The Brain Science Case 45

Chapter 45: The Body That Vanished in a Bloody Foam – 11

While Jinglin was speeding on her way, Fang Zijun had already arranged for backup, and Cai Yuwei had also sent some information, but it was bad news.

‘The shop doesn’t have a business license. It’s a small, private studio.’ The sound of a keyboard could be heard on the other end of the line. ‘But it’s a rental. I’ll try to contact the landlord.’

It seemed they would have to wait a little longer. “Teacher, did you make the call?”

Tang Yingli gently held her phone. “I did. He didn’t answer.”

Could it be that he knows the jig is up and has already fled? She frowned and gripped the steering wheel.

But even though they rushed, they still arrived at the studio after six.

The metal shutter was already down, and the hand-painted sign was gone. Although the rain had stopped, the evening wind still carried a damp chill. Jinglin pounded on the metal door and listened. There was no sound from inside.

“He doesn’t live here.” Tang Yingli pointed to a drier patch of ground, where he had originally parked. “The rain stopped almost an hour ago. He’s been gone for a while.”

She grabbed the radio to contact him. “Ah Wei, have you contacted the owner?”

‘Yes, the owner will be there soon,’ Cai Yuwei said.

After quickly hanging up, Jinglin took a few steps back and looked up at the apartment. “I wonder if the neighbors know his identity, or where he went.”

Tang Yingli shrugged. “Let’s ask.”

The two of them split up to search, and twenty minutes later, they met back at the car. “…The neighbors said he’s very polite, but not very talkative. The only coffee shop he had any contact with only knows what he likes to drink.” Jinglin looked at Tang Yingli, who had also come up empty.

“By the way, you said at noon that he lied to you. What did you mean?”

“That? I asked him if he used his girlfriend as a test subject… for the nail art catalog, and his reaction was clearly different from when he answered other questions.”

“You can tell someone is lying just from that?”

“Yes. You know about lie detectors, right?” Jinglin nodded, and she continued with a smile, “But in reality, with current technology, it’s impossible to accurately determine if someone is lying. Whether it’s based on the assumption that people get nervous, sweat, and their heart rate increases when they lie, or on physiological reactions like shifting eyes and stuttering, it’s not accurate.”

“If that’s the case, then how can you be sure…”

“I first asked him a few questions that didn’t require him to lie, and I carefully observed his reactions when he answered. After confirming, I moved on to the key question.” She rested her chin on her hand. “And sure enough, his reaction was clearly different from before. To test it, I asked him an easy question again, and his attitude immediately returned to normal.

“Liars, in order to tell a lie that is not easily seen through, always mix truth with falsehood, and the brain also works very hard to fabricate details. In order to make the whole conversation more convincing, and to reduce the burden on the brain, liars will not miss the opportunity to tell the truth. So the ‘signs of hard thinking,’ and the subtle differences in reaction between telling the truth and lying, are the basis for correctly judging whether a person is lying.”

It sounded a little complicated. “In any case, he lied.”

“Yes. He lied about using his girlfriend’s hand for the catalog, but after a close observation, the hand in the photo is his, which means he’s already very skilled at applying nail tips to himself.” She looked at Jinglin. “And the nail tip left in the room proves that the killer may be a man disguised as a woman.” She crossed her legs leisurely. “Officer Cai really did a great job this time.”

“If Ah Wei heard you say that, he would be so proud.” Jinglin smiled and stared at her still-painted nails. “Teacher, that, can I take a look?”

“Hm? Oh, sure.” Tang Yingli held out her left hand.

Jinglin took her hand and carefully examined the nail art. Both the details and the workmanship were very delicate.

“It’s really beautiful.”

“Isn’t it? It’s a shame for such a young and talented nail artist.”

“I meant your hand,” she pouted. “You’ve had contact with him… can you guess where he might have gone?”

“If I knew that, I’d be a psychic.” Tang Yingli chuckled. “He didn’t look like a killer at all. I only felt that he was particularly meticulous. And he wore gloves the whole time he was working.”

Is that to explain why he was able to commit the crime without leaving any fingerprints?

“The landlord is taking so long… I’ll contact him again.”

“Okay.” She stared at the raindrops on the windshield. It was raining again.

“Hello… Senior Big Head, we’re still here… we don’t see him. The landlord hasn’t arrived yet…” While Jinglin was on the phone, she made another call to the nail artist. It was also turned off.

“Can’t get through, and he closed the shop early. Especially after we had finally gotten a solid lead…” Her index finger on her glasses, she frowned in thought. “Why?”

“Huh?” Jinglin, who had turned off the radio, asked, “What did you say, Teacher? I didn’t hear you clearly.”

“Nothing. I just have a bad feeling. He must have had a special reason for doing this.”

The rain grew heavier. At the same time as another service vehicle arrived, the tardy landlord finally showed up.

The landlord unlocked the door under their watch. Lu Tingfeng, who was leading the team, and three other detectives immediately rushed into the shop to search.

Tang Yingli put on her gloves, and as soon as she entered, she caught a different scent. “Hm? This smell…”

“It’s… fragrant?” Jinglin also smelled it. “Is it rose?”

“Yes, hair fragrance. Could it be…” As if she had realized something, she quickly ran inside.

“Teacher!”

The studio was not large. Besides the makeup station for serving customers outside, there was only a restroom and a small room for resting inside.

Tang Yingli stood at the door of the room and turned on the light.

Jinglin’s eyes widened, because the open closet was almost entirely filled with women’s clothes. And several pieces were clearly missing, plus the hair fragrance they had smelled when they came in… he had changed his clothes before he left.

“The mystery is solved.” Her expression was grave. “He’s targeted his next victim.”

Jinglin gritted her teeth. “Chief, I have bad news…”

At the same time, Lu Tingfeng also heard Jinglin’s report. “Tsk, everyone, search quickly.”

The landlord finally couldn’t take it anymore. “Excuse me…”

“Ah Gui, go help the teacher and Little Zhou look inside.” Lu Tingfeng’s tone was fierce when he turned. “What’s wrong?”

“Did Mr. Qian do something wrong?”

“That’s confidential. In any case, he’s suspected of several major…” He trailed off, stunned, and grabbed the landlord’s shoulder. “What did you just call him?”

“Uh, Mr. Qian. His surname is Qian, and his name is Qian Hanliang…”

His eyes widened, and he turned to contact Cai Yuwei. “Ah Wei.”

‘Yes, Senior Big Head?’

“Look up Qian Daxin’s spouse, children… just look up his entire family tree.”

‘O-Okay, I’ll do it now.’

**

Checking the household registration records, it was learned that Qian Daxin had a son with his spouse, named Qian Hanliang, and the personal information from the rental agreement also matched.

Carefully removing the nail polish from her nails, Tang Yingli looked toward the interrogation room door. They had urgently taken Qian Daxin into custody, not only to question him about Qian Hanliang’s whereabouts, but also to clarify his motive for committing the two murders.

Throwing away the makeup remover pad, she had just stood up from her chair when she saw Zhou Jinglin walk out of the chief’s office.

“The precinct police have set up a checkpoint, targeting the main roads in the Zhonghe and Yonghe areas, and they’re also searching for his motorcycle. Senior Big Head has gone to search his residence.” Before she could even ask, Jinglin was already rattling off the progress of the investigation. “But… this Qian Daxin doesn’t know anything about his son’s actions. What kind of father is he?”

“It’s because of his indifference that the killer developed such an extreme and radical style, right?” Tang Yingli guessed. “Have you contacted his spouse?”

Jinglin shook her head. “Impossible, unless you’re a psychic.” Tang Yingli thought she was responding to her earlier joke, but she was serious.

“His wife passed away eight years ago. She hanged herself at home.” Her lips were pressed into a thin line. “I heard the first person to find her was Qian Hanliang.”

Tang Yingli covered her mouth in surprise. Jinglin continued, “Qian Daxin’s bad habits of womanizing and gambling seem to have left him with a lot of debt. He only cleaned up his act after his wife’s death. Qian Hanliang started working in makeup after graduating from vocational school and helped him pay off his debts. They had just paid them off a while ago, and then Qian Daxin started going out with women and drinking again. A leopard can’t change its spots…” She bit her lip, not finishing her sentence.

“I see… so that’s the motive.” Tang Yingli muttered to herself, and Jinglin looked at her suspiciously. “Both deceased were hostesses… it’s very likely they were both involved with Qian Daxin.” She rested her chin on her hand. “Is he blaming outsiders for the breakdown of his family? No wonder he used such a cold, execution-style method to kill the victims.”

From this, it could be inferred that the killer had not had sex with the victims, and she could even deduce that Qian Hanliang had no female friends at all. Not only did he have the peculiar habit of cross-dressing, but his psychological trauma also made him hate women from the bottom of his heart.

He hated women, yet he had to serve them to make a living, another contradictory and ironic fact.

“In that case…” Jinglin had a flash of inspiration. “Then we should be able to find out his target from Qian Daxin.”

The hand pushing up her glasses paused. They looked at each other, and then said in unison, “The hostess he once admired.”

Jinglin smiled. “I’ll report this right away.”

Tang Yingli also smiled, watching her run into the interrogation room. The door to the station was pushed open, and Lu Tingfeng and his team returned, each carrying a number of evidence bags.

“Get more people to check these. See if we can find any clues.”

Her phone suddenly rang. It was a message from Tang Zhichao, inviting her home. She chose to ignore it and put on her gloves again to prepare for the evidence search.