The Forensic Doctor Better Than a Detective

The woman was stunned for a moment, then nodded, her fingers unconsciously clutching the hem of her clothes: "Yes... I heard about it. At that time, it was a hot topic in the village. Who wouldn't know?"

Jiang An watched her, his tone steady yet imbued with an undeniable penetrative force: "Then do you think that case... has anything to do with your family?"

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"

The woman almost sprang up from the chair, her voice suddenly raised, "Our Tao Tao has been particularly well-behaved since he was little. He rarely even argues with people. How could he kill someone?"

"You must be mistaken somewhere... Officer, please check again. You must be wrong!"

Jiang An didn't immediately respond to her agitation, merely paused slightly before presenting another fact: "Li Mountain is your ex-husband, isn't he? He previously admitted to committing the murder."

The woman froze instantly, the color draining from her face: "Li Mountain? How... how could he..."

"But our later investigation results were very clear," Jiang An continued, his words precise, "He's not the real culprit."

"So the question arises—why would a person who clearly didn't commit murder willingly take on such a serious crime? What's the reason behind this?"

The woman opened her mouth, her voice slightly hoarse: "Li Mountain... although he has a quick temper, he's not someone who would kill!"

"Even though we've been divorced for over ten years, I know him. He's not inherently bad; he doesn't smoke, drink or gamble, and has no bad habits..."

Jiang An gently interrupted her, his tone still calm, "Ma'am, we're all adults here. Things have come this far, there's no need to face them with a child's perspective anymore."

"Moreover, I can tell you—Li Mountain is right now in interrogation room 2, while your son Li Tao is in interrogation room 1. They're separated by just a wall, but neither knows the other is here."

"We've pursued this case for ten full years, only recently locking down the key suspect, your ex-husband, Li Mountain."

"During these ten years, we've repeatedly verified many details and relationships."

"When he walked into the interrogation room, he was still tight-lipped about the matter, firmly denying it as he had before."

"However, after several rounds of confrontations and questioning, he finally admitted to the murder."

"Yet, this 'admission'—perhaps it requires quotation marks here—is not entirely truthful. It's more like a compromise made under cover."

"But even so, our law enforcement won't rashly settle the case based on just one confession."

"We firmly uphold the principle of evidence-based judgment; every detail must withstand scrutiny, every piece of evidence must form a complete chain."

At this point, Jiang An paused slightly, his gaze steadily directed opposite, "In the subsequent investigation, we've already gathered multiple objective pieces of evidence sufficient to rule out his direct involvement in the crime. So the question arises—"

He leaned slightly forward, his voice not high but each word clear, "Why would a mentally sound adult willingly carry a crime unrelated to him, especially such a serious accusation as a massacre?"

"The motivation behind this is likely not something that can be explained by mere emotional impulsiveness or misunderstanding."

"Our analysis suggests that what drove him to do this is probably a deeply-rooted emotional bond, a willingness to protect at all costs for the sake of dear ones."

With these words, the woman sitting opposite gradually turned pale, her hands involuntarily trembling.

Tears welled up unannounced, and she shook her head repeatedly, "No... it's not like that! Officer, you've got it wrong!"

"Li Mountain's issues are his own, they have nothing to do with me or Li Tao!"

"I've been divorced from Li Mountain for almost ten years now. I have no idea of his matters, nor do I want to know... whoever he's shielding or covering, it's none of my business!"

Jiang An exchanged a look with Lu Shaohua and Director Hou, then Director Hou raised his hand, gently tapping the table, and spoke sternly: "We need to remind you of one thing: your divorce procedure took place after the case, not before."

"You should be very clear on this timeline detail."

"So, when you say 'absolutely unrelated,' can that truly hold up?"

The woman anxiously wiped away her tears, eagerly rebutting: "Then, what if it was a child of his and someone else?"

"Maybe it's a child he had with another woman, really nothing to do with us mother and son!"

"Then, this 'child' you mentioned, who exactly are you referring to? What's their name? Where are they now?" Jiang An immediately followed up.

"How... how would I know?"

"Just now, you kept emphasizing that Li Mountain was upright, didn't smoke or gamble and lived a simple life, yet now you imply he might have extramarital affairs or even illegitimate children?"

Jiang An watched her, "Your statement is contradictory, making it difficult for us to believe."

The woman suddenly fell silent, her head lowered deeply, hands tightly gripping the hem, unable to utter a word.

After a long pause, she slowly raised her head and said: "Li Mountain... I'm not sure if he's the murderer, nor do I know who he's protecting by doing so."

"But—" her tone suddenly intensified, a light of near obstinance gleaming in her eyes, "I dare to take my life as a guarantee, my son Li Tao is absolutely not the murderer!"

"Our Tao Tao... he may be quick-tempered, doesn't act conventionally at times, but at heart he's clean, he's kind! He absolutely won't do anything illegal or criminal, absolutely won't!"

"You guarantee? You guarantee my ass!"

Lu Shaohua, who had been sitting silently to the side, suddenly spoke, his tone stern and even uttering a swear word that seemed slightly out of character.

As soon as he spoke, he seemed to startle himself, then tightened his expression, adding in a low voice: "I advise you to correct your attitude! If your son is truly innocent, we won't wrong him; but the way you're acting now makes me think—this needs thorough investigation and serious handling!"

As he finished speaking, the woman seemed to lose all strength, collapsing on the ground with a thud, tears streaming down: "Please... investigate clearly!"

"My son has mental issues, he's been different from other kids since he was young, his mental development is incomplete... I'd be thankful just for him to live safely... please don't send him inside, he wouldn't endure it, he really wouldn't endure it..."

Seeing her kneel down, Jiang An, Director Hou, and Lu Shaohua almost simultaneously stood up and stepped forward quickly to help her up.

Director Hou lowered his voice and said: "Ma'am, don't do this! Problems aren't solved this way."

Jiang An turned and walked toward the water dispenser by the wall, took a cup of warm water, and gently handed it to her.

Soon, the three walked out of the reception room, exchanging glances, the atmosphere heavy.

After a while, Lu Shaohua was the first to break the silence: "This woman... her reaction was too intense, there's probably more to it."

Director Hou nodded slightly, continuing: "From Li Mountain's previous concealment to her recent expression, I also tend to believe Li Tao is somehow connected to that year's case."

"Emotions can be disguised, but certain details cannot be hidden."

Both directed their gaze in unison toward the silent Jiang An.

Jiang An lifted his gaze, scanning them, and said slowly: "I agree."

"But now what's in front of us is a case almost buried by time—ten years have passed, where's the murder weapon?"

"The clothes at the time, possible biological traces, direct evidence... are likely long gone."

"Even if we're convinced inside, without concrete evidence, it's all just talk."

Director Hou folded his arms, his brow furrowed, eyes directed toward the corridor end window.

Lu Shaohua deeply sighed, his voice filled with helplessness: "Indeed... that's the most difficult part."

"If Li Tao really committed the crime in a state of mental illness, then even a confession route won't work."

"Even if circumstantial evidence pieced together a possibility without solid proof, he cannot be taken to court—law speaks evidence, not intuition."

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