Chapter 42
The already spacious office of the director suddenly felt very empty with only Director Lu and Yan Xie standing and looking at each other. It was quiet to the point that made one feel a sense of oppression.
Finally, Yan Xie moved.
He reached out and pulled out the chair from behind the desk, lifted up his trousers, sat down casually, and smiled: "Yo, but I heard this guy was dead. The rescue operation that took place three years ago? Who was being rescued?"
Director Lu's face, which always had an expression that seemed very kind, did not show any questioning or criticism, and his tone was not indignant either: “After that explosion, a lot of higher ups thought he was dead, but some didn’t agree."
Yan Xie’s palms were soaked with sweat but his face didn’t give out anything as he was listening attentively.
"Who?"
"Former deputy mayor of Guangzhou and head of the Public Security Department - Yue Guangping."
Director Lu opened the thermos, took a sip of tea and gulped it down, then let out a soft sound and put the thermos back on the table under the watchful eye of Yan Xie.
“The details of the incident are hardly known within the public security system, even Old Wei only heard about the explosion part. But in fact, after the explosion, the Gongzhou City Public Security Department had set up a task force to investigate the reasons why this operation ended in failure in order to hold the relevant personnel accountable. One of the leaders of the task force, Vice Mayor Yue Guangping, who had just retired at that time, suggested the idea that Jiang Ting might not be dead, and that he might’ve been abducted by drug traffickers instead. "
"..." Yan Xie met Director Lu's gaze and smiled briefly, "It is indeed not impossible."
Director Lu clearly didn't care how he answered, "The task force decided to adopt Yue Guangping's opinion."
"The first priority at that time was the rescue of the missing undercover officer 'Rivet'. According to the analysis, there was a high possibility that he was detained in Gongzhou at an abandoned building at the junction with Jianning and was in imminent danger of being killed by drug dealers. Shortly after, the task force finally identified the specific location where 'Rivet' was being held, and decided to take immediate action. The police forces of Jianning and Gongzhou jointly carried out the raid, but it was too late."
"As if they knew the police were coming, the abandoned building burst into flames before the police car arrived. After the fire was extinguished, police dug through the rubble and found Jiang Ting's gun and the body of 'Rivet', with a gunshot wound between the eyebrows."
Director Lu suddenly stopped, and the only sound heard in the large office was the faint breathing of Yan Xie.
"The ballistic analysis matched the speculation, and on the handle of Jiang Ting's gun, his own fresh fingerprints were found."
Obviously the voice was not loud, but it felt as if something suffocating had sunk down in the void.
"From this point of view alone, it is indeed very likely that Jiang Ting killed Rivet." After a long time Yan Xie finally spoke up.
If one looked into it, his answer was actually quite flexible and, seemingly agreeable, but actually he didn’t bite off more than he could chew, and even hinted at some suspicion, although Director Lu didn't get to the bottom of it with him.
"That was the last time Jiang Ting showed his tracks in front of people, from then on he disappeared, he was treated as a sacrifice within the public security system, and no martyr title was granted to him." Director Lu then added indifferently, "But I personally believe that if he reappears, it will be a harbinger of great danger to come again."
He reached out and pulled back the computer monitor, and Yan Xie was startled to see the cold and handsome face on the screen again.
"Director Lu..."
"What?"
Yan Xie opened his mouth and finally heard his own voice, "What kind of person do you think Captain Jiang is?"
Director Lu tidied up the scattered pile of materials on his desk without saying a word, as if he was contemplating something. After a long time he finally spat out a few words and said, "Young, bold, and intelligent. Dreadfully intelligent"
After a pause he added, "That point makes me personally uncomfortable."
--very uncomfortable.
It was the second time in the span of an hour that Yan Xie had heard the same description, and his eyes changed imperceptibly.
"Go back," Director Lu waved his hand, "The comrades of the criminal investigation department have worked hard for the past few days, and by the time the case file is transferred, we will ensure that all the operation's personnel involved in the operation are on vacation. Ah, tell everyone to stick around for a little longer."
Yan Xie responded with a yes, got up and walked towards the door.
He heard Director Lu sorting out the case files behind him as Yan Xie's hand touched the door handle and he suddenly paused again. He almost forced himself to turn around and face Director Lu again, taking a deep breath, as if he had prepared himself with this action.
"Isn't there anything else you wanted to ask me?"
"What?" Director Lu lifted his eyes, "Not really."
"........"
Director Lu's tone was calm: "You are the one Old Wei watched grow up, now you are a deputy of the criminal investigation division, and later you’ll be a part of the main branch division. No matter what you do on behalf of the Jianning Public Security Bureau, if we don't trust you, who else can we trust? Go."
Director’s Lu's chubby body leaned against the desk, Yan Xie remained silent for a long time, then bowed to him, turned around and walked out.
---
Huang Xing had unexpectedly followed him and was waiting apprehensively at the elevator entrance, and when he saw Yan Xie, he immediately took three steps to welcome him: "Deputy Chief Yan..."
Yan Xie stared at him calmly and stepped into the elevator.
Huang Xing rubbed his hands and followed him, "That day you asked me to locate the chip, it was just a small matter, and I didn't intend to tell anyone. But after Director Lu returned from the scene, he came over and asked me about it personally, as if he were a psychic. In the end he even went to the Technical Investigation Department to retrieve the location logs. It really is..."
Yan Xie: "Uh-huh?"
Huang Xing actually couldn’t figure out exactly what happened, he only vaguely guessed that Yan Xie’s request for positioning had something to do with the child's bloody shirt that had been found at the scene. But because of the province's limited technology, the news about the bloody shirt was reported to the Ministry of Public Security and the shirt itself was sent to the top physical evidence lab in Beijing for testing. The results were also presented directly to Director Lu, and others were not aware of the inside story.
Judging by what Huang Xing heard, the results of the DNA test were related to the case that had been sealed a few years ago. Yan Xie probably acted without permission and was called for scolding by Director Lu.
"How do you think I could have predicted all this? I thought either someone borrowed money from your house and ran away, or your girlfriend ran off, or your mother told you to keep an eye on your father..."
Yan Xie said, "Bah, all the money belongs to my mother, my father will get kicked out with nothing if he dares to cheat!"
Huang Xing immediately went along with his words and buttered up to him as he inquired with a guilty conscience, "Director Lu didn't scold you, did he?"
The elevator door opened, and Yan Xie crossed his hands, humming coldly around Huang Xing, the latter smiled until his face muscles were sore. Then Yan Xie patted him leisurely: "Regardless of my being scolded or not, the five-star zenith pool buffet barbecue I was going to treat you to is likely out of question now."
Huang Xing: "........"
Yan Xie swung his sleeves and walked away. Director Huang looked at his back with a stunned look, and sorrowfully said: "...Why didn't you say so earlier? There was a barbecue?!"
.
Director Huang repented, but the vicious and merciless landlord Yan Xie did not pay attention. He headed straight into the office floor of the Criminal Investigation Detachment. Many policemen were eating snacks with a cup of milk tea. Cakes, chocolates and beef jerky were spread all over the table. There were two boxes of sweet red cherries as big as thumbs on the side.
“Yo, since we’re eating and drinking on public money, give me some.” Yan Xie pulled out a few cherries in passing, and casually ate them, raising his voice to ask,
"Who paid the bill? The financial expenses of the detachment will be reimbursed later, and Ma Xiang will remind me to write it down as an informant’s fee!”
Ma Xiang, who was eating pizza, mumbled: "Don't be so troublesome, it's the victim who has come to thank us, here."
Yan Xie followed his gaze out, and saw a young man who was standing in the corridor outside the large office, looking at something in the distance - it was Chu Ci.
"Eat! You sure know how to eat!" Yan Xie immediately slapped Ma Xiang: "You've eaten up half a month's internship pay!"
"Brother Yan, you don't understand." Ma Xiang's two lines of hot tears rushed out, and his voice was full of emotion: "We, Jianning's number one evil force, have been walking the streets for so many years, and this is the first time we've seen the victims treating us to snacks instead of bringing banners. I can't control how much I eat! ......."
Yan Xie spit out the cherry pits. Fortunately he didn’t rub his hand on his five-figure pants, he quickly pulled out a paper towel and went out the door.
Chu Ci was facing him sideways with a somber look, looking towards the end of the corridor in the other direction. Yan Xie stopped and looked over, only to see two police officers who were escorting Ding Dang, coming towards them from afar and ready to take her to the detention center.
Ding Dang did no longer look innocent and weak just when they first met her, neither the ruthlessness and madness she displayed on the day of the operation at the scene could be seen anymore. Yan Xie had been a police officer for more than a decade, and the suspects he hand-delivered to the detention center could add up to half a train. The suspect's admission of guilt was followed by a variety of behaviors, including: desperation, madness, resignation, a broken heart and even revenge. Which was not surprising, but Ding Dang's current behavior was different from anything he had ever seen. She stared at Chu Ci, her eyes seemed to be full of hatred, but after a closer look, it was as if there was something more complex and indescribable besides the hatred.
Chu Ci quietly looked back at her, and the two of them just passed by each other, when suddenly Ding Dang started struggling trying to stop in front of him.
"Don't stop!" The police immediately snapped at her, but were stopped by a stern look in Yan Xie’s eyes.
"That night at the factory, before the police broke in, you said I was the mastermind." Ding Dang looked at Chu Ci and said word by word through gritted teeth, "How did you know?"
Chu Ci seemed to have anticipated that she would ask this question, and his reaction was indifferent: "Because you said that on the night of May 2nd, Feng Yuguang asked you out to sing. This was a lie."
Not only Ding Dang, even Yan Xie suddenly felt surprised that "he actually knew".
"You... you surprisingly, you already knew..."
Ding Dang looked incredibly pale, it seemed Chu Ci was about to add something, but he instantly swallowed it back and smiled.
It was hard for an outsider to detect that there was a hint of sadness hidden in that smile.
"Of course," he said, "Feng Yuguang packed a few review books in his bag before he left the house that day. Who brings books on a date."
The hysterical shouts of Ding Dang echoed in the corridor as she staggered and got taken away by the police, disappearing at the end of the stairs.
"Ahem!" Yan Xie cleared his throat and tried to mediate: “ Come on, how much did you spend? I’ll return you the money.”
Only then did Chu Ci withdraw the gaze that had watched her leave and turn back to hand the plastic bag he was holding to Yan Xie, seemingly embarrassed, "I didn't buy anything good, thanks to you guys saving my life that day..."
The plastic bag was filled with two packs of Yunyan ‘Hard Treasure’ .
“Hey”, after trying to reject him twice, he still accepted it laughing: "It just so happens that I am having a famine here, thank you. But there's really no need, it's not us who saved you, it's you who saved us - if anything happened to the hostage, we’d have to take the whole bureau down! Reports, reviews, bonuses, promotions, and I don't know how many people would have to be beaten by their wives when they went home.."
Chu Ci laughed.
"What's the matter, highly talented student?" Yan Xie teased him, "Are you planning to continue the internship? Going back to Beijing or returning home?"
Chu Ci said, "I originally booked a ticket to return to Beijing three days ago, but the doctor said that due to hitting my head in the explosion, discharging early would be risky. So today I went to the station to pick up my mother and brother for a tour from their hometown, and I’m leaving this afternoon instead."
"Then there’s not enough time to take you out for dinner. Are you going back for your PhD?"
Yan Xie thought he would say yes, but to his surprise, Chu Ci only stretched his back; the slight smile in his eyes deepened as he replied, "Going back for it my ass!"
Yan Xie: "........"
"I didn't want to study anymore. When I graduated from university, I wanted to find a job. My mother asked me to go to graduate school and said it would be good to study more." Chu Ci continued, “What's exactly good? My brother can't even pay the school fees of 20,000, but if I had started working two years earlier, I would have been able to send him to a major junior high school."
Yan Xie didn't know how to reply, and after a long while he said: "That's really quite difficult."
"It's all right. I have a graduate school to prepare me for an interview. It will get better and better in the future."
Yan Xie nodded, Chu Ci looked at the time, "Then I won't delay your work, I'll be leaving first."
"- Hey wait!"
Yan Xie called out to him. Thought about it, then casually called a police trainee over and tossed his car keys to him, "Go downstairs and drive my car out, and later take the victim to the railway station. Please have a meal and come back with the invoice."
Chu Ci was about to refuse, but the intern policeman was overjoyed as if he had won the lottery: "Oh, Yan-Ge, I’ve wanted to drive your car for a long time. You are really my real brother!" Hardly he finished talking as he was already gone.
"Come back early after you drop him off, brat!" Yan Xie roared at his back, then shook his head helplessly, "He’s probably not going to come back until the car is out of gas. Come on, top student, I'll send you downstairs."
In mid-May, when the feeling of summer grew stronger, the sound of cicadas rang intermittently in the shade of the trees downstairs, and the golden sun sprinkled its dazzling reflections on the road, roofs and the tops of vehicles that were coming and going in the distance.
Yan Xie sent Chu Ci to the doorsteps and said, "Then good luck with the interview, try to pass it in one try, get the job and send the good news, ha."
Chu Ci solemnly agreed.
Even if undergraduate students in their early twenties spend years in a lab and often develop a silent and quiet nature, the youthful jumpiness and radiance won’t completely fade away from their eyes. Yan Xie waved his arm and observed him for a moment. As if suddenly remembering something, he swept his eyes around. "Hey, top student."
“What?”
"There's one thing I'm a little curious about, and since you're almost gone, I'll just ask one more question. What do you know about the molecular formula of that new fentanyl compound?"
"You're asking me if I can make it, aren't you?"
Yan Xie: "Oh you're so direct, it hurts my feelings."
"Not necessarily, but with a little more drilling and research it might be possible." Chu Ci added,
"But I won't do it, don't worry."
"That's a lot of money na-" Yan Xie dragged out his words seemingly smiling, “Is it fair for you to suffer every possible tormentjust to save money while living as migrant worker in Beijing, while others are throwing money away on lanterns red, wine green and stake a thousand pieces of gold on one throw?”
Chu Ci stood on the steps of the main entrance of the City Public Security Bureau with his back to the distant police badge hanging from the roof, he was seemingly lost in thought.
After a long time he seemed to have thought something through and shook his head, "It's true that it's not fair. But there is no absolute fairness in this world in the first place, right."
Yan Xie didn't say anything.
"The moment the recommendation notice arrived, the whole school was in uproar, and all the other grades came to block the door of our classroom. I put my books up on my seat to shield my face, and my seatmate said, "Chu Ci, life isn't fair, I study harder than you do so why can't it be me? Why can’t I get into Beijing university?”
“You see, if even I think the world isn't fair, what will those who have even less opportunities and no way out think? At least I'll be able to get out on my own and provide a better life for my family, which is far more satisfying than the money that the rich and powerful throw around to gain less happiness as a result.”
Chu Ci with a slightly pleasant expression looked up at the summer blue sky of Jianning and immediately turned to Yan Xie to add with a smile: "So it's good that I'm down to earth and poor, as for the money stained with human blood, the things that are illegal, I think I’ll just forget about it.”
He smiled and waved, free and cheerful as he strode down the steps, carrying the sunlight to the city bureau's main gate.
Behind him, Yan Xie unpacked his Yunyan cigarettes, lit one and slowly smoked it, squinting his eyes thoughtfully.
He suddenly remembered that he had called Jiang Ting two days ago to ask for his advice, asking if he should tell Chu Ci about Ding Dang's motive for killing. Jiang Ting told him to just follow the procedure and not to do anything unnecessary or skip any steps that should be taken to solve the case.
Forget it, Yan Xie thought it wasn't easy for the top student.
---Not to mention that he didn't even ask, so maybe there really was no need to bother telling him.
"It's pretty easy to smoke," Yan Xie muttered to himself, flicking the ashes of his cigarette in a smooth motion, pulling out his cell phone and turning towards the public security bureau.
"Hello, Jiang Ting? I'm fine. Have you had your third bowl of chicken soup yet? That top student came to deliver food today. Wait for me to drop by with two catties of cherries in the evening.”
The summer breeze swept past the tall buildings and the shopping streets. Swirling through the traffic and pedestrians like a weave; it swayed the lush phoenix wood on both sides of the long street, whistling up to the sky.
Over the bustling Jianning city, clouds gradually gathered and the hot and bright sun was reflected on the silent silver badge at the top of the city public security bureau building.
Arc#1 END
Chapter 42
The already spacious office of the director suddenly felt very empty with only Director Lu and Yan Xie standing and looking at each other. It was quiet to the point that made one feel a sense of oppression.
Finally, Yan Xie moved.
He reached out and pulled out the chair from behind the desk, lifted up his trousers, sat down casually, and smiled: "Yo, but I heard this guy was dead. The rescue operation that took place three years ago? Who was being rescued?"
Director Lu's face, which always had an expression that seemed very kind, did not show any questioning or criticism, and his tone was not indignant either: “After that explosion, a lot of higher ups thought he was dead, but some didn’t agree."
Yan Xie’s palms were soaked with sweat but his face didn’t give out anything as he was listening attentively.
"Who?"
"Former deputy mayor of Guangzhou and head of the Public Security Department - Yue Guangping."
Director Lu opened the thermos, took a sip of tea and gulped it down, then let out a soft sound and put the thermos back on the table under the watchful eye of Yan Xie.
“The details of the incident are hardly known within the public security system, even Old Wei only heard about the explosion part. But in fact, after the explosion, the Gongzhou City Public Security Department had set up a task force to investigate the reasons why this operation ended in failure in order to hold the relevant personnel accountable. One of the leaders of the task force, Vice Mayor Yue Guangping, who had just retired at that time, suggested the idea that Jiang Ting might not be dead, and that he might’ve been abducted by drug traffickers instead. "
"..." Yan Xie met Director Lu's gaze and smiled briefly, "It is indeed not impossible."
Director Lu clearly didn't care how he answered, "The task force decided to adopt Yue Guangping's opinion."
"The first priority at that time was the rescue of the missing undercover officer 'Rivet'. According to the analysis, there was a high possibility that he was detained in Gongzhou at an abandoned building at the junction with Jianning and was in imminent danger of being killed by drug dealers. Shortly after, the task force finally identified the specific location where 'Rivet' was being held, and decided to take immediate action. The police forces of Jianning and Gongzhou jointly carried out the raid, but it was too late."
"As if they knew the police were coming, the abandoned building burst into flames before the police car arrived. After the fire was extinguished, police dug through the rubble and found Jiang Ting's gun and the body of 'Rivet', with a gunshot wound between the eyebrows."
Director Lu suddenly stopped, and the only sound heard in the large office was the faint breathing of Yan Xie.
"The ballistic analysis matched the speculation, and on the handle of Jiang Ting's gun, his own fresh fingerprints were found."
Obviously the voice was not loud, but it felt as if something suffocating had sunk down in the void.
"From this point of view alone, it is indeed very likely that Jiang Ting killed Rivet." After a long time Yan Xie finally spoke up.
If one looked into it, his answer was actually quite flexible and, seemingly agreeable, but actually he didn’t bite off more than he could chew, and even hinted at some suspicion, although Director Lu didn't get to the bottom of it with him.
"That was the last time Jiang Ting showed his tracks in front of people, from then on he disappeared, he was treated as a sacrifice within the public security system, and no martyr title was granted to him." Director Lu then added indifferently, "But I personally believe that if he reappears, it will be a harbinger of great danger to come again."
He reached out and pulled back the computer monitor, and Yan Xie was startled to see the cold and handsome face on the screen again.
"Director Lu..."
"What?"
Yan Xie opened his mouth and finally heard his own voice, "What kind of person do you think Captain Jiang is?"
Director Lu tidied up the scattered pile of materials on his desk without saying a word, as if he was contemplating something. After a long time he finally spat out a few words and said, "Young, bold, and intelligent. Dreadfully intelligent"
After a pause he added, "That point makes me personally uncomfortable."
--very uncomfortable.
It was the second time in the span of an hour that Yan Xie had heard the same description, and his eyes changed imperceptibly.
"Go back," Director Lu waved his hand, "The comrades of the criminal investigation department have worked hard for the past few days, and by the time the case file is transferred, we will ensure that all the operation's personnel involved in the operation are on vacation. Ah, tell everyone to stick around for a little longer."
Yan Xie responded with a yes, got up and walked towards the door.
He heard Director Lu sorting out the case files behind him as Yan Xie's hand touched the door handle and he suddenly paused again. He almost forced himself to turn around and face Director Lu again, taking a deep breath, as if he had prepared himself with this action.
"Isn't there anything else you wanted to ask me?"
"What?" Director Lu lifted his eyes, "Not really."
"........"
Director Lu's tone was calm: "You are the one Old Wei watched grow up, now you are a deputy of the criminal investigation division, and later you’ll be a part of the main branch division. No matter what you do on behalf of the Jianning Public Security Bureau, if we don't trust you, who else can we trust? Go."
Director’s Lu's chubby body leaned against the desk, Yan Xie remained silent for a long time, then bowed to him, turned around and walked out.
---
Huang Xing had unexpectedly followed him and was waiting apprehensively at the elevator entrance, and when he saw Yan Xie, he immediately took three steps to welcome him: "Deputy Chief Yan..."
Yan Xie stared at him calmly and stepped into the elevator.
Huang Xing rubbed his hands and followed him, "That day you asked me to locate the chip, it was just a small matter, and I didn't intend to tell anyone. But after Director Lu returned from the scene, he came over and asked me about it personally, as if he were a psychic. In the end he even went to the Technical Investigation Department to retrieve the location logs. It really is..."
Yan Xie: "Uh-huh?"
Huang Xing actually couldn’t figure out exactly what happened, he only vaguely guessed that Yan Xie’s request for positioning had something to do with the child's bloody shirt that had been found at the scene. But because of the province's limited technology, the news about the bloody shirt was reported to the Ministry of Public Security and the shirt itself was sent to the top physical evidence lab in Beijing for testing. The results were also presented directly to Director Lu, and others were not aware of the inside story.
Judging by what Huang Xing heard, the results of the DNA test were related to the case that had been sealed a few years ago. Yan Xie probably acted without permission and was called for scolding by Director Lu.
"How do you think I could have predicted all this? I thought either someone borrowed money from your house and ran away, or your girlfriend ran off, or your mother told you to keep an eye on your father..."
Yan Xie said, "Bah, all the money belongs to my mother, my father will get kicked out with nothing if he dares to cheat!"
Huang Xing immediately went along with his words and buttered up to him as he inquired with a guilty conscience, "Director Lu didn't scold you, did he?"
The elevator door opened, and Yan Xie crossed his hands, humming coldly around Huang Xing, the latter smiled until his face muscles were sore. Then Yan Xie patted him leisurely: "Regardless of my being scolded or not, the five-star zenith pool buffet barbecue I was going to treat you to is likely out of question now."
Huang Xing: "........"
Yan Xie swung his sleeves and walked away. Director Huang looked at his back with a stunned look, and sorrowfully said: "...Why didn't you say so earlier? There was a barbecue?!"
.
Director Huang repented, but the vicious and merciless landlord Yan Xie did not pay attention. He headed straight into the office floor of the Criminal Investigation Detachment. Many policemen were eating snacks with a cup of milk tea. Cakes, chocolates and beef jerky were spread all over the table. There were two boxes of sweet red cherries as big as thumbs on the side.
“Yo, since we’re eating and drinking on public money, give me some.” Yan Xie pulled out a few cherries in passing, and casually ate them, raising his voice to ask,
"Who paid the bill? The financial expenses of the detachment will be reimbursed later, and Ma Xiang will remind me to write it down as an informant’s fee!”
Ma Xiang, who was eating pizza, mumbled: "Don't be so troublesome, it's the victim who has come to thank us, here."
Yan Xie followed his gaze out, and saw a young man who was standing in the corridor outside the large office, looking at something in the distance - it was Chu Ci.
"Eat! You sure know how to eat!" Yan Xie immediately slapped Ma Xiang: "You've eaten up half a month's internship pay!"
"Brother Yan, you don't understand." Ma Xiang's two lines of hot tears rushed out, and his voice was full of emotion: "We, Jianning's number one evil force, have been walking the streets for so many years, and this is the first time we've seen the victims treating us to snacks instead of bringing banners. I can't control how much I eat! ......."
Yan Xie spit out the cherry pits. Fortunately he didn’t rub his hand on his five-figure pants, he quickly pulled out a paper towel and went out the door.
Chu Ci was facing him sideways with a somber look, looking towards the end of the corridor in the other direction. Yan Xie stopped and looked over, only to see two police officers who were escorting Ding Dang, coming towards them from afar and ready to take her to the detention center.
Ding Dang did no longer look innocent and weak just when they first met her, neither the ruthlessness and madness she displayed on the day of the operation at the scene could be seen anymore. Yan Xie had been a police officer for more than a decade, and the suspects he hand-delivered to the detention center could add up to half a train. The suspect's admission of guilt was followed by a variety of behaviors, including: desperation, madness, resignation, a broken heart and even revenge. Which was not surprising, but Ding Dang's current behavior was different from anything he had ever seen. She stared at Chu Ci, her eyes seemed to be full of hatred, but after a closer look, it was as if there was something more complex and indescribable besides the hatred.
Chu Ci quietly looked back at her, and the two of them just passed by each other, when suddenly Ding Dang started struggling trying to stop in front of him.
"Don't stop!" The police immediately snapped at her, but were stopped by a stern look in Yan Xie’s eyes.
"That night at the factory, before the police broke in, you said I was the mastermind." Ding Dang looked at Chu Ci and said word by word through gritted teeth, "How did you know?"
Chu Ci seemed to have anticipated that she would ask this question, and his reaction was indifferent: "Because you said that on the night of May 2nd, Feng Yuguang asked you out to sing. This was a lie."
Not only Ding Dang, even Yan Xie suddenly felt surprised that "he actually knew".
"You... you surprisingly, you already knew..."
Ding Dang looked incredibly pale, it seemed Chu Ci was about to add something, but he instantly swallowed it back and smiled.
It was hard for an outsider to detect that there was a hint of sadness hidden in that smile.
"Of course," he said, "Feng Yuguang packed a few review books in his bag before he left the house that day. Who brings books on a date."
The hysterical shouts of Ding Dang echoed in the corridor as she staggered and got taken away by the police, disappearing at the end of the stairs.
"Ahem!" Yan Xie cleared his throat and tried to mediate: “ Come on, how much did you spend? I’ll return you the money.”
Only then did Chu Ci withdraw the gaze that had watched her leave and turn back to hand the plastic bag he was holding to Yan Xie, seemingly embarrassed, "I didn't buy anything good, thanks to you guys saving my life that day..."
The plastic bag was filled with two packs of Yunyan ‘Hard Treasure’ .
“Hey”, after trying to reject him twice, he still accepted it laughing: "It just so happens that I am having a famine here, thank you. But there's really no need, it's not us who saved you, it's you who saved us - if anything happened to the hostage, we’d have to take the whole bureau down! Reports, reviews, bonuses, promotions, and I don't know how many people would have to be beaten by their wives when they went home.."
Chu Ci laughed.
"What's the matter, highly talented student?" Yan Xie teased him, "Are you planning to continue the internship? Going back to Beijing or returning home?"
Chu Ci said, "I originally booked a ticket to return to Beijing three days ago, but the doctor said that due to hitting my head in the explosion, discharging early would be risky. So today I went to the station to pick up my mother and brother for a tour from their hometown, and I’m leaving this afternoon instead."
"Then there’s not enough time to take you out for dinner. Are you going back for your PhD?"
Yan Xie thought he would say yes, but to his surprise, Chu Ci only stretched his back; the slight smile in his eyes deepened as he replied, "Going back for it my ass!"
Yan Xie: "........"
"I didn't want to study anymore. When I graduated from university, I wanted to find a job. My mother asked me to go to graduate school and said it would be good to study more." Chu Ci continued, “What's exactly good? My brother can't even pay the school fees of 20,000, but if I had started working two years earlier, I would have been able to send him to a major junior high school."
Yan Xie didn't know how to reply, and after a long while he said: "That's really quite difficult."
"It's all right. I have a graduate school to prepare me for an interview. It will get better and better in the future."
Yan Xie nodded, Chu Ci looked at the time, "Then I won't delay your work, I'll be leaving first."
"- Hey wait!"
Yan Xie called out to him. Thought about it, then casually called a police trainee over and tossed his car keys to him, "Go downstairs and drive my car out, and later take the victim to the railway station. Please have a meal and come back with the invoice."
Chu Ci was about to refuse, but the intern policeman was overjoyed as if he had won the lottery: "Oh, Yan-Ge, I’ve wanted to drive your car for a long time. You are really my real brother!" Hardly he finished talking as he was already gone.
"Come back early after you drop him off, brat!" Yan Xie roared at his back, then shook his head helplessly, "He’s probably not going to come back until the car is out of gas. Come on, top student, I'll send you downstairs."
In mid-May, when the feeling of summer grew stronger, the sound of cicadas rang intermittently in the shade of the trees downstairs, and the golden sun sprinkled its dazzling reflections on the road, roofs and the tops of vehicles that were coming and going in the distance.
Yan Xie sent Chu Ci to the doorsteps and said, "Then good luck with the interview, try to pass it in one try, get the job and send the good news, ha."
Chu Ci solemnly agreed.
Even if undergraduate students in their early twenties spend years in a lab and often develop a silent and quiet nature, the youthful jumpiness and radiance won’t completely fade away from their eyes. Yan Xie waved his arm and observed him for a moment. As if suddenly remembering something, he swept his eyes around. "Hey, top student."
“What?”
"There's one thing I'm a little curious about, and since you're almost gone, I'll just ask one more question. What do you know about the molecular formula of that new fentanyl compound?"
"You're asking me if I can make it, aren't you?"
Yan Xie: "Oh you're so direct, it hurts my feelings."
"Not necessarily, but with a little more drilling and research it might be possible." Chu Ci added,
"But I won't do it, don't worry."
"That's a lot of money na-" Yan Xie dragged out his words seemingly smiling, “Is it fair for you to suffer every possible tormentjust to save money while living as migrant worker in Beijing, while others are throwing money away on lanterns red, wine green and stake a thousand pieces of gold on one throw?”
Chu Ci stood on the steps of the main entrance of the City Public Security Bureau with his back to the distant police badge hanging from the roof, he was seemingly lost in thought.
After a long time he seemed to have thought something through and shook his head, "It's true that it's not fair. But there is no absolute fairness in this world in the first place, right."
Yan Xie didn't say anything.
"The moment the recommendation notice arrived, the whole school was in uproar, and all the other grades came to block the door of our classroom. I put my books up on my seat to shield my face, and my seatmate said, "Chu Ci, life isn't fair, I study harder than you do so why can't it be me? Why can’t I get into Beijing university?”
“You see, if even I think the world isn't fair, what will those who have even less opportunities and no way out think? At least I'll be able to get out on my own and provide a better life for my family, which is far more satisfying than the money that the rich and powerful throw around to gain less happiness as a result.”
Chu Ci with a slightly pleasant expression looked up at the summer blue sky of Jianning and immediately turned to Yan Xie to add with a smile: "So it's good that I'm down to earth and poor, as for the money stained with human blood, the things that are illegal, I think I’ll just forget about it.”
He smiled and waved, free and cheerful as he strode down the steps, carrying the sunlight to the city bureau's main gate.
Behind him, Yan Xie unpacked his Yunyan cigarettes, lit one and slowly smoked it, squinting his eyes thoughtfully.
He suddenly remembered that he had called Jiang Ting two days ago to ask for his advice, asking if he should tell Chu Ci about Ding Dang's motive for killing. Jiang Ting told him to just follow the procedure and not to do anything unnecessary or skip any steps that should be taken to solve the case.
Forget it, Yan Xie thought it wasn't easy for the top student.
---Not to mention that he didn't even ask, so maybe there really was no need to bother telling him.
"It's pretty easy to smoke," Yan Xie muttered to himself, flicking the ashes of his cigarette in a smooth motion, pulling out his cell phone and turning towards the public security bureau.
"Hello, Jiang Ting? I'm fine. Have you had your third bowl of chicken soup yet? That top student came to deliver food today. Wait for me to drop by with two catties of cherries in the evening.”
The summer breeze swept past the tall buildings and the shopping streets. Swirling through the traffic and pedestrians like a weave; it swayed the lush phoenix wood on both sides of the long street, whistling up to the sky.
Over the bustling Jianning city, clouds gradually gathered and the hot and bright sun was reflected on the silent silver badge at the top of the city public security bureau building.
Arc#1 END
