Chapter 78 – Suspicion

After leaving the streamer who had done the evaluation, Aofeng walked over to the group of four female college students. Compared to the male streamer who was afraid of dogs, these girls were much bolder.

Seeing such a majestic and composed police dog approaching them, they eagerly reached out, hoping to pet him. But Aofeng was incredibly agile. He circled around them once, not letting them touch even a single hair.

There was a light fragrance on them, which didn’t smell like perfume but more like some kind of skincare product. In addition, there were faint traces of sulfur and medicinal herbs. Aofeng concluded that these girls were probably telling the truth.

He then walked over to the family of three and sniffed carefully. Aside from the scent of the hot springs, the most prominent smell was the milky scent from the baby – rich and sweet, making Aofeng feel a little hungry. When the baby saw Aofeng, his tiny mouth opened slightly, his round eyes wide, and his little hands reaching out as if trying to beckon Aofeng over.

Aofeng gave him a friendly smile, then turned and walked toward the next person. The moment he saw this man clearly, a famous old comedy line popped into Aofeng’s head: “Big head, thick neck – either a tycoon or a cook¹.”

The man was short and stocky, with a round head and face. His features weren’t exactly ugly, but they weren’t attractive either. He exuded an unmistakable aura of wealth and was clearly the “tycoon” type mentioned in the line.

Aofeng circled around him once. He didn’t even need to sniff closely to catch the scent of alcohol. This immediately caught Aofeng’s attention, because he had smelled traces of alcohol on the victim earlier.

But as he carefully twitched his nose, trying to analyze the scent, he felt a bit disappointed. This wasn’t the same faint red wine aroma that had lingered on the victim. This was a rich, savory fragrance – the distinct scent of Maotai² liquor.

Aofeng thought to himself, “Figures. Rich people really do drink differently.” But aside from the Maotai, he also picked up a strong scent of the sea. Good grief, he couldn’t help but exclaim inwardly – seafood and baijiu³? That’s the perfect recipe for gout!

Perhaps Aofeng lingered by him a little too long, because soon all eyes were on the man and the dog. Some officers even had their hands on the silver handcuffs in their pockets. Everyone was waiting for Aofeng to give a signal, but only Song Changfeng knew that Aofeng hadn’t found anything suspicious on him.

Sure enough, the next moment, Aofeng moved on. Based on scent alone, this man didn’t seem connected to the earlier criminal case.

That left only one person. Aofeng lifted his head and looked toward the beautiful and gentle woman standing at the edge of the group. Among the six suspects, she was the only one who hadn’t been checked yet. Could she be the culprit?

Aofeng walked toward her and stopped half an arm’s length away. As her scent entered his nose, Aofeng’s expression turned serious.

There was no alcohol on her at all! Her entire body was enveloped in the smell of sulfur and medicine, as if she had just been pulled out of a hot spring. The strong scent masked everything else. Even with Aofeng’s keen nose, he couldn’t pick up anything beyond that.

He stared at her in a daze. The woman met his gaze and gave him an especially gentle smile. But in Aofeng’s eyes, that smile felt like a mocking jab at his abilities.

He calmed himself and stepped closer, his nose practically brushing against her clothes.

Something was off. Very off. Others had traces of sulfur and medicine too, but those weren’t the dominant smells. The reason was simple – most people had left the hot springs four or five hours ago.

The first scents picked up by the body would gradually fade with movement and be replaced by new ones. Unless, like the victim, they were no longer active and couldn’t pick up any new smells.

Moreover, Aofeng noticed that the scent on her clothes was particularly strong. It didn’t seem to come from her body, but rather from the clothes themselves.

Could it be that she had gone into the hot spring wearing her clothes? That didn’t make sense. The resort was thoughtful and had provided lightweight, opaque bathrobes for guests who might feel shy about exposing themselves. In that case, why would anyone choose to soak in the hot spring wearing their own clothes?

Unless… she wanted to use that scent to cover up another one!

Even though he hadn’t identified it yet, Aofeng was certain – this woman was hiding something!

This time, although Aofeng lingered by her just as long as he had with the man earlier, the crowd didn’t react as tensely. In their eyes, the man had seemed far more suspicious than the woman. Just then, Aofeng made a move. Everyone thought he was about to walk away when, suddenly, he lay down⁴ at the woman’s feet.

Some people chuckled knowingly, thinking this German Shepherd had good taste – even a dog knew to cozy up to a beauty. But Song Changfeng’s expression turned grim.

A police dog lying down meant it had found something. In other words, Aofeng had detected something on this woman and believed she was a suspect.

“Ms. Chen, may I ask where you were between 9:10 and 9:40 last night?”

It was already past 3 a.m. the next day, so referring to “last night” was perfectly accurate. No one questioned his wording anyway, because everyone was now watching the woman named Chen with unreadable expressions.

After all, when Aofeng had sniffed the others, his trainer hadn’t said a word. But now that Aofeng had lain down, the trainer had spoken. Did that mean this woman was indeed suspicious?

Ms. Chen didn’t answer Song Changfeng’s question directly. Her expression didn’t change at all from being questioned. She looked him up and down and said slowly, “And who might you be? Are you a police officer too?”

Song Changfeng had gone home and changed into casual clothes, and he looked especially laid-back at the moment.

“Whether I’m a police officer or not, does that affect your answer to the question?” Song Changfeng replied calmly.

Mrs. Chen curled her lips into a smile. “Of course, if you’re not the police, then I have no obligation to answer your questions. Besides, I believe I already answered this question just now. On what grounds do you officers keep questioning us over and over again? Especially now, dragging us out in the middle of the night, refusing to let us rest, treating us like criminals. Tell me, what crime have we committed?”

Her words rang out with conviction, instantly drawing a clear line between the two sides. She cleverly shifted the focus from herself to the group, turning a personal matter into a collective one.

Seeing a few of the guests frown in response, the captain quickly stepped forward to explain. “Everyone, please remain calm. As I mentioned earlier during questioning, a serious incident occurred at the resort. The perpetrator has yet to be caught, so everyone who was present at the time is a potential suspect. However, there’s no need to worry. Once the investigation is complete and you’re cleared of any involvement, we will of course let you go. Please trust that the law will not wrong an innocent person, and likewise, it will not let a guilty one go free.”

As he said the final sentence, the captain gave Mrs. Chen a meaningful glance.

A faint shadow flickered across Mrs. Chen’s face, so subtle it was almost imperceptible, but it vanished in an instant. She smiled again and was just about to speak when Song Changfeng cut her off.

Unfazed by her earlier challenge, Song Changfeng fixed his gaze on her and repeated the question.

“I already said, I’ve answered that question once,” she replied. “At the time of the incident, I was in my room practicing yoga. What, do you want me to demonstrate it for you right now?”

Her eyes were full of provocation. Ever since Aofeng lay down, the gentle façade she had maintained had completely vanished. A person’s true nature can’t be hidden. Those who are truly gentle carry it in their bones—no matter the time or circumstance, they remain kind and composed.

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Translator’s Notes

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1. Big head, thick neck – either a tycoon or a cook: A famous line from the 2001 CCTV New Year’s Gala skit ‘Selling Canes’ (卖拐) by comedian Zhao Benshan. It references a common Chinese stereotype that wealthy businessmen and professional chefs both tend to have stocky builds due to frequent banqueting. ↩
2. Maotai: Kweichow Moutai is a brand of high-end distilled Chinese liquor (baijiu). Known as China’s ‘national liquor,’ it is a major status symbol often used for official banquets and expensive gifts. ↩
3. baijiu: A clear, potent distilled liquor made from grain (usually sorghum). It typically has an alcohol content between 35% and 60% and is the most popular spirit in China. ↩
4. lay down: In police dog training, this is known as a ‘passive alert.’ Unlike an ‘active alert’ (barking or scratching), the dog quietly sits or lies down to signal to the handler that they have detected a specific target scent. ↩