Three homicides: a serial rape and murder, a locked-room mystery, and a local lumber merchant killed for his money.
The first two cases occurred in the first half of the year, so they were already cold. The last one, however, was from just half a month ago. Zhao Lin decided to start with the most recent.
It was mid-autumn, and the crops were ripe. At the eastern docks of Qinghe County, open-topped boats from the countryside were moored every which way.
The boats were loaded with freshly harvested rice, weighing their hulls low in the water.
Leading up from the river wharf was a street wide enough for two horse-drawn carriages to travel side by side.
Sunlight spilled down, bathing the figures of Zhao Lin, Liang Song, He Qingquan, and Tao Erleng.
From a great distance, Zhao Lin could see dockworkers, white sweat towels slung over their shoulders and black sashes tied at their waists, bustling about as they unloaded cargo.
