Chapter 190: The Baffling Case File

Chapter 190: The Baffling Case File

“Recovered from his injuries,” Xiao Yu declared as he stepped into the Criminal Investigation Team.

After greeting his colleagues, the little subordinate, as usual, strolled through the offices of both the boss and Big Boss, casually leaving behind a Special Edition Cigarette.

It wasn’t worth much, but it was hard to come by.

Frankly speaking, those who truly understood cigarettes—especially the bureaucrats—recognized its value.

At a drinking party, flashing a box of Special Edition Cigarettes not only boosted your image but sent a foreboding message.

If your rank wasn’t high enough, you wouldn’t even have the privilege to smoke such a brand.

Yet being able to do so subtly hinted at an unspoken prowess, making others wonder about you.

No one would dare cross someone who could afford these.

Well, except the utterly brain-dead…

Ever since Xiao Yu joined the team, the Criminal Investigation Team’s knack for cracking cases—and even major ones—has been nothing short of extraordinary.

Take, for instance, the recent ‘Corpse Theft Case’ that ended up costing two lives.

It was eventually classified as a major case.

The entire team was awarded a collective Second-Class Group Merit.

Xiao Yu earned an individual Second-Class Merit.

Even though the honor was collective, it added points for everyone.

According to Zhao Changshan, Zhou Tinghu’s position was ripe for a promotion.

They had originally planned to stick with the team until retirement.

But with such a capable subordinate, it became nearly impossible for them not to be promoted.

Xiao Yu’s motive for passing along the cigarettes was simple—to have Zhou Tinghu distribute them as a token favor.

A favor to repay a kindness.

The cigarettes had been delivered just yesterday by Wang Dong, who had fetched them from Capital City.

What was promised to be ten came in at twenty.

Rumor had it the extra ten were handed over at Big Boss’s behest.

As for Xiao Yu’s role in cracking the Assassin Group case…

To be honest, after earning four First-Class Merits, Xiao Yu had become numb to accolades.

Wang Dong and Big Boss were completely stunned.

They were at a loss over how to allocate this merit.

Why was it so hard to dish out?

Because awarding a Fifth First-Class Merit came with its own set of rules.

After three such honors, you received an honorary title.

At five, the title was posthumously elevated.

By the sixth, the honorary title would be upgraded by one grade.

Things only got more terrifying from there.

If someone managed to earn ten First-Class Merits…

They would be awarded the National Honor Medal!

What exactly was the National Honor?

Simply put, once that medal was in your possession, it held sway over your home.

No matter who you were, what rank you held, or which big shot you knew.

Everyone in the country would treat you with the utmost respect!

Sounds exaggerated?

Not in the slightest.

These ten First-Class Merits were earned at the cost of ten lives!

Let’s not even get started on the idea of ten.

Within the police system, very few manage to earn even five First-Class Merits.

Not to mention a 22-year-old subordinate.

And these accolades aren’t just ordinary First-Class Merits.

They also come with a posthumous honorary title.

Xiao Yu had only just received an honorary title a short while ago.

And now here we are again—are you kidding me?

How should this merit be allocated?

But if there’s merit, it must be rewarded.

No one dared suppress achievements like these.

If life-risking achievements were brushed aside, who’d ever dare again?

It was as straightforward as that; the rules hadn’t been broken!

While Big Boss and the others were wracking their brains over it,

Xiao Yu couldn’t have been happier.

During his leave, life had never felt so sweet.

His sister had been letting loose lately.

If you wanted her in black stockings, she’d rock them; if it was a JK uniform, she’d flaunt it.

Either way, she’d been particularly compliant recently.

In fact, it was whispered that Mu Qingwu had been downright desperate to have a child lately.

No one even knew where that rumor started.

They said that at 28, it wasn’t exactly easy to conceive.

So she ended up clinging to her little brother every day.

As a result, Xiao Yu enjoyed a very fulfilling life every day.

It was painful, yet joyful!

Seated at his desk, Xiao Yu settled into a relaxed, pleasant, if somewhat monotonous, workday.

Most of the minor cases handled by the team didn’t require his involvement.

Everyone understood the logic—a cannon isn’t used to kill a mosquito.

Besides, it wasn’t a secret that the little subordinate frequently did side jobs for National Security.

If he were called away in the middle of an investigation, they’d have to start all over again.

For anything substantial, no one would approach Xiao Yu—at best, they’d ask for his advice.

Even Xiao Yu himself felt that police work had become absurdly easy.

Bored out of his mind, he began sifting through old, unsolved cases.

Maybe luck would have him uncover a clue.

As he flipped through the files, Xiao Yu suddenly paused in astonishment.

0… In need of flowers………

His eyes fixated on a particular case file.

What the heck?

“How could a case like this end up at the Criminal Investigation Team?”

Puzzled, Xiao Yu clicked open the file.

A Theft Case!

That’s right—just a run-of-the-mill theft.

Normally, such cases would be handled by specialized pickpocket squads or standard police stations.

So what exactly was the role of the Criminal Investigation Team?

They were tasked with participating, coordinating, and assisting in the investigations of general, major, and extra-large criminal cases.

But by that logic, major cases were usually beyond their scope.

They weren’t even qualified to tackle the most significant cases.

Unless higher-ups required their assistance.

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Yet now, with Xiao Yu in the mix, the Criminal Investigation Team had been involved in coordinating several major cases.

They had helped in numerous high-profile investigations.

This guy could boast about it for the rest of his life!

On ordinary days, the team handled the most mundane criminal cases.

Frankly speaking,

theft cases weren’t even worthy of being so classified.

Yet, in the archives of the Criminal Investigation Team,

a theft case had emerged—and not just any, but a puzzling one.

Can you believe it?

Xiao Yu was utterly baffled as he finished reading the file.

Frowning, he murmured, “Something about this case just doesn’t add up!”

What doesn’t add up?

Firstly.

The case was indeed a theft.

However, it occurred on a train.

Ordinarily, such cases would be handled by railway police.

But the oddity was that…

Six years ago, a theft had occurred on a certain train.

A family of three was traveling by train to an unknown destination.

Their belongings were stolen onboard.

They reported the incident to the police shortly after.

Then, things took a bizarre turn.

As the police began their investigation,

the family was found to have committed mass suicide by poisoning at home just six days later!

Only days after the theft, the entire family took their own lives?

Isn’t that incredibly strange?

And then came an even stranger twist.

After the family’s suicide, when the police arrived at the scene,

they discovered that the stolen goods were still on the train! Ridiculous.