Chapter Seven: Seeking Witnesses

Faced with the astonishing discovery brought back by Forensic Zhao, Qin Ruonan felt both exhilarated and delighted, yet found herself a little embarrassed by his praise. However, her shyness was fleeting; she quickly regained her composure.

“Forensic Zhao, does this mean we need further examination and comparison to confirm?” she sought clarification.

Forensic Zhao nodded, “Yes, we’ve already begun preparations for DNA testing on both segments of the corpse. Until we have the final results, we can only confirm that the upper torso belongs to a male; we cannot directly conclude that both parts are from the same individual.”

“In that case,” Qin Ruonan pondered for a moment before addressing An Changpu, “Even though we can’t be sure if the victim is one person or two, at least we can continue searching along the river for the head, and post notices to seek witnesses. That woven bag in the tricycle is quite conspicuous; it’s unlikely that no one saw it.”

Although they had only worked together for a few days, An Changpu was already familiar with Qin Ruonan’s decisive and forceful approach. Since their ideas aligned, he saw no need for further discussion and simply nodded in agreement.

Qin Ruonan was momentarily taken aback by An Changpu’s calm acceptance, but since he agreed with her point, she had no objections.

With the new findings, Forensic Zhao had no hope of leaving work on time and immediately got busy. An Changpu and Qin Ruonan returned to the Major Crimes Unit, attached explanatory notes beneath photos of the tricycle, printed numerous notices seeking witnesses, and drove along the riverbank, posting them as they went.

In the following days, the search for the victim’s head yielded nothing. After several days of searching downstream, An Changpu and his team reached a conclusion: judging by the discrepancy in discovery times and the degree of decomposition between the upper and lower halves of the body, the perpetrator must have deliberately delayed the disposal of the corpse. Therefore, it was highly likely that the head had not been thrown into the river, but rather hidden elsewhere.

As the DNA test results were still pending, Qin Ruonan and An Changpu dared not assume the two segments belonged to the same person or to two different individuals. They could only speculate based on the available facts. If there was more than one victim, could the killer have discarded the body parts in different locations—some in the river, others elsewhere?

With this new hypothesis, they began searching for information through other avenues, leaving no possibility unexplored.

Unfortunately, several days passed with no progress. Whether it was a single dismemberment case or a series of murders, the investigation seemed to stall from the very start. The only question left was why there was a male torso with evidence of chest augmentation—no useful clues had emerged.

After the witness notices were posted, the Major Crimes Unit received numerous calls. Some were from well-meaning residents who had mistaken similar tricycles for the one sought, and a few asked whether there was a reward for information. Upon learning there wasn’t, they hung up without further comment.

Of all the calls, only a handful seemed genuinely related to the case, and the information provided was vague—someone claimed to have seen a person in dark clothing struggling to pedal a tricycle late at night.

What could be confirmed was that the cyclist appeared to be of average build; nothing else could be determined.

No clues surfaced regarding missing persons, leaving An Changpu and Qin Ruonan at a loss.

Their only investigative lead was the male torso with silicone implants. Whether or not it belonged to the same person as the lower half, it was clear the man had undergone cosmetic surgery, likely as a preliminary step toward gender reassignment.

After discussing the matter, An Changpu and Qin Ruonan decided to investigate every hospital and beauty clinic in City C capable of performing breast implant surgeries. Even with the current trend in cosmetic surgery, women getting breast augmentation was common, but for men, it was certainly rare.

Qin Ruonan began to compile a list of all hospitals and clinics in City C qualified for breast implant procedures, and together with An Changpu, they started visiting each one. When they inquired about male patients seeking breast augmentation, they drew many curious and surprised looks. Some even laughed loudly upon hearing their question.

In the end, the investigators found themselves questioned instead, particularly An Changpu, who was often surrounded by young nurses mixing business with personal curiosity, peppering him with questions. He felt helpless, especially since Qin Ruonan did nothing to rescue him; instead, he occasionally caught a fleeting expression of rejection and aversion on her face.

What had he done to deserve this? An Changpu couldn’t help but feel aggrieved.

During their collaboration, especially after Cheng Feng firmly refused to transfer Qin Ruonan, she had retracted her defensive attitude and no longer displayed overt hostility toward An Changpu. Still, acceptance had not replaced mere tolerance, and the inexplicable tension between them puzzled An Changpu.

He’d often heard complaints about incompatible personalities, and now he wondered if he and Qin Ruonan were simply mismatched, which might explain her resistance.

He quietly resolved that once their current responsibilities eased, he would finally get to the bottom of whether he and Qin Ruonan had ever crossed paths before.

Despite feeling uncomfortable about being rejected, he had to admit that Qin Ruonan’s professionalism and fierce determination carried an air of feminine strength that rivaled any man. After days of working together, An Changpu had to acknowledge her abilities.

Eventually, perseverance paid off. After several days of investigation, they finally received a promising lead from a senior breast reconstruction specialist at a public hospital.

“We haven’t had any male patients seeking breast implants or gender reassignment surgery here,” the veteran specialist began, then shifted tone, “But I recently attended a breast reconstruction symposium in City A. The keynote speaker mentioned that in recent years, they had treated a patient requesting gender reassignment surgery, and discussed the case during the conference. Perhaps you should check there—it might be helpful!”