Diary of a Criminal Investigator

That evening, the director of the Tianzhou City Public Security Bureau invited the special investigation team for dinner.

Though Li Donglin’s rank was far below that of the director of Tianzhou City Public Security Bureau, he was from the provincial department, representing a higher authority. Besides, Li Donglin’s arrival was specifically for the case in Tianzhou City.

"Director Li, it’s truly an inconvenience having you come such a long way. On behalf of the Tianzhou City Public Security Bureau, I sincerely thank the special investigation team for their efforts!"

"Director Sun, you’re too kind. It’s all part of our duty."

Li Donglin originated from the Tianzhou Public Security Bureau, and back when he was appointed, Director Sun was already the director, so Li Donglin naturally maintained a humble demeanor.

Lu Chuan and the others were naturally taken care of by Wang Chuanmin and his team.

"Teacher Lu, I must toast to you with this glass of wine!"

Wang Chuanmin genuinely wanted to toast Lu Chuan, not just for the case at the Wang Family River but also for the homicide at the North Suburb Logistics Park. If it weren’t for Lu Chuan...

It’s not that the case couldn’t have been solved, but no one could say when it would have been solved without his help.

"It’s what I should do, just a minor effort."

Lu Chuan picked up his wine glass. It wasn’t particularly difficult for him, nor did it take much time. He merely helped Tianzhou City’s criminal investigation team with an analysis of the murder weapon.

In fact, the case in Tianzhou City wasn’t very difficult. Although the murderer left little evidence at the scene, it was precisely for this reason that more information was revealed.

However, Wang Chuanmin and his team focused too much on the fingerprints lifted from the murder weapon, neglecting the cause of the blurred fingerprints.

Of course, this also reflected Tianzhou City’s criminal investigation team’s limited crime scene investigation abilities; otherwise, they might have found some clues.

Amidst the clinking of glasses, everything on the dinner table seemed chaotic, but it was all arranged according to rank.

Director Sun of Tianzhou’s Public Security Bureau maintained the rhythm, playing host to Li Donglin. Wang Chuanmin mainly took care of Lu Chuan, while other members of the special investigation team were accompanied by deputy positions or action team leaders from the criminal investigation team.

Early the next morning.

Lu Chuan was on his way back.

This trip wasn’t long, but the case they solved was significant. It was the second time the special investigation team made an appearance, once again concluding perfectly.

Li Donglin, as the direct supervisor of the special investigation team, was given credit, especially since it was his suggestion to initially form the team.

Now that the special investigation team was achieving such results, it also contributed to Li Donglin’s achievements.

Haizhou City’s criminal investigation team, crime scene investigation office.

When Lu Chuan returned, Old Bai and Yang Sen were chatting, with Zhang Hui also present.

"Lu is back?"

Zhang Hui’s eyes lit up, "I heard the case in Tianzhou was quite big."

"Come, come, hero’s return, have a cup of water."

Old Bai filled Lu Chuan’s enamel mug with tea, welcoming him warmly.

"Thanks, Brother Bai," said Lu Chuan, taking the mug and feeling relaxed. It was comfortable to be back in his own office: "Five lives, the suspect started killing people more than a decade ago. The case was indeed significant."

"Five lives?"

Yang Sen was startled, "Who could be so ruthless?"

"A live-in son-in-law, severely bullied by his wife’s family. His wife was from Sichuan Province. If someone provoked him, even just insulting his mother, he killed them,"

Lu Chuan briefly explained the case, and the group sighed.

Killing often requires a reason, and those reasons usually fit within the logical framework of a normal person’s thinking.

However, some suspects commit murder without logical motivation. Some killers don’t need a motive at all, they just want to kill.

"Is the master not here?"

"Went to a meeting."

"The morning meeting isn’t over?"

"The morning meeting is done. It’s a case analysis joint meeting, something about a complex burglary in the High-tech Zone’s criminal investigation team."

A burglary?

Lu Chuan wasn’t too concerned.

Whether it is burglary or robbery, for ordinary people, these might be considered major cases, but for Lu Chuan, who often handled homicides, burglaries and robberies were minor cases.

Lu Chuan now evaluated the magnitude of a case by one criterion.

If there’s a death, it’s a significant case; multiple deaths mean it’s a major case.

After spending a while in his office, Lu Chuan headed to the forensic doctor’s office.

"Hello, Brother Wang."

Greeting Wang Changjiang, Lu Chuan handed him a Chunghwa cigarette.

"Lu is back? Is the case over there settled?"

"Yes, it’s done,"

Wang Changjiang and his team returned earlier than expected, as the autopsy of the five bodies progressed quicker than anticipated. Wang Changjiang and the extramurally seconded forensic doctors returned two days ago.

"Shen is inside doing a bone density examination, almost done."

This time, accompanying Lu Chuan on the trip, Wang Changjiang witnessed Lu Chuan’s prominent standing in the provincial special investigation team.

Describing him as an ordinary elite seemed insufficient; from the perspective of crime-solving, he was already hinting at a leading position.

Throughout the case-solving process, Lu Chuan consistently provided critical clues at crucial moments.

This even included aspects of the autopsy performed by forensic doctors.

For instance, the occupational judgment of victim number one, Su Mo, which the forensic doctors participating at that time did not identify.

That’s how case-solving works—if you can decipher clues and information that others cannot, you can analyze and provide reasonable explanations, you become invaluable.

Promotion considers seniority, rank, and police rank, but case-solving disregards all that.

Whoever is capable leads, even a director has to step aside during case-solving.

But realistically, no one dares to let a director step aside.

In the forensic laboratory, Shen Yan was conducting a bone density test.

This is a staple project for the forensic department; colleagues come in almost daily.

Although the forensic lab’s bone density testing equipment is meant for examining bones of the deceased, generally speaking, there’s not much difference between the bones of the living and the dead.

Getting tested in the forensic department saves money during physical exams, which can be used for other projects.

They say men look their best while working; women are also particularly charming when they work.

Lu Chuan quietly stood behind Shen Yan, watching her, feeling inexplicably calm.

The case in Tianzhou City, though short-lived, had a significant impact on Lu Chuan.

However, as he had handled many cases in the past, any emotional changes in Lu Chuan weren’t apparent, though they were indeed present.

In recent years, the Criminal Investigation Team had started to pay attention to the psychological health of detectives.

"Okay, everything looks fine."

Soon, Shen Yan finished the examination for a colleague in the office.

"Thanks, Forensic Doctor Shen. I won’t intrude on your time with Lu Chuan."

Shen Yan turned around, noticing Lu Chuan behind her for the first time.

"When did you come back?"

Forensic Doctor Shen’s eyes filled with joy.

Lu Chuan had chatted with her in the morning, but he hadn’t mentioned he would return today.