Chapter 153: The Disappearing Surveillance

Lin Dongxue said, “Do you suspect…”

Chen Shi replied, “It’s not about suspicion. I just want to know everything the deceased experienced on the day of the incident. But I know Mr. Lu won’t be honest with me.”

“So you got rid of him?”

“That was just a coincidence.” Chen Shi smiled and called everyone in.

Chen Shi paced in front of the group and said, “I know Mr. Lu has ‘taken care’ of you, asked you to hide certain things, maybe even gave you hush money. But to find out the truth about Lu Zhendong’s death, I need all the information. Here’s 200,000 yuan…” Chen Shi held up a savings card, and several people’s eyes lit up. He continued, “My phone number is 138XXXX. I’m waiting for a brave ‘traitor’ among you to tell me what happened that night. Don’t worry, I’ll keep it confidential.”

The lobby manager chuckled awkwardly, “Officer Song, is this really okay?”

“None of your business, get out!”

After the hotel staff left, Peng Siyue entered carrying an investigation kit and called out, “Old Song.”

“Siyue, let’s begin!”

Lin Dongxue whispered, “Are you two really in character?”

Peng Siyue turned off the lights, then opened the investigation kit and took out a UV light. Lin Dongxue’s eyes widened, “Do you suspect this is the crime scene? But Lu Qixing is his father!”

“Family ties aren’t a reason to rule out suspicion.”

The UV light swept inch by inch across the floor. Lin Dongxue was a bit nervous; deep down, she couldn’t accept the truth of a familial murder.

Tao Yuanyuan continued eating, appearing very calm, treating their investigation as a sideshow.

When the UV light passed over the carpet by the sofa, there was a reaction. Chen Shi immediately pulled back the carpet, and Peng Siyue sprayed a reagent, revealing a small splatter of blood.

“Could it really be?” Lin Dongxue covered her mouth.

“If it were murder, this amount of blood is too little.” Chen Shi’s words put Lin Dongxue at ease.

Peng Siyue took a sample with an alcohol-soaked cotton swab, placed it in a test tube, and turned on the lights.

An officer entered, saluted, and said, “Officer Song, we found the footage of the deceased leaving the hotel that day.”

“Let’s see it.”

They cleared a space on the table, and the officer set up a laptop. Peng Siyue whispered, “How does it feel to play Song Lang?”

“Never met him, I don’t know if I look like him. You can give me some pointers.” Chen Shi shrugged and smiled.

“He’s more handsome than you.”

“That’s a high technical difficulty.”

The video showed the deceased leaving the hotel, captured only from behind. He walked to the lobby and angrily kicked over a trash can.

Chen Shi replayed the video and paused at one point, pointing at a spot on the screen, “Look, he’s holding his left arm, maybe he’s injured.”

“Did the father and son have a conflict?” Lin Dongxue was surprised.

“You should visit him at the station, but I suspect he has dementia because he kept looking at his sleeve while talking. He might not remember what happened that day. Old Peng, don’t hurry back yet, come with me to the deceased’s residence.” Chen Shi turned to Tao Yuanyuan, “Will you go with Sister Lin or with me?”

“With you.”

“That might be the crime scene.”

“I’m not afraid!”

Chen Shi snapped his fingers, “Alright, let’s split up!”

Lin Dongxue took the blood sample and returned to the station with Xu Xiaodong. Chen Shi, Peng Siyue, and Tao Yuanyuan drove to the deceased’s residence.

Lu Zhendong lived in an upscale community. Officers were already there retrieving surveillance footage. They told Chen Shi, “The property management said the surveillance footage from that day was wiped clean.”

“Who did it?”

“Unknown, possibly a top-tier hacker. No traces left.”

“What did the security say?”

“One guard was on duty that night. He said he saw the deceased drive in around 9 PM and leave around 11 PM, nodding to him both times. There are records to prove it.”

“11 PM, the deceased was still alive?” Chen Shi turned to Peng Siyue.

Peng Siyue said, “Dumping the body in the wild for three days—bacteria, temperature, humidity all affect decomposition unpredictably. There could be a few hours’ error in estimating the time of death.”

They arrived at the deceased’s home. The door was locked. Chen Shi asked, “Does Officer Song know how to pick locks?”

“Yes.”

“That’s awkward, I don’t.” Chen Shi laughed.

“Oh?” Peng Siyue looked at him skeptically, then took a key from a plastic evidence bag out of his pocket and explained, “Found this on the deceased.”

Using the key to open the door, a wave of dust hit them. Peng Siyue donned a mask and gloves, handing a pair to Chen Shi. He had no child-sized ones, so he told Tao Yuanyuan, “Don’t touch anything, okay?”

Tao Yuanyuan nodded obediently.

It was a duplex apartment. Though a bit messy, the furniture was exquisite and upscale. Tao Yuanyuan sighed, “If Uncle Chen’s house were this beautiful…”

“You’d have to do a lot of good deeds and hope to be reborn in a good family.” Chen Shi joked.

“I’ll earn money to buy it for you!”

“Okay, I’ll wait for that day. No backing out!”

Peng Siyue smiled at their interaction.

Chen Shi unceremoniously opened the fridge, grabbed a drink for Tao Yuanyuan, and took a premium cigar from a humidor. The aroma was tempting. He couldn’t resist wanting to try it, but Peng Siyue glared at him, “Behave yourself!”

“Alright, I’ll save it for later.” Chen Shi pocketed the cigar, earning another glare from Peng Siyue.

They investigated each room in turn and found a trace of blood in the floor seams of a guest bedroom. Peng Siyue closed the curtains and handed the “fun” task of spraying luminol to Tao Yuanyuan, while he used a UV light for the examination.

The sheets had been changed. There were no bloodstains on the top sheet, but the underside had some. The mattress underneath was soaked with blood, and even the bed frame showed traces.

There was also blood on the floor, carefully wiped but fully revealed by the luminol.

This amount of blood clearly indicated it was the primary crime scene.

Peng Siyue inspected repeatedly, saying, “There’s spatter on the left cabinet door and the left side of the floor, a pool of blood at the bed corner, and transfer stains on the bed—something absorbed the blood, maybe sheets, clothes, or a pillow?”

“Or a person!” Chen Shi said, “The killer lay on the bed, and some blood got on their body.”

“So what was the deceased’s position? Lying on the killer? Is the killer a woman?”

“Or the deceased was fighting the killer… What do you think the killer did after?”

“Go to the bathroom to clean up!”