Animal Detective

The details of the interrogation were unknown.

But Shen Xin could read people’s expressions.

For instance, Zhang Songhao, who was driving him back to Nanjiang, couldn’t hide the smile in his eyes and was even humming along to the music on the radio.

No need to ask. There had definitely been a breakthrough.

It was already 8 PM by the time they got back to Nanjiang.

Zhang Songhao drove Shen Xin right to his door. As he got out, he couldn’t help but snatch Sheriff from Shen Xin’s arms and plant a kiss on the cat without another word.

"Shen Xin, it’s a deal. I’ll treat you to a meal later."

Sheriff scratched him, but Zhang Songhao didn’t care at all. He just tossed out that line, got back in his car with a cheerful grin, and drove off.

Once home, he opened a can of food for Sheriff.

Shen Xin started thinking about moving.

This place was convenient for getting to the branch office, but it was far from the city bureau.

The city bureau was in the New District.

Shen Xin considered moving over there.

He’d heard Zhao Tianxing muttering about moving before, too.

Zhao Tianxing even said something about how living closer to the city bureau was a sign of success.

In reality, he just didn’t want to live with his parents and was eager to move out and enjoy his freedom.

Shen Xin had shot back, "You might as well just live in the dorms then."

After flopping on his couch for a while and seeing it was still early, Shen Xin hesitated for a moment before messaging Ding Yuwei and Zhao Tianxing.

He invited them out for a late-night snack.

The three of them had a work group chat. Shen Xin’s one message immediately got a reaction out of both of them.

[Where? Send location.]

That was from Zhao Tianxing.

[You’re back? Is the case closed?]

That was Ding Yuwei.

Shen Xin replied: "Not that fast, but I’m free, anyway."

[Location.]

Zhao Tianxing pressed him again.

Shen Xin thought for a moment and sent the location of a nearby barbecue skewer place. It was only open for the late-night crowd, so it should be open by now, close to nine.

Zhao Tianxing arrived quickly; he didn’t live far.

Ding Yuwei’s place was farther away, on the border of Tingyang and the New District, so she took a little longer.

She usually wore her hair in a ponytail, but today, probably having just showered, it was up in a bun, giving her a more mature look.

But Shen Xin was used to seeing her. He gestured for her to sit, slid the menu in front of her, and told her to order whatever she wanted.

Then he turned back to the animated Zhao Tianxing to continue their discussion about how to use a certain device he had seen.

When he saw Ding Yuwei prick up her ears to listen, Zhao Tianxing immediately shut his mouth and changed the subject.

Like the gossip he had picked up from hanging around the city bureau the past few days.

As he rambled on, Shen Xin cut him off. "Enough with the gossip. I asked you to scope out the detachments. Did you find any suitable candidates?"

Shen Xin’s bottom line was one more person.

Four people was perfect for splitting into two teams.

Cold cases didn’t necessarily require that many people. Back in Tingyang, he and Ding Yuwei had handled them just fine as a pair.

If they found anything, they could always request backup.

Zhao Tianxing took a bite of his lamb skewer and nodded. "Actually, yeah. I think he’s a great fit. His name is Yang Zeran, a top student who graduated from the Public Security University with a degree in criminal investigation."

Shen Xin was surprised. "That can’t be right. He graduated from the Public Security University in criminal investigation and came to our Nanjiang?"

The Public Security University is in Capital Anjing. That’s a world away from Nanjiang, one in the north and one in the south.

"Where’s he from?" Shen Xin pressed.

Zhao Tianxing said, "Ningshan."

Shen Xin said, "That’s my point. He’s from Ningshan, graduated from the Public Security University—the best program in criminal investigation, no less. With credentials like that, there’s no way he should have ended up in Nanjiang."

The Public Security University is the best police academy in the country.

And it’s under direct ministerial jurisdiction.

From a school that good, if he’d just pushed a little during the joint civil service exam, wouldn’t it have been better to go to big cities like Anjing or Songpu?

And even if he wanted to return to his hometown, that would be Ningshan.

With his qualifications, if he went back to Ningshan, he’d have a high chance of getting into the provincial Public Security Department.

But instead, he came to Nanjiang and joined the Municipal Criminal Investigation Detachment?

’Starting on a lower rung of the ladder means you’ll be one step behind for the rest of your career.’

Zhao Tianxing said, "You don’t know the story. The guy’s a bit lovesick. His college girlfriend from Anjing is from our Nanjiang."

"Her parents wouldn’t let her leave Nanjiang, so this kid grit his teeth and, behind his parents’ backs, tested into a position here."

Shen Xin could only think, ’Wow.’

’That’s some dedicated love, sacrificing part of his own career development like that.’

’If they break up down the line, it’ll be too late for regrets.’

Shen Xin couldn’t help but gossip, asking if the woman’s family was particularly wealthy.

And an only daughter, on top of that.

Zhao Tianxing instantly understood but shook his head. "Nope, just a regular family. Same for Yang Zeran. So it’s true love."

"I’ve seen the girl. How should I put it... she’s delicate and charming, the kind that makes you feel protective. If it were me, I’d like her too."

Shen Xin thought to himself, ’You like everyone you see.’

But if that was the case, then it really must be true love.

"Right, how are his professional skills? Our office might be small, but we don’t support freeloaders. He’ll have to pull his weight."

’If you guys perform well, I can lead you all to promotions.’

Zhao Tianxing shot Shen Xin a sidelong glance and teased, "What do you think? A guy from a provincial public security program like you is questioning someone from the Public Security University’s criminal investigation program?"

Across from them, Ding Yuwei, who had been quietly eating, let out a "pfft" and couldn’t help but laugh.

Shen Xin rolled his eyes dramatically, retorting that Zhao Tianxing was also from a provincial program, putting him in the same lower tier.

With a punchable look on his face, Zhao Tianxing claimed he was still more "orthodox" than Shen Xin. He then added, "But Zhang Zhi treasures this guy. Even if you want him, Zhang Zhi might not let him go."

Shen Xin pursed his lips. "You’re just a team member. You don’t need to worry about that."

’Leadership matters are none of your business.’

The conversation shifted back to cases.

On this topic, Ding Yuwei had looked at the case files.

"I think I found a case that’s quite suitable," Ding Yuwei said, putting down her skewer.

Shen Xin asked her to give him a brief rundown.

Ding Yuwei said, "It was a case from 2016 at the Oceanarium. A Dolphin Tamer was found drowned in the dolphin pool. The case has never been officially concluded."

Dolphins?

Shen Xin was slightly taken aback.

’It seems Ding Yuwei specifically found an animal-related case for me.’

’But it really is a good fit.’

Dolphins are said to be extremely intelligent, much more so than dogs.

Across the table, Zhao Tianxing immediately chimed in, "Then it’s perfect! This case plays right into Shen Xin’s specialty. He could handle a donkey, so a dolphin should be a piece of cake."

Shen Xin shoved a meat skewer into his mouth and then asked Ding Yuwei for the specifics.

Ding Yuwei glanced around. "Let’s talk about it at work tomorrow."

Shen Xin agreed. There were people all around, so it wasn’t a good place to discuss a case.

They chatted idly until almost eleven before parting ways.

Back home, Shen Xin specifically searched online for the 2016 Oceanarium homicide.

There were related news reports.

Nanjiang only has one Oceanarium, located across from the wildlife park in Lishan District. It’s huge and has a wide variety of animals.

It’s a must-visit spot for families with kids on weekends and couples on dates.

They have dolphin and sea lion shows in a rather large indoor Dolphin Hall, which Shen Xin had seen before.

The reports didn’t provide any details about the case, only stating that a Tamer with the surname Lin had accidentally drowned.

This explanation was far too vague.

For one thing, anyone who becomes a Dolphin Tamer would definitely be an excellent swimmer.

Shen Xin remembered the dolphin pool being quite deep.

But it was indoors, and the Oceanarium had bottlenose dolphins, which are a warm-water tropical species, so the pool temperature shouldn’t have been low.

Under those conditions, it was unlikely that he would have drowned from a leg cramp caused by cold water.

Besides, Ding Yuwei’s description was interesting. Her exact words were that the case "has never been officially concluded."

’If it hasn’t been concluded, that must mean a conclusion was reached but never finalized.’

’Why wasn’t it finalized? There must be multiple reasons.’

At this thought, Shen Xin took a sharp breath.

’This case might be a bit troublesome.’

’Ding Yuwei probably had good intentions, picking a cold case for me that involves animals.’

’But her good intentions might have backfired, landing me with a difficult one.’

Still, Shen Xin couldn’t draw any conclusions before seeing the case file.

The next day, Shen Xin left for work early in his car.

His commute was long now, and the morning rush hour traffic was brutal.

So, moving was really the best option.

Yesterday, Shen Xin had been talking to Zhao Tianxing about renting an apartment, and Zhao Tianxing suggested they just become roommates.

Shen Xin had flatly refused.

Although he himself was lazy in his daily life, Zhao Tianxing was borderline sloppy.

If the two of them lived together, they would undoubtedly turn the place into a pigsty.

It was better to live alone and save them from ruining each other’s lives.

He made it to the city bureau just in time.

After rushing to the second floor of the office building, to his own little turf, it dawned on Shen Xin.

’I’m a minor leader now, aren’t I? I don’t have to be so strict about clocking in.’

Back at the branch office, they had a time-keeping system, but it wasn’t that strict.

’And I’m supposed to be the one checking Ding Yuwei and Zhao Tianxing’s attendance, not the other way around.’

Of course, it was just a passing thought for Shen Xin.

’We’re all just cogs in the machine, why make things difficult for each other?’

One good thing about the city bureau was that the office building was impressive and spacious.

So they had actually managed to give Shen Xin’s office a suite.

The entrance opened into a fifty- or sixty-square-meter office, with a twenty-square-meter small conference room to the right.

Further in to the left, there were two more offices, one large and one small.

The larger one even had a window.

Naturally, Shen Xin claimed the larger room without a second thought.

The basic office furniture was already in place, and with Ding Yuwei around, it was of course spotlessly clean.

"Satisfied?"

Ding Yuwei’s voice came from the doorway. She was looking at Shen Xin with a half-smile.

Shen Xin sat down to get a feel for it.

’Not too big, not too small. I’ve finally made it to the point where I have my own office.’

"Not bad. Bigger than Captain Chen’s."

The branch office building was old and really cramped.

Ding Yuwei couldn’t help but chuckle. She called Shen Xin out for breakfast.

They had agreed yesterday that since Ding Yuwei lived closer, she would be in charge of buying breakfast from now on.

Shen Xin transferred the breakfast money to Ding Yuwei, quickly finished eating, grabbed Zhao Tianxing, and reminded Ding Yuwei not to forget to walk Tian Kui, then headed straight for Zhang Hancheng’s office.

It was time to meet the boss.

’I need to ask the boss for instructions on how to proceed with our work.’

The second and third floors of the office building were mostly occupied by the Criminal Investigation Detachment.

Although the Criminal Investigation Detachment supposedly no longer handled cases directly and only provided operational guidance, it still had three subordinate major teams.

Add to that the Evidence Identification Center, the Medical Examiner’s Office, and so on, the entire detachment had over a hundred people.

Arriving outside the large office of the Criminal Forensics Major Team, Shen Xin grabbed Zhao Tianxing and asked him which one was Yang Zeran.

Zhao Tianxing pointed toward the back of the room. "That one. The one with the long neck who’s handsomer than you."

Shen Xin followed his gaze.

He saw a sharp, handsome profile.

"Who says he’s handsomer than me," Shen Xin said, giving Zhao Tianxing a push. He told him to go break the ice with the guy, then turned and headed straight for Zhang Hancheng’s office.