Novice Forensic Doctor

Chapter 268: Chapter 265: Why Does He Want to Kill Her?_1

Xu Dayuan stared into Chang Yuzhang’s eyes without blinking.

Did he ask about a past boyfriend/girlfriend?

Yet the answer Chang Yuzhang gave was that they had slept together.

To the looks of it, he answered Xu Dayuan’s question, but this answer implied that he was denying that there was a boyfriend-girlfriend relationship between them. At least, Chang Yuzhang did not feel that way unilaterally, it seemed more like they were friends with benefits.

After all, the frequent meetings at Jiahe Hotel indeed fit this answer upon further thought.

"On May 11th, 2011, what time did you get off work? What time did you get home?"

"I don’t remember. It was a bit late after work, I had dinner with a client and then went home."

The marquee lights behind Xu Dayuan began to flash wildly. Zhou Ning held his forehead, raising his hand to block the direction of Mr. Qu. After all, in the darkness, Mr. Qu’s computer was even more dazzling, and the ambiance went through the roof.

Xu Dayuan wasn’t in a rush; folding his arms, he continued to ask:

"Let’s change the subject. Did Xia Lirnin give you a phone card, and was this card used exclusively for one-way contact between you two? Is there such a thing?"

Chang Yuzhang nodded, this time not saying "yes" out loud, but Xu Dayuan didn’t dwell on it and promptly pressed on:

"That day, did you actually see Xia Lirnin or not?"

"No."

Chang Yuzhang shook his head without a moment’s hesitation. Xu Dayuan stretched out his hand towards Mr. Bai, and Bai Ruixin quickly approached with a laptop, having thoughtfully found the surveillance footage processed by Mr. Qu.

Of course, it had been cropped. When he saw the surveillance, especially the moment he turned his head on the footage where his face was enlarged, with a comparison image in the background, Chang Yuzhang stared blankly at Xu Dayuan. Obviously, he was a bit overwhelmed by this turn of events.

Xu Dayuan, however, was patient. He turned the laptop towards Chang Yuzhang, patiently explaining:

"Don’t rush. Let me introduce you to this. It’s a software developed by our city bureau and Qindao University. It can process blurred videos and make them clear, and it can also collect facial features from the footage and then perform comparisons. See the annotations below? 100% match rate. Now take a look at the time!"

Following Xu Dayuan’s direction, Chang Yuzhang saw the time displayed on the surveillance. As the surveillance finished playing, the car make, license plate numbers, and associated vehicle registration information were displayed next to it. Chang Yuzhang stared at the screen for a full five minutes.

Zhou Ning knew that he was thinking of a defense strategy. However, with the facts right in front of him, there was no good excuse left to make.

After what felt like an eternity of silence, Chang Yuzhang closed his eyes and began to speak:

"I did see her. The night Xia Lirnin died, I saw her. I didn’t want to be entangled with her like this anymore. She was already married, and her husband treated her well, but she just kept clinging to me and threatened me.

Xia Lirnin said if I played missing or broke up with her, she would post a video of us together onto our company’s website.

At the Rizhao Branch Company, someone was falsely accused of wrecking a family, and then a video was posted on our company’s website. Even though it was a lie, that person eventually was forced to resign, with the leadership saying it damaged the company’s image.

I was just starting to do well, and some contracts were already signed. I didn’t want her to interfere at this time, so I arranged to meet her to talk things over. I had also prepared twenty thousand yuan, which was the maximum compensation I could afford since I had no money.

The house I live in is rented, and my car is all I have to my name. I didn’t want to waste my feelings on her after turning thirty. However, Xia Lirnin wouldn’t listen at all. She started by trying to threaten me with the video.

I panicked, grabbed her phone, and threw it into the lake. Then we started arguing and ended up falling off the bridge together in the scuffle. I was terrified, and the water was filthy. I struggled to get up, shouted a couple of times, but didn’t see Xia Lirnin. I managed to climb ashore. freёwebnovel.com

I wanted to call the police, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. I can’t swim, and I struggled in the water for a long time, not knowing how deep it was, and my phone had water damage too.

I wanted to find someone or borrow a phone, but at that time in Yue Lake Park, there was no one around. I got into my car, put on a dry cloth, and headed home. My ears felt like they were blocked and uncomfortable. I washed my face at home and then lost consciousness feeling groggy.

I later found out I had a fever, maybe because the water was dirty. I didn’t wake up until the next night, and it was only then that I saw the news about Xia Lirnin drowning in Yue Lake Park. I was even more afraid to speak up, but I didn’t kill anyone."

Liu Yongxin stood behind Zhou Ning, clicking his tongue.

This kind of statement was like it had been custom-made by a lawyer, avoiding responsibility points entirely, and at worst, it was a matter of moral condemnation.

To Liu Yongxin’s surprise, the dialog box didn’t flash. Who knows why the software was acting up? Did it mean that what Chang Yuzhang had said was not a lie? Were there no signs of lying in his micro-expressions?

Stunned by this discovery, both Zhou Ning and Liu Yongxin were taken aback, glancing at each other with Liu Yongxin’s eyebrows furrowed tightly.

"Two people arguing, accidentally falling into the water, with one survivor who can’t swim. Wanted to call the police but the phone was water-damaged, no one around, came home to fall into a high fever and lost consciousness, waking up to find the other person drowned, and it was seen on the news. This excuse is too perfect.

Forget murder, even the crime of inaction is difficult to charge. Now we know the mysterious phone was being used by Chang Yuzhang, and he was also Xia Lirnin’s lover. Both of them fell into the water together. Can it prove that Chang Yuzhang grabbed Xia Lirnin’s hair and drowned her?"

Zhou Ning nodded, then continued:

"And the most important point, the deceased’s back was bruised and had bone fractures from being struck by the electric scooter’s handlebar. Even without preparing bone scrapings, we can determine these were antemortem injuries. But who threw down the electric scooter? It was because of this electric scooter that Xia Lirmin couldn’t struggle and ultimately drowned."

Everyone fell silent. Whether it was the autopsy or the crime scene investigation, the biggest problem right now was the lack of crucial information that could definitively pin down the killer.

For instance, if there were skin fragments in the victim’s nails, DNA could be tested, and if during the comparison, the suspect had scratches on their body, even traces completely matching the skin fragments, that would be conclusive evidence.

But this case was originally disguised as an accident. Zhang Sannnian and Xu Guanhai investigated for nearly a year; if there were such clear evidence, the case wouldn’t have become a cold case.

Zhou Ning looked back at Mr. Zhao and Yang Xuetong, who had been unusually quiet since entering today, standing aside and observing. This was not in their characters. fɾēewebnσveℓ.com

"Mr. Zhao, you’re acting odd today?"

Mr. Zhao shrank his neck and wrapped his police coat a little tighter around himself, the observation room was indeed a bit cold. He sighed, resignedly saying,

"Whenever you call me, it’s never for anything good. Zhou Xiaozhou, just tell me what you need me to do. Anyway, everyone is here. Whatever tasks you have, just say the word."

Zhou Ning was touched and patted Mr. Zhao’s shoulder.

"Even though the electric scooter was submerged in water for two days, since someone grabbed it, there must be traces left behind. But since we don’t know where on the scooter the culprit grabbed, why don’t we dismantle the scooter into individual parts and check each for fingerprints and DNA?"

Mr. Zhao’s mouth fell open as he stared at Zhou Ning for a long time, closing his eyes as if to regulate his heartbeat for a while before finally looking at Zhou Ning again.

"Zhou Xiaozhou, I don’t mind putting in the effort, but if you want me to wipe down the entire electric scooter with a swab and then send it to Mrs. Cui for analysis, do you think Mrs. Cui won’t blow her top?"

Zhou Ning shrank his neck as if he could hear Mrs. Cui’s roaring in his ears.

"Give a heads up in advance. Should we send the electric scooter over, or should we send samples?"

Without further ado, Mr. Zhao quickly went to make a phone call. Meanwhile, in the neighboring interrogation room, questioning had already concluded. Xu Dayuan looked at the computer, seemingly very dissatisfied with the performance of the software.

He straightened up and waved at Liu Yufei.

"Step out for a moment. Let Director Zhou send someone to take Chang Yuzhang’s fingerprints and blood sample, then check his body."

Liu Yufei rolled her eyes. She understood what needed to be examined but found it pointless how she was always asked to leave.

Without pausing a beat, Liu Yufe left the room, and Mr. Zhao and Gao Tie entered briskly to examine Chang Yuzhang and collected his blood and fingerprints. Mr. Zhao did the surface examination and found no scratch scars on his body. Chang Yuzhang was directly taken away.

As the figure receded into the distance, Xu Dayuan approached Zhou Ning and Liu Yongxin.

"Aren’t you curious why I let him go?"

Liu Yongxin was too lazy to comment, simply eying the direction Chang Yuzhang had left in. The man hadn’t looked back as if turning his head would prevent his escape.

Zhou Ning shook his head. Xu Dayuan had been working in criminal investigation for many years, and he was certainly sharp-minded. Although according to Chang Yuzhang’s statement, he had been cleared of suspicion, but that was just one side of the story. Keeping him detained here could only last twenty-four hours at most, which wouldn’t solve any problems.

If released, there might still be a chance for him to slip up.

Zhang Sannian rushed over urgently, the anxiety on his face hard to conceal, but seeing the calmness of the other three, he blinked and seemed to catch a hint of their plan. After a moment of thought, a lightbulb went off.

"Director Xu, are you saying we should keep an eye on Chang Yuzhang and see what he does next?"

Finally, receiving a response, Xu Dayuan relaxed and sighed as he looked at the calm master and apprentice duo,

"Of course, we must monitor him, tap his phone, see who he contacts, even who he meets. After all, without professional coaching in his story, he couldn’t possibly avoid becoming a suspect."

Zhou Ning’s brow furrowed, an idea flitted through his mind, but he did not grasp it. Once again, he looked down the corridor with determination, Chang Yuzhang’s departure was conclusive, more precisely an escape.

At present, Chang Yuzhang appeared to be the prime suspect. However, as an ordinary employee of an insurance company and Xia Lirmin’s first love, who had been in an on-and-off relationship for so many years, even maintaining the relationship after Xia Lirmin’s marriage, why would he kill her?

Xu Dayuan glanced at the time, then looked at Zhang Sannian.

"It’s getting late. The investigation on Zhang Wei must be expedited. He owns an internet café; let’s go there and subtly inquire with the employees about his behavior after Xia Lirmin’s death.

"Also, his ex-wife and children... their hasty divorce followed by a shotgun wedding with Xia Lirmin—could his ex-wife be a factor behind all this? Moreover, did the divorce happen before or after his mishap back then?

"And I want a complete profile on Zhang Wei’s assets. Oh, and Chang Yuzhang’s financial records too, from the time Xia Lirmin got married up until now. Have the bank pull all of it."

Zhang Sannian stood with his mouth slightly open, struggling to keep up with Xu Dayuan’s train of thought.

"Wait a minute, Director Xu, in the end, are you suspecting Chang Yuzhang or Zhang Wei?"