Chapter 78: Sudden Death

Strictly speaking, Qin Qing belonged to the technical team—non-combat personnel.

She wasn’t required to work overtime.

Her only task was to pinpoint the locations of the missing persons. After that, everything else fell to the field officers.

For several consecutive days, she had been meeting with the families of the missing.

To protect her identity, the police station arranged for her not to meet them face-to-face.

Separated by a two-way mirror, a regular officer pretended to communicate with the family while Qin Qing observed from the other side, reviewing documents and recording relevant details.

The Character Relationship Map showed details of each missing person. Although her tracking was limited to a 50-kilometer radius, she had purchased an attribute that allowed her to add “movement traces,” which made it possible to pinpoint precise locations.

But she couldn’t reveal that information directly to the police.

After leveling up, Qin Qing had accumulated over thirty Energy Points. She spent a few to transplant several new compasses.

Then, when it came to locating people, her method was to provide the police with distance and blurred status information of the missing individual.

Combined with the directional guidance of the compass, the bureau’s technical staff could narrow down the province and search area—which was usually very accurate.

After wrapping up one missing person case, Qin Qing handed the file folder to Xiao Song, the assistant assigned to her.

“All done. Let me know when the next family arrives.”

Knock knock knock…

The office door was tapped a few times.

Qin Qing and Xiao Song turned at the same time.

Xiao Song stood up straight and greeted, “Hello, Bureau Chief.”

The Bureau Chief waved him off without even a glance.

With a smile, he walked to the desk and placed a small cake box on top.

“Little Qin, you’ve worked so hard for so long. Take a break—try this cake. My granddaughter’s been eating it lately, and I figured young girls like you probably have similar tastes.”

“Thank you, Bureau Chief,” Qin Qing replied.

She hadn’t expected the Bureau Chief to come check on her in person.

She noticed Xiao Song standing to the side with a complicated expression.

The Bureau Chief added, “Don’t overwork yourself. You’ve got to find a balance. These cases have been backlogged for a while—no need to rush. Young people should take care of their health. Sustainable effort, that’s what we need.”

“Yes, thank you for your concern, Bureau Chief. I’ll keep that in mind.”

The Bureau Chief said affectionately, “Remember to eat the cake. I’ll be heading out now.”

As he turned, he spotted Xiao Song nearby and immediately changed his tone, his face dropping: “Young people need to work hard. This is your time to fight for your future! Little Qin gave you the information—take action quickly! Time—what matters most now is time!” He tapped his watch for emphasis.

After the Bureau Chief left, Xiao Song visibly relaxed and looked wide-eyed at Qin Qing, hands raised in frustration.

“What did I even do wrong? The Bureau Chief really does play favorites.” He wore a pained expression. “We’re working ten-plus hours a day and still being told to push harder, while you show up for three or four hours and get cake.”

“Uh…” As the one benefiting, she felt awkward complaining. “Want to share the cake?”

Xiao Song patted the folder in his hand. “Forget it. I’ll go process this case quickly. The backlog is overwhelming—our manpower is stretched thin.”

—

The Wuning Precinct really was swamped lately. Most resources were tied up with missing persons investigations, while routine criminal cases still had to be handled.

Lin Feng passed by and spotted Qin Qing in the meeting room. He walked right in. “Finished meeting the families for today?”

Qin Qing nodded. “The people I’ve seen in the past couple of days should keep you plenty busy. Maybe I should slow down a bit.”

Lin Feng waved a hand. “No need. The Bureau Chief already requested temporary transfers from the city bureau. Don’t worry about that.”

No wonder the Bureau Chief had brought her cake.

Turns out it was just fuel for the mountain of work waiting behind it.

Lin Feng tossed the leather satchel he was carrying onto the table and noticed the cake box.

“You still have time for afternoon tea? I’m drowning here.” As he spoke, he reached for the cake. “Is there any left? I’ll have a few bites. Haven’t eaten in two meals.”

Qin Qing wasn’t hungry yet, so she let him have it.

“I haven’t touched it. Go ahead.”

Lin Feng took out the cake—it was about six inches across.

He couldn’t be bothered with the provided dessert spoon, and instead went out to snag a pair of disposable chopsticks. Then he sat down and devoured the cake as if it were a bowl of noodles.

As he ate, he complained, “Ugh, way too sweet. Next time get something lighter.”

Then he grabbed his teacup and downed several gulps of strong tea.

Qin Qing said, “The Bureau Chief bought it. If you’ve got a problem, take it up with him.”

Lin Feng choked on his words and said nothing more.

Qin Qing asked, “What are you busy with that you can’t even eat?”

Lin Feng pulled out a file from under his satchel and tossed it to her. “There was a report—sudden death in his sleep. I went to handle it. This case is strange.”

Qin Qing opened it and found two case files inside—one was a scanned copy.

She skimmed them. Both cases involved sudden death.

“You think something’s wrong?”

These days, most people were in poor health. Work pressure was high. Sudden deaths from overwork weren’t uncommon.

“There are autopsy reports inside—take a look.” Lin Feng winced from the sourness of an underripe strawberry in the cake.

Qin Qing flipped through them.

One read: Death due to sudden decline in cardiac pumping function, resulting in acute heart failure and inadequate perfusion of organs and tissues.

The other read: Coronary artery spasm leading to myocardial ischemia, causing acute myocardial infarction.

Qin Qing guessed, “Both acute heart conditions?”

“Exactly. But that’s not all.”

Lin Feng continued, “In our case, the deceased’s family said he loved sports, just had a physical, was in perfect health, and had no family history of heart disease. They suspect murder. During routine interviews, we found that the deceased’s friend—this case file—”

He pointed to the scanned one. “This person also died. Also from acute heart failure. What’s more, they died at the exact same time.”

Qin Qing looked at the time. Sure enough, the estimated time of death matched. The forensics report couldn’t pinpoint the exact minute, but both deaths occurred within the same hour.

Lin Feng said, “What are the odds? Something’s definitely off. They even met earlier that day.”

“Poison? Maybe they ate something together and were poisoned at the same time?”

“Forensics didn’t find any toxins in their systems.”

Qin Qing pushed the idea further: “Maybe they were injected with nanobots that traveled through the bloodstream and sabotaged the heart. Completely invisible to the eye.”

Lin Feng stared at her.

Qin Qing shrugged. “One of the crime shows I’m watching had an episode like that.”

Lin Feng pulled a face and didn’t continue down that rabbit hole.

“We’ve already applied to merge the two cases and launched a joint investigation with the other precinct. But so far, no progress. Forensics found nothing unusual either.”

Qin Qing understood. “Want me to take a look?”

“That’s what I was hoping.”

She wasn’t going alone—Luo Chi’a was coming too.

They each met with the families of the deceased. Qin Qing didn’t notice anything off. The families were genuinely grieving.

She looked at Luo Chi’a.

He shook his head, then asked Lin Feng, “Where were the two men last seen before they died?”

Lin Feng said, “A bar. Already checked—it’s a legal business, proper licenses, and no suspicious individuals.”

Luo Chi’a said, “Let’s go check it out.”

So they went to the bar, deliberately choosing to visit at night.

Qin Qing spoke with the bar’s manager and staff, and stayed for two hours observing the patrons. She didn’t spot anything unusual.

Same for Luo Chi’a.

Lin Feng said, “This is so bizarre. It’s a simple case, but everything about it feels wrong. And yet, there’s not a shred of direct evidence indicating anything out of the ordinary.”

Qin Qing didn’t quite believe this was just a coincidence—especially since the two deceased had been close friends.

She asked Lin Feng, “What about that thing I asked you to check on a few days ago?”

Lin Feng replied, “Give it a few more days. I’ve been swamped here, so I asked some colleagues from other districts to help out. Should be soon.”

Qin Qing had no choice but to wait patiently for the results.

Nothing ever came of the two sudden death cases. The request to merge the investigations was rejected.

Without any compelling evidence to suggest foul play, they had no choice but to close the case according to procedure.

Still, Qin Qing couldn’t shake the feeling that it wasn’t over.

Once she finished going through the missing persons cases Lin Feng had brought back, all she could do was sit and wait.

Then word came from Baiyun Temple: to get her Taoist license, she had to go through an assessment. Most of the process could be arranged, but the written test had to be taken by her personally.

Wu Yong said, “You just need to pass. Shouldn’t be hard for you.”

Qin Qing was crying inside.

She didn’t know any of this stuff.

So lately, she’d been completely tied up with it.

A few of the senior Taoist priests outlined a syllabus for her. It wasn’t much in terms of content, but she had no foundation, so memorizing it made her see stars.

She took Mumu with her every day—Mumu carrying a little backpack to accompany her to Baiyun Temple for classes.

She received one-on-one tutoring from the old priests on Taoist theories and philosophy.

Her classroom was on the top floor of the scripture pavilion.

Every time she dragged herself downstairs half-dead from being soaked in Taoist doctrine, the young Daoist apprentices on the ground floor looked up at her with envy.

Cry…

What’s there to envy? The old priests were even more sleep-inducing than Wu Yong, and she couldn’t even openly doze off. The old men were already doing their best at their age.

She memorized scriptures daily, feeling like she might transcend at any moment.

Sometimes, she would look up from the texts, dazed and lost in thought.

Who was she? What was she doing?

Her original goal was just to earn enough money to retire early, then enjoy a leisurely life full of food, drinks, cats, and dogs.

How did she end up back in the rat race?

After cramming criminal investigation theory, she now found herself hastily cramming for the Taoist license exam.

Did she really need the license?

Not necessarily.

Though it might prove useful at times.

But by the time she thought that, it was too late. She had already memorized more than half the materials. Giving up now would make the past few days of effort look foolish.

So she kept at it silently.

That day, after finishing her memorization session, she went to the cafeteria to get her study meal.

Thankfully, Master Wu Tun was kind-hearted and prepared something delicious for her every day, comforting both her weary mind and overworked brain.

At times like this, food was the only consolation.

She was hungrily digging into her meal when she noticed a gaze lingering on her.

She was used to being stared at in the Taoist temple, especially after her daily sessions at the top of the scripture pavilion. The young apprentices always looked at her.

But this time, the gaze lingered a bit too long.

She glanced back and saw—it was Cheng Ling.

Huh… He looked a little chubbier than before. At least he finally looked like a normal person now.

When he noticed her looking, Cheng Ling quickly smiled and nodded at her.

Qin Qing nodded back.

Well, he was sort of her client after all.

After finishing her meal, she walked over and asked, “Were you looking for me?”