A trail of clues

  Position A.

  The scene is still cordoned off by police and has not been lifted.

  Qiao Zhenglin walked onto the rooftop when there were still several police officers searching for evidence. According to criminal investigation theory, anyone who appears at the scene will always leave some traces, sometimes just a footprint or a fingerprint, but these clues are often the key to solving the case.

  Qiao Zhenglin squatted down in front of a footprint and asked, "Is there any new discovery?"

  The forensic police officer, Xiao Ma, gestured for him to keep his voice down and handed him a mask, explaining: "These footprints are printed on the dust accumulated on the rooftop. If you're not careful, speaking loudly might blow them away."

  Qiao Zhenglin nodded and put on his mask, then asked: "Are these all footprints left by the murderer?"

  The little horse said: "Judging from the new and old footprints, it should be left by the murderer. However, such a short footprint does not look like an adult man's."

  Qiao Zhenglin's heart skipped a beat as he asked, "Do you think there's something wrong?"

  The little horse stopped the movement of his hand, straightened up and said: "This footprint is only thirty-seven inches long. If the murderer was a robust adult male, then according to this proportion, he would be about 1.6 meters tall and weigh around fifty kilograms. And based on the depth and stress area of the footprint, the murderer's weight should be around forty-five kilograms."

  Qiao Zhenglin furrowed his brow and said: "You think..."

  The little horse said: "There are two possibilities, one, the murderer is a woman; two, the murderer is a minor. You have seen the murderer, so the first point can be ruled out. And I once heard that in Southeast Asia, there is a terrorist organization that specializes in kidnapping children, training them to become killers, and letting them carry out tasks before they come of age, because minors will make people relax their vigilance, and if the task fails and they are caught, they will not be sentenced to death."

  Qiao Zhenglin stood up straight and said, "The terrorist organization you mentioned is actually an assassin organization. But they have always carried out tasks in the United States and have no record of carrying out tasks in Asia. Look carefully elsewhere."

  Little Ma's words made Qiao Zhenglin's heart bright, and the silhouette of the murderer he saw on the building next door at that time was indeed a small figure, but his height was above 1.65 meters, if it was an adult male, then the footprints should be at least forty yards.

  Qiao Zhenglin walked to the corner where the murderer fired while deep in thought.

  There's nothing special about this corner, there are a few bricks on the ground and some footprints. On the parapet of the rooftop, there is a row of potted plants, due to the hot weather, the soil in the flower pots has been baked until it turned slightly white, apparently their owner hasn't watered them for quite some time.

  He suddenly found something under a potted plant on his left side. After moving aside the leaves, it was a cigarette butt.

  Qiao Zhenglin turned back and shouted: "Xiaoma, come over here for a moment."

  The little horse walked over, and Qiao Zhenglin pointed at the cigarette butt and asked: "Can you extract the smoker's DNA from the cigarette butt?"

  Pony said: "As long as the cigarette butt hasn't been rained on, it's possible to extract the smoker's DNA from the saliva left on the cigarette butt."

  Qiao Zhenglin's spirits lifted and he said: "You quickly take back the cigarette butt and get the appraisal results as soon as possible."

  The little horse was also excited and said: "I'll take it back for appraisal right away."

  Xiao Ma took the cigarette butt and walked away excitedly, while Qiao Zhenglin was still pacing back and forth on the rooftop, thinking about Xiao Ma's words and the cigarette butt.

  Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck him and he slapped his thigh: "Right, that's it, it must be like this!"

  He took out his mobile phone and called Niu Shou Tong.

  "Niú tóu, wǒ yǒu yī gè xīn de fā xiàn."

  Translation: "Ox head, I have a new discovery."

  "Oxhead was even more excited and said: 'I've also made a major discovery, hurry back to the police station.'"

  Qiao Zhenglin was taken aback, hung up the phone, and rushed downstairs in three strides.

  Driving back to the police station, Niu Shou Tong had just arrived.

  Qiao Zhenglin asked as soon as he saw Niu Shoutong: "Niu Tou, what's the big discovery?"

  Niú Shòu Tōng's face was excited, saying: "Someone came to report the crime, saying that the murderer had sat in his car before. Now he is in the interrogation room. Let's go!"

  Niu Shoutong walked quickly up the steps of the police station, with Qiao Zhenglin hurrying after him.

  Qiao Zhenglin said as he walked: "Niu Tou, I think the murderer is a female killer."

  "Female killer?" Niu Shou Tong was stunned, involuntarily stopping in his tracks. He then quickly continued walking forward and said, "Didn't you see the killer? It's a man."

  Qiao Zhenglin said: "First, based on the analysis of footprints at the scene, it is unlikely that the murderer was an adult male. Second, a cigarette butt was found at the scene and has been sent to the forensic lab for testing. The results will be out soon. However, from what I know, professional killers are very meticulous in their daily lives and rarely smoke, especially during a crime, because nicotine has a strong stimulating effect on the nervous system, which can affect the killer's reaction speed and judgment."

  Niu Shoutong slowed down his pace and asked, "So what do you think about that cigarette butt..."

  Qiao Zhenglin quickly interjected, "It's the murderer's deliberate attempt to mislead us and divert our attention. Combining the two suspicious points I mentioned earlier, I believe the murderer must be a female killer disguised as a man."

  Niu Shoutong thought for a moment and said: "Your analysis makes sense, but let's still listen to what the eyewitness has to say."

  Although he said so, his heart couldn't help but skip a beat. Based on his own experience, he also felt that Qiao Zhenglin's analysis was probably correct, but why hadn't he thought of it himself? Although he had less information, he still wondered if he had already gotten old and Qiao Zhenglin might be slowly replacing him as the "King of Forensic Science".

  Although he also wanted to solve the case quickly, thinking of this, he would rather wait a little longer and see if the eyewitness made a mistake.

  Mei Shenglin was waiting at the door of the interrogation room, and when he saw Niu Shutong, he immediately went up to him and said: "Niu Tou, there is a witness who says they saw the murderer and was threatened."

  Niu Shou's emotions were complex, and he just slightly nodded his head.

  In the interrogation room, two police officers had already started taking statements from eyewitnesses. Niu Shoutong and Qiao Zhenglin sat down in front of a one-way mirror window and learned about the situation inside through an intercom system.

  The witness was a middle-aged man, somewhat disheveled, who was now speaking in vivid detail: "At the time, I discovered she was bleeding, from the back, and it almost dripped onto the seat of my car. I wanted to take her to the hospital, but she was very nervous and wouldn't let me go to the hospital, and even pulled out a gun to threaten me. Before that, when she spoke to me, she deliberately lowered her voice, so I didn't realize it at first, but as soon as she got nervous, I realized it was a woman. And then I also noticed her figure, absolutely a woman, with a great figure."

  The officer in charge of recording quickly wrote it down. Niu Shoutong turned his head and took a look at Qiao Zhenglin, who nodded confidently.

  The police officer asked: "Where did you send her?"

  A middle-aged man said: "Long-distance bus station. At that time, I thought she was a singer who refused to succumb to someone's lust and was retaliated against by others. You know, such things often happen. Now thinking back, her face looked very good-looking, not like those female stars who sell their bodies..."

  The police officer knocked on the table, interrupting his words and asked: "Did you see her get on the long-distance bus?"

  A middle-aged man woke up from his memories and said, "No. I was so scared at the time that she got off the car and I stepped on the accelerator to go home. Due to fear, I also ran two red lights on the road. Now I come to report the police, do you know if you can not deduct points or fine me?"

  "The officer pounded on the table again: 'Then why didn't you report it earlier?'"

  A middle-aged man said: "She had a gun. She also threatened me, saying that if I called the police, she would come back to find me. I was afraid, so I didn't dare call the police. But last night when I got home and watched TV, I found out that it was the mayoral candidate who was killed. I knew this was a big deal, and after a night of mental struggle, I decided to come report it to the police. Given the threat to my life and the subsequent psychological pressure, I request that you guarantee the safety of me and my family for 24 hours, and provide appropriate psychological compensation..."

  The officer impatiently interrupted, "We will consider your request and we will definitely guarantee the witness's safety. Come on, sign on the record first."

  The middle-aged man was hesitant and suspicious, but didn't dare to argue back, so he signed his name.

  Qiao Zhenglin stood up, unable to conceal his excitement, and said: "Niu Tou, now we can narrow down the scope by at least half."

  Niu Shoutong's face was expressionless, and he said indifferently: "I will make a specific plan, you go back and rest first."

  Qiao Zhenglin didn't notice Niu Shoutong's expression and said, "Thanks for your concern, but I can hold on. Now I just want to crack the case as soon as possible —"

  Niu Shoutong interrupted him: "Everything must have a plan, and no one is allowed to make any rash moves before my plan comes out." After a brief pause, he added: "So as not to frighten the snake by hitting the grass."

  Qiao Zhenglin said: "Alright, I'll go back first. Oh, Niu Tou, the murderer might really look for witnesses, we need to protect..."

  Niú Shòu Tōng was already very impatient and said loudly: "We don't have enough manpower to crack the case now, who will go protect him? You go?"

  Qiao Zhenglin was taken aback and swallowed back what he had been about to say.

  Mei Shenglin walked over and patted Qiao Zhenglin's shoulder, then followed Niu Shoutong out.

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