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墨書 Inktalez
The body was transported back to the funeral home, and Guan Zengbin followed along. Gu Chen and I continued to observe in this small room. Although the manner of death was completely different from Gao Rui's, the style of death was indeed quite similar. In summary, it was clean and aesthetically luxurious.
This must be the preferred way for crime scene cleanup workers, as they wouldn't have to do any cleaning at all. However, the truth is that there isn't a company like that in our country yet; most of the mess is left for family members or cleaning staff and firefighters to handle.
If you don't want to leave a mess after you die, tiled floors are definitely the easiest to clean.
The forensic investigators were diligently collecting clues from around the area, but I doubted they would find anything useful. If these two suicide cases were related, then the perpetrator must have erased all traces of their presence. If that were the case, then Wang Yiman must have died before Gao Rui.
I opened the refrigerator in the kitchen, only to find it completely empty. I had no idea what Wang Yiman usually ate; even the trash can was empty, suggesting it had been cleaned out before her death. The bathroom was just as spotless, as if a thorough cleaning had taken place.
Next was Wang Yiman's bedroom.
In Wang Yiman's bedroom, there was a bed, a wardrobe, and a dressing table.
The bed was neatly made, and the wardrobe contained clothes—nothing particularly special.
On the dressing table was a photograph of a family of three. It appeared to be Wang Yiman's husband and daughter; her husband wasn't handsome but looked quite spirited. Her daughter was grinning widely, while Wang Yiman stood beside her with a smile. It was a warm family portrait—if not for the car accident.
"What did Wang Yiman do before her death? What happened with the car accident?" I asked a police officer who had come in with me.
One officer replied, "We checked Wang Yiman's background; she was just a housewife. After graduating high school, she worked various odd jobs for a few years before becoming a full-time wife after marrying her husband. Her husband is an electrician and earns quite well. Five years ago, while driving during a family trip, he unfortunately got into an accident."
"Could there be something suspicious about it?" I pressed further.
The officer shook his head. "I just checked the records; it was due to fatigue driving that he crashed into a guardrail—no one else was involved."
I nodded and fell silent. This basically ruled out any conflicts; besides, after her husband's death, Wang Yiman hardly interacted with anyone and likely had no enemies. It seemed this truly was a suicide case. However, did it have any connection to Gao Rui's case? Had anyone ever been in Wang Yiman's home?
I opened the drawer of the Dressing Table and found a glass jar inside. The jar was filled with disassembled puzzle pieces, looking quite full, seemingly containing hundreds of them. I wondered what this was for and why it was placed in the cabinet of the Dressing Table.
I gently twisted the lid, discovering that it was quite loose. Upon closer inspection, the threads on the inside of the lid were worn down smooth. It seemed that this lid had been frequently opened and closed; otherwise, it wouldn't be so worn.
Shaking my head, I said to Gu Chen, "Let's head back. It seems the only useful thing here is this. Let's see what we can piece together. The rest of you continue searching to see if you can find anything else."
I took the jar of puzzle pieces back to the City Bureau. It was already late, and Liu had returned.
"Did you find anything?" I asked Liu.
Liu nodded and replied, "We did uncover some leads. Through testimonies and investigations, we identified several individuals who might have gone into the lab to steal... but we haven't clarified everything yet. We need to see who has close ties with Gao Rui."
"Thank you for your hard work. You should get some rest," I patted Liu on the shoulder.
Liu sprang up from his chair with a determined look in his eyes, embodying the spirit of a revolutionary martyr. He declared earnestly, "Comrade Wu Meng, that's not right! We serve the people; we are their soldiers. How can we feel tired or suffer? Although I've done a lot of work today, my heart is still unsatisfied!"
"Still unsatisfied?" I scratched my head.
Liu waved his hand dismissively, "Unsatisfied! I feel like my enthusiasm is still soaring!"
"Alright then, do you see that jar of puzzle pieces on the table?" I pointed at the glass jar and said, "I suspect this is a significant clue. I originally planned to piece it together myself, but seeing your high spirits and abundant energy, could you help me with it? Thank you so much!"
"Is that really okay...?" Liu looked troubled.
I placed my hands on Liu's shoulders, "Hey, what's wrong with that? If you're still not satisfied..."
"Satisfied." Liu quickly interrupted me, "How could I not be satisfied?"
"Let's go! Time to sleep!" I said with a smile, "You take your time."
With that, I walked out of the office. After taking a few steps, I heard Liu calling out, "Gu Chen, brother Gu Chen, help me out here, it's a bit much for me to handle alone in the morning."
"Who told you to show off?" I replied.
"Who knew he had such tricks? It's not that I didn't want to avoid looking cowardly in front of him..."
Naturally, I couldn't just leave them behind and go to sleep. I mainly wanted to check on Guan Zengbin's autopsy results; it was about time.
The Autopsy Room was located in the most remote corner, quite a distance from our office. I had to walk down a dark path without any streetlights. Although it only took about five minutes, I still felt uneasy walking alone in the dark, fearing something strange might appear.
People are truly odd; some burly men aren't afraid of knives or guns but scream at the sight of a cockroach. Some can break bones without a sound but cry at the thought of getting a shot. Just like Guan Zengbin, who could look at dead bodies without flinching but was terrified of the dark.
Now she must have finished the autopsy, and with this dark path ahead of her and no one to accompany her, she surely wouldn't dare to walk alone.
Sure enough, I saw her standing at the door of the Autopsy Room, holding her phone and unsure who to call.
"Hey!" I shouted, "Are you too scared to walk?"
When Guan Zengbin saw me, her expression changed from surprise to joy and finally settled into a disdainful look. "Who said I'm scared? I'm just out here getting some fresh air. I've spent time in the same room with corpses before; what’s there to be afraid of?"
I shrugged nonchalantly and said, "If you're not leaving then, I'll head back first. You can finish your autopsy and return to the office by yourself; we still have work to do."
"Let's go, let's go!" Guan Zengbin hurried over. As she ran, she said, "I just finished the autopsy and was worried about you walking alone at night, so I reluctantly decided to accompany you for a bit."
I smiled and didn't call her out on it. "By the way, what did you find out from the autopsy?"
Guan Zengbin became serious. "The time of death was around two in the afternoon. The cause was strangulation from a rope compressing the carotid artery, leading to insufficient oxygen supply to the brain. This process could take several minutes or even over ten minutes. If someone had discovered it in time, there might have been a chance to save her, but unfortunately..."
"Was it painful?" I stopped and frowned as I asked.
"What?" Guan Zengbin replied.
I sighed and clarified, "I mean, did the deceased feel pain when she died?"
Guan Zengbin rested her hand on her chin and thought for a moment before responding, "If her throat was constricted, it would likely be very painful. She would have endured a long period of tearing sensations in her lungs due to suffocation, but it seems that Wang Yiman adjusted the rope to avoid that point. Of course, she would still feel something, but perhaps not as intensely painful."
"Of course, if it were a death like Gao Rui's, it would definitely be painful," Guan Zengbin added. "After all, in many countries abroad, euthanasia is done with a powerful anesthetic injection—a single shot..."
"Let's give it a try," I nodded slowly.
"What?" Guan Zengbin clearly didn't understand my meaning.
I explained, "Try it out and see if there's any pain."
The so-called crime simulation aims to recreate the situation at that moment and experience everything from the perspective of either the murderer or the victim. This can greatly help us understand the murderer or the deceased and determine the murderer's thoughts. As for those who commit suicide, they naturally need to personally experience what it's like.
All one needs for hanging is just a rope.
I tied the rope to the beam and then made a knot with the part that hung down. I found a chair that was the same height as Wang Yiman's and prepared to begin this suicide experiment. Of course, I didn't actually want to die here, so Liu and Gu Chen were ready to rescue me at any moment.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Guan Zengbin asked anxiously. "Remember, kick the stool slowly, and don't break your cervical vertebrae. Also, keep in mind what I told you about not compressing your vagus nerve; that could lead to instant death. Even Old Wang wouldn't be able to save you then."
At this point, Guan Zengbin added, "Forget it; maybe you shouldn't try this. It's not worth risking your life over a case investigation."
I made a 'K' gesture with my hand, signaling for Guan Zengbin not to worry.
Everyone held their breath, and my heart felt like it was about to leap out of my chest.
I slowly put the hood over my head, aligning it at the same angle as Wang Yiman's. Then I gently kicked away the stool, trying my best to replicate Wang Yiman's "method of death."
With a thud, the stool fell to the ground.
Suddenly, everything went dark before my eyes, and my head began to spin. Within seconds, I felt my limbs losing strength; survival instinct kicked in as I struggled to loosen the rope around my neck. But my hands wouldn't lift at all, as if they were no longer under my control.
Then I felt as if everything in the world was drifting away from me; I could hear nothing and see nothing.
There was nothing at all.
Was it painful?
I didn't know.
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