National Forensic Doctor-Chapter 848 - 787: Difficulty Levels

The factory was large, damaged as if it had been bombed.

The red brick exterior walls were dirty and broken, the ceiling tattered and torn, the supporting concrete pillars looked fine but were covered with graffiti, urine stains, and unidentifiable filth. The interior ground of the factory was uneven with sewage flowing everywhere, covered with excrement from humans, dogs, cats, mice, birds, and insects.

On the relatively intact walls on the east and west sides of the factory, there were piles of bricks and stones. Covered with a few plastic tarps, they served as nests where people could sleep.

Zhang Jigu, whose cheeks were sunken from drug use, had his hands cuffed. Pointing to a corner, he said, "I was lying right there at that time, covered with something, not daring to move."

"Which way was your head facing?" Meng Chengbiao had come with Jiang Yuan, and he had been asking for details all the way.

Details are the hardest to fabricate and the easiest to give you away.

It’s said that a person cannot imagine something they’ve never seen before. If Zhang Jigu had never seen someone dissolve a body, he probably wouldn’t even think of it.

And at the scene of identification, details are the crucial step that determines success or failure.

Zhang Jigu looked back and replied, "Facing away from that door, the wind was too strong over there."

Meng Chengbiao walked over there, bent down, and looked close to the ground for a while.

The ground was just too dirty, and there were bugs more terrifying than rats—Meng Chengbiao couldn’t lie down.

This also indicated that, so far, the case wasn’t yet worth being classified as a murder or part of a series of serious crimes.

"What were you covered with?" Meng again asked.

Zhang Jigu thought for a moment and said, "Bed sheets, clothes, all stacked with paper, the kind for packaging express deliveries. Piled high, blocking the wind. I didn’t come out even to sleep."

"What about going to the toilet? What about urinating?" Mu Zhiyang asked.

Zhang Jigu replied, "Some people just wet their pants—I mean some people... I generally drink less water and don’t go to the toilet at night."

"How long had you been sleeping here?"

"I was all sleeping inside that day."

"What specific time?"

"Around noon, I guess. It was pretty cold, so I didn’t get up, and then those guys came. I recognized one of them, nicknamed Duan Zhang, the last three fingers of his left hand had been chopped off. He’s a tough one, so I just hid and didn’t move."

"How long did they take to dissolve the body?"

"Several hours, I think."

"In several hours’ time, with so many cardboard boxes and such on you, you didn’t make any noise?"

"I was wearing a down jacket, and I’m no vagrant... I quietly pushed the cardboard boxes aside and hid behind them," Zhang Jigu spoke earnestly, then added, "If you don’t believe me, I can show you how I did it."

"You’ll have a chance to perform in a bit," Meng Chengbiao pressed, continuing to question him.

Jiang Yuan walked towards the spot Zhang Jigu had indicated where the body was dissolved, having listened to the exchange.

When dissolving bodies with chemical agents, most people instinctively think that if the right solvent is used, the body can be quickly dissolved.

In fact, the opposite is true. Dissolving a body takes time, and even if the operation is smooth, it often requires at least a few hours to start. Sometimes stirring or even adding more agents is necessary.

Similar is the case with incinerating bodies; many people believe that some fuel or dousing with diesel will do the job, but it’s not that simple. Incinerate a few bodies and you’ll understand that accelerants such as diesel are almost a necessity, and to ensure full combustion of a body, without professional equipment, it’s best to keep watch.

With a particularly appropriate analogy, when burning paper for the ancestors, if you don’t occasionally stir the pile, despite the large flames, a lot of paper will still curl up inside the fire, not burning completely. For them to burn down thoroughly, it takes time.

Imagine a pile of paper weighing 80 kilograms burning together—it would take a lot of time as well.

Similar is the principle when using a solution to dissolve something. If not cut into pieces, the solution dissolves from the outside in. And once the outer layer of flesh reacts with the solvent, the nature of the outermost solution naturally changes. Whether using acid or alkali, it’s like being partially neutralized. So, if you want the solvent to work fast, it’s best for the solvent to be able to... right.

At this point, another requirement is deduced—that the dissolution of a body is best done during the day, or at least under good lighting. Otherwise, an accidental splash of acids and alkalis can cause pain lasting two or three months.

Considering the state of this broken factory, if dissolving a body at night, lights would have to be turned on, which is actually unsafe and can lead to discovery.

So, disposing of bodies during the day seems particularly reasonable.

However, fantasizing that a body could be dissolved without leaving a trace, that’s another fantasy altogether.

Jiang Yuan wandered around the empty space inside the factory building and then motioned for people to come over.

"Where they dumped the waste liquid," Jiang Yuan pointed out.

The acid capable of dissolving bodies would severely corrode the ground, something anyone could notice at a glance.

Two crime scene technicians immediately went to work, setting up yellow markers and began snapping photos.

Meanwhile, Jiang Yuan observed the corroded ground.

This was a significant drawback of using acid to dissolve bodies. freewёbn૦νeɭ.com

To deal with the waste acid, it would need to be neutralized, but that raises even higher demands, on the one hand, it makes the process more complicated and dangerous, and on the other hand, hundreds of pounds of acid might need hundreds of pounds of alkali to neutralize it, doubling the required materials.

Furthermore, precise neutralization is basically impossible, as it calls for too high a degree of accuracy. But if it can’t be neutralized exactly, how do you handle the remaining acid or alkali?

The best solution Jiang Yuan could think of was to use an excess of alkali to neutralize the acid and then carry the remaining alkali bottles back home.

"Find out where this pipe leads. Start digging from where they dumped it and follow it along. Dig for 20 meters and see," Jiang Yuan now spoke with confidence.

Of course, since they were already digging, making the trench a bit longer was normal.

Xiao Si, who was close by, immediately went to make arrangements.

Zhang Jigu, who was handcuffed, shrank back upon hearing this. He was no stranger to detention facilities. Hearing Jiang Yuan’s command and seeing the focus of the surrounding police officers, he silently prayed and felt that the Duan Zhang gang was likely in for trouble.

When the police get serious, they can be truly formidable.

"Over here. They must have burned the plastic barrels," Jiang Yuan walked a few steps and pointed to another spot.

It must be said that if it weren’t for Zhang Jigu tipping them off, it would have been very hard for the police to investigate this case independently here. Most of the evidence could have other explanations, including the acid-washing marks. Is it not reasonable to find such marks in an old factory building?

Although now it seems that the acid-washing resembles more of dumping, this requires forensic experts to determine, something most ordinary police officers wouldn’t be certain about.

Other things, such as the traces of burning plastic barrels, don’t even need explaining. In an old factory frequented by vagrants, it’s completely normal for someone to light a fire for warmth.

But if you consider this factory as a crime scene, then there are a multitude of forensic methods to apply; the place is full of traces.

Especially with Jiang Yuan’s level of examination expertise, it became even easier:

"Here, there might be bloodstains. Test them, and then call a sniffer dog over."

"Here, tool marks. Looks like someone idling here was playing with a knife. Catch him and later compare the marks."

"Check the nearby surveillance."

Jiang Yuan turned back and said to Cui Qishan, "We can basically confirm there’s been a murder here. Just no body."

In typical cases, a murder investigation wouldn’t proceed without a body. Or to put it another way, the first step in a murder investigation is at least to find the body.

However, since Jiang Yuan has suggested there’s been a murder, Cui Qishan and the others naturally accepted it.

Following the trail of a murder case, Cui Qishan quickly thought it over and said, "Zhang Jigu knows a drug dealer’s lackey, nicknamed Duan Zhang, that should be easy to handle. Just ask around to find out who he’s connected to. Bring him in for questioning, and this case won’t stay hidden."

"Okay," Jiang Yuan nodded in agreement.

Catch them first if possible or rely on DNA. That’s the mainstream approach now.

Several people continued searching the factory compound.

Shortly after, news came from the city center:

"Duan Zhang has been missing for several months now. Rumor has it he was taken out." Cui Qishan took the call and with a sense of resignation told Jiang Yuan, "The few lackeys who hung around with him have also run away."