SFTD -Chapter 425 The Choice Between Black and White

Zhao Xinli looked somewhat annoyed with himself. He had apparently become so used to handling corpses that he forgot this was a living person. He quickly attached the ECG monitor that had just been delivered and handed Zhou Hai a syringe filled with anesthetic.

After a simple local anesthetic, Zhou Hai carefully began cutting the sutures open. Every stitch had nearly identical tension, and inside the wound were all trapezoidal incisions rather than straight vertical cuts. This increased the surface area for closure and made it easier to implant objects beneath the skin.

It was obvious that Yang Duxiu was truly skilled technically.

As the stitches were cut, Zhou Hai used forceps to lift the rectangular skin flap like a curtain.

All three men sucked in a breath.

Inside was a timer with only two minutes remaining, along with a chaotic mass of colorful metal wires piled together. It looked even more complicated than it had on the X-ray.

Zhao Xinli shuddered.

“This guy is completely insane. Sewing something like this into his own body—what exactly is he trying to do?”

Luo Jinfang ignored Zhao Xinli’s comment. He leaned closer to the wound, examining it carefully, then crooked a finger toward the assistants by the door. Despite the distance, one of them noticed immediately and sprinted over.

“Captain, do you need tools?”

Luo Jinfang waved his fingers.

“Make a diagram and record everything. There are six wire colors in this bomb: red, yellow, blue, green, black, and white. Two wires come directly from the timer, and they’re only black and white! Go check my notes and see whether the records from that vault explosion case match anything here.”

The young officer, despite wearing heavy protective gear, moved with astonishing agility. He instantly spun around, dug a notebook out of a backpack, and flipped directly to the relevant section according to Luo Jinfang’s instructions.

He hurried back and held the notebook in front of Luo Jinfang.

“That case also had six colored wires, and two connected to the timer. But that timer was set for thirty minutes, while this one is only two minutes.”

Luo Jinfang glanced at the record. Not only did his furrowed brow fail to relax, his expression grew even more severe.

The moment Zhou Hai saw that look, he knew the situation was difficult.

Still, he neither rushed him nor pressured him.

After a while, Luo Jinfang gathered and sorted through all the wires, then glanced at Yang Duxiu, who was pretending to be unconscious.

Grinding his teeth, he said:

“This bastard would never leave us an easy puzzle. If we follow normal logic, we’d treat the white wire between the black and white pair as the safe one. But with his personality, there’s no way he’d make it that simple. Let’s choose the black wire.”

As he spoke, he lifted the cutters, preparing to snip it.

But Zhou Hai wasn’t looking at Luo Jinfang at all.

His eyes remained fixed on Yang Duxiu.

From the moment Zhou Hai cut open the stitches, Yang Duxiu hadn’t moved at all. His breathing had also remained perfectly steady.

However, when Luo Jinfang mentioned the previous case and the young officer brought over the notebook, Yang Duxiu subconsciously tilted his head slightly.

The movement was tiny—so small it could easily have been ignored.

Zhou Hai instantly looked up at the monitor.

Yang Duxiu’s heart rate had already climbed from 87 to 93.

He was nervous.

Or rather, extremely excited.

The kind of excitement someone desperately tries to suppress.

A person can control facial expressions, but not sweating, blushing, or heartbeat. Those are autonomic bodily reactions no one can completely suppress.

So what exactly was making him so excited?

Which meant…

The black wire Luo Jinfang had chosen was the outcome Yang Duxiu most wanted.

Realizing this, Zhou Hai reached out and stopped Luo Jinfang’s hand.

Luo Jinfang looked confused. Anyone would be unhappy at having their work interrupted, and he stared at Zhou Hai questioningly.

Using his forceps, Zhou Hai pointed at the white wire, then at Yang Duxiu, and finally at the ECG monitor.

Luo Jinfang immediately understood.

The heart rate had already risen to 95.

Everyone present had witnessed firsthand just how insane this man was.

Without saying a word, Luo Jinfang looked at Zhou Hai.

Zhou Hai gave him a firm nod.

Taking a deep breath, Luo Jinfang adjusted Zhou Hai’s mask, checked his own gear again, then shouted toward the young officer:

“Everyone except me and Forensic Doctor Zhou get out! Wait outside the autopsy room! Now! Immediately! Move!”

Zhao Xinli and the young officer quickly turned and left Autopsy Room One.

This was no joke.

The corners of Yang Duxiu’s lips had already begun to curl upward. Seeing that expression made Luo Jinfang want to punch him. These past two days, this lunatic had kept them so busy their feet barely touched the ground.

Zhou Hai patted Luo Jinfang on the arm.

“Let’s begin.”

Luo Jinfang nodded.

“Alright. Three… two… one…”

The instant the final number left his mouth, the cutters snapped through the white wire.

At that moment, Yang Duxiu suddenly burst into laughter.

He threw his mouth wide open and laughed wildly, tears even seeming to form at the corners of his eyes.

“A bunch of idiots! Just wait for the explosion!”

As Yang Duxiu roared hysterically, the two men merely stood there on either side of him, calmly watching his performance.

Zhou Hai even shrugged slightly and adjusted the surgical lamp, completely ignoring Yang Duxiu before casually saying to Luo Jinfang:

“Hurry up with the rest. Otherwise I won’t get any sleep again tonight.”

Yang Duxiu froze instantly.

For a moment, he looked utterly stunned.

They had cut the black wire—so why weren’t they worried?

Hadn’t he already said it would explode immediately?

Why weren’t they running?

Could it be…

Could they actually dismantle this kind of countdown device too?

Sure enough, Luo Jinfang rolled his eyes at Zhou Hai, though his hands never slowed down. At the same time, he pressed a button on the side of his helmet and shouted: “Get back in here! Bring in two bomb transport containers, now!”

As soon as he finished speaking, sounds came from the doorway.

The two young officers pushed in a cart carrying two extremely heavy lead-lined containers. Zhao Xinli followed closely behind them.

He hurried straight to the autopsy table. Seeing Zhou Hai and Luo Jinfang working rapidly and steadily, the anxiety in his heart finally eased.

Meanwhile, Yang Duxiu, lying there, realized that the sixty seconds in his mental countdown had already passed.

He instantly became agitated.

His arms strained violently against the restraints, his legs trying to kick as he shouted nonstop:

“That’s impossible!

How is this possible?!

My design is irreversible! Once the wire is cut, it should explode! Earlier, when my heartbeat dropped below eighty, some of the timer had already been consumed! There should only be a few seconds left!

Why didn’t it explode?!

Why?!”

Luo Jinfang slapped Yang Duxiu across the head.

He was wearing a blast-protection glove, and although it was relatively soft, it still produced a loud smack against his face.

Smack!

This time, he hit the opposite side from before—the side covered in huge acid-burn blisters.

The blisters burst instantly, fluid spraying everywhere, especially across Luo Jinfang’s face shield in a long streak.

Zhou Hai quickly stopped the enraged Luo Jinfang.

“Captain Luo, there are only a few left. Keep your temper under control. Our autopsy room has automatic video recording. The entire process is being filmed.”

Zhao Xinli hurried forward as well.

“Captain Luo, don’t get angry. He’s trying to die. We can’t give him what he wants, right?”

Hearing that, Luo Jinfang stopped in place.

“You’re right. I got reckless again. Let’s keep dismantling the bomb.”

He returned to his position and rapidly cut and removed each section of explosives.

Once they discovered the flaw hidden in the white wire, everything afterward collapsed like dominoes, and all the danger instantly disintegrated.

But Yang Duxiu could only glare at Zhou Hai with bloodshot eyes full of fury.

His mouth opened and closed soundlessly—

Because Zhao Xinli had already sealed it shut with white tape.