I was lying on my bed at home, my forehead burning with fever. Staring at the ceiling, I suddenly remembered that I had indeed fallen ill.
I had returned from the police station yesterday, and Liu Yuning was the one who brought me back.
Glancing at the night view outside the window, my lips trembled for a moment.
Closing my eyes, I drifted back into a deep sleep…
I must have slept for a long time. My stomach rumbled, and I finally turned over and went to the kitchen. My head felt less heavy, and the fever had subsided. But I needed to rest properly, otherwise, if the old illness relapsed like before, this resting period would be wasted.
I made myself a packet of instant noodles, adding a few slices of ham sausage and a braised egg. I ate it casually. I had intended to go to the police station to check on things, but then I heard a car outside the courtyard gate. I initially thought it was Liu Yuning again, but when I opened the door, I discovered He Xin had returned.
Seeing I wasn't there, He Xin hugged me tightly. "Dad, you scared me to death yesterday. You were talking with Captain Liu, and then suddenly you collapsed onto your desk with a bang. I thought you had some serious illness!"
"I was just too tired. Don't worry! I've rested well and I'm fully recharged!"
"Your complexion looks much better, but still be careful. I'm really worried you might end up hospitalized for a few days like I did last time."
"I won't. Oh, right, how is that case coming along?"
"It's still the same, no breakthroughs. Everyone still has to work hard. They all hope you'll return to the team soon!"
I had been sick for four days this time, and there was still no progress. It seemed the case was truly difficult.
I couldn't let the Penal Justice Team lose face like this, especially since our team had only been established not long ago.
Seeing that it was already past 3 PM, I asked He Xin to drive me back to the police station.
When working, everyone was incredibly focused, but many were now exhausted and collapsed in their offices.
Even when He Xin and I approached, Gao Mingqiang, Xiao Yuande, and others were still sleeping.
He Xin initially intended to wake them up but I stopped her. I whispered, "Let them sleep for a while."
Just then, Xia Hou and Liu Yuning, who had been out investigating, returned. Upon seeing me, they exclaimed in surprise, "Team Leader He, you're back?"
I gave a relaxed smile. "Yes, was I supposed to stay in bed for a few more days?"
"Seeing you back to your old self, the weight on my heart has finally lifted," Xia Hou said.
"It was just a cold! You don't need to be so tense!"
"Enough talk. We just went back to the scene and discovered that the neighboring resident has a secret passage that leads to She Hongyuan's house. I investigated this resident; his owner is named Sheng Hongguang. He's a second-generation rich kid; his father bought the property. However, Sheng Hongguang is currently studying abroad and rarely stays at home."
"Oh? If that's the case, the possibility that the killer was lurking in Sheng Hongguang's house, observing the situation, and waiting for the opportune moment to strike at She Hongyuan's family is plausible. I'll go take a look at Sheng Hongguang's house!" I suggested.
"Alright, we've already notified him, but he doesn't seem to be free to come back yet."
"Don't worry about him for now. But is it okay for you to just enter someone's house like this?"
"I don't care about that much. I've been so stifled lately. If I don't find any clues soon, I think I'll go crazy!"
"Okay, don't get agitated. You just need to handle Sheng Hongguang's side of things!"
"He doesn't seem to care much about this matter and told us to investigate freely."
"Then that's fine. I'm just worried he might later accuse us of trespassing."
"How could that be? Alright, I'll go find Director Huang and get a search warrant. That should put your mind at ease!"
We went to Sheng Hongguang's house again. This villa was completely different in design from She Hongyuan's house next door. This guy seems to be quite fond of music, turning his entire home into instrument shapes. For example, the stones in the courtyard were shaped like violins, cellos, and pianos. The house was filled with various musical instruments, wind chimes hung on the curtains, and even the chandelier was designed in the shape of a drum.
As soon as I entered, I couldn't help but admire this Sheng Hongguang. I fumbled around the scene and found a wall closest to She Hongyuan's villa. This area was adjacent to Sheng Hongguang's music room, which housed a very old piano, complete with pedals.
In this day and age, hardly anyone would use such a piano. Sheng Hongguang probably kept it for collection. I tapped the piano and discovered traces of it having been moved from behind. I tried to push it myself, but it was too heavy. I asked Xiao Yuande and Liu Yuning for help. After moving the piano, it seemed that a mechanism was accidentally triggered.
To my surprise, the wall moved. We immediately walked in and found that it indeed led to She Hongyuan's house, connecting to a nearby storage room. No wonder we hadn't seen the killer's face from beginning to end. This was how he managed it.
We returned to Sheng Hongguang's house. Since the killer had stayed here, perhaps he left some clues behind. I asked Xie Chuchu, Xiao Dong, and others to survey the kitchen, bathroom, rooms, and other areas. I also joined many forensic investigators. With the help of luminol, we found no suspicious traces.
There were no fingerprints on the kitchenware, and the bathroom was thoroughly cleaned. This killer was extremely cautious, managing to leave no trace whatsoever and then leaving without a hitch.
I went to the bathroom and squatted down, scanning around the toilet with a black light. Although this was a cumbersome task, it was unavoidable for forensic investigation.
I found no traces on the edge of the toilet. I had also checked the bathroom floor and mirror. The killer likely avoided touching these fixtures at the time.
However, I suddenly noticed the hanging light in the bathroom. Compared to the other fixtures, it seemed remarkably clean.
I asked someone to get a ladder and climbed up. I discovered that this light had been replaced not long ago. Sheng Hongguang hadn't been back for a long time, so whoever replaced the light was likely the killer.
Upon inspecting the top of the lampshade, I indeed found a partial fingerprint. It seemed the killer had lived here for some time and even treated the place as his own home.
Looking at the furniture that had been used, this guy had probably done this sort of thing before.
"Why is it only a partial fingerprint?" Liu Yuning asked.
"He was probably wearing gloves, and they accidentally slipped off while he was changing the light, leaving an unintentional mark," Xie Chuchu speculated.