The crackdown on organized crime began with the arrest of the mother-in-law.

Chapter 1179 Determining the Time and Cause of Death

Zhang Lin put down his scalpel and picked up a neck tissue specimen: "Look closely at the edge of the bleeding area. Although decomposition has blurred the tissue, you can still see the boundary between the bleeding and normal muscle tissue—bleeding before death will form a hemoglobin infiltration zone, while bleeding caused by decomposition after death is usually diffuse and has no clear boundary." He pulled up the surface photos taken before the autopsy, "Moreover, there is a slight periosteal reaction at the fracture ends of the hyoid bone, which is a characteristic of fractures before death; fractures after death will not show this reaction."

Regarding the question of the time of death, Zhang Lin further explained: "The estimation of the time of death for a highly decomposed body is inherently prone to error, and we need to cross-verify multiple indicators. In addition to the coldness of the body, rigor mortis, and the degree of decomposition, we also need to conduct histopathological examinations—by examining the degree of autolysis of liver cells and renal tubules—to further narrow down the time of death. Furthermore, the watch hands stopped at 10:15, although this cannot be definitively confirmed as the time of death, considering the digestion of the stomach contents, it is more likely to have occurred around 10 PM on October 1st, which also partially corresponds to the time period missing from the construction site surveillance."

As the scalpel cut into the skull, the brain tissue appeared dark red due to hemorrhage in the bone marrow cavity caused by decomposition. Zhang Lin carefully separated the dura mater and found a small amount of subarachnoid hemorrhage distributed in the frontal lobe region. "This is a minor brain contusion," he measured the extent of the bleeding, "approximately 2x2cm in area, relatively mild, likely caused by the head hitting a hard object during strangulation, not the primary cause of death." The brain tissue had shown obvious autolysis, its texture soft and necrotic, making it impossible to extract intact nerve tissue for further examination. However, the distribution of the hemorrhage was consistent with a non-fatal injury caused by external impact.

"Based on all the autopsy findings, the cause of death can be basically determined," Zhang Lin said, removing his gas mask, his face still faintly smelling of disinfectant. "Mechanical asphyxiation, specifically strangulation. The deceased showed obvious signs of struggle before death, as evidenced by the scratch marks on his right index finger and the residue under his fingernail; bleeding in the neck muscles, fracture of the hyoid bone, Tardieu spots in both lungs, and petechial hemorrhages in the heart are all consistent with the pathological characteristics of strangulation." He pointed to the state of decomposition of the body. "The preliminary estimate of the time of death is between October 1st and 4th, most likely around 10 pm on October 1st, which forms a closed timeline with the time when the watch stopped, the degree of digestion of the stomach contents, and the 'dull thud on the evening of October 7th' (possibly the sound of the body being disposed of) heard at the scene."

Xiaolin sorted through the collected samples—a piece of polyester from the neck, remnants from under the fingernails, a sample of stomach contents, a watch case, and slides of decomposed tissue, each marked with detailed autopsy location and time. "And when was the body disposed of?" she asked. "With the body decomposed to this extent, how many days must have passed between death and being buried in the construction site foundation?"

Zhang Lin walked to the autopsy table and examined the putrefied veins on the body again: "Gigantism usually forms 3-5 days after death. Considering the body was found at the construction site on October 7, the body must have been dumped between October 5 and 6—that is, 4-5 days after death. At this time, the body began to show obvious signs of decomposition. The suspect may have been worried about the body being exposed and chose to bury it in the foundation pit that was about to be filled, trying to cover up the crime." He added, "The shovel head, black cloth bag, and the man in the hoodie asking about the filling time found at the scene all confirm that the suspect was familiar with the construction site environment and planned the location for dumping the body."

When the body was placed back into the embalming bag, the remaining putrefactive fluid and tissue debris on the autopsy table had been thoroughly cleaned up, leaving only neatly arranged sample bottles labeled with numbers. Zhang Lin looked at the autopsy report compiled by Xiao Lin and circled the conclusions in the "Cause of Death" and "Time of Death" sections: "These conclusions require further verification by the technical department—composition analysis of polyester fibers, DNA testing of residue under fingernails, and identification of the cause of damage to the watch movement. The DNA results, in particular, if they match the suspect, will be crucial to solving the case."

The ventilation system in the autopsy room was still running, and the stench of decay gradually dissipated, replaced by the pungent smell of disinfectant. Zhang Lin took off his latex gloves; his fingertips were white from prolonged exertion. He looked at the darkening sky outside the window, thinking of the unidentified victim at the Oriental Garden construction site—perhaps these cold autopsy data held clues to his identity, and also codes pointing to the murderer. Xiao Lin's steps were unusually light as she delivered the samples to the lab. She knew that this detailed autopsy report would provide the most crucial direction for Li Ming's team's investigation.

The fluorescent lights in the Criminal Investigation Detachment's information analysis room began to hiss around midnight, flickering and casting mottled light on the missing persons photos covering the walls. Xiao Zhou pasted the key autopsy findings brought by forensic doctor Zhang Lin in the center of the whiteboard: "Male, 35-45 years old, height 172±2cm, scratch on right index finger, wearing a rusty watch (hands stopped at 10:15), time of death October 1-4." Three thick red marker lines were drawn on "October 1-4," the pen tip tearing through the paper.

“We started the investigation on September 28th, focusing on male missing persons who are 170-175cm tall and have been reported missing within the last 10 days,” Xiao Zhou’s voice sounded like it had been sanded. He was holding the empty packaging of his ninth cup of instant coffee, his knuckles turning white from the force. “Especially those who do manual labor—the bodies found on construction sites, with their simple clothing and fibers under their fingernails, are very likely manual laborers.”

Young police officer Xiao Wu rubbed his red eyes, the mouse scrolling slower and slower on the screen, the blue light casting deep dark circles under his eyes. "Can't this crappy system be optimized?" He slammed the mouse on the table. "Searching for 'manual labor' brings up over eight hundred results, half of which are photos from five years ago, their hairstyles have changed, how are we supposed to compare them?" He pointed to the entry for "Wang Haitao" on the screen, the man in the photo with a scar on his left cheek. "Look at this one, construction worker, 173cm tall, 40 years old, everything matches, but he went to work in another city six months ago, and his family said they video-chatted last week, so we have to rule that out too."

Veteran detective Zhao suddenly slammed his laptop shut, the chair legs scraping against the floor with a screeching sound that startled the cactus on the windowsill. "My back is about to give out," he said, standing up, his police uniform shirt revealing a lumbar support peeking out from under his skin. "I've been investigating since eight o'clock tonight, my eyes are practically crossed. I have to check every piece of information three times—name, age, characteristics, time of disappearance—not a single detail can be wrong. It's more grueling than staking out." He picked up a lump of cold instant noodles from the table, forked it, and put it down after only a couple of bites. "This is the third time I've eaten this stuff; it's so bland."