SFTD -Chapter 282 The Disappearing Evidence (Part 15)

Zhou Hai pulled out a cigarette and held it beneath his nose, taking a slow sniff without lighting it. He deliberately slowed every movement. After all, this was an interrogation room.

But the action successfully caught Ji Cheng’an’s attention.

For smokers, seeing someone else pull out a cigarette triggers an instinctive craving. That subtle urge releases more dopamine receptors, and even people with excellent emotional control will reveal tiny emotional fluctuations. That was Zhou Hai’s real purpose.

Zhou Hai intentionally slowed his speech, each word landing clearly in the room.

“You prepared a second plan. You went to a small chemical supply shop that didn’t require registration and bought ether, rope, a crowbar, hooks, a dagger, gloves, tape, and a heavy protective mask. You were already prepared to end everything in a mutual destruction scenario.

But when you arrived that night, you discovered that Ji Chengxue’s fiancé was there as well.

So you changed your plan on the spot. After Li Zhongzhi got drunk, you brought him to Room 101 and knocked him unconscious. Then you took Li Zhongzhi’s towel back to the Ji residence, except by then the towel had already been soaked in ether.

You told Ji Heping and Zhu Lixiang what you wanted, but Zhu Lixiang had long been determined to marry her daughter into wealth and status. How could she possibly agree to let her daughter follow a poor nobody like you? So she grabbed the alarm clock and smashed it at you. I imagine she humiliated you quite thoroughly too, which only strengthened your resolve to carry out the next part of your plan.

You said nothing and left. Before leaving, you draped that ether-soaked towel over the radiator in the living room. Ji Chengxue and the others had probably seen the towel before, recognized its color and material, and didn’t stop you.

Then, in the middle of the night, you changed into Li Zhongzhi’s clothes and glasses.

Oh, and I almost forgot—Li Zhongzhi’s distinctive bodhi bead bracelet. You wore it on your left wrist as well.

That was your backup plan. If someone saw you, or if something unexpected happened, witnesses would identify Li Zhongzhi. Back then, the two of you were both eighteen years old. Your builds and appearances were remarkably similar. Combined with Li Zhongzhi’s clothes and accessories, the disguise was nearly perfect.

Afterward, you checked all fourteen households in Unit One and confirmed that no other residents were home.

Only then did you pry open the door to Room 201. The sound of forcing the lock was loud, but no one from the Ji family or the rest of the complex came out to investigate. That made you even bolder, because you intended to stage the scene as a burglary gone wrong. Though honestly, forcing the door open like that was unnecessary overkill.

Wearing the thick mask, you entered Room 201 directly. Naturally, the first room you entered was Ji Chengxue’s. Seeing that she was still completely unconscious, you tied her up and secured her to the foot of the bed with rope so that even if she woke from the anesthetic, she wouldn’t be able to run out and call for help.

Then you opened all the windows to ventilate the apartment. The rooms were filled with ether fumes, and with the air conditioner circulating the vapors everywhere, you were afraid you might knock yourself unconscious too.

After waiting a while, you entered the master bedroom and killed Zhu Lixiang and Ji Heping. The torture involved probably satisfied your desire for revenge immensely.

After all, Ji Heping had numerous coercive injuries on his body, and Zhu Lixiang’s back showed footprints from being stomped on. Of course, you also forced them to reveal where all their valuables were hidden.

Perhaps he heard noises from the master bedroom, or perhaps the open windows helped clear his head, but Ji Chenglong ran out of his room trying to escape. You chased him down and killed him in the living room before looting the Ji family’s home.

Of course, while you were in the master bedroom, you noticed lights on in the building across from you and saw someone watching through the window.

So you deliberately walked to the living room window and forcefully shoved it open. Sure enough, someone looked over. You tossed the rope outside the window, then pulled it back in and threw it onto the floor.

After that, you went into Ji Chengxue’s room and raped and murdered her. I suspect the idea of violating her only came to you while you were in the master bedroom.

I found an empty condom wrapper in the bedside drawer of the master bedroom. A married couple wouldn’t keep empty packaging in a drawer after using it. That wasn’t theirs.

So that was you. You wanted Ji Chengxue. Even if she was dead, you still wanted to possess her.

Afterward, you still weren’t satisfied. You went to Building 18 looking for that family, but they had already left. So you repeated the same trick—forcing open their door and smashing their apartment beyond recognition, all to warn them into silence.

Then you returned to Room 101 and changed Li Zhongzhi back into his own clothes. But you forgot the bead bracelet. Or perhaps you left it there deliberately, since it was quite valuable.

And only after dawn did you leave Zhongcun Residential Complex.”

Ji Cheng’an narrowed his eyes and stared unblinkingly at Zhou Hai. Then he raised his handcuffed hands and applauded him.

“What a wonderful analysis. I almost thought I was watching some detective movie. Since you sound so certain, then where’s your evidence?”

The smile on Zhou Hai’s lips deepened. He immediately pulled out a photograph of Ji Chengxue from the crime scene—a high-definition image enhanced by Dr. Wudao. Printed in color on A4 paper, the clarity was astonishing. Even the fine hairs on the victim’s body were visible.

Not just Ji Cheng’an—even Zhou Hai himself could almost smell the bloodshed whenever he looked at the photo. Especially on Ji Chengxue’s pale nape and inner thigh, where two faint palm prints and the impression of the bead bracelet stood out vividly.

With a sharp smack, Zhou Hai flicked the A4 sheet directly in front of Ji Cheng’an.

The sudden motion made Ji Cheng’an instinctively jerk his head aside to avoid it.

“Don’t rush. My analysis is naturally based on evidence. Look at those palm prints and fingerprints. When you raped and murdered Ji Chengxue, you removed your gloves. Back then they didn’t have today’s advanced DNA extraction technology, but every contact leaves a trace.

Your handprint was left right here—a classic left-handed restraining motion around Ji Chengxue’s neck.

And most importantly, your thumb joint bends inward at a thirty-degree angle. That’s not a feature most people have.

So stop keeping your thumb clenched. You can hold your hand out now.

We already captured screenshots of your thumb earlier and compared them. They perfectly match the finger marks on Ji Chengxue’s body.”

Huang Zhongsheng stood up and walked over beside Ji Cheng’an as well.

Ji Cheng’an, who had been gripping his own hands tightly together, suddenly froze. He stared at Zhou Hai without blinking.

Under that silent stare, Ji Cheng’an slowly lowered his head and revealed a bitter smile, one filled with loneliness and helpless resignation.

“I lived more than twenty years, and the first person to notice something wrong with my thumb was actually a forensic doctor. Never thought my fatal mistake would be taking off my gloves.”

Zhou Hai shook his head.

“There was much more than that. The ether-soaked flooring. The leftover rope discarded on the balcony. The vandalism and deliberate intimidation at Building 18. The two partial bloody fingerprints on the doorframe. The bodhi bead bracelet.

And the surveillance footage from across the street when you left the complex that morning.

Your plan wasn’t nearly as perfect as you thought.”

Huang Zhongsheng reached over and tapped the small table in front of Ji Cheng’an before handing him a cigarette.

“Now, can you tell us what really happened?”