The guesthouse was a co-built facility with the public security bureau, commonly used for meetings and accommodations.
"Have you been guarding the door 24/7?" I asked the policeman.
"Yes, Officer Lin," he replied. He was a newly commissioned officer and thus very respectful to me. It's expected; experienced detectives wouldn't be assigned to guard a police family member. Such tasks usually fell to less critical members of the force.
"My mother said you delivered those packages to her?"
"Yes," he nodded again. "Since most of the guests here are officials from various places, the couriers aren't allowed upstairs. The front desk staff deliver packages to us. We didn't anticipate this, so we didn't open them..."
"Got it. Give me your captain's phone number. I need to speak with him," I said. Being part of the cold case unit had its perks; even as a low-ranking member, I felt a sense of superiority.
As the policeman took out his phone, it rang.
He answered, and I heard an urgent shout from the other end, "Du Hui, tell Officer Lin another package has arrived!" The voice on the other end sounded like a thunderclap in my ears.
"What?" Du Hui was stunned. Previously, he hadn't known what was inside the packages, but now, he couldn't remain calm.
"I'll go check it out. Stay here and don't move," I said, rushing downstairs.
My mother's room was on the third floor, so I quickly reached the front desk.
There, another officer assigned to protect my mother was staring blankly at a small square box on the counter.
The box was small, about ten centimeters per side.
The front desk clerks looked puzzled, staring at the officer. I recognized the officer as Yu Xu and told him, "Yu Xu, call your captain and tell him to come here immediately."
"Okay, okay..." Yu Xu stammered, dialing his phone with trembling hands.
The clerks at the front desk were clueless about the situation, not aware of the contents of the packages. Captain Yan had kept the matter discreet to avoid embarrassment for the public security bureau.
I examined the label on the box, noting it was from a relatively unknown courier company. Even if we tracked down the courier, it was unlikely we'd get useful information.
Since the rise of online shopping, countless courier and logistics companies have emerged. Not all of them are known nationwide, and some operate only within certain provinces, handling local deliveries. While competition lowered costs for the public, it also introduced problems.
Many courier companies didn't scrutinize the contents of packages. They simply labeled and shipped them. As a result, in recent years, there have been several instances of drugs being shipped via courier services. While many such cases were caught, who knows how many went undetected?
I didn't open the small box immediately. Instead, I waited for Captain Yan to arrive. Together, we took the box to an empty room in the guesthouse.
Once inside, I said, "Captain Yan, let's open it."
"Alright," he replied, putting on white gloves from his pocket.
"Our opponent is clever and has strong counter-surveillance skills. He won't leave fingerprints," I said calmly.
"Heh..." Captain Yan chuckled but still donned the gloves before opening the box.
"If I'm not mistaken, this box contains either a nose or a male genitalia."
"How do you know?" Captain Yan looked at me suspiciously.
"It's simple. The previous packages contained fingers, toes, eyes, and ears. Based on the letter's content, the perpetrator doesn't want the victim to die quickly, so he's sending external body parts. The remaining external parts are the nose and genitalia," I explained. Staying calm in such situations was crucial, as panic could cloud judgment—something I had learned from Ge Lao.
"Hmm, your analysis makes sense," Captain Yan nodded, though I could tell he was skeptical.
When Captain Yan opened the box, he was stunned. He looked at me in disbelief, "Officer Lin, you were right."
Sitting on the couch across from Captain Yan, I couldn't see the box's contents, but I confidently guessed, "It's a nose, isn't it?"
"Officer Lin, you're incredible," Captain Yan said excitedly.
"It's not about being incredible. I was thinking like the perpetrator. Ge Lao, our top investigative expert, taught me to consider things from the criminal's perspective to understand their mindset," I said, frowning. "If we don't catch him within three days, the next package will likely contain the victim's genitalia."
"Officer Lin, our captain assigned this case to me. Please guide me on the investigation," Captain Yan said, looking at me expectantly.
It was clear the case had been overwhelming for him. Although his team was directly under the public security bureau, their investigative skills weren't necessarily superior to local police.
I didn't answer directly but stood up to examine the severed nose.
It was in a clear plastic bag, still bloody. "The cut is clean, indicating a sharp knife. I suspect a surgical blade, possibly wielded by a doctor or butcher..."
"Whoa..." Captain Yan interrupted. "Officer Lin, you've only been in the force for a short time, right? How do you know all this? Your analysis matches our team's experts."
His respect for me grew noticeably.
"Heh..." I smiled, thinking how little I knew compared to my mentors in the cold case unit. Working with Ge Lao and Zhang Yihan, I rarely had the chance to speak up. Now, in front of Captain Yan, I seemed almost like an expert.
At that moment, I missed Ge Lao and Zhang Yihan. With them around, I wouldn't have to rack my brain so much.
Next, we headed to the detective squad, as I needed to review all the case files thoroughly.
The guesthouse was close to the public security bureau, so we soon arrived at Captain Yan's office.
After a detailed analysis, I discovered a crucial lead: all the packages were sent by a woman.