SFTD -Chapter 144 A Drop of Blood (Part 9)

Zhou Hai glanced at him. “Mm, she almost got hit by a car.”

“That’s it?”

“That’s it. Go to sleep.”

At dawn, Zhou Hai hired a hotel driver who also acted as a guide and asked her to take Lu Xi and Luo Luo to He Mountain in Mocheng for a day. Luo Luo rarely objected to this arrangement and obediently waved at Zhou Hai and Xu Biao before getting in the car and leaving.

Xu Biao bumped Zhou Hai with his shoulder. “Stop staring, they’re already far away. Let’s go too!”

Xu Biao drove, and the two headed toward the Mocheng Criminal Investigation Team. As they were about to arrive, Zhou Hai’s phone rang.

“Dr. Zhou, this is Zhao Xinli. Are you on your way?”

“We’re almost at the police station. What, the lab results are already out?”

“Mm, Sister Zeng just sent part of them.”

Zhou Hai hung up. By then, Xu Biao had already driven into the police compound. Officer Xu’s team led them into a large office, where Zhao Xinli stood up and waved at Zhou Hai.

“Over here!”

Zhou Hai walked over quickly. “What is it?”

“The toxicology report on the deceased is out. No drugs or toxic substances were detected.”

“And this—look—this is the DNA comparison result. The blood sample No. 147 found at the scene is not from the victim. However, it matches the DNA extracted from the cigarette butt found at the pig farm. After screening, it does not match Zhang Jian, Zhang Xingyu, or Zhang Chuncheng. It also has no relation to the victim Zheng Hongtao.”

Officer Xu frowned nearby. “In that case, all five of our key suspects have been ruled out.”

Zhou Hai glanced at him. “Where are Zheng Chidong and Zheng Yuan? You haven’t even found them yet or checked them, so how did you reach that conclusion?”

Officer Xu froze, not expecting the seemingly gentle-looking forensic doctor to speak so sharply, cutting him off without any courtesy.

“Isn’t it because the DNA from the killer doesn’t match the victim’s bloodline?” he said.

Zhou Hai stood up. “That only proves there’s no blood relation. It does not eliminate their suspicion. So we still need to find them quickly. Their father and uncle are dead, and neither of them arrived at the scene immediately—doesn’t that itself raise questions?”

Just then, one of the investigators rushed back.

“Chief! We found Zheng Chidong’s travel records. He arrived in Mi Gao at 11:56 on January 31. The ticket shows he took train G4219 from Beijing to Mi Gao.”

Officer Xu hesitated. “This morning, the team at the scene called me. They said Zheng Hongbo, the victim’s younger brother, returned last night—but he didn’t bring his son. He said he was too busy with work and couldn’t leave… This…”

Zhou Hai’s mind rapidly ran through possibilities. “Have you checked Zheng Yuan’s information yet?”

The man shook his head. “No.”

A bad premonition made Zhou Hai restless. He stood up and paced back and forth. The room fell silent.

“Can you check when he went to Beijing?”

“Also ask Zhu Li whether she has been communicating with Zheng Yuan via text messages. And whether she ever told him about the cash kept at home.”

The investigator quickly made a call. Officer Xu also called Zhu Li, and as expected, she had indeed told Zheng Yuan that the family would be paying a contracted sum in cash these days. Zheng Hongtao had insisted on keeping cash at home instead of transferring it.

Officer Xu hung up and began to follow Zhou Hai’s train of thought.

“You suspect Zheng Chidong controlled or even killed Zheng Yuan, then returned from Beijing to get the 400,000 yuan in cash?”

Before Zhou Hai could answer, the investigator who had gone to make calls returned.

“Chief, Dr. Zhou—Zheng Chidong left Shanghai for Beijing on January 28 by slow train, and arrived on January 29.”

Zhou Hai looked at Officer Xu. “Detain Zheng Hongbo. Then apply for a search warrant for Zheng Hongbo’s house. If your team had arrived at the scene earlier, the killer might still be hiding in the village and not have escaped.”

“Also issue a cooperation notice and ask colleagues in Beijing to help locate Zheng Yuan.”

Officer Xu waved his hand and left with his team. Zhao Xinli stood up, looking between Officer Xu and Zhou Hai.

“What do we do next?”

“Go look at the victim’s body again. Since no drug was found, we’ll find the answer from the body itself.”

They quickly returned to the people’s hospital. The body had already been brought out. Xu Biao looked at Zhou Hai.

“Hey Hai, what are we looking for?”

Zhou Hai shook his head. “I don’t know yet. Any abnormal part that could have knocked him unconscious without leaving obvious injury.”

“Dr. Zhao, can you shave hair?”

Zhao Xinli had already taken out a razor and started quickly. Xu Biao leaned over.

“Nice technique. Definitely trained.”

Soon all the hair was shaved off. Two faint white dots appeared on the scalp. Zhou Hai immediately cut into the area. The subcutaneous tissue was pale—signs of a mild electrical injury.

“So the killer came prepared… and used an electric stun baton.”

Xu Biao curled his lips. “A hit to the back of the head. Even a low-voltage stun gun would knock someone out instantly. That’s ruthless.”

Zhao Xinli let out a long breath. “No wonder we found nothing abnormal in the brain during autopsy—it was such a mild electric shock.”

“It’s still our autopsy that wasn’t careful enough. Alright, take photos and let’s go.”

After finishing the photos, Xu Biao packed up his tools.

“Where to?”

“To Zheng Hongbo’s house in Suntan Village. There’s no news from Officer Xu—they’re probably not progressing smoothly.”

And indeed, when they arrived in Suntan Village, they saw Zheng Hongbo standing at the gate holding a shovel, swinging it at approaching police officers in a desperate, violent resistance.

They quickly walked over. Zhao Xinli was confused. “Officer Xu, what’s going on?”

Officer Xu pulled open his coat, sweat already on his face.

“We just got the search warrant. Zheng Hongbo went crazy when he saw we were going to search his house. He locked his wife inside and stood here resisting violently. Don’t worry, Xiao Liu is bringing shields.”

Just then, Xiao Liu ran back. Several officers rushed forward with shields and pinned Zheng Hongbo to the ground.

Officer Xu led his team into the house. Soon after, they found Zheng Chidong in a cellar. His eyes were sunken, dark circles heavy. He wore a worn cotton jacket and jeans covered in mud. On his feet were a pair of bright green Adidas sneakers splattered with blood. His handcuffed fingers were wrapped in several bandages.

Standing beside Zhou Hai, Zhao Xinli widened his eyes. This was his first time following Zhou Hai on a case, and seeing everything unfold exactly as previously inferred filled him with even greater admiration.

Then Zheng Hongbo’s wife was brought out as well. Seeing everyone already taken away, Zhou Hai stepped into the courtyard. Xu Biao tapped Zhao Xinli on the shoulder.

“Still stunned? Go look for the murder weapon and the cash!”