Animal Detective

Chapter 311 - 258: Are There Still Professional Killers These Days?

He tried expanding the search area, but the result was the same; Odin was still at a loss.

Shen Xin mentally retraced their path.

Not far from where they lost the scent, they had passed a garbage depot.

Then, they had also passed the gate of a construction site.

The site was active 24/7, with trucks constantly coming and going. Due to city cleanliness regulations, the tires of every truck were hosed down as they entered or left.

Once washed, they would drive out, leaving the entire area outside the gate soaked.

And that’s not to mention the heavy exhaust fumes from the trucks constantly moving in and out. The interference was just too much.

Shen Xin pulled Odin’s leash taut and shook his head at Liu Baoqing. "Captain Liu, I think this is it."

This was their limit.

They had tracked the scent for at least two kilometers, all the way from the mountain to this spot.

Dou Dou had already been forced to quit. The fact that Odin made it this far was already incredible.

Liu Baoqing quickly shot him a thumbs-up. "Don’t worry about it. This is already damn impressive."

He crouched down, gave Odin’s head a good ruffling, and lavished him with praise, a wide grin on his face, promising to buy him some tasty treats later.

He’d always known K-9s were useful.

Just now, for instance, their tracking had established the suspect’s escape route.

’Over such a long distance, could the suspect really have left no trace at all? People always leave something behind.’

’Even if you plan your route to avoid people, you’re bound to run into something unexpected.’

’Like back in that residential area. Maybe someone saw the suspect late at night.’

"Shen Xin, thanks."

Liu Baoqing offered a quick thanks, then pointed at Odin and instructed Shen Xin to take good care of him. From now on, he said, Odin was the official mascot of the New District Criminal Investigation Division.

With that, he and his men hurried away.

On his way over, he had noticed three surveillance cameras along the road. They might yield some clues.

And then there was the residential area from before.

They had plenty of leads to follow.

Only then did Ding Yuwei get a chance to ask what the case was all about.

Shen Xin was just about to tell her.

’Ding Yuwei was very smart; maybe she’d have some fresh insights.’

But before the words left his mouth, he saw Li Jiahui sidling up to them.

"Stay back," Shen Xin said, poking her on the forehead to push her away.

’Detectives are discussing a case. What’s a tech officer like you sticking her nose in for?’

"I’ll just listen, I promise," Li Jiahui said. "Don’t worry, my lips are sealed."

Shen Xin didn’t believe her for a second.

’If I tell her now, the news will be all over the K-9 base by tomorrow. The day after, I’ll probably see it on my social media feed.’

He waved her away, motioning for her to walk behind them. Only then did Shen Xin pull Ding Yuwei aside and briefly explain the situation.

Finally, he asked, "What do you think?"

Ding Yuwei turned her head and glanced at Li Jiahui.

She was holding Odin’s leash, trying to get closer to eavesdrop again.

Caught in the act, she shot Ding Yuwei a disgruntled look, made a face, and dropped back a few paces.

’Love rivals, after all.’

Only then did Ding Yuwei speak. "If the killer isn’t his wife, then there are some strange things about this case."

"For example, if it was premeditated murder, then the crime scene was handled too sloppily."

"Most importantly, we tracked him all this way, and the suspect clearly has some anti-surveillance awareness. If he has that kind of awareness, why didn’t he clean up the scene?"

Shen Xin nodded. That was exactly what he’d been thinking.

’The suspect must have cased the area beforehand. That’s why he cut through the residential district to avoid the cameras at the K-9 base entrance.’

’But with that level of anti-surveillance awareness, would he really just toss the body into the water so carelessly?’

"But nothing’s ever certain," Ding Yuwei continued. "We shouldn’t overcomplicate our thinking about the suspect, either. Maybe he thought just dumping the body in the water was good enough."

"That’s right," Shen Xin said.

Sometimes, you can’t afford to overthink the suspect.

The case of Zhu Tianshun left a deep impression on Shen Xin.

At the time, they couldn’t for the life of them figure out why the suspect had only disposed of an ear, and in a lunchbox, of all places.

They later found out the guy had just tossed it aside absentmindedly, forgotten where he’d put it, and then spent ages looking for it himself.

So, even though Shen Xin felt the scene was handled carelessly, perhaps in the killer’s eyes, it was a job well done—the best possible method.

Seeing Shen Xin lost in thought, Ding Yuwei smiled. "All right, don’t overthink it. This is Renxin District’s case, and you’ve already done your part to help. How they investigate from here is their business."

"Besides, a case like this shouldn’t be too hard to solve. It doesn’t require that genius brain of yours."

She said with a grin, gently tapping Shen Xin on the forehead.

Out of the corner of her eye, she glanced at Li Jiahui, who was trailing behind them.

"Hey, I’m no genius."

Shen Xin quickly denied it. ’How could I possibly be considered a genius?’

’But Yuwei was right. It was their case, after all. No need for him to worry himself over it.’

’They were all seasoned veterans. Captain Liu and his team could handle a case like this with ease.’

The three of them returned to the K-9 base.

Ding Yuwei didn’t stay long and left with Dou Dou.

As for the K-9 base, the case that had unfolded right on their doorstep quickly became the main topic of conversation.

From time to time, someone would report on the progress outside.

Things like when the police cordon was taken down, and when the car was towed away.

Even the security guard on the night shift at the gate gave a statement.

When it was time to clock out for the evening, Li Mo, who had been watching the commotion up on the mountain, reported that the area was still cordoned off.

And they had brought in divers who were busy recovering stones.

Meanwhile, the canvassing and interviews were ongoing. The latest rumor, passed by word of mouth, was that the killer had a deep-seated grudge against Huang Weili and had brutally stabbed him more than a dozen times.

Short-form videos about it even started appearing online.

They claimed a murder had taken place at Shitang Reservoir.

The most popular version of the story spreading in the comment sections was that a conflict had broken out between two fishing buddies.

It claimed the killer had hooked a huge fish, and Huang Weili was helping him with the landing net when he accidentally let the fish get away.