In a certain sense, sleepwalkers are controlled by their subconscious.

They have autonomous activity abilities, with a fair amount of flexibility, and sometimes their strength can even surpass normal awake moments, making them potentially capable of harming others.

If someone harbors deep resentment towards another and has a sleepwalking condition, it is indeed possible for them to attack, or even kill this person while in a sleepwalking state.

This situation has indeed occurred in reality.

However, a sleepwalker committing murder is equivalent to a mentally ill person committing murder.

The tragedy that occurs in this state does not require the sleepwalker to bear legal responsibility once they are awake.

This point has been exploited by some individuals who falsely claim to have killed someone while sleepwalking to shirk their own responsibility.

Determining whether someone has committed murder intentionally or while sleepwalking has always been a medical conundrum.

Because this person's motive for murder might be precisely what triggers their subconscious to kill while sleepwalking!

Thinking of Chen Liang's death and Cai Qi's sleepwalking disorder, Lin Jie asked back, "Brother Kong, do you think Cai Qi killed Chen Liang?"

Kong Mingqing was silent on the phone for a moment, then said, "Lin Jie, during our evidence collection, we have not found any traces of doors or windows being pried open by outsiders."

"We reviewed the surveillance cameras in the community and nearby, but did not find any suspicious individuals."

"Importantly, we found a one-piece female nightdress in Cai Qi's wardrobe, which was stained with a lot of sprayed blood, and the forensic analysis confirmed it was Chen Liang's blood!"

"Moreover, the murder weapon that killed Chen Liang was a fruit knife, and the forensic team only found fingerprints of Chen Liang and Cai Qi on it!"

Kong Mingqing sighed and said, "Chen Liang and Cai Qi have been going through a divorce recently. The two have been arguing fiercely and have even come to blows several times."

"And Cai Qi also has a problem with sleepwalking..."

"Lin Jie, from a medical perspective, do you think Cai Qi might have killed someone while sleepwalking?"

Lin Jie pondered for a moment and said, "That possibility does exist!"

"There have been such cases in the world. Brother Kong, I am not an expert in psychiatry, so you should consult an authority in this area for this problem."

"Understood. We will continue to dig deeper for evidence and leave no stone unturned!"

When Lin Jie arrived at Yucai Middle School, it was already close to half-past five!

At the school gate, the gracefully waiting An Kemeng was not alone. She was accompanied by a woman in her thirties.

Seeing Lin Jie get out of the car, An Kemeng stepped forward with a smile and introduced, "Brother Jie, let me introduce you, this is Teacher Xu Bin's wife, Madam Du Li. She has been chatting with me for a while now!"

Lin Jie nodded at Du Li as a greeting.

"Expert Lin, may I speak with you privately?"

Hearing this, Lin Jie gestured for An Kemeng to get in the car first and then walked over to Du Li, saying, "Hello, may I know what you want to discuss?"

Du Li looked around, ensuring no one was paying attention or eavesdropping, and then asked, "Expert Lin, I heard that you were inspired by my son's condition to apply for a research project?"

"Moreover, you received two million in research funds from the Medical College and the Affiliated Hospital?"

"Is this true?"

Lin Jie slightly furrowed his brow and replied frankly, "This is indeed the case!"

"If the research progresses smoothly, the outcome can be applied to your son to alleviate his headache problems."

Du Li showed a hint of joy on her face, hesitated for a moment, and then said, "To be honest, Expert Lin, in the past couple of days, a medical expert from Capital City approached us."

"He not only promised to cure my son's headache but also promised not to charge us any treatment fees, and even... to give us a subsidy of a hundred thousand yuan."

Upon hearing this, Lin Jie furrowed his brow even deeper.

An expert from Capital City?

Is this the theft of project ideas with an intention to seize the project results?

Lin Jie's project is now known by many, making confidentiality impossible.

However, there is an unspoken rule in academia: whoever comes up with the idea first and conducts the research first, the idea belongs to them, unless they fail to produce results consistently.

But this is just a tradition, not a mandatory rule.

Stealing others' ideas, conducting research independently, and achieving success first to claim honor is not uncommon in academia.

Lin Jie is not afraid of competition!

His confidence stems from two aspects: first, his confidence in the progress and speed of his team's research on this topic, which he believes is on par with anyone else.

Others might take shortcuts, but the persuasiveness of course results would be significantly weakened. Furthermore, if accused of stealing ideas and seizing others' research outcomes, their reputation in academia would also be tarnished.

Second, his confidence in his own abilities.

Although the difficulty of Xu Bin's son's arteriovenous replacement surgery is reduced compared to the large circuit bypass surgery proposed by He Yimin, it is not something just any neurosurgeon can easily perform.

In terms of this surgery, within the country, he himself is still the most confident to perform it.

Lin Jie has thought of another possibility!

Perhaps someone wants to steal the opportunity, cause disruption, and pull away this special patient, leaving the course with no object for validation and sabotaging my research?

Du Li stared at the changing expression on Lin Jie's face and continued, "Expert Lin, to treat my son's illness, we've traveled up and down the country these past few years, tried many folk remedies, and emptied our savings."

"Xu Bin is just a regular teacher, and I'm a regular company employee, our income is not high."

Lin Jie somewhat understood Du Li's implication and said, "I've never discussed your son's treatment expenses with Teacher Xu from the beginning!"

"Nowadays, your son's treatment can also be considered part of the project..."

"You don't need to worry about his treatment costs; they can be entirely covered by the project funds!"

A faint smile appeared on Du Li's face, but she only looked at Lin Jie without making any statement!

Lin Jie felt a bit annoyed, his face darkened, and he said, "Du Li, just state your demands?"

"Well... um, this..."

Du Li stammered a few times and said, "Expert Lin, the other party offered a subsidy of 100,000. He also said that it's negotiable..."

"Expert Lin, what do you think?"

She hinted further, "Your project funds... are two million..."

Lin Jie laughed!

"Is this your idea, or is it Xu Bin's idea along with yours?"

The hardest words had already been spoken, and Du Li seemed much more relieved, speaking more fluently.

"Expert Lin, it doesn't matter whose idea this is. Your research project was inspired by my son's condition, right?"

"In the future, my son will also be the most important validation patient for your project!"

"Your project funding of two million, I've checked a bit, at least a million will end up in your personal pocket in various forms."

"Our son, as an important and critical part of this project, getting a share of the benefits shouldn't be too much to ask."

Lin Jie scrutinized this woman!

Thin in build, at first glance, she looks in her thirties, but the fine wrinkles around her eyes and mouth could convince someone she's in her forties.

Her clothes were also of very ordinary brands and styles, probably overstock discount items bought from a large supermarket.

Lin Jie was quite familiar with these brands of clothes, often bought from large supermarkets before he got better.

However, from Xu Bin's previous descriptions and behavior, it seemed like they have been taking very good care of their son over the years…

But now looking at Du Li's behavior?

Could it be that with hope within reach, they see the light but cannot persevere?

Lin Jie sighed deeply, unwilling and uninterested in pursuing the root causes. In a deep voice, he said, "Du Li, you seem to forget one point. Your son is also a beneficiary of this research project!"

"What he will gain is a healthy body free from the torment of headaches!"

"I'm not going to agree to your other demands."

"If you want more, you can agree to the conditions of that expert from Capital City!"

After saying this, Lin Jie no longer paid attention to Du Li and turned around to get into the car.

As the car started, seeing that Lin Jie's face didn't look good, An Kemeng asked worriedly, "Brother Jie, was there some unpleasantness in the discussion?"

Realizing that An Kemeng was the catalyst for this matter, Lin Jie didn't want her to be kept in the dark, so he organized his thoughts and briefly recounted the conversation he had with Du Li.

"How could it be like this? How could they do this?"

An Kemeng's cheeks flushed red with anger, she took out her phone and said, "I'm going to call Teacher Xu Bin right now to ask him what he's thinking!"

"No need!"

Lin Jie held her hand and said, "He's your math teacher after all, if things get ugly, it won't be good for your studies. Just pretend you don't know anything!"

"If it gets ugly, so be it! What's the big deal! At worst, I'll change classes or even transfer schools!"

After saying this angrily, An Kemeng then worriedly asked, "Brother Jie, without this patient in your project, will it suffer a major impact?"

"There'll definitely be some impact!"

Lin Jie stated honestly, "After all, his condition is very unique and exemplary, and it most convincingly validates the project's results. Finding a patient of the same type again in a short time is nearly impossible."

Seeing the worried look on An Kemeng's face, Lin Jie smiled and said, "Although there will be an impact, it's not irreplaceable. If worse comes to worst, we'll find some late-stage cancer patients to conduct validation tests."

"Of course, this will involve some ethical risks and require some additional costs!"

The matters involved here aren't just ethical risks and costs; Lin Jie didn't want An Kemeng to worry too much, so he just comforted her.

Sure enough, these words eased An Kemeng's worry a bit, she murmured, "Really, getting something done, and a good thing at that, why is it so difficult, there's always some hitch."

"Brother Jie, that expert who shows up neither sooner nor later from Capital, what kind of bird is he? Is he really impressive?"

Lin Jie murmured to himself, "I also want to know what kind of bird he actually is!"

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