“I saw something like this during a mission near the border before,” Gu Yezhou said. “It looks very similar, so I don’t think it’s human bone.”

Even a curved rib wouldn’t have such a sharp, smooth edge.

He continued, “It looks more like an animal fang.”

“Right. If I’m not mistaken, this belongs to a wild boar.” Sang Ning stared thoughtfully toward the stairwell where the homeless man had been taken away. “But Yancheng doesn’t even have mountains nearby. Where would a wild boar come from?”

“It can wait until later. Let’s focus on the body in the wall first.” Gu Yezhou lightly patted her shoulder.

Sang Ning turned back toward the exposed skeleton and immediately felt a headache coming on.

“Identifying the victim inside the wall won’t be easy.”

Especially if the homeless man refused to talk.

Judging from the crazed state he’d been in earlier, getting anything coherent out of him would probably be impossible.

“I need to make a call.”

Watching the officers carefully chip away at the skull embedded in the cement, Gu Yezhou could only shamelessly call in a favor.

The moment the call connected, the provincial department superior on the other end erupted into furious yelling.

Years of cultivated patience had completely shattered whenever it came to this brat named Gu Yezhou.

By the time Gu Yezhou returned, Sang Ning was already directing the officers to be gentler.

She looked terrified they might accidentally crush the bones.

Unfortunately, the skeleton had been sealed in cement for years. The remains were heavily coated in concrete residue, and cleaning them later would be a massive undertaking.

“Thanks for your hard work,” Gu Yezhou said.

Sang Ning glanced back at him and waved dismissively. “Just doing my job.”

Back at the station, Gu Yao still hadn’t recovered from the earlier shock.

Sang Ning had no time to worry about her. Instead, she stood beside Lu Lin in front of the skeletal remains removed from the wall.

“This… isn’t complete.” Lu Lin sucked in a breath and gestured over the bones. “You can’t even tell how long they’ve been dead. How are we supposed to examine this?”

Sang Ning rolled her eyes. “You’re a forensic doctor asking another forensic doctor how to do an examination?”

Lu Lin laughed awkwardly. “I’ve never handled something like this before. Old Sang, I know you’re amazing. I believe in you.”

As he spoke, he tried to quietly slip away.

Sang Ning glanced at the still-shaken Gu Yao and sighed. “There are only three of us here. If you don’t help me, am I supposed to rely on this kid?”

“Alright, alright, I’ll help.” Lu Lin pursed his lips. “Just remember to cook for me next time.”

“Eat, eat, eat. That’s all you ever think about.” Sang Ning shot him an annoyed glare.

Lu Lin pulled on protective gear while asking, “So what do you need me to do?”

“Sort the bones. Find the missing pieces.”

As she spoke, Sang Ning removed the wild boar canine from the evidence bag.

“What’s this?” Lu Lin looked it over. “Your suspect’s pretty impressive. Did he rip this off an animal himself or buy it off some cheap Yiwu market stall? Is it even real?”

“It’s real. A wild boar tusk. Curved shape, sharp tip, about eight centimeters long. Probably from a smaller boar.” Sang Ning worked carefully on the dried blood staining it. “No idea whose blood this is yet.”

“Could it belong to her?” Lu Lin pointed toward the landlord lady’s body lying on the autopsy table nearby.

Sang Ning shook her head. “I checked her at the scene. No external wounds.”

Lu Lin sighed. “Poor woman. Imagine getting killed just for collecting rent.”

Sang Ning glanced at the body, sympathy flickering briefly in her eyes.

Yao Xiuying, the landlady, wasn’t exactly a good person.

But she wasn’t truly bad either.

If she hadn’t been willing to rent out Ping’an Apartments so cheaply, Sang Ning never would’ve found such a quiet place to live.

“I’ll start recording.”

Sang Ning switched on the camera equipment, her expression turning serious.

“Victim: Yao Xiuying. Female…”

Because the death was caused by a fall, she meticulously examined every part of the body.

There were defensive wounds around the wrists. Beneath the fingernails were traces of skin tissue.

After testing confirmed the tissue belonged to the homeless man, she finalized the examination report.

The printer had barely finished spitting out the report when someone entered the forensic room.

“Forensic Doctor Sang, the victim’s family is here. They want to see you.”

See her?

Sang Ning frowned in confusion.

Normally, family members came to identify the body.

Before leaving the autopsy room, she reminded Lu Lin, “Don’t clean the cement off yet. Focus on organizing the bones first.”

“When have I ever let you down?” Lu Lin called after her.

As soon as Sang Ning reached the stairwell corner, she heard loud wailing cries.

It sounded like a middle-aged man.

The man looked to be in his forties—actually younger than the landlady.

Surely that wasn’t her son?

“Forensic Doctor Sang, thank goodness you’re here. Please talk some sense into them,” one officer pleaded.

Sang Ning: “?”

The moment the man saw her, he dropped to his knees.

A young man and woman beside him hurried to pull him back up.

“Officer Sang, you lived at Ping’an Apartments! You were closest to our Xiuying! You have to catch whoever killed her and avenge her!”

Closest?

Since when had she ever been close to the landlady?

Sang Ning clearly remembered one time she’d been away from Yancheng during rent collection.

Yao Xiuying only accepted cash. Transfers were unacceptable.

The woman had bombarded her with calls nonstop.

When Sang Ning finally returned the call after work, she’d immediately been met with furious yelling.

“Are you renting or not? If not, then get out!”

Sang Ning had explained she would pay once she returned.

But Yao Xiuying still wasn’t satisfied. She insisted that being late meant paying an extra day’s rent as penalty—fifty yuan per day, like some ridiculous loan shark interest.

The apartment itself only cost three hundred yuan a month.

That meant the actual daily rent was barely ten yuan.

Charging fifty for one late day was practically extortion.

That day, once Sang Ning revealed she was a police officer, Yao Xiuying had instantly changed her tone, smiling and claiming it was all a misunderstanding. She said Sang Ning could pay whenever she had time.

Now, Sang Ning stared at the kneeling man with growing irritation as officers helped him up.

“Sir, please stand up and talk properly,” an officer urged gently.

Sang Ning said coldly, “The police will absolutely bring the murderer to justice. As for revenge, the law will decide that.”

“What kind of attitude is that from a cop?!” The young man beside him pointed angrily at Sang Ning. “My father’s begging you like this and that’s your response?”

“Everyone calm down. Let’s talk this through.” The nearby officer quickly explained, “This is our department’s forensic doctor.”

The instant they heard the word “forensic,” all three of them instinctively stepped farther away from Sang Ning.

Even the man who had been kneeling backed up several steps.

They exchanged uneasy glances.

Sang Ning suddenly smiled.

“I am indeed a forensic doctor. If you only came here to ask me to help find the murderer, then you should be speaking to the Criminal Investigation Unit.”

“Why would we look for the detectives? We came for you specifically.” The young man lifted his chin arrogantly. “You lived in my mother’s apartment. Now that something’s happened to her, let me ask you this—if you’re a police officer, then why was my mother calling you right before she died?”

Before they came looking for Sang Ning, the police had already returned Yao Xiuying’s phone to them.

And apparently, instead of asking who the murderer was, the first thing these people had asked was—

“Did my mom leave a will?”