Chapter 188: Photo

Both Chen Xiaolian and Phoenix shared the same line of thought.

“Can you… tell us what your views are on Jack the Ripper?” Chen Xiaolian asked.

Dr Mu appeared rather cautious. “I… actually do not know much about Jack the Ripper’s case. However… the thesis papers I wrote in school is about gene mutation. En, also known as the change in genetics. Generally speaking, cells of ordinary life forms would replicate itself accurately. However, this steady process is relative. Under certain conditions, the genes can suddenly transform into another form of existence, different from its original one. That is, at a certain location, a new gene appears suddenly, replacing the original gene, causing the gene to become a mutant gene …”

Seeing that Dr Mu was about to start a long-winded explanation, Chen Xiaolian quickly halted him. “Stop!”

He smiled wryly. “Dr Mu, there is no need to elaborate into the professional type of specifics. Even if you do, we won’t be able to understand.”

“Hehe,” Dr Mu gave an embarrassed smile – clearly, he was quite the bookworm at heart. He scratched his head before continuing, “Let me put it this way, gene mutation is something that is very common within biological life forms and could happen at any time. The subject of my thesis papers is related to this.”

“What does that have to do with Jack the Ripper?” Phoenix quietly regarded Dr Mu.

“About that… …” Dr Mu considered how to answer her question.

Chen Xiaolian suddenly spoke up, “I think I remember. I saw some of the information regarding Jack the Ripper before.”

“You’ve seen it before?”

“Yesterday, before the instance dungeon opened, I checked out some of the historical information of London. With how famous Jack the Ripper is, how could I miss it?” Chen Xiaolian smiled bitterly.

Pausing, he continued in a serious manner, “At present, there is no consensus on Jack the Ripper’s identity. En, this is not quite accurate. There is a main stream of thinking where there is a relatively acceptable deduction.

“In the information that I’ve gone through, back in 2014, international DNA experts used DNA testing to deduce the identity of the murderer.

“Back when the police was investigating the identity of the murderer, they listed hundreds of possible suspects. One of them is Aaron Kosminski.

“He is a Jewish Polish person.

“According to the most widespread deduction, most people believe that he is Jack the Ripper.

“Back then, the police had managed to acquire some of the stuff that the murderer left behind. There was no such technology back then; however, in 2014, some experts in DNA analysis believed that the murder scene has the murderer’s… err…”

After saying that, Chen Xiaolian could not restrain himself but glance at Phoenix. He hesitated for a moment before continuing, “The murder scene has the murderer’s…”

“What?”

“It is said that it is his semen.”

Phoenix was taken off guard. Her charming face became flushed. However, she quickly calmed down. “Then?”

Chen Xiaolian became somewhat distressed. “It is said that… in one of the murder scene, there was the murderer’s semen beside the murdered female victim. Thus… this became a very important piece of evidence.

“A hundred years ago, the technology to identify it does not exist. Presently however, such a technology does exist.

“Thus, in 2014, some DNA analysis experts carried out an analysis on it.

“The results of the analysis revealed… the semen left by the murderer matches the DNA of the suspect known as Aaron Kosminski.

“And so, it was claimed that Aaron Kosminski is Jack the Ripper from back then… although the case happened over a hundred years ago and Aaron Kosminski had also died over a hundred years ago…

“This conclusion became widely accepted. At present, many of the information I found shows that there is a high possibility that Aaron Kosminski is Jack the Ripper. But…”

“But what?” Phoenix asked.

“However, this matter was not recognized by the police,” Chen Xiaolian shrugged his shoulders.

He sighed and carefully recalled the information that he had read.

“First, the deceased is a prostitute. The suspect, Aaron Kosminski and the deceased both live near Whitechapel area. This may be a reason to suspect him. However… because the deceased is a prostitute, it was only normal to have some semen appear beside her… perhaps the semen was something her client left behind. Perhaps Aaron Kosminski had patronized her before she was killed…

“According to the police, the semen came from a scarf left behind by the deceased’s body.

“However, that does not prove that the semen belongs to the murderer. It could be from her ordinary clients. Aaron Kosminski may be that unlucky client.”

Phoenix’s face turned slightly red. She put on a façade of calmness and asked, “And?”

“Second, the life of Aaron Kosminski does not match Jack the Ripper’s modus operandi.

“The fellow known as Aaron Kosminski is an unfortunate fellow. He is a poor fellow who lived near Whitechapel. At the time, that place was the slums area of London.

“We have seen the scene before. Dr Mu had also said it.

“The murderer is likely a very skilled surgeon who is very knowledgeable about the human body and very skilled in the use of knives.

“You know, Jack the Ripper appeared in 1888… in that era, those who can study in the field of medicine were, at the very least, not poor. A skilled surgeon with a good grasp of internal organs should at least have some social status. That person … should not be living in the slums near Whitechapel.

“Clearly, this Aaron Kosminski does not meet this condition.”

After saying that, Chen Xiaolian’s thoughts cleared up and he quickly continued.

“The third point was more suspicious. According to the records, Aaron Kosminski was a patient suffering from serious mental illness.

“He suffers from a considerable degree of mania and paranoia.

“Just now, we have just seen the murder scene… the murder scene at the time should be almost the same as what we saw.

“Just think about it, how can someone suffering from mania and paranoia be so calm as to accurately cut out the internal organs. That is an action that requires a considerable amount of composure and psychological character.

“As for Aaron Kosminski, he clearly did not have this… because he was a manic patient.”

Phoenix quietly considered it for a while, then she slowly said, “It sounds very reasonable. However… what about the results of the DNA testing?”

“For that, we will have to ask Dr Mu.”

Hearing that, Dr Mu nodded his head. “Indeed, I have heard about those things from my friends as well. The results of the DNA testing is what I wrote about in my thesis papers.

“We believe that there is a high possibility that a mistake was made during the DNA testing conducted in 2014.”

“Oh?”

“According to the results from the 2014 DNA testing, the semen on the scarf left beside the deceased showed a gene mutation. This gene mutation is very rare and the scientific community refer to it as…”

Seeing that Dr Mu was about to enter a lengthy explanation again, Phoenix quickly interrupted, “Wait. There is no need to go into the professional terms. Dr Mu… please, explain it to us in layman terms.”

“Err… all right,” Dr Mu thought about it. He raised both his hands and said. “Simply put, in the analysis of the semen on the scarf, they believed that a gene mutation had occurred. Let’s call it gene mutation A.

“According to the field of scientific research, this gene mutation A is a very rare occurrence.

“However, I think that this is a mistake on the part of the scientific perspective. This gene mutation is not rare… rather, many people have it confused with another gene mutation, gene mutation B.

“Truthfully, the results of my findings may prove that the gene mutation of the semen actually belongs to gene mutation B. This mutation is very common among Europeans, with a general rate of over 90 %.

“Therefore, the result of the analysis that utilized the gene mutation to prove that Aaron Kosminski was Jack the Ripper appears to have been overturned.”

Hearing that, Phoenix spoke out, “In other words… first, it cannot be proven that the semen left on the scarf belongs to Aaron Kosminski. Second, even if it was left by him, it still cannot prove that Aaron Kosminski is Jack the Ripper.”

“Right. That’s about it.”

Phoenix frowned, “If that is the case. Doesn’t that mean… we do not have any clues?”

Dr Mu thought about it and suddenly said. “If it’s about Jack the Ripper’s case… maybe that friend of mine would know more. He is a member of the Forensics Association. He is usually very interested in researching historical cases. He seems to have done a lot of research on this case… so…”

Chen Xiaolian looked at the Phoenix, then turned to face Dr Mu. “It seems that we will need to visit this friend of yours.”

…

Paying someone a visit at three o’clock in the morning was clearly not a polite thing to do.

Thus, when Colombo was awakened by the knocking sounds on the door, he moved to open the door in a bleary-eyed state while mouthing out a string of expletives.

However, before he opened the door, he suddenly jolted awake.

He was living in a high-class apartment! The access system downstairs was very tight. How could someone directly come upstairs to find him?

He quickly reached for an 8 iron (golf) that was placed by the door.

Then, he cautiously shouted out. “Who is it outside?”

“Colombo! It’s me!”

Colombo looked out through the peephole and let out a breath of relief.

The one standing outside the corridor was his friend, Dr Mu who came from the East. Although they have not met up for years, he would not be mistaken about Dr Mu’s appearance.

“Damn it!” Colombo grumbled as he opened the door. “My friend, are you mad… why did you come running over at this bloody hour? And how did you get up here? Didn’t the guards outside stop you? I should file a complaint about them; they are being too unprofessional…”

After unlocking the door, he opened the door. However, the moment a small gap opened up, Colombo suddenly felt the door being pushed open and several people swarmed inside!

The first to enter was Lun Tai.

Lun Tai forced open the door and Colombo exclaimed. Colombo quickly stepped backward while the golf club in his hand had already been snatched away.

“Stop shouting, we are not going to harm you,” Phoenix walked in next.

“Colombo, I am sorry. Sorry for disturbing you so late in the night. However, you can be at ease. They are neither thieves nor gangsters,” Dr Mu was clearly feeling sorry for what was happening. He quickly went over to embrace his old friend. “Do not worry, they mean you no harm. Additionally… you will be welcoming us soon.”

“The Hell! Mu! If you cannot give me a reason, I will immediately report this to the police!” Colombo was like an agitated cat as he carefully backed away. He watched as many others entered his living room.

Phoenix’s team member, Monster was the last to enter through the door. He closed the door and locked it. The monkey on his shoulder chattered a few times before climbing onto the cabinet next to the door.

“You, you fellows… just who are you people? Mu! Damn it! What is going on here?”

Colombo’s expression was livid.

“All right, everyone, spread out… do not encircle the owner,” Phoenix smiled as she walked over. Her team members dispersed and found a spot in the living room to either sit or stand. The fellow known as Dagger had attracted Colombo’s attention the most… he had many daggers strapped onto his arm and he stood vigilantly by the window – a glance was enough for him to feel that Dagger was not a good person!

“Don’t panic, Colombo,” Dr Mu wringed his arms. “We came here looking for you due to something important!”

“Considering our friendship, I will give you only one minute, Mu!” Colombo’s expression was ugly to behold. “In one minute, if you cannot give me an acceptable explanation, then, our friendship will be over! You people must leave as well! Don’t think I am afraid, the one living upstairs is a friend of mine. He is a police officer in London!”

Hearing his last sentence, Chen Xiaolian could not help but let out a smile.

He stepped forward and spoke in a very polite tone, “Colombo? Hello, my name is Chen Xiaolian. I am a friend of Dr Mu and I came from the same place as him. The reason we are disturbing you at such a late hour is because, according to Dr Mu, you are someone who had spent a lot of time researching Jack the Ripper’s case…”

“What about it?” Colombo shouted. “The Hell? At such a late hour… you came to my house in order to discuss a case that happened a hundred years ago? Can’t you visit me during the day?”

Chen Xiaolian was able to understand his argument.

Even if he loved something and made it into a hobby… he was not willing to be dragged out from his bed in the middle of the night by a group of strangers just to discuss about it.

“Before you get angry, can you please look at something?”

After saying that, Chen Xiaolian glanced at Phoenix. She pulled out a mobile phone; opening it, she handed it over to Colombo.

The mobile phone contained photos that Phoenix had taken when she was inspecting the corpse at the scene of murder.

Colombo grumbled with discontent as he accepted the mobile phone. After glancing at it however, his entire body reacted in a manner that appeared as though he was struck by lightning.

“Oh, my God!” Colombo’s hand turned limp and the mobile phone nearly fell to the ground. Gripping onto the mobile phone, he slumped down onto the sofa. His eyes stared intently upon the photos within the mobile phone. With trembling hands, he fidgeted with the photos. After looking through to the last few pictures…

“This, this, this is ...” Colombo’s voice shuddered. “You people... did you get these pictures from some movie set?”

“You specialize in the area of forensics,” Chen Xiaolian slowly said. “Could you not differentiate between a prop and a real internal organ?”

“I…” Colombo’s lips trembled and his face grew paler. “Bu… but… this…”

He suddenly took a deep breath. “You… did you people get hold of some old photos from the police archives and use the latest technology to process it before letting me view it?”

“I assure you, these few pictures are fresh. They were just recently taken!” Phoenix slowly said.

“Impossible!” Colombo jumped up, his eyes bulging widely. “Recently taken?”

“About less than an hour ago,” Dr Mu said with a grim expression.

“Oh… my God!” Colombo’s face turned twisted. “How… how could this… could… could it be? Another Jack the Ripper has appeared in London?”

Colombo. Raw: ‘柯伦波’, pinyin: ‘kē lún bō’.