Chapter 13: The Case of the Headless Woman’s Corpse (Part 1)

If she were an ordinary four-and-a-half-year-old child, knowing that her missing mother was connected to such a terrible case would have surely broken her down in tears by now. But Xiao Man was different.

Zhou Lin guessed that her visit to the animal shelter was to gather evidence related to the Kelly Biotech case. Thinking of how much this little girl had endured at such a tender age, his heart ached deeply.

Xiao Man noticed the candy in her father’s palm—a large White Rabbit sweet. She happily picked it up and popped it into her mouth. “Daddy, it’s so sweet!”

It wasn’t just the candy that brought sweetness to her; the meticulous love from her detective father had truly touched her heart.

After her mother’s disappearance, Xiao Man’s biological father, Tang Zheng, had thrown himself entirely into caring for his stepmother and younger brother. He never gave Xiao Man candies; all she received from him were scoldings and beatings.

From now on, she had only one father—and that was Zhou Lin.

“Daddy, Xiao Man heard from the monkeys that Mom studied monkeys a year ago, but she was working on human drug development, not cloning. But since the monkeys’ words can’t be used as evidence in court, those cloned animals were all done by Cheng Lu.”

Zhou Lin gently stroked her little head. “Don’t worry, Daddy will investigate thoroughly.”

Just then, his phone rang.

It was Lin Nan calling: “Captain Zhou, the handwriting analysis is complete. The forged signature of Wang Wen from a year ago was done after Cheng Lu joined the company. We reviewed Kelly’s records and found no evidence that Wang Wen was involved in cloning projects. Cheng Lu is still denying initiating and conducting the cloning project, and Jiang Qi found no related evidence on the computer either.”

As the evening grew late, Zhou Lin glanced at his watch. “Understood. It’s getting late. Everyone, clock out for now. Rest well tonight; we’ll continue the investigation tomorrow.”

“Yes, Captain Zhou.”

He put down his phone and met the hopeful gaze of the little girl. “Xiao Man, we have confirmed that your mother was not involved in cloning.”

“That’s wonderful!” Xiao Man raised both hands in joy. Suddenly, she added, “Daddy, Yaya said there’s an undeveloped plot of land behind Kelly Biotech where they buried the bodies of failed research animals.”

Zhou Lin nodded. “Let’s go take a look now…”

Before he could finish, Xiao Man’s little tummy let out a rumbling growl.

Zhou Lin changed his mind. “I’ll have the local police station follow up first. Xiao Man, what do you want to eat?”

Preparing to take the child out for a meal, he immediately called the station.

Xiao Man tilted her head thoughtfully, and from the backseat came a sharp whisper: “Zhou Lin hates eating leafy greens the most.”

She laughed, covering her mouth: So even a detective dad has little quirks!

After Zhou Lin finished the call, Xiao Man said, “Daddy, let’s go home and have dinner with Grandma!”

Everyone in the Zhou family was incredibly busy—Grandpa was occupied with business, Uncle with finance, Dad with investigations, and Auntie was busy helping the three older brothers study. No one ever had time to dine with Grandma.

Xiao Man wanted to be part of the family and spend more time with her grandmother.

“Alright!” Zhou Lin felt a warmth in his heart. Since joining the army and later the police force, time spent with family had been precious and rare.

The jeep rolled back to the hillside villa. The elderly lady was surprised to see Zhou Lin at the dinner table.

“Zhou Lin, I saw the news about the case. Weren’t you supposed to work overnight? How come you’re home for dinner?”

Xiao Man quickly replied, “Grandma, Daddy is off today and wants to eat with you!”

“Off but still working cases? You’re the hardest-working detective in the country,” Grandma scoffed. “And you say you took the child out to play—did you go to the crime scene? Is that how you raise children?”

Zhou Lin was used to being scolded as soon as he came home. He rubbed his nose, long accustomed to it.

Now, with Xiao Man around, the attention was divided.

“Grandma, Xiao Man’s a little hungry. Should we wait for Grandpa to eat together?”

“Grandpa is working late at the office. Let’s eat.”

Grandma wouldn’t let her granddaughter go hungry. She quickly put some fresh grouper fish onto Xiao Man’s plate. “Fresh grouper, good for your health. Eat more, Xiao Man.”

“Thank you, Grandma. You eat too.” Xiao Man smiled sweetly.

Using the communal chopsticks, she served fish to Grandma and then to her father. “Daddy, thank you for working so hard on the case!”

Zhou Lin reached out to stroke her head. Before coming to the Zhou family, she had been as thin and small as a little sprout at the Tang household, with doctors diagnosing malnutrition.

Since moving in, Grandma instructed the kitchen daily to prepare varied dishes—chicken, duck, fish, beef—to nourish her.

Her chubby cheeks were beginning to fill out, and her complexion was rosy.

Halfway through the meal, Zhou Lin’s phone rang again. It was the police station chief.

“Captain Zhou, can you come quickly? The team found a headless female corpse…”

“I’m on my way.”

Zhou Lin stood up and headed out.

“Xiao Man, Daddy might not be able to come back tonight to tell you a bedtime story. Let Grandma keep you company, okay?”

“Okay, Daddy.” Xiao Man nodded. “Daddy, wait a moment…”

Seeing that Zhou Lin hadn’t eaten much, she packed a lunchbox with the food on the table. “Daddy can eat on the way.”

“Thanks!” Zhou Lin took the box. “Mom, I’m off!”

Although Grandma often scolded him, she loved him. “It’s dark and cold; drive safely and take it slow.”

The two watched the jeep disappear before lowering their gazes.

Seeing Grandma still a little upset, Xiao Man sweetly reassured her, “Grandma, I packed some spinach for Daddy.”

Grandma laughed out loud. Zhou Lin had never liked leafy greens, and doctors always told him to supplement with vitamin B.

Yet, after all these years, he still couldn’t break the habit.

This little girl was truly the Zhou family’s lucky star.

“Xiao Man is such a good child! The New Year is coming—I hope your father can take some time off and spend more time playing with you.”

“Daddy and Xiao Man both want to spend the New Year with Grandpa and Grandma.”

“You child… so lovable.” Grandma beamed, completely charmed by her.

After dinner, Grandma went for a walk, and Xiao Man happily bounced along beside her.

Wherever Grandma went, she proudly introduced, “This is my little granddaughter!”

You see, Xiao Man’s biological grandparents had always distanced themselves from her simply because she was a girl.

When they returned, Xiao Man was drawing in the living room. Grandpa had just come back from the office.

She was sketching portraits—Grandpa, Grandma, Daddy, Blade, and the “Expedition Team” from today…

He saw that the child had a natural talent for drawing, far beyond the abilities of children her age.

“Xiao Man, Grandpa will find you the best teacher. How about becoming a painter when you grow up?”

“Thank you, Grandpa, but Xiao Man wants to be a good police officer like Daddy!”

Xiao Man was firm in her resolve. After a long day, Grandpa’s bones ached, and he wanted to complain fiercely about Zhou Lin not taking the family business.

But then, the little girl’s words hit him hard—so much so that his whiskers twitched and stars seemed to dance before his eyes.

He twitched his beard a few times, but the girl was already engrossed in watching the TV news.

The anchor spoke clearly and crisply: “This is the evening news. Today, at Kelly Biotech Research Center, while excavating animal remains related to the cloned animal case on the hillside, a headless female corpse was discovered. Initial identification suggests she is a young woman recently reported missing. Anyone with information, please call the following number…”

A young woman? Xiao Man’s eyes widened—could it be her mother?