Replacing the Evil Way

Chapter 16: Two lives of the same person

Cheng Zesheng drove back to the bureau with the medical records and medication he found at He Wei’s house. He called the team that went to search and coldly reprimanded them, “What kind of work are you doing? You didn’t even find something this important?!”

The lead officer, Xiao Fan, looked innocent and said, “Vice-Captain, please calm down. We were focusing on investigating clues related to the case and didn’t pay attention to these details…”

“Is this unrelated to the case? It’s highly relevant!” Cheng Zesheng slammed the asthma inhaler on the table. “We can’t even be sure of the identity of the victim!”

Xiao Fan and a few colleagues behind him looked at each other, unable to help asking, “Vice-Captain, what does that mean? Isn’t the victim He Wei?”

Xiang Yang stood aside, struggling to explain, “It might be him, or it might not be. It’s difficult to say for sure at the moment.”

He was also partially in the dark and felt confused. Although these things proved that He Wei had a long history of asthma, it was still unreasonable to conclude that he was not the same person just because of buying cigarettes once, right? When he questioned Cheng Zesheng about this, Cheng Zesheng responded with an ambiguous word: “intuition.”

“Alright, don’t waste time. Go to the hospital for an investigation immediately.” Cheng Zesheng distributed the medical records and reports to Xiao Fan’s team. “All of He Wei’s medical records and reports are from this top-tier hospital. Question all the doctors who wrote the medical records and issued the reports, and make sure to find out whether he had asthma or not.”

He then took out a blood test report and said, “This report was done the day before He Wei’s murder, not long ago. Go to the hospital and find out if the blood samples are still there, and bring them back if they are.”

Everyone started working separately. Cheng Zesheng rubbed his forehead and spread the crime scene photos on the table. He opened his phone and compared them to the photos taken today from the surveillance footage. Without careful observation, nothing could be found, but upon closer comparison, he noticed differences in the attire during the three different time periods: He Wei leaving home at 9 o’clock, returning at midnight, and being murdered at the mansion. Although the overall colors were similar and the styles were not drastically different, there were still some discernible variations in small details. It was like playing a spot-the-difference game, where each of the three pictures had its own distinct points, and it required patient scrutiny.

One person changing clothes three times in just a few hours seemed difficult to understand no matter how you looked at it. Even more puzzling was He Wei’s medical history. Cheng Zesheng didn’t see any indications of asthma in the autopsy report. It wasn’t that Jiang Tan couldn’t find it; it was that his body didn’t show any signs of this condition.

No one knew where He Wei went after 9 o’clock. His figure disappeared from the surveillance at the overpass. His social circle was small, and he didn’t go to the only gay bar to find his only friend, nor did he have a boyfriend. He rarely contacted his family. Where could someone like him go?

As for the footage of his return at midnight, others might not be able to tell if he changed his clothes, but Cheng Zesheng felt like he was looking at a completely different person. He prided himself on his insight and had plenty of experience in criminal investigations. He had developed a keen sense of detecting lies based on subtle facial expressions. Therefore, when he saw He Wei’s walking posture, body language, and eyes, Cheng Zesheng’s intuition told him that the person now was fundamentally different from the previous He Wei.

Considering the inexplicable crime scene, this thought became even more deeply rooted. At this moment, he wished it was He Lu impersonating He Wei, and the stack of examination reports from the hospital did not belong to He Wei. Otherwise, he would encounter a scientific impasse that couldn’t be explained.

When he was feeling frustrated, his phone rang. It was from Xie Wenxi, who was his naughty childhood friend.

“I heard from Uncle Cheng that you’re running away from home? Where are you staying? How’s the new place?”

“At the dormitory in the bureau. I haven’t visited it yet.” Cheng Zesheng realized that he hadn’t even gone to see his new place in the Future Domain. He said he was moving out, but what if it was an empty space without even a place to sleep?

“That’s perfect. I’m near the municipal bureau. Let’s have a meal together and then go to your new dormitory.”

“No need, I’m busy lately.” Cheng Zesheng immediately declined. He didn’t want to have a meal with Xie Wenxi, a troublesome girl who worked as a journalist and often came to him for information.

But Cheng Zesheng was good at keeping secrets and wasn’t swayed by beauty. Often, Xie Wenxi would leave empty-handed and come back in a couple of days. If it weren’t for their families living next door to each other and their fathers working in the same military region, crossing paths frequently, Cheng Zesheng would have distanced himself from this fierce woman long ago.

He looked at his watch and realized it was almost time to finish work. He picked up his car keys and headed to the Future Domain.

Following the navigation, he drove for less than half an hour before reaching the Future Domain. Cheng Zesheng got out of the car and first examined the overall appearance, which was quite good. It was much better than the old dormitory at the bureau, shiny and bright.

After entering the dormitory, Cheng Zesheng went to the 4th floor and looked for room 404. Room 404 was located at the end of the hallway. Upon opening the door, he was greeted by a clean and tidy dormitory. The floor tiles were spotless, and the coffee table gleamed. Cheng Zesheng was surprised and felt that Chief Huang had treated him well. Not only were the furniture arranged, but everything was also kept so clean. He realized that he shouldn’t lose his temper when Chief Huang talked to him next time. It was better to be lenient with people.

The floor was so clean that Cheng Zesheng felt embarrassed to step on it with his shoes on. He found a bag of disposable shoe covers in the shoe cabinet and put on two of them. He went up the stairs and saw two rooms. Surprisingly, the room near the stairs couldn’t be opened, so Cheng Zesheng shrugged and turned the handle of the door across from it.

He had heard that the new dormitories were shared by two people, so there might be a roommate living together? Chief Huang didn’t explicitly mention it, but Cheng Zesheng didn’t mind. He didn’t have a bad temper and was generally easy to get along with as long as someone didn’t touch his sore spots.

Returning to the living room, Cheng Zesheng’s eyes were immediately drawn to the quartz clock hanging on the wall. The entire apartment, from the decor to the furniture, followed a modern minimalist style, except for this clock, which seemed out of place. The brass pendulum swung back and forth, and it played music at the hour, giving it a retro yet trendy feel.

Forget it, it wasn’t something he prepared himself. He didn’t spend much time at home anyway, mostly at the bureau. There was no need to pay attention to a clock.

Satisfied with the tour of the new dormitory, Cheng Zesheng left contentedly and planned to go home to pack his belongings that evening.

———

The next morning, Xiao Fan hurriedly returned to the bureau. The blood samples from He Wei’s hospital examination had been brought back and sent to the forensic department. Cheng Zesheng asked about the progress of the investigation, and Xiao Fan nodded, saying, “It’s true. The head of the Respiratory Department at the People’s Hospital is very familiar with He Wei. He has been seeing him for nearly ten years.”

“Are you sure it’s He Wei and not He Lu?”

“Yes, it’s definitely He Wei. The head physician also knows about his twin brother, He Lu. He used to help pick up medication for He Wei. The two have completely different temperaments and personalities. You can recognize them at a glance.”

“So He Lu used to help He Wei pick up medication?” Cheng Zesheng rubbed his chin. “That suggests their relationship as brothers was quite good.”

“I’m not sure about that. The head physician only mentioned that he hasn’t seen He Lu in recent years. It’s always been He Wei coming alone, sometimes accompanied by another man who wears glasses and has a gentle appearance.”

This description matched Lian Jingyuan, indicating that his relationship with He Wei was not ordinary. However, Lian Jingyuan insisted that they were just good friends, senior and junior brothers. Cheng Zesheng had specifically observed him, and his expression didn’t seem like he was lying.

After the blood test results came out, Cheng Aiyue personally delivered them. Cheng Zesheng glanced at them, his face turned serious, and he took the materials and headed straight to the forensic department. “Xiao Tanzi! Come out quickly!”

“I’m here, I’m here! Why are you shouting so loudly?!” The door to the autopsy room opened slightly, revealing half of Jiang Tan’s face, his expression gloomy. “Call me Forensic Doctor Jiang or Director Jiang…”

“Are you absolutely certain about the results of He Wei’s autopsy?”

“…” Jiang Tan opened the door with a bang. “Cheng Zesheng, you’ve gone too far! I told you a few days ago, with my ten years of professional expertise, there’s no possibility of error!”

“He had asthma.” Cheng Zesheng handed over He Wei’s lung CT scan and blood test results. Jiang Tan flipped through them, gradually becoming astonished. He quickly rushed back into the autopsy room, tightly closing the door and not allowing anyone inside.

Cheng Zesheng sat outside, feeling restless. Liu Renyu handed him a glass of water. “Vice-Captain Cheng, take a rest for a while. The teacher should come out soon.”

“I’m afraid he’ll come out and deliver bad news to me.” Cheng Zesheng pinched his temples. “Given Jiang Tan’s professional level, the likelihood of an error is extremely low. The direction of this case is becoming even more perplexing.”

Liu Renyu sat down beside him and smiled. “Vice-Captain Cheng, do you believe that there are many unexplainable phenomena in this world?”

Cheng Zesheng looked at him. “Are you talking about ghosts?”

“It’s a possibility, but not necessarily,” Liu Renyu pushed his glasses. “In science fiction movies, we often see that in a four-dimensional spacetime, different versions of ourselves can meet, creating a strange sensation.”

“…I believe in science.”

“It is scientifically plausible, including higher-dimensional worlds and organisms. Our current civilization just can’t explore them yet.” Liu Renyu took out his phone and showed Cheng Zesheng a poster. “This science fiction movie will be released next month. If Vice-Captain Cheng is interested, you can go watch it.”

Cheng Zesheng glanced at it but didn’t say anything. The door of the autopsy room opened, and Jiang Tan came out with a grim face. “It’s impossible!”

Cheng Zesheng stood up, and Jiang Tan slammed the medical records and reports on the table. “The body inside, the tar residue on the surface of the lungs suggests a smoking history of at least five years! But there’s no smooth muscle hyperplasia in the airway, no bronchial dilation, and no pathological changes in the entire respiratory system. Asthma doesn’t exist!”

“Then how do you explain his blood test results? The total IgE is several times higher than the normal range, indicating allergic asthma, and the DNA match was confirmed!”

The irritable forensic doctor, Jiang Tan, was almost losing his temper. “How should I know?! All I can say is that the body inside is He Wei, but I can’t be 100% certain if the blood test report belongs to him. It could also be his brother’s. Twin DNA is the same. Let’s do genetic sequencing and check for methylation differences to narrow it down!”

Cheng Zesheng felt a throbbing pain in his temples. The evidence found in this case already had some inconsistencies with logic, and now it was even more exaggerated. The person might not even be the right one, making him feel overwhelmed and truly lost in a labyrinth.

“…Then let’s find He Lu and obtain a sample.” Cheng Zesheng pointed at the medical records and reports on the table. “Jiang Tan, re-examine He Wei’s body carefully and mark any unconventional findings, don’t miss anything.”

What else could Jiang Tan do? He had to fill the hole he dug himself. He didn’t mind, but disturbing the deceased again made him feel a little uneasy.

Liu Renyu took out He Wei’s autopsy report from the cabinet and asked, “Teacher, genetic sequencing is troublesome and complex, with a massive engineering project. Do you think it’s necessary?”

“It’s necessary.” Jiang Tan answered firmly. “I don’t believe that the same person can have two different bodies and completely different life experiences.”