Early the next morning, I was woken up by the noisy alarm clock. Getting out of bed was pure torture!
After dressing, I went to wake Wang Dali, who was sleeping on the lower bunk. He clung to his blanket and mumbled, "Come on, let me sleep a bit more. Why should seniors in college live like they're still in high school? You go to the meeting alone."
"Fine, then forget about this bonus!" I snapped angrily.
Suddenly, Wang Dali sat up, "Hey, wait a minute!"
We quickly got dressed and hailed a taxi outside the school. On the way, the driver started gossiping, "Hey, have you heard? A prostitute was murdered last night in the South District. The way she died was brutal."
"How do you know?" Wang Dali asked.
"Haha, news travels fast with us. This morning, a buddy of mine was driving around that area and met the motel owner. The poor guy got tortured all night and told my buddy the whole story. That motel is operating without a license, and now there's a murder case. Looks like they'll shut down for good. Oh, and I heard the police hired a special consultant — a college student, super sharp. He can spot things others can't…"
"Really?" I feigned surprise.
Wang Dali chuckled, covering his mouth, "Doesn't the police have their own people? Why hire a college student?"
...
"That student seems pretty talented. Remember the headless corpse case at that university? They say he solved it. Man, people really put pressure on others. My useless son just plays games all day. Wish he could be half as capable."
I said, "Sir, your information is impressively up to date!"
The driver proudly replied, "Of course! By the way, what are you guys doing at the police station so early? You're not helping solve a case, are you?"
"No, we're just here on business," I explained.
He laughed, "I thought so. If it really was you, I'd give you a free ride, haha!"
When we arrived, we paid the fare. Huang Xiaotao just came out of the parking lot and waved, "Song Yang, Dali, perfect timing. Let's head up to the third floor for the meeting."
The driver's eyes widened, pointing at me, "It really is you!"
"Yeah," I smiled.
"Hey driver, didn't you say free ride?" Wang Dali asked.
Huang Xiaotao curiously inquired, "What are you two talking about?"
Before we could answer, the driver sped off. Wang Dali chased after the car yelling, "Hey! Free ride, remember? Some people really have no morals."
"Did something happen? Want me to call traffic police to deal with him?" Huang Xiaotao asked.
"Just kidding," I said with a grin.
"Have you eaten?" Huang Xiaotao asked.
"Not yet," I shook my head.
She pulled out her phone, "Add two more breakfasts, same address: Third Floor, Criminal Investigation Department meeting room."
Wang Dali excitedly said, "Xiaotao sister treats everyone to breakfast?"
She smiled, "Stayed up late last night and got up early today. Gotta compensate somehow. If you don't sleep or eat well, you get cranky and inefficient. I can't guarantee good sleep, but at least good food!"
I said, "Didn't expect you to be so experienced."
"Learned it all from my master," she replied.
We arrived at the meeting room on the third floor. The meeting hadn't started yet. The detectives sat around chatting. Not the stern, serious types I imagined, but people talking about their kids, TV shows, gossip. Only Wang Yuanchao sat alone in the corner, smoking, looking grim.
Wang Dali nudged me, "That uncle looks kinda out of place."
"Maybe that's just his style," I said.
Soon, the delivery guy arrived with two big bags of breakfast: soy milk, fried dough sticks, fried shrimp, pan-fried dumplings. Everyone brightened up.
After breakfast, Huang Xiaotao cleared her throat, "Since everyone's here, let's review the clues."
She pulled a whiteboard covered in photos and keywords to the front and explained the case — all familiar to me.
When she finished, she asked, "Anything to add?"
One officer reported, "The janitor's ID is fake, made by criminals in Nanjiang who specialize in counterfeit IDs. The identities are usually low-education farmers from small counties."
Another said, "The victim, Ma Lijun, cut ties with her family years ago. They don't know her job or about her disappearance or death."
Another officer said, "I got footage from the motel entrance cameras. A suspect left the motel at 8 PM on October 4th, but the face was blurry."
Huang Xiaotao assigned tasks: tech team to analyze the video for new clues, others to investigate a middle-aged man with stroke history and the victim's social circle.
Then she looked at me, "Song Yang, any thoughts?"
I thought a moment, "I suggest checking if there are any patients with alloimmune protein allergy in Nanjiang. It's a rare genetic disease that might be related to the killer."
People whispered among themselves. Huang Xiaotao asked, "Alloimmune protein allergy? What's that? Never heard of it!"
I explained, "People with this disease can't absorb certain proteins and are extremely allergic. Like peanut allergy — eating peanuts can be life-threatening."
I speculated the killer had this condition, rejecting most dietary proteins except blood. Due to long-term protein deficiency, his body mutated — afraid of sunlight, pale skin, no hair.
"What does he live on if he can't eat?" Huang Xiaotao asked in shock.
"Blood," I said coldly.
Wang Dali whispered, "Yangzi, weren't you sleeping with me last night? When did you research this?"
"What do you mean sleeping with you!" I snapped. "I couldn't sleep, so I went over my old notes. Luckily I found this, or I'd be up all night."
"How many hours did you sleep?" he asked.
"Less than two." Honestly, I was already feeling tired, my eyes burning. I just wanted to crash as soon as this meeting ended.