"Help?"
Upon hearing this, everyone looked over in surprise.
Jiang Si, the person in question, however, showed little reaction. After all, she rarely left the house, and her only connection with the Beijing Public Security Bureau was that sketch she had drawn.
Sure enough, as soon as the thought crossed her mind, Huo's fourth uncle pulled out a sketch from his bag.
When Jing Qian and Jing Yu saw the person in the drawing, they froze for a moment. "Huh? Isn't this the bad guy who came to our house that day?"
Yang Meina was also taken aback. Was this really drawn by hand?
When Huo's fourth uncle first took it out, she had mistaken it for a photograph!
Guan Xue, on the other hand, remained calm. "Third sister-in-law, did you draw this?"
Before Jiang Si could answer, Mother Huo proudly chimed in, "It was drawn by Si Si. We were all there when she sketched it."
"I'm not exaggerating—her skill is on par with the teachers at the art academy."
Huo's fourth uncle wholeheartedly agreed with this assessment.
Before Third Yan was captured, even he had assumed that the sketch would bear only a 50-60% resemblance to the suspect at best.
In previous major cases, they had enlisted the help of numerous art teachers from academies and cultural centers.
But the final sketches always differed significantly from the descriptions given by eyewitnesses.
This time, no one had held out much hope—until they saw Third Master Yan in person. Without exaggeration, the entire police department had been stunned.
Recalling this, Huo's fourth uncle explained his request.
"Five years ago, Beijing was plagued by a serial murder case. The victims were all young women between the ages of 16 and 20."
"In less than a year, the perpetrator killed and assaulted nine victims."
"At the time, nearly the entire Beijing police force was mobilized to catch him."
"But the killer had strong counter-surveillance instincts, always striking at dawn or dusk."
"Without eyewitnesses, the case stalled."
"For the next four years, he remained dormant."
"Then, half a month ago, we received an emergency call from a nearby high school—confirming that the serial killer had resurfaced."
"After extensive investigations, we located two eyewitnesses in nearby residential buildings."
"Both had seen the suspect's face clearly."
Hearing this, Jiang Si couldn't help but feel puzzled.
If they had seen his face, shouldn’t it be straightforward to bring in professional sketch artists from the art academy to create a portrait?
She voiced her thoughts aloud.
Huo's fourth uncle had thought the same, but reality proved otherwise.
"Take a look at these, and you'll understand."
He pulled out four more sketches from his bag.
"These two were done by teachers from the art academy."
"These two were from instructors at the cultural center."
Everyone was curious and leaned in to examine them.
The difference was so stark that even six-year-old Jing Yu frowned and asked,
"Fourth Grandpa, who are these four people?"
Huo's fourth uncle sighed helplessly.
"These are already the fifth version. I didn’t even bring the previous four drafts."
"If I had, little Jing Yu would probably be asking about twenty different people."
Jiang Si stayed silent, her attention fixed on the sketches.
The teachers from the art academy and cultural center undoubtedly had solid foundational skills.
She could see that the composition and details in these sketches were well-executed.
That suggested the problem likely lay with the eyewitnesses themselves.
Huo's fourth uncle nodded grimly. "We've tried every possible method. If we weren’t completely out of options, I wouldn’t have come here today."
"Fourth Uncle, don’t say that."
Drawing a sketch was no trouble for Jiang Si.
But she had to be upfront.
"Fourth Uncle, I can try, but I can’t guarantee success."
"It’s been half a month since the incident—the eyewitnesses' memories may have already faded."
Huo's fourth uncle understood. "Just do your best. Whatever the outcome, we’ll accept it. Is there anything you need prepared in advance?"
Jiang Si did have a few requests.
"I’ll need professional drawing tools—a full set of pencils and colored pencils."
"Also, charcoal sticks, soot, rubbing tools, rosin, alcohol, a desk lamp, and a magnifying glass. That should cover it."
Though puzzled, Huo's fourth uncle agreed. "Understood. I’ll send someone to pick you up tomorrow morning."
As soon as the words were spoken, Father Huo said, "No need. Tomorrow, I’ll have Guard Chen escort her there."
Huo's fourth uncle didn’t object either. Guard Chen was highly skilled, and with him accompanying her, everyone could rest assured.
Early the next morning, Jiang Si arrived at the Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau.
Before long, the two eyewitnesses also arrived.
Following Jiang Si’s request, they were taken to separate rooms.
This was already the seventh time the two eyewitnesses had come to the bureau, including their initial statement. To be honest, apart from having little hope left, they also felt somewhat resistant.
Every time they came, the sketch artists would repeatedly confirm details with them.
Hearing the same questions over and over had worn them out.
Both had prepared themselves for another long day of interrogation, but to their surprise, Jiang Si entered the room with a smile and greeted them warmly.
Then, she drew the curtains and adjusted the desk lamp to a warm orange hue, mimicking the soft light of early morning.
Once seated, she asked the eyewitness only one question:
From what angle had he seen the suspect, and what were the approximate shape of the suspect’s face and the position of his hairline?
If he wasn’t sure, that was fine—he could describe it slowly.
The eyewitness was taken aback. "You don’t need to know how big his eyes were, how wide they were, or how much of the whites were visible?"
Jiang Si shook her head with a smile.
Ever since agreeing to Huo's fourth uncle’s request the day before, she had spent the entire night thinking.
The question was: Should the suspect’s sketch aim for precise realism, or should it focus on capturing a general likeness for identification?
It wasn’t until dawn that she finally settled on her answer.
As she had mentioned the previous day, half a month had already passed since the incident.
The two eyewitnesses had no professional training, so their memories had inevitably grown hazy over time.
If she pressed them for minute facial details now, it would only backfire.
After all, if they couldn’t recall specific features, their minds would unconsciously fill in the gaps with imagination.
That was why none of the five previous sketches had matched.
So, Jiang Si decided to take the opposite approach.
She would sacrifice realism in favor of emphasizing the suspect’s distinctive traits.
"Really, you don’t need those details?"
"No, just give me a general idea. If you remember his posture or movements at the time, that would be even better."
Hearing this, the eyewitness visibly relaxed.
"That’s easy. I remember."
Truthfully, he remembered not just the movements but also the suspect’s facial features with striking clarity.
But as time passed, even those memories had blurred.
Fortunately, this young sketch artist only asked the simplest questions, and when it came to movements, he was absolutely certain he wouldn’t misremember.
So, he described everything as Jiang Si requested.
Once the face shape and hairline were confirmed, Jiang Si spent ten minutes sketching the facial outline.
Next came the eyes, nose, and mouth.
Unlike the previous artists, Jiang Si didn’t probe too deeply.
She only asked whether the suspect had single or double eyelids and roughly how far apart his eyes were.
If he wasn’t sure, he could simply gesture the distance on paper.
After all, proportions and sizes could be adjusted later.
This part took about forty minutes.
Finally, for the most crucial detail, Jiang Si asked:
"You mentioned that when he saw you, he instinctively raised his left hand to shield his face. Can you show me how he did it?"
The eyewitness hesitated. If the hand covered the face, wouldn’t the features be obscured?
Only after Jiang Si assured him it was fine did he mimic the suspect’s shielding gesture.
Half an hour later, the first draft of the sketch was complete.
Jiang Si sprayed it with a fixative made of rosin and alcohol, then turned it toward the eyewitness.
"Take a look. Is this the person you saw that day—"
Author’s note: A light push forward on the career arc. The male lead will return tomorrow. Lastly, happy birthday to me! Wishing all readers good fortune and abundant blessings!
