Overly Intense [Criminal Investigation] 50

Chapter 50: Prying Open a Slit

As a forensic pathologist, Shen Yiyi had also experienced her share of heated controversies.

The university body disposal case, the tourist attraction cliff fall case, and the terrifying headless dismemberment case she had handled had all been hyped up by online marketing accounts as sensational murder cases.

The producers of news entertainment were like suppliers of addictive drugs, creating special story versions for their target audience, and inducing the public to watch by spreading vague information.

The weaker the constraints of civilization, the more prominent the violence.

The information explosion is a paradise of modern disorder. The truth is not important to people.

Shen Yiyi had personally witnessed her mentor being caught in a conspiracy theory while investigating a case. The entire public security team was led by the nose by the media, and in the end, they had to prove their innocence to quell the storm. So how to deploy a public opinion information strategy has also been an important topic for the public security in recent years.

She stared at the screen and counted carefully. There were six trending topics about Qin Luo and Logos… which was a lethal dose of public opinion.

What had happened?

Shen Yiyi clicked on the trending topics.

First, several marketing accounts with a large entertainment following had published articles one after another. Then, the official media of an economic weekly had published an article, followed by a long article from a serious news outlet, and a detailed post from a gossip-loving netizen.

The marketing accounts wrote:

“From admiration to doubt, how will the big female protagonist shaped by the market reverse the situation?”
“How does a media organization with tens of millions of followers operate?”
“These bloggers are all under Logos. One blogger’s advertising revenue is as high as 4 million.”

The economic weekly’s headlines read:

“The public opinion vortex caused by the live stream: How can Logos reverse its public image?”
“The gender economy and market positioning reflected in the Logos incident.”
“The challenge of brand feminism: Seeking market self-rescue between public opinion and brand value?”

From the amount of “Qin” in the many headlines, the live stream incident was just a trigger. The public opinion was not directed at Qin Luo personally, but at Logos.

As Shen Yiyi was looking at the screen, her phone happened to ring.

It was Lin Puping, reminding her to go to class. Shen Yiyi put her phone in her pocket and walked toward the end of the corridor.

In the morning, in the classroom.

Shen Yiyi looked at Lin Puping absent-mindedly. “You do the demonstration.”

Lin Puping followed the regulations and demonstrated the steps of putting on the protective gear.

Shen Yiyi stood on the side. “The steps for wearing protective gear during a forensic examination are very strict. It’s not to prevent the police from leaving traces at the scene, but to prevent themselves from being infected by the bacteria produced by the decomposition of the body.”

“The stench of a corpse is an unbearable smell. If the scene is a confined space and it happens to be summer, the impact of the smell will cause a person to feel dizzy in a short period of time. Even the most experienced forensic pathologist will be made to vomit by the stench of a corpse.”

“So to play a qualified forensic pathologist,” Shen Yiyi said flatly, “the first thing is to act out how to control your own dry heaving.”

She was speaking on the stage, and the actors below were laughing. The morning passed quickly.

At noon, Shen Yiyi took Lin Puping to the cafeteria to get food. She deliberately went around the parking lot to search, but Qin Luo’s car was still not there.

“Director, what are you looking for?” Lin Puping saw that Shen Yiyi’s search was too purposeful and couldn’t help but ask.

“It’s nothing.” Shen Yiyi finished scanning the last car, glanced at him sideways, and asked as if she were not paying attention, “By the way, what was that online gossip you were talking about this morning?”

“Gossip?”

Lin Puping was forgetful. He had to think for a couple of circles before he remembered. “Ah, you mean the matter of that female writer?”

Shen Yiyi nodded. “Yes.”

Lin Puping said nonchalantly, “She was just cursed by the netizens.”

“Why was she cursed?”

“There are a lot of reasons.”

Lin Puping was holding a laptop bag in his left hand and a toolbox in his right. He was panting. “It seems that her remarks during the live stream were inappropriate and were taken out of context for malicious marketing.”

“Then it got involved in other messy things, but the one who was cursed the most was the company behind her. They said her company was exploiting the female labor force in poor areas in the name of public welfare, and using their live streams to make money… The most ridiculous thing is that she has an official account that specifically criticizes men, right? Now it’s been revealed that her company is controlled by a major investment institution, so the leadership of the company are all men. Hey, it’s no wonder the online voices are so loud. That female writer often puts out a lot of opinions.”

Shen Yiyi was leading the way, walking very fast.

Lin Puping followed behind her. “These self-media outlets are only for traffic now. Look at how desperate the girls in society are to get married now. It’s all because of these bloggers. The social conflicts are not that sharp.”

“I have a few female friends who really like to read Qin Luo’s novels. They say she has a new era of critical perspective. For example, this popular book Her Kill. The whole novel is about how men oppress women, and how women kill men in resistance. This… in my opinion, is just beautifying crime for the sake of a thrill.”

“I’ve also read her other suspense novels. They’re very badly written.”

Shen Yiyi turned and glared at Lin Puping.

Lin Puping was so scared by the director’s glare that his heart went cold. “Don’t misinterpret my meaning. I think it’s right for women to pursue their ideals and careers, and someone needs to speak up on gender issues. But some people are just trying to stir up conflict for traffic, to attract fans and then sell products to make money. Their purpose is just to make a profit. There are no righteous people in this world.”

“If you don’t have the female experience yourself, don’t try to make women have the male experience.” Shen Yiyi sneered. “Besides, have you figured out the whole story? Are you so sure that she’s just trying to make money? How did you judge that? Do you have any data to support it? Didn’t I tell you this morning that a forensic pathologist has to be reasonable and well-founded?”

Lin Puping had already been scolded once this morning because of the wheels. He scratched his head and didn’t dare to answer.

Shen Yiyi couldn’t be bothered with her and pointed to the cafeteria. “You go get food. I’ll be there in a bit.”

After Lin Puping left.

Shen Yiyi stood under the shade of a tree, holding her phone. After a long time, she took out the business card that Liu Jia had given her last week from the outer layer of her laptop bag.

It wasn’t good to ask Qin Luo directly. It was better to get some information first.

Shen Yiyi dialed the phone number on the business card.

“The number you have dialed is busy.”

Unfortunately… the line was busy.

Well, Liu Jia was probably dealing with company matters.

Should she just send a message to Qin Luo and ask?

Just as Shen Yiyi was hesitating, she caught a glimpse of a familiar figure out of the corner of her eye. It was the cinematographer who had wanted to get Qin Luo drunk the day before yesterday.

“Excuse me, sorry to bother you.”

Shen Yiyi walked down the steps and reached out to stop Lu Xi, who was on her way to the cafeteria. “I’m Qin Luo’s classmate. I wanted to ask if Screenwriter Qin has come to the production today?”

The great cinematographer was not wearing a hat today, but she was wearing sunglasses. After being stopped, she took off her sunglasses and placed them on her bald head.

The other person was… quite good-looking, just a little cold and distant.

Lu Xi had heard from Liu Jia that this forensic pathologist was Screenwriter Qin’s white moonlight. They were not only from the same hometown but also classmates. A few days ago, Qin Luo had even rejected You Ning for this forensic pathologist.

So what was going on now?

This forensic pathologist didn’t seem to be familiar with Qin Luo. With such a big thing happening to Qin Luo, she still had to ask her if the other had come to work, as if they were not in contact with each other.

Lu Xi shook her head. “Screenwriter Qin has something to do and didn’t come.”

“Okay, thanks.” Shen Yiyi got the answer she wanted and immediately stepped aside to let her pass. “Sorry to trouble you.”

Lu Xi put her sunglasses back on. “She’s busy with other things recently and doesn’t come to the production much.”

Shen Yiyi frowned and fumbled with her phone. “Okay, thanks.”

Lu Xi curiously looked at her phone. The forensic pathologist was actually searching through the dense call records from last week, number by number.

Damn it?!
She didn’t even give Qin Luo a contact name?

She couldn’t help but ask the forensic pathologist, “Do you have Screenwriter Qin’s number?”

“I do.”

Shen Yiyi moved to the side again and pressed a long string of numbers.

Lu Xi left in surprise and then also took out her phone and sent a message to the assistant director on WeChat.

Lin Puping had already gotten his food and was looking at Director Shen through the glass window.

Their director was not wearing a white lab coat from the lab today, nor was she wearing a police uniform, nor was she wearing a plain white T-shirt… but a black polo shirt with a collar.

Although this was the most common look in their identification center, the same style as the old cadres at the department level, the director wore it with a youthful temperament, very fresh and cute.

Especially the director’s neat ponytail. From a distance, she looked like a college student.

If only the director wasn’t so fierce. If she wasn’t fierce, she would be very much like his junior.

“The number you have dialed is busy.”

Qin Luo’s phone was also busy…

Shen Yiyi couldn’t get through and was annoyed. She turned her head and saw Lin Puping staring at her through the glass.

She frowned, pointed to the toolbox on the floor, and warned the assistant with her mouth, “Don’t put the toolbox in the aisle!!”

Lin Puping was so scared by the director’s glare that his heart jumped. He immediately lowered his head and adjusted it.

Shen Yiyi couldn’t get through on the phone and was very annoyed. She ate very quickly. After she finished, she didn’t care about Lin Puping and stood up with her tray and left.

After class in the afternoon, Qin Luo did not return her call.

After her shift in the evening, Qin Luo did not return her call.

It wasn’t until 9:30 at night, after Shen Yiyi had returned to her dorm and taken a shower, that Qin Luo finally replied to her on WeChat.

[Sorry, I was too busy at noon. I just saw it.]

Shen Yiyi replied to her:

[Are you and Liu Jia okay?]

Two minutes later, the other party replied: [We’re fine. Did you see the news online?]

Shen Yiyi: [Yes.]

Qin Luo didn’t reply for a long time.

Shen Yiyi stared at the chat box with no further messages.

The other party must be busy with company business. She wanted to comfort her a little but was afraid of affecting her mood. She wanted to do something but found that she was unable to help.

She could only type: [Remember to eat. Don’t stay up late.]

After a few dozen minutes, there was still no reply.

Shen Yiyi couldn’t help but send another message: [Is Liu Jia with you now?]

Two minutes later, Qin Luo replied with several messages:

[Yiyi, my signal is not good here. My replies might be a little slow.]
[Okay, I will.]
[She is.]

Shen Yiyi’s tense nerves were slightly relieved.

It was good that Liu Jia was there. At least with Liu Jia there, she didn’t have to worry about Qin Luo’s mood.