At the funeral home,
The hearse sped away as soon as it delivered the body, leaving a heavy corpse resting on a metal trolley.
"As a forensic doctor, you've got to start with moving corpses," Wu Jun said, hands clasped behind his back, a smile breaking through his otherwise serious demeanor. "With your build, you're perfect for the job."
His classmates in big cities had enjoyed the luxury of "corpse-moving freedom" for over two decades. But Ningtai County was a place that couldn't retain talent. Newly recruited forensic doctors came and went; those who left were quickly replaced. All year round, Wu Jun rarely got to experience the joy of having someone else move corpses. In the unluckiest of times, no bodies turned up while the new recruits were still around, only for them to appear once the recruits had left.
Jiang Yuan pushed the trolley, curiosity getting the better of him. "Doesn't the county bureau have an autopsy room? Like those brightly lit ones you see on TV…"
"You mean the ones in dramas?" Wu Jun shook his head. "Cities with money can afford that. Small counties like ours shouldn't even dream about it. Conducting an autopsy requires not just a dedicated room but also equipment like cold storage for bodies. A decent setup needs proper ventilation, washing facilities, and regular maintenance. It's easier to rent the funeral home's facilities. The county bureau can shell out a few tens of thousands to improve the setup here and call it a day."
"Doesn't that make evidence collection less convenient?"
"Usually, we just need to draw some blood or retrieve stomach contents. In a county this small, how far can anything really be? Parking's more important than proximity." Wu Jun chuckled. "And anyway, the bodies don't care."
Jiang Yuan glanced down at his seventeenth uncle. He remembered the man's picky nature during New Year visits. Of course, now his uncle probably wouldn't be interested in acting fussy anymore.
"When you come back here next time, make sure to keep a pack of cigarettes in your pocket. Sometimes, bring some pastries or snacks—just to build relationships. If you get along well with the funeral home staff, everything becomes easier," Wu Jun said, pressing the elevator button as they entered. "Even the funeral home is a workplace."
Jiang Yuan smiled and replied, "Got it."
The Ningtai County Funeral Home had its autopsy room in the basement.
Fortunately, there was an elevator, making access convenient. However, the dim corridor with its flickering red emergency lights was eerie.
Inside the autopsy room, the lighting was bright, the floors tiled in large ceramics, and the walls in smaller ones. In the center was a stainless steel autopsy table. To the left of the entrance was a washbasin and a long row of stainless steel cabinets, resembling the setup of a well-equipped kitchen.
Wu Jun stepped forward to help, pushing the trolley to the side of the autopsy table. Using his foot, he raised the trolley's platform to align it with the table, then gently transferred the corpse onto the stainless steel surface.
"Go check if the family has arrived. If they're here, call them in so we can start the autopsy," Wu Jun said.
Jiang Yuan nodded, his gaze fixed on his seventeenth uncle.
The man, once robust and heavyset, now lay on the cold steel table. His belly bulged high, pale and shining under the bright lights. Fine hair stood upright on his skin, visible under the glare, making Jiang Yuan uneasy. More than anything, it left him feeling unsettled.
"The phone's by the door," Wu Jun reminded him casually, without further comment.
Jiang Yuan tore his gaze away and walked to the door, picking up the landline to make a call.
In China, performing an autopsy requires notifying close relatives to be present and to sign consent forms. In practice, however, the attendees were often less direct relatives—brothers-in-law, uncles, or sons-in-law. When direct relatives did show up, it was usually wise to have a trash can prepared.
Before long, someone was led into the room, looking both bewildered and terrified by the surroundings.
"Uncle-in-law," Jiang Yuan greeted, recognizing the man as his seventeenth uncle's brother-in-law, married to his nineteenth aunt. They had last met two years ago during a family shrine ceremony.
"Jiang Yuan!" Uncle-in-law exclaimed, his voice thick with emotion. Seeing Jiang Yuan felt like a lifeline. His gaze shifted past the body on the table to fix on Jiang Yuan. "Your seventeenth uncle left us too soon… It's a relief you're the medical examiner. Do a good job for him, make it look decent…"
"We're starting now," Wu Jun interrupted, handing Jiang Yuan a full-body surgical gown to wear over his clothes. He then pulled back the white sheet covering the body and said, "Confirm for us: this is Jiang Jiancheng, correct?"
Uncle-in-law dry-heaved before replying, "It should be him."
"Sign here. Include his ID number," Wu Jun instructed, watching as the family member wrote down the details. Once the paperwork was complete, Wu Jun looked at Jiang Yuan. "Not everyone can perform an autopsy on someone they know. If you're uncomfortable, it's perfectly fine to step aside."
"I can do it," Jiang Yuan said, having already steeled himself mentally. His emotions were a tangled mess, but backing out wasn't an option he wanted to consider.
After confirming Jiang Yuan's decision, Wu Jun nodded. "You start."
He wanted to gauge Jiang Yuan's ability. If the young man faltered or made mistakes, it would be a good opportunity to provide guidance. This was how Wu Jun had trained all the forensic rookies who had come through over the years.
Jiang Yuan's expression turned serious, though he still looked a bit tense and hesitant.
His practical experience with autopsies was limited, but during his few opportunities at school, his professors had praised him for his skill, calling him "naturally gifted." If not for the fact that this was his own uncle, he might have been more composed.
"First, the external examination," Jiang Yuan said, exhaling a long breath and shaking off his nerves. He placed a notebook nearby and began noting his findings as he examined the body. "Deceased: Jiang Jiancheng, male, age 50. Height: 169 centimeters. Weight: 188 pounds… Crescent-shaped birthmark on the left buttock, approximately 5 centimeters…"
"Next, general condition. Rectal temperature is…" Jiang Yuan meticulously recorded details, from the state of the scalp and bald patches to the eyes, mucous membranes, nasal cavity, and teeth.
Much of the external examination had already been conducted at the scene, so Jiang Yuan simply recited those findings. For areas like the mucous membranes and teeth, he rechecked them thoroughly.
Wu Jun nodded in approval at his diligence. "Not bad. Have you performed dissections before?"
Jiang Yuan replied, "I've done a few cases at school."
"That's better than most. Many students now only get to do one case during their studies."
"I participated in several autopsies while working on a project with my professor," Jiang Yuan explained.
"Oh, ever opened the three cavities?" Wu Jun asked, referring to the cranial, thoracic, and abdominal cavities—key areas for forensic pathologists to determine causes of death.
Jiang Yuan nodded. "Twice."
"Then you take the lead." Wu Jun handed him a scalpel and added, "You probably know this already, but let me remind you: be very careful not to cut yourself. The room is cold, and these blades are extremely sharp. If you do cut yourself, you might not even feel it right away. The only way to tell is if fresh blood appears. Corpses don't bleed, so if you see blood, it's yours…"
Jiang Yuan nodded, adjusted his stance, and picked up the scalpel. Lowering the blade to the neck, he made a straight incision down to the pubic symphysis.
His uncle's body was heavy, requiring deep cuts. The fat layers beneath were yellow and white, glistening as they were exposed.
The resulting incision, a long and harsh straight line, was far more brutal than the neatly staged dissections shown in media. This was a common practice in domestic forensics, differing from the Y-shaped incisions more often seen in the United States.
Jiang Yuan then began separating the chest muscles and carefully cutting along the cartilage that connected the ribs to the sternum.
The autopsy had barely begun when Uncle-in-law, already pale with stress, took a deep breath, turned even whiter, and promptly vomited.