Chapter 439: Chapter 413: Where are the people? Where are the two witnesses?_1
9:33
The vehicle reached the westernmost end of the road at General Mountain Tea Garden, where the vehicle could no longer proceed. According to the map, it was a straight-line distance of just over five hundred metres to Zhutoushi. But that was just the straight-line distance. To actually climb up there, there was still quite a walk ahead.
Everyone got out of the car, and Mr. Zhao started distributing supplies. After all, there were quite a few items that needed to be carried up the mountain. Mr. Bai’s car also came to a halt, and Xu Dayuan quickly got out. He didn’t rush to greet Zhou Ning and the others but instead began shaking hands and chatting with a group of people dressed in blue from another car.
Zhou Ning looked over and couldn’t tell which unit these people were from by their attire, but their equipment seemed very professional. Among them, some not only had dogs but also carried precision instruments akin to endoscopes used in surgery. However, Zhou Ning knew these were for exploration purposes.
As he was thinking, Xu Dayuan waved to Zhou Ning, who quickly strode over.
"Let me introduce you. This is Zhou Ning, director of the second forensic team at our technical department. And this is Huang Licheng, captain of the Blue Sky Rescue Team. They’re quite a professional rescue squad and will be joining our search operation. Your team will follow Captain Huang since they’re more familiar with the terrain of Tongshan."
Zhou Ning nodded in understanding, shook hands with Huang Licheng, and recognized this rescue team. Anyone who went missing in the mountains was mostly searched for with their help, and they were indeed very familiar with the terrain of Tongshan.
"Hello, Captain Huang."
Huang Licheng was quite straightforward and, putting on his gloves, quickly said:
"Do you have a lot of supplies? If so, we can share some of the load. I have a military background, and I’m not one for pretty words, but from here to Zhutoushi might seem close, yet it actually takes at least an hour to get there by foot.
The incline is filled with steep rocky valleys, no paths at all, and not long after you start walking up from here, all signals will disappear. We are basically relying on walkie-talkies and shouting to communicate. Additionally, we have a satellite phone here, which is the only way to stay in touch."
"We’ll follow Captain Huang’s arrangement. Have those two hikers also come along?"
Xu Dayuan hmphed twice, his face full of dissatisfaction.
"They are already near Zhutoushi, but the terrain is similar everywhere around here. Based on their description, I think anywhere within a three-kilometer radius is possible. So we need to be fully prepared. Have you brought enough water and food?"
Mr. Zhao, seemingly materializing out of nowhere, said with a grin:
"Don’t worry, boss. We’ve got food, drinks, various forensic protection gear, body bags, folding stretchers, and everything needed for an investigation. We’re prepared, even for several bodies."
Captain Huang laughed too.
"Good thing you’re also professionals. This way we can make faster progress. Alright, Director Xu, let’s start the quartering search in the areas we just discussed. As for the walkie-talkies, tune them to the designated channel. We’ll distribute our personnel across the different groups to choose routes."
Xu Dayuan nodded his head.
"Okay, no more chit-chat. I’ll coordinate from here. If there’s any problem, contact us immediately."
Without further ado, Zhou Ning glanced at the map in Huang Licheng’s hand, which marked out four groups and their respective areas. He turned to his own team, gesturing for everyone to gather closer.
"Let’s redistribute the gear we’ve just packed. We’re splitting into two groups—if anyone finds anything, we’ll regroup. But right now, having everything together isn’t conducive to the investigation."
Mr. Zhao and Mr. Yang were quick to respond, swiftly reallocating the gear. Driver Mr. Liu, being a forthright person, had the most supplies and chuckled heartily behind Zhou Ning:
"I’ll just follow Director Zhou and do the heavy lifting. I won’t be much help with other things, but climbing mountains, that I can do."
Zhou Ning didn’t say much and had Mr. Yang lead the two interns and Mr. Hen, following another search team, while they followed Huang Licheng. After a brief arrangement and distributing the search zone maps to everyone, the groups set off.
Captain Huang was indeed highly professional—he had been rescuing people in Tongshan District all year round and knew the environment well. He avoided large rocks and found a small path leading to the south side area of Zhutoushi.
As they walked, he took care of Zhou Ning, occasionally turning back to check on the rest of the team.
"You don’t need to take such care of me, Captain Huang. I’m still fairly fit!"
Though he spoke bravely, Zhou Ning’s voice was already trembling. In just twenty minutes, he was soaked through.
"Don’t mention it. Director Xu said you’re his priceless talisman. We can’t afford to have you in trouble. Besides, the terrain here is too complicated; even from a high vantage point, it’s not possible to see everything clearly.
We go into the mountain for search and rescue at least thirty times a year, some to find living people, some to find the bodies of suicide victims. Based on my experience, disposing of a body is meant to be concealed, and the fact that those two hikers could find it and see Zhutoushi from that position suggests two things.
First, the weather last night must have been good, the light far-reaching, and visibility high. Of course, it’s not just because of the weather. Yesterday, the wind was from the south; if it was on the southeast side of Zhutoushi, it would have been obstructed by the sea mist. So they were likely on the southwest side of Zhutoushi.
Second, after listening to their emergency call recording, the hikers said they were scared out of their wits when they found the body. They tripped over the rocks, crawled for a bit, and only when they were shining their bright flashlight around did they notice Zhutoushi high above.
The ground was littered with rocks with obstructions around; they had to look up to see Zhutoushi. That means the place they found was much lower than Zhutoushi, with lots of small rocks and no large stones – this is also characteristic of being close to the bottom of a valley. And now it’s winter; in summer, the dense vegetation would likely completely block the view."
This analysis made Zhou Ning feel it was professional.
"You guys are too professional; let’s search based on this analysis," Zhou Ning said.
Huang Licheng didn’t say much else, beckoning everyone to head in the southwest direction. An hour and a half later, they arrived at a valley. Huang Licheng surveyed the area, instructed everyone to rest, and the search team began to carefully inspect the surroundings.
Mr. Zhao approached Zhou Ning; they were already exhausted. After taking a few sips of water, Mr. Zhao lowered his voice and said,
"Does this mean we’re nearing the body dumping site?"
Zhou Ning nodded.
"It looks like it. Rest up well. We’re going to be busy soon. Is Zhu Xingxing holding up okay?"
Mr. Zhao glanced at Zhu Xingxing, who was not far off, eating a chicken leg and considerately stuffing the garbage bag into her pocket.
"She’s stronger than me. It’s a good thing you didn’t have Mr. Liu come with us. Even we young people are struggling to hold up."
Zhou Ning couldn’t help but laugh.
"Don’t say that. Retired seniors pay great attention to exercise; you might not necessarily be their match. I’m just worried about my master’s knee. His right leg was affected by a previous car accident and an explosion; he might not be able to endure if it’s too taxing."
As they were speaking, Huang Licheng’s booming voice rang out not far away.
"Found it, come over here quickly!"
At that sentence, it seemed like all the fatigue dissipated. Zhou Ning grabbed his backpack and hurriedly got up to run over. Mr. Liu the driver indeed had good stamina, protecting Zhou Ning and moving closer to Huang Licheng.
Zhou Ning, leaning on his knees and gasping for breath, felt completely drained from the search, and now couldn’t even straighten his back after the sprint. However, as he drew closer and smelled the familiar stench of a corpse, his heart finally settled.
Mr. Liu the driver appeared calm, without the strong reaction of a novice intern, quickly putting on a mask and helping Zhou Ning set down his backpack. Zhou Ning, while putting on his own mask, walked toward the corpse and gestured for everyone to keep their distance.
The deceased was curled up in a fetal position, lying on his side on the broken stones, with his right hand raised high. The palm of the right hand had turned into a skeleton, and there were signs of gnawing by animals, with some fingers missing.
However, his clothing was intact—a set of dark blue mountaineering gear. There was a cut in the fabric on the back, but the material was sturdy, with only a part being cut through. The left hand was not visible under the body, and the entire corpse was in an ’h’ shape.
The face of the deceased couldn’t be seen, as he was wearing a bucket hat with the strap fastened under the chin. Zhou Ning moved sideways a few steps, and from this angle, he could see the face of the deceased, which was surprisingly in a dry mummified state.
The skin was a light brown color, now completely adhering to the facial bones, sockets sunken, the lips tightly drawn back, mouth open with teeth exposed. The teeth were neat and white, with no signs of tobacco stains, and the wearing down of the biting surface wasn’t severe.
Zhou Ning switched on a high-power flashlight and looked through the parted mouth to examine the teeth, noting that two of the lower right molars were missing. However, the gums were severely dried out, making it difficult to discern the finer details.
Zhou Ning waved his hand and Mr. Zhao and the others came over.
"Measure the height of the deceased, shoe size, check the clothing size to estimate weight. Captain Huang, please notify our team members to hurry over here," Zhou Ning instructed.
Mr. Zhao quickly set people in motion, while Huang Licheng grabbed the radio and started barking orders. His voice was so loud that Zhou Ning could understand why yelling was considered another form of communication.
Soon, a large group of the search team congregated at the site. Xu Dayuan arrived briskly, leading Mr. Yang and the others, each one getting straight to work without needing instruction.
Xu Dayuan came over, looked at the state of the deceased, and then leaned over, panting, to ask,
"How’s it going? Any preliminary investigation results?"
Zhou Ning waved his hand, signaling Xu Dayuan to not hurry, and confirmed the data of the deceased with Mr. Zhao and the others before approaching Xu Dayuan.
"The deceased was about 175 centimeters tall, very thin. Based on shoe size, clothing size, and estimates from the wrist dimensions, we think the deceased weighed around 100 jin, or possibly even less.
Just now, I examined the man’s teeth and the condition of his head. The deceased had neat teeth, free from tobacco stains, but was missing the lower right molars. It’s difficult to tell with the naked eye whether the loss occurred before or after death. Based on the characteristic of the exposed biting surface of the molars and expanded wear patches, we estimate the deceased was about 38 years old;
The dehydration of the head showed a mummy-like state, with dry and shriveled eye sockets, retracted lips, and teeth exposed. The flesh clung to the bones, a state that is rare to see and usually only occurs in low-temperature, dry environments, combined with a very low body fat content and severe dehydration after having not eaten for a long period.
As for the time of death, it’s hard to deduce right now and will require further autopsy. The deceased had no identification or belongings on him, and his backpack was empty. It seems like the backpack was used to carry the body into the mountains. Based on the brands and the professionalism of the clothing and shoes on the body, I believe the deceased was someone skilled in outdoor activities, similar to the two hikers from before."
Xu Dayuan nodded, having seen the condition of the body himself. It was rare to gather this much information on-scene. Hearing what Zhou Ning said, he hurriedly looked around.
"Where are they, those two witnesses?"
