The work of criminal profiling was tedious and monotonous, far from what ordinary people might imagine—where one could instantly visualize the entire image and then draw it. This was more like creating something out of nothing.
Ye Sangsang had to first sketch the blurred outline of the killer's head, partially obscured by a hat in the surveillance footage, followed by the facial features hidden behind a mask.
This required a deep understanding of human anatomy, including bones and muscles. As she drew, Ye Sangsang constantly had to expand her knowledge.
On top of this, she had other tasks to handle.
For instance, the rented apartment. The flamboyant punk dared not go himself, fearing he might witness another scene straight out of hell. Instead, he had to delegate the task to someone else to take them there.
They had considered simply providing the address and leaving it at that, but the location was a maze of buildings with a complex layout. In this era, commercial housing was scarce, and most structures were self-built without any proper planning, resulting in densely packed homes.
The winding paths and alleys made it nearly impossible for anyone unfamiliar with the area to find the place without wasting a significant amount of time.
Although the punk was timid and stubborn, he was reliable when it came to getting things done.
After meeting the guide, Ye Sangsang and her two companions followed him through South Street, navigating a series of narrow alleys and even cutting through someone's courtyard before finally arriving at a small building.
They couldn't help but marvel at how difficult it would have been to find the place without a guide.
This was likely why Qin Jiang sought out such people and preferred to use them as informants—it saved a lot of trouble.
However, Ye Sangsang had one lingering question: Why did Qin Jiang insist on confronting Zhao Tianman alone?
If Zhao Tianman was indeed responsible for everything, how could Qin Jiang, a seasoned detective, make such a rookie mistake as confronting him alone, leading to mutual destruction?
From what she knew of Qin Jiang, he was a shrewd individual.
Or rather, anyone who became a detective wouldn't be foolish when it came to handling cases.
She suspected the answer would only come once Qin Jiang woke up or the case was solved.
"We've confirmed it's here," the guide said.
Ye Sangsang, Zheng He, Gu Ling, and the punk's friend looked up at the small building. It was a modest structure, just a plain two-room house.
The three exchanged glances, donned their gloves and other protective gear, and prepared to enter.
Having mentally prepared themselves, they weren't overly shocked by the scene inside.
One room appeared relatively normal, while the other was utterly horrifying.
In the center of the room stood an iron bed, next to which was a table cluttered with various knives.
Slicing, chopping, dismembering—if not for the scattered bones, blood, and flesh on the table, along with the utensils and seasonings, one might have mistaken it for a crude kitchen.
Zheng He, who had seen his fair share of gruesome scenes, couldn't help but rush outside to vomit at the edge of the courtyard.
Gu Ling wasn't faring much better.
She had tried to hold it together, but upon getting closer and catching the stench, she bolted outside.
On the gas stove, a pot of soup simmered, its surface covered in grayish-green mold, with floating bits of recognizable human tissue. The cutting board was stained with blood, and splatters of flesh and gore told the tale of a scene straight out of hell.
Above the iron bed hung a black hook, its cold, dark surface streaked with dried blood, making it appear both mottled and terrifying.
It was hard to imagine how the bloodstains had gotten there.
The floor and ceiling were spattered with blood, a testament to the cruelty and suffering of the victim.
Beside the bed lay a blood-stained rope, and the room was swarming with flies and insects. The overpowering stench of decay assaulted both the body and the mind.
The sight of cannibalism was a fear that struck terror into the hearts of many.
Ye Sangsang stood her ground, only wiping away the tears brought on by the overwhelming stench.
[Ahhh, the screen is filled with censored content, the familiar sight of censored content.]
[Her colleagues left, but Ye Sangsang stayed. She's really strong.]
[Police officers walk a fine line between gray areas and malice. I feel for them and respect them.]
The live stream viewers didn't know about the cannibalism; they only knew the scene inside was horrifying.
So they had no idea just how strong Ye Sangsang truly was.
She stood there for a few seconds, confirming her suspicion that the killer was not only cruel but also took pleasure in his actions.
She glanced down, frowning slightly at the unbearable stench.
"The forensic team is going to have a tough time," Ye Sangsang said with a hint of pity.
Zheng He walked in just in time to hear her remark. Considering the scene before them, he sighed in agreement. "This case is going to be brutal for the forensics team. The severity is on par with major cases."
"Let's get to work and call for backup," Gu Ling said.
As for the guide, he was already outside, clutching his chest and gasping for fresh air.
The moment the door had been opened, the overwhelming stench of decay had assaulted him. Even though he hadn't entered, the smell had been enough to make him retreat.
The forensic team arrived, followed by the crime scene investigators. After photographing the scene, they began collecting the remains.
The forensic expert, one of the top seven in the province and known for his strong nerves, took a moment before stepping inside to begin his work.
He picked up a bone fragment from the scene, examined it carefully, and concluded, "This likely belongs to the same individual as the bones found at the South Street noodle shop and the police station. Thankfully, there are no additional victims."
Zheng He looked at Ye Sangsang.
For some reason, he felt she had a good head on her shoulders and was quite intelligent. He turned to her, hoping she might have some insights or leads.
Ye Sangsang's gaze fell on a cigarette butt at the scene. She picked it up and placed it in an evidence bag. "This case just got more complicated."
She had a growing sense that all the evidence was converging like a net, eager to ensnare something.
Gu Ling didn't understand what Ye Sangsang meant. To her, the case seemed to be progressing clearly, so why was it becoming more complex?
"Shen Yu, based on your analysis, what do you think Zhao Tianman was thinking when he committed this crime?" Gu Ling couldn't help but ask.
In the previous case, Ye Sangsang's analysis had matched the killer's mindset perfectly.
So her current analysis might hold some truth as well.
The others also turned to her. Ye Sangsang sighed and said, "Maybe he wanted revenge..." It was an off-the-cuff remark, and even she wasn't sure why she said it.
By the time they finished processing the scene, it was already afternoon. Everyone, from Ye Sangsang and her team to the forensic experts, felt deeply unsettled.
It was as if the stench had permeated their very beings.
Since Qin Jiang had no close relatives, the team had hired a caretaker to look after him, though he still hadn't woken up.
With some free time now, Ye Sangsang returned to her profiling work.
The fingerprint analysis was also underway, progressing at a steady pace.
Time seemed to slow to a crawl, and Ye Sangsang couldn't shake a sense of unease.
But she quickly pushed it aside and focused on speeding up her profiling.
Despite being relatively new to the field, Ye Sangsang worked quickly. In just two days, she had completed the basic outline.
She had sketched the outline, hair, and all facial features except for the eyes.
But before she could finish the eyes, Zheng He burst into the room in a panic.
Ye Sangsang and Gu Ling's desks were close, and both were absorbed in their work. They looked up as Zheng He rushed in.
"The results... the results are out..." His voice trembled, carrying a tone of despair and shattered faith.
[He looks like he's about to fall apart.]
[What results?]
[I have a bad feeling about this...]
The live stream viewers watched the scene unfold, sensing something was wrong.
Gu Ling stood up, forcing a smile. "Isn't this good news? You're acting like this is your first case."
Zheng He looked at her, his face twisted into something between a grimace and a smile. "I... I'm not excited."
He opened his mouth several times, struggling to find the words.
"Let's talk outside," Ye Sangsang said, standing up with her sketchpad in hand. She grabbed both Gu Ling and Zheng He by the arms and led them out.
Looking at Zheng He's expression, Ye Sangsang had already guessed something.
The three of them stood in the deserted stairwell, and Ye Sangsang was the first to speak, "Go on."
Zheng He's jaw tightened, and his back straightened as if he was trying to hold together his shattered worldview.
Just as Gu Ling was about to lose her patience, his lips parted, and he revealed the results from the forensic team.
"The dagger—the one we found in the sewer—has a clear fingerprint on it. Now... the results are out..." His chest heaved as he finally closed his eyes and said, "The fingerprint belongs to Qin Jiang."
Gu Ling instinctively took two steps back, as if she hadn't understood Zheng He's words.
Ye Sangsang looked at him, "Are you sure? You've seen the results, right?"
Zheng He opened his eyes and slowly nodded with solemnity.
"No way, there must be a mistake! Why would Qin Jiang kill Lin Xue? He had no motive to kill him!" Gu Ling clearly didn't believe it and rushed forward, wanting to confront the forensic team for clarification.
Ye Sangsang reached out and gently held her waist, whispering, "Don't act impulsively!"
"You and Qin Jiang are, at best, familiar strangers. Of course, you're not impulsive. I can't believe it. Qin Jiang is such a good person. He saved me once! If it weren't for him, I would have died at the hands of a robber!" Tears welled up in Gu Ling's eyes as she glared at Ye Sangsang with anger, dissatisfied with her restraint and trying to break free.
Zheng He reached out to help Ye Sangsang hold Gu Ling back, "Don't be impulsive! It's just a fingerprint! We still have a chance!"
"I've already talked to the forensic team. This could be a setup to frame Qin Jiang. If you make a scene now and Captain Chen finds out, Qin Jiang's case won't be investigated, and he won't be able to clear his name!"
Zheng He angrily pulled Gu Ling back, suppressing his fury as he growled in a low voice.
He firmly believed that Qin Jiang was being framed. What they needed to do now was stay calm and prevent the situation from escalating further. They would clear Qin Jiang's name privately.
At that moment, Ye Sangsang picked up the sketchpad she had brought with her and quickly added a pair of eyes to the drawing before placing it in front of the two of them.
[Ahhh! It's Qin Jiang!]
[Oh no, the murderer was right beside us all along.]
[Qin Jiang is the psychopath who killed, cooked, and then dumped the body as a taunt? This feels so surreal!]
Gu Ling and Zheng He looked at her in disbelief. Zheng He said, "What are you talking about? Are you saying the person who dumped the body in the surveillance footage is Qin Jiang?"
On the sketchpad were Qin Jiang's eyes and facial features. The two of them were so familiar with him that they recognized him immediately.
"Wait, you spent all this time drawing, and this is what you came up with?" Gu Ling's eyes were filled with doubt.
They acknowledged Ye Sangsang's skills, but now there was a hint of suspicion in their gazes as they looked at her.
Ye Sangsang put away the sketchpad and said calmly, "Right now, Zhao Tianman is dead, and Qin Jiang is implicated—that's what we saw at the scene. Lin Xue's murder weapon has Qin Jiang's fingerprint on it. If I'm not mistaken, the cigarette butt found at Zhao Tianman's crime scene will also have Qin Jiang's saliva on it."
[What? That's a lot to take in. I need a moment.]
[Hmm... so the evidence is pretty solid, huh?]
[Could it be that Zhao Tianman was just a scapegoat, and Qin Jiang did everything? This is a grand deception, but he didn't expect to pass out, leaving the scene for Ye Sangsang and the others to find evidence!]
Ye Sangsang's words stunned everyone present, as well as those watching the live stream.
Gu Ling's eyes filled with despair. Ye Sangsang's words, combined with the drawing in her hand, made the answer all too clear.
Tears instantly welled up in her eyes again. She took a deep breath to ease the lump in her throat, then turned to look at the sunlight streaming through the stairwell window.
She couldn't understand why everything had turned out this way.
Zheng He still remembered the cigarette butt. When Ye Sangsang had placed it in the evidence bag, he could still see the blood on it.
His sharp phoenix eyes turned to Ye Sangsang, "I remember you did a behavioral analysis on Qin Jiang. You said he had psychological trauma, right? Starting from when he lost his wife and son?"
"Yes," Ye Sangsang replied calmly.
Zheng He pursed his lips, lowered his head, and slammed his fist against the wall, as if that was the only way to vent his emotions.
Ye Sangsang unhurriedly put away her sketchpad, "Go and push for the DNA comparison results from the cigarette butt at the scene. Let's see what the final outcome is. I hope it's not what I suspect."
The latter half of her sentence was mostly a lie.
The two of them clearly believed her words and hurried off, their faces filled with a glimmer of hope.
[I feel like Ye Sangsang is lying to them.]
[Don't just feel it—it's obvious.]
[So it really is Qin Jiang? But why kill Lin Xue? That's the easiest way to get caught.]
Ye Sangsang was also thinking about this question. She liked to think while standing, so she stood at the stairwell entrance, gazing out at the beautiful scenery outside as she pondered.
Just like before, when she wondered why Zhao Tianman had killed Lin Xue.
There were too many puzzling aspects to this case.
And Ye Sangsang felt that all the answers to these mysteries could be found in Qin Jiang.
She went to the hospital and saw Qin Jiang lying in the hospital bed, having undergone brain and leg surgeries.
Sitting by his bedside, Ye Sangsang murmured, "If you don't wake up soon, your reputation will be ruined."
The caregiver had gone out for a meal, and Ye Sangsang needed to wait for them to return. She looked at Qin Jiang's pale, bloodless face.
He couldn't answer her questions.
At that moment, a familiar figure walked in. Captain Chen sat down on the other side of Qin Jiang's bed.
"I believe in Qin Jiang, and I wanted you all to stop investigating. But I didn't expect you to act so quickly." His expression was pained, with a hint of barely concealed resentment, his emotions complex.
Out of duty and the oath he took as a police officer, he would arrest Qin Jiang.
But given his feelings for Qin Jiang and Qin Jiang's current condition, he couldn't help but hold onto a sliver of hope.
Some people said that those who had been in the criminal investigation field for a long time were always walking the line between black and white.
He knew that young people like Ye Sangsang had no tolerance for ambiguity. They firmly believed that Qin Jiang was innocent.
But only those who had experienced what Qin Jiang had gone through knew that perhaps they weren't made of steel. They, too, had dark sides to their humanity. They were ordinary people who could feel pain and resentment.
So, he was conflicted.
[Ah, such is human nature.]
[Qin Jiang is still unconscious. I wonder how this will end!]
[It's really tough. Loyalty and justice have always been hard to balance.]
Ye Sangsang now had short hair. She used to have a habit of twisting her hair, but now she could only brush the short strands by her ears. "Since things have come to this, can I ask what Qin Jiang has been through?"
She mainly wanted to ask about the deaths of his wife and son, to understand what had traumatized him and who the people he had killed were.
There was also an unidentified body, and she felt there was more to uncover.
Captain Chen sighed. Indeed, young people loved to dig deep.
He gathered his thoughts and slowly recounted the old case from eight years ago. "Qin Jiang's wife was a doctor at City Hospital. They married late, and eight years ago, their son was only five years old. Although both of them were busy with work, they cared deeply for their child."
"If things had stayed that way, it would have been perfect. Unfortunately, one afternoon, they were kidnapped. The perpetrator was a criminal Qin Jiang had arrested before. After being released from prison, he sought revenge by kidnapping them and then killed them before arrogantly turning himself in."
"After this incident, Qin Jiang became much more reserved. Aside from work, he rarely spoke and distanced himself from relatives and friends, living alone."
Captain Chen sighed softly. He had suffered too much, losing two loved ones in one night, both because of him.
If it were him, he would probably never forgive himself.
In a way, the perpetrator truly knew how to make him suffer.
[That's so tragic.]
[Losing the two people he loved most—it's hard to move on from that. It's almost understandable if he became a little unhinged.]
[No wonder Captain Chen is protective. Qin Jiang has had it too rough.]
After listening, Ye Sangsang remained silent for a moment before saying, "Alright."
"Go ahead and investigate. I'll close the case. After all, he might not wake up anytime soon—or maybe he never will." Captain Chen's eyes were filled with hidden pain as he spoke.
Having been alone for eight years, perhaps Qin Jiang himself didn't want to wake up.
Ye Sangsang looked at the person lying on the bed and replied, "I will investigate thoroughly."
At that moment, the caretaker who had gone to eat returned and took over the responsibility of looking after the patient.
Captain Chen, having finished his visit, was about to leave to return to work. As he stood up to go, Ye Sangsang suddenly spoke up, "Qin Jiang is a suspect now, right?"
"...Yes," Captain Chen answered through gritted teeth.
She continued, "Since he's a suspect, to prevent him from running away if he wakes up or to avoid retaliation from the victim's family, two people should be assigned to keep an eye on him."
Captain Chen turned around, stared at her, closed his eyes to calm himself, and thought of scolding her. But looking at Ye Sangsang's face, he felt it would be pointless and only make him angrier.
Suppressing his frustration, he said, "Yes, I'll arrange for someone to come."
"Good," Ye Sangsang stood up, turned around, and walked out of the ward. "I hope it's done quickly."
Captain Chen thought to himself that sometimes young people really needed a good scolding.
Although he felt that way, Ye Sangsang's point was valid. As a suspect, Qin Jiang should indeed be monitored.
Soon, he made a call and arranged for someone to keep watch.
Ye Sangsang returned to the station and began investigating Lin Xue and Zhao Tianman.
Earlier, Zheng He had sent a message informing her that missing persons matching the age and gender had been notified to provide DNA samples for comparison. They hoped to identify the deceased as soon as possible.
Time passed minute by minute. Ye Sangsang retrieved the case files from the archives regarding the kidnapping of Qin Jiang's wife and child years ago.
She examined the clues, piecing them together bit by bit.
Time flew by, and two days passed in the blink of an eye.
After reviewing the materials, Ye Sangsang, while no one was paying attention, secretly took the key from Qin Jiang's desk and found his home address.
Just as she stood at the doorstep, her phone buzzed with a message.
It was from Zheng He. As she had expected, the DNA from the saliva on the half-smoked cigarette butt matched Qin Jiang's.
Staring at the message, Ye Sangsang lowered her gaze and pushed open the door to Qin Jiang's home.
