CHAPTER 771: CHAPTER 771: THE SENSE OF CEREMONY

"Perhaps the driver who delivered the cross is the murderer himself." Zhang Ting and Ye Shikai watched the surveillance video of the scene once again. This footage was captured by the camera installed outside, prompting Zhang Ting to make a bold guess.

"No, I don’t think so." Ye Shikai shook his head. The driver was a woman, and though she seemed strong, Ye Shikai didn’t believe that she could have nailed Chen Xietian’s towering 1.9-meter figure to the cross with her mere 1.6-meter frame—unless the murderer was a cultivator. Ye Shikai was hesitant to consider this possibility, as cultivators could achieve many feats beyond the reach of ordinary people. If the culprit really was a cultivator, the police would likely have a hard time catching them.

"Then who exactly is the killer? We’ve reviewed the surveillance tapes, and on that day, aside from the truck, no one else entered the villa." Zhang Ting looked at the monitors, confused. Besides, if the cross was sent to Chen Xietian’s house by the murderer beforehand, wouldn’t he find it odd why someone would deliver a cross?

Ye Shikai turned his attention back to the cross in the hall. The body had already been removed, but traces of blood and the marks where the nails had been hammered in could still be seen on the cross. Seeing this, Ye Shikai suddenly burst into laughter.

"What are you laughing about?" Zhang Ting asked.

"I just find it all very ironic." Ye Shikai said calmly.

"What do you mean?"

"The cross represents judgment and redemption. Lawyers may not be judges, but they are part of the court. In other words, lawyers represent the interpretation of the law. But now, this interpreter of the law was nailed to a cross by someone else, his role subverted. Isn’t that ironic?" Ye Shikai shared his thoughts.

"It serves him right for making dirty money without a conscience." Zhang Ting muttered. Indeed, Chen Xietian was a lawyer. Though he was not directly responsible for passing judgment, he did play an indirect role. But now, he faced "God’s" judgment.

"The murderer went to great lengths to deliver this cross just to complete a sense of ritual in the killing."

"Ritual?"

"That’s right." Ye Shikai nodded, looking very much like a detective. In fact, Ye Shikai’s exposure to detective work began early in his childhood, from his first detective novels, then professional tracking and investigation techniques learned in special forces units, to his extremely sharp observational skills developed over time. Later, while wandering through various countries in Europe, he had heard of many famous murder cases, all of which were a detective’s "favorites."

"The murderer used a cross to manifest a sense of ritual." Ye Shikai continued, "In the killer’s eyes, his act is not murder, but judgment."

"Judgment? How?" Zhang Ting scratched her head, a puzzled expression on her face.

"He is judging on behalf of God." Ye Shikai’s tone suddenly intensified. "Judging the wicked deeds of Chen Xietian and redeeming him through death."

"So the killer is really a psychopath." After listening, Zhang Ting couldn’t stop shivering, as if she could see the scene that night, Chen Xietian in agony nailed to the cross, with the murderer reciting the Bible not far away...

"Perhaps the murderer is a schizophrenic," Ye Shikai nodded in agreement. He had heard of similar cases abroad, but who would have expected to see one today in Yanjing?

"Did this Chen Xietian have any family members, or relatives... even distant ones would do." Ye Shikai turned and asked the investigating officer beside him.

"Yes, his ex-wife, but they’ve been divorced for over a year." The officer relayed the information at Zhang Ting’s signal.

"Please bring her to the station. I’d like to talk to her." Ye Shikai stated blandly.

"Alright, I’ll get in touch right away." After the officer left, Zhang Ting walked over and patted Ye Shikai’s shoulder lightly.

"I’ve been thinking, it could also be the relatives or family members of those workers," Zhang Ting said.

"From the perspective of motive, it’s indeed possible. But I don’t think it was them," Ye Shikai replied firmly. "Firstly, I don’t think they would have a sense of ritual in murder. If Chen Xietian had been stabbed to death directly, I might suspect them. But as it stands, it’s definitely not them."

"That’s just your conjecture," Zhang Ting seemed somewhat unconvinced and continued.

"I certainly have evidence." Ye Shikai pulled out the second file from his briefcase. "You said the murderer has committed crimes twice now. Chen Xietian was the first victim. In addition to him, there’s another one. If the relatives of the workers were behind Chen Xietian’s murder, why would they go and kill another person unrelated to them?" Ye Shikai’s analysis left Zhang Ting without any comeback, and now she understood why Song Tian repeatedly hoped he would help investigate.

"Let’s go." Just as Zhang Ting was somewhat stunned, a sound rang out. When she came to her senses, Ye Shikai was already at the door.

"Hey, where are you going?" Zhang Ting hurriedly followed, catching up with Ye Shikai.

"The investigation is finished here; now, on to the second crime scene."

...

On the road, Ye Shikai sat in the back seat carefully examining the materials while Zhang Ting felt a bit awkward, unsure if she should disturb him.

"Cough cough... What do you think... the killer is like?" Zhang Ting ventured to ask weakly.

"Physically fit, well-educated, modest and polite, perhaps a Mr. Nice Guy, and most likely a Christian..."

"Wait, why do you say the killer is modest?" Zhang Ting listened and expressed her confusion.

"The crime scene I saw was very neat, even the spacing between the glasses on the side was identical, and the sofa cushions were positioned almost obsessively." Ye Shikai explained.

"What does that have to do with being modest?"

"Do you think a short-tempered person would arrange things so neatly?" Ye Shikai countered. This was merely inference based on observations, but it could help crack the case.

"The second victim was a middle-aged woman." Ye Shikai glanced at the photo without showing any surprise; instead, he handed the photo to Zhang Ting. "If I’m not mistaken, this woman must also have been ’hot’ in the news recently."

"Yes, you’re right," Zhang Ting nodded. "Recently, there was a conflict over seat-giving on a bus, and the woman in the photo beat up a primary school student."

"Why did she hit the person?"

"The primary school student didn’t give up his seat to her."

"As expected." Ye Shikai turned his head away, speaking indifferently.