Upon returning to the bureau, Fang Rui retrieved the case files for the Linzhou City incident from the archives room.
The crime had occurred six months ago, with the victims' bodies discovered in a wasteland near an industrial zone.
At the time, someone had purchased the wasteland intending to build a warehouse. However, during excavation, bodies were suddenly unearthed from beneath the ground. Four corpses were found at once, shocking the entire Linzhou City.
The four bodies were buried in two separate locations. Initially, the construction crew only uncovered one grave, but after the police conducted a thorough excavation of the entire wasteland, they discovered another pair of bodies in a corner of the area.
In the first grave were two victims, a married couple - one male and one female.
Victim 1: Chen Meiqin, female, 45 years old, seamstress at a furniture factory; Time of death: April-May 2018; Crime scene: Wasteland near the factory area on Changfeng Street, Baixi District, Linzhou City; Scene investigation: Body severely decomposed, no apparent wounds found upon examination, cause of death unknown.
Victim 2: Zhang Mingqiang, male, 47 years old, carpenter at a furniture factory; Time of death: April-May 2018; Crime scene: Wasteland near the factory area on Changfeng Street, Baixi District, Linzhou City; Scene investigation: No apparent wounds found upon examination, body severely decomposed, no obvious injuries detected, cause of death unknown.
The couple had been married for 25 years and had a good relationship. Both victims were known to be kind-hearted and had simple social connections. As a result, the police investigation into the victims' social circles did not yield any suspects. Additionally, due to the severe decomposition of the bodies, it was impossible to determine the exact time of death, so the case remained unsolved.
The second grave contained two female corpses, also severely decomposed but not to the extent of the first two victims. Subsequent investigation revealed that these two female victims were in a same-sex relationship and had been dating for two years with a stable relationship.
Victim 3: Zhang Yawen, female, 28 years old, foreign trade representative; Time of death: September-late October 2018; Crime scene: Wasteland near the factory area on Changfeng Street, Baixi District, Linzhou City; Scene investigation: Victim's hand clutched a withered flower stem, body severely decomposed, no apparent injuries found upon examination, cause of death unknown.
Victim 4: Tian Xin, female, 24 years old, accountant; Time of death: September-late October 2018; Crime scene: Wasteland near the factory area on Changfeng Street, Baixi District, Linzhou City; Scene investigation: Victim's hand clutched a withered flower stem, body severely decomposed, multiple stab wounds on chest and abdomen, suspected cause of death due to massive blood loss from aortic rupture.
All four bodies were discovered at the same location, but the time of death for each couple differed.
All four victims lived and worked in the vicinity of the industrial zone. However, upon investigation, the police found no connection between the two couples, nor did they have any mutual acquaintances. The case made no progress, and the killer remains at large to this day.
"Boss, look at these two victims holding withered flower stems in their hands. Could they be roses too?" Zhang, having finished reviewing the case files, also felt that the Linzhou case bore similarities to the one they encountered today. "Could the perpetrator of these cases be the same person?"
Fang Rui's instincts told him that these cases were definitely connected.
However, the Linzhou case was not under their jurisdiction. Reopening the investigation for the Linzhou case would require the bureau chief to negotiate with the Linzhou authorities. Therefore, Fang Rui decided not to merge the investigations for now and to focus on investigating the Jiangzhou University case independently.
The victims' identities were quickly confirmed through their student IDs: Wang Jie, a sophomore from the School of Literature, and Zhang Shuochen, a junior from the School of Law. Seven days ago, both victims had requested leave from school, claiming they needed to visit the hospital, and then completely lost contact.
Fang Rui immediately sought out Wang Jie and Zhang Shuochen's roommates and teachers to inquire about the situation.
He first questioned Wang Jie's roommates. Wang Jie lived in a four-person dormitory, and her counselor had called all three of her roommates to the office.
"Wang Jie was a very kind girl. She could be a bit of a princess sometimes, but she had a warm heart and often helped us," said Chen Linlin, Wang Jie's roommate. "Last Wednesday, she told us she was going to attend an event with her boyfriend, and we haven't been able to contact her since."
Fang Rui noticed that when Wang Jie's roommates learned of her death, their expressions showed only shock, not sadness. It seemed that Wang Jie might not have been as kind and friendly as Chen Linlin described, and their roommate relationship didn't appear to be good.
"Do you know what kind of event it was?" Fang Rui asked.
"We're not really sure. Jie said it was an event only couples could attend, and we single dogs could only envy them. But she didn't say where the event was being held or what it was about," Chen Linlin said, pursing her lips. "Maybe there wasn't any event at all. She might have just gone out to play with her boyfriend and didn't want to tell us."
"During the seven days she was on leave, she didn't contact you at all?"
"No. After she left the dorm, we never heard from her again. Last Friday, I even sent her a WeChat message asking her to pay the electricity bill, but she didn't reply to us either."
"Didn't you find it strange that she was out of contact for so many days? Didn't you try to reach out to her and ask about her situation?" Zhang asked, puzzled. Wang Jie's roommates seemed too indifferent!
"Don't blame us!" Li Ran, another of Wang Jie's roommates, retorted indignantly. "We didn't dare to pry into her business. If we asked too much, she might have thought we were interested in her boyfriend and were using her to get information about him. It's ridiculous, Wang Jie treated that garbage boyfriend of hers like a treasure!"
"Li Ran, don't talk about Wang Jie like that. She's passed away," Jiang Yujue quietly reminded her.
"Huh, look at you playing the good person!"
Fang Rui asked, "How was Wang Jie's relationship with her boyfriend?"
"Very good! Jie's boyfriend treated her extremely well, catering to her every whim," Chen Linlin's tone was full of envy. "They were the model couple of our university, even featured in our school's promotional video."
"Always showing off their love online, it's so fake. You guys still think it's sweet. You've had too much artificial sweetener, everything looks sweet to you!" Li Ran chimed in sarcastically from the side.
Fang Rui turned to Li Ran: "Li, do you think their relationship wasn't good?"
"I didn't say that. What does their relationship have to do with me?" Li Ran awkwardly averted her gaze, impatiently running her fingers through her short hair. She turned to the counselor and said, "Counselor, I have some urgent business to attend to. Can I leave now?"
The counselor looked at Fang Rui hesitantly, and Fang Rui nodded to indicate she could go.
After Li Ran left, Fang Rui asked the remaining two, "Was Li's relationship with Wang Jie particularly bad?"
"Well, their personalities just didn't mesh. Li Ran is more tomboyish, and she couldn't stand Wang Jie's princess attitude. Wang Jie also didn't like Li Ran's boyish ways, so they always rubbed each other the wrong way," Chen Linlin paused. "Also, Li Ran might have had feelings for Zhang Shuochen. They were high school classmates, both from Linzhou No.1 High School next door, and used to be quite close. So that made the conflict even worse."
Zhang was speechless. How had this turned into a plot from a teen drama?
"Did they know anyone outside of school?" Fang Rui asked.
Chen Linlin thought for a moment, then shook her head. "I don't know. Wang Jie was hardly ever in the dorm, so we don't know who she might have known."
"Alright, thank you for your cooperation!"
