Chapter 74

Last night, electricity came for four hours, then it was out for a whole day, and it only came back at around six in the afternoon today. The power lines downstairs are being replaced, and I don't know how long the electricity will last. With the temperature at 36 degrees, there's no fan, and it feels like being in a boiling pot! I can only manage one update today.

At noon, the sun was blazing.

In the cloudless, azure sky, a solitary sun hung high, tirelessly radiating its scorching heat.

The temperature, around 35 to 36 degrees, reminded all living things that summer had arrived. Even the forest path at the foot of the mountain, surrounded by orchards, felt exceptionally hot.

Unlike the city, where people work from nine to five, in the countryside, people are busy with farm work, and lunch is usually eaten later, around one-thirty to two in the afternoon. Villagers who work in the fields and those who go to the market would return home for lunch around this time.

When Yang Jie arrived at the crime scene again, it was just the villagers' mealtime. The previously crowded scene was now deserted, with only a few police officers from the station still guarding the perimeter to prevent anyone from tampering with the evidence.

The detective assistance system was always on. As Yang Jie walked along the path, he searched for subtle clues hidden in the forest and the orchards.

With his enhanced senses, comparable to those of a police dog, and his photographic memory, coupled with his brain's rapid analytical and reasoning abilities, Yang Jie could discern the unusual from the ordinary and uncover clues from the minute details.

The path beside the distillery, which the distillery workers and the villagers of Yangjia Village walked daily, had been trodden so much that finding clues was relatively difficult.

Especially after the body was discovered, many villagers, and even people from nearby villages, came to gawk. Not only outside the police line but even inside, many clues were likely destroyed.

As Yang Jie observed the path and the orchards, he quickly analyzed that Wang Guixi had left the distillery after his night shift and was on his way back to Yangjia Village via the path when he encountered the murderer.

When the distillery had heavy production tasks, it operated in three shifts: morning, afternoon, and night. A few days ago, the Wuhe Distillery received foreign investment, increasing its fame and making its products highly sought after. Recently, the distillery added a night shift, which ended at midnight.

This meant that Wang Guixi left the distillery alone after midnight, and the night guard, Yang Shoubing, could vouch for this. It could be preliminarily determined that Wang Guixi was murdered between midnight and one in the morning on the path.

In the past few days, Wuhe County had not seen any rain, and the sky was clear and sunny. Last night, the moon was bright, illuminating the ground, so one didn't even need a flashlight to walk on the path.

Therefore, to avoid the distillery workers who had just finished their night shift, the murderer would not have hidden by the path. After all, with the bright moon, he could easily be spotted if he hid too close.

Thinking this, Yang Jie jumped off the path and entered the plum orchard. Looking at the neatly planted rows of plum trees, Yang Jie, with the crime scene as the center, began to search the orchard.

To track the murderer, one must first put oneself in the murderer's shoes and think from their perspective about how to find a favorable spot to lie in wait.

Given that the murderer stabbed Wang Guixi thirteen times, each fatal, and chose to attack in a blind spot on the path, it was clear that the murderer was very familiar with the path and the surrounding terrain, and possibly with Wang Guixi's and the distillery's schedules.

Thus, the murderer did not act on impulse but planned the murder. If it was a planned murder, the murderer would have scouted the area and chosen a hiding spot. The spot with many cigarette butts that Deng Xiancheng and others had discovered was not the correct one.

That spot was too close to the path. If it were a pitch-black night, hiding there might not be noticed, but with the bright moon, the murderer would have been easily spotted.

Far from the police line, Yang Jie carefully examined the small paths in the orchard where villagers walked to irrigate and fertilize.

Plums are harvested once a year, and after the harvest, fewer people walk in the orchard. If the murderer had been moving around the area recently, he would have left some clues.

The detective assistance system was not just for criminal investigation but also for special reconnaissance. With this system, Yang Jie became a seasoned special forces soldier with rich jungle reconnaissance experience, able to quickly detect even the slightest traces in the forest.

Footprints!

Yang Jie's eyes swept over a plum tree about two meters tall in front of him, and he suddenly noticed something unusual, his gaze sharpening.

It had been sunny with little rain for a while, and it had been almost two months since the plum harvest. Wild grass had grown on the small paths in the orchard, indicating that the owner of the plum trees had not come to weed recently.

Along the path, there were no footprints by the trees, except under this one. The tree had lush branches and leaves, making it difficult for people on the distant path to spot someone hiding behind it. The footprints were fresh, likely left recently.

Standing near the plum tree, Yang Jie found that the view from here was excellent, allowing him to see people coming from both the distillery and the village entrance. It was an ideal observation point.

Preliminarily determining this as the murderer's hiding spot, Yang Jie squatted down and examined the footprints in the yellow soil. He measured them and found that they were size 38 sports shoes, with the outer heels worn down and the sole patterns almost gone. The murderer walked with an outward gait, wearing down the outer heels.

Based on the sole patterns, these were not the common解放shoes worn by rural people but the more expensive Huili shoes. From the depth and size of the footprints, the murderer was estimated to be about 1.62 to 1.67 meters tall, weighing around 65 kilograms, with a muscular build and quick movements.

Having found the correct hiding spot, Yang Jie, with the plum tree as the center, began to search for other traces left by the murderer.

Within a hundred meters, Yang Jie carefully examined the area and found that some traces had been deliberately cleared, with a very skilled hand, leaving almost no useful clues.

Yang Jie couldn't understand why the murderer, who had cleared other traces, didn't clean up the footprints under the plum tree. Was it an oversight, or did he want to mislead the investigation?

Despite the many doubts and few clues, Yang Jie still found a hint from the murderer's method of clearing traces.

The murderer was skilled, ruthless, and cunning, very familiar with the terrain, and chose an excellent observation point, almost like a seasoned jungle warfare reconnaissance soldier.

Thinking of a reconnaissance soldier, Yang Jie's mind stirred. In terms of investigative skills and combat experience, who in Wuhe County could be better than his father, Yang Xinhu? If the murderer was indeed a reconnaissance soldier, he would not have escaped Yang Xinhu's keen eyes.

Wang Guixi's body had been taken away by the forensic team, so Yang Jie couldn't find more clues from him. Since there were no other clues at the crime scene, Yang Jie didn't waste time and turned toward the distillery.

Deng Xiancheng, the head of the criminal investigation team, was experienced, and Yang Xinhu, a seasoned reconnaissance soldier, had a keen eye. They might have different insights about the murderer, and Yang Jie wanted to hear their opinions before making a comprehensive analysis.

Walking into Yang Xinhu's office, he saw that Captain Deng Xiancheng was indeed there.

"Captain Deng, how was the crime scene investigation? Did you find any new clues?" Yang Jie called out to Yang Xinhu and then looked at Deng Xiancheng sitting on the sofa.

"After a detailed investigation, we found that the murderer was very cunning. He created several false impressions near the crime scene to mislead our investigation. The hiding spot we found earlier was a deliberate fabrication by the murderer," Deng Xiancheng didn't hide anything from Yang Jie and directly told him the latest situation.

Yang Xinhu frowned, sitting opposite Deng Xiancheng, deep in thought. Seeing this, Yang Jie said, "Dad, Captain Deng, I went back to the crime scene and found some fresh footprints under a plum tree about thirty meters outside the police line. I suspect they were left by the murderer.

I then carefully examined the nearby orchard and found that some traces had been cleared, and the method was very skilled, almost like the work of a seasoned jungle warfare special forces soldier. Therefore, I suspect that the murderer might be a veteran with combat experience, such as a veteran of the Vietnam War."

(Thank you, old friend 'Shao Shuo Fei Hua' for the 100 Qidian coins and 'Gu Zhu Yu Jian' for the 200 Qidian coins! Thanks!)

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