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墨書 Inktalez
When we arrived at People's Square, the area was already cordoned off with police tape. There was no need to take statements, as more than a dozen officers had witnessed the scene of the Falling Corpse from the Sky. At this moment, People's Square was much more crowded than before, with many onlookers still shaken, recounting to the uninformed crowd what had transpired. Numerous media outlets were also rushing to cover the event.
"It is now four o'clock in the afternoon. According to witnesses at People's Square, a corpse fell from the sky and landed directly in the square..."
"What a shocking event! What exactly is Falling Corpse from the Sky? Stay tuned for more updates from Focus News..."
"Alright, we are now interviewing a previous bystander. Ma'am, could you describe what happened at that moment?"
Captain frowned deeply, especially since he was in uniform. As soon as we reached the edge of the square, he was surrounded by reporters. Microphones pressed in on him from all sides, and I had no choice but to pretend I didn't know him, leading the Special Investigation Team discreetly toward the center of the square.
Behind us, the media buzzed with questions, most asking: "Are you the officer in charge of investigating this Falling Corpse from the Sky case? What are your thoughts on this incident? Have any suspects been identified? Is this an act of revenge against society? Will the Killer strike again?"
A barrage of questions crashed over us like a tidal wave. I knew this was not just an interrogation of Captain; it was also directed at me. Captain responded seriously, "We are still investigating this case. Any misstatement would be disrespectful to the deceased and to the public. Therefore, we cannot provide any information at this time. Rest assured, we will do our utmost to apprehend the Killer as soon as possible. Now, if you'll excuse us, we need to continue our work."
Within the police tape, we felt like animals in a zoo—exposed for all to see and scrutinize. It reminded me of a poem: you watch the corpse in the square while those watching you observe from afar.
I turned to Juan Juan and said, "There are too many people here. You and a team of officers should take the body to the morgue for examination. I'll see if I can find any useful clues."
Juan Juan nodded and called over a few people to begin moving the body toward the morgue.
"Captain Shao," one officer approached me and said, "we just checked; the helicopter was controlled remotely and powered by diesel fuel. It has strong power and can carry significant weight. It seems modified by the Killer; such devices are not available on the market right now. Moreover, its remote control range is quite extensive—up to two thousand meters..."
Another officer added, "That's correct. We haven't found any suspicious individuals in the square, nor did any bystanders notice anyone controlling a helicopter with a remote. The Killer likely never came here but operated everything from a distance!"
I looked up and scanned around; tall buildings surrounded us. If they could control it from two thousand meters away, they could have executed everything from any rooftop without being noticed during the chaos caused by two elderly dance groups arguing in the square—no one paid attention to where the helicopter had taken off.
The Killer chose this moment very cleverly, using the commotion in the square to cover their tracks. But how did they anticipate this moment? Or was it merely a coincidence that they seized upon? With these thoughts in mind, I immediately sought out the leaders of both Sunset Red Senior Performance Troupe and Twilight Square Dance's division at People's Square.
Both leaders were elderly women over sixty years old. I got straight to the point and asked, "Did you come here voluntarily or...?"
The leader of Twilight Square Dance replied, "Not really; who would come out to dance in broad daylight? We received a call from someone claiming to be Mr. Wu who wanted us to collaborate on performing and teaching some simple dances at a Nursing Home. He wanted to see our skills first before arranging anything, so after lunch, he scheduled us to meet here."
Upon hearing this, the captain of Sunset Red exclaimed in surprise, "You received a call from Mr. Wu too? We got a call from Mr. Wu as well. At first, we didn't believe it, but he sent us three hundred yuan, claiming it was just to cover the taxi fare for the team members in case we weren't selected."
"Exactly!" the captain of Twilight Square Dance chimed in. "We thought the same, so we didn't doubt it either. He invited us to People's Square, saying that if we were chosen, each person would get a hundred yuan! But when we arrived here, we found no sign of Mr. Wu, only this lady across from us."
At this point, the captain of Twilight Square Dance lowered her head shyly and said, "Earlier, one of our team members got a bit impulsive. Your Sunset Red group is quite impressive; I must admit that. I'm really sorry about that. I apologize."
"There's no need for that," the captain of Sunset Red quickly replied. "We also had our moments of impulsiveness."
As they spoke, the two ladies grew more animated in their conversation, discussing everything from family matters to singing and dancing, from Falling Corpse from the Sky to cosmic gravitational waves, and even delving into poetry and philosophy. It felt as if they had known each other for ages; one could almost expect them to bow down and pledge sisterhood.
I hurriedly interjected, "Ladies, did Mr. Wu leave any other information? For instance, did he mention his company or say anything about the Nursing Home?"
One lady replied, "He didn't tell me what company he was with; I didn't ask in detail. I assumed he was part of the Nursing Home management. However, he did mention a Nursing Home called Spring Return Nursing Home. Oh right, I still have his phone number and his Alipay account... the money came through Alipay."
She then looked at the other lady and asked, "What about you? Do you have anything else to add?"
The other lady shook her head and said, "That's all I know."
After obtaining Mr. Wu's phone number and Alipay account details from the ladies, we began to investigate this so-called Mr. Wu. However, our findings were disappointing; both the Alipay account and phone number were linked to a false identity. It seemed they had been set up through someone else’s registration and ultimately purchased by Killer.
"Check if Spring Return Nursing Home actually exists," I instructed Mary.
Mary nodded and quickly found out where Spring Return Nursing Home was located. She said, "Spring Return Nursing Home is real. Should we go check it out?"
I nodded in agreement and told Mary, "First, let's head to the funeral home. Once Juan Juan finishes the autopsy, we'll go see Spring Return Nursing Home!"
As more onlookers gathered around us, it became clear that staying here was not ideal. There were no traces left aside from the body; it would be better to leave sooner rather than later. Upon arriving at the funeral home, Juan Juan had already completed the autopsy. When she saw us come in, she said, "The body has been examined; this headless corpse matches the DNA of that head—it's one and the same."
"From the circumstances of death," Juan Juan continued, "the victim was killed by Killer with an axe directly to the neck. The wound is rough on the surface with uneven layers but has large flaps of skin intact; this indicates it wasn't caused by a saw with small teeth. The victim suffered three fatal blows from an axe, suggesting Killer possesses considerable strength..."
This deduction painted Killer as someone with exceptional intelligence who could modify machinery and possessed advanced medical knowledge while also having strong muscles capable of easily controlling victims under duress. Such a person seemed nearly perfect—physically strong yet highly intelligent. So what weaknesses could Killer possibly have?
Thinking this way alone serves no practical purpose. Now, I must go investigate the Spring Return Nursing Home. This nursing home is located on the outskirts of the city and is a combination of state-owned and private ownership. The government subsidizes part of the costs each year, while the rest is covered by the nursing home's own revenue.
With the gradual increase in privatization, the government has largely stepped back in recent years, and Spring Return has become a completely private entity. Although it is on the edge of the city, the land here is quite expensive due to its beautiful environment, nestled between mountains and rivers, not far from a scenic area.
It looks like a prime location for villas, yet it has been developed into a nursing home. Naturally, the costs here are also high, but they still take in some homeless elderly people, which contributes to their good reputation.
As outsiders, we are not aware of these circumstances; all this information was found online. However, half of what is online is often false, and we cannot trust everything. After all, no one would admit that their company is in poor condition with nothing worth investing in.
Arriving at the entrance of Spring Return Nursing Home, I noticed a large parking lot filled with several high-end cars. This gives an indication of the scale of Spring Return. After parking my car and stepping out, I took a deep breath of the fresh air that I hadn't experienced in a long time.
Looking at the elegantly decorated gatehouse of Spring Return Nursing Home, it features European-style architecture with beautifully carved iron gates. A wide avenue leads straight ahead; in the distance, behind it are the Azure Mountains and White Clouds. The sound of flowing water fills my ears as a small stream flows nearby, seemingly teeming with fish and shrimp.
As my gaze returned to the buildings inside the iron gate, they appeared magnificent, resembling a church with grand designs that evoke a sense of being within a royal palace. Some elderly residents were strolling along the path, chatting and laughing. Further away, I noticed some seniors playing Chinese Chess; it seemed to be a harmonious scene.
"Let's go," I said. "The Killer never leaves behind useless clues. This time he deliberately mentioned this Spring Return Nursing Home; he must want to tell us something. It seems that information about the next victim should be here in this nursing home. So far, four people have died!"
A senior high school student was kidnapped along with a leggy school beauty and a busty third-tier celebrity; they were trapped in an abandoned cabin and mistakenly ate unknown wild fruit, feeling feverish in the middle of the night.
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