"Don't feel constrained by my position. I still prefer to be on the front lines, with all of you."
"Uh, I knew you'd say that, hahahaha! Alright then! With our leader holding the fort, our morale will surely soar!"
"Gao Mingqiang, be serious. You're an adult. You were only serious for a short while last time, and after a few months, you've reverted to your old self?"
"Haha, it's easier to change one's circumstances than one's nature, isn't that what they say? However, he's already several times more diligent when dealing with cases than before!" Liu Yuning said, standing up from his seat and tidying the narcissus next to him, placing it on the windowsill.
Just as we had finished a bit of breakfast and everyone was idly chatting in the office, Lu Chusheng suddenly rushed towards us: "We have a situation. Just received a notification from a patrol officer. At 21 Fuji Road, Guangming City, Jingzhu Residential Area, Unit 905, there's been a murder. The victim is reportedly a forensic investigator who used to work in Gaogang City. He was murdered on his second day of retirement."
"A retired forensic investigator murdered? It seems we have another tricky case. Let's go, investigate!" I gave the order. No one dared to delay. They all put on their coats and left the Punishment Group office, accompanied by hundreds of criminal police officers.
Upon arriving at the scene, several of us, in a flurry, went upstairs with the forensic team. We learned from the property management personnel that this unit was the residence of the veteran forensic investigator, Liang Zhongshu. He was 65 years old, and his wife had passed away two years prior.
I had heard of Liang Zhongshu. He was reportedly a skilled forensic investigator. His wife died of liver cancer two years ago, which was quite unfortunate. After her death, Old Liang began living alone. His son, Liang Youren, had gone abroad many years ago and had never returned. Now, it appeared Old Liang had also been murdered. We needed to investigate the specific circumstances.
Upon entering the place where Liang Zhongshu was murdered, his study, the body was found lying amidst a multitude of books. It appeared he had been covered by these heavy volumes.
Liang Lao's study had neatly arranged bookshelves, with a large accumulation of books. However, at this moment, half of them had fallen onto Liang Zhongshu, and many were heavy world classics. Don't underestimate these books; a hardcover one falling from a height onto a vital area could be fatal.
To move Liang Zhongshu's body, we had to remove the books around him. The person who discovered the body was a cleaner Liang Zhongshu had recently hired. She was currently being questioned by Xiahou.
Zhang Keying, Xie Chuchu, and I faced the body and carefully laid it flat on the floor.
Superficially, Liang Zhongshu's body bore several bruises from being struck by books. These marks were mainly concentrated on his forehead, neck, and shoulders. There was also an impact on the back of his head, which was the deepest, and judging by the depth of the bruise, this blow alone was sufficient to be fatal.
We had heard of cases where a steamed bun could kill someone; it was a similar principle, let alone these heavy books.
However, Zhang Keying stated that experimental comparisons would be needed to precisely determine Liang Zhongshu's cause of death. Regarding the time of death, based on rigor mortis, lividity, and eyelid conditions, it was estimated to be over 12 hours ago. It was now 10 AM, so if it was 12 hours, the time of death would be around 10 PM last night.
There were no signs of anyone else entering the scene. Although the study window was open, there were no footprints on the windowsill. Besides, given the height, escaping through the window would be quite dangerous. There was no significant platform outside this unit, nor any pipes. Theoretically, it was impossible.
One of the adjacent bookshelves appeared to have fallen to the ground, and another was leaning precariously. The books had fallen from these. Could it be that Liang Zhongshu accidentally pushed over one bookshelf, causing the other to fall? Was this an accidental death? Not murder?
I asked Xiahou to find the indoor surveillance footage. Xiahou informed me that there was indeed surveillance, which would aid our investigation. We temporarily put aside examining the body and approached the cleaner. "Ma'am, when did you discover the body?"
"About 20 minutes ago. I saw what happened and called the police immediately. Although I hadn't known Old Liang for long, I could tell he was very fond of learning and spent all his time in his study. Even when I was cleaning, I didn't dare make too much noise for fear of disturbing him."
"He retired only a few days ago, didn't he? Shouldn't he have had a lot of free time then? And he still had you come here to clean?"
"He was at home, but he didn't seem to like doing housework. I did everything. We would chat sometimes, and I would cook for him. As long as he was willing to pay, our housekeeping company would provide full service." The aunt recalled.
"And which housekeeping company are you from?"
The cleaner named a company. I turned off the body camera. It seemed there was nothing more to ask. I would have Xiahou verify the cleaner's statement. When we obtained the indoor surveillance footage, Xiao Yuande had already retrieved the footage from property management.
Liu Yuning would investigate the surveillance footage first, while Zhang Keying and I would return to the provincial department to perform the autopsy on Liang Zhongshu's body.
Of course, this would have to wait until Liang Zhongshu's son returned. As soon as the incident occurred, we had immediately contacted Liang Zhongshu's son abroad.
Upon hearing the news, Liang Youren seemed rather impatient and even reluctant to return. It wasn't until Liu Yuning explained the seriousness of the matter and the potential suspicion he would face if he didn't return that Liang Youren grudgingly agreed.
While we were waiting for him, Liu Yuning remarked, "I've never seen a child so indifferent to their parents."
"You're thinking of that case last time, aren't you? This situation is different."
"I can see that too. Old Liang appears to have died accidentally. And Liang Youren has a solid alibi abroad, so he can theoretically be ruled out immediately. Moreover, he's thousands of miles away. Without his consent for the autopsy, I wouldn't even want to see him."
"I'll handle him. You all focus on examining the surveillance."
"Understood."
We waited for about a day. During this time, Liu Yuning had finished reviewing the surveillance footage but found no useful information. If we were to trace back from the time of the incident, the last person to have contact with Old Liang was that cleaning lady.