The crackdown on organized crime began with the arrest of the mother-in-law.

Chapter 1259 Renovator Li Baowei

As night deepened, the lights in the autopsy room remained bright. Zhang Sen organized the autopsy records, prioritized all the samples for testing, and sent the list to the technical department. He knew that this autopsy was only the first step in solving the case; subsequent evidence comparison and investigation would be key to uncovering the truth. But he was confident that, with accurate autopsy findings and meticulous analysis of clues, this crime hidden in the morning light would ultimately be illuminated by the sunshine of justice.

When forensic pathologist Zhang Sen's autopsy report reached Xiao Zhou at 0 PM, it was already past midnight. "Male, 35-40 years old, 175 cm tall, time of death between midnight and 1 AM, last meal consisted of rice, vegetables, and meat, possibly had contact with trees or wood"—Xiao Zhou circled these key characteristics in red in his notebook. He then led five team members into the missing persons verification office of the Criminal Investigation Division.

The office air conditioner hummed, and six computer screens lit up simultaneously, their blue light reflecting on everyone's faces. Team member Xiao Chen yawned as soon as he sat down, his fingers listlessly sliding across the mouse: "It's all this dense information again. Last time I was investigating Zhang Wanli's case, my eyes almost gave way. I don't know how long this will take." He opened the missing persons information system; the progress bar slowly ticked by, as if deliberately wearing down his patience.

Xiao Zhou distributed the freshly brewed hot tea to his team members, holding a cup for himself as well, feeling the warmth on his fingertips: "Everyone, hang in there. The identity of the deceased is the key to the case. Without finding the identity, the subsequent investigation will be pointless." He walked behind Xiao Chen, looking at the information filtering interface on the screen, "Refine the criteria further: age 35-40, height 173-177 cm, time of disappearance within 24-48 hours, occupation field includes keywords such as 'decoration,' 'carpentry,' and 'landscape' that may involve contact with trees, and focus on whether anyone mentions 'last meal was a home-cooked meal' or 'wearing a gray or dark-colored top.'"

Team member Xiao Li leaned back in his chair, which creaked in protest. "Detailing it up is useless," he stretched, his bones making a series of cracking sounds. "Look at this one: missing person Wang Lei, 38 years old, 174 centimeters tall, occupation 'worker,' but it doesn't say what kind of worker, or what he ate for his last meal. How can we judge this information? And this one, Zhao Qiang, 36 years old, a decorator, but he disappeared a week ago, which doesn't match the time of death. What a waste of time."

“The most annoying thing is incomplete information,” team member Xiao Wang pointed to a blurry record on the screen. “Missing person Sun Ming, 37 years old, 175 cm tall, occupation ‘decoration related’, disappeared 2 days ago, all other information is ‘unknown’, and we can’t get through to his family by phone. How can we verify it? Half of the information in this system is like this. Checking it is the same as not checking it at all, it’s a pure waste of time.”

Complaints rose and fell, but the sound of fingers tapping on the keyboard never stopped. The sky outside the window gradually darkened, making the office lights seem particularly glaring. Empty instant coffee canisters on the desk were piling up, ashtrays were overflowing with cigarette butts, and the air was filled with the mixed smell of caffeine and tobacco.

At 8 PM, team member Xiao Zhao's phone rang. It was his wife calling. He answered, his voice softening instantly: "Hello, honey... I'm still busy. The case is hopeless, I probably won't be home tonight... Is the child asleep? You should get some rest too, don't wait for me." After hanging up, he rubbed his red eyes, a hint of helplessness in his voice: "The child is only three years old. He needs me to tell him a story every night before he'll go to sleep. I haven't spent time with him for several days."

“Who says otherwise?” Xiao Chen said with a wry smile. “It’s my mom’s birthday today. She specially made my favorite braised pork and asked me to come home for dinner. But then she called, and I had to tell her to save the pork and heat it up when I got home. Now, I didn’t get to eat the pork, and I have to sit here staring at all this stupid information. My eyes are about to go blind.”

Seeing his team members' exhausted appearance, Xiao Zhou felt bad too. He knew they were all pushing themselves, but the case was stuck on the victim's identity, and they had to investigate. "How about this, everyone take turns resting for ten minutes," he suggested. "Xiao Li, go to the rest room and lie down for a while. I'll keep an eye on things for you. After ten minutes, it'll be Xiao Wang's turn. Don't push yourself too hard; it'll be more troublesome if you break down."

Time ticked by, from 8 p.m. to 2 a.m., the information entries on the screen were scrolled through one after another, but no clue matching the criteria was found. Everyone stared silently at the screen, their eyes filled with exhaustion and disappointment, too tired even to complain.

At four in the morning, team member Xiao Wang suddenly jolted awake, pointing at the screen and shouting, "Team Leader Zhang! This one looks a bit like him!" Everyone instantly perked up and gathered around Xiao Wang's computer. The screen displayed information about a missing person: "Li Baowei, male, 38 years old, construction worker, 175 cm tall. His body was discovered two days ago. He went missing the night before. His family said he was wearing a gray hoodie, black sweatpants, and white sneakers. Around 2 PM, he ate rice, stir-fried vegetables, and braised pork at home, then said he was going to meet a client and never returned. Contact person: Wife Liu Min, phone number 139XXXX7890."

"Are there any other similar clues?" Xiao Zhou asked quickly, his heart pounding. Xiao Wang continued searching and found two more suspicious clues: "One of these is a 36-year-old carpenter, 174 centimeters tall, who disappeared two days ago, but his last meal was noodles, not rice; the other is a 39-year-old decorator, whose last meal fits the description, but he is only 172 centimeters tall, 3 centimeters shorter than the deceased. However, both are somewhat suspicious and need further verification."

"Immediately contact the contacts for these three leads and focus on verifying Li Baowei's situation!" Xiao Zhou made a decisive decision. "Xiao Zhao, contact Li Baowei's wife, Liu Min, and ask her if Li Baowei carried any tools when he went out, if he had any unusual habits, or if he had any obvious markings on his body; Xiao Chen, contact the contacts for the other two leads and confirm the detailed information of their missing family members to rule them out as suspects; the rest of you, continue to organize Li Baowei's relevant information and see if there is any other related information."

Xiao Zhao immediately dialed Liu Min's number. The phone rang for a long time before being answered. Liu Min's voice was sleepy and anxious: "Hello? Who is this? What's wrong so late?"

"Hello, we are from the Municipal Criminal Investigation Division. We would like to inquire about your husband, Li Baowei," Xiao Zhao said, trying to soften her tone. "When he went out two nights ago, did he carry any tools? Did he have any unusual markings on his body, such as scars or tattoos?"