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墨書 Inktalez
“Ye Zhenzhen.”
“Hmm? What’s the matter, Teacher Zhang?”
“I’ll be leaving for a while.”
“Ah? Are you going on a mission, Teacher Zhang? How long will you be gone? Will you still be our teacher when you come back?”
Zhang Yang was silent for a moment. Leaning against the chipped railing, he flicked his lighter, igniting a cigarette with a crisp snap of the windproof lighter.
It seemed I hadn’t smelled that pungent smoke in a long time.
It appeared that very few detectives on the front line didn’t smoke. From my observations, Zhang Yang smoked more heavily when drafting investigation plans and during intense interrogations, yet he still smoked less than most in the Criminal Investigation Team. The air in the team was, well, not something to be praised.
“When faced with difficulties and dangers, what’s the first thing that comes to mind when you want to see hope?” Zhang Yang suddenly broke the silence, exhaling a thin plume of smoke.
Difficulties and dangers—wasn’t that referring to a guardian angel? I thought seriously for a moment and concluded that my first thought would definitely be my idol, Nie Qiuyuan. However, I couldn’t tell Teacher Zhang; he would laugh at me mercilessly. So after some contemplation, I replied, “It should be the sun!”
It should indeed be the sun. What else could dispel cold and darkness better than the sun?
Zhang Yang chuckled lightly, looking up as if confirming that it was indeed sunny outside. He muttered something inexplicable: “Some things in this world really are like the sun!”
Hmm, when did he say that? Oh right, it was that time—when his friend asked him to investigate at the mine.
It was a winter morning, and the sunlight was quite nice. Teacher Zhang called me.
One of his friends was the main person in charge at a mine on the outskirts of the city, and there had been an accident at the first mine.
The work in the mine was both arduous and dangerous, which is why they mostly hired temporary workers. Recently, there was an incident where a wire at the bottom of the shaft suddenly short-circuited, resulting in the death of a worker. Coincidentally, all of his relatives were nearby and were immediately stunned by the shock. Once they regained their senses, they were filled with grief and anger, demanding justice from the mining company.
In such accidental incidents, the mining company usually hurried to placate the situation. They offered a few comforting words and managed to stabilize the relatives' emotions. However, the deceased's family soon realized their rights and began to seek compensation from the company.
When it came to compensation, the mining company was relatively straightforward and quickly agreed to pay them 180,000. Among the relatives was an elder brother of the deceased, who provided the necessary household registration documents as required.
The problem arose here. During a routine check of the documents, Zhang Yang's friend discovered that the identity card number of the deceased's brother indicated a birth date of "1784089."
What? Born in 1784?
This friend was quite astute; several possibilities flashed through his mind. Was the identity card fake? If it was fake, could this incident be a criminal case? However, mistakes in names and numbers on household registrations were not uncommon, and it was evident during their conversation that these individuals lacked education. What if it was just a mistake in the identity card number? Reporting it to the police could escalate matters unnecessarily.
After much deliberation, he decided to send everyone home for now under the pretext that he needed to get an official stamp before proceeding with payment.
Early in the morning, he hurriedly called Zhang Yang to come take a look. Since it was a private matter, Zhang Yang invited me along out of curiosity.
At times like this, I felt appreciated—thank you, Teacher Zhang!
The mine had been cleared out. Zhang Yang's friend instructed us to put on our safety helmets and led us down into the mine. The cave was damp and cold; fortunately, Zhang Yang had warned me beforehand to dress warmly, or I might have ended up with arthritis from the chill. Miners really had it tough!
"This is where it happened," he said, pointing to a severed wire under the dim light.
Now that the power had been cut off, Zhang Yang picked up the wire for inspection. The break was frayed and did not reveal how it had snapped.
"It was dark down there," he explained. "The person didn’t pay attention and accidentally stepped on this wire. The current here is quite strong; even though someone nearby quickly used a wooden stick to push away the wire, alas, it was too late."
"Let's go," Zhang Yang gestured for us to leave the well. "The body is still here, right?"
After the incident, an ambulance arrived, but by the time the doctor got there, the person had already lost half their life and was declared dead on the spot. Since there was no need for medical treatment and the case was still under investigation, the body remained temporarily in the mine.
We found the deceased's body in an empty room where it had been left for the time being.
Zhang Yang studied Criminal Investigation rather than Forensics, but after working as a detective for a long time, he had become an expert in various aspects. He skillfully put on plastic gloves and signaled me to pay close attention from the side. Then, he began to unbutton the deceased's clothing and started the external examination.
This person had died from electrocution; the signs were very obvious, just as I had read in books. However, this was my first time seeing a body that had suffered electrocution, and it was psychologically quite shocking. His body bore electrical burns, with parts of his skin turned to charcoal. Most striking were the electricity marks on him.
Electricity marks are injuries formed at the entry and exit points of electrical current on the skin. Due to the high resistance of human skin, when current penetrates it, it generates high heat and electrolytic effects, causing volcanic-like skin necrosis. The damage at the exit point can also present as thermal explosions. The typical appearance of electricity marks is quite horrifying; however, in many cases, they are not typical and require careful judgment to identify.
The electricity marks on this body were quite typical, and there were not just one or two but many.
"Do you understand now?" Zhang Yang looked up at me, a hint of amusement in his eyes.
"Huh?" I was startled. "Yes, I understand—it was electrocution!"
Zhang Yang frowned.
"Ye Zhenzhen, can't you be a bit more careful? When you're observing, do you only use your eyes and not your brain? Remember to look closely and think deeply; flesh and blood do not lie."
Flesh and blood do not lie. He was dead; only a body remained. Yet perhaps he did not die willingly; he wanted to convey something to us through his blood and flesh. We are a special group of people; we may not possess any supernatural abilities, but we can read messages from the unwilling blood and flesh of others. Our work is sacred here.
How could we not pay attention?
There must be something, Teacher Zhang realized it, but I did not. Teacher Zhang was teaching me. So, let me take another good look.
What are the characteristics of electrical injuries? The mechanism of death by electric current lies in the fact that the current forms a pathway from entry to exit along the shortest route. If this pathway passes through vital organs such as the brain, heart, or lungs, it becomes extremely dangerous. The most common pathway for electric current is from the hands to the feet, particularly when it forms a circuit between the left upper limb and the right lower limb, as this situation allows the current to pass through the heart, potentially causing irreversible ventricular fibrillation.
When electric current penetrates the human body, it usually leaves an electricity mark at both the entry and exit points. Looking at this deceased individual, he stepped on a wire; indeed, there is an entry point for the current on his foot. However, if someone like the witness had seen him get electrocuted and immediately removed the wire...
How could there be so many electricity marks?
A tightness gripped my heart. Could it be that someone had repeatedly electrocuted him with the wire?
I raised my head and looked at Zhang Yang in terror; he looked back at me and smiled instead.
"That's right, I'll give you a passing grade."
How terrifying! If my guess was correct, there could only be one answer: everyone present at that time was a murderer!
The motive was clear: they were all waiting to receive compensation.
An uncontrollable anger ignited in my heart. How could there be such indifference to life in this world? How could such evil exist! For the first time, I felt an intense desire for justice, hoping that I would be granted a sword of righteousness to ensure that these wicked beings received their due punishment.
"Call the police," Zhang Yang turned back to his friends.
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