by Gangxueyin
“As for a relatively precise time of death, this can only be determined from the angle of rigor mortis and lividity. From the fragmentary buttock tissue, a sort of lavender color is exhibited, showing that lividity has already entered the infiltration stage. Again, combining the rigor mortis value and death by asphyxiation with such relatively slow factors as rigor mortis occurring in a low-temperature environment, the time of death would have been twenty-four to thirty hours before the body was found. The victim’s lividity shows up mainly on the buttocks and posterior fragments of the limbs, but none was seen on the back fragments. So when the victim was dismembered, she’d been laid down facing up, but surface contact was not smooth or level. The body was cut into numerous pieces. The fingernails and toenails were painted with nail polish. The wrists and ankles have binding marks. The incisions are the same as the earlier case and come from similar professional tools. The techniques are also similarly professional. The viscera are intact, with nothing missing.”
When Gu Feifei was finished, a sudden, violent coughing fit came over her.
Han Yin rushed a glass of water over to her. “What’s the matter? Are you okay?”
Gu Feifei gulped the water and set down the cup. Then she cleared her throat. “I’ve had a touch of the flu for the past two days.”
“Make sure to get some rest and drink lots of water,” said Han Yin.
Gu Feifei forced a thin smile. “I know. Thank you.”
“You didn’t find any evidence from the killer?” Han Yin asked.
“Right now, no.” Gu Feifei tried hard to deal with the scratch in her throat but couldn’t keep from coughing.
Han Yin didn’t want to bother her any further, so he wished her well and left.
The night was far gone. The lights were still on at the task force.
With the killer back in action, there were concerns and pressures coming from everywhere, top to bottom, and it all fell on Ye Xi, the task force chief. Her superiors didn’t care that the case was tough or that the killer was cunning and slippery. They wanted results, and if she couldn’t deliver, they’d find someone who could. Fortunately, Ye Xi was one of the bureau’s outstanding performers, and she had a good reputation. The leadership wouldn’t replace her without good cause, but time seemed to be running out for her. If the victims kept piling up, Ye Xi would be gone.
Ye Xi was now sitting in front of her computer, looking over the surveillance videos of New Territory Plaza and the southern side streets. She just couldn’t believe the killer had somehow escaped detection. Occasionally she’d pause, rest her eyes, and turn around to glance at Han Yin, who was looking at an enormous white board on the wall with two pictures of the severed heads at the locations they’d been dumped. Han Yin stared at the board, thinking of Wang Li and Tian Mei. He’d been lost in thought for several hours.
Tian Mei’s murder confirmed Han Yin’s earlier victim study. The killer had a fixed image when he violated the victims. Han Yin placed photographs of Wang Li and Tian Mei side by side to compare them. He could discern a strong resemblance in the shape of their oval, “watermelon seed” faces. Their cheekbones protruded slightly. And both kept their hair long and in waves that cascaded like waterfalls. And of course, they were both wearing eye-catching red clothing when they disappeared.
Aged about thirty years. Relatively mature in appearance. Retro eighties hairstyles. Exquisite makeup. Brightly colored clothing. Such an image induced a deep stress response in the enraged killer. Obviously, punishing these targets had been hidden in the killer’s mind for years. It could be said that the killer’s initial stimulus comes from his mother. In addition, there was enough evidence to show that the killer tied black garbage bags over Wang Li and Tian Mei’s heads and ultimately suffocated them. The principle of suffocation is to keep the victim from breathing, starving the body of oxygen. An intense accumulation of carbon dioxide induces organ necrosis and leads to death. This technique, compared to other methods of killing, is a relatively long process, and the terror it induces is the most horrifying. The disorientation caused by the black garbage bag would only add to this. The horror felt by the victim in her dying moment would be hard to imagine. In both crimes, the killer used this cruel and detailed method. It was no longer a simple murder MO, but a kind of calling card, which carried an implied message.
As for the question of timing, the killer again chose a public holiday. This meant he most likely had a regular profession. In addition, Tian Mei disappeared on April 28 around eleven o’clock, and her body parts appeared at the plaza around three in the morning on May 1. But the forensic report indicated that the time of death had been approximately thirty hours prior to her discovery. This shows that the killer did not kill her immediately after abducting her but kept her alive for about twenty-four hours. Similarly, Wang Li had been abducted about twenty-four hours before being murdered. Why did the killer keep them alive another day? And what was he doing during that time? Maybe he wanted to enjoy the thrill of dominating, manipulating, and controlling someone else’s life. Maybe he wanted to torture and humiliate the victim for as long as possible. Either way, this was a fixed pattern. It also meant that within twenty-four hours of disappearing, there was hope of rescuing the victim. Therefore, Han Yin thought that all the city’s various bureaus and police stations should be notified to report to the task force immediately upon receiving news of any disappearances. This might help save a future victim.
As for the killer’s occupation, within thirty hours, he’d neatly and efficiently completed the dismemberment. The short period of time and fairly professional technique forced Han Yin to rethink the killer’s occupation. The killer would have had some sort of interaction with the Yin Aijun case. He was most likely involved in or had been involved in a profession that had something to do with knives. Or this sort of professional experience was in his family background. Naturally, one suspect fit this profile—Feng Wenhao. But this was only a small consideration.
It would be understandable if the killer had used another dumping location for his second crime out of fear that the first crime scene was being monitored. So choosing the busiest section of the city, the victim’s own neighborhood, would seem to be too risky. This was a clear sign of the rapid escalation of the killer’s crimes. The serial killers’ lusts escalate from the first time they felt satisfaction from hurting others and gradually start to pursue deeper levels of stimuli—such as media attention for their crimes, which gives them a sense of accomplishment. But most previous cases had not been like this one—in committing his second crime, the killer showed the characteristics of his escalation, demonstrating that he had a mature mind and above-average intelligence. It also revealed that he had begun to enjoy the satisfaction of being the object of police concern and attention. This feeling of satisfaction was so intense that it also showed that he had been in close contact with the police. That is to say, he was one of the suspects questioned by the task force. Seen in this light, Yu Meifen, whose name was repeatedly brought up in the case, could be eliminated from suspicion. But every effort should still have been made to find her in case she could have provided a critical breakthrough in the Yin Aijun case. Right now, Han Yin felt there was no need to continue with a large-scale investigation. It was crucial now to combine all the suspects the task force investigated and use the new information to find the killer among them.
Another thing that might play a role in understanding the killer’s background was why the killer faced the victim’s head toward the south. Originally, Han Yin had agreed with Kang Xiaobei’s interpretation: the killer was telling the police where he’d abducted his victims. But upon rereading the files and looking at the crime scene photos, he realized that while Wang Li’s head was facing south, Yin Aijun’s head was not. Hers had been facing upward. So what implications did that marking behavior hold? Was it acting out the subconscious or was it some way of storytelling? Han Yin had spent long stretches of time brooding over this, yet the answer still elude
d him.
It was already past midnight when Han Yin, still deeply immersed in thought, suddenly heard Ye Xi’s excited shout. “Found it! I’ve finally found it! So it really was that turkey after all.”
Han Yin dashed over to Ye Xi’s computer and immediately saw the image on her monitor. It was a very familiar face. The time was 1:00 a.m. on May 1 in front of a bank’s ATM near New Territory Plaza. The image showed Feng Wenhao withdrawing money.
Early morning
When Feng Wenhao and his mother came out of their apartment building, they found a squad of policemen at the gate. An officer came up, flashed his badge and an arrest warrant, and took out a pair of handcuffs. He fastened them on Feng Wenhao’s wrists. He didn’t struggle and got into the police car.
In the interrogation room, his handcuffs were removed. Feng Wenhao still maintained a calm composure. He smiled at Han Yin and Ye Xi, who were sitting across from him. However, the beads of sweat on his forehead and dark stains on his shirt revealed that he was tense.
Han Yin focused on what Feng Wenhao was wearing. The temperature was almost 90 degrees. But in this hot weather, Feng Wenhao was wearing a long-sleeved shirt with the cuffs tightly buttoned. From the moment Feng Wenhao had entered the room, his right hand kept caressing the button on his left cuff. Han Yin had noticed this same tic during their last conversation. Maybe this was his way of relieving tension. Or was there some secret hidden under that cuff?
Han Yin, a derisory expression on his face, gazed at the sweat-drenched Feng Wenhao. A moment passed. He gave a scornful snort and said, “It’s so hot, but you’re still wearing a long-sleeved shirt with your cuffs buttoned. Aren’t you broiling over there?”
“I’m all right. It’s a habit. A doctor always wants to avoid germs as much as possible.” He looked uncomfortable and subconsciously pulled his right hand back into his cuff.
Han Yin pretended not to notice. “Give us a detailed account of where you were from the night of April twenty-eighth to early this morning around three a.m.”
“There’s not much to tell. I did what I always do. Eat, go online, read, and go to sleep.” Feng Wenhao smiled.
Han Yin placed a photograph on the table. “I suppose this isn’t you?”
“Um . . . uh . . .” Feng Wenhao picked up the photograph.
“Take a look at the date on top.” Han Yin’s voice grew stern. “Explain yourself!”
“Uh, I went to take out some money, but that’s all!”
“So you were waiting for her . . . or you had her already?” Ye Xi suddenly exploded. She had been sitting there with an icy look on her face. She took two photographs from a folder and slapped them down in front of Feng Wenhao. He squinted at the photographs of Wang Li and Tian Mei, then pushed them aside. With a look of fear, he nervously said, “I don’t know them, and I’ve never seen them!”
Feng Wenhao’s instantaneous reaction seemed sincere and consistent with a person seeing a gruesome image for the first time. Was it possible he had no connection to the murders?
Han Yin was lost in his thought. Ye Xi could no longer contain herself. She jumped up from her chair and went over to Feng Wenhao and tore off the button of his left shirtsleeve. She had also felt that cuff could be hiding something, like a scratch or scar from a physical altercation. However, what she saw was a forearm covered in needle tracks.
“You’re . . . you’re an addict!” she exclaimed in shock.
“You, a doctor! You have so many lives in your hands. Even if you’re not thinking of your patients, at least think of your own future,” said a surprised Han Yin.
So this was it. In that instant, Feng Wenhao seemed to shed his heavy burden. He didn’t panic; he only felt relief. He silently nodded and tried to smile, but only tears came. “Future? What future with the way things are now?” he said through his sobs. “Meifen said when she had the abortion, everything was over between us. But she didn’t know what I was feeling. I saw the child, seven months old, already fully formed . . . a girl . . . eyes just like mine. At that moment, my heart was crushed, and my child was taken. All that’s left was a bag of skin. Pethidine, marijuana, crystal meth, heroin—that was my life abroad. So I could feel I was still alive. The real world for me was gone!”
“You’re a doctor. You should know better. Drugs bring only illusions and strip you of everything you have!” It pained Han Yin to say this.
“It doesn’t matter . . . it doesn’t matter . . .” Feng Wenhao said.
Behind almost every junkie is a story of wretchedness and misery. Ye Xi had seen plenty of them, so she wasn’t moved the way Han Yin was. “So, this morning, you took out the money and went to buy drugs with it?”
“Yes. I got the craving and couldn’t resist. The man you had trailing me wasn’t there, so I went to the bar and bought a sack.” He snorted. “It was the same thing the other night. I just couldn’t wait any longer. I was aware you had someone watching my home, but I was desperate, so I went to the bar and bought some low-grade heroin.”
Ye Xi turned and glared at the two-way mirror. Kang Xiaobei was on the other side, watching the interrogation. She turned back and said, “Before that, you disappeared for a period of time. What were you doing?”
“I knew you were going to watch me for a while, so I wanted to buy more. But the seller didn’t have that much on him, so he took me to their rental properties to get it.”
“You went to where they were stashing it?” Ye Xi asked.
“Yeah. But they were being very careful and blindfolded me. Still, I think it was in the area around the bar.”
“Who sold it to you? What did he look like?”
“I only know him as Blackie.”
Ye Xi continued to press Feng Wenhao for details. She was looking for a way to break up that dope ring.
29
LOOKING AT THE HEADS
With Feng Wenhao’s help, Blackie was secretly arrested. With this, the municipal Public Security Bureau targeted a gang that shuttled between the bars, selling all sorts of hallucinogens and narcotics. They were just waiting for the right moment to close in. Blackie verified everything Feng Wenhao had said, so suspicion of Feng Wenhao was dropped. However, he was required to undergo six months of mandatory drug rehabilitation.
As Han Yin suggested, the task force discontinued its comprehensive investigation and reverted to focusing on the suspects they’d previously pulled in. They especially wanted to carry out more intensive investigations of a number of them who didn’t have ironclad alibis.
Ye Xi decided to transfer Kang Xiaobei out of the task force for dereliction of duty. Her temper was growing, and her iron fist was on full display. Kang Xiaobei’s tears and pleading didn’t move her one bit, so he begged Han Yin to mediate so he could stay on the task force. Han Yin had a mostly good impression of Kang Xiaobei, and the two of them had worked well together. Thus, the first chance he got, he approached Ye Xi about giving Kang Xiaobei one more chance and promised he’d keep a close eye on him. With Han Yin going out on a limb for him, Ye Xi conceded and kept Kang Xiaobei on the force.
Night
Outside the window, drizzle. Inside, bright lights everywhere.
On the bed, on the floor, on the table, photographs of the corpse dismemberment sites. From every angle, all kinds of lopped-off limbs and splattered blood. Were someone to unexpectedly walk into the room, he’d certainly think this was the lair of some perverted murderer. But it was Han Yin’s room in the guesthouse. He was sitting on the edge of the bed, staring at the photographs, lost in thought. Occasionally he’d pick up the case file and go through it. Again.
He was searching for an answer as to why the heads had been stood up and pointed south.
This had been the killer’s one creative action in the first crime and continued in the second. Undoubtedly, this had some special significance for him. If this could be properly interpreted, it would prove to be a dramatic breakthrough in the Wang Li case. But several hours had now passed, and Han Yin had
no flashes of brilliance. Not even the smallest insight. He glanced at the time, then grabbed his key card and left the room.
If he got up and moving, maybe he’d find inspiration.
At about ten thirty, Han Yin arrived at the PSB forensic lab, where Gu Feifei was still working.
“Why are you running around so late? And you don’t even have an umbrella,” said Gu Feifei, half in reproach and half in concern. She saw Han Yin had been drenched by the rain.
Han Yin smiled. “I knew you’d be working, so I thought I’d come by to offer my condolences.”
“I’m sure.” She looked skeptical. “So what are you really here for?”
“I want to take a look at Wang Li’s and Tian Mei’s heads,” he said, looking serious.
“Coming in late just for that? How about I wrap them up for you, like takeout?” Gu Feifei joked.
“Ha. Oh no, I just—”
Gu Feifei got up and waved for him to follow. “Come on. They’re in the autopsy room.”
Han Yin followed Gu Feifei into the autopsy room and helped her move the heads out of the refrigerator. They set them upright, side by side, on the dissecting table. There was a layer of frost on the heads, giving them a chilly aura.
After a long pause, Han Yin, looking dejected, shook his head. He paced back and forth, saying to himself over and over, Is this a habit of yours? Or is there some connection with your mother, the impetus for all this? What do you want the victims to see? Do you live south of town?
Gu Feifei became anxious watching him. She looked closely at the two heads and studied them hard. Then she went around behind them and looked in the same direction as they did.
