National Forensic Doctor-Chapter 1098 - 1029: Strengthening

Noon.

Scorching sun.

Looking up at the sun, it seemed to glow with an extra halo.

The temperature of thirty-seven degrees felt like seventy-three degrees on the garbage mountain, almost as if it were a scorching one hundred and seventy-three degrees.

The garbage dump workers were all hiding in air-conditioned rooms, drinking saline soda, chatting and laughing, watching a group of amateurs struggle to move across the mountain of trash.

Suddenly, one of the police officers leaped up.

One of the site team leaders at the garbage dump, who had been watching them, jumped up as well, muttering, "Damn, someone must’ve passed out."

An excavator operator glanced over curiously and remarked, "Bound to happen sooner or later. It’s so hot, hanging around the landfill zone—who knows what’s going on in their heads? Even with my excavator’s AC cranked to full blast, I can’t stay out there."

"They’re looking for kidnapped kids," another worker said, putting his saline soda down with a thud. "If you can’t help, fine, but how can you have the nerve to make snide comments? Imagine if your own child was abducted, and the officers just lounged in an air-conditioned room sipping cold drinks, unwilling to sift through the garbage for evidence. Could you stomach that?"

"I don’t have kids," the excavator operator replied coldly.

The worker blinked for a second, awkwardly responding, "Well, someday you’ll have kids..."

"No way. I don’t even have a partner, and I don’t plan on having kids. Garbage folk not finding partners—what’s strange about that?" The operator cut him off and added, "So, can I make snide comments now or what?"

"Go help, save someone." The team leader, sensing the stiff atmosphere in the break room, simply stood up and began putting on a mask.

Some followed suit and started putting on their masks, while others remained sprawled on their chairs, pretending not to hear.

The stench of the garbage mountain intensified in the sweltering heat, so pungent that even those accustomed to the smell found it unbearable.

Years of smelling filth might mean a lifetime of smelling filth—just like enduring hardship often means unending hardship. But even those resigned to a life surrounded by garbage and toil did not necessarily like it.

The team leader grabbed a stretcher and led the group toward the landfill zone, hundreds of meters away.

As they approached, the overpowering stench wasn’t the only thing that hit them; faint cheers could be heard as well.

"Have they lost it?" one of the dump workers murmured in doubt.

The team leader shook his head, quickened his pace, and soon saw a group of police officers jubilantly escorting one of their own out.

"Heading home."

"See ya."

"Let’s wrap it up."

The officers waved and said their goodbyes, cheerful as they addressed the garbage dump staff.

Meng Chengbiao, sandwiched in the middle, could only smile sheepishly.

"You’re leaving already?" The team leader approached a familiar-looking officer and asked.

"They’re free to go now." The officer, who turned out to be Shen Yaowei, responded calmly. "A few of us will stay behind to wrap things up."

"Wait—already? Have you solved the case?" The team leader felt a twinge of disappointment for no apparent reason.

Shen Yaowei nodded. "The need here isn’t as urgent anymore. But we still have unfinished business and will need your continued cooperation."

Back at the station, Meng Chengbiao’s interrogation went exceptionally well, and the suspects had begun confessing, one after another.

This indicated that at least one member of Wu Yang’s gang faced certain execution, and the entire group was looking at severe penalties. Under such pressure, the suspects started revealing details about their connections and disclosed the whereabouts of five abducted children—no longer a challenge.

As a result, just as the Criminal Police Team captain at Yuwan City Bureau had hoped, most officers could withdraw and no longer endure the stench.

However, the captain himself, along with Shen Yaowei, still needed to stay at the garbage mountain to continue the unfinished work.

Instead of heading straight back to Yuwan City Bureau, Meng Chengbiao and Miao Liyuan took their team to a bathhouse, soaked for two hours, and then returned with a faint trace of the garbage dump’s odor still lingering.

"Meeting in the large conference room," Wang Chuanxing waited at the door.

"Who’s chairing?" Being a seasoned criminal investigator, Meng Chengbiao knew that meetings held in the large conference room typically involved assigning tasks rather than discussing issues—implying that decisions had already been made. Now it was just a question of who the authority figure was. fɾeeweɓnѳveɭ.com

"Captain Jiang," Wang Chuanxing replied.

Instantly, Meng Chengbiao relaxed and let his tension melt away. The compounded scent of bath soap and garbage somehow pacified his restless mind.

Yuwan City Bureau’s large conference room.

Once everyone had gathered, the department leader made brief introductory remarks, and Jiang Yuan took over. "The female corpse found at the garbage dump, Zhu Huixian, has been confirmed as a victim of Wu Yang’s gang, who abducted, raped, and killed her. For now, we have not found additional corpses, nor does the gang’s testimony point to more murder cases. On the other hand, we have confirmed two more cases of women being trafficked."

Many officers were hearing this for the first time, and their expressions turned serious.

Including the five abducted children, there were now seven trafficking cases in total.

"Currently, it is known that the two women were sold to a human trafficker nicknamed ’Gorilla.’ The five children were sold to two separate female traffickers—one using the name Li Juan and the other called Xiao Mei." Jiang Yuan paused before continuing, "We have precisely identified the real identities of the three traffickers. Specific arrests will be coordinated by Director Zhou."

Director Zhou, head of criminal investigations at Yuwan City Bureau, enthusiastically took the floor. "I officially command Criminal Police Brigade’s Unit 1 to arrest Suspect No. 1, Wang Mian, nicknamed ’Gorilla’... Criminal Police Brigade’s Unit 2 to apprehend Suspect No. 2..."

The commanding officer of each unit stood at attention and respectfully saluted. Below, the police officers whispered among themselves:

"They’ve already identified suspects?"

"Did they already have intel ahead of time?"

"I heard God Jiang spent the past two days profiling traffickers—he probably pinpointed all the active ones nearby."

"How do they even confirm it?"

"Using other cases? Informants? Well, that’s why he’s ’God.’"

Veteran officers often approached crime-solving with a healthy dose of skepticism, even when it came to Sherlock Holmes-like tales. Yet genuinely challenging cases and extraordinary criminal investigators still held their admiration—leading to an internal mythology exclusive to the profession.

Alternatively, perhaps some experts were so absurdly skilled that they practically lived up to the mystique of Sherlock Holmes. After all, figures like "God-eye Ma Yulin," who invented innovative step-tracking techniques, or Xu Limin of the Eight Tigers, who memorized thirty thousand fingerprints, were very real.

For Jiang Yuan specifically, wielding an arsenal of skills paired with ample time to meticulously dissect human-trafficking cases in Yuwan City, stellar results were only inevitable.

In fact, for Jiang Yuan, the integrated application of his abilities represented both learning and progress.

After Director Zhou’s gleeful announcement of the arrest warrants, Jiang Yuan spoke again: "Each unit must deploy officers skilled in blitz interrogations. After completing arrests, conduct immediate interrogations to extract information about downstream connections as quickly as possible. Besides that, all units must remain on standby starting now."

Director Zhou nodded and asserted, "Everyone must enhance their sense of responsibility and faithfully carry out their duties..."

The criminal investigators at Yuwan City Bureau listened half-heartedly. It wasn’t that they couldn’t understand—they simply found Jiang Yuan’s words increasingly hard to believe.

Four hours later.

Once again, Director Zhou convened the relevant officers in the large conference room.

After the typical photo session and brief remarks, Jiang Yuan picked up his microphone. "Latest update: Suspects Nos. 1, 2, and 3 have all been apprehended. Of these, Nos. 1 and 2 have confessed to their downstream connections. Suspect No. 3 remains under interrogation. Gorilla’s connection has been traced to two individuals—nicknamed Ghost Li (male) and Qiao Bing (female). Suspect No. 2 provided one connection, nicknamed Kou Zi. These three suspects are now labeled Nos. 4, 5, and 6."

Jiang Yuan glanced at his notebook before continuing, "We’ve now identified the real identities of Suspects Nos. 4, 5, and 6. The specific arrests will be managed by Director Zhou."

The room erupted in murmurs.

Director Zhou coughed twice, then picked up the microphone: "Quiet down. Let’s first organize the arrest operations. I command Criminal Police Brigade’s Unit 4 to arrest Suspect No. 4, Zhang Bing, nicknamed Ghost Li... Luting County Criminal Police Team will handle arrests of Nos. 5 and 6..."

The unit commanders all stood and acknowledged their assignments.

Director Zhou sipped his water, then sternly reiterated, "Everyone must strengthen their sense of duty and faithfully perform their tasks..."