"Still not a single clue..." came a near - hysterical sigh from a young detective on the other end of the phone to Chief Wang. "She really says she knows nothing... And her attitude is extremely nonchalant. Chief Wang... I... I've really done my best."
People were bustling in and out of the workroom, and the detectives were busy as bees.
Chief Wang hurriedly shoveled a couple of mouthfuls of rice into his mouth. Without even touching the dishes, he simply tossed the takeout box into the trash can.
Among all the detectives in the department, only Jiang Cong ate at a leisurely pace.
He graduated from the Department of Criminal Psychology at the University of Florida. After completing all his studies, he chose to be an associate professor at the People's Public Security University of China. With his extremely high professional qualities and the fact that Chief Wang had specially invited him to help with the case, naturally no one dared to urge him to work.
When Chief Wang told Jiang Cong about the interrogation of the suspect, his expression remained as calm as ever, showing not the slightest ripple.
Trivial matters like searching for case evidence didn't require Jiang Cong to get his hands dirty. Since he was free at the moment, he agreed as Chief Wang requested, "Let me go and check the situation first."
Chief Wang immediately let out a sigh of relief. His already small eyes were so happy that they narrowed into slits.
"Name?"
"Chen Er."
"Relationship with the deceased?"
"Same school."
"How close were you?"
"We hardly knew each other."
...
Such dull conversations were staged every day in the interrogation room. And these repetitive questions, as time went by, often had the greatest impact on the mentality of the person being interrogated, thus revealing some clues.
However, this trick didn't work on Chen Er.
The young girl in front was sitting with her legs crossed, a dog - tail grass between her lips. As she hummed a tune, she pouted, and the light - brown grass would sway from time to time.
"What were you doing at the time of the crime?" Yang Heng asked seriously, holding a pen and occasionally jotting something down on the paper.
Yang Heng was newly transferred and didn't have much work experience.
Before this, he had just followed his seniors for some training. Unexpectedly, his first case on his own was so difficult, and the suspect clearly wasn't cooperating.
"Let me think...?" Chen Er replied nonchalantly.
Yang Heng stared at Chen Er intently, his eyes gloomy.
The ceiling fan whirred, and the atmosphere was quiet and stuffy.
Chen Er opened her mouth casually, and her light words reached the young detective's ears. "At that time... I think I was playing with my friends."
"What were you playing?"
"Playing cards, smoking, and drinking." Chen Er slowly spat out three words, a look of impatience flashing across her fair little face.
Yang Heng helplessly twitched the corners of his mouth. When he looked up again, he saw Chen Er staring intently behind him. The fluffy dog - tail grass in her mouth trembled and fell off.
A vague figure appeared behind the frosted glass door, thin and energetic.
It was a man.
Yang Heng quickly put down his pen and got up to open the door.
Chen Er felt relieved, but soon she was attracted by the commotion outside. Although she couldn't hear the content of the conversation clearly, the constantly moving figures behind the frosted glass door piqued her strong curiosity.
The door opened again.
A strange, strong - featured face barged into her sight. Chen Er squinted slightly and sized up the newcomer from head to toe with interest.
He was wearing a simple and clean white shirt paired with black casual pants, with a well - proportioned build. Under his thick sword - shaped eyebrows were a pair of ice - cold eyes, exuding an air of aloofness that warned others to stay away.
"He's not bad - looking." Chen Er shamelessly commented, with a hint of teasing in her eyes.
Jiang Cong glanced at Chen Er indifferently, seemingly disdaining to talk to her. He just quietly sat down opposite her.
He said succinctly, "Tell me, what did you see that night?"
Chen Er was a bit surprised. Soon, she let out a soft laugh and said, "Just by looking at your outfit, I can tell you're not from the detective department. What gives you the right to interrogate me? Do you even understand the basic procedures?"
Jiang Cong looked at her coldly, with a hint of mockery.
"You're evading." He said.
Chen Er's crescent - shaped eyes curved, and her tone was flippant. "Fine, whatever you say. I didn't see anything last night anyway. Believe it or not."
"Liar." Jiang Cong said bluntly and began to calmly recount, "When I asked you just now, your body instinctively paused. Also, when you denied it, the corners of your eyes drooped slightly, and your pupils shifted to the lower right. The chewing muscles on both sides of your mouth contracted slightly, showing a state of nervousness. Obviously, you're lying."
Chen Er really didn't expect that the strange man in front of her was so smart that he could easily extract case clues without much effort.
"Kid, you've got some tricks. Did you learn them from a novel?" She still had a playful smile on her face.
Jiang Cong frowned, and the atmosphere became a bit solemn for a moment.
The identity of the deceased and the autopsy report soon came out.
The deceased was Sheng Qingqiu, a sophomore at Qingchuan No. 1 Middle School in Yangtian Town, Beixian County. Her father had made a fortune from stock trading a few years ago, so they had no worries about food and clothing. Sheng Qingqiu herself had a bit of a "princess complex". Her beautiful appearance made her think she was born different from others. Meanwhile, Sheng Qingqiu had many suitors from different grades at Qingchuan No. 1 Middle School.
"The deceased died of massive bleeding from the carotid artery. In addition, there were slight abrasions on the exposed skin of her limbs. We judged that the victim wasn't beaten, but was dragged on the ground after her death. The murderer was extremely meticulous and left no fingerprints on the victim. Due to the damp environment in the woods, the time of the victim's death was affected. We initially judged it to be between 9 p.m. and 12 p.m. last night. Also..."
"Also what?" Jiang Cong was holding Sheng Qingqiu's personal information and staring at the evidence - collection photos. His handsome face was calm and composed.
Song Wanwan was stunned for a moment, and a faint blush appeared on her fair cheeks. But she still reported very seriously, "The deceased had sexual intercourse with the murderer, but no semen was left."
Jiang Cong glanced at Song Wanwan indifferently and said, "I understand. Go and inform Chief Wang that I'm going to the crime scene."
Song Wanwan nodded, and even her earlobes turned pink.
It was almost one o'clock in the afternoon. The air was a bit damp after the rain, mixed with the faint fragrance of various flowers and plants.
"Chen Er has no criminal suspicion, but I need to take her to the crime scene." Jiang Cong said to Chief Wang word by word.
Chief Wang looked a bit embarrassed. He coughed a few times and said, "Professor Jiang... Non - investigative personnel are not allowed to enter the cordoned - off crime scene at will. If you have any questions, you can just interrogate her. Why..."
Jiang Cong ignored Chief Wang. He opened the car door on his own and sat in, then began to carefully read the autopsy report and photos. He said, "Chen Er must go to the crime scene. She's very important."
Chen Er was in the same car as Jiang Cong. When she opened the door and saw Jiang Cong, she gave a lazy smile. Then she happily sat by the window and sized up the man sitting so close to her.