A madman in France? How come he's always at crime scenes!

Wu Liang listened quietly as Zhang Jianxuan read the indictment, even the intonation and rhythm were exactly the same as in the Zhou Hai case last time.

"Your Honor, the prosecution requests to call the first witness—"

"Sun Jin, deputy captain of the Criminal Investigation Brigade of Chuanhe District."

Guo Yong nodded. The clerk stood up and summoned him.

Sun Jin stood up from the front row of the gallery and straightened the hem of his police uniform. As he passed the defense table, his gaze met Wu Liang's, but they did not exchange a word.

In the witness stand, Sun Jin reported his identity information and took an oath.

Zhang Jian stood up and walked three steps to the witness stand.

"Officer Sun, on the evening of August 21st, did you participate in the crime scene investigation of Ding Hu's murder case in the Green Garden residential area?"

"Yes. I led the team to the scene at 7:30 p.m. that day."

"Please describe to the court what you saw at the scene."

Sun Jin turned slightly to face the judge's bench, his voice unadorned.

"The deceased, Ding Hu, was found lying supine on the living room floor. He had sixteen stab wounds to his chest and abdomen, concentrated in the area from the lower edge of his ribcage to above his navel. A corner of the glass on the east side of the coffee table in the living room was broken, there were two drag marks on the floor, and a splatter of blood on the sliding door frame of the kitchen. The murder weapon was a kitchen knife from the deceased's home, with a blade length of nineteen centimeters, which was discarded on the floor to the left of the body after the incident."

"The doors and windows at the scene were intact. There were no signs of forced entry on the door locks."

Zhang Jian took an evidence bag from the clerk; inside was a stainless steel kitchen knife.

"Is this the one?"

Sun Jin glanced at the serial number label: "Yes. There are fingerprints of both Ding Hu and Ni Dayong on the blade. Only Ni Dayong's fingerprints were found on the handle."

How was the bloodstain distributed at the scene?

"The bloodstains were mainly concentrated within a 1.5-meter radius of the body. The bloodstains were located inside the kitchen sliding door."

"Are there any other findings from the examination that need to be explained to the court?"

Sun Jin paused for two seconds: "There was 7,300 yuan in cash under the sofa cushions in the living room, and two gold necklaces and a bankbook in the bedside table drawer in the master bedroom. There were no signs of disturbance at the scene."

Zhang Jian handed the evidence bag back to the court clerk and turned to the judge's bench.

"Your Honor, the doors and windows at the scene were intact, valuables were not disturbed, and the knife handle only had the defendant's single fingerprint. These three facts are sufficient to rule out the possibility that a stranger committed a robbery on impulse. Furthermore, the sixteen stab wounds are concentrated in the chest and abdomen. Combined with the choice of the murder weapon, the prosecution believes that this case is a premeditated revenge killing, and the defendant's subjective malice is profound."

He closed the case file.

"Question complete."

Guo Yong turned his gaze to the defense table: "Did the defense attorney ask any questions?"

Wu Liang stood up, stepped forward, and looked directly at Sun Jin.

"Witness, you just said that the deceased had sixteen stab wounds."

Sun Jin looked at him. He had already anticipated the lawyer's tactics, but anticipation is one thing, and once he was on the witness stand, he still had to answer the questions.

"Yes."

"Of those sixteen stabs, was any one fatal to the heart?"

"no."

"Was the aorta hit?"

"……No."

"Was there a single stab wound, based on the police's forensic experience, that could have been fatal at the scene?"

Sun Jin hesitated for half a second, not understanding the significance of Wu Liang's question.

"Judging from the single wound, there is no fatal injury."

Wu Liang didn't rush to reply. He walked to the defense table and picked up a bound document.

"Officer Sun, how many years have you worked in the criminal investigation team?"

"Twenty-three years."

"In all that time you've witnessed, at every murder scene where the perpetrator's intent was to kill, how many stabs did they typically use?"

Zhang Jianli immediately stood up: "Your Honor, I object. The defense's request for speculative opinions from witnesses goes beyond the scope of the factual investigation."

Wu Liang turned to the judge's bench: "Your Honor, Comrade Sun Jin has 23 years of experience in criminal investigation, including extensive on-site investigation of homicide cases. His judgment on the relationship between the characteristics of injuries and the intent to commit the crime falls within the scope of expert testimony. Since the prosecution has asked him to prove 'deep subjective malice,' we also have the right to examine the basis of this conclusion."

Guo Yong paused for a moment, then said, "Objection rejected. Witnesses can answer based on their own experience."

Sun Jin spoke.

"If it was intentional killing, one stab would be enough."

Wu Liang nodded: "Judging from the characteristics of the wounds, were these sixteen cuts precise or random?"

"The wounds are relatively shallow. Although the distribution is concentrated on the torso, the angle and depth are inconsistent, and there is no indication of selectively avoiding bones or fascia. It was not a precision strike."

"So, the assailant didn't target any vital areas during the stabbing, and wasn't even aware of whether they had hit a vital spot?"

"...That's one way to understand it."

Wu Liang opened the document in his hand.

"Witness, did you find any evidence at the scene indicating that the defendant, Ni Dayong, had any written agreement, electronic communication agreement, or any other form of 'plan' with Ding Hu before the incident?"

"There is no written or electronic evidence."

Zhang Jian's eyebrows twitched.

"Did Ni Dayong bring the murder weapon himself?"

"...It belongs to Ding Hu's family."

When were the knives moved from the kitchen to the living room?

"Uncertain."

"Between Ding Hu and Ni Dayong, who made the first move?"

"The order of the traces at the scene cannot be determined."

Wu Liang closed the document and turned to face the judge's bench.

"Your Honor, the witness has just confirmed three facts: First, none of the sixteen stab wounds were fatal, and the wounds showed signs of uncontrolled, continuous stabbing; second, the weapon was taken from the scene and was not prepared in advance; third, there is no evidence of prior communication or planning."

Wu Liang spoke slowly, deliberately leaving blank spaces at each pause, allowing the clerk to type each word into the transcript one by one.

"These three points combined contradict the prosecution's earlier claim of 'premeditated revenge killing'."

A low murmur of discussion arose from the crowd.

The two elderly men who came to observe the hearing from the Criminal Division of the Provincial High Court looked at each other, and the older one nodded slightly.

Guo Yong brought down the gavel, and the entire arena fell silent.

Zhang Jian stood up: "Your Honor, the prosecutor has provided supplementary opinions on the interpretation of the witness testimonies. The large number and dense distribution of wounds can also reflect the killer's resolute attitude at the time of the crime. 'No fatal wounds' does not mean 'did not want to kill'; it could also be that the killer was affected by the victim's resistance or his own nervousness during the crime, and thus failed to achieve the desired effect. As for the evidence of premeditation, after receiving the victim's call at noon on the day of the incident, the defendant entered the city from Shiqiao Village and went straight to Luyuan Community. This journey itself constitutes the objective condition for the premeditation."

After listening, Wu Liang pulled out another document from the case file.

A list of call logs.

He held the list up to eye level.

"Your Honor, these are Ding Hu's phone call records from the day of the incident. They were obtained by the Chuanhe District Criminal Investigation Brigade in accordance with the law and have been transferred along with the case file."

"At 11:24 a.m. that day, Ding Hu dialed Ni Dayong's number using his own mobile phone. The call lasted four minutes and twelve seconds. This was the only call between the two that day."

He put down the list.

"This call record proves two things: First, on the day of the incident, it was Ding Hu who took the initiative to contact Ni Dayong, not Ni Dayong who took the initiative to contact Ding Hu. Second, the call took place at noon, and according to the testimonies of several villagers in Shiqiao Village in the case file, Ni Dayong's destination when he left home early that morning was Kangzhuang Pharmacy in Tongcheng City, and the pharmacy's surveillance footage and purchase records can corroborate this."

He pulled out a third document from the case file.

"The pharmacy's surveillance footage shows that Ni Dayong made the payment at 10:17 AM. This means that he did not go to the Green Garden residential area before receiving Ding Hu's call, nor did he carry any tools for committing the crime. He changed his plans after receiving the call."

Wu Liang placed the three documents one by one on the defense table, looking directly at Zhang Jian.

"Prosecutor, why didn't a premeditated murderer prepare a murder weapon beforehand?"

"Why must we wait for the victim to call us first...?"

"You only just decided to kill someone?"