Madness of the Heart

Mingshu stared at the monitor, the flickering light on the display illuminated the bloodshot eyes, "Is the murderer a woman?"

In several videos, a few bodies away from Tang Qian, there was a woman with long hair reaching her waist.

The woman has a graceful figure, and her hair and headgear block most of her face, but from her makeup and chin, it is likely to be a beautiful woman.

"Biological sex is male." Xiao Yu'an corrected: "What is presented to us and many people is a female appearance."

Mingshu turned his face sideways, "A man disguised as a woman?"

"'Wonderland' is gay, right? This person often appears in 'Wonderland'. I suspect he is a lesbian." Xiao Yuan said: "We focused on the men who appeared next to Tang Qian, but with Tang Qian All the men who have had contact with her are excluded, and this 'woman' is the only one who has been in the same frame as Tang Qian many times in the surveillance."

"There is only one clue that the murderer might be a woman!" Mingshu said, "It's the point of cutting the lips!"

Xiao Yu'an nodded, looking deeply at the long-haired "woman" in the freeze-frame picture, "If the murderer is a gay man who is keen to dress himself in women's clothing, then there will be no conflict between this clue and other clues. The murderer He hates women in his heart, but envies the facial features of those beautiful women, especially the lips. He kills them like livestock, cuts off their M-shaped lips and eats them. The lips may be a psychological pain point for him.”

Xiao Man rushed over to deliver materials to Mingshu, and was surprised when he heard the discussion, "Do you think this person is the murderer?"

Mingshu asked: "Do you know him?"

Xiao Man told the story of going to a gay bar with Fang Yuanhang to drink, "Fang Yuanhang's gay friend knows this guy, what's his name? It seems to be 'Lan Lan'!"

·

Because of his high enthusiasm for work and his eloquent mouth, Yu Dalong has finally had shit luck recently, and a young artist under him has signs of becoming popular, so he rushes to make announcements every day, "causing" him to fly all over the country all day long, and he hasn't been to a bar for a long time Look handsome.

After returning to Dongye yesterday, Yu Dalong took two days off for himself, went back to the rented house and fell asleep, and in his dream he dreamed of his idol Mingshu.

It's a pity that the good times didn't last long. Before he had time to have any romantic affairs with Mingshu, the cell phone and the doorbell rang together.

"Which damn disturbed my dream!" Yu Dalong held the chicken nest head and went straight to the door, looked into the cat's eyes, and the one standing outside was actually his idol, his male god!

Yu Dalong had only slept for a few hours, and he was not awake at all. He scratched his hair, and while unlocking the lock, he said to himself: "Hey, I haven't woken up yet, okay..."

The door opened, and Mingshu looked at the sleepy Yu Dalong, frowning slightly.

Fang Yuanhang shouted, "Yu Dalong! Go back and get dressed!"

After being yelled at like this, no matter how confused he was, he became sober again.Yu Dalong was shocked, "I, I, I am not dreaming?"

Fang Yuanhang really wanted to kick this little gay guy, "Don't be stupid, there's business to do!"

Ten minutes later, Yu Dalong was fully dressed, standing in the living room with a blushing face, like a primary school student who was caught doing something bad.

Mingshu asked: "Do you know Lan Lan who often goes to the 'Wonderland' bar? What's his real name?"

Yu Dalong said: "I don't know him, I just know this person, he, he is beautiful, and I have the same 'model', every time I see him, I will take a few more glances. But he probably doesn't know me .”

"Has he revealed what his occupation is?" Mingshu asked again.

Yu Dalong shrugged in embarrassment, "I guess he should be a model, but not from our company. Has something happened to him?"

At the same time, Xu Chun and others came to "Wonderland" again.

Both the boss and the guests said that they had impressions of Lan Lan, but like Yu Dalong, they didn't know Lan Lan's real identity.

·

Beicheng District, "Xiyue" funeral home.

The incinerator works 24 hours a day, but the cremator needs to rest.

Under normal circumstances, people will send the remains of their loved ones to the funeral home after the third zero o'clock of the death of their loved ones, and wait in line for cremation, so early morning is the busiest time for funeral homes.

The management of "Xiyue" funeral home is very humane. The cremators do not follow the eight-hour working system. They can take one day off after one working day. There are four working hours a day. After discussing with colleagues, they can take turns independently.

When it was time to change shifts, Niu Tianlan locked her mobile phone, wallet and other personal belongings in the cabinet, and changed into the cremator's gray overalls.

Xiao Chen, who had just come down from the burner workshop, said loudly, "Here is Tianlan?"

There is a procedure that is not well understood by the outside world when a cremator is on duty, which is to check whether the voice is loud and pleasant.

Candidates who were dismissed often complained-you chose a cremator, not a male host!What's the use of loud and nice voice?I really have such a good voice why don't I go to the TV station?

Naturally, the voice of the cremator cannot be compared with that of the male host, but most of them are better than ordinary people, at least louder, and this kind of loudness is not loud enough to make people irritated, but can make people feel righteous.

Because before sending the body into the incinerator, there is a farewell ceremony. This is the last farewell ceremony. Those who stand in front of the incinerator and send the deceased to the last journey are the closest relatives and friends of the deceased. The cremator will preside over the event loudly. There is only a 1-minute ceremony and a blessing is given to the body.

This does have a lot of demands on the voice of the cremator.

Niu Tianlan nodded, "Thank you."

"Hey, we used to be in the same class. I'm not used to you changing shifts." Xiao Chen talked a lot, "Why change? Isn't the early morning shift good?"

Niu Tianlan laughed, "We're too busy early in the morning."

"Hey, let me tell you, you have been working in the early morning for so long, so you feel busy in the early morning?" Xiao Chen said: "Busy is busy, but performance pay is also the highest. Now you change to the morning shift, um... It’s not bad, but it’s not as good as early morning.”

Niu Tianlan still smiled, "It's okay."

Xiao Chen joked: "Hey! She is indeed the prettiest kid in our village, what a smile!"

Cremators privately call the incineration area a "ghost village" because some new employees feel scared when they first join the job and often feel that there are ghosts around them.The emotion of fear can only be adjusted by oneself. Some people adapt quickly and are fine within a week or two.

In the past, a cremator who couldn't get past the psychological barrier resigned. He said that he worked in a "ghost village" every day, and all he saw were ghosts, and the corpses would sit up and howl when they were burning.

Others have left, but the nickname "ghost village" has stayed.

In fact, cremators are not particularly ugly, but most of them have a very masculine appearance. Niu Tianlan is more refined, and his facial features are somewhat feminine. When he first joined the job, he was not a cremator, but a business manager in the affairs hall. It was only through internal competition that he was transferred to be a cremator.

Everyone defined him as the most beautiful boy in "ghost village".

Niu Tianlan took a picture in front of the mirror, it was still early, so he didn't leave immediately.

Xiao Chen was changing clothes, looking for something to say, "Although there is a lot of money for this morning shift, I definitely won't be able to do it. How early do I have to get up?"

Niu Tianlan said, "I live nearby."

Xiao Chen nodded, "Dragon Boat Road? That's close. But even if I live on Dragon Boat Road, I still can't get up. You rented a house?"

"Xiyue" funeral home is located on Longzhou Road. Although the funeral home has collective dormitories, most employees are still unwilling to live in the dormitory, but at the same time they are also unwilling to buy a house near the funeral home, so many people rent and live in those semi-annual rooms on Longzhou Road. In an old house.

"My parents' house." Niu Tianlan said.

Xiao Chen suddenly said: "Hey, didn't you say that a corpse was found on the textile road a few days ago? Your place is not far from the textile road. Do you know what happened?"

Niu Tianlan's hand holding the water cup froze for a moment, then shook her head, "I only know it's a female corpse, and it's in Fengshui Alley, so I didn't go to see it."

In any city, murders that happen around you are the most likely to spark discussions.Xiao Chen became interested, "I know why you changed shifts."

Niu Tianlan: "Huh?"

"Are you worried about your safety?" Xiao Chen said, "After all, something happened near home, and the police haven't caught the murderer yet. It's better to go to work during the day than to go to work in the early morning."

Niu Tianlan said: "No, I feel that my body is a little bit overwhelmed recently."

Xiao Chen clapped his hands, "Excessive indulgence?"

Niu Tianlan seemed a little annoyed, picked up the ID and hung it around his neck, ready to leave, "It's nothing."

When the door was about to close, the light in the room came out, and Xiao Chen was humming a song—it’s always a good mood after a day’s work.With Niu Tianlan facing the light, the inanimate smile on the corner of her lips gradually disappeared in the shadows.

·

Dongye Newspaper Group, local news department.

"You want to ask for leave?" The night shift teacher is a bald middle-aged man, staring at Wen Ling with triangular eyes, as if he heard something incredible, "Xiao Lingzi, you never ask for leave!"

"Little Reiko, I'm in my thirties." Wen Ling put on a rare look of youthful makeup today, wearing a winter dress she just bought, looking several years younger than her actual age.

She came to the newspaper as an intern before graduating from university. At that time, she was young and beautiful, hard-working, and smart. Her predecessors called her "Xiao Lingzi". The current night shift teacher was not bald or fat at that time. Call her "Xiao Lingzi".After so many years, "Xiao Lingzi" has become "Teacher Wen" and "Sister Lingzi". The night shift teacher also saw her suddenly change her dressing style and remembered the past, so she didn't turn around and called out. The voice is "Xiao Lingzi".

"It's inappropriate for you to ask for leave now." The night shift teacher held the slip and refused to approve it. "I'm so busy at the end of the year, why do you still ask for leave? Who will make the headlines every day when you leave?"

"Who will make the headlines? Isn't it you, the director, who should worry about it?" Wen Ling half-jokingly said: "You said it just now, it's the end of the year, if I don't clear the annual leave, there will be no annual leave this year. "

"Why were you so restless before?"

"Are you embarrassed to ask? Which month am I free?"

The night shift teacher made a mistake, but the pen in his hand didn't fall down, "Xiao Lingzi, sister Lingzi, I know you are tired and hardworking, and our department counts you as the best. You see, so many plans have been left for me by the superiors, you Just stick to it for a few more days? No one can do a better job than you in paying attention to the planning news of the people at the bottom. After this planning is completed, can you take annual leave again? Take it together with the Spring Festival!"

Wen Ling frowned, both embarrassed and moved.

This time I wanted to ask for leave urgently, mainly because I was persuaded by my male colleagues, and it was probably because I was getting older, I had some mental problems after staying up late, and even my courage became smaller.

The same night road, I used to walk without fear at all, but now I always feel that someone is following me.

Not at all.

The only time it happened was when there was a tall woman behind him.

She plans to use the time of her annual leave to make adjustments and think about the future.

But the night shift teacher was so earnest that she couldn't make up her mind.

It is a wonderful thing to be needed. It is impossible for Wen Ling to stick to this position when all the women in the same class leave.

The planning news at the end of the year requires her to be at the helm, and the newcomers in the department need her to lead. The superiors put a lot of pressure on the night shift supervisor, and the night shift supervisor has been her teacher and partner for so many years.

"Xiao Lingzi, really, don't go!" The night shift teacher clasped his hands together, although his expression was a little funny, but he was also sincere.

Wen Ling finally sighed, "Okay, Lao Zhou, but let's make an agreement, I will take my annual leave and the Spring Festival consecutively."

"It's all up to you!"

Wen Ling left the director's office, stood there in a daze for a while, pinched her cheek, and said to herself, "Then let's work!"

·

With the video of the suspect, the investigation finally found a breakthrough. However, because the suspect wears heavy makeup every time he appears, the face seen by the witnesses is not his real face. As the investigation progresses, Mingshu finds that, Everyone in the night scene knew Yu Dalong similarly to Yu Dalong, except that his name was Lan Lan.

In other words, he wandered around the night scene, but did not tell anyone his real name and occupation, and the heavy makeup was like an exquisite mask, faithfully protecting his secret.

Once such a person removes his make-up and changes into male attire, those who have been in close contact with him may not recognize him.

"When you go to a bar to have fun, most people will make up a false identity for themselves, and usually don't tell others their real name, but there are not many people who can do this." Xiao Yu'an said: "Ordinary people don't care about themselves. He would occasionally reveal a few words inadvertently, but he didn’t disclose it because he couldn’t disclose it.”

Mingshu said: "The nature of his job prevents him from revealing his identity? An important government department? A position that requires stricter privacy? Then the profile can be more precise."

"It doesn't necessarily have to be a government department." Xiao Yu'an said, "You can think more broadly."

Mingshu threw away the pen, "Isn't it very likely that the murderer lived in the area of ​​Textile Road and Guangdan Road? I suddenly thought of a very special place."

Xiao Yu'an said, "'Xiyue' funeral home."

"Yes! Funeral home!" Mingshu said: "We have discussed that there are many people engaged in the funeral industry near Guangdan Road. Meng Shan felt that she was being followed, but she didn't know who it was, and the residents of Guangdan Road could not provide information. The clues show that it is normal for the murderer to appear on Guangdan Road at that time, and he may be a practitioner in this industry. The staff of the funeral home are also practitioners in the funeral industry!"

"Self-employed people on Guangdan Road don't care about the exposure of real information, but the staff of regular funeral homes are different." Xiao Yu'an said: "There is another detail. Both Meng Shan and Tang Qian had fractured occipital bones, and the murderer was in their heads. Each tapped twice. This behavior may imply a certain habit of the murderer."

Mingshu thumped the table with his right hand, "I remembered, one of the cremation procedures is to use a skull hammer to smash the unburned head! I have seen them work with my own eyes. The urn is only so big. Putting all the bones in, you can only break the larger bones, and this process usually needs to be carried out in front of relatives, so the cremator will be extra careful and try to complete the percussion on the skull within two hammers."

Xiao Yu'an said: "Go to the 'Xiyue' funeral home immediately and focus on checking the cremator."

"Yes!"

·

Technical investigation work area.

Another batch of monitoring was delivered, and Zhou Yuan had brightly colored strawberry peaches on hand—since Mingshu bought him a drink last time and gave him some words of encouragement, he fell in love with this kind of strawberries. Drinks, but don't usually drink, only call for a glass when facing difficult problems.

Xiao Yu'an knocked on the door and entered, Zhou Yuan said, "Ju Xiao!"

"Is there a way to check out people who look similar to the suspect on social media?" Xiao Yu'an asked.

At present, the serious crime team has drawn a portrait of the suspect based on the description of Yu Dalong and others, but this portrait can't be compared with any results, and his makeup is a very troublesome interference factor.

Zhou Yuan said: "There is a prerequisite for this, that is, the suspect has uploaded his own videos and photos on social media."

Xiao Yu'an said, "Then it will be hard for you to do a screening."

Zhou Yuan wasn't afraid of difficulties, but he didn't understand, "Xiao Ju, why are you so sure that the murderer must have uploaded a photo."

"I'm not sure, I just made an inference from his logic." Xiao Yu'an said: "He cares about his appearance very much, enjoys being praised in night shows, and spends a lot of time on makeup and grooming himself. I think he may not only Satisfied with enjoying praise in reality, or once satisfied, but then gradually dissatisfied, so I began to look for a sense of presence on social media."

The weekly wish is clear at one point, and start immediately.

·

"Western Moon" funeral home.

"We don't have such a person here." The person in charge of the cremation department shook his head after seeing the portrait. "Our position is quite special, and we only recruit men."

"This is also a man." Mingshu said.

The person in charge was surprised, "A man? Can't tell."

Mingshu said: "Please call out all the information of all cremators."

The incinerator area is next to the management building, and Yi Fei and others are observing the cremators at work in the incinerator area.

It was evening, the peak period had passed, and it was a rare and relaxing time of the day.

However, words like "relaxed" seem to have nothing to do with funeral parlors forever. The place is always solemn and sad. A cremator bids farewell to the body loudly, and the paper fireworks are thrown from his hands, making a crisp sound in front of the incinerator.

And right next to this cremator, the door of an incinerator workshop opened, and the ashes and unbroken bones slid out. Shovel them into the urn together.

The family left crying after receiving the urn from the cremator, who had a short break before the new remains were brought in from the processing room.

Xiao Man said, "Can you show me this hammer?"

The cremator was stunned for a moment, "Yes."

Xiao Man took it, and immediately took out the measuring tool from the survey box.

Regarding the murder weapon, he has checked almost all the hammers on the market, but in the simulated attack, the wounds they caused on the human head deviated from those of the two deceased.

The killer most likely used a homemade, or custom hammer.

Yi Fei asked: "How is it?"

After a while, Xiao Man raised his head, "No accident, the murder weapon is this kind of hammer."

The cremator was startled, "The murder weapon?"

Yi Fei asked: "Is this your custom-made working hammer? All cremators have it?"

The cremator nodded, "Yes."

Yi Fei returned the hammer to the other party, and sent a photo to Mingshu, "Identify the murder weapon."

The person in charge pulled out the information, poured tea for the criminal police who "occupied" his office, walked to the window in dissatisfaction, and looked at the policemen walking around the burning furnace area, with more anxiety in their eyes.

All cremators were interviewed and hired by him. He asked himself that he knew each of them very well. Some cremators would have psychological problems at a certain stage. In order to find out and solve them in time, he also took the initiative to use his spare time to study psychology.Now the police suddenly came to investigate the case. If it is really found that there is a problem with a certain cremator, he, the person in charge, may also be implicated.

Mingshu quickly looked at the photos of the cremators, and his eyes suddenly stopped on the face of a person named "Niu Tianlan".

Compared with the others, Niu Tianlan is obviously much more handsome, and his facial features are vaguely similar to the suspect's portrait.

Mingshu contacted Yi Fei immediately, but Yi Fei said that Niu Tianlan was not in the burning area at this time.

"What you are looking for is Niu Tianlan?" The person in charge felt incredible, "He is the most reliable cremator here."

As it was getting dark, Mingshu suddenly had a bad feeling, "When will he go to work?"

"He is on the early morning shift, from 2:8 am to [-]:[-] am." The person in charge changed his words, "No, he changed shifts, and now he is on the morning shift. I'll call him, just wait. "

Niu Tianlan's phone has been turned off.

"Should be sleeping." The person in charge said, "In our line of business, people can sleep anytime. He lives outside on Longzhou Road. This is the exact address..."

·

Criminal Investigation Bureau.

"Found it!" Zhou Yuan shouted excitedly: "He is actually the anchor on the 'Crazy Cat' platform! The screen name is 'Stubborn Lancao', and fans like to call him 'Lan Lan'!"

"Thank you." Xiao Yu'an patted Zhou Yuan on the back of his chair, picked up the phone, "Ming team."

"The suspect is most likely Niu Tianlan, the cremator at the 'Xiyue' funeral home." Ming Shu said while running towards the police car, "The surveillance shows that he was responsible for burning Meng Shan's father's body that day. Work has been changed to work in the morning. Now the mobile phone is no longer available. The cremator works one day and one day off. The day Meng Shan was killed was Niu Tianlan's rest day. He has time to commit crimes! Now that he has switched shifts, he must hope to have more Time selection and tracking of the next target. Director Xiao, I suspect he will make a move soon!"

·

As night fell, all the dark crimes began to spread in every corner of the city.

The "Crazy Cat" platform and the room of "Stubborn Bluegrass" have been fully monitored.

The anchor has not started broadcasting, and some fans are eager to see it.

"Lan Lan doesn't open today, does she?"

"I miss Lan Lan."

"I miss Lan Lan +1, Lan Lan is really not working hard recently."

·

In the early morning, some departments of Dongye Newspaper Group were still lit.

The reporter who wrote the article was a newcomer, with good writing skills, but lacked the basic elements of news reporting. Wen Ling worked hard to guide him to revise the article, and he had to work on other pages. Tired, I shouldn't agree to the director, but at the same time, I feel that leading newcomers to grow is a very fulfilling thing.

Life is probably so contradictory.

At 3 o'clock, I was finally able to get off work. Wen Ling breathed a sigh of relief and said goodbye to her male colleagues at the fork in the road. The reporter who was guided by her felt sorry and wanted to send her off, but she hesitated for a while.

I want to accept the other party's kindness because I am a little scared to go home these days.

But her long-term "female man" mentality made her unwilling to show weakness.

In the end, she smiled, rejected the reporter, turned around and walked into the familiar alley alone.