SFTD -Chapter 268 The Disappearing Evidence (Part 1)

Zhou Hai, sitting on the sofa across from him, actually looked fairly energetic. The more normal he appeared, the more confused Xu Biao became. No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t figure it out. Shaking his head, he downed a can of beer in one gulp, cracked open another, and stared unblinkingly at Zhou Hai.

“Haizi, what you said is making me seriously uneasy. How about you stop drinking and eat something instead?”

By then, Zhou Hai had already finished off his own beer. He licked his lips and tossed the empty can onto the table.

“No. Get me another one!”

As he spoke, he reached over to snatch one. Xu Biao reacted quickly and grabbed the remaining beers off the table, looking at Zhou Hai warily.

“Forget it. One can is enough for you.”

But Zhou Hai hooked a finger under the bottom of the bag, and a hidden can dropped out. He caught it smoothly, popped it open, and tilted his head back to drink. Startled, Xu Biao hurriedly grabbed the rest of the beer and carried it into Zhao Xinli’s room next door.

Seeing Xu Biao’s panicked expression, Zhao Xinli stopped him and asked what had happened. Xu Biao briefly explained the situation, then suddenly remembered Zhou Hai was still alone in the room and rushed back. Worried, Zhao Xinli followed him out.

When the two returned, Zhou Hai had already finished the beer and fallen asleep on the carpet.

Helpless, they lifted the unconscious Zhou Hai onto the bed. Zhao Xinli poked Xu Biao’s chubby cheek.

“You little troublemaker. He was already in a bad mood, and you still let him drink himself senseless. He’s definitely going to have a headache tomorrow.”

Xu Biao looked utterly innocent.

“I was just curious! Besides, I wanted to know what Haizi acts like when he’s drunk.”

Zhao Xinli glanced at Zhou Hai, who was lying there stiff as a corpse.

“What’s he like? He’s already out cold. What else is there to say? Take good care of him. I’m going back to sleep.”

Early in the morning on June 24th, Zhou Hai rubbed his eyes and stretched lazily. Surprisingly, he had slept quite well. He rolled over to get up, only to realize one of his legs was pinned down. Instinctively, he kicked out hard.

Bang!

A loud crash rang out, followed by a miserable howl.

The last traces of drowsiness vanished instantly. Zhou Hai shot upright, because the scream had clearly come from Xu Biao. Barefoot, he jumped out of bed and looked at Xu Biao sprawled on the carpet.

“Xu Biao? Why are you on my bed?”

Clutching his nose, Xu Biao scrambled up and dashed into the bathroom. Zhou Hai noticed the blood seeping through Xu Biao’s fingers and raised an eyebrow. The guy was really full of energy for early summer—he’d actually gotten a nosebleed right after waking up.

After getting dressed, Zhou Hai found Xu Biao already out of the bathroom, staring at him cautiously.

“You awake now?”

Zhou Hai rolled his eyes.

“What kind of nonsense is that? Do you think I sleepwalk? Hurry up and clean the stuff off the table. Don’t eat in the room anymore—the smell’s awful.”

Xu Biao pouted and asked unwillingly: “You really don’t remember anything?”

“Remember what?”

“You don’t remember the two of us drinking last night?”

Zhou Hai shook his head.

“No impression at all. But go find something to eat. I vaguely remember being exhausted and falling asleep afterward.”

Already fully dressed, Zhou Hai picked up his bag and prepared to head out. Seeing his expression, Xu Biao instantly understood how Zhou Hai’s old teacher John must have felt back then. Recalling Zhou Hai’s behavior the previous night, he couldn’t help shivering.

No matter what happened in the future, he would never let Zhou Hai drink again.

“You coming or not?”

“Coming.”

As the two stepped out of the room, they happened to run into Zhao Xinli and Da Liu coming out of the neighboring room. Both looked terrible, their faces pale and exhausted. Zhou Hai eyed them in surprise.

“What were you two doing last night? Why do you both look like this? Don’t tell me you stayed up all night—or went drinking with Xu Biao?”

Zhao Xinli glanced at Xu Biao, who helplessly spread his hands. One look was enough to tell him that a certain someone clearly remembered none of what he’d done. Better not touch a sore spot.

Thinking quickly, Zhao Xinli pointed toward the rooms farther down the hallway.

“Nothing, nothing. Let’s go get Brother Huang and the others for breakfast first, then hurry back and study the case!”

Half an hour later, everyone was seated in the office Captain Xu had arranged for them.

The files for the 12.9 Family Massacre Case were enormous—ten whole archive boxes. It was obvious the investigation back then had been extremely thorough, but due to a lack of evidence, the case had ultimately been shelved.

Captain Xu had assigned Zhang Chao, chief of the Huanxiu Police Station, to assist Zhou Hai’s team. Back then, Zhang Chao had been the lead officer on the case, and this time he had also been transferred over to participate in the reinvestigation.

He stood up and began giving a detailed briefing.

“At 8:30 a.m. on December 9th, 2010, police received a report that a family of four had been murdered in a residential complex in Zhong Village, Huanxiu Subdistrict, Mocheng City.

The caller was the neighbor living across the hall in Room 202. Since it was a newly built complex, very few residents had moved in yet. The resident of 202 had just returned home from the night shift when he discovered the door to Room 201, belonging to Ji Heping’s family, standing open. The entire hallway reeked of blood.

When he pushed open the door, he saw Ji Heping’s younger son, nine-year-old Ji Chenglong, lying face down on the floor.

Both hands were splayed on the ground. Barefoot, one leg curled beneath him while the other stretched straight out. He was lying in a pool of blood, his neck and clothes soaked red. His head was slightly turned toward the doorway.

Terrified by the sight, the neighbor didn’t dare enter and immediately called 110.”

“After examining the scene, investigators found two more victims in the master bedroom.

The one on the bed was the owner of Room 201, forty-two-year-old Ji Heping.

His hands and feet had been tied with rope, his mouth and nose sealed with tape. His eyes were wide open, staring at the ceiling. A large yellowish-brown stain on the bed indicated he had lost control of his bowels before death.

There were several knife wounds on his body apparently inflicted for intimidation, though none were fatal. Cause of death was mechanical asphyxiation.”

“The second victim, found lying face down between the bed and the window, was Ji Heping’s wife, forty-year-old Zhu Lixiang.

Like her husband, her hands and feet had been bound with rope, and her entire face wrapped in tape, even her hair stuck beneath it. However, there were visible trampling marks on her back. A clear black shoe print remained—a hiking shoe pattern. Her cause of death matched Ji Heping’s.”

“The victim in the second bedroom was eighteen-year-old Ji Chengxue, the eldest daughter.

Her body had been arranged face down in an M-shaped position on the bed.

She wore only a long-sleeved T-shirt. The back of the shirt had been ripped open, the torn fabric hanging off both arms. Her lower body was naked, with obvious signs of sexual assault. Purple-red finger marks covered her neck, waist, thighs, and buttocks.

Her hands had been tied to the metal bars at the foot of the bed with rope. Gauze had been stuffed into her mouth and taped over. There was a knife wound across her neck that severed both the trachea and carotid artery. Blood had pooled from the bed all the way onto the floor.”

“According to forensic examination, the four victims died sometime between 10:00 p.m. on December 8th and midnight. The order of death was approximately:

Ji Heping and Zhu Lixiang first, followed by Ji Chenglong, then Ji Chengxue.

However, the autopsy uncovered neither semen nor third-party DNA. Investigators found only two partial bloody fingerprints at the scene.”

“All cabinets and drawers had been meticulously searched. According to relatives, Ji Heping had been preparing to pay 260,000 yuan into a collective investment fund, and that money disappeared. All valuables in the house had also been looted.”

Even just reading the files and looking at the photographs sent chills down everyone’s spine.

Xu Biao handed the corresponding photos to Zhou Hai, and the group passed them around in silence.