Chapter 29: Who Is the Real Overachiever?

"If you don't want people to know, don't do it in the first place." Cen Lian gave Yu Yong a profound look and leaned back in his chair. "You didn't really think you left no trace on Yu Wei's remains, did you?"

Yu Yong's face turned deathly pale. Regardless of how strong the smell of alcohol on him was, he was completely sober now. He suddenly realized that his DNA had not only been left on the bicycle seat but most likely on Yu Wei's body as well.

"I... if I confess now, does it count as a voluntary surrender?" Yu Yong asked hesitantly.

Cen Lian signaled Liu Hang with his eyes to take the lead.

"That depends on the sincerity of your confession." Liu Hang adopted an official tone, though he was inwardly bewildered. Who was he? Where was he? How did a psychopath who chewed on bicycle seats suddenly become a murderer?

Yu Yong let out a long sigh, lowered his head, and began to confess.

Outside the room, Tang Hua’s reaction shifted from shock to a sense of inevitability. If it was Cen Lian, then all of this made perfect sense. Having convinced himself of this, he conscientiously called Chief Chen to inform him that the psychopath who chewed on bike seats had been caught, and they had conveniently solved a cold case in the process.

By the time Chen Xirong returned to the station, confused, Cen Lian had already obtained Yu Yong’s confession and identified the locations where he had disposed of the other body parts.

"Chief Chen," Cen Lian greeted him with a smile.

"What on earth is going on?" Chen Xirong wondered if he was still dreaming.

Liu Hang followed behind Cen Lian, still in a daze, unable to grasp the reality that they had just solved a murder case from over five years ago.

Cen Lian explained the sequence of events to Chen Xirong, fabricating only a small portion of the details. "My intuition told me that this guy wasn't just involved in a minor incident. I checked his household registration and found his hometown was Shahegou Village. I looked into unsolved murder cases in that area and, to my surprise, found one. I saw that his marital status was widowed; his wife, Yu Wei, was only declared dead a year ago after being missing for four years, which matches the timeline perfectly. I tried to bluff him, and since his psychological resilience was very poor, he crumbled immediately."

"It was that simple?" Chen Xirong looked at Cen Lian with genuine bewilderment.

Cen Lian nodded. "That simple."

Chen Xirong: ... Can murder cases really be solved like this?

Regardless, Yu Yong had confessed to everything. Based on his statement, the case would be transferred to the district criminal investigation brigade for further processing.

"Chief Chen, the credit for solving this case goes primarily to Liu," Cen Lian said, pulling over a bewildered Liu Hang. "The station really should commend Comrade Liu Hang properly."

Chen Xirong understood the implication perfectly. Cen Lian and Tang Hua were currently seconded to the district bureau; if the credit went to them, it wouldn't benefit the Xinhe Police Station. Since Cen Lian didn't lack recognition for solving murder cases, he was choosing to gift this achievement to Chief Chen to boost his career—a move that was well-timed given the promotion rumors surrounding the Chief.

Chen Xirong patted Cen Lian on the shoulder without a word. Tang Hua stood by, grinning, pretending to be oblivious.

Their weekend was unexpectedly cut short, and they had to return to the district bureau with the case files, just as they had on their first day.

Yuan Chenxi looked up from her desk and took the document box from Tang Hua. "You two finally get a break, and you still end up solving a case. And you call me a workaholic? I’m nowhere near as bad as you."

"It was just a stroke of luck; we didn't expect the guy to be a murderer when we went in," Cen Lian said, shrugging. "Does the team have the manpower to handle this case?"

"No. I’ll report it to Section Chief Cheng and have it transferred to another team." The stacks of files on Yuan Chenxi’s desk had grown from three or four piles to seven or eight since they first arrived at the Taishan Branch—much of it due to Cen Lian’s work. The Third Squadron was already at full capacity and had no time to take on a cold case involving dismemberment.

Cen Lian wasn't disappointed. The credit would go to the Xinhe station anyway, and it would just be busy work for whichever squadron took it on. "Any progress on the Hu Tingting case?"

Yuan Chenxi was just about to mention it. "Captain Tan returned this morning. All the body parts have been found, and Forensic Pathologist Lin is at the funeral home performing the autopsy."

"Looks like Dr. Lin is working overtime today too," Tang Hua yawned. "Should we head to the funeral home?"

Yuan Chenxi was too busy to respond.

"At this hour, Dr. Lin probably hasn't had lunch. Let's bring some food over," Cen Lian suggested, pulling out his phone to order takeout. "It’ll be faster if we have it delivered directly to us."

An hour later, Cen Lian and Tang Hua arrived at the funeral home’s autopsy room with the food, only to find Wu Qiushan there as well.

"Brother Yue, what are you doing here?" Cen Lian asked, setting the takeout aside.

"Following a lead," Wu Qiushan said, picking up a large evidence bag from a nearby table. "Guess what this is?"

Cen Lian glanced at it, surprised. "You’re questioning my hobbies," he said, taking the bag. "This is a meteorite. Is this case related to meteorites?"

Wu Qiushan looked resigned. "It was found buried in the same pit as Chen Nan's head. Hu Tingting claims she doesn't know what it is. She held a grudge against Chen Nan and heard from some 'master' that if you bury a person’s body parts in the four cardinal directions, their soul will never be whole and they will be eternally cursed."

It was clearly superstition, but Hu Tingting had seemingly believed it.

"If she confessed to that extent, she’s likely not lying," Cen Lian said, frowning at the meteorite. "Do you know where this came from?"

"How would I know? I brought it to you first. If you don't recognize it, I’ll find an expert," Wu Qiushan replied, gesturing for Cen Lian to examine the structure.

Cen Lian could identify the material. "This is a stony-iron meteorite. It’s quite valuable in the collector's circle; this piece alone starts at a hundred thousand. But to an outsider who knows nothing about it, it just looks like a regular rock." After a closer look, he added, "I can't pinpoint the origin, but if Chen Nan had this in his possession, he was either a collector or a meteorite hunter. It’s a small circle; I’ll ask around for you."

"You collect meteorites?" Tang Hua asked, having never heard of this hobby before.

"I can’t afford to collect them," Cen Lian waved a hand dismissively. "I just know a few enthusiasts; it shouldn't be hard to ask around."

In truth, he was curious himself—who exactly was this Chen Nan?