Mystery Detective of the Steam World

Chapter 63 The Waves of the Times

"Mr. Li Wei, what do you think of this?"

Eileen looked up from her workbench with great interest and fiddled with the little bird in her hands for Levi. It looked about the size of a pigeon, with a metal frame, cloth wings and body, somewhat resembling a kite. Eileen fiddled with the wings for Levi, then twisted it with both hands.

Then you see the "bird's" tail spread outwards, forming a brim, while its body gradually swells and expands, becoming the hat itself. Its two wings and small head flatten out, and in the blink of an eye, it transforms from a bird kite into a black top hat decorated with wings.

Li Wei took it, put it on his head, and nodded in satisfaction.

"Not bad, not bad. I didn't expect you to be such a good seamstress, Eileen."

"I didn't like these things before, but my mom forced me to learn them."

Eileen looked up with a smug smile.

"She said that when a girl gets married, she should always learn to sew and cook... She also said..."

At this point, Eileen's expression became slightly melancholy.

"She also said she would give me her best embroidery as a wedding gift..."

"………………………"

For a moment, the atmosphere became somewhat somber, but fortunately, the elevator bell broke the awkward silence.

"Hello, Mr. Li Wei."

Inspector Lestrade stepped out of the elevator with a grin, and Eileen quickly switched her mood, rushing to greet him and taking the hat and coat from the guest.

"Hello, Mr. Lestrade."

"Hello, Miss Eileen..."

Inspector Lestrade nodded to Eileen, who obediently went about her business, while Inspector Lestrade watched the girl's retreating figure and chuckled.

"It seems this young lady has done a good job."

"It's really great."

Li Wei was also very satisfied with Eileen; she was obedient, intelligent, capable, and hardworking. He had already decided to keep her; just based on her skill in creating steam-powered mechanical toys, Li Wei didn't want to let her go. After all, these things were toys in Eileen's hands, but in Li Wei's hands, they became deadly weapons.

"So you're quite free right now?"

"I'd like to have some free time, but it's difficult."

Inspector Lestrade sighed helplessly, his face full of worry.

Have you read the latest Daily Times?

"not yet."

"have a look."

Inspector Lestrade placed the newspaper in front of Levi, who opened it and glanced at it.

"Brand new crime-solving techniques?"

"That's right. This guy named Galton solved a theft case by identifying fingerprints, and now there's a lot of public debate. Everyone thinks we should rely more on scientific methods to solve cases. Simply put, they want us to arrest people based on fingerprints."

At this point, Inspector Lestrade became very excited.

"That's utterly absurd! Solving cases requires reasoning and evidence! How can you arrest someone based solely on fingerprints? And what if there's an exact match? Does finding Her Majesty's fingerprints at the crime scene mean we should arrest Her Majesty as well?"

Hearing Inspector Lestrade's complaint, Levy couldn't help but chuckle softly. In Levy's time, fingerprints, footprints, DNA, and other such methods were essential tools for solving crimes, let alone fingerprints. But in this era, solving crimes relied more on rather classical methods—reasoning, argumentation, and evidence.

Court trials are more like storytelling, with the plaintiff and defendant each telling a story to the jury. Whoever's story is more moving and supported by evidence wins.

Just like in detective anime, the detective simply tells the audience who he believes is the culprit, why he is the culprit, what evidence proves he is the culprit, and how he committed the crime. If the audience thinks the detective's explanation makes sense, then that's the case. If they think the detective is talking nonsense, then that's naturally not the case.

Forensic medicine exists now, but it is mainly used to determine the cause of death of the deceased. Sometimes it is also used to compare footprints—because the shoes worn are relatively easy to match.

But fingerprints are probably something that old-school police officers like Inspector Lestrade would find as unbelievable as a fantasy.

Can the lines on your skin really prove who is who?
Couldn't there be patterns that are exactly the same?

How do I look at this? How do I learn it?
In this era of rapid technological development, the police are very sensitive to new technologies. It's like a pastoral textile worker being subjected to the dimensional reduction attack of an automatic spinning machine, yet not understanding why this thing can spin faster and better than them. The police always maintain a skeptical attitude towards these strange and wonderful things.

For example, in a murder case, you find a fingerprint at the scene and then find the person based on that fingerprint. How do you prove that he committed the crime?
In this theft case, because it was suspected from the beginning that it was an inside job, fingerprint comparison was conducted, and the stolen goods were eventually found in the room of the guy whose fingerprints were matched, which is why the media made such a fuss about it.

But in the eyes of an old-school cop like Inspector Lestrade, even without fingerprints, they could still solve the case! After all, there were no signs of forced entry at the scene, and no one claimed that strangers had entered or left, so it must have been the work of an inside man. As long as they found everyone working there and interrogated them all, they would surely catch this scoundrel.

Therefore, there is absolutely no need to put fingerprints on it!
If fingerprints are included in the necessary investigative process, does that mean that even if they find a suspect, they cannot bring them to justice if the suspect does not have fingerprints?

Inspector Lestrade was naturally displeased, even beginning to question the true nature of those cheering for "fingerprint-based investigations." It's like in modern society, where someone opposing surveillance is instinctively suspected of being a potential criminal. If you're not afraid of being caught committing a crime, why oppose surveillance? A free society? Is it a society where crime is allowed to occur freely?

In this era, Inspector Lestrade viewed those who "supported fingerprinting in investigations" as if they were criminal reserve officers.

Did you already think of ways to circumvent this, which is why you're so strongly advocating for the introduction of fingerprint detection? Do you think that as long as you can't be convicted using fingerprints, you can get away with it?
It must be said that after arriving in this world, Li Wei was quite interested in the clash between these different civilizations. Many things that were commonplace in his own time were considered outrageous in this world. And things that were unimaginable in his own world were taken for granted in this world.

To give an analogy, it's like the subway—City of Fog, as the birthplace of the steam revolution, naturally already has subways everywhere. However, women from respectable families wouldn't ride the subway; in this era, women from respectable families could only travel by horse-drawn carriage or steam-powered vehicle.

Only lowly professional women like socialites would take the subway.

Therefore, ordinary women would face criticism and gossip if they took the subway.

Of course, in Li Wei's opinion, the police investigation isn't entirely without problems. This era mainly emphasizes witnesses, testimonies, and evidence. Witnesses need to swear an oath to the Holy Lord in court, guaranteeing that they won't lie—of course, everyone knows this is pure nonsense; even if you lied, the Holy Lord won't strike you dead with lightning.

Moreover, testimonies can be forged, evidence can be manufactured, and witnesses... when a knife is held to your throat, or when you are given a bag of gold coins, how many of them can stand firm for justice?
"Actually, I think this is something that can be done."

As a modern person, Li Wei certainly knows the benefits of using technology to solve crimes. He also understands why the public supports fingerprint-based crime-solving. After all, the current methods of police crime-solving are too primitive and crude. You can't really say that torture to extract confessions doesn't happen, and it may even be commonplace in many places.

Who would willingly entrust their fate to a vague and uncertain testimony? As for witnesses and evidence, they can all be changed.

But at least fingerprints can be compared. If it's not your own, wouldn't that prove your innocence?

"I think it's pretty good."

Levi could only appease Inspector Lestrade's complaints.

“As long as the police can maintain consistency, then even if you arrest someone without other evidence, the public can accept that they are a criminal.”

That's true, but isn't this just asking for trouble?

Inspector Lestrade was clearly still unhappy. Who wants extra work for no reason? Besides, at his age, it's a bit late to learn new things. It's like asking someone with a landline to use a mobile app—they won't understand what it is at all.

"Times are changing, and so is police investigation and case solving."

Li Wei fiddled with the hat in his hand, then a brilliant idea struck him.

“I think you can turn this public opinion around and use it.”

"Oh? What do you say?"

"You can use this as a reason to organize a special science and technology crime-solving team, a team that uses scientific knowledge to solve cases."

"How is this different from a regular crime-solving team?"

"The difference is that they are mainly responsible for using scientific knowledge to assist in solving cases."

Levi explained to Inspector Lestrade.

"For example, fingerprint comparison is one of them. For the rest, you can consult researchers who study insects, plants…"

"Why are you looking for them?"

"Perhaps the traces of plants left on the corpses could tell us where they were killed, or the maggots on their bodies could indicate how many days they had been dead..."

Li Wei said, shrugging his shoulders.

"You can definitely establish a cooperative relationship with the Royal Academy of Sciences. I think those master's students would certainly not object to cooperating with the police. You can take some difficult cases to them and ask them to help investigate. See how scientific knowledge is used in the cases. If all goes well, you can successfully solve the cases, give an explanation to the media and public opinion, and also gain new investigative methods. Isn't that killing three birds with one stone?"

"What if it fails?"

Inspector Lestrade was clearly not an optimist, but Levi was prepared for this.

"Doesn't that just show that there are still shortcomings, preventing the public from treating them as a panacea for solving cases? Besides, if science really can't solve it, we're still here for you, aren't we?"

"Oh, that makes sense..."

This is also why Levi encouraged Inspector Lestrade to form a scientific investigation team. On the one hand, he knew that this was an inevitable historical trend, and on the other hand, it would also be a good opportunity for MI7 to screen cases for investigation.

After all, if a case cannot be solved scientifically, then it becomes a matter of resorting to unscientific solutions.

"Okay, I got it! I'll get on it when I get back!"

Inspector Lestrade wasn't an expert in science, but he was quite knowledgeable about this kind of thing. Reminded by Li Weiyi, he immediately understood its value. He chuckled, finished the tea Eileen had just brought him in one gulp, then grabbed his hat and coat and headed towards the elevator.

Levi watched as Inspector Lestrade walked into the elevator.

Then exit through the elevator.

"Oh, right, I came to see you about Alexander."

(End of this chapter)