I See Murders Before They Happen

Chapter 82: Chapter 80: Saw the Murderer?

"Did you see anything?" Yan Cheng asked in a low voice.

Su Miaoyi nodded.

Yan Cheng didn’t ask any more questions.

Su Miaoyi went into the inner room to look at the other body.

It was a girl.

She looked to be about fifteen or sixteen.

Yan Cheng followed her over.

The body was covered with a white sheet.

Su Miaoyi lifted a corner and saw that the girl’s pajamas had been torn open.

She didn’t lift it any further, pulling the sheet back to cover everything but her face and neck.

There were dark bruises on her neck, like fingerprints.

She’d been strangled.

"Asphyxiation?" Su Miaoyi asked.

Yan Cheng nodded.

Su Miaoyi touched the bruises on the victim’s neck but didn’t see anything.

She estimated the time of death based on the rigor mortis. It happened sometime between 11 p.m. and midnight yesterday.

"She was sexually assaulted before she died," Yan Cheng said. "We’ve taken swabs. We should be able to get a DNA profile."

Su Miaoyi furrowed her brow. She opened her mouth as if to say something, but in the end, said nothing.

She covered the body with the white sheet again and gently patted the girl’s head through the fabric.

"The one on the stairs outside was..." Su Miaoyi asked.

"The upstairs neighbor," Zhuang Yanzheng said, walking over. "His last name is Zhong. Seventy-seven years old."

"His time of death was also last night," Yan Cheng said. "His throat was slit about half an hour after the girl died."

"Only the grandfather and granddaughter lived here on the sixth floor. The man who died on the stairs and his wife were the only residents on the floor above," Zhuang Yanzheng said.

"How was it discovered?" Su Miaoyi found it a bit strange. It was almost noon.

Logically, people their age should be early risers.

They should have called the police much earlier.

"And since it happened last night, didn’t the old lady on the seventh floor notice her husband didn’t come home?" Su Miaoyi asked.

"The old man had a habit of going out to play cards at night and staying over at a friend’s house," Zhuang Yanzheng said. "According to the neighbors, the old lady upstairs is a homebody. She might not leave her apartment for a month at a time."

"A neighbor from the fifth floor came up to borrow something from the old lady on the seventh. They found the body when they reached the sixth floor and called the police," Zhuang Yanzheng explained. "When the old lady from the seventh floor came out and saw the body, she had a heart attack and was sent to the hospital."

"The tenants here are almost all elderly. Their sons and daughters mostly work out of town. We’ve already notified them, and they’re on their way back."

Su Miaoyi stood up and looked around.

The place had been completely ransacked.

It was a total mess.

"A burglary?" Su Miaoyi asked.

"The lock was picked with a wire," Zhuang Yanzheng said. "He also hid all the knives from the kitchen. And the places he tossed were all spots where the elderly typically hide their money."

"An experienced thief?" Su Miaoyi said.

Because for most people, when a burglar breaks in, their first instinct is to run to the kitchen for a knife.

That’s why an experienced thief will hide the kitchen knives as soon as they get inside, to avoid getting stabbed.

Su Miaoyi glanced to the side. Seeing no one else was around, she said, "In the vision I saw, I did hear the old man in the living room say to give him all the money and not to touch his granddaughter."

"Did you see the killer’s face?" Zhuang Yanzheng asked.

"No," Su Miaoyi said. "The killer was wearing a ski mask. He really did seem like a professional burglar."

Zhuang Yanzheng nodded, silent for a couple of seconds. "Let’s take the bodies back for now. We’ll wait for the family to arrive before deciding on an autopsy."

"Okay," Yan Cheng said.

...

When she came out of the apartment building, Shen Yanzhou was still waiting outside.

A layer of snow had already settled on his car.

Because of the crime scene, he hadn’t parked close to the building.

Su Miaoyi crunched through the snow, jogging the few steps to the car.

Despite the heavy snow, a number of onlookers were still gathered around, watching.

They were all covered in snow.

Shen Yanzhou rolled down the window. "To the bureau or back home? I can give you a ride."

"I..." Su Miaoyi didn’t want to trouble him, but it looked like there weren’t any spare seats over there.

The New Year was just around the corner, and a homicide had occurred in a residential building.

Three lives lost.

The city bureau had sent a lot of people.

"What are you doing just standing out here? Get in." Zhuang Yanzheng walked over, not mincing his words. "Have him take you to the bureau."

Shen Yanzhou looked at him.

Zhuang Yanzheng went right ahead and pulled the car door open. "Go to the bureau first. Qi Feng is canvassing the neighborhood with his team. I’m going to go check on them."

"Okay." Su Miaoyi brushed the snow off herself and got into the car.

Zhuang Yanzheng said, "On the way back, contact Lu Zhishen and have him do a sketch of the killer."

Su Miaoyi looked up at him and asked, "Is that okay?"

As she spoke, she glanced over at Shen Yanzhou.

"It’s fine. He can be trusted. A sketch won’t compromise anything. The New Year is coming up, we need to solve this case quickly," Zhuang Yanzheng said. "If you don’t trust him, just confiscate his phone and hold him at the bureau."

"And then I’d file a complaint against both of you," Shen Yanzhou said.

"Just complain about him. It has nothing to do with me," Su Miaoyi immediately distanced herself.

Zhuang Yanzheng shot her a look, then closed the car door.

Shen Yanzhou rolled the window down again and said to Zhuang Yanzheng, "There are drinks in the back."

As he spoke, he handed Su Miaoyi a coffee from the center console and turned up the heat.

Su Miaoyi took it, cupping it in her hands to warm them.

Zhuang Yanzheng said, "Take them back to the bureau for the team."

Shen Yanzhou said no more, started the car, and drove away.

"A homicide?" Shen Yanzhou asked.

He had seen them carry out body bags while he was waiting outside.

More than one.

"Yeah," Su Miaoyi sighed. "The New Year is almost here. It’s supposed to be a time for family reunions, but they won’t get to have one."

Just as she finished speaking, she was suddenly jolted.

Shen Yanzhou’s car had skidded, and he quickly steadied the steering wheel.

Su Miaoyi turned her head, looking at him in shock.

Shen Yanzhou cleared his throat lightly.

"How about... I drive?" Su Miaoyi felt her safety was being threatened.

Shen Yanzhou glanced at her.

Su Miaoyi smiled and took out her phone. "I haven’t touched a steering wheel since I got my license. If I drive, we’ll probably get a taste of what it’s like to go flying in the snow."

"Want to give it a try?" Shen Yanzhou suddenly said.

Su Miaoyi looked at him, then paused. "I have work to do today. Some other time."

"Alright," Shen Yanzhou replied in an easygoing tone.

Su Miaoyi contacted Lu Zhishen about the sketch.

She described the killer’s appearance from the car.

Shen Yanzhou listened quietly beside her.

Before they even reached the bureau, Lu Zhishen had finished the sketch.

Since the killer was wearing a ski mask and only his eyes were visible, Lu Zhishen first drew a portrait of the man with the ski mask on.

Then he drew another version without the mask, sketching only the eyes on a face shape based on Su Miaoyi’s description, leaving out the other features.

Su Miaoyi looked at the sketches, sent them to Zhuang Yanzheng, then chatted briefly with Lu Zhishen before hanging up.

Seeing that she was done, Shen Yanzhou asked, "You saw the killer?"

...

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