Free Web NovelChapter 195: Chapter 194 Trial in Progress_1
Xu Dayuan nodded.
"After coming out from Xing Xiaoli’s place, I felt like everyone on the figure skating team seemed to have a motive, especially Wang Ying, who kept mentioning Ranran and Mr. Li.
But the things they’ve done are not polite at all. Now all of them are being detained on the third floor of the sports hall. I want to meet up with you and then go back to talk to them individually."
Zhou Ning put down the whiteboard marker and nodded slightly.
"We’ll study the skeleton later."
After getting affirmation from Zhou Ning, Xu Dayuan shook his cell phone.
"Okay, then I won’t disturb you here. There’s still a pile of things to deal with over there. Let me know right away if there’s any news."
After seeing off Xu Dayuan, Zhou Ning headed straight to the laboratory, where after all, the remains of the deceased were laid out. Xia Momo heard the door opening and saw Zhou Ning and Liu Yongxin come in.
"Did Xu Da leave?"
"Yes, have you scanned the cervical vertebrae and the extremities’ cross-sections?"
Xia Momo nodded and turned on the large screen.
A huge image appeared, the entire picture was of the cervical vertebrae’s cross-section, with very obvious horizontal traces, some bone chippings and defects were even visible.
"This is too clear."
Liu Yongxin marveled surprisingly, after all, he didn’t understand these novel items.
"This is a newly installed high-definition camera that can capture images under the microscope. Many details can be observed more meticulously. Zhou Ning asked me to contact Doctor Lu to borrow it."
Liu Yongxin looked at Zhou Ning, who was focusing on the picture, obviously, his beloved student had a plan in mind already. But what could be found from the cross-section?
"Are you trying to determine whether the killer is left-handed or right-handed?"
Zhou Ning nodded.
"Yes, I’ve always had a suspicion, feeling that the killer has some familiarity, but if you ask me to describe it, I can’t articulate it. Therefore, I want to look at the details of the cross-section, whether it’s the proficiency of the cutting or the use of the left and right hands, to see if we can discover some hidden information.
We brought back a handsaw from the primary crime scene; you’ve seen it. It’s so ordinary that it could be bought from any hardware store or big supermarket. I’ve asked Mr. Zhao to go buy pig legs, necks, and a handsaw. We’ll do an experiment later and then make a comparison."
Liu Yongxin leaned over, staring at the screen with as much attention as Zhou Ning. The cutting surface had a very strong sense of grain direction, and the locations of the loss were probably where the saw blade broke off, but the cutting continued at almost the same frequency.
"It looks like the work of a right-handed person, very skilled, very even in strength."
Zhou Ning nodded, Liu Yongxin’s analysis matched his own thoughts.
"Strong physical strength, good hand control ability, adept at using tools, a regular viewer of shows like CSI with anti-investigative capabilities, and also knowledgeable about ways to destroy blood trace DNA."
Liu Yongxin raised an eyebrow.
"According to this analysis, aren’t Wang Ying and Zhuang Chunlan already ruled out as suspects?"
At the same time, the door was opened, and Mr. Zhao’s voice was heard before he was seen.
"Hurry and help, I can’t carry it myself; quick, quick, quick, someone come lift the pig head with me!" The three turned around as the door swung open, with Mr. Zhao holding the door with his foot and calling out through the crack.
However, in their minds, they were all thinking about the word "pig head."
"Pig head?"
"I’m telling you, Zhou Xiaozhou, don’t space out; come over and help me. I can’t free my hands; my sleeve got caught on the scanner!"
The group hurried over and found that Mr. Zhao was followed by a large pig head. Xia Momo jumped in fright, because the pig head’s ears were still trembling. Zhou Ning glanced at it and realized it wasn’t just a pig head, it was the front half of an entire pig.
"How much did it cost?"
Mr. Zhao rolled his eyes.
"Zhou Xiaozhou, is that a question about money? Help me! Don’t worry, I will get reimbursed from Mr. Pang, it won’t cost us."
Hearing this, Zhou Ning quickly helped Mr. Zhao free his sleeve.
They carried the half of the pig over to another workbench.
Yang Xuetong, with a bunch of tools in his arms, also followed them in, and got startled upon seeing the pig.
"Isn’t it a bit excessive to do an experiment with half a pig?"
Mr. Zhao grinned, wiped his hands clean, and then, with his hands on his hips, said:
"Practice is the sole criterion for testing truth. After all our research, we can’t figure anything out. I got half a pig because its bone strength is different, so might as well get the whole front half."
Momo glanced over.
"What about the back half? They sell it to you like that?"
"Of course, they sell. Come on, let’s get on with the experiment. Zhou Xiaozhou, you choose, who’s going to do the cutting?" ƒreewebɳovel.com
Zhou Ning looked at everyone, his gaze landed on Yang Xuetong. After all, Momo had to operate the software and take notes, Zhu Xingxing was dodging back at the sight of the pig, Liu Yongxin lacked physical strength, and Mr. Zhao was too vigorous.
"Mr. Yang, follow Mr. Xia’s instructions. We’ll replicate the killer’s cutting motions to see if we can achieve such a neat cut and evenly balanced force."
Momo calculated for a moment, and drew a vertical line on the pig’s leg.
"Cut along the line I drew, but I need to collect some data first, so please wait a moment."
Saying that, Momo placed a pressure sensor pad under the pig’s leg, hooked it up to a machine, then clicked on the data collector and finally gave an OK sign.
Yang Xuetong didn’t waste any words, put on gloves, lifted the handsaw, and began sawing downwards along the line drawn by Momo.
With considerable experience in trace examination, he had a steady hand and sufficient strength. The first stroke punctured the pig’s skin, and soon reached the bone, where he could feel increased resistance on his hand. However, maintaining control of the speed, the front end of the pig’s leg soon fell off.
Zhou Ning stopped the stopwatch. It took 4 minutes and 43 seconds to saw through a pig’s front leg.
Picking up the fallen pig’s leg, he checked the cut surface. It had to be said that the surface matched the victim’s tibia and fibula’s cross-section almost exactly, both with directionally textured cross-sections and comparatively neat.
"Continue!"
This time they placed the pig on the ground, Momo put the pressure sensor pad underneath, and Yang Xuetong knelt on one knee, using his leg to control the direction of the saw as he began to saw noisily.
The cutting speed through the pig’s neck flesh was fast. It hesitated slightly at the cervical vertebrae and indeed, the saw blade broke. After replacing it, the operation continued, totaling ten minutes including the time taken to change the saw blade.
Yang Xuetong stood up, shaking his somewhat sore wrist.
"Do we need to saw the other front leg for comparison, team leader?"
Zhou Ning shook his head, and Zhu Xingxing raised her hand.
"Team leader, how about I give it a try? I’m left-handed; it might serve as a reference point to compare time and strength?"
"Good."
Zhou Ning nodded crisply. Zhu Xingxing came over and, imitating Yang Xuetong’s technique, started working vigorously on the front pig’s leg. Perhaps because she had been watching all along and had summarized Yang’s motions, it took her only 5 minutes and 3 seconds to saw through the front pig’s leg, her speed not far below Yang Xuetong’s.
Zhou Ning paused the stopwatch and raised his head slightly.
"Based on this speed, the murderer’s time for dismembering the body in the Enbo Residential Area would be around half an hour. To kill the victim, dismember the body, pack it up, and clean up, they would have stayed at Enbo Residential Area for at least an hour, and either a man or a woman could have done it."
Everyone nodded in agreement, but at that moment, Momo spoke up.
The results of her calculations on the computer were ready.
"The data we just collected show a significant disparity in strength between Yang Xuetong and Zhu Xingxing, but their accomplishments differ. If you look at the detail comparison chart, you can see the difference in the patterns on the cross-sections."
With that, Momo displayed three images on the big screen, with labels below indicating that the first one was the cross-section of the victim’s cervical vertebra, the second was Yang Xuetong’s cut, and the third was Zhu Xingxing’s.
The surfaces of the first two were fairly even, with clear horizontal striations and almost identical spacing between them. However, the cross-section that Zhu Xingxing cut was much rougher, with large and small gaps and even areas of inconsistent depth.
"The unevenness occurred due to insufficient strength, so I think the murderer was stronger than Zhu Xingxing and had a strength similar to Yang Xuetong’s."
Zhou Ning took off his gloves, washed his hands, and then said slowly:
"It seems that the murderer is an adult male, right-handed, which makes Zhuang Chunlan and Wang Ying less likely suspects. Let’s wait for the results of the examination, and of course the surveillance footage investigation. When can Mr. Qu arrive?"
...
October 7, 2011, 7:33 AM
Just as Zhou Ning entered the office, a shout came from behind. Turning around, he saw Mr. Zhao walking towards him with a stack of lab reports in his arms.
"Has the victim’s identity been confirmed?"
