Chapter 82

When Chu Tingwu arrived at Jin City Police Station, she first greeted Officer Zhou—he was her neighbor from the building next door, and they had met a few times before. As expected, he was waiting outside to escort her in.

She was already quite familiar with Jin City Police Station—

The person being led in by another officer: "It's okay, I know where the detention room is. We're old acquaintances, coming back here is like coming home."

His tone was bold, and with a lift of his hands, the handcuffs on his wrists glinted in the light.

Chu Tingwu: Alright, maybe she wasn't *that* familiar.

She quietly followed Officer Zhou into the conference room, met a circle of people, and after listening for a while, she finally understood why she had been invited.

The promotional video from their last "thief-catching" collaboration was still providing steady and continuous popularity, becoming a small internet meme, with even some imitation videos popping up.

…Although that was from the New Year.

But the ripple effects of the promotional campaign were still there, and the higher-ups had seen the results, sparking interest in collaborating with Chu Tingwu again.

Then, Lian Tong must have researched the boss's social circle and pitched the drone promotional campaign to the police.

"We've been considering filming a documentary about police dogs…" After all, Jin City is the location of the Shannan Province Police Dog Training Base. In fact, the videos produced by the police dog base should also be considered for promotional purposes, but they're different from a fully themed documentary.

Therefore, this time the government hoped to use new drones to shoot a "more authentic" and "higher quality" police dog documentary.

"If it's just about filming the training of police dogs, then the police dog base would be enough, but we also want to film the police dogs at work—facing criminals, it's impossible to bring a high-definition camera, so we've concluded that drones are a good option."

Chu Tingwu: "…Should I contact the person in charge of the drone company?"

It didn't seem like she had much to do?

The spokesperson coughed: "Well, Miss Chu, regarding the machine adjustment and selection, we think it's better to discuss it with your company, and we've also invited a suitable documentary director… And besides the police dogs, there are also police cats. We've temporarily decided to shoot them separately, not combined, but then, the funding is a bit tight…"

With their stronger sense of smell, police cats are more adept at search and rescue and drug interdiction missions.

The police cats at Jin City Police Station had already started working—two cats, Chu Tingwu knew them, Siamese Buna and Tabby Gousheng, the two adult cats that had graduated from the base. Youyou had even been classmates with them for a while.

The documentary director invited by the government was a seasoned veteran, and police dog documentaries were a classic topic, hard to go wrong… But the funding was limited. If they didn't combine the cat and dog themes, there wouldn't be enough money to shoot the cats.

Chu Tingwu: "…Should I invest a bit?"

Officer Zhou: "Cough, cough, cough."

Officer Zhou leaned over and whispered: "Well, do you have any interest in being the cinematographer?"

Chu Tingwu: Was this career leap a bit too big?

—She had only recently decided to shoot documentaries, and hadn't even achieved anything yet!

However, Chu Tingwu quickly realized… What they were really aiming for wasn't her "cinematography skills (did she even have those?)" but the system!

The system came with a post-production studio, though it had only ever filmed Chu Tingwu, and all the videos were live streams, but the account's entire video history was its resume. However, directly inviting the system… the price would be too high, requiring a budget for a blockbuster-level special effects film.

But inviting Chu Tingwu was different—

By giving her the title of director, she could bring an entire top-tier, free studio.

Since the goal was the system, Chu Tingwu asked the system for its decision.

System: "Accept!"

System: "Is there a badge?"

Chu Tingwu: "?"

The system displayed Chu Tingwu's video account on the panel, where in the certification section, besides being a signed UP master (content creator), there was also a "Police Assistant" certification, and even a badge and certificate had been issued—so, for helping to film the documentary, how about getting a "Best Kitty" title or something similar? Something that could be certified on the website and be visible to all fans.

Chu Tingwu: "What does being a director have to do with the Best Kitty…"

And she wasn't really a director, at most just the cinematographer… But Chu Tingwu was actually quite interested, as it would give her a chance to exchange ideas with another seasoned documentary director and learn by observing.

She tried to convince the system that this was unreasonable, but the system said why not try it?

Chu Tingwu: "=="

She still brought it up.

The Jin City police… actually agreed!

Police: "Is it for 'Youyou'?"

Youyou wasn't an unknown cat, at least quite famous in Jin City, considered half a city cat. Jin City was so big, yet Chu Tingwu had managed to take Youyou to most of the places during her spare time and holidays, and even when she wasn't in Jin City, Youyou was an outgoing cat who roamed around.

She had left a good impression at the police dog and cat training base, expanded her popularity through movies and variety shows, and had a high citizen popularity (as opposed to national popularity), so the police "worked on it" for a while—

First, they awarded Youyou an "Acts of Bravery" that wasn't published in newspapers but only online.

Chu Tingwu: "…?"

This "Acts of Bravery" was based on a true story. A tourist had fallen into the water at a Jin City scenic spot, and the location was quite secluded, with no one passing by, only a few cats kept at the site.

Youyou happened to be there, so she… didn't jump in, but she found a nearby traffic police officer, called them over, and they fished the unlucky tourist out of the water.

With this "Acts of Bravery," the police contacted Fenghua Network, trying to help Chu Tingwu apply for the "Best Kitty" certification.

After all, Chu Tingwu's ID included both a person and a cat, so certifying the cat wasn't strange, right?

…It shouldn't be for the person, right?

Since it was the second time, the Fenghua Network staff was quite calm:

The "Best Kitty" certification was too broad, and it wouldn't be fair to other UPs… er, other cats in the pet area. Maybe a more specific certification tag would be better?

The news hadn't even reached them, but the system already knew.

System: "How about 'The Best Little Cat'?"

Chu Tingwu: What's the difference from before, just changed the description!

However, once was enough… She still relayed it unchanged to the Jin City police.

To Chu Tingwu's surprise—this time, the certification actually went through!

She only found out much later that Fenghua Network had a meeting to discuss, and they thought "Best Kitty" was too official and formal, but "The Best Little Cat" was more colloquial and not as strict, so they could approve it directly.

The only problem was that Youyou was already an adult cat, and "little cat" didn't quite fit?

…It really shouldn't be for the person, right?

Chu Tingwu: "=="

-

The "advance payment" for the tag tussle took a week, just in time for the documentary director and his team to arrive. Chu Tingwu quietly took a leave during her Saturday tutoring session.

When her absence was noticed in the classroom, the teacher sighed, unsurprised.

But when Chu Tingwu didn't show up on Monday, the teacher: "?"

The biology teacher in the office asked: "Did Chu Tingwu go back to acting again?"

The homeroom teacher didn't even look up: "Seems like she's directing, the principal approved the leave."

Biology teacher: "…"

Your career leap is quite something.

The police hadn't actually intended for Chu Tingwu to take leave for filming… After all, their real intention wasn't the director herself, but the director's team.

However, once Chu Tingwu presented her attendance records and exam results, the police took a more lenient approach.

Chu Tingwu first met with another director.

Director He, a man from the system, was old enough to be Chu Tingwu's grandfather. His catchphrases were "It's fine," "Sure," and "I think it's great," making him the quintessential elderly gentleman who could grab a water bottle and watch others play chess by the roadside.

However, instead of wearing a tank top and slippers, he preferred sportswear.

When he learned that Chu Tingwu wanted to learn from him, he first asked her, "Have you seen any documentaries?"

Chu Tingwu listed a series of titles, and Director He's brow remained furrowed. Finally, when she mentioned *Animals and Us in the City*, his expression changed.

This was the first project the system had taken on, a documentary produced by Fenghua Network.

Director He: "…None of those were directed by me."

Chu Tingwu: "Mhm=v="

The previous ones were all foreign wildlife documentaries, and the last one, too, was about animals… but the director was actually Director He's disciple's disciple.

Director He himself had directed many documentaries themed around art and architecture, as well as biographies of great figures, all of which had received good reviews.

Director He: "There's not much I can teach you."

"If you want to shoot a documentary…" He raised his hand and slowly drew a straight line in the air. "This is the starting point, and this is the end point. You need to first understand what your purpose is."

"Many people think the purpose is the end goal, something to achieve. But that's not right. The purpose is your starting point. A documentary isn't a movie, and an official documentary is even less so. You won't get much feedback, nor many achievements. Moreover, you can't fabricate a story. You just have to record—so really, anyone who can pick up a camera can shoot a documentary."

"Back then, I was just someone who could pick up a camera. We didn't have any mature documentary directors, and my superior saw that I sometimes took pictures of flowers and plants, so he said, 'Old He, you go ahead.'"

Director He seemed to be in the mood to talk: "Then I went and shot it. At the time, I thought shooting documentaries was a pretty boring thing."

Chu Tingwu repeated: "Because you can't fabricate stories, and not many people watch them."

Director He: "Oh, dear."

Director He: "Then why do you want to shoot?"

Chu Tingwu: "I want to see."

Director He: "That's your purpose, and also your starting point. Now, start from there."

Since they were going to film police cats and dogs in actual work settings, Chu Tingwu and her team would need to ride along, and might even have to go out with the police. One person wasn't enough, but too many would be too much. They also needed to decide what equipment to bring. Chu Tingwu went out to discuss with the person sent by Lian Tong, while Director He's assistant asked: "Director He, was your starting point for shooting documentaries also 'I want to see'?"

Director He: "No."

Director He: "I actually thought she would say something like 'wanting to capture precious footage' or 'wanting to let more people understand this knowledge'…"

But "I want to see," wanting to see so she shot… what a simple yet heartwarming answer.

As for himself, well, maybe he really did have some photographic talent, so while others changed careers, he kept shooting. Or perhaps… he truly liked this line of work. Recording those scenes through the lens, seeing the images he had selected appear as video footage on TV, made him genuinely happy.

Who says documentaries can't tell stories? What you want to tell is all in the lens.

-

The daily lives of police dogs and cats were quite varied, and the police themselves had recorded enough footage, so they only needed to supplement a few shots.

The main focus was on the part where they went out on calls.

Before that, Chu Tingwu first became Director He's teacher, teaching him how to use a drone.

Director He was a bit surprised. Of course, he had also used drones to shoot footage before. The advantage of a low-altitude, close-range drone ball was that it was more maneuverable than a human-carried camera. Some places that long lenses and short guns couldn't reach, the drone could squeeze into. And because of its spherical design, it was safer than the usual drones, with no other drawbacks except for the cost.

Director He himself wasn't very good with such new technology, so he brought along a cameraman, while Chu Tingwu operated the camera herself—actually, it was the system that did the shooting.

She didn't start with the police cats but followed Director He to film the police dogs.

Director He was also quite happy: This way, they'd have two angles, right?

During the first ride-along, when the police got out of the car, Chu Tingwu fiddled with something on the ground. From the box she had brought… eight drone balls flew out.

Director He: "?"

Cameraman: "Uh… huh?"

What was the point of him coming along?

Chu Tingwu: "More angles mean more footage, right? We can just delete the useless ones."

Director He: "…Sure, so rich, a bit unaccustomed."

After experiencing such luxury, when this kid leaves, how will he shoot?

The police officer with the police dog, surrounded by eight drone balls: "…"

Actually, situations where police dogs needed to be deployed suddenly weren't that common. This time, during a burglary case, they found that the grass under a suspect's building was growing oddly. An experienced forensic doctor, after glancing at the photo, said, "Dig it up. Bring the dogs."

This likely meant there was a bigger case here.

It was Chu Tingwu's first time following such a case, and everything, including the smell, was unfamiliar to her.

Director He guessed there might be a dead body, and turned to look at the only minor here—n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

The minor's eyes were sparkling, showing no sign of fear.

Although bringing the police dogs was to find clues, they couldn't just let the dogs sniff around without any direction, or the dogs would be confused.

So the initial work was still done by humans. The forensic doctor continued digging, while the forensic examiner entered the scene to collect fingerprints and other evidence. Some of this was also filmed, and luckily, it was the drone balls that did the shooting, allowing them to capture high-precision footage without touching any traces—ordinary people entering the scene could affect evidence collection.

The suspect lived in the suburbs, in a two-story house that had once belonged to his brother and sister-in-law. After he was jailed several times, his brother and sister-in-law felt that having such a troublesome brother-in-law would affect their child's education, and they couldn't kick him out, so they decided to move out altogether.

On the day they moved, they didn't reveal any news, moving out while the suspect was still in prison. They left no contact information and didn't inform the neighbors.

Soon, the skeleton was dug up, and both the dog and Chu Tingwu sneezed.

The police also contacted the suspect's brother and sister-in-law—it turned out their luck was both good and bad, because the body wasn't theirs. This family had truly moved away.

After comparing the timeline, the police found—

Officer Zhou: "The body was likely buried during the time when Xiang Chengxin was still in prison and his brother and sister-in-law had already moved out. The house was completely vacant then… preliminary judgment is that the suspect directly lived in their house, burying the body at night and sleeping during the day."

The yard of the two-story house had a wall, but it wasn't very high, and it was easy to be seen during the day. However, the neighbors had no impression of anyone living in the house.

After asking around, the neighbor on the left provided a clue, saying that one night they heard sounds of something being hit next door… but they suspected it was the thief, Xiang Chengxin, coming home, so they didn't want to get involved.

Officer Zhou: "That time was likely when the body was being buried."

The body had been buried for less than two months and hadn't fully skeletonized yet. The killer probably worried that the body would be dug up and easily identified, so they stripped the body of its clothes and wrapped it in a snake skin bag.

The dug-up body smelled awful, but the police dog still went forward.

Chu Tingwu: "…"

After finishing the shooting, Chu Tingwu also frowned and approached, squatting within the allowed range to take a look, then asked, "Are you looking for his missing hands and feet?"

Forensic doctor: "Yeah, the killer probably didn't have much experience in dismembering—"

The forensic examiner, upon seeing her, didn't mind explaining: "To bury such a large corpse, you'd have to dig a big hole. The person who did it realized the workload was too much, so they decided to dismember the body and bury the parts in different locations. But by then, the body was already as hard as a rock—look at these wounds. They were inflicted after death, using a chainsaw, which doesn't make much noise."

"The killer dismembered the limbs but then gave up, though they still buried the parts separately, probably thinking it would leave fewer clues."

If they were lucky, while searching for the limbs, they might even find the weapon the novice killer had buried.

—That would almost solve half the case.

These days, there are no truly airtight cases, because technology is getting stronger and stronger, the forensic examiner told Chu Tingwu. The more you try to do, the more clues you leave behind: "Let's work hard together."

Chu Tingwu: Hmm… But what should I work hard on?

She decided to just follow the dog.

The police split into two groups: one to identify the victim's identity, and the other to conduct door-to-door investigations in the village. Murder cases are always a big deal, deserving the mobilization of an entire squad, but the crew with their swarm of drones was not included.

As long as Chu Tingwu didn't disturb the crime scene, no one really cared where she went, though they did remind her:

"There's a possibility the killer is a villager, so don't go to deserted places."

Officer Zhou, who was more familiar with her, added: "If you encounter danger, don't worry about whether your counterattack is too strong—just go all out."

Better to send the other party to the hospital than to get hurt yourself. Worst case, you can deal with it in court later.

Chu Tingwu: "Got it."

Officer Zhou: "…But don't go *too* all out, though."

Bringing back two bodies in one day is a bit much, huh?

Chu Tingwu also had to take care of Director He, so she didn't wander too far.

Director He, the documentary filmmaker, had previously only filmed inanimate objects. This was his first time filming a dead body, but being of a certain age, he had seen a lot and had a relatively good mindset—the cameraman, on the other hand, wasn't so brave. He barely mustered the courage to get close before rushing off to vomit.

So the cameraman went back to the car to rest, leaving just the old director and the young Chu Tingwu to handle the filming.

Director He overcame his initial psychological barrier and started getting Chu Tingwu to experiment with the camera angles, constantly pondering which shots would work best—of course, while everyone else was focused on the body, they were focused on the police dog.

The police dog, named Youyou: "Woof?"

The trio—Chu Tingwu, Director He, and Youyou, along with the handler—finally stopped at the back door. Behind the small building was a vegetable plot owned by the villagers, which had naturally been left to weeds after being abandoned. Youyou barked twice at a withered peach tree by the edge of the plot, and the handler said, "Alright, start digging."

Others began to dig, while Chu Tingwu took a step back and looked around.

Youyou seemed a bit lethargic, turning to glance at Chu Tingwu. She beckoned with her finger, and Youyou barked at the handler, who gave permission. Youyou then trotted over to Chu Tingwu, rubbing against her leg—

While police dogs do have their own food allowances and their salary mostly goes toward meals, Chu Tingwu's excellent cooking skills, which she had taken over from the handler, had won Youyou's heart.

Chu Tingwu wrapped her arm around Youyou's neck: "Let's go for a walk around the village."

Director He: "Huh?"

Chu Tingwu: "We might find the weapon somewhere else in the village."

Director He: "…"

Should they find it or not? He felt that either outcome was a bit off, and he was a bit torn.

There were no surveillance cameras in the village, so the system couldn't help, but Chu Tingwu did catch a whiff of a peculiar smell—

A cat's sense of smell is sharper than a dog's.

She and Youyou walked all the way to the west end of the village. A drone rose to a certain height, and the village children, kept indoors by their families, peeked out curiously at her:

A stranger wasn't unusual, but a stranger followed by eight flying drones… that wasn't a stranger, that was an alien!

Director He: "…"

He fell even further behind.

He saw Chu Tingwu talking to the police dog, who eventually crouched down in one spot, barking twice and miming digging.

He also saw someone come out of a house at the west end, shouting loudly: "What are you doing? What are you doing!"

Then he saw Chu Tingwu look up, glance at him, and produce a bag of cat food from somewhere.

The next second, the bag of cat food flew out and hit the man squarely in the chest. The man stumbled back, dazed, before collapsing weakly, gasping for air but unable to move.

Director He: "???"

Director He hurried over: "Chu Tingwu…"

Chu Tingwu: "Officer Zhou told me to fight back if I encounter danger."

Director He repeated: "Encounter danger…?"

Chu Tingwu: "He had the intent to create danger, but hadn't acted yet—I just fought back a bit early. Should be fine, right?"

Director He: "…"

Should… should be?

He glanced at the man again.

Was it really fine? Was it a bit too early?

He didn't even know how to make a false testimony!