Case Files Chapter 28: Angel of Death (8)

Translated by Vivian of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Addis

 

When he arrived at the police station, he happened to encounter that Doctor Wang, who was being invited into the hearing room. He looked up impatiently and said, “Exactly what do you guys want to ask about? I’m very busy with my work, so can’t you ask me these things at the hospital?”

“Do you think he looks like a criminal?” Zheng Fei asked Lu YunYang.

“I’m really not a fortune-teller that can tell things based on appearances.”

“…”

Chen QiaoYu got straight to the point. “Did you know Du XiaoYue?”

Wang Bin was stunned. “Who?”

“Du XiaoYue. She was a nurse at the Fangxin Clinic. That clinic is on the road that you have to take to go home, so don’t tell me you don’t know it.”

“Of course I know that clinic, but how would I know the nurses who work there?”

“Doctor Wang, we invited you here today so you can assist us with our investigation by telling us some things. If you conceal the truth and hinder our investigation, then I’m afraid that next time, we’ll have to have a chat in the interrogation room next door.”

“Officer, I haven’t committed murder, arson, or tax evasion. As for what you said about concealing the truth, I know that you’re currently investigating that recent case, but I have nothing to do with it at all. Nothing I say will affect this case in any way, so you don’t have to scare me like this.” Wang Bin didn’t seem to be scared at all.

Chen QiaoYu and Gu Xiang exchanged looks. Gu Xiang continued, “Doctor Wang, it’s not that we suspect that you have something to do with the case. It’s just that if you don’t say some things clearly, then we’ll have to investigate them ourselves. You also know there are a lot of people who will talk, so in case they say some gossip or rumors about you, it won’t do you any good. We only want the best for you, so you should consider this carefully.”

The corner of Guan Jin’s mouth twitched. Sure enough, none of them were easy to deal with. Although Gu Xiang looked gentle and considerate, that only made people put down their guard, and he was still equally as deadly.

Sure enough, Wang Bin hesitated. “You have to guarantee that everything I tell you guys won’t be disclosed. I don’t want to attract unnecessary trouble.

“I did know Du XiaoYue. Not long after I returned from my studies abroad and started working at Hospital Three, on the way home once, I nearly bumped into her, and later we got acquainted. She was a cute, petite girl, so I began having feelings for her. When I had time, I would invite her to go drink tea or watch a movie together, but neither of us openly confessed our feelings. Later, when we understood each other better, I discovered that she wasn’t very knowledgeable, and she lacked a solid understanding of the world. We couldn’t talk about a lot of things, so she really wasn’t the ideal partner I had in mind. Thus, we slowly drifted and stopped keeping in touch.” Wang Bin shrugged.

“That’s it?”

“That’s it. When I found out that something had happened to her, she had already been dead for more than a week. It’s not that I didn’t feel sorrowful. Since I didn’t want to arouse suspicion, I didn’t really acknowledge her death. Officers, you don’t suspect me of killing her, do you?!”

“We never said that, don’t get agitated. When you were in contact with her, did you hear about her saying anything abnormal or disputes she was involved in?”

Wang Bin thought about it carefully for a moment. “No, she wasn’t very ambitious, so she rarely got into disputes with people. It was only the occasional complaint about a fussy patient or a colleague shirking work.”

Gu Xiang looked at him for a while. “Mn, we know. Continue.”

Wang Bin rubbed his hands together. “Who knew that something would happen again. I don’t know why, but the victim happened to be someone I knew again. Li Ling and I haven’t been in touch for a very long time, and when I first came to Hospital Three, I didn’t know she also worked there.”

“What was your relation to Li Ling before?”

“…You guys don’t know?!” Wang Bin felt like he had been deceived.

“We’ll know after you tell us.” Gu Xiang smiled at him.

Wang Bin shook his head helplessly. “Actually, it doesn’t matter. Li Ling and I were classmates in college, and she was studying a nursing major. We dated for two years. Later, I chose to go study abroad for my postgraduate, so we broke up. Until I graduated as a PhD and returned to work at Hospital Three, we haven’t been in touch since.”

“What a coincidence that your two ex-girlfriends were murdered nearby.” Chen QiaoYu looked at him with a scorching gaze.

“It’s just a coincidence! I don’t have any reason to hurt them!” Wang Bin panicked.

“Do you know Lei Jing?”

“Lei Jing? What-what does this have to do with Lei Jing? She’s a nurse that works in our department, and she joined quite recently.” Wang Bin’s expression grew ugly. “What happened to Lei Jing…”

“Today, in the early morning, Lei Jing was assaulted near your hospital.”

Wang Bin’s expression contorted further.

When they escorted Wang Bin to the door, Lu YunYang suddenly asked, “Doctor Wang, did you resolve the problem with the infusion tubes?”

“Huh? Infusion tubes?!” Wang Bin looked even more baffled than when he had heard that three girls who had something to do with him had been killed or assaulted.

*****

“Right, Lei Jing woke up this morning,” Chen QiaoYu informed Guan Jin and the others, who had arrived later, “but she’s still in shock, and her thoughts are muddled. She only remembers that something was wrapped around her neck, and then her mouth was covered. She was then dragged by someone, and was throttled so she couldn’t make a sound at all. Soon afterwards, she lost consciousness, and she didn’t even have the time to struggle. She didn’t see what the person looked like.”

“How about it? What does everyone think?” asked Wen JingHan.

“I didn’t expect that we would actually dig up another piece of history. This means that there must be something wrong with that Wang Bin. Li Ling and Du XiaoYue were both his ex-girlfriends, and Lei Jing works under him, so maybe they’ve also dated before?” suggested Ding Ding. “Perhaps, this Wang Bin was emotionally frustrated, so he became a murdering madman. His relationships all failed, so he decided to kill his exes.”

“Then what about the infusion tubes? Why would he choose to use those as the murder weapon? And, this Wang Bin seems very delicate, and he doesn’t look to be very strong,” pondered Zheng Fei.

“Little Bai, show me Wang Bin’s records.” Lu YunYang took Wang Bin’s records and flipped through the folder.

“The possibility of what Ding Ding said isn’t likely.”

“Why?”

“Look,” Lu YunYang pointed at the records, “Wang Bin was born into an educated household, and he has both parents. He’s had a smooth life since childhood, and the college he got into was just so-so, but for his postgraduate, he got into a renowned medical school in the United States, where he got his PhD. This means that he can’t have gotten traumatized in his childhood, and as a person, he’s very strong and willing to work hard. 

“People like these always put their career and social status as their first priority, so they wouldn’t have a mental breakdown because of their feelings or the occasional failed relationship. Not to mention, you guys all heard his tone just then. He doesn’t feel any hatred or lingering feels for Li Ling or Du XiaoYue, and on the contrary, he feels that they were mediocre and weren’t good enough for him, so he took the initiative to break up, which means he wasn’t dumped.”

“Then what if it’s not because of his feelings?” asked Chen QiaoYu.

Guan Jin was shaking his head subconsciously.

“Guan Jin, if there’s something you disagree with, then let’s hear it.” Wen JingHan had noticed.

Guan Jin looked at everyone. “Wang Bin has a medium build, and I’ve seen his arm. He lacks training, and there’s not much muscle. People’s explosive power is based on their body, so there’s no way  Wang Bin’s muscle power is enough to cover a young girl’s mouth and drag her aside that quickly, as well as instantly make it so that she can’t shout for help and asphyxiate her. And,” he narrowed his eyes, “the look in his eyes. A person who has killed multiple people wouldn’t have that gaze.”

“Then what kind of gaze should people who have murdered before have?” Zheng Fei, who had personally seen many murderers, smiled.

Guan Jin merely glanced at him indifferently, but Zheng Fei suddenly felt a chill at the back of his head.

Wen JingHan frowned slightly.

“Little Jin’s analysis is very correct, and although I don’t understand it, I agree with it completely.” Lu YunYang suddenly clapped.

If you don’t understand it, then why the fuck would you agree with it? Guan Jin glared at him fiercely, but the coldness in his eyes had subconsciously disappeared.

“And, as I’ve said before, I actually have an overall idea of what this killer is like. Male, between 25 and 35 years old, a little thin but still with a sturdy, muscular physique, so he probably either engages in manual labor or works out often. He’s quite withdrawn, and even experiences barriers in interpersonal communication. Relatively low self-esteem, but he wants to get recognized. He finds confidence and a way to break free of his chains through the process of killing people, but once he returns to society, he becomes his original self again, which is why he continuously gains strength by killing people. Since the intervals between his murders have shortened abruptly, something might’ve provoked him, or he has lost control completely. Thus, even though he knows that the situation isn’t looking good for him and that it’s very risky, he cannot stop.”

“How do you know he has low self-esteem? Aren’t killers supposed to be very cunning and confident?” retorted Guan Jin.

“A confident killer would regard killing as a pleasure, and they’ll think that they can control everything, bold and arrogant. They’ll even pay attention to the police’s progress the entire time and use their actions to mock the police’s powerlessness. However, this killer didn’t purposely make it easy for people to discover the bodies and flaunt his success. There are also no signs of contempt or insult towards the victims at the crime scenes. Although he chooses to use the method of strangulation, his movements are very quick, and he didn’t purposely torment the victims, nor did he slowly enjoy the process of killing. Most importantly, after he was discovered by Wu Meng, he didn’t hide himself and kill her too. Instead he, fled in a panic, and didn’t even have time to retrieve his murder weapon.”

When he saw Guan Jin’s doubtful expression, Lu YunYang added, “However, psychological profiles of the suspect are not scientifically precise. They’re mainly based on theories from psychology, praxeology, and other subjects, as well as the analyst’s personal judgement, so they’re not a hundred percent accurate. Not to mention, I’m not a professional in this aspect, so take it with a grain of salt.”

“So, aren’t unscientific judgements the same as being a sham of a psychic?” Guan Jin muttered quietly.

Suddenly, Guan Jin’s phone rang.

“Officer Guan, this is Wu Meng. Today, when I went to work, I suddenly remembered something strange, and it’s about Lei Jing. If you have time, can you come to the hospital? I think that you guys might have to talk with some people.”

 

“Okay, stay at the hospital. I’ll go there at once.” Guan Jing hung up.