Forensic Forensic - Chapter 24

Chapter 24

Qi Ming emerged from the shower to find Luo Jianan’s gun holster tossed on the coffee table, a half-eaten loaf of bread beside it. Luo Jianan was already fast asleep on the sofa, clearly exhausted. Seeing Luo Jianan’s defenseless sleep, Qi Ming shook his head, went upstairs, and fetched a sheet from the closet, covering him with it.

Dimming the living room lights, Qi Ming poured himself a glass-thick bottle of whiskey from the minibar. He then sat down at his computer desk on the balcony, gazing out the floor-to-ceiling windows at the city’s nightscape, enjoying this moment of peace. The balcony had been converted into a sunroom by the landlord. With no nearby tall buildings, the view was expansive, and the overall structure of the house was just what he liked. He gave Shao Chen, who had helped him find the apartment, a bottle of fine wine as a token of gratitude.

His phone lit up, an email alert. Qi Ming opened it and saw it was a message from a former colleague, asking about a possible cancer in a body the insurance company had requested an autopsy, one that could have been riddled with cancer cells but no primary site could be found. This involved a substantial insurance claim; if the primary site was found to be uncovered, the insurance company could save a considerable amount. Attached to the email were detailed medical and autopsy reports. The deceased was an African American woman, hospitalized for only two months before her death. Doctors had been unable to identify the primary site, and surprisingly, the autopsy couldn’t find one either.

Qi Ming carefully read each entry while sipping whiskey. He finished his glass and, just as he finished reading the documents, he flicked his finger to reply to the email: “It’s possible melanoma. While the incidence of this disease is extremely low in African Americans, the records show she was half Caucasian, so this should be considered as the primary site. Moles can be found on lighter skin areas such as the palms, soles, under the nails, and inner thighs for pathology biopsies.” Putting his phone down, Qi Ming got up and went to the kitchen to rinse the cups. Just as he finished, he heard Luo Jianan’s voice behind him: “Aren’t you going to sleep yet… You’re really good.”

“Right away.”

Turning off the faucet, Qi Ming glanced back at Luo Jianan—he had one leg draped over the back of the sofa, looking appallingly awful. He’d woken up by the sound of running water, mumbling drowsily. Qi Ming didn’t bother to pay attention. He dried the cups and his hands, turned off the small light on the mini-bar, and groveled towards the second-floor bedroom.

“Wait…” Luo Jianan raised a hand. “Leave it on…”

Stepping on the floor lamp next to the sofa, Qi Ming saw Luo Jianan’s lips curled up in satisfaction in the dim light, which made him laugh.

You’re so old, and still afraid of the dark?

The surveillance footage showed that Tang Jianxiao boarded the No. 859 bus after leaving the hospital. Qiao Dawei and Xu Jie went to the bus company early in the morning to retrieve the onboard surveillance footage and didn’t return to the bureau until noon.

“The onboard surveillance camera shows Tang Jianxiao getting off the bus at Dongpu Station.” It was lunchtime, as usual, and Xu Jie pointed at the frozen image with his chopsticks. “Dongpu is the city’s largest area of ​​old buildings awaiting renovation. Illegal construction is rampant, with electrical and network cables hanging overhead, and the roads are so narrow that vehicles can’t enter.”

“Are you sure Tang Jianxiao entered this area after getting off the bus?” Chen Fei asked.

Qiao Dawei pulled up another video and said, “This is from the surveillance camera near the bus stop. It’s the last time Tang Jianxiao was seen. Because it’s included in the renovation plan, there are currently no law enforcement cameras installed in the area.”

“Luo Jianan,” Chen Fei tapped the table. “Have you eaten yet?”

Luo Jianan held up a banana. “You haven’t eaten your fruit after dinner yet.”

“Leave it there. No one’s stealing it.” Chen Fei glanced at Zhao Pingsheng, who was smirking with his head down, and said sternly to Luo Jianan, “Aren’t you afraid of having your credit taken away? Go to Dongpu now and ask every household. Don’t go back to sleep until you can’t find Tang Jianxiao.”

“No problem, boss. I’ll sleep in the car until we find him.” Luo Jianan shoved a banana into Miao Hong’s hand. “Master, keep an eye on it for me. If anyone dares to steal it, help me punish them.”

Miao Hong peeled and ate the banana right in front of Luo Jianan.

In the car, Qi Ming listened to Luo Jianan rant about his master’s cold-bloodedness while replying to an email from a former colleague. The colleague had found a cancerous mole on the inside/outside of the deceased’s vulva and complained to him that when the insurance company’s claims investigator learned that the primary lesion was within the insurance coverage, his Caucasian face darkened even darker than the deceased’s.

Out of the corner of his eye, Luo Jianan caught Qi Ming fiddling with his phone and warned him, “Don’t keep looking at your phone in the car. It makes you carsick.”

“My three semicircular canals function perfectly, so I never get carsick,” Qi Ming said, putting his phone away.

“Three what?”

“Semicircular canals, organs in the inner ear of vertebrates that control balance.” Qi Ming tapped his ear and gave Luo Jianan a meaningful look. “Have you never seen one? I’ll cut one open for you during the next autopsy.”

“Thanks. I’m afraid I won’t be able to eat cold pig ears anymore.”

Luo Jianan forced a dry laugh—cherish life, stay away from forensic medicine.

——————

Dongpu was originally the dormitory of a large state-owned factory. During the late 1990s, the factory was demolished during the old city’s reconstruction and relocated to an industrial development zone, with most of the employees moving there with the factory. Now, most of the houses here are rented by migrant workers, and the road is crowded with storefronts connected to one another. Luo Jianan circled the main road outside but couldn’t find a place to park. He had no choice but to drive onto the sidewalk and park in the open space outside a small supermarket.

The owner, noticing an SUV stuck at the entrance, immediately got out and knocked on Luo Jianan’s window. After he rolled down the window, he shouted impatiently, “You’re not allowed to park here! Move! Move! The traffic police will come and issue you a ticket.”

Luo Jianan flashed his police badge, opened the door, and got out. The owner’s expression shifted when he saw it was a police officer. “Another fugitive hiding here?”

Due to the complex network of roads, numerous illegal buildings, and low rents in the area, Dongpu was once a famous hideout for wanted criminals. Veteran officers in the Criminal Investigation Department used to say, “Eight out of ten fugitives are in Dongpu, and two are on their way there.” In recent years, thanks to collaborative efforts from various parties to strengthen the management of the migrant population and the registration of rental properties, fugitives are now rarely seen here.

“Have you seen this man?” Luo Jianan wouldn’t reveal case details to anyone outside the organization; it was a rule, and he was also careful not to alert the suspect. “There’s a case we need his assistance with.”

The boss squinted at the photo and shook his head. “No impression. There are too many people here, and the turnover is high. Some come one day and some leave the next. The people who come to buy are regulars.”

Glancing sideways at Qi Ming, Luo Jianan gestured to continue asking around. After asking around ten shops, no one recognized Tang Jianxiao. Further in, there were two forking roads. Qi Ming took photos with his phone, and Luo Jianan and he approached separately. But there were more forking roads after forking roads, and Qi Ming suddenly found himself lost in a web of alleys. The roads in this area were slanted by illegal construction, making it impossible to tell the direction. The walls were barely a man’s width apart, and even the sky was squeezed into a single line by the added roofs.

Just then, Luo Jianan called to say someone had recognized Tang Jianxiao and asked him to meet him at the fork where he had previously split. Qi Ming hung up the phone and turned back to find his way. Honestly, he was getting dizzy. Some alleyways looked like they were his last, but once he entered, he realized he hadn’t been there before. There were no storefronts left, and he’d been walking for five minutes without encountering a single person to ask for directions. There were a few stray cats, though.

Luo Jianan called again, demanding his whereabouts.

“I don’t know where I am either,” Qi Ming replied truthfully. “I’m lost.”

“Ask someone!”

“No one. I think I’ve reached the innermost residential area.”

“What a hassle!” Luo Jianan exclaimed impatiently. “Send me your location via WeChat and I’ll come pick you up. Stay right where you are, don’t run around!”

After sending his location, Qi Ming stood at the alley entrance, waiting for Luo Jianan to appear. A small black cat perched on the wall meowed at him, tilting its head to examine the human curiously. Qi Ming looked away from the cat and glanced left and right, wondering where Luo Jianan would emerge. The quiet alley stretched narrowly, feeling cramped and oppressive, ending at a wall covered in advertisements. There was no greenery here, only gray cement, weathered red bricks, and a tin shed reflecting the sunlight. Qi Ming felt an inexplicable sense of desolation, and suddenly realized he hadn’t expected anyone to show up in ages.

Thankfully, Luo Jianan didn’t keep him waiting too long, but a voice preceded him: “Qi Ming? Qi Ming?”

Qi Ming glanced around, then realized the voice was coming from directly opposite him. “I’m here,” he replied. Then Luo Jianan emerged from the wall opposite him, hopping down and brushing the dust off his clothes, complaining, “Damn it! How did you get in? I was following the directions and there was no way out. I had to walk through several courtyards before I got here.”

“You must have missed an alley entrance. When I left earlier, there was a place where you had to turn sideways to get through.” Qi Ming raised his hand to brush the dust off his sleeve. “Which way are you going now?”

Luo Jianan glanced around and pointed to the right. “This way.”

“According to human behavior, when lost and encountering a fork in the road, choosing the left is more likely to return to the entrance.” Qi Ming looked at him seriously.

Luo Jianan laughed out loud: “Stop it. Do you need me to pick up the pieces if you’re going to do this?”

Qi Ming was speechless now. Indeed, he’d just kept turning left until he arrived at this haunted place where even if he dumped a body, no one would find it.

——————

Perhaps having finally gotten the upper hand over Qi Ming, Luo Jianan kept on talking the whole way—

“You said you can’t drive, you don’t remember the way, and you’re always out on the road. Aren’t you getting me into trouble?”

“Don’t always believe what experts say. You know what’s real, don’t you?”

“Next time this happens, I’ll file a missing persons report. Oh, yes, what’s your ID number?”

“No talk? You’re too young—eh, Qi Ming?”

Luo Jianan’s voice died abruptly as he turned back. Qi Ming had disappeared again. I was following him just now! How did he get lost again?! He immediately turned back to look for him, only to find Qi Ming stopped at a corner they had just passed, leaning against the wall with his head bowed. Luo Jianan strode over to him, noticing Qi Ming’s pale face, and immediately reached out to support his arm.

“What’s wrong? Are you dizzy?”

“Let me go!” Qi Ming’s voice was filled with a tension and anxiety Luo Jianan had never heard before. Before he could comprehend what was happening, Qi Ming had freed himself from his arm and was holding onto the wall. He had only taken two steps when he tripped over a piece of gravel.

“Hey! Watch out!” Fortunately, Luo Jianan, with his long arms and legs, stepped forward to support Qi Ming. “What’s wrong with you? Don’t try to be stubborn if you’re not feeling well. I’ll carry you.”

“I’m fine! Don’t worry about it—” Qi Ming waved Luo Jianan’s hand away and began to feel for the wall again. Seeing his tentative expression, Luo Jianan suddenly realized, “You can’t see!?”

Qi Ming didn’t say anything. He found the wall and leaned against it, breathing rapidly, his eyes vacant and lifeless behind his glasses. Luo Jianan was now truly anxious, and regardless of Qi Ming’s willingness, he immediately lifted him up. Qi Ming couldn’t break free from his grip, and sensing Luo Jianan’s intention to carry him, he immediately said, “It’s okay! It’s just a bout of intermittent blindness, it’ll be gone in a few minutes!”

Luo Jianan paused, turned to look at Qi Ming, and asked in surprise, “Have you had this problem before?”

After a moment’s silence, Qi Ming nodded. “It’s a congenital cerebral vascular malformation. Occasionally, it can cause blindness due to ischemia, but it usually heals in seconds to minutes.”

“Well… occasionally… how often?” Luo Jianan waved his hand in front of Qi Ming’s eyes. Uh, it hadn’t healed yet.

In fact, Qi Ming’s vision had begun to recover. He could vaguely see Luo Jianan waving his hand in front of his eyes, so he raised his hand to slap it away. “It varies. Sometimes it lasts for years, and sometimes it only happens once every one or two months.”

“Is there no cure?” Luo Jianan withdrew his hand awkwardly.

“Surgery has a 90% chance of causing permanent blindness.” Qi Ming took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes with a handkerchief. “But the bl00d supply of the deformed bl00d vessels will weaken with age. Assuming I live long enough, I’ll eventually become blind.”

Luo Jianan felt truly sorry for Qi Ming’s situation, but he wasn’t one to comfort others, never had been. So he held it in for a long time before finally saying—

“It’s okay. Even if you’re blind, you’ll be a smart blind man.”