the image thoughtfully for a long time.

“I think I’ve seen this shoe before.”

He immediately took out his phone and called his wife.

“Go take a photo of the sole of our son’s new blue Adidas shoes. Hurry, don’t ask so many questions—I’ll explain tonight!”

Less than two minutes after hanging up, Captain Xu’s phone chimed. A photo arrived on WeChat. He quickly opened it and compared it with Zhou Hai’s image.

They were identical.

Captain Xu slapped the door frame.

“This pair of shoes was what my son begged me for last week. I finally gave in and bought them—30% off, still 1,759 yuan. They’re Adidas 2015 spring model. The color is so bright I can’t stand it. And think about it—this Suntan Village isn’t a wealthy place. Who would be willing to spend nearly two thousand yuan on shoes like these?”