Lin Qiupu felt like he was asked an absurd question. "Of course it’s Hao Jie. We’ve already done a DNA test.”

"Who did you do the test against?"

"His father..." Lin Qiupu's eyes widened, thinking of Hao Jie's mother’s abnormal behavior at the time. Hao Jie's father was sick in bed, so it would have been more convenient for her to provide DNA.

However, he denied the idea. "It is impossible. Impossible. His mother was overly sad, so it’s normal that she didn’t want to cooperate with the investigation.”

"You’re actually helping explain her behavior? In short, the identity of the victim needs to be fully determined first. If this isn’t ascertained, the direction of the entire investigation will be off course."

"What if she doesn't cooperate?"

"That's even better. If she doesn’t even comply with a small request like this, it proves she has a problem… Let's go! I'll take your car!"

The two went directly to Hao Jie's house. On the way, Chen Shi called the task force members and asked them to search for new targets. When they heard Chen Shi's voice, everyone was motivated.

Lin Qiupu said, "You should just be a police officer. You’ll be a captain within two years."

"How much do you earn a month? Aren’t you still paying off your mortgage? I’m not going to do this kind of tiresome job that people don’t like!"

Lin Qiupu felt attacked and said, "You… Your development is limited by your short-sightedness. You can be a police officer, but you’re here providing driving services!"

Hao Jie's family lived on the top floor. Lin Qiupu was about to knock on the door when Chen Shi stopped him and put his ear on the door to listen. Lin Qiupu followed suit. Hao Jie’s mother was on a phone call and she didn’t sound sad at all.

"Li Jie[1], how were the skin care products my brother bought for you from South Korea? Nothing much... Okay, let’s go out for tea when you have time..."

Chen Shi then knocked on the door. Hao Jie’s mother opened the door and her expression changed immediately. She said, "What are you doing here? Do you still think that you haven’t harmed our family enough? I have already sued you. I don’t want to see you pieces of waste again before going to court!"

"Sue?" Chen Shi wondered.

"Ms. Qin, you are suing the branch office responsible for the kidnapping case. We are the head office responsible for the murder investigation. I hope you can cooperate."

"Humph!"

"Can we come in?"

After entering the house, Chen Shi looked around and said, "The house is smaller than I thought. I thought Boss Hao would live in a bigger house."

"He is a fart boss who owes a butt-ful of debt. He’s sick as well. Our family is considered a ruined family. All of this is because of you police."

Lin Qiupu said, "Ms. Qin, can you please stop using that attitude with us all the time? We are trying our best to solve the case in hopes to bring justice for you and your family. Don't you want us to find out the truth?"

The last sentence was said by Lin Qiupu with purposeful intentions. Hao Jie's mother had a strange look. Lin Qiupu suddenly found that Chen Shi was gone and there was a movement from within the bathroom.

"Who... Who told you that you could use the bathroom? I’ll think it’s dirty after you dirty police have used it!" Hao Jie’s mother loudly made a scene again.

"I'm sorry, I couldn’t hold it in." Chen Shi shouted from the bathroom.

A trickling sound echoed in the room, making the atmosphere very awkward. Lin Qiupu thought that this bathroom session lasted too long. He said to Hao Jie’s mother, "We are here to learn about some of Hao Jie's situation."

"I don’t want to talk about it!"

"Ms. Qin, I really hope you can cooperate. This case is greatly prioritized at the bureau. We have over 20 people in the team investigating over the last two days."

"Did you find anything then?"

"This is inconvenient to be disclosed right now. Can you tell us about Hao Jie? How was he at school?"

Hao Jie's mother sighed and began to wipe her tears away again. "My Ah Jie at school was an excellent student. He hadn't made us worry ever since he went to elementary school. He also liked playing basketball and even participated in our district’s competition..."

Chen Shi came out of the bathroom while pulling up his pants. "But, I remember his right arm was broken."

"Ah, that was something that happened when he was younger. Children's bones are soft and easy to heal..."

Lin Qiupu asked, "Wasn’t it the leg?"

Chen Shi acted in an exaggerated manner, "Yes! It's the legs! I got it wrong... Sorry, I have a bad memory."

"I'm talking about the leg! What did you think I was talking about?" Hao Jie’s mother emphasized.

"I'll ask one more thing. How is your relationship with your husband?"

"Average, just like other couples. We’ll have arguments here and there on repeat. Ever since I gave birth to Hao Jie, I’ve poured my whole heart into him. People say that a child is a family’s stabilizer. These words are so true. Hao Jie’s father and I saw him as our lifeline."

"There is something we need your help with. It’s a small favor. Can you help?" Chen Shi said.

"What favor?"

"Plucking a hair out for us."

"What?! Hasn’t the identity been confirmed yet?"

"The procedure from back then wasn’t formal that day. It was done in the hospital. We need the DNA of you and your husband to compare them again."

Hao Jie's mother changed her expression immediately. "What's the point of that? Except for hurting our hearts once again. How can that help?"

"Of course it helps-"

Hao Jie's mother interrupted him. "It’s already confirmed that he’s our family’s Ah Jie. Is there a point in repeatedly checking one single thing like this? The country's large sums of money support you all only for you to do stuff like this? Instead of dealing with those criminals, you guys only know how to deal with victim’s families.”

Lin Qiupu noticed a detail and said, "Ah, that’s right. We didn't seem to notify you of the identification results yet... You left early at the hospital that day."

Hao Jie's mother panicked for a moment and then cried again, "Mother and son are connected by the heart. How could I not know? Do you still need to check?"

"I hope you can cooperate with us." Lin Qiupu urged.

"What would cooperating do? Can you make Ah Jie alive again? Go away, go away! Don't come again!" Then, Hao Jie’s mother picked up the mop and started driving them out.

The two were blasted out and Lin Qiupu looked helpless. Chen Shi grabbed him and peeped his eyes through the keyhole. Lin Qiupu said, "You look really disgusting right now."

Chen Shi shushed him and said, "Let me teach you a little trick. Sometimes, heading back will garner you more clues."

"What clue did you find?"

Chen Shi shushed him again and peeped through the keyhole for a full five minutes before he pulled Lin Qiupu away. Chen Shi asked while going downstairs, "Guess what the first thing this woman did was?"

"Don't act all mysterious."

"She checked the bathroom. I didn't hear the water running just now. She was checking, not going to the bathroom."

"Sure enough, there is a ghost in her heart[2]!" Lin Qiupu believed Chen Shi now. "But we didn't get any DNA samples!"

"Who do you think I am?" Chen Shi took out a small bag and a bottle. "Hair and toilet water with traces of urine. I took two samples as a precaution."

"Then the long urine break you had..."

Chen Shi pulled out a mineral water bottle with a small hole in it and Lin Qiupu realized immediately.

"Come on, it's time to witness the miracle."

1. I’m unsure whether this “Jie” is part of the person’s name, or whether she means “Big Sister Li” in a respectful manner.

2. There’s guilt in her heart