Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Prologue

At the end of July in Xinhai City, tropical storm "Anbi" had passed about a hundred kilometers away a few hours earlier. Although it did not hit directly, the following heavy rain had soaked half the city in water.

It was Saturday. Even though it was past seven, the heavy rain and thick clouds made it as dark as before dawn. Qi Shanyu stood by the window, watching the wind and rain batter the glass with a crackling noise. He knew his morning run plan was definitely canceled.

At that moment, Qi Shanyu’s phone rang. Seeing the number, he immediately answered.

The caller was his direct superior, Shen Zun. Receiving a call on a non-duty weekend meant it had to be urgent.

As expected, Captain Shen skipped all small talk and got straight to the point, speaking quickly and clearly about the location, instructing him to come immediately, then hung up.

Qi Shanyu quickly changed into his outdoor clothes, grabbed his work ID and a sturdy long-handled umbrella, and hurried downstairs into the pouring rain.

The incident location, as notified by Captain Shen, was called Garden Community, on the edge of Xinhai City’s old district, not far from Qi Shanyu’s home. Seeing that hailing a taxi in the rain would be difficult, he ran through the storm.

Twenty minutes later, Qi Shanyu arrived at Garden Community, drenched.

His previously styled short hair was flattened, dripping with water. His sneakers were filled with mud, squelching with every step.

Luckily, the incident was outdoors, with water everywhere, so his soaked appearance wouldn’t ruin the scene.

On a map of Xinhai City, Garden Community was on the west side, slightly higher than the east near the sea. However, being in the old district, the drainage system was outdated and partially blocked. Water on the streets had already risen past ankle height.

Qi Shanyu waded through the water, passing old nine-story apartment buildings, arriving at the southeast corner.

In front of a small green space between two brick-red apartment buildings, fluorescent yellow tape had been strung. Several uniformed officers were busy nearby. A tall man in a black leather jacket stood in the corridor between the buildings, hands on hips, frowning, watching everyone intently.

“Brother An, what’s going on?”

Qi Shanyu wiped rain from his face and walked briskly to the man in the leather jacket.

“There—a severed hand was found.”

The tall man lifted his chin toward the base of the road surrounded by the uniformed officers.

Compared to Qi Shanyu’s soaked, bedraggled appearance, the man in the leather jacket looked neat and clean, having come directly by car, only with mud splashed on his pant legs and heels.

This tall man was An Pingdong, in his forties. Like Qi Shanyu, he was a detective in the Criminal Investigation Division of Xinhai City Public Security Bureau. He had far more experience than Qi Shanyu.

Contrary to his imposing appearance, An Pingdong usually talked a lot and liked taking care of people—a big-brother type who would nag about bringing an umbrella in the rain or putting on a jacket when it’s cold.

Qi Shanyu, having partnered with him often over three months, was familiar with his personality. Seeing him so serious now—unlike his usual kind demeanor—showed they were dealing with a complex case.

Qi Shanyu stepped forward and saw a covered drainage ditch beside the corridor, filled with murky brown water. At the bottom, about half an arm deep, floated a pale hand.

It was unclear how long the hand had been in the water. Its knuckles were swollen, skin nearly gray-white, and riddled with blotchy wounds. Except for the unmistakable stench of rot, it looked almost like a poorly made Halloween prop.

“This hand was found by a nearby resident.”

An Pingdong glanced at the hand and opened the first responder’s report.

“The first finder, Lin Dong, male, 56, local, retired factory worker, lives in Building 6, Unit A, Room 405. Around 6 a.m., he went downstairs to get the newspaper when the rain temporarily stopped. He saw a stray dog pawing near the ditch, went to shoo it away, and discovered the hand in the water. He immediately called the police.”

Following his partner’s gesture, Qi Shanyu saw the mailbox cluster at Building 6, near the staircase entrance.

The old apartments were close together; someone could reach across from one window to another. The corridor between the buildings was narrow and dim.

The ditch with the hand was about four meters from Building 6’s staircase entrance.

“Are there often stray dogs around here?” Qi Shanyu asked.

“The community isn’t fenced, buildings are dense, people come and go, and the environment is dirty, so stray cats and dogs frequently enter looking for food.”

An Pingdong pointed to the ditch. “According to the first finder, strays often rummage through garbage, making the area messy. He would occasionally shoo them away.”

Qi Shanyu nodded, frowning at the swollen hand in the water.

At that moment, someone tapped his arm. He turned to meet a pair of delicate phoenix-shaped eyes.

A young man in a white lab coat, slightly shorter, with most of his face covered by a light blue surgical mask. Only his bright, star-like eyes were visible—deep double eyelids, long lashes, elegant eye shape, almost mesmerizingly beautiful.

His gaze lingered on Qi Shanyu’s face, deep and unreadable.

“Excuse me.”

The man lowered his eyes and said coldly.

He brushed past Qi Shanyu with two assistants, also in white coats, to the ditch.

His attire indicated he was a forensic doctor, though Qi Shanyu didn’t recognize him.

“Oh, Director Liu, you’re here.”

An Pingdong recognized him and waved.

The young forensic doctor nodded, pulled black-framed glasses from his pocket, crouched, put on gloves, and directed his assistants to retrieve the hand.

Qi Shanyu couldn’t help but focus on the glasses-wearing forensic doctor.

In the instant the hand was lifted, he saw the doctor’s eyes curve into crescent shapes beneath the glasses—he was smiling under the mask.

The smile was oddly inappropriate, making Qi Shanyu freeze.

It reminded him of old legends from police academy: ghost stories, strange coincidences, and bizarre tales about forensic doctors who treated corpses like ordinary objects.

He had never believed them, thinking forensic work was just another profession.

But in that instant, he saw a strange, hidden smile on the unfamiliar doctor.

As Qi Shanyu was lost in thought, the hand was lifted, and the stench intensified.

“Director Liu, any clues?”

An Pingdong pinched his nose, standing behind the three young men in white coats.

“Yes, we can see a few things.”

Director Liu, seemingly accustomed to the stench, spoke calmly.

“The skin is swelling and wrinkling, typical of prolonged water immersion, suggesting several hours in water.”

So-called “washerwoman skin” refers to hands becoming pale, swollen, and wrinkled after prolonged soaking, like women scrubbing laundry in old times.

The hand had many wounds, but soaking had washed away blood, aiding examination.

“Several small wounds, uneven edges, zigzag marks—likely rat bites. The pinky is missing; the arched punctures and tears near the thenar suggest a dog bite.”

Liu used tweezers to probe the wrist, lifting a tendon slightly.

“The cut here is neat, with linear marks on the radius and ulna, consistent in width and depth—likely from a lightweight, easily slipped saw.”

He carefully extracted a thin, black strip from under the fingernail, shaking it gently.

“What’s this?” asked the younger assistant.

“If I’m correct, it’s a piece of black plastic bag.”

He placed the strip into an evidence bag.

“So, this hand may have been retrieved from the trash by an animal.”

Looking at Qi Shanyu and An Pingdong, he added, the eyes behind his glasses curving slightly, “There should be a nearby garbage collection point. With the typhoon today, the trucks haven’t picked it up. Search thoroughly; maybe there are other parts.”

Author’s note: This chapter’s CP is Police Officer × Forensic Doctor, canon and intact.

The story is entirely fictional, with settings serving the plot. Please don’t question character authority, investigation process, or legal procedures.

For forensic terminology, references include:

Forensic Medicine, Forensic Evidence Science, Forensic Toxicology, Practical Forensic Identification, Molecular Imprinting Technology, Flow Cytometry Procedures, Histology Atlas, Colored Atlas of Pathological Anatomy.