Chapter 274 - 164: Cold Case: ’The Vanished Person’ (Part 1)

’Did he forget?’

’He shouldn’t have.’

To be honest, when a married man cheats, there are only two things that attract him.

Sex, and love.

If it was love, it makes no sense that he would let his mistress into the room, have her put on a wedding dress, and then mess around on the bed.

But if it was purely physical...

Then whenever he thought of her, all he’d picture was them having sex.

In that case, there’s no way he could have forgotten that outfit.

Why?

Black stockings and high heels are items designed with sex appeal at their very core. Their essence is identical to carnal desire.

The two are so closely related that the association is automatic.

It’s like when you’re on your way to buy a lighter. You might get sidetracked by a sudden lunch plan and forget about it.

But would you forget you need a lighter while you’re in the middle of a smoke?

It doesn’t make sense.

"But, the mistress was here."

Zhao Shui followed this line of thought, his brow furrowing.

"No, the existence of this ’mistress’ is a question mark in itself."

"No traces of a woman were found at the scene."

"Could it be some kind of masochistic fetish?" Zhao Shui guessed.

It’s a mild perversion, a type of roleplay known as SM.

This type of play involves masochism and sadism.

If the killer was into that...

Then if the mistress was the masochist, there would definitely be traces of her left at the scene.

But there weren’t any.

So, for the evidence at the scene to fit a masochistic scenario, it would have to be...

’Four-love’.

’What is "four-love"? Love between four people?’

To put it crudely, it’s a dynamic where the woman takes the dominant, "masculine" role, and the man takes the submissive, "feminine" role.

A complete gender-role reversal.

But that brings us back to the point.

If that’s the case... the deceased’s body...

"Were there any abnormalities found in the anal region of the deceased, Qin Zhong?"

Xu Huo looked up at them.

Hearing this, Zhao Shui and Li Jianye felt like their brains were short-circuiting.

’Four-love...’

’Something like that actually exists!?’

Both men were a little stunned. Even though they were police officers, they had never been exposed to such an information bomb.

Frankly, even among beat cops or ordinary people from his past life with access to the internet, only a small fraction would know about this.

Let alone now, in ’04.

But it didn’t stop them from understanding.

"There were no signs of that on the deceased, Qin Zhong’s, backside."

Zhao Shui suppressed his shock and replied.

’People can always be a little more perverted, I suppose.’

Zhao Shui was already used to it.

But the facts of the case wouldn’t change to accommodate his sensibilities!

"So that means we can rule out this type of activity," Li Jianye murmured.

The evidence at the scene didn’t support sadism or a "four-love" dynamic.

And by extension, it also ruled out a female perpetrator!

Then that means...

"Could it be a man?"

In a daze, Li Jianye spoke, the words causing Zhao Shui’s mouth to twitch.

"Chief, what on earth did you learn in the Capital City?"

Zhao Shui couldn’t help but give Li Jianye a strange look.

An image of what he’d once seen in the men’s restroom at a comic con flashed through Li Jianye’s mind. His vision went dark for a moment, but it quickly passed.

He scowled at Zhao Shui.

"We’re investigating a case. Be serious."

"Could the mistress be a man?"

Hearing this, the three of them began to ponder.

This was the nature of criminal investigation.

You make one guess after another, and you rule them out one by one. No matter how outlandish a theory seems, it has to be properly investigated.

But...

Stockings, a hip-hugging skirt, and high heels... for a man to wear?

Heh!

It really could be!

That’s right, even among homosexuals, there is an aesthetic appreciation for high heels, hip-hugging skirts, and stockings.

They don’t like women.

That doesn’t mean they don’t like clothes and items that accentuate sexiness.

And within this subculture, archetypes like the "loli," the "queen," and the "sweetheart" also exist.

For instance, a man with a beard who is tall and rugged but takes the receptive role would be considered a "queen."

Those who are clean-shaven with soft, delicate features would be the "lolis" or "sweethearts."

They might also wear things like maid outfits or other strange accessories.

Of course, this is limited to prostitution.

That’s right. Prostitution—selling one’s body—is diverse. It’s not just men with women, but also men with men, women with women, and so on.

"The probability is low."

"The autopsy indicates that even if the deceased was gay, he wasn’t receptive."

"If he wasn’t, then there had to have been a receptive partner," Xu Huo spoke slowly.

The two of them subconsciously looked over.

"But, only Qin Zhong’s bodily fluids were at the scene."

"It’s obvious that even if it was a man, it doesn’t quite fit the current picture," Xu Huo said.

’What does that mean?’

Let’s use washing hair as an example.

When you wash your own hair, it feels somewhat comfortable, and you can scratch wherever it itches.

But... what about the feeling of someone else washing your hair at a salon?

It’s the same action, and the water temperature isn’t much different.

The other person can’t even scratch exactly where you want them to.

But having someone else wash your hair for you just feels better.

"After the deceased’s death, were any of his friends, relatives, or colleagues overly concerned?" Xu Huo suddenly spoke again.

"Division 2 has canvassing reports on that. They looked into it but didn’t turn up anything," Zhao Shui said, shaking his head.

Division 2 is a solid unit. Not counting Xu Huo, they’re only a step behind Division 1, so their intel is generally reliable.

"Could it be soliciting a prostitute?"

Li Jianye thought for a moment, bringing up the sort of things he’d seen in the Capital City.

Meaning, a man soliciting another man.

"The probability is low. What I said just now explains why."

"Bodily response isn’t something that changes just because they’re a friend, a lover, a hookup, or a prostitute," Xu Huo shook his head.

Take rape cases, for example. A small percentage of female victims come to hate their own bodies. It’s not because they feel dirty, but out of a sense of despair.

Why?

Because even while their minds are in despair during the assault, their bodies can still feel sexual arousal, sometimes even to the point of climax.

This leads many of them to develop a deep disgust for their bodies, and some also develop Stockholm syndrome.

"But we can make a note of it."

"Perhaps there was some kind of physical anomaly."

Li Jianye nodded.

’As for the evidence at the crime scene...’

Xu Huo paused, glanced around, then stood up and said with a deadpan expression,

"We’re going to the courthouse."

"The courthouse?" the other two repeated, pausing. "To see the suspect, Liu Li?"

"That’s right. Arrange a meeting for me."

Xu Huo nodded, his expression quite serious.

"The victim was dead for five days before she reported it."

"During that time, she ignored the stinking, decaying corpse in the living room, which was crawling with maggots."

"She still ate, watched TV, slept in the guest bedroom..."

"That kind of composure... I don’t think that’s the mark of a normal person."

Let’s put it this way.

If there’s a dead rat on your table, forget about how many days it’s been dead, even if it just died, could you eat your meal?

Let alone a dead body in the living room.

In other words.

Right now, there are two lines of suspicion regarding Liu Li.

One, either Liu Li herself has some kind of mental illness, which guided her thinking, causing the information she gave the police to be fragmented, or even completely invalid!

Two, or what she said is correct.

There really is a ’mistress!’

But...

But no one can find this mistress...

A mistress of indeterminate gender, who has never shown their face to anyone, doesn’t exist in Qin Zhong’s social circle, and whom even Liu Li has never met...

It’s very difficult to investigate.

On the other hand, Liu Li...

"If she’s mentally ill, if there’s something wrong with her mind..."

Xu Huo narrowed his eyes, his interest in this woman growing slightly.

’What kind of problem could it be!?’

If Liu Li really does have a problem...

Then could it be said that there is no so-called third party?

If, in reality, there is no so-called third party...

Then what about the semen stain on the wedding dress?

What’s the deal with the high heels and stockings!?

Even more, in Liu Li’s mind’s eye... what did this third party even look like?

Li Jianye and Zhao Shui froze.

"Alright!"

With a new objective, the three of them closed the door, affixed the seal, and called to notify the police to send someone to stand guard.

Then, they drove towards the courthouse!

Liu Li...

’Is she really ill or not!?’

’If she is, what is it!?’

Sitting in the interrogation room, all sorts of doubts surfaced in Xu Huo’s mind, until...

CLANG~

The iron door of the interrogation room opened, and a dark figure gradually walked into the room. It was...

Liu Li!

Xu Huo’s gaze sharpened.