Chapter 084: Like Sherlock Holmes

No matter how strong Lin Yu’s nerves were, this was his first time returning to the scene of a murder—at night, no less—and it was impossible not to feel anxious. He switched on the lights, gazing at the untouched tables and chairs in the restaurant, the bottles of liquor and drinks lined up on the bar shelves, and the white chalk outlines traced on the floor. The events of the crime replayed in his mind like slides: the encounter, the separation, the desperate struggle, the killing.

Recalling the two consecutive slashes inflicted on Zhang Chao, Lin Yu still felt a lingering fear. He wondered, if he had been the one attacked, what would have happened? Would he, like Zhang Chao, have managed to smile with that honest, unassuming grin at the corner of his mouth despite his injuries?

In the quiet of the night, Lin Yu walked step by step into the restaurant, deliberately avoiding the white lines drawn on the floor, careful not to step within their boundaries. Though he didn’t believe in ghosts or spirits, he felt it was only right to show a measure of respect for the deceased. Whether it was psychological or not, he couldn’t help but feel a chill in the air, as if a cold wind was swirling around him.

Before ascending to the second floor, Lin Yu glanced back at Han Kezhen, who was smoking at the entrance, exchanged a look with him, and then started up the stairs.

The second floor had been reserved as a resting area for the restaurant owner and staff; Lin Yu had never set foot here before. Confronted with the unknown, his tension mounted.

To the left at the top of the stairs was a narrow corridor ending in a restroom, with a sign on the door stating “Staff Only.” Lin Yu thought that if he wanted to find something, he needed to be thorough, so he walked over, turned on the restroom light, and opened the door. After inspecting the space, he found nothing but a shower heater, a wastebasket full of damp toilet paper, the toilet and flushing mechanism, and half a pack of sanitary pads. Nothing suspicious stood out.

Having found nothing here, Lin Yu returned to the corridor. On the left was a larger bedroom; on the right were two adjoining rest rooms. He entered the larger bedroom first. Switching on the light, he saw the wedding photograph hanging above the bed, and a family portrait on the bedside table. At once, a heavy feeling overcame him.

In the family portrait, besides the two deceased, there was a girl of about thirteen or fourteen years old, her lips curled in a blissful smile.

Forcing himself to set aside the negative emotions, Lin Yu tapped into his mental search system, recalling Sherlock Holmes’s methods, hoping for inspiration. He remembered a phrase: “Eliminate all other factors, and the one which remains must be the truth.”

Combined with Hegel’s theory that existence is rational, Lin Yu realized he shouldn’t search blindly like a headless fly. He needed to deduce the sequence of events based on the overall context, and then follow the clues to their source.

Compared to the police, Lin Yu—being a witness present at the scene—had a unique advantage. The first victim, the restaurant owner’s wife, died in the kitchen. The second victim, the owner himself, had been injured at the moment Lin Yu entered the restaurant and had only recently passed away.

The time of the crime was around 2 p.m., between lunch and dinner. Considering that the owner was holding a knife before he died, Lin Yu surmised that the three of them were preparing for the evening meal. The rough sequence was likely: the chef, Zhao Bo, suddenly went berserk, killed the owner’s wife in the kitchen, then came out and chased down the owner, who was in the dining room cutting something with a knife.

After careful consideration, Lin Yu felt this was the most probable scenario. The only thing missing was Zhao Bo’s motive.

Why had he suddenly snapped? Why had he attacked the owner’s wife with a kitchen knife?

With a preliminary theory in his mind, Lin Yu’s search became more targeted. He needed to find Zhao Bo’s motive—hoping to uncover some clue among his belongings.

He quickly finished a thorough inspection of the owner and his wife’s bedroom, finding nothing but everyday items and account books.

Leaving their room, he pushed open the door to the opposite rest room. From the single bed and men’s clothing, Lin Yu deduced this was Zhao Bo’s room.

Moving through the rooms of the deceased, Lin Yu felt his nerves tightening to the point of suffocation. But for his brother’s sake, and his own innocence, he could only take a deep breath and remind himself to remain calm.

Zhao Bo’s room was quite simple. On the left as you entered hung a calendar featuring a Playboy cover model. The room housed an ordinary single bed, its bedding in disarray, showing Zhao Bo’s slovenliness. There were two suitcases full of clothes under the bed, a few pairs of shoes giving off a pungent odor, and a pair of sneakers stuffed with unwashed socks.

Across from the bed stood a computer desk with a desktop computer; the monitor was the old CRT type, not a flat LCD. Above it hung a red webcam.

“If I want to understand his motive, I should first get to know the man himself. Let’s see what’s on his computer,” Lin Yu muttered, pressing the power button. A loud whirring followed.

After about two minutes, the XP system finally stabilized.

The desktop displayed only the basics: My Documents, My Computer, Network Neighborhood, Recycle Bin, Tencent QQ, Internet Explorer, Broadband Connection.

Lin Yu searched the computer carefully, and in the D drive, found the eMule downloader and a folder containing over twenty pornographic films—nothing else of note.

“This Zhao Bo seems to be quite lustful,” Lin Yu thought, having glanced at the folder’s contents and quickly forming his judgment.

“But what use is that?” Lin Yu shook his head, dragged the mouse, and clicked shutdown.

Just as the computer was about to power off, a thought struck him—he recalled one of his own habits.

“I haven’t checked the Recycle Bin!”

So after the computer shut down, Lin Yu restarted it. Once the system stabilized, he found the Recycle Bin had been emptied—nothing remained.

“If you’ve cleared everything, I’ll just restore it,” Lin Yu muttered, searching for a method to recover deleted files. Following the instructions in his mental system, he worked through the registry step by step. After confirming the final step, the Recycle Bin instantly filled up.

Not only were there all manner of extreme videos, but also many unnamed recordings. Lin Yu randomly opened one, and after identifying the figures, was immediately astounded.

From the blurry footage, Lin Yu deduced that the video had been shot with the webcam in front of him. The stars of the video were none other than chef Zhao Bo and the restaurant’s waitress, Song Xiaojia.

Both were naked on the bed; Zhao Bo was repeatedly taking advantage of the girl, while Song Xiaojia remained utterly motionless.

“What’s going on? Could it be…” Lin Yu glanced at the bed, a sudden chill running through his scalp.