Insights Chapter 150: Cross Killer

Chapter 150: Cross Killer

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

The City Bureau, 2:00 PM, a few people were already seated in the small meeting room. Gu Yanchen, Shen Junci were there, along with Shao Zhen’en, and the officer in charge of recording, Director Ding sat in the chairperson’s seat, Li Zhongnan sat beside with Ding Yueran.

Everyone received folders and began analyzing the case of Jian Yunxi. Shen Junci placed photos from the file on the whiteboard. The girl’s corpse was pale, and the deep cross-shaped wound on her chest was clearly visible, so that people couldn’t help but lament the cruelty of the killer. Gu Yanchen first explained the case, projecting a map on the screen, outlining Jian Yunxi’s last known location before her disappearance.

“According to Jian Yunxi’s mother’s testimony, she was separated from her daughter at this intersection. But the teacher responsible for guarding the school gate did not see the girl approaching the school gate.”

“I speculate that Jian Yunxi was late at the time and afraid of being punished by the teacher, so she may not have intended to enter the school through the gate but wanted to climb over the wall near the school. Perhaps it was during this process that the girl encountered the perpetrator and was abducted.”

Gu Yanchen specifically called Jian Yunxi’s primary school classmates after lunch. The school had strict punishments for being late, and late students would be made to stand during the flag-raising ceremony after morning self-study. Therefore, many students used to climb over the wall to avoid punishment.

“At the time of Jian Yunxi’s disappearance, there was a lack of surveillance in the vicinity. The police later visited multiple places and found several witnesses who were selling goods nearby. According to their testimonies, several people saw a young man named Mu Bin talking to Jian Yunxi that morning.”

The town was not large, and the population was relatively stable; many people knew each other.

Mu Bin’s mother owned a cold noodle shop next to the school. Sometimes he helped with moving things and cleaning up utensils, and when he had nothing to do, he wandered around nearby.

“The police initially considered Mu Bin a suspect and began investigating his background. Mu Bin graduated from primary school and had mild intellectual disabilities. He admitted to talking to the girl but claimed he was not the killer. Without evidence, the police had to release him. Two days later, the police received a report that someone had seen his corpse in the river.”

“Subsequently, the police found Jian Yunxi’s school bag in Mu Bin’s room. At the time, people in the town thought Mu Bin had committed suicide out of guilt, and the case was closed.”

Shen Junci made a note on the paper here; this school bag became crucial evidence. But apart from the school bag, the police found no other evidence in Mu Bin’s house. The appearance of the girl’s belongings in the live broadcast room was very eerie.

“Mu Bin’s mother always claimed that her child was killed by the real killer and was wronged. She claimed ignorance about the school bag. The local police station once sent people to investigate but closed the case due to lack of evidence. Later, Mu Bin’s mother passed away two years ago, and this case was rarely mentioned again.”

Gu Yanchen said, “From the analysis of the case files, there are doubts about this case. Witnesses only saw Mu Bin talking to the girl but no one saw him take her away. Mu Bin was absent from the shop for about two hours in total. It’s difficult for him to have enough time to take the girl to the crime scene, undress her, commit the murder, and bury the corpse while avoiding detection.”

Director Ding asked, “Captain Gu, do you think this case might have been planned by someone?”

Gu Yanchen said, “At first glance, I thought so, but after careful consideration, I don’t think so. Firstly, the girl’s lateness was a random event, unpredictable in advance, making it difficult to plan and execute. It seems more like a crime of passion against a random target. Secondly, the way the corpse was handled was neither disguised as an accident nor any attempt to conceal evidence.”

The corpse was left by the riverbank, the pit dug wasn’t deep, covered only with a thin layer of soil. After a heavy rain, the corpse was exposed. Unfortunately, due to the rain washing away evidence, many traces disappeared.

Ding Yueran looked at the information in her hand, carefully reviewed it, and also concluded, “This wasn’t the work of a cleaning company or a colleague.”

Director Ding asked, “Your reason is…”

Ding Yueran analyzed, “This Mu Bin wasn’t selected as a scapegoat.”

At this point, he took a sip from the thermos cup in his hand, as if a veteran cadre, drinking the medlar water inside.

“Mu Bin’s intelligence is a bit low, but he can communicate fluently with others. Such people are prone to inadvertently reveal something, leaving loopholes.”

“Moreover, at the time of the case, there were several witnesses, all pointing to Mu Bin as the so-called perpetrator. If someone intentionally framed him, they wouldn’t gather so many witnesses. Fabricating a case to keep witnesses’ testimonies consistent is very difficult. Adding one more person involved in the case increases the risk of exposure.”

Here, he gave an example.

“In short, bribing or threatening one witness is difficulty level one, relatively easy to accomplish. Having two to three witnesses raises the difficulty to ten, which is enough and won’t raise suspicions from the police. If you want to find ten witnesses and ensure consistent testimony, the difficulty becomes a hundred, or even a thousand. This kind of difficulty increases exponentially and is highly unpredictable, leading to failure.”

These points were analyzed from the perspective of a criminal planner.

Director Ding said, “Then there might be a situation where Mu Bin saw the killer at the time, and his death was to silence him. At the same time, the killer pinned the entire incident on him.”

Li Zhongnan reminded, “There is another possibility, that Mu Bin was an accomplice to the killer, he was also involved in the case. It’s even possible that this was a case involving multiple people.”

Li Zhongnan had been the head of the serious crime unit after all, and had studied numerous cases. Sometimes, bizarre cases would suddenly emerge in rural areas. The criminals generally had low intelligence, the motives weren’t complex, but they managed to cross moral boundaries, revealing the evil side of humanity.

Gu Yanchen followed this line of thought, “If it was a case involving multiple people, the sudden appearance of other belongings can be explained; those were originally in the hands of other accomplices.”

Director Ding nodded, “We can’t rule out these possibilities.”

After some discussion, Gu Yanchen noticed that Shen Junci had been unusually quiet today, keeping his head down the whole time, lost in thought.

Gu Yanchen nudged Shen Junci with his elbow, signaling him to give some input.

Since lunchtime, Shen Junci had been feeling a bit of a sore throat. With a lot on his plate today and no chance for a nap, by the afternoon, his throat started hurting, possibly due to catching a cold.

Only after Gu Yanchen nudged him did he speak up, “I have a question. Why did that box appear recently?”

Shen Junci’s voice sounded hoarse, and he gently loosened his collar.

It had been four years since the incident, during which everything had been quiet. But why, four years later, did someone hand that box to the broadcaster? Where had those things been kept during those four years?

Gu Yanchen marked several important questions with asterisks, “We’ll investigate these points later.”

When the meeting seemed to be wrapping up, Director Ding said, “Regardless, now that the case is in our hands, we can’t ignore it. This matter must be thoroughly investigated again. Clarifying the truth and catching the real culprit is the comfort for the deceased and accountability to the people.”

At this point, Director Ding looked at everyone, “Li Zhongnan, you continue with the undercover prostitution case and try to shut down more brothels. Gu Yanchen, you’ll be in charge of this case.”

Finally, as the meeting ended and everyone dispersed, Gu Yanchen approached Shen Junci and asked, “Why is your throat hoarse?”

“It’s just a headache and a sore throat,” Shen Junci recalled, “The shrimp at lunch was a bit salty.”

Gu Yanchen, “…”

Shen Junci didn’t blame him, busy saying, “It’s not your fault. I just overate at lunch. Actually, I haven’t been feeling well since last night.”

Gu Yanchen, “…”

Seems like… it was his fault last night. If he had known Shen Junci wasn’t feeling well, he wouldn’t have insisted. Gu Yanchen reached out to touch Shen Junci’s forehead.

Shen Junci said, “I don’t have a fever now.”

“Then let me get you some throat lozenges to tide you over,” Gu Yanchen rummaged through his desk and handed Shen Junci a box of herbal lozenges, “Should I call someone to buy you some medicine?”

Shen Junci pressed his temple and said, “No need, it’s not that serious. It’s hard to buy cold medicine these days; you have to register with your real name.”

Gu Yanchen said, “If you’re really uncomfortable, you should take the day off and go home.”

Shen Junci shook his head and smiled, “It’s not that bad.”

But Gu Yanchen was a bit worried about him. Since becoming the Director, Shen Junci always took the lead in handling the dirty work. He had been working overtime continuously for about ten days, even working on weekends.

Sometimes, he, as the deputy captain, could take a lazy day off, but Shen Junci was always called in for autopsies in the middle of the night. Gu Yanchen felt sorry for Shen Junci, but Shen Junci always said he was fine with a little exhaustion; they couldn’t let the corpses pile up.

So, Deputy Captain Gu had to shoulder more household chores himself. They had finally managed to leave work at a normal hour last night without any cases, only for Shen Junci to feel unwell today. Seeing him looking pale, Gu Yanchen was about to be heartbroken, but he had work to do. He could only discuss going to the pharmacy with him after work.

Shen Junci returned to the Medical Examiner’s Center. Gu Yanchen went to convey the meeting results to the officers. He assigned the first and third teams to handle the case. The officers started by conducting a sweep, calling all the witnesses and related individuals from that year for re-questioning.

After a short while, a dispatcher rushed in, breathless, “Captain Gu, there’s a new case.”

Gu Yanchen looked up, “Where? What kind of case?”

The dispatcher, panting, stuttered out, “Another… another girl’s corpse… found in Changxi County… with a cross-shaped wound on the chest.”

Gu Yanchen frowned, instantly recalling the question Shen Junci had asked earlier. So, that box was a “warning letter.” A new spree of killings had begun!

Shao Zhen’en asked, “So, now…”

“The case will follow the usual procedure; notify the medical examiner and the evidence appraisal team to get ready to go out,” Gu Yanchen paused and added, “Have the officers pack their belongings; if we need to conduct an investigation, they might need to stay overnight.”

These two cases might be related, and Changxi was over an hour away. It might not be possible to finish everything today, so they might need to stay overnight.

Gu Yanchen packed up and headed downstairs. He was about to message Shen Junci to tell him they couldn’t go home tonight. However, as he looked up, he saw Shen Junci coming down with an investigation kit and a small backpack.

Taking the investigation kit and backpack from Shen Junci, Gu Yanchen furrowed his brows and asked, “Changxi is quite far, and the accommodation there might not be great. Are there any other medical examiners available?”

“Dr. Liu is out of town for a conference this week, and our team is already short-staffed. The other medical examiners are busy, and I’ve asked Qi Yi’an to take over the autopsy halfway through. This case is quite important, and I’m not comfortable with him handling it alone,” Shen Junci said, “My health is fine; work is more important.”

Gu Yanchen could only say, “If you feel worse, remember to tell me.”

Neither Gu Yanchen nor Shen Junci could go home tonight. Gu Yanchen had arranged for a pet-sitting service at the entrance of the residential area. The City Bureau dispatched a minibus this time. Gu Yanchen and Shen Junci sat in the back.

Most of the officers remained silent. After a while, Gu Yanchen looked at Shen Junci, who seemed uncomfortable, constantly clearing his throat. After some time, Medical Examiner Shen took out a throat lozenge from his pocket and put it in his mouth.

The journey was indeed long. Shen Junci glanced at his phone, realizing it would be another half an hour before they reached their destination. He leaned against Gu Yanchen’s shoulder and dozed off for a while. During a stretch of the road, the vehicle passed through a tunnel. Inside the tunnel, it was as dark as night, illuminated only by orange-yellow lights. After emerging from the tunnel, it felt like entering another world.

Skyscrapers disappeared from sight, replaced by vast farmland on both sides of the road. This tunnel seemed like the boundary between the city and the town.

After passing through this area, they would soon reach the scene of the crime. Gu Yanchen woke Shen Junci up, “Medical Examiner Shen, wake up.”

Shen Junci rubbed his eyes, sat up straight, and tidied his hair. He looked out the window, where endless green cornfields stretched out. Gu Yanchen handed him a bottle of warm mineral water. Shen Junci took a few sips, but as he swallowed, he felt his throat swelling even more. He took out another throat lozenge and put it in his mouth.

They got off the bus and checked the time; it was already past 4:30 PM, and the sun was gradually setting, nearing dusk. It was springtime, and the early-sown corn had grown tall, reaching over a person’s height. From afar, it looked like a vast expanse of fresh green. They needed to finish the scene investigation before sunset.

Several police cars were parked outside the cornfield, with detectives from the nearby town’s police station waiting for them, leading them into the cornfield.

In the center of a large cornfield, they saw the crime scene. This should be the primary crime scene, and it was quite messy all around. The cornfield was vast, obstructing the view. When no one passed by, it felt desolate. The victim was a young girl, appearing to be around thirteen or fourteen years old. The cornstalks around the corpse were knocked down in a large area.

The girl had been dead for about two days, and the stench of death had already permeated the area, with flies buzzing around nearby. Her eyes were half-open, lying on the ground, her clothes lifted, revealing a cross-shaped wound on her chest, along with several other scattered injuries.

Shen Junci squatted down to examine the body, and Gu Yanchen also bent down to take a closer look. He asked Shen Junci in a low voice, “Can we confirm if it’s the same perpetrator?”

Shen Junci observed the shape of the wound and hoarsely replied, “It looks very similar.”

Four years ago, the details of Jian Yunxi’s case were not disclosed by the police. However, many characteristics now matched up.

“If these two cases are related and separated by four years, then the perpetrator must be a serial killer,” Gu Yanchen said.

Shen Junci nodded solemnly. In recent years, serial killers had become rare. The perpetrator’s modus operandi was extremely cruel, targeting underage girls. This case was somewhat tricky.