Does Captain Han Also Have the Skill of Autopsy

The body was discovered inside a bridge pier. The police officers parked their cars at the bridgehead, out of the way.

The remaining stretch of road was inaccessible by car, so they had to proceed on foot.

After the police car stopped, Li Chen got out holding a lunch box. He approached Wang Dachuan, who was sitting in another police car.

"Want some lunch? Han Fei's daughter made it. It's really good, and I saved some for you."

"Thanks, Brother Li. You're always so good to me." Wang Dachuan had only eaten a peach for lunch and hadn't had time for a proper meal before being called out on duty. Seeing the neatly packed lunch box in front of him, his appetite immediately kicked in.

"Don't mention it. Eat up, and then we'll get to work." Li Chen patted Wang Dachuan on the shoulder twice, then turned and walked away quickly, pretending nothing had happened.

A few seconds later.

"Ugh... ugh! What the hell is this? Li Chen, did you add extra salt or something?! Don't run away, come back here..."

All that responded to him was Li Chen's laughter.

Fortunately, Han Fei stepped in to stop the commotion and took the lunch box back.

After all the fuss, the lunch box was almost empty, with just a little bit left. At least it wasn't wasted.

Han Fei dumped the remaining bit into the trash and tossed the lunch box back into the car.

...

The person who reported the incident had been waiting for the police to arrive. Under his guidance, the officers descended the steps to the base of the bridge.

"Officers, it's over there. I found the bones inside that bridge pier."

Following the direction the man pointed, everyone saw the skeleton embedded in the pier.

"How did you find this place?"

"I... I wanted to bring my girlfriend here for some excitement..." the man stammered in explanation.

As the person who discovered the body, the police would naturally conduct a routine interrogation, though it was just a formality. After a few simple questions, they let him go.

After the man left, the officers took a few steps forward to get a closer look at the pier near the riverbank.

All the other piers were intact, but the one closest to the riverbank had part of its outer cement shell broken off, revealing the bones hidden inside.

This pier was the only one damaged by water, likely because the body inside weakened its structure, making it more susceptible to erosion.

"Twenty-four years," Han Fei said, stroking his chin. "The victim probably died around twenty-four years ago."

Hearing this, the officers turned to look at him.

"Captain Han, do you have forensic skills too?"

Han Fei shook his head and explained.

"No, not at all. I just know when this bridge was built. It was completed twenty-four years ago. My family lives nearby, and I remember it clearly because I had just started middle school when the bridge was finished. The body was buried in the pier, so it must have happened during construction."

After Han Fei's explanation, the officers nodded in understanding.

No wonder Han Fei could estimate the time of death.

Xu Mo also stepped forward to examine the skeleton embedded in the pier.

"Male, about 1.74 meters tall, aged between forty and forty-five. The time of death matches what Captain Han said—at least twenty to thirty years ago. This is a cold case, and it's going to be tough to crack."

Cold cases are always difficult to solve.

Especially this one, where the victim died over twenty years ago. The time span is so vast that some of the officers weren't even born when the victim died.

But no matter how difficult the case is, it still needs to be investigated. They can't give up just because it's hard.

Han Fei scratched his head.

"Let's start by looking into the people who built this bridge. Find the relevant documents and see who the contractor was."

"Also, check the missing persons records from that time for anyone who fits the description."

"Captain Xu, you mentioned before that DNA can be preserved in bones for a long time. Can we still extract DNA from this body?"

Han Fei's idea was that if they could identify a few missing persons from that time who matched the description, they could ask their descendants for DNA samples to confirm the victim's identity.

Xu Mo shook his head. "It's unlikely. The preservation conditions were too poor. But we can take it back and let the forensic team try."

Over twenty years had passed, and the crime scene was almost useless for the investigation.

Even the body in the pier wasn't of much help.

While DNA can be preserved in bones for a long time, it requires relatively ideal preservation conditions. This skeleton had been exposed to air and water for who knows how long, so the DNA was probably degraded.

With no useful clues at the scene, the officers took a few photos, removed the partially detached body from the pier, and brought it back to the station for forensic examination.

...

At the police station.

While the forensic team was busy trying to extract DNA from the bones, the other officers weren't idle either.

They had identified the contractor for the bridge.

"Captain Han, Captain Xu, we found out that the bridge was built by Fuxin Construction Company."

"Fuxin Construction Company... Let's go and ask them some questions." Han Fei immediately perked up.

Once they had the information, Han Fei led the officers out of the station and headed to Fuxin Construction Company.

Finding the construction company was just the first step. The most important thing was to locate the workers who had participated in the bridge's construction, especially those involved in the concrete pouring.

The body must have been placed in the pier during the pouring process, and the workers pouring the concrete should have noticed something.

Of course, while the construction company was easy to find, the workers who had worked on the bridge twenty years ago were another matter.

After all, over two decades had passed, and many of those workers might have already left the industry.

...

Half an hour later, the officers arrived at their destination.

Fuxin Construction Company.

At the front desk, Han Fei showed his police badge to the receptionist and said,

"We're police officers investigating a case. Please call your manager. We need to ask him a few questions."