Volume One, Chapter 19: Why Must You Take Me Along?

“Master, back on the bus, I could pick up all those mixed smells—do you think I could detect the scent of blood and disinfectant?”

Upon hearing about the previous bus arson case and then recalling the manhunt, Xie Changkun’s gaze toward Ye Lin shifted slightly.

Could this kid be a genius?

While Director Xie hesitated, He Xinmin spoke up, “Director, I think that makes sense. Why don’t we follow this lead?”

“Ye Lin, what do you suggest we do?” Xie Changkun asked.

The director’s tone had clearly changed, showing a hint of wavering.

“It’s simple: check the water usage and the purchases of disinfectant. Those two leads alone should suffice.”

Xie Changkun’s eyes lit up—it made sense. Moreover, investigating these two aspects wouldn’t be troublesome or alert the suspect.

“Do it!”

With that, Director Xie made a decision, and everyone’s focus shifted accordingly.

Zhang Degen soon returned with news.

“Director, there’s definitely something unusual,” Zhang Degen announced excitedly, barely catching his breath as he entered.

“Spit it out, everyone’s waiting.”

By now, most of the precinct had gathered; some kept a quiet eye on Zhang Jun, but the rest had come back with updates.

“According to Zhang Jun’s account, his wife has been missing for three days. He reported it on the third day. The water consumption at his home spiked drastically over the first two days—around ten times the usual amount, nearly equivalent to a month’s usage.”

“Also, here are his disinfectant purchase records.”

“Director, Zhang Jun definitely killed his wife and dismembered her in the bathroom.”

Xie Changkun pondered for a moment and asked, “Where’s the body? Without the body, everything is just speculation. He could even claim the disinfectant was for cleaning.”

“Ye Lin, where do you think the body is?” Xie Changkun looked toward Ye Lin.

Ye Lin smiled calmly, “There’s an 80% chance it’s in the septic tank.”

“Why?”

No one quite understood why it had to be the septic tank.

“First, let’s consider Zhang Jun. From his behavior over the last three days, four words sum him up best: steady as an old dog.”

“He hasn’t fled, shows no abnormal behavior, socializes normally, even dares to approach the media. Everything is the reaction of a sane person.”

“That means his mental fortitude is extremely strong. Judging by how thoroughly he cleaned the house, he was very meticulous.”

“We don’t know his state of mind when he killed his wife, but he must have calmed quickly and planned step by step.”

“I reviewed the preliminary report from Captain Zhang earlier: surveillance footage showed no sign of Qu Xiaoli, only Zhang Jun. Moreover, Zhang Jun didn’t leave or enter the neighborhood multiple times, nor did he carry anything large out. So, the body should still be inside the community.”

“Considering the weather—it’s been three days. If the body were buried, there would definitely be a smell. Given his intelligence, he would have thought of that.”

“In this weather, the least likely place for detection is the septic tank. After dismembering the body, he would flush everything down the sewer into the septic tank.”

“Unseen by man,”

“Unnoticed by ghost.”

“That’s also why he only reported it three days later.”

Ye Lin’s words hung in the air, freezing the room into silence.

Everyone looked at Ye Lin as if he were some specter.

“You…”

“I feel like I’m watching a detective movie.”

“Same here.”

Xie Changkun swallowed hard. After hearing Ye Lin’s analysis, he felt a nervous excitement stir within him.

Truth be told, when he requested a day from the bureau, it was mostly to justify to Zhang Degen, so his subordinates wouldn’t think he, as their leader, wasn’t pushing upward.

He never truly expected to solve the case.

Qu Xiaoli had been missing for three days. Unless she had gone off somewhere on her own, something bad had happened.

There was no way to find her with just the precinct’s resources.

But after Ye Lin’s analysis, combined with the water usage and disinfectant purchases, Xie suddenly felt a breakthrough was possible.

He glanced at his watch—it was 11 o’clock, still some time left.

“Then Ye Lin, what do you suggest we do?”

“Ah, Director Xie, that’s about all I’ve got. Captain Zhang and the others probably know more. Maybe just have Captain Zhang lead the search.”

“Don’t give me that. I know some police academy leaders teach you not to seek credit or glory, but that’s not necessary here. Captain Zhang has been a cop for years; he knows what’s right. Speak freely,” Xie Changkun cut off Ye Lin’s retreat decisively.

Zhang Degen quickly chimed in, “Little Ye, whatever you say, we’ll do. We’re with you.”

Ye Lin’s expression darkened.

Bosses, are you sure you’ve got this right?

I’m not trying to claim any credit—I just don’t want to do the nasty work ahead.

“Yeah, hurry up and tell us! We’ll make sure you get first credit,” Old He added with enthusiasm.

“Yeah, come on.”

Ye Lin’s face grew even grimmer as he said, “Then… drain the septic tank and look for the body.”

...

“Ugh.” Sister He, upon hearing this, could barely imagine the scene before rushing out to vomit.

The others weren’t much better. Imagining a huge yellowish mass being sucked out, the yellow fumes rising under the scorching sun—it was too much. Several of them heaved repeatedly.

All eyes turned to Ye Lin. Damn, no wonder you wanted to run.

Ye Lin felt as if a dozen knives had been plunged into him, a chill running down his spine.

“Let’s do it! What’s there to fear!” Zhang Degen, the reckless one, was as bold as ever.

Hearing Ye Lin’s plan, he didn’t care about the disgusting scene—just one word: go.

“Good! I’ll contact someone right away for the septic tank extraction!”

“Our Baiyun precinct’s comeback depends on this. Everyone, let’s move out,” Xie Changkun declared passionately.

But except for Zhang Degen, no one responded.

“Since no one objects, I’ll take that as agreement. Let’s start.”

Damn, who’s more shameless—Xie or this situation? Ye Lin cursed inwardly.

Still, they were all police officers. If something happened, no one would back down.

Soon, every available officer from Baiyun precinct was deployed. The only jeep was out on the move. Only Instructor Huang Xuliang stayed behind to answer calls—the full force was mobilized.

Thanks to Director Xie’s longstanding connections in Baiyun Street, he managed to coordinate five septic tank trucks. The extraction began.

Such a commotion instantly attracted the entire neighborhood; even residents from nearby communities came over to watch, no longer caring about the stench.