Jiangbei Subdivision Police Station, Criminal Investigation Team Office.
This place always seems like a pressure cooker about to boil over.
Phone rings come and go, and the sound of keyboard typing is as dense as rain.
Amidst it all, a certain officer is suppressing his anger, growling at a suspect cuffed to a chair.
The air is mixed with the bitterness of cheap instant coffee, the grease of leftover takeout, and a faint tobacco smell.
Together, they form a chaotic picture of busyness.
Fang Cheng quietly sits on an idle metal chair.
Beside him, a few blonde punks brought in for questioning are shaking their legs and humming songs.
Fang Cheng seems oblivious to the surrounding clamor, his gaze fixed on the whiteboard in the corner.
A few photos of the crime scenes are haphazardly attached by magnets, with red markers drawing chaotic arrows and question marks on them.
It seems Uncle Zhou’s investigatory team has encountered another difficult case.
Just then, a series of urgent and strong footsteps approached from afar.
"Ah Cheng, sorry to keep you waiting!"
A tall and efficient figure strides over, the zipper on his jacket open, revealing a dark T-shirt underneath.
His whole demeanor exudes agility and sharpness.
It is none other than Uncle Zhou’s trusted confidant, Ah Bang.
Since Zhou Yongnian was promoted to head of the Jiangbei District Criminal Investigation Team and donned the rank of Senior Inspector.
His brothers, who fought alongside him, rose in ranks as well.
Ah Bang is now the leader of Major Crime Unit One, carrying the badge of an Inspector Trainee.
Fang Cheng immediately stood up and greeted him with a smile.
"No need for the ’brother’, I’m only a few years older than you. Just call me Ah Bang."
Ah Bang grinned, casually slapping a yellowed manila file onto Fang Cheng’s hands.
Then lowering his voice, his expression turned serious:
"I got the materials out for you. You can only look at them here. No photos, no copies, and definitely no taking them away."
"This is a long-unresolved, sealed case. I’m taking a risk here. If it weren’t for you..."
He left the sentence unfinished, but the meaning was clear.
In Ah Bang’s eyes, Fang Cheng is not only their boss’s prospective son-in-law.
But also that ’mysterious informant’ who has helped solve numerous bizarre cases, someone who is absolutely one of their own.
It’s safe to say that some of the achievements on his badge are thanks to Fang Cheng’s contributions.
Even though he couldn’t understand why a law school graduate exam required knowledge of such strange murder cases.
This little favor, even if it involves some risk, must be extended.
Fang Cheng understood and nodded:
"Brother Bang, I know the rules."
He then reached for the file, seeing a label on the seal.
Indicating the status in a clear printed font: [Unsolved].
Below it were several striking words — [Rainy Night Butcher Case].
Fang Cheng sat down at Ah Bang’s empty desk, took a deep breath, and slowly opened the files.
A musty smell unique to dust-covered paper greeted him.
"This case is a sore spot for everyone on our team."
Ah Bang poured him a glass of water and leaned against the desk, lighting a cigarette, his brow furrowed.
"The killer is extremely cunning and cruel, with a strong awareness of counter-investigation. We suspect he has received professional training or is a retired top agent, because the crime scenes are too clean."
"We employed every technical method but couldn’t find a single complete fingerprint, a usable hair strand, or even determine what the murder weapon is."
Listening to Ah Bang, Fang Cheng’s eyes fell on the case overview on the first page.
[Preliminary suspect profiling: Male, approximately 180cm-185cm in height, weighing around 75kg, slender build, exceptionally agile, suspected to have undergone systematic counter-investigation or special operations training...]
"The only thing we can be sure of is his modus operandi, or rather, his peculiar hobby."
Ah Bang’s voice carried a hint of helplessness, mixed with a touch of lament.
"The crimes all occur on rainy nights, in various places around East Capital, mainly in Jiangbei, Jiangdong, and Wenchuan districts."
"The killer targets young women who are alone, ranging from students, white-collar workers just off work, to nightclub dancers. The only common denominator is they are young and pretty, frequent entertainment venues, and have a nightlife habit."
"From the first case in early March last year to now, there have been thirteen similar murder cases. We’ve combined them all into one investigation..."
Fang Cheng flipped through the files, his gaze gliding over page after page of victim’s profile photos.
Each was once a vibrant life, now turned into cold evidence.
"Is there not even one witness?"
He asked softly, without looking up.
Ah Bang’s expression darkened:
"Strictly speaking, it wasn’t really a witness."
"Last May, a colleague on patrol near the crime scene saw a suspicious figure pass by in the heavy rain from a distance."
"By the time he caught up, the person had vanished into the alley, not even leaving a shadow, like... a hallucination."
"But because of him, we roughly confirmed the suspect’s physical characteristics."
"What happened to that colleague?"
Ah Bang was silent for a moment, squeezing out two words through clenched teeth:
"Killed by the murderer?"
"No, he was poisoned to death afterwards."
Ah Bang shook his head, his hands unconsciously tightened into fists:
"The coroner’s report stated he overdosed on hallucinogens, but I always felt... the timing of these two events was too coincidental."
Fang Cheng stopped asking, thinking perhaps these matters involved internal issues of the police force.
Then, he noticed a forensic analysis report in the files: