The Forensic Doctor Better Than a Detective

”Didn’t have time yet.”

Zhang Yean responded briefly, but they exchanged a knowing glance.

No need for words; they both understood what the other was thinking—there might be more victims here.

”Mr. Chen,” Jiang An’s voice suddenly rose a few notches, carrying an undeniable authority, ”immediately arrange for personnel to protectively secure these skeletal remains.”

”Be sure to maintain the original state, don’t move anything.”

He said this while quickly donning new gloves, his movements deftly organizing the investigation equipment.

Mr. Chen appeared utterly disoriented, mechanically nodding his head, his lips trembling slightly.

”Understood... I’ll arrange it right away...”

He staggered back a few steps, nearly tripping over the rubble on the ground, grabbing the wall to steady himself.

Jiang An had no time to concern himself with Mr. Chen’s distress; he and Zhang Yean, equipped with professional gear, had already entered the adjacent master bedroom.

This room was relatively less damaged, yet extensive burn marks were still visible.

The charred wardrobe leaned crookedly against the wall, the bed frame had collapsed, and the scorched mattress emitted an acrid smell.

A half-destroyed dressing table lay toppled on the floor, its mirror shattered into a web, reflecting distorted light and shadows.

Jiang An cautiously accepted the flashlight, scanning the room thoroughly in the dim light.

The sight was shocking: the entire interior lay in disarray, the air filled with the acrid smell of burning.

Despite the severe damage, relying on years of field investigation experience, he could still discern the contours of the items in the room—the once-grand wardrobe now burnt beyond recognition, leaving only a few warped and deformed metal frames and some charred wooden remnants.

The double bed against the wall had lost its form, the spring skeleton twisted and deformed, the mattress reduced to ashes.

Jiang An slowly rotated the flashlight, the beam tracing a path in the dark room.

He observed while directing, ”Senior Sister, first take comprehensive photos to secure the scene, remember to shoot from multiple angles, particularly in key areas.”

Zhang Yean immediately nodded in response: ”Understood, I’ll proceed with thorough photo records, after securing the scene, I’ll conduct detailed investigations.”

”Also,” Jiang An added, his voice standing out in the quiet ruins, ”pay special attention to several crucial spots: the wardrobe’s internal structure, below the dressing table, and...”

He paused, the flashlight beam resting on the bed frame’s remains, ”the space under the bed, these places often hide important clues.”

Zhang Yean instantly grasped the intention, responding quickly: ”Understood, I’ll focus on examining these areas.” With that, they began to work separately.

Jiang An stood at the bedroom entrance, scrutinizing the entire scene with a sharp gaze.

Suddenly, he noticed the door behind him—wide open now, the door panel hanging askew on its hinges.

This detail caught his alertness: it’s unclear if the door was forced open by firefighters or was originally ajar.

This seemingly small difference could very well be crucial to recreating the entire fire event.

He approached the door frame, carefully inspecting the damage to the door hinges and locks.

As he turned towards the back of the door, a peculiar mark on the wall attracted his attention: amidst the soot-blackened wall, a triangular blank area appeared, completely devoid of smoke adhesion.

This anomaly caused Jiang An to enter a deep contemplation.

”According to the normal distribution of smoke marks...”

Jiang An mumbled to himself, gently brushing his fingers across the wall, ”If the door was closed during the fire, the whole room should form a sealed ’chimney,’ with smoke evenly attaching to all surfaces.”

His gaze repeatedly swept over the unexpected blank space, ”Why is there this patch of ’clean land’ here?”

After 2 minutes of careful observation and thought, a hypothesis slowly formed in his mind: ”The door might have been half-open during the fire.”

”The angle formed by the door panel and the wall blocked the adhesion of smoke, creating this unique mark.”

This discovery furrowed his brow, new questions emerging one after another: ”If the door was open at the time, how did the fire spread so quickly?”

”There’s no obvious flammable material from the living room to the bedroom...”

With this question in mind, Jiang An re-examined the interior of the bedroom.

The flashlight beam cast over the bed frame remains, the charred dressing table, the twisted TV cabinet, finally pausing at the most destroyed wardrobe area.

The burn marks there exhibited a noticeable gradient: with the wardrobe at the center, the fire spread gradually weakened in outward radiation. This burn pattern was too typical...

”This isn’t a regular spread of fire.”

An alarm rang in Jiang An’s mind, ”The wardrobe could very likely be an independent ignition point!” This discovery quickened his heartbeat—if correct, this could be a meticulously planned arson case. Just as he prepared for further investigation, Zhang Yean’s urgent call interrupted his thoughts.

”Mr. Jiang! Please come and take a look!”

The tension in Zhang Yean’s voice was unmistakable.

Jiang An swiftly approached, finding Zhang Yean and an assistant crouched beside the bed frame remains, their flashlight beams focusing on the area beneath the bed.

Judging by their serious expressions, the situation was clearly unusual.

”What did you find?”

Jiang An crouched and asked, while adjusting the flashlight angle.

Zhang Yean did not respond immediately, instead pointing the beam towards the depths under the bed, her voice somber: ”See for yourself... this issue is very serious.”

Following the beam of light, Jiang An’s pupils constricted sharply—in the shadows beneath the bed, he could vaguely make out two bodies not yet completely carbonized.