Chapter 45

"From the information we have now, Wei Youfu is likely to go to the ecological protection forest in the outskirts of Xinhu, which is probably because he obtained some information from Jiang Jiang. This ecological protection forest may even be the black forest depicted in Jiang Jiang's paintings."

"Victim No. 8 left no trace on the internet from birth to death, completely detached from the technological network world, as if he was confined in a place isolated from the world. Perhaps the home of Victim No. 8, or rather, the home of the killer, is in that ecological protection forest!"

Listening to Li Xue's words, Han Fei was also somewhat excited.

The case had reached a point where a clear direction had emerged.

"That ecological forest is connected to the Yanmu Mountain in Xinhu, and it is quite difficult to enter and search. We need to find more solid clues to persuade the higher-ups. Fortunately, my teacher and I made a more critical discovery during the subsequent investigation," Li Xue's voice was somewhat excited.

"What discovery?"

"The killer underestimated Wei Youfu and Jiang Jiang!" Li Xue said with great certainty: "The ecological forest is very extensive, and finding a black house in it is like looking for a needle in a haystack. Only knowing the exact location would work."

"Jiang Jiang could draw the black forest, the black house, and a large group of headless little people, so he likely knows the location of the black house. The killer probably took this kind-hearted homeless man to visit the human flesh factory to torment him, constantly stimulating him and making him more insane. Wei Youfu is just an ordinary office worker with no experience in jungle exploration. But these two people created a miracle."

"Jiang Jiang, who has low intelligence and cannot even speak complete sentences, successfully passed the location of the black house to Wei Youfu, and Wei Youfu actually believed the words of the 'madman' on the street and went to investigate twice."

"Kindness met kindness, fulfilling each other's good intentions, and also providing us with the most critical clue for solving the case!"

"Wei Youfu's first trip to the ecological forest did not reveal anything, but on the day before his death, he went there again. This time, he was likely very close to the black house! It was precisely because of this that the killer, who had been playing with him, finally took action!" Li Xue's voice slowed down: "Han Fei, is there anyone else around you?"

Han Fei looked around: "No, I'm alone here."

"Then it's fine." Li Xue took a deep breath: "What I'm going to say next, you must not tell anyone until we catch the killer."

"Okay."

"We reviewed the case files. When Wei Youfu was killed, everything on his computer and phone was erased. Since the computers and phones of the other victims were also erased, the police did not find it unusual at the time, only thinking the killer was cautious. They had the technical department restore the information on the phone and computer, but found nothing."

"However, when the police were sorting through Wei Youfu's belongings, they found a piece of clothing covered in mud in his used car."

"The police did not pay much attention to it at the time, only taking it as a suspicious item."

"My teacher and I re-examined the evidence photos, enlarged and restored the blurred pattern on the fabric using a computer, and then used the latest data equipment to screen and compare the patterns in the online image library. We found that the pattern was from a children's clothing item from ten years ago."

"It looked like this when it was complete." Li Xue sent Han Fei a photo of a children's clothing item from a knockoff brand.

"Can you convince your superiors to reopen the investigation into the human puzzle case and mobilize a large number of police to search the ecological forest in Xinhu based on this children's clothing?" Han Fei was somewhat puzzled.

"Look at this picture again. This is the last image of the missing child from the orphanage in the surveillance footage." Li Xue sent another picture to Han Fei, and after seeing it, Han Fei took a deep breath.

The child who always said he could see ghosts at night was wearing the same children's clothing on the day he disappeared!

"The clothing of the missing child from the orphanage was found in Wei Youfu's car, and Wei Youfu had just returned from the ecological forest. The mud-covered fabric fragment was likely brought back from the forest, and shortly after, he was brutally murdered by the killer."

"All of this forms a closed loop. The fabric fragment found in Wei Youfu's car is solid evidence! We have reason to believe that the killer has some connection to that ecological forest."

Relying solely on reasoning is not enough to restart the investigation. Li Xue and her teacher need a reason to persuade the higher-ups: "I won't tell you the specific time of the operation. For now, you need to take care of your own safety and wait for good news at home."

"Li Xue, I have a small question to ask you." After listening to Li Xue, Han Fei thought of something: "If the killer in the human puzzle case lives in the ecological protection forest, the death of the missing child from the orphanage is likely related to him, given that Wei Youfu found the child's clothing fragment in the ecological forest."

"That makes sense, go on."

"Do you think the ghosts that the missing child from the orphanage, the one who always said he could see ghosts at night, saw were actually the killer?" Han Fei stood in the shadows, his mind racing: "The killer of the human puzzle case adopted Victim No. 8, and the painting by Jiang Jiang shows that there are many headless little people in the black forest. If those little people are all children, who do you think has the ability to obtain so many orphans and abandoned infants?"

"The director of the orphanage...?" Li Xue was surprised by Han Fei's words.

In fact, Han Fei also recalled the short song sung by Victim No. 8—brothers and sisters were sent away, and younger brothers and sisters were becoming fewer. This made him realize that the place where Victim No. 8 lived had more than one child, and taking care of these children required considerable experience.

"Also, Jiang Jiang was hired because he found the director of the orphanage's wallet. As you said, the killer enjoys the pleasure of kindness being betrayed, despised, and hated. The director of the orphanage knows that Jiang Jiang is an extremely kind person." Han Fei's mind was racing faster: "Do you think the director might have thought Jiang Jiang's appearance fit his idea of kindness—ugly, low intelligence, and emitting a foul odor—so he had Jiang Jiang work at the orphanage? He wanted to use Jiang Jiang as his toy?"

"It's possible. I'll call my teacher now and check some things."

Li Xue hung up the phone hurriedly, and Han Fei remained in the shadows of the street, his mind constantly flashing with information related to the case.