32 Evidence

In a large conference room filled with computers, Qin Chuan mobilized two hundred people to spend the entire night reviewing surveillance footage covering a thirty-kilometer radius. With such a heinous case occurring in Tianjing, the pressure on him was immense.

"What did the forensics team say? Why is there still no report after all this time?" he asked his assistant.

The assistant looked troubled. "They seem to be encountering difficulties. The victim's DNA appears anomalous, and they have already requested assistance from forensic experts at the central level."

"Sigh!" Qin Chuan pinched the bridge of his nose. He hadn't closed his eyes in two days. The surveillance had yielded no useful clues, and the identity of the deceased remained a mystery. He had hoped the experts from the Special Operations Unit could help, but instead... sigh!

"The killer is wearing the victim's face..." Qin Chuan took a drag of his cigarette. If that were true, his entire line of investigation was fundamentally flawed. "How could that be?" He shook his head, offering a self-deprecating smile.

"Captain Qin! Expert Liu has reported in! He caught something at the crime scene..."

"Caught what?"

"A head..."

In the office, the bureau chief, the team leaders, and the precinct heads were smoking frantically.

"Damn it, it's actually real! There really are ghosts in this world!" the bureau chief took a deep drag and said fiercely. "My thirty years as a criminal investigator have been for nothing!"

"Impossible! I don't believe it!" The criminal investigation captain stubbed out his cigarette and waved his right hand violently, as if trying to brush away a ghost standing beside him.

"That head is still in the interrogation room, and Qin Chuan is questioning it! This Expert Liu is truly temperamental; we didn't believe him, so he went and caught a real one! How is one supposed to interrogate a flying head? Which one of you knows how to do that?" the precinct head sighed deeply.

"Let's go take a look. I've already reported to the higher-ups; this damn case should be transferred immediately..."

Inside the interrogation room, Qin Chuan stared at the head that Liu Lang had pinned to the table with a dagger. The female officer responsible for recording was trembling slightly.

"Brother, it hurts..." the braided head repeated the phrase.

Liu Lang leaned against the wall, looking at Qin Chuan with great interest, a mischievous smile playing on his lips. "So this is what the workplace is like. It's not that complicated."

"Expert... Liu, this... you..."

"Solving the case is your specialty. I just happened to run into something strange and am fulfilling my duty as a citizen to assist the police." With a flick of his finger, the dagger flew back into his hand, and he wiped it off with a tissue as if it were routine.

The braided head rolled across the table, attempting to fly off again.

Qin Chuan, losing his patience, picked up his thermos and struck the head hard.

"Pain!"

"Behave yourself! If you don't tell the truth, I'll boil you!" Qin Chuan had somehow entered full interrogation mode, his aura shifting dramatically, which earned him a look of admiration from Liu Lang.

The braided head whimpered, "Pain..."

"Name!"

"Speak! I asked for your name!" Qin Chuan picked up the thermos, ready to strike again. The braided head changed its tune: "Daddy, don't hit the baby anymore, it hurts so much..."

Qin Chuan looked at Liu Lang in surprise. Liu Lang was equally taken aback—this thing could actually communicate?

Qin Chuan coughed a few times, habitually pacing with his thermos in hand. Just as he was about to ask another question, the braided head rolled away in fear. "Daddy, don't burn me!"

He looked down at the thermos, a realization dawning on him, his face filled with disbelief. "Burn... no way. Could this be the child from that case?"

For the next while, the braided head kept repeating those same few phrases, its intelligence seeming quite low.

Liu Lang picked up the braided head and stroked it gently. "Baby, don't be afraid. We won't hit you anymore. What is your name?"

"My name is Xiaobao." The voice was milky and child-like.

Qin Chuan felt a surge of excitement. It really was Xiaobao!

"Good girl, Xiaobao. Tell brother where your home is and why you ran away by yourself."

"Xiaobao didn't run away. Mommy brought me out."

"Mommy brought you out? Where is your mommy now?"

"Mommy told me to stand there and not move, and then you grabbed me, brother..."

Liu Lang felt as if he had been struck by lightning. Her mother was there at the time?

The thermos fell from Qin Chuan's hand with a loud clatter. Xiaobao's mother was still alive?

"Xiaobao, where have you and your mommy been hiding lately?"

Xiaobao spun around in Liu Lang's arms, as if thinking. "I don't know... Sister Ningning took Mommy and me there."

"Sister Ningning?" Could it be Tu Ning? Liu Lang broke into a cold sweat. A B-class expert! He needed backup!

He held Xiaobao, noticing that the wound on her head was healing at a visible rate.

"Think again. Was there anything special about the place you stayed? Were there tall buildings? The sound of cars?"

Xiaobao thought for a moment. "There were many people, many big sisters, many aunties, and many beautiful clothes... Xiaobao is tired. Xiaobao wants to sleep..."

As he watched the now-motionless head of Xiaobao, Qin Chuan’s eyes reddened.

Not just him—the bureau chief, team leaders, and precinct heads behind the one-way glass were also deeply moved. That case had been a massive weight on their hearts.

It was a case from a month ago.

A family of three: the father was addicted to gambling, prone to domestic violence, and used drugs. One day, a neighbor reported hearing screams and a child crying from their home.

When the police arrived, they found only the drunken father. His thermos was stained with blood and matted with the hair of his wife and daughter.

A large pot of boiling water sat in the kitchen, and the police found the DNA of the wife and daughter inside.

Yet, there was no sign of them—not dead, not alive.

If the "faceless corpse" case hadn't occurred, Qin Chuan would still be working tirelessly on that investigation.

The daughter had just started kindergarten; her name was Xiaobao.

The bureau chief grabbed Liu Lang's hand. "Expert Liu, I was blind to your talent. Please, don't hold it against me! We must perform a DNA test on this 'Xiaobao.' We suspect she is a victim from another case!"

Seeing that the bureau chief and team leaders had arrived, Qin Chuan immediately said, "Chief, I suspect the disappearance of the mother and daughter on Niulan Street is connected to the faceless corpse case on Yangjia Lane. I request to merge the cases!"

The bureau chief nodded. "I understand."

He then hardened his expression and said sternly, "Qin Chuan! Do you know where you went wrong?"

Liu Lang was startled by his tone.

"The higher-ups sent an expert to assist us, and what was your attitude? Look at how much Expert Liu has helped! Apologize at once!" The bureau chief's upright and incorruptible face left no room for error, his character unweathered by time.

Liu Lang was stunned.

*Damn, so this is the workplace?*

Qin Chuan stood at attention and apologized solemnly. "Expert Liu, I am sorry. I will definitely learn from you with an open mind."

In a residential building on Yangjia Lane, Tu Ning looked at the woman in front of her with satisfaction.

"Excellent. The integration is perfect. You will make a very promising Kuchisake-onna."

The woman was still struggling to adapt to her new body; her limbs moved like a machine that hadn't been calibrated, and she could barely maintain her balance. "My child..."

"Don't worry. She is also an important partner of ours. We will not abandon her."

Tu Ning smiled and promised, "However, as punishment for trying to run away with your daughter, you must do something for me."