Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
“The blood sample cannot be tested again!” Forensics Gao said, giving Zhao Yu the bad news. “The sample the hospital took has already been mixed with other chemical reagents leaving it unable to be tested again!”
“What?” Zhao Yu asked gloomily. “That means the bottle in my hand now is useless?”
“Yup!” Forensics Gao said. “The blood test at the hospital is different from those done during the autopsies performed by police. They just want to check for the cause of the problem, while we look for evidence. So, the sample you have with you now is not useful. But don’t hang up yet, let me take a look at the report…”
“Alright.” Zhao Yu said listlessly. He was disappointed.
“Well, it seems that besides his fat levels, all the other indicators show that he’s healthy and in the normal ranges!” Forensics Gao said. “The deceased’s blood condition was actually better than the average person!”
“Oh…” Zhao Yu wasn’t expecting much to come out of the sample.
“Uhm, there’s nothing special judging by these reports,” Gao Facai continued. “No poison, no outliers, except… uhm…”
“Except what?” Zhao Yu asked.
“Wait what’s this… sodium thiopental?” Forensics Gao paused as he read the awkward-sounding word.
“What’s wrong?” Zhao Yu prompted him.
“Sodium thiopental is a therapeutic drug. Hold on, I haven’t seen this for years. Let me check it out!” Gao Facai answered.
Therapeutic drug? Zhao Yu frowned. He had no clue what that meant.
“Ah, I found it! It’s used to treat claustrophobia!” Forensics Gao said. “I nearly forgot about it. This is a rare drug and it’s hard to find on the market. I’ve heard about it before. Claustrophobia is a mental condition and while nothing can cure it completely, sodium thiopental has the potential to relieve some of the symptoms.”
“Claustrophobia?” Zhao Yu asked. “What’s that?”
“It’s a condition where the patient feels unbearably oppressed when he’s in an enclosed space, usually in situations like taking the elevator or an airplane!” Gao Facai explained.
“But the deceased’s house doesn’t have any elevators, nor does his workplace! As for planes, he didn’t really take them, so even if he did have this medication, he wouldn’t have had to take it often, right?” Zhao Yu wondered.
“Well, about that…” Forensics Gao said. “If the deceased has a private doctor you can ask him. But I’m sure that sodium thiopental is used to relieve mental strain and has nothing to do with heart disease. It cannot be used to induce heart failure either!”
“Oh…” Zhao Yu said. Although he was nodding, he felt as though something was amiss.
“How about this, I’ll show my colleagues the report and I’ll contact you again if they spot anything suspicious!” Gao Facai said.
“Alright, thank you!” Zhao Yu said politely before hanging up. Once he hung up, he immediately opened the system and searched for sodium thiopental on the Invisible Browser. Zhao Yu knew that the system’s equipment was more powerful than anything else available, so he wanted to see if there was any explanation of the drug available on the browser. In the end, he found that the explanation from the system was exactly what Forensics Gao had told him – it was a drug used to treat claustrophobia.
There was something else at the end of the article. At the bottom, it said ‘In addition to the above effects, the drug can also be used as a truth serum. It was first used by Foreign Intelligence…’ What?! Zhao Yu was taken aback after reading the explanation. A truth serum? Was it capable of forcing someone to tell the truth? If Yuan Juncheng had taken a truth serum, did the murderer want him to say something?
Zhao Yu continued to read the remaining information, but just as Forensics Gao had said, it was a neurological drug that did not affect the heart. That meant that Yuan Juncheng’s death had nothing to do with it. Still, why was there a truth serum in his system?
O’ hero… Zhao Yu’s phone rang. It was Cui Lizhu.
“Boss! I changed my mind!” Cui Lizhu blurted immediately after the call connected. “I think Yuan Juncheng was murdered! When I tried to retrieve the records from the cameras, I discovered all the cameras near his house were down!”
“What? How could that be?” Zhao Yu was surprised.
“It can’t be a coincidence, right?” Cui Lizhu said. “From what I know, someone had definitely snuck into Yuan Juncheng’s house. I don’t think we should delay this any longer. You should quickly contact Feng Ping’s police station and officially start an investigation!”
Zhao Yu felt uneasy. Before this, he hadn’t contacted the police because he wanted to investigate the case in secret and not make it a big issue. Besides, as the case involved treasure, the fewer people involved the better. But at such a point, if the investigations didn’t start, the murderer might get away and find clues for the treasure themselves! As Zhao Yu thought about this, his phone rang again. It was an unknown number. He hung up Cui Lizhu’s call and answered it.
“Hello, is this Officer Zhao Yu?” A soft and sweet voice said through the phone.
“Yes, speaking. Who’s this?” Zhao Yu asked. This was his work phone. Other than his colleagues nobody knew the number, and this woman’s voice was one he had never heard before.
“Oh, hello!” The woman said uncomfortably. “I’m Li Jing from Foreign Affairs. The Criminal Department sent me as your partner. Uhm, as the leader…”
“Li Jing? Leader? Isn’t it supposed to be Li Xiaoqiang? Also… you’re female?!” Zhao Yu asked.
“Ah, sorry about that! Li Xiaoqiang is what’s written on my ID, but everyone calls me Li Jing!” The woman laughed. “Leader Zhao, it’s an honor to work with you on this, and I hope to learn a lot from you. Please teach me well!”
“Female…?” Zhao Yu pulled his hair, a little confused. “I always thought you were a man. Why didn’t Ma Runkui tell me?”
“Ah, sorry,” Li Jing said politely. “I should have contacted you earlier, but I was on the plane. So sorry about that!”
“Then…” Zhao Yu was still in a daze and didn’t know what to say.
“Uhm… I am already in Feng Ping. Should I go to the provincial bureau or Feng Ping’s police station to meet you?” Just as Li Jing finished her sentence, Zhao Yu’s phone rang again. It was Miao Ying.
“Give me a second, I have an important call. I’ll call you back later!” he told her. Even though the new team leader was a woman and spoke courteously, Zhao Yu felt that he needed to be careful. He didn’t wait for her reply and hung up.
“Hey!” Who would have thought that after the line connected, the person on the other end of the phone would not be Miao Ying? “Officer Zhao, how have you been?” A woman asked, her voice was cold and sharp. Zhao Yu almost threw his phone away when he heard it. It was Cheng Lingfei! Cheng! Ling! Fei! Why would she be calling him with Miao Ying’s phone? Could it be…?
In that instant, Zhao Yu subconsciously glanced at the ‘Kun Dui’ words displayed on the system’s interface…
