Yan Qing set down her chopsticks and said seriously: “Based on the characteristics of the wound margins and wound channels on the victims, the weapons used to kill the two of them were not the same shape.”

Shi Ting’s eyes sharpened at once. “Different murder weapons?”

“I’ve already sketched out the approximate profiles of both weapons. Although both are common pointed knives easily found on the market, they differ in length and width. One is a standard fruit knife, while the other resembles the boning knife commonly found at butchers’ stalls.”

Shi Ting said, “According to Fan Mingming’s account, she saw two attackers at the time. If the weapons are indeed different, this corroborates Fan Mingming’s statement — because the likelihood of a single attacker switching between two different weapons is low. Kill one person, then swap to a different knife?” Shi Ting’s long finger tapped lightly on the table surface. “Furthermore, there are almost no signs of a struggle inside the apartment. The Fan couple were killed with virtually no resistance. Fan Wenzhi may have been a scholar, but he’s over one-eighty in height and reportedly maintained a daily fitness routine. Even facing a single armed attacker, he should have been able to put up some kind of fight.”

Yan Qing nodded. “There’s now an additional inconsistency: how did the attackers get in? The door lock was completely undamaged — no sign of forced entry whatsoever. It’s highly likely the attackers entered by covert means.”

“If they entered covertly, and at two in the morning no less, there’s a strong possibility these were people the victims knew.” Shi Ting’s eyes dropped as he turned the thought over. “The attackers’ methods were clean and deliberate — the probability of prior offenses is very high. Given Fan Wenzhi and Lin Yuqin’s social standing, how would they have come to know someone like that?”

And if these weren’t acquaintances, how exactly had the attackers gotten in?

The front door of the Fan residence used the most advanced combination fingerprint lock on the market — marketed as the gold standard of security. Without a registered fingerprint or the correct passcode, entry was effectively impossible.

Shi Ting said: “The locations where the two bodies were found — one near the floor-to-ceiling windows in the living room, and one at the base of the staircase leading to the second floor — are both five to eight meters from the front door. When Fan Wenzhi was killed, his phone had been thrown to the floor. The timestamp on his last call was 1:48 AM on the second. If Fan Wenzhi’s time of death was also around two o’clock, then is there a possibility — when the attackers entered, Fan Wenzhi was still on the phone? The attacker seized the opportunity to ambush him before he could react, which is why there are no defensive injuries.”

“That analysis is entirely plausible. Fan Wenzhi has no defensive wounds at all — unless the attackers were exceptionally powerful and capable of a one-strike kill. The remaining possibility is that they used a surprise attack while Fan Wenzhi was off guard. One attacker took down Fan Wenzhi while the other located Lin Yuqin. Similarly, Lin Yuqin has no defensive injuries either.”

At that moment, someone knocked at the door. Bai Le from the forensic examination division stepped in briskly.

“Captain Shi, the forensic examination report is in. Captain Fan wanted to know if you’d like to hold a meeting.”

“Tell them to wait for me in the conference room.” Shi Ting looked toward Yan Qing. “Finish your meal and come with me.”

“Sure.” Yan Qing picked up her chopsticks again. “Eat something too.”

Shi Ting considered, then set down the documents in his hand. He walked to the coffee table, sat across from Yan Qing, and began to eat.

Watching the way he ate — with a certain quiet elegance — Yan Qing found herself thinking of Second Aunt’s words. Second Aunt had said this blind date was the cream of the crop. It seemed Second Aunt hadn’t been naive or gullible this time after all. A man as accomplished and capable as Shi Ting truly could be called exceptional.

And everything about his manner — the way he moved, the way he held himself — carried not a trace of rough edges. It was a refined composure entirely, which made her think of Old Fan and the rest of the team at the station. Those were the people who actually looked like police officers.

As it happened, the Western restaurant meal they’d abandoned earlier had simply become this takeout box here and now. It seemed this meal was one she was never going to escape.

After eating, the two of them walked to the conference room together.

The room was full of heavy smokers. Old Fan lit up first and everyone else followed suit.

Criminal investigation work frequently meant erratic hours — staying up all night was routine — so every man in the station had developed a dependence on cigarettes.

“Teacher Yan’s here! No more smoking, everyone — put them out, put them out.” Old Fan immediately extinguished his cigarette voluntarily.

Yan Qing smiled. “I’ve breathed in your secondhand smoke for so long I’m used to it. Going without it feels strange at this point.”

“Teacher Yan is a national treasure — a giant panda. She must be properly protected. No secondhand smoke for her. Come on, everyone — crush them.”

Everyone dutifully put out their cigarettes and sat up straight.

After Shi Ting took his seat, he picked up the documents Bai Le had provided. “Now that we have the forensic examination and the autopsy reports, I’ve taken a quick look and summarized the following key points.”

Everyone immediately took out notepads and began writing.

“First: the number of perpetrators. Based on the autopsy report and Fan Mingming’s account, there were likely two individuals involved. Second: the combination dial and fingerprint panel on the front door of the Fan residence yielded no fingerprint data whatsoever. If the family entered through their own front door, it would be impossible not to leave prints — even if no trace of the perpetrators’ prints remained, the family’s own prints would have been present. There is only one explanation: someone deliberately wiped the door lock after entering in order to eliminate evidence. This indirectly reveals how they got in — they used the passcode.”

The team exchanged glances.

Old Fan said: “These attackers are something else — they even knew the passcode. How did they find that out?”

“That becomes your next line of investigation: who knew the passcode to Fan Wenzhi’s home, and then work outward from there.”

Old Fan nodded. “Understood.”

Shi Ting continued: “Forensic examination found only footprints belonging to the three members of the Fan family on both the first and second floors. The perpetrators likely wore shoe covers when they entered. Wiping the fingerprints and wearing shoe covers both indicate the attackers came fully prepared — this was a premeditated act. Furthermore, nothing of value was taken from the scene. Fan Wenzhi’s phone was left undisturbed on the floor — it’s a custom-ordered model with a market value of over fifty thousand yuan. Lin Yuqin’s jewelry box in the bedroom contained a number of gold and silver pieces, and there was over sixty thousand yuan in cash in the drawer. All of it was left completely untouched.”

“So this was about the person, not the property?” someone blurted out. “This was a premeditated, targeted killing.”

“We cannot rush to conclusions just yet — we need to wait for the full inventory check on the victims’ valuables.” Shi Ting said. “In addition, during the autopsy, the forensic team also identified an inconsistency: both victims have multiple incised wounds of varying depths, concentrated mainly on the upper limbs and chest. All of these wounds were inflicted after death.”

“A personal vendetta?” Old Fan frowned. “Looks like the attackers had a real grudge against the victims — going after the bodies even after killing them.”

Shi Ting said, “Everyone is going to have to push themselves for the next few days. Director Liu wants this case solved before the pressure from above starts coming down. Once we close it, I’m buying everyone dinner.”

“Captain Shi, if anyone’s buying it’s us — that’s not your place,” Old Fan said with a hearty laugh. “Once the case is wrapped up, we’ll throw you a proper welcome dinner.”

“Agreed — case first, everything else after. Meeting dismissed.”

The investigation of a case was a relentless series of analysis meetings and canvassing operations. When a case came in, the entire criminal investigation team always felt they could use ten versions of themselves.

The following afternoon, canvassing was still ongoing across the board. Yan Qing had just come out of the forensics lab when she spotted Shi Ting heading purposefully toward the exit.

“Captain Shi,” Yan Qing called after him. “Are you heading to the scene?”

“Yes. Were you wanting to go as well, Teacher Yan?”

“There’s a point I’d like to verify at the scene.”

“Perfect timing — let’s go together.” Shi Ting said. “My car is outside.”

It was Yan Qing’s first time seeing Shi Ting’s vehicle. Nothing extravagant — just an SUV, with high ground clearance and a spacious cabin. Sitting inside gave one the feeling of looking out over all the smaller cars below.

“Put your seatbelt on,” Shi Ting reminded her.

Yan Qing obediently buckled up. “Done.”

Shi Ting pulled out of the station compound; the gate scanned his license plate and automatically swung open on both sides.

Traffic was congested on the road. The car moved in stops and starts.

During one of the pauses, Shi Ting suddenly asked: “What made you decide to go into forensics?”

“My Second Uncle’s influence from an early age,” Yan Qing replied, quite willing to chat given the traffic. “My Second Uncle is?”

“Yan Xueqin.”

“So he’s Deputy Director Yan.” Shi Ting was mildly surprised. “Even at the police academy I’d heard of Deputy Director Yan. People said he could make corpses speak.”

“Second Uncle always told me that a good forensic pathologist must learn how to make corpses speak. A body is the evidence the deceased leave behind — and only a forensic examiner can unlock the secrets held within.” Yan Qing said with a touch of reflection: “When I was little, Second Uncle and Second Aunt were both very busy. After school I had nowhere to go, so I’d go to the station to find Second Uncle. When he was occupied, he’d let me wander around, and I became very curious about how everyone solved cases. The first time I saw a body, Second Uncle expected me to be frightened — but I wasn’t afraid at all. If anything, I was curious. Everyone thought I was strange. Only Second Uncle was pleased. He decided then and there to train me as his successor and began cultivating me from childhood.”

“I’ve looked at Teacher Yan’s file,” Shi Ting said, watching the long line of vehicles ahead. “Teacher Yan entered university at sixteen, completed her doctorate in ten years, began attending crime scenes in her first year, and interned at the station in her fourth year. Due to exceptional ability, she was accepted as the last disciple of retired forensic pathologist Director Lin. When Director Lin retired, she took over his position and became the Pujiang branch’s independent forensic specialist. How accurate are my facts?”

Yan Qing smiled. “The file exaggerates a bit. When I first started as an intern, I was quite green.”

“You’re being modest, Teacher Yan. I’ll be counting on your expertise going forward.”

“Captain Shi can count on me. I only answer to the evidence — whoever the captain is, I’ll do my job.”

As they spoke, the traffic ahead began to ease. Shi Ting gave her a brief nod and started the engine.

When the two arrived at the scene, two officers stood guard outside.

“Captain Shi. Teacher Yan.” Both offered immediate greetings.

“We’re going to take a look inside.” Shi Ting handed Yan Qing a pair of shoe covers. Once they’d suited up, the two stepped in together.

—