Old Bai heard Yang Sen's shout and broke through the curtain of rain, running over from thirty meters away.

"What's wrong?"

"Look at this!"

Yang Sen pointed at a black plastic bag at his feet, from which the handle of a dagger had fallen out.

"A knife handle?"

Why would there be a knife in a black plastic bag?

"I just saw the bag and idly kicked it, there was something inside."

Both of them crouched down, looking at the exposed knife handle.

Yang Sen put on another pair of gloves and gently picked it up.

"Could this thing... be related to the corpse?"

Today, Haizhou City experienced heavy rain, and the corpse was washed ashore by the waves.

Along with it came a black plastic bag containing a dagger?

"Not sure, let's take it back for testing first."

Yang Sen also had no answer to Old Bai's question.

But from a crime scene investigation perspective, naturally, they couldn't overlook any suspicious items found around the scene.

The dagger was taken out of the water, along with its scabbard.

"No wonder the dagger's blade didn't pierce the plastic bag; it turned out it still had a scabbard."

Over on Lu Chuan and Liu Guodong's side, they weren't as lucky as Yang Sen.

The banks of the Bailan River had been repeatedly washed by the overflowing river, leaving hardly anything behind.

Even some branches and trash from the river were swept ashore, only to be washed away the next moment.

Liu Guodong looked up at the gloomy sky.

"Prepare to wrap up and head back to examine the corpse. The forensic side still needs to perform an autopsy."

"Yes!"

"Got it."

Lu Chuan and the others' voices echoed from the walkie-talkie.

After searching for over an hour, they had pretty much examined the surrounding area.

Aside from the dagger with the scabbard that Yang Sen found, there were virtually no other clues.

Liu Guodong looked at the dagger already placed in an evidence collection bag by Yang Sen, scrutinizing it for a moment.

"Let's first do a bloodstain analysis when we get back, to see if it could be the murder weapon."

Although this possibility was close to zero, it was still the only clue found at the scene.

Perhaps there would be a lead.

4:30 in the afternoon.

Forensic Autopsy Room.

Liu Guodong, along with Lu Chuan, was conducting an external examination of the corpse.

Wang Changjiang and Shen Yan were also present.

This time it was a joint examination by crime scene investigators and forensic doctors.

"I already did a brief examination of the corpse's condition this morning."

Standing on the right side of the corpse, Wang Changjiang said, "But I didn't open the clothing."

Liu Guodong nodded. To forensic doctors, clothing is not a key inspection target.

However, the clothing of an unidentified corpse is extremely important for crime scene investigation.

"Lu Chuan, you'll handle the examination this time, and I'll take the notes."

Lu Chuan nodded, knowing this was Liu Guodong giving him an opportunity.

Yang Sen and Old Bai were assigned by Liu Guodong to perform the bloodstain identification on the dagger.

The examination of the external condition of the corpse was tasked to Liu Guodong and Lu Chuan.

Before, although Lu Chuan had been to many scenes with Liu Guodong and had discovered many important clues, he was always the one recording, while Liu Guodong took charge of the examination.

This wasn't because Liu Guodong didn't trust Lu Chuan's abilities.

After spending more than half a year together, Lu Chuan had already proven his capabilities through his actions.

It's just that there are rules in crime scene investigations about who makes the records.

But in the crime scene records, the final confirmation signature isn't from the recorder but from the investigating officer.

Signing isn't something done lightly; any problem that arises is the responsibility of the signee.

Moreover, the current responsibility tracking is a lifetime commitment.

This time Liu Guodong took the initiative to handle the record-keeping and let Lu Chuan conduct the examination, meaning Lu Chuan was in charge of the crime scene investigation for this case.

This was both a show of trust and a challenge.

"The gender of the decomposed corpse is preliminarily judged to be female, age unknown."

The body was in the late stages of active decay, with the skin ulcerated and perforated, compounded by rainwater immersion, making age impossible to determine from the exterior.

Even the gender was temporarily identified based on the hair and clothing characteristics by Lu Chuan.

"Next, I will examine the clothing adhered to the corpse."

Unlike doctors who use scissors to cut open garments or sections with apparent wounds, Lu Chuan examined the clothing inch by inch.

This included the texture, brand, feel, and whether every button's color and depth were consistent, among other details that needed to be checked.

"A white cotton long-sleeve T-shirt, Yi Chun brand, size S, with signs of long-term abrasion causing fraying on the left sleeve cuff."

Lu Chuan's observations were meticulous.

The standards for examining clothing on corpses vary with different situations.

Since this decomposed corpse's identity hasn't been determined yet, and neither the original crime scene nor the time of death is known, analyzing the clothing becomes extremely necessary.

This aids Lu Chuan in analyzing the deceased's work nature, economic conditions, and possibly even determining their residence.

If there are specific items of clothing on the deceased, it might directly confirm their identity.

"Tight-fitting jeans, also Yi Chun brand, with fraying and abrasions on the right buttocks area."

"The right shoe is missing, while the left shoe is a Warrior brand canvas shoe, size 36."

...

From the long-sleeve T-shirt to the jeans, shoes, and socks, Lu Chuan conducted a highly detailed inspection of the clothing adhered to the corpse through observation.

Liu Guodong meticulously documented everything and secretly nodded each time Lu Chuan spoke.

To be honest, Lu Chuan's foundational skills were indeed solid; he noted even some details that Liu Guodong hadn't noticed.

For instance, the long-term wear marking on the left sleeve cuff of the deceased's T-shirt.

This could be an important sign to help determine the habits of the deceased during their lifetime.

For example, if the deceased was left-handed, writing with the left hand would wear the left cuff but not the right one.

Moreover, it could roughly indicate the deceased's economic condition was average since the cuffs were already frayed, but the clothing hadn't been replaced.

Of course, specific situations need specific analysis, like how some youths intentionally wear aged or distressed clothing today.

Whether this T-shirt has such characteristics still needs further analysis.

"Next, I will remove the corpse's adhered clothing to examine the undergarments and the corpse's surface condition."

This task wasn't something Lu Chuan could complete alone.

Not even with just one more person, given the high level of decomposition of the corpse—with maggots even crawling around the autopsy table.

"Brother Wang, Master, can you help?"

Wang Changjiang didn't mind, being accustomed to it.

Although it was Shen Yan's first encounter with a corpse in such an advanced state of decomposition, being a professional forensic doctor equipped with a gas mask and PU professional protective suit, she felt no aversion to it.

However, Lu Chuan evidently didn't want Forensic Doctor Shen to do this, so he called on Liu Guodong.

There's no need to document things every single moment.

Simply trying to normally remove clothing wasn't feasible anymore; destroying it with scissors was the only option.

Wang Changjiang and Lu Chuan lifted the corpse, while Liu Guodong cut open the top and pants.

Woosh!

Then, as soon as the clothing was no longer constraining, a pile of stuff plopped down onto the platform.

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