Chapter 10: Chapter 10: Arrest? Arrest
If she hadn’t died in a temple, a place for ancestral worship, it’s possible that to this day, no one would have reported it to the police!
This is a terrifying thought.
What kind of thought?
The perfect crime!
Many people have considered how to construct a case—one the police can’t solve—but it’s difficult, if not completely impossible.
Most "unsolvable" cases are only conceived as such because of uneven police resources or a lack of top-tier investigators. Otherwise, no matter the setup, a breakthrough can always be found.
Therefore, no matter how you think about it or how you design the case, the perfect crime, in theory, doesn’t exist.
You can only get infinitely close!
But...
You can look at it from another angle.
The purpose of constructing a perfect crime is to prevent the police from finding or catching you.
If that’s the case, then the safest method is... for no case to be filed!
As long as no case is filed, it means no one has discovered you. The police won’t even know you exist, and no one will ever investigate you!
As long as you can kill someone without the police realizing someone has died, then naturally there’s no chance of the case being solved.
But...
"That’s almost impossible."
"Neighbors, colleagues, bosses, school teachers, police censuses..."
Xu Huo continued to guide everyone’s thinking, listing one role after another.
The simplest way to achieve a perfect crime is to prevent a case from being filed, but that’s also the hardest part.
Human social circles mean a person’s prolonged disappearance will inevitably draw attention. Forget about parents and relatives—even your boss will come looking for you if you stop showing up for work.
Unless it’s a gloomy shut-in, the type who completely avoids all social contact. But that kind of person doesn’t have many conflicts that would lead to them being murdered.
But this case...
"No one reported her missing, no one filed a report, no one knew her!"
"What kind of person would be like that?"
Xu Huo pulled his gaze away from the photograph.
"Who is this person?"
In modern society, this kind of thing almost never happens. Even for migrant workers, relatives they might not see for a year will still call frequently to check in.
But the girl in this case defies that logic. It’s as if she just sprouted from the ground.
This, in theory, should not be possible.
But what if...
"What if her identity doesn’t meet the preconditions?"
Suddenly, Xu Huo opened up another line of thought, stunning everyone.
"If she had no parents, no friends, no neighbors, and her body was hidden after she died, would a case ever be filed!?"
Would it?
No. If no one cares, no one notices. If no one notices, it’s as if she never existed!
If you don’t exist in anyone’s eyes, how could a case possibly be filed?
But then another question arises. If she had no parents and no neighbors, then...
"What kind of person is that?" Li Jianye frowned. "An orphan?"
"An orphan is someone whose parents are dead. That doesn’t mean they don’t have other relatives or neighbors."
Xu Huo took a deep breath. He looked at the photo of the corpse with its delicate features, then raised his head to stare at Li Jianye.
This is a rape case.
A rape case with no family to report it.
"Captain Li, I wonder if you’ve ever heard of a certain term used to describe certain behaviors targeting a certain type of person."
"Specifically..."
There exists a type of person in this world, a group that few people notice. They hide in the corners of the city like rats.
Of course, their behavior is also rat-like.
Filthy, messy, smelly, slovenly, rummaging through trash cans, extremely uncultured, with a worrying mental state...
Some of these people even call themselves rats.
And if they’re rats, then naturally they have no human rights. They’re like rats crossing the street that everyone wants to get away from. Even if someone gives them a kick or two, no animal rights activist is going to come to their defense.
And among these people, a term has gradually emerged from this environment.
A niche, worldview-shattering term...
"Free sex slaves."
Xu Huo spoke, uttering three words that entered everyone’s ears.
In an instant, a strange silence fell over everyone.
Li Jianye swallowed, his throat dry.
He was experienced, he had seen a lot, and he knew who Xu Huo was talking about. And it was precisely because he knew that...
...he became even more silent!
"Chief, what’s that?" a few police officers behind him, trainees waiting for their official appointments, asked in a low voice.
They had only been on the job for a year and had handled fewer than four cases. The rest of their time was mostly spent on cold cases, so they had never heard of such a thing.
"It means exactly what it says."
Li Jianye let out a heavy breath and spoke sullenly.
Statistically speaking, their bellies are almost never flat all year round.
Their whole lives are spent in torment: getting pregnant and giving birth, giving birth and getting pregnant.
Like a 24-hour roadside self-service shop. Whenever you want it, you just go and find them.
No, they’re worse off than a self-service shop.
A self-service shop costs money.
They’re free.
Of course, they also have another identity.
"Homeless..."
Li Jianye lowered his head, resting his forehead against the back of his hand, and spoke heavily, his voice seemingly devoid of all spirit.
As the investigation progressed, he felt the case was turning into a tragedy, and an unheard-of one at that!
"Homeless women!"
Li Jianye added.
Looks of astonishment appeared on the faces of everyone present.
Everyone knows about homeless people. Their lives are miserable, rummaging through trash cans for food.
But homeless women... their lives are far more miserable!
Most people’s stereotype of a homeless person is that of a disheveled man. But as mentioned, that’s just a stereotype.
Homelessness doesn’t discriminate based on gender.
But what’s the impression of homeless women?
Most likely, very few people can quickly conjure up an image.
Xu Huo could summarize it in a few sentences.
"They are always naked."
"They are always pregnant."
"Most of the time they appear, they’re being chased by several laughing men."
"And finally, they disappear completely..."
Perhaps they die from complications during one of their many childbirths, or perhaps they become ’normal people.’
"Captain Li, aren’t you going to share a few cases for them to hear?" Xu Huo glanced at the new detectives with their clear, unjaded eyes, then turned his head to look at Li Jianye.
Li Jianye’s expression was somewhat bitter. He was silent for a long while before finally speaking.
"In 1980, there was a case where a homeless woman was abducted. They put a chain around her neck, tying her up like an animal. In the end, she died in childbirth while still chained up..."
"Isn’t that right, Zhao Shui?"
Li Jianye looked at Zhao Shui.
Zhao Shui didn’t make a sound, just stood there in silence.
It’s a tragic existence. Anyone can take advantage of them.
As for reporting to the police...
It’s useless. The phenomenon can’t be eradicated.
In other words, in this case, the woman who died four years ago...
...was very likely a homeless person.
Four years ago, a homeless woman, freshly bathed, changed into a new set of clothes. And that same night, four people murdered her.
Four years later, four people are nailed to crosses.
"This..."
Everyone suddenly fell silent.
Revenge. This was revenge. Even without thinking it through, they could feel the resentment, so palpable it was almost tangible.
They could almost see the killer’s hand gripping the knife, veins bulging on their skin.
They could almost see the person’s savage face, clenched teeth, and bloodshot, crimson eyes...
Li Jianye took a deep breath. He knew that with the investigation having come this far, catching the culprit and solving the case was only a matter of time.
But...
"Do we make the arrest..."
Li Jianye asked out loud. He felt the urge to smoke, but looking around at the crime scene, he dismissed the thought.
Zhao Shui didn’t make a sound, and neither did Chu Xi. The other junior officers were completely reeling, unable to believe such people existed at the very bottom of the world.
"Arrest them!"
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