Chapter 542: XX Meets His End Here

The three of them came over and saw a few drops of blood on the ground. Chen Shi took pictures first and then collected samples. These blood drops must have fallen from the murder weapon when the killer was hiding here.

They meticulously examined the alley again. Looking at the darkening sky, Chen Shi said, “Hey, did you notice anyone among them who didn’t sleep well?”

“I saw their red eyes. It must be because they drank… Do you think the killer didn’t sleep at all after the murder?”

“There was a case like this before, quite legendary. After the murder, the killer was extremely tense and excited, worried that they didn’t handle the scene well and left clues. First-time killers often suffer from insomnia for the first three days.”

“Where was that case?”

“In ‘Story Club’! But we can observe them next time we see them, to see who seems out of sorts.”

“Do you really suspect that group?”

“What do you think?”

“From the scene, this was a premeditated murder. The killer chose the date of 9/18 and dressed the victim in Japanese military uniform to make it look like an apology, which means they’re trying to disguise their true motive. It might not have anything to do with those drunks.”

“Speaking of the uniform…” Chen Shi turned around and was stunned.

Xu Xiaodong was crouched down, sniffing a piece of soil. They couldn’t help but laugh. Lin Dongxue walked over and asked, “What are you doing?”

“Major discovery! Major discovery!” Xu Xiaodong stood up. “Someone vomited here, but it was scraped away. Look at the marks on the ground.”

Chen Shi squatted down to check. Indeed, there were scrape marks. He wiped a bit of the remaining liquid with his finger and smelled it. “It is stomach acid. Take a sample!”

“I did a great job, right?” Xu Xiaodong said proudly.

“Don’t get too excited. This may not be from the time of the murder.” Lin Dongxue said.

“By the way, where did the uniform come from?” Chen Shi asked.

“The crew said it was taken from the props warehouse. Captain Lin inspected the scene and found no signs of forced entry. The props master said Fujihara had the key.”

“He had the key?”

“They had finished shooting their scene that day, but the director wanted to reshoot a shot. The props master went to eat and gave the key to Fujihara to return the costume to the warehouse after filming.”

“Who knew about this?”

“We’re still asking… There are more people in the crew than we thought.”

“Let’s check the warehouse.”

The three of them went to the props warehouse and found several trucks clearing it out. Chen Shi asked the staff present, and they said the warehouse was no longer rented since the shooting was finished.

“Who’s the props master?”

“I am!” An older woman walked over.

“We are the police. We need to ask you some questions…”

The props master said there were dozens of people present at the time, including actors, the director, stagehands, and costume staff. Chen Shi took out a notebook, “Who among these people were there?”

“None of them.”

“Speaking of this props warehouse, it has a lot of stuff. You just gave the key to a special actor?”

“Well…” The props master was embarrassed. “This drama has been filming for half a year. Everyone is familiar and trustworthy. The items here aren’t valuable.” She picked up a costume, “Look at the material of this costume. It’s only worn for filming. Who would steal it?”

“So there’s no surveillance here either?”

“No.”

“I’d like to see the key.”

The props master handed over a key with a wooden tag labeled “Warehouse 3.” She explained, “This is the key to the film base. We were given a few spare keys when we rented it. We’re about to return them.”

“Who has the spare keys?”

“Me, the costume master, and the director.”

After the questions, Lin Dongxue said, “Shall we meet the costume master and the director? The filming is over, and they’re about to leave.”

“Sure, let’s meet them!”

After meeting these two, it was already 10 PM, and they didn’t get much. The three of them went home.

The next morning, Chen Shi woke up at 8 AM to find Tao Yuanyuan frying eggs. He said, “Yuanyuan, no school today?”

“September 18th plus the weekend, three days off. Awesome!”

“If only the killer knew it was a holiday.”

“Uncle Chen, are you investigating an interesting case?”

“Two Japanese people died…”

During breakfast, Chen Shi talked about the case with her. Tao Yuanyuan listened attentively. She said, “The killer must hate Japanese people!”

“Why do you think so?”

“You said the killer left the alley, but came back to kill again. It was dark, and Fujihara went down to check on his friend. He didn’t see the killer or the act. Why would the killer come back to kill another person? I think he hates Japanese people.”

Chen Shi didn’t take the child’s opinion seriously. “Are you saying the motive is national hatred?”

“I think that Japanese guy deceived him!”

“How so?”

“Just a feeling!”

“By the way, do you want to visit the film set today since you have a holiday?”

“No, following your investigation is boring. I’d rather go there by myself someday!”

On the way to the police station, Chen Shi thought about Yuanyuan’s words. It made some sense. The killer’s overly deliberate “performance” made them overlook the motive of hating Japanese people from the beginning.

But they hadn’t considered personal hatred. Tamura had been in China for six years, spoke good Chinese, and people around him didn’t know much about his situation. Maybe he really deceived the killer, which is why the killer hated Japanese people, and Fujihara became collateral damage.

The morning continued with the investigation. When Lin Qiupu arrived at the scene from yesterday, he was furious seeing something. “Who did this?”

On a tree at the scene, someone had scraped off a layer of bark and written with a marker, “Sasaki Kojiro and Noka Kinkiku died here.” These were the names of the two deceased characters in the drama, both heinous Japanese officers.

Lin Qiupu ordered, “Find out who did this and give them a good scolding. This is too bold, messing around at a crime scene!”

This incident made everyone laugh for the morning, but the investigation continued. The “killer” was bold but careless, leaving footprints at the scene. The police went to the dormitory for special actors and finally found the “killer,” Lv Baoqiang.

Facing the police’s questions, Lv Baoqiang was immediately timid, saying, “I just thought those two Japanese guys deserved to die. It was very satisfying, so last night, on a whim, I…”

Lin Qiupu said, “You think you’re righteous.”

“No, I just think those two guys were scumbags, deserved to die.”

“Alright, come with us!”

“Wait!” Chen Shi interrupted, “You said they were scumbags. What do you mean?”