The Forensic Doctor Better Than a Detective-Chapter 626 - 347: This Case Was Never Simple! (Part 3)

Just then, Jiang An, who had been silent, suddenly stepped forward and cautiously pulled out a sealed evidence bag from his pocket.

Inside the evidence bag was a rusty wristwatch, its strap broken, the dial covered with scratches, yet the hands stubbornly pointed to a specific time.

Jiang An looked solemn, his voice slightly hoarse from excitement: "Captain, we just found this in the mud at the riverbed."

"A watch?"

Li Jian and Zhang Chao leaned in simultaneously, their shadows overlapping on the evidence bag.

Li Jian’s brows furrowed tighter, his gaze hawk-like, locked onto the metal object.

"Although we can’t yet confirm if it’s directly related to the case,"

Jiang An took a deep breath, trying to keep his voice steady, "but judging by the burial location and the level of corrosion, it’s likely dropped during the incident."

Instructor Zhang Chao suddenly looked up, shock flashing in his eyes: "Where did you find it?"

His voice unintentionally rose an octave, "We searched the entire river thoroughly back then! We checked every single strand of seaweed!"

Wan wiped his sweat, muddy water running down his wrist, splattering a few dark spots on the floor: "This time we didn’t go in blindly, we specifically asked the sanitation department for help." 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

He gestured as he explained, "We used a high-pressure water gun to blow away the surface silt first, then screened it bit by bit. The watch was buried nearly a meter deep in the mud layer,"

He turned to Jiang An, admiration in his eyes, "If it weren’t for Jiang An’s sharp eyes, we might have missed it."

Li Jian took a deep breath, his expression complex, there was admiration for the young officers’ efforts mixed with self-reproach for the oversight years ago.

"Back then, we indeed neglected it, only checked the water surface and the shallow riverbed..."

His voice lowered, "We didn’t expect the crucial evidence to be buried so deeply."

He paused, scanning the few people’s awkward appearances, noticing the scratches made by gravel on the back of Wan’s hand, his tone softened a bit?

"Good job, you should go change your clothes first."

He checked his watch, "Meeting in the conference room in half an hour, we have new findings to share too."

Wan and Jiang An nodded and turned to leave.

minutes later, smoke filled Li Jian’s office.

Sunlight streamed through the blinds, forming golden beams in the smoke.

Li Jian, Zhang Chao, and Jiang An sat around the table, the spread-out case files covered with dense clues, several crime scene photos marked with red pen.

Li Jian flicked ash from his cigarette, the gray ash falling into the glass ashtray.

He said in a deep voice, "We checked seven individuals with previous robbery records, found that one of them played cards with the deceased on the night of the incident."

"More importantly, the day before the incident, the deceased won a whole twenty thousand bucks."

"Twenty thousand?"

The instructor sat upright abruptly, the chair squeaked.

His eyes widened, "But during the autopsy back then, there were only a few dozen cash in the deceased’s wallet! We completely overlooked this detail!"

"Exactly."

Li Jian nodded, the glow of his cigarette end particularly conspicuous in the dim office.

"The whereabouts of that money are still unknown. I suspect..." his voice grew lower, almost turning into a soliloquy at the end.

Jiang An furrowed his brows, his fingers unconsciously tapping the table faster and faster.

Suddenly, as if he thought of something, he looked up abruptly: "Wait!" His voice quivered slightly from excitement.

"When we investigated, someone said the deceased was in an exceptionally good mood that night!"

"But didn’t mention why. Now it seems..."

He paused, making the discovery seem even more significant, "It was likely because of winning money!"

As he spoke, Jiang An’s face flushed with excitement, he subconsciously clenched his fists, knuckles turning white with force.

The office was so quiet they could hear each other’s breathing, the air thick with tension and anticipation.

Just then, Zhang Yean gently pushed the door open, seeing their serious expressions, she involuntarily softened her steps: "Captain, did you discover something?"

Her gentle voice broke the heavy atmosphere in the room.

Li Jian slowly exhaled a plume of smoke, his eyes sharp as a knife: "We might have found a breakthrough."

"This case probably wasn’t just a simple robbery and murder from the start."