Chapter 226: Burning To Death In Armor (1/2)

Early the next day, Xiaotao sent me a text asking me to drop by the station at 10 to discuss the case. Dali and I took attendance in class, then slipped out the door as soon as our professor looked away.

At the school gates, I saw Lao Yao standing there as if he were waiting for someone. How rare indeed. Lao Yao was a well-known homebody who never left his “cave.”

”Lao Yao, who are you waiting for?” I asked.

Lao Yao’s eyes brightened at the sight of me as he skipped over with a come-hither look. ”Xiao Song-song, I’m waiting for you of course!” he flirted.

My head was covered with beads of cold sweat. Being in public certainly didn’t stop this guy from behaving scandalously. I deftly dodged his wandering hands and said, ”About what I asked yesterday, did you manage to find out anything?”

”I was waiting just to tell you this,” he said. “I couldn’t find anything and I think the problem lies with the hardware. I was just at your dormitory but your roommates said that you had gone out. So I decided to wait here for you and head to the station together. ”

”Are you going with us to the station?” asked Dali in surprise.

Lao Yao gave Dali an arrogant nod. ”I’m a proper technical consultant. Why can't I go?”

Dali was shocked by his words, his tone filled with bitterness as he asked when Lao Yao had been appointed technical consultant. I spilled the truth of the matter and explained it was Xiaotao’s idea, which earned me a sad puppy face from Dali.

”You haven't had breakfast yet, have you?” asked Lao Yao. “Well, I haven't eaten either. There’s a stall selling steamed buns outside campus. Let’s go!” And with that, he spanked my buttocks. I thought to myself, This guy really knows how to take liberties!

After breakfast, we went down to the station together. Lao Yao greeted Xiaotao warmly as soon as he saw her. He complimented how supple and soft her skin was and asked what skincare products she was using, all the while touching and hugging Xiaotao without care. We were stunned to see how intimately he behaved with her. Perhaps this was gay privilege.

”How rare of you to visit?” she quipped. “Are you also here for the meeting?”

Lao Yao looked surprised. ”Meeting? Are there any good-looking guys? I just wanted to take a look at what you found at the crime scene. I don’t believe anyone can surpass my technical skills so I think the problem lies in the hardware.”

It turned out that Lao Yao’s self-esteem was threatened when he failed to discover anything which was why he suddenly made a trip to the station.

We accompanied Lao Yao to the evidence room to check the pile of odds and ends we discovered at the crime scene yesterday. Just as he reached out a grubby paw to sift through the evidence, I stopped him at once. ”Hey, put on some gloves!”

”I hate wearing gloves,” he complained. “But I’ll do it since you asked.”

Once again, I felt myself erupting in cold sweat while an amused Xiaotao had a good laugh at my expense.

Lao Yao searched among the bits and pieces for a long time before zooming in on a cable. ”Look, just as I said!” he exclaimed.

Wasn't that the USB cable we found yesterday? When I asked what was wrong with the cable, he ignored me and carefully examined it. Then, he asked if we had seen a brick-sized object. After further reflection, Xiaotao said, ”It’s not on the evidence list but it’s probably still in the crime scene!”

Lao Yao wrinkled his brow. ”Let’s go over and look for it now!”

”Before we go, tell us what your theory is!” I said with a wave of my hand.

As it turned out, Lao Yao speculated that there was a video signal converter at the crime scene. This cable was a little different from the ordinary USB cable and looked like it was connected to a converter. Gesticulating with his hands, he described that the device was about yeigh big. It was used to convert images and sounds into data and could be connected to the Internet or transmitted via Bluetooth in close range. Lao Yao suspected that it was the latter. That is to say, at the time of the crime, the murderer had taken the video with him.

The converter was most likely still buried under the rubble. It would be a crucial piece of evidence if it were found and the damage wasn’t too serious. Perhaps the murderer might also appear in the crime scene on film.

”We’ve got some matters to handle right now so you’ll have to go to the crime scene first!”

”Alone?” laughed Lao Yao playfully.

Xiaotao got the message and said, ”I’ll assign a handsome officer to accompany you. All necessary expenses will be reimbursed.”

Lao Yao was so happy the corner of his eyes were all crinkled. ”How thoughtful of you, Xiaotao-jiejie,” he gushed. “Xiao Song-song, I’ll see you later!”