If the same person wore a glove on one hand and a larger glove on the other, the traces at the edges would be lighter. This is like wearing oversized shoes for small feet; it's usually imperceptible to the naked eye but becomes apparent with the detection of seaweed ash or precise instruments.
"The killer is two people?" Xie Chuchu asked, surprised.
"Yes, they likely disguised themselves as teachers or students to infiltrate the school, or perhaps they were already here. They weren't found during our campus sweep. They must have gone to a secluded spot to change clothes. Since we don't have any suspects yet, we'll proceed with the investigation."
"Then we'll leave it to you. Our forensic work is almost done!"
Zhang Keying said with ease. In fact, she was already a certified forensic examiner, having graduated.
Before leaving the forensic department, I gave a few more instructions. Then, I proceeded to the information department. He Xin informed me that the technical investigation team was already busy analyzing samples collected from the scene, including the toilet water, some soil from outside, and various trace particles.
"Check everything. Have you found anything on the surveillance footage?" I asked He Xin.
With dark circles under her eyes, she replied listlessly, "I've been staring at it until my head aches. There were so many people attending the graduation ceremony today! Aside from the good-looking ones, I really couldn't spot anyone suspicious."
He Xin's remark left me speechless, but I didn't hesitate. I summoned more technical officers, and we began reviewing the surveillance footage together. This ordeal would likely last a long time. I distributed eye drops to everyone, then administered a couple to myself, and resumed the fight.
Before long, smoke began to fill the information department. Although He Xin wasn't fond of the atmosphere, she couldn't do much with everyone being tired. Staring at the screen, she secretly snatched a cigarette from an officer's pack when he wasn't paying attention, put it in her mouth, lit it, and took a deep drag.
"Cough, cough, cough!" He Xin, taking her first puff, coughed several times. Her complexion changed instantly. "Nicotine, nicotine, you're this stimulating? But I do feel much more alert!"
She gave a self-deprecating laugh, her eyebrows relaxing, and her movements becoming lighter. Squinting, she held the cigarette butt between her index finger and thumb and flicked it effortlessly into the nearby trash can with unerring accuracy, rivaling a basketball sharpshooter.
Gao Mingqiang, standing nearby, was astonished and tried to imitate her. However, pushing his wheelchair, he picked up countless cigarette butts to practice, but none of his attempts were successful.
I couldn't stand it anymore and went over to him. "Mingqiang, with your mobility issues, you shouldn't be bothering with this!"
"Team Leader He, you're a god! Your daughter's trick is truly amazing!"
"Brother Mingqiang, isn't this basic stuff? You can't do it? Here, let me teach you how to twirl a pen!" He Xin said, skillfully spinning a pen rapidly between her index and middle fingers, her movements more impressive than a circus clown.
"I'm impressed. You probably got into trouble with teachers for doing this in school!"
"No, later the teacher even organized a pen-twirling competition in class because of me?" He Xin patted her flat chest proudly, as if immensely proud of her past.
I didn't want to waste more time with them and urged everyone to resume watching the videos. Then, perhaps due to good luck, as I turned back, I spotted a girl with a particularly strange expression standing in the crowd like a zombie.
Her actions quickly drew my attention. Everyone else was laughing heartily, taking photos with their families, and chatting. Only she stood completely isolated, not interacting with anyone, no family members by her side. She stood still with her head down for a moment and then walked away.
We watched as she left the campus and then disappeared into the crowd near the bus stop. The streets were even more crowded then, making her even harder to identify. I urged He Xin and the others to work harder. Yuan Hezhis also cooperated, and later they discovered that this girl had walked out of the crowd, headed towards a photo studio, and then disappeared down a nearby alley. No one emerged after that.
"She probably lives around here. What kind of photo studio is this?"
I asked Yuan Hezhis, who had already enlarged the nearby street view for me using the software.
It was a photo studio called "Huiguang Photography." The ground floor had a peculiar design, and the second floor seemed to be a hotel.
"Two different establishments connected? I wonder what the designer was thinking?"
"No, this photo studio used to be a hotel. Later, the ground floor was renovated by a new landlord. This landlord must have been a photographer, but for some reason, he struck it rich."
"Haha, excellent. I'm becoming more and more interested in this case. He Xin, you like taking photos, don't you? This time, you'll accompany me to Huiguang Photography."
"Wait, Dad. This photo studio seems to be located inside a foreign consulate."
"A foreign consulate? You mean a place where foreigners live? Like Chinatown in America?"
"That's right. Many British and Japanese residents live there."
"Hmm, I feel like I've arrived in Shanghai..."
Leaving the provincial department, I, along with Liu Yuning, He Xin, and Gao Mingqiang, arrived at the street near the foreign consulate. Before entering, I heard local legends about strange occurrences and vengeful spirits haunting the area, terrifying the local children and preventing them from going out.
A vengeful spirit killing people? I thought that was just a story to scare children. To reach the consulate area, we had to take a water bus. When we arrived at the dock, He Xin brought up our earlier surveillance review. "No wonder I saw her at the dock then, but I didn't see her boarding the water bus."
"It doesn't matter. As long as we see her appear again at the photo studio, it proves she definitely crossed to the other side."
"That area is under the jurisdiction of the Shaihai Town Police Station, right? Guangming City's only offshore island, and I heard they have some special island police stationed there."
"Oh? Stationed there must have better treatment than working in the city!"
As we chatted, we boarded a water bus. Liu Yuning paid the fare. The sky had already darkened. After we sat down, the bus began to move, carrying other passengers. At this point, He Xin said, "I hope we don't encounter any trouble this time. Although it's our territory, they are all foreigners. I wonder if they'll cooperate with our investigation."