Seventeen bodies. Seventeen pieces of clothing covering their faces. Seventeen pairs of hands folded over their chests.
On the autopsy table, forensic pathologist Lu Chenzhou finds a detail that should not be there: every victim has a pinprick-sized spot of bleeding on the neck. It is no accident, no coincidence, but an extraordinarily rare method of killing, so precise that only a handful of people know it exists.
Even stranger, the victims had no connection in life, yet they all died the same way. They had only one thing in common: every one of them had committed a crime and escaped justice.
The string of murders is a carefully woven web, drawing Lu Chenzhou step by step into the abyss of fifteen years ago. That year, his father, Ningcheng police’s most renowned criminal investigation expert, fell into the river and died while pursuing a serial killer. The case has remained unsolved ever since.
An anonymous text arrives on his phone: “Your father didn’t die in the line of duty. He was executed.”
Everyone is lying. Every piece of evidence points to a carefully crafted truth. And the “judge” lurking behind the scenes seems to be waiting for Lu Chenzhou to tear away the final disguise with his own hands.
But when the truth finally comes to light, Lu Chenzhou realizes that what you think is the truth is only what someone else wants you to think is the truth.
