The Forensic Doctor Better Than a Detective-Chapter 484 - 278: He Never Lacks a Stage (2)

Seeing Jiang An speak so earnestly, Zhang Yean raised an eyebrow, a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth: "Junior, I’ll drink this bowl of chicken soup!"

Then, she rolled up her sleeves and threw herself back into the battle, her eyes full of fighting spirit.

The clock’s hand quietly slipped from one tick to another, from dawn to dusk, and from evening into deep night.

The field agents were also fully engaged.

Mr Chen trudged heavily, each step seemed weighted down, his police boots caked with mud, making a "squelch, squelch" sound as he walked.

He propped himself up against the doorframe, his chest heaving violently, panting for a while before tremblingly reaching into his pocket for his notebook, his fingers bright red from the cold.

Zhao rubbed his sore shoulder, fatigue written all over his face, and when he took out his phone, the screen’s light illuminated the dark circles under his eyes.

Hoarsely, he said: "The row of fishermen’s houses on the east side, we waited three hours for someone to come back..."

As he spoke, his eyes were bloodshot, and his eyelids kept fighting to stay open.

Because some fishermen had gone out to sea, with no set return date, in order to ensure complete information, the team stubbornly stayed until late night, like determined night watchmen. Even in the biting cold wind, they wouldn’t let any possible clue slip away, tightening the police uniforms around them, stamping their feet to keep warm, yet always firmly holding their positions.

At 2 a.m., in the criminal investigation team meeting room, though everyone was exhausted, their eyelids heavy as if weighed down by lead, their bodies slouched like wilting eggplants, their eyes still showed determination.

Mr. Ma removed his reading glasses, pinched his nose bridge with his finger, frowning deeply, using his thumb and forefinger to vigorously press his temples, his face slightly pale.

Then he placed the glasses back on his nose, slowly scanning the room with a hint of expectation in his eyes: "Is everyone here?"

"Come, let’s make use of time and summarize today’s achievements."

He spoke with a slightly hoarse voice, "Field team, start your report."

"Li Jian, you first, talk about the sweeping situation by the riverbank."

Li Jian stood up with a ’swish’, his body straight as a rod, his voice still loud and clear, yet if listened to closely, a hint of fatigue could be discerned: "Mr. Ma, the three chiefs!"

"Today the field team was divided into two groups, I led one on the west bank, Mr. Fu led another on the east bank."

He spoke while unconsciously rubbing his hands, "I led the brothers running around all day, nine groups canvassed 1300 homes door to door, asked all the neighbors we could find."

"Pity!"

A look of regret emerged on his face, he gently shook his head, "Not a single one matched the height of 1.85 meters, robust build and disabled features."

"But we did find 25 burly men."

As he spoke, he took a notebook out of his pocket and flipped through a few pages, "After preliminary screening, 2 were in car accidents at the time of the crime, bedridden at home, without conditions to commit the crime."

"The perpetrator couldn’t be in this state, so they were directly excluded."

He closed the notebook, sighed, "The rest are under investigation, no abnormalities found for now."

Pausing for a moment, a spark of determination reignited in his eyes.

"Though we didn’t catch the big fish during this run, we did get a sense of the underwater terrain."

Followed closely, Mr. Fu stood up, adjusted his collar, a tired smile on his face: "Mr. Ma, the situation on my side is similar."

"We canvassed 1700 people, 50 of whom matched the height criteria."

He spoke while massaging his sore neck, "But upon deeper understanding, these 50 people’s living standards weren’t low, education level at least high school graduates, all working legitimate jobs."

"No idle social elements, and none with a criminal record."

He shook his head, "Though the specific time of the crime couldn’t be determined, overall, the likelihood of involvement is low."

Mr. Ma listened to the report, his brows tightened more and more, his expression growing darker, knuckles turning white from clenching, nearly digging his nails into his palms.

There was a deep sense of frustration in his eyes, his lips pressed into a straight line.

Hoping that a thorough canvass would crack open a breakthrough in the case, but after a day of hard work, it was nearly all for nothing.

Was there truly no gain, or is the elusive criminal too cunning?

After all this time, without evidence to pin down a suspect, everything was like searching for a needle in a haystack!

It was hard! At this thought, Mr. Ma’s face flushed with heat.

The three task force members also wore uncomfortable expressions, constantly exchanging glances, restless as if drenched with a bucket of cold water before an audience.

Mr. Ma took a deep breath, leaned forward, gripping the edge of the conference table tightly, knuckles white, lifting his eyes towards Jiang An, a glimmer of hope flickering.

"Brother Jiang An, any new discoveries from the on-site investigation?"

Jiang An slowly rose, carefully pushing his chair gently under the table to avoid making noise.

He first nodded elegantly, his Adam’s apple bobbing gently, then spoke in a stable and forceful voice: "Mr. Ma, today Zhang Yean and I turned the case files inside out."

"We thoroughly pondered the site investigations and autopsy records, and did uncover something."

He spoke, his hands folded in front of him, "Our case investigations have a ’distant dump, close conceal’ pattern."

"In this case, the handling of the first victim’s body was both hidden and exquisite."

He squinted slightly, immersed in recall, "In my view, the perpetrator is most likely hiding nearby."

The moment he said this, everyone in the meeting room nodded in agreement, their bodies unconsciously leaning forward, faces showing recognition.

The four leaders’ eyes lit up, straightening their postures as if having found a lifesaver.