The Criminal Investigation Team of Haizhou City has seen a slight increase in funding over the recent years.

And since a few murder cases occur every year, autopsies have become relatively frequent.

Five years ago, after Wang Changjiang made more than a dozen rational suggestions over consecutive years, the forensic doctors finally got their own autopsy room.

Since then, Wang Changjiang's main workplace shifted from the funeral home back to the Criminal Investigation Team.

The spacious and bright autopsy room has white square tiles on the walls and floors.

Compared to the eerie and terrifying funeral home, Wang Changjiang often tells Shen Yan that their generation of forensic doctors is much happier.

The things he did back then, when recounted now, are no different from telling a horror story.

Of course, there isn't much difference. In the earlier years, when conditions were not so good, Wang Changjiang often slept at the funeral home when a case came up.

A dissection table made of brick and cement for the corpse, and a camp bed for Wang Changjiang.

Next door in the cold storage were a dozen or even dozens of speechless neighbors.

Just like that, he could be woken up in the middle of the night by leaders rushing in for autopsy results.

Exhausted from dissecting a corpse only to be woken up again…

Wang Changjiang could never forget the experiences of those years.

Shen Yan graduated properly from the Public Security University and is also a woman, always fully equipped when performing autopsies.

Three layers of rubber gloves, isolation suit, two KN95 masks.

Since the corpse was frozen and had no odor, Shen Yan didn't wear a gas mask today.

In fact, these items are already standard equipment for forensic doctors, although Wang Changjiang, as a senior forensic doctor, doesn't think much of them.

"Lu, are you doing the inspection now or waiting for the corpse to thaw?"

Lu Chuan wasn't new to the autopsy room, having assisted many times before with skeletal analysis.

"Let's do it now. Once the corpse thaws, there will be moisture on the surface, which might damage some minute traces."

Wang Changjiang nodded: "Alright, let Shen help you. Call me if there's anything you can't handle."

Wang Changjiang is experienced and understands what it means to assist beautifully and perfectly.

"What do you need me to do?"

Wearing a mask, Shen Yan's big eyes blinked, her long eyelashes stirring hearts.

Lu Chuan shook his head: "I'll first inspect the front of the corpse. Just help me turn it over later."

Micro evidence collection is somewhat different from general evidence collection.

It requires special equipment, like a magnifying glass, a strong light source, and a UV inspection lamp, among others.

Lu Chuan first used the UV inspection lamp.

It's a standard tool for trace inspection and forensic work.

Usually handheld, its working principle is similar to the UV light used in currency detectors, but the wavelengths are different.

The police UV inspection lamp used in crime scenes and forensic examinations typically operates at a wavelength of 365 nm, while the wavelength of UV lights in currency detectors is 395 nm.

Shen Yan also frequently uses the UV lamp to inspect the surface of the body during autopsies. Naturally, she turned off the regular light source in the autopsy room—the illumination lamp.

The inspection lamp, emitting a vibrant purple light, was shone from top to bottom over the corpse's surface.

Eh?

When the lamp reached the wrist, Shen Yan softly spoke: "Is this… tape marks?"

Lu Chuan nodded: "It appears to be marks left by tape binding."

Tape binding leaves no ligature marks on the corpse due to the wider area of pressure, but adhesive residue from the tape remains.

The UV inspection lamp made this clearly visible.

Continuing the examination, they discovered similar marks at the corpse's ankles.

"Hold on a moment, I'll go over it with the flashlight again."

The flashlight Lu Chuan referred to is actually an LED strong light, an important tool for micro evidence collection.

The utilization of light sources is a major weapon in crime scene investigations.

For example, Lu Chuan previously used a frequency-modulated laser scanner to extract fingerprints from an envelope without damage.

Or like the tape binding marks discovered by the UV inspection lamp just now.

Different light sources play significant roles in crime scene investigations and forensic autopsies.

The strong light can emit light even more intense than the sun, with great energy characteristics.

This high-energy light source can make some barely visible items glow or become bright to the naked eye.

Including minute fibers, hairs, etc.

It's called a flashlight because this strong light source used in field surveys originated abroad.

Abroad, this light source is called a Lu-ma lamp, simplified domestically as a flashlight.

The flashlight beam, worn on the head, scanned the corpse inch by inch like a laser.

"Here!"

Shen Yan pointed to a place emitting a pale yellow halo, located on the left lower rib of the body: "There's something here."

Lu Chuan, holding the tweezers in his right hand, picked up a few almost transparent hairs to the naked eye and placed them into a special transparent plastic tube.

Micro evidence storage cannot use regular evidence bags; plastic tubes are needed instead.

After sealing, Lu Chuan continued to scan: "There's nothing more at the front, let's check the back of the corpse."

Shen Yan nodded and stepped forward to give Lu Chuan a hand: "I've never used these things before."

Over the past two years, Shen Yan had performed autopsies on a few corpses, but it was evident she had not done such detailed work before.

The frozen corpse was extremely heavy.

Generally speaking, the ratio of female forensic doctors is relatively low, about fifty to one.

This is not because women are timid, as the fact is quite the opposite; compared to most men, women might be braver.

For instance, in nursing, the female proportion is very high.

No matter the department, nurses see a lot of blood, but rarely does one hear of anyone expressing fear.

The reason there are fewer women in forensics is primarily due to the physical demands of the job.

Unlike doctors and nurses whose work involves living people.

They might not have much time left, but they are still alive.

Since they are alive, they can move, but dead bodies are different; once they're dead, they no longer move.

And opening a cavity, sawing bones, turning organs over, any of these require significant physical strength.

In the two years since Shen Yan joined the police, her autopsies were always of an auxiliary nature, with the tough and heavy work always falling on Wang Changjiang.

The following inspections were relatively simple and smooth; the flashlight revealed hairs similar to those on the left lower rib on the deceased's back and buttocks.

Then, Lu Chuan collected residues from the deceased's mouth, cheeks, and genitals.

Fine materials in the nail crevices were also extracted using bamboo sticks.

This process took about two hours.

It left Shen Yan slightly breathless, her chest heaving.

"Alright, now all we have to do is send these items to the provincial department and wait for analysis results."

Lu Chuan was also doing his best and awaiting fate.

While micro evidence is useful, its application in real cases is rather limited.

This time, having acquired intermediate crime scene investigation skills and being able to collect micro evidence, Lu Chuan decided to give it a try.

Shen Yan removed the mask, isolation suit, and gloves: "By tomorrow morning, the body should be thawed, and we'll need to perform the autopsy."

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