S.C.I. (Volume I) - Case 1: Chapter 3

The Digital Killer 03: The Mysterious Numbers 

In the conference room, once everyone had settled into their seats, Bai Yutang nodded to Gongsun Ce to brief the team on the case.

"Does everyone remember those taxi hit-and-run serial cases that were cracked last month?" Gongsun Ce got straight to the point.

"Are you talking about the case with five dead and three injured?" Zhang Long recalled. "Wasn't the killer already caught?"

"He was a middle-aged man in his fifties. He didn't seem to be entirely sound of mind, right?" Wang Chao added.

"Exactly." Gongsun Ce nodded. "The Traffic Division wrapped that case up directly, so it never passed through your hands, did it?"

"Right," Bai Yutang agreed. "Why? Is there something wrong with that case?"

"Look at these photographs..." As Gongsun Ce spoke, he pulled out several photos and placed them in front of the team. "These are the autopsy photos of the five victims who were struck and killed."

Everyone present picked up the photos to examine them. The pictures focused closely on the area behind the victims' ears. Each one bore a very small but clear blue number. The numbers were 7, 12, 19, 30, and 42, with one unique number on each corpse.

Bai Yutang's brow furrowed tightly. "They were cataloged with serial numbers?"

Gongsun Ce continued, noting that there was something even stranger. He brought out over a dozen more photographs and said, "I have a friend who works as a mortuary makeup artist at the funeral parlor. Recently, he discovered a very bizarre phenomenon: a large number of people who died in traffic accidents have a similar serial number behind their ears, and none of them repeat. He is a rather meticulous person, so feeling that something was amiss, he kept a log and took photos. He handed them over to me a few days ago, and the most recent entry was from three days ago."

"Three days ago?" Everyone was startled.

"Didn't that psycho driver get locked up a month ago?!" Zhao Hu asked in astonishment.

"The person branding them shouldn't be him!" Zhan Zhao murmured thoughtfully.

"I agree!" Gongsun Ce nodded. "Those victims went straight from the scene to the hospital, and then directly to the forensics lab. Two of them didn't even make it to a hospital. Moreover, I've examined them—those numbers were applied using a technique similar to tattooing, and none of them were done recently."

Bai Yutang lined up the photographs side by side. "If these numbers are interconnected, then counting the ones that haven't been discovered yet, we are looking at roughly twenty-odd victims."

Gongsun Ce slid one particular photo out from the rest and said, "Look at this person!"

The team leaned in closer. It was one of the dozen or so deceased individuals from the funeral parlor who had been numbered. His number was 23.

Gongsun Ce flipped open his case file. "His name is Chen Siliang! He died a week ago, and this was actually his second car accident."

Looking at the document, Jiang Ping spoke up in utter disbelief: "He was one of the survivors who was injured in that psycho driver's case?!"

"The driver failed to kill him, but then he died later in a separate, accidental traffic collision? And he was even branded with a number..." Ma Han ran a hand through his hair, his face equally filled with incredulity.

"What's your take on this?" After a moment of silence, Bai Yutang turned to ask Zhan Zhao, who was similarly quiet.

Zhan Zhao tapped his index finger gently against his knee—a habitual gesture of his whenever he was deep in thought. "It's either a murder forecast or a trophy log of his killings."

Bai Yutang nodded. After a brief calculation, he ordered, "Gongsun, have Lu Fang contact the families of those victims. For any corpses that haven't been cremated yet, recall them and perform another autopsy! Wang Chao, Ma Han, go investigate exactly where those victims met with their traffic accidents, which hospitals they were ultimately treated at, which doctors handled them, and precisely how they died. The more detailed, the better! Zhang Long, Zhao Hu, screen the social networks of all the victims. Look into their enemies, occupations, and things of that nature to see if there's any common denominator. Jiang Ping, track down all relevant information on the vehicles involved in the accidents, maps of the crime scenes, and give me a comprehensive profile on every single victim! Xu Qing, head out to the tattoo parlors to hunt for clues regarding those numbers. Keep a low profile, and check in with Han Zhang to see what he can dig up. I'll head out first to meet with that vigilant citizen at the funeral parlor, and then I'll have a chat with that psycho driver. Let's split up!"

"Yes, sir!" The team members dispersed within half a minute to tend to their respective tasks. As Bai Yutang gathered up the photographs and stood up...

"Ahem, ahem." Zhan Zhao remained seated at the table, letting out two dry coughs while giving him a sideways glance.

...After neatly organizing the case files, Bai Yutang picked up his coat and respectfully made a sweeping "after you" gesture toward Zhan Zhao. "Shall we go... Expert?"

Zhan Zhao stood up with a look of immense satisfaction and snatched the car keys right out of his hand. "I'll drive." With that, he began walking out.

"Hey!" Bai Yutang chased after him while scrambling into his coat. "Cat! Don't touch my car! You're a menace to the roads!!”