Xiao Zhou suddenly raised his voice, "Everyone listen up! Our great detective Song just said if he can't find any trace on the corpse, he'll eat this entire ashtray in public. Mind you, it's made of tempered glass."
The busy cops on site immediately gathered around to watch. Wang Dali defended me, "Don't just pick on Yangzi! What if you lose?"
Xiao Zhou glanced at everyone confidently, "If I lose, I'll eat all the ashes and cigarette butts. Heard that, right?"
The crowd cheered, clearly backing Xiao Zhou since he was their team leader.
I was confident in my forensic skills but found the challenge irritating. Thought to myself, "Don't act tough, just wait."
"Fine, let me check the body first. I'll talk to you when it's time to test," I said.
"Alright!" Xiao Zhou grinned, "But don't try to fake it with your own fingerprints."
"Relax, I'm not stupid enough to risk my reputation..." I sneered.
Xiao Zhou caught the sarcasm and snorted, "Then I'll be watching your tricks closely!"
...
After he left, Huang Xiaotao sighed, "Song Yang, I'm sorry."
"What happened?" I asked.
She explained Xiao Zhou was a proud returnee cop. After checking the body, he reported to her. She casually said, "No worries, wait for Song Yang to check." That careless remark bruised Xiao Zhou's ego.
He asked who I was. Huang Xiaotao said I was a forensic successor. He felt insulted and immediately challenged me, wanting to show his dominance.
She admitted, "I didn't manage the team well."
"Not your fault. I think this tech team leader's character is problematic," I replied.
Wang Dali asked, "Xiaotao, who outranks who between you and Officer Zhou?"
"We're equals, but I worked my way up. He's newer but came in as a captain," Huang Xiaotao said with a bitter smile.
"Why?" Wang Dali asked.
"Education. He's a criminal investigation PhD from abroad. I'm just a police academy grad," she self-deprecated.
Wang Dali exclaimed, "Wow, cops care about degrees now? He said he's a disciple of Li Changyu, sounds impressive."
I explained, "You got it wrong. He only attended Li Changyu's lectures. If he were the famous detective Li's disciple, he'd be even more arrogant."
I'd read nearly all forensic books in university, cross-checking with classics like Washing Away Wrongs — knowledge is power.
Huang Xiaotao worried, "Song Yang, Xiao Zhou told the team the corpse's fingerprint might have been tampered with. That's why he's confident betting against you. If you're unsure, I can cover for you."
I waved her off, "Unless the killer's a ghost, there's always a clue."
I pulled out a black wooden stick, "This is a 'bone listening rod' made of cypress. It's used to hear sounds from bones. Cypress transmits sound well. Last time I had to press my ear directly on the corpse because I wasn't prepared."
This time, I pressed the rod to the chest, abdomen, and back, tapping limbs to listen. The body had been dead for seven days. Using ears directly would've been disgusting.
Seven days — the traditional "first seven days" after death.
The overweight man who found the body said the mattress jolted. Maybe that's why.
The corpse lost a lot of blood but was in a sealed environment, so decay was minimal.
I heard blood clots in her chest cavity — she wasn't fully drained. Losing 30% blood causes shock; 50% shuts down circulation.
This victim lost over 70%, enough to fill several large soda bottles. I glanced at the two puncture wounds on her neck.
Could the killer be a vampire, sucking her dry?
I told Wang Dali to get scissors and cut off the bra and clothes. He gawked, "Careful, Xiaotao's here!"
"Enough talk!" I snapped.
Huang Xiaotao just crossed her arms calmly, used to this. Only Wang Dali freaked out.
Why worry about gender in autopsy? The corpse is just an object to me.
She asked, "Song Yang, how will you examine? Like last time with white vinegar steam?"
I shook my head — no equipment, and vinegar might not work. No Red Umbrella either — it was late.
Examinations depend on conditions. This time, I planned a new method.
I had Wang Dali bring my bag, took out some high-quality rice paper and camellia oil.
"This is for taking handprints."
I didn't say fingerprints because I suspected the corpse's prints couldn't be lifted.
Xiao Zhou overheard and came over, "Hey, Detective Song is starting his exam, let me watch."
"Keep your eyes wide open," I said.
I flipped the corpse. From neck wounds, the killer pressed their hand on her back while sucking blood — clear handprints must be there.
Rice paper and camellia oil are expensive. This oil-paper overlay method was an extravagant forensic technique passed down from Song Ci, a Song Dynasty coroner.
I carefully dripped camellia oil on the rice paper placed on her back.
The paper turned transparent, revealing skin underneath.
Layer by layer, I added sheets until the oil stopped seeping through.
On the top layer, two clear palm prints appeared.
"Damn, that's badass!" Wang Dali shouted.
"Song Yang, how did you do it?" Huang Xiaotao asked.
"No way!" Xiao Zhou's eyes widened, "You're cheating! You must have faked it on the paper!"