Chapter 489: The Qixi Killer

In the dark office, Lin Dongxue gently tapped her laptop, projecting a photo onto the screen. The image showed a girl in a bright red dress, her slender hands folded over her stomach, lying peacefully. A white powder, like snow, was scattered over her, especially around her neck, where blood had seeped into the powder, spreading from deep red to light pink.

“The victim is Yan Qilin. Time of death was around 10 p.m. on August 13th, 2013. The crime scene was an abandoned house on Shengli Street, with no surveillance and few streetlights. The reporting party was a young couple who accidentally stumbled upon the body. The victim had her throat slit from the front and suffocated to death. The ground showed signs of a struggle, and about 500 grams of table salt was sprinkled over her body, which is roughly a large bag from the supermarket,” Lin Dongxue explained as she switched photos, showing more details to Chen Shi.

Chen Shi tapped his fingers on the table, deep in thought. “The victim looks very peaceful,” he said.

“That’s likely the killer’s doing after the fact,” Lin Dongxue replied.

“Go on.”

Lin Dongxue switched to the next photo, a close-up of the victim’s hand. “There’s a string of letters and numbers on the victim’s right hand, which seems to have been written by someone else. Its meaning is still unknown.”

Chen Shi read aloud, “HP6527963665… I don’t get it. Decrypting codes isn’t my strong suit. Was this case handled by the second team?”

“At first, it was handled by Division A. It wasn’t transferred to the main bureau until three years ago, when Captain Lin took over.”

Chen Shi nodded for her to continue.

The photos continued to change on the screen. Lin Dongxue resumed, “The second case involved a victim named Cai Tingting. She was found between 8 p.m. and 9 p.m. on August 2nd, 2014, under a bridge on Limin Road…”

In the photo, the second victim looked almost identical to the first: the same short bob haircut, slim figure, around the same age, wearing a red dress, with hands folded over her stomach and covered in salt. The cause of death was also the same: a throat slit from the front.

Chen Shi pondered why the killer would slit the throat from the front. It was not an efficient method. With time, location, and victims changing, the killer strictly adhered to the same modus operandi, which was difficult unless they had severe obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Or perhaps, this method held a deep, personal significance to the killer.

The photos continued to change, showing a close-up of the second victim’s right arm, which bore the same writing: “HP6527963665…”

Chen Shi asked Lin Dongxue to go back, but she said, “No need. The letters and numbers are the same in all the cases. Every victim had the same mark.”

“Who investigated the second case?” Chen Shi asked.

“Division B, as it happened in their jurisdiction.”

“So they didn’t connect the cases back then?”

“No, not until the third case in 2015, when the main bureau took over and realized all three murders occurred on Qixi.”

“Hm… A lot can happen in a year. It’s understandable why you didn’t link them earlier.”

“You’re not being sarcastic, are you?”

“No, why would I? Think about what we were doing this time last year.”

“Last year… We didn’t even know each other then.”

“Exactly. See how much has happened in just a year? Keep going.”

Lin Dongxue continued with the slideshow, showing cases from 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018. Each victim was killed on Qixi with the same method. They all had similar ages, heights, and weights, almost like clones.

“Last year, the chief said we had to catch this killer no matter what. We deployed a lot of officers and even consulted a criminal psychologist. This expert profiled the killer as a male, 25-35 years old, with a stable job and family, possibly with OCD and some childish hobbies. He might have been betrayed by a partner, making Qixi a painful day for him. His current partner might work in the service industry. Do you think this profile is accurate?” Lin Dongxue asked.

“It’s generally accurate. The average age of the victims is around 23 or 24, indicating the killer experienced an emotional trauma at that age, which stunted his psychological growth. His meticulous handling of the bodies suggests a compensation for the emotional conflict he has with someone who hurt him. His long, regular killing cycle implies he doesn’t have much free time, only being able to kill on Qixi. The expert’s conclusion that his partner might work in the service industry is plausible since that night is busy for them,” Chen Shi analyzed, then added, “But…”

“But what?”

“This is just a conventional profile. If these cases weren’t committed by the same person, it wouldn’t fit. Or if the killer were a woman, which, though unlikely, is possible.”

“It’s obviously one person,” Lin Dongxue said.

Chen Shi stared at the photos, lost in thought. “An almost ritualistic killing pattern. The killer doesn’t want to leave extra information, just keeps repeating the same crime. Take that number, for instance. If the killer wanted to give the police a puzzle, they would leave different numbers on different victims, leading us to find a pattern. That’s how it usually goes, right? But this killer wrote the same number for six years, as if mocking our inability to solve it. If it’s his signature, it lacks elegance. I can’t imagine what pleasure he gets from writing the same number or committing the same murder repeatedly.”

“Maybe it’s his nature. Every Qixi, he seeks out a victim and methodically completes his task,” Lin Dongxue speculated.

“Yes, human nature varies widely. Such people do exist. But since this case has been investigated for so many years, I assume you’ve checked everything possible.”

“Understood,” Lin Dongxue sighed. “Yes, we’ve exhausted all leads. We’ve racked our brains and worked tirelessly, but there are no clues. Our entire team now has a Qixi phobia. When this holiday approaches, it’s like shedding a layer of skin. So, we hoped to hear if you had any unique insights, Detective Chen.”

“I’d like to see the earliest case,” Chen Shi said.

“Sure,” Lin Dongxue turned on the lights and handed him a file. He browsed through it, noting that the victim had a simple social circle with only a few close contacts, all of whom had been cleared as suspects.