BL Ch37

A gust of wind squeezed through the window crack, brushing against the backs of the two men’s necks. The coldness crept up their spines, sending a chill through their bodies.

“Interesting.” Yu Duqiu lifted the necklace and tucked it into his shirt. “Since I’ve returned to the country, he hasn’t made any contact. He didn’t even show up to the welcome banquet at Junyue. He’s been hiding until now—I thought he planned to avoid me for the rest of his life.”

Zhou Yi nodded in agreement. “Didn’t expect this. No appointment either. I bet that kid outside tipped him off, trying to catch you off guard. There must be some scheme. Luckily, Baoguo and I came along, and Bai is here too… What the—what happened?!”

Zhou Yi’s sudden shout drew the attention of the two men outside. Lou Baoguo and Zhao Feihua rushed in. “What’s going on?”

Bai Zhao tossed aside his blood-stained suit. “It’s nothing. Watch Huang Hanxiang, and don’t come in.”

“He can’t get out. The elevators and stairwells on this floor have iris locks. Don’t worry about him. Look at yourself—bleeding like that, why haven’t you bandaged it yet?” Zhou Yi, assuming the role of a concerned father, dragged the bloodied Bai Zhao back to the office. After a quick glance around the empty room, he scratched his head, troubled. “This place looks big, but there’s not even a bottle of mineral water for cleaning the wound.”

Yu Duqiu chuckled. “Show off those survival skills you learned in the wilderness of Yunnan. Look, there’s a potted plant over there—tear off a few leaves to bandage him. It’s not a serious wound, he won’t die.”

Zhao Feihua couldn’t listen anymore. “Calling you heartless would be an understatement. I think you need a plaque on the wall with the words ‘utterly devoid of conscience’ written in bold! You two were only in there for a few minutes, and the ‘battle’ was this intense?”

Yu Duqiu glanced at the injured Bai Zhao and said meaningfully, “Bai is a wild wolf, not easy to tame. I’ll train him properly next time when we have more time, but for now, I’ll let him taste a bit of sweetness.”

Zhao Feihua’s next retort was cut short by Bai Zhao, who responded with a simple “Okay.” The abrupt answer silenced him, leaving his words unspoken.

If one is willing to hit and the other is willing to take it, there’s no point in meddling.

Zhou Yi had no interest in what they’d done in the meeting room. He grabbed a few napkins, pressed them against Bai Zhao’s wound to stop the bleeding, and urged, “Young master, I’ll take Bai down now and see if Secretary Yuan has any bandages.”

Zhao Feihua quickly stopped him. “If you two go downstairs like this and someone sees you, what do you think they’ll assume? They’ll think there’s been another crime. I can’t control people’s gossip, and it’s taken us a lot of effort to fix the company’s reputation. I can’t let you ruin my hard PR work!”

Lou Baoguo slapped Zhao Feihua on the back, sending the smaller man stumbling and nearly falling to the floor. Adjusting his glasses, Zhao Feihua turned and cursed, “What the hell, you fatso!”

Lou Baoguo yelled angrily, “How can you be so selfish? My brother is badly injured, and you won’t even let him leave! Do you want him to die here?”

Zhao Feihua put his hands on his hips. “Can you let me finish talking first?! There’s a helipad on the top floor. You can leave that way! Who’s trying to harm him anyway? It’s not like I cut him!”

The person responsible for the injury ignored this last sentence, then suddenly remembered, “Oh right, we do have a helipad. Old Zhou, call the city hospital and get their emergency helicopter over here. Accompany him to get patched up—you two, come downstairs with me.”

Bai Zhao took a step forward. “There’s no need to trouble anyone. I can handle it myself. After that, I’ll go down with you. Pei Ming won’t be easy to deal with.”

Yu Duqiu lightly blocked him. “A direct attack is easy to dodge. Since he’s come in person, nothing’s likely to happen. Be obedient and go to the hospital. Clean up, look sharp, and then come back to meet the guest. After all, you’re one of my people now. Maintain a good image.”

Hearing the last sentence, Bai Zhao paused for a moment, dazed. By the time he regained his senses, Yu Duqiu was already at the door. He ran his thumb over his lips, wiping away the lingering warmth, and curved his mouth into a cold smile. “Don’t make Pei Ming wait too long… He’s getting impatient.”

The luxurious wristwatch with a sea-blue dial lay quietly on the desk, its hands turning with perfect precision.

Time is perhaps the coldest, most unfeeling force in the world. It witnesses countless partings and deaths, yet continues to pass without a second thought.

“Hey, there’s not a scratch on you…” Ji Lin muttered to himself, leaning on the desk. Bored, he pressed the side recording button, and the familiar dialogue played once again.

At the next desk over, Lu Qing had just finished dealing with a theft case and was finally taking a break when she heard the spine-chilling male voice repeat: “Mm, dead.”

Unable to take it anymore, she turned her head. “Brother Ji, I’ve memorized that recording by now. Can you stop listening to it? We’ve already collected all the evidence from that watch—shouldn’t we return it to Yu Duqiu? We don’t want him thinking we stole it. Our bureau’s reputation is already shaky.”

Ji Lin sat up. “It’s his fault our bureau’s reputation is bad in the first place! I’m just going over the clues again. Who cares about his stupid watch?”

“Come on, didn’t you say all men are interested in watches? You’re not even tempted by a million-dollar timepiece?”

“I don’t care about that…” Ji Lin mumbled as he put the watch back into the evidence bag, locking it in the drawer. Still, he couldn’t help but feel unsatisfied. “I just can’t make out who that voice belongs to. It shouldn’t be Pei Ming or Peizhuo, right?”

Lu Qing replied, “Definitely not. When do big bosses ever get their hands dirty with murder?”

“But the killer was wearing a huge gemstone ring… Could it be a fake? Why would anyone wear a fake one? It just makes it easier to identify them.”

“Maybe he was just showing off at the bar. Even if his behavior seemed suspicious, people there might see the big ring he was wearing and assume he was wealthy and not to be messed with. That way, they wouldn’t dare question him.”

Ji Lin was still doubtful. “I went to the Yiqing Club to investigate. You have to pass through a security gate to enter. It’s not as strict as an airport, but wouldn’t the killer be worried about being caught? How could he guarantee his weapon wouldn’t be confiscated, especially a double-edged one? Could he have bribed an employee to bring it in?”

Lu Qing, hearing Ji Lin’s increasingly wild theories, realized he wasn’t going to get any rest. He reluctantly joined the discussion. “Ji-ge, this case is from eight months ago. Even if you check the bar employees’ call records through the telecom company, you can only access records from the past six months. Why not focus on the present and monitor Peizhuo’s calls?”

Ji Lin shook his head with a sigh. “You’re newly promoted and don’t understand the situation yet. Monitoring calls can only be used for suspects who pose a serious threat to public safety, and the approval process is extremely strict. In all my years on the job, I’ve only seen Detective Xu from the Major Crimes Unit get permission once, and that was for a serial killer suspect. With Peizhuo’s minor offenses, we couldn’t even detain him, let alone monitor his calls. If he doesn’t confess, we have no evidence. What can we do with him?”

Thinking back to their last interrogation, Lu Qing became angry. “Whether he’s a suspect or not, his arrogant attitude is infuriating. He even accused us of ruining his reputation and business, saying we’d regret it. It was just a normal interrogation—no threats or mistreatment—and we didn’t ruin his business! Why take it out on us?”

“He can’t go after Yu Duqiu, so he targets us instead. Ignore him. He can’t cause any trouble. Just keep someone on him.” Ji Lin stood up. “I’ll go see Old Peng and check if the Special Task Force has made any progress.”

Lu Qing called out from behind him, “Again? You’ve asked about it eight hundred times already. Old Peng even asked me recently if you’ve been dealing with Yu Duqiu too often and are losing your mind! They’re thinking of replacing you on the surveillance team.”

“Anyone else would lose their mind too. I’ll bear this burden myself, no need to drag others into it.” Ji Lin walked away with a sense of noble sacrifice.

As soon as he opened the door to the director’s office, Peng Deyu, without looking up, said, “No new leads. Get out and close the door.”

Ji Lin, undeterred, squeezed in with a serious face. “I’m here to report: Yu Duqiu fired his gardener today, then went to the company with his three bodyguards.”

“I know. Get out and close the door.” Peng Deyu pushed up his reading glasses and continued reviewing documents.

Ji Lin gently closed the door but remained inside, slowly approaching the desk. “Boss, about my previous request… did it get approved?”

Peng Deyu finally looked up, took off his glasses, and snorted. “Now that you need something from me, you’re using honorifics? I reviewed your search request. It won’t get approved.”

Ji Lin immediately panicked. “Why not? The Pei family is clearly suspicious. Are we just going to turn a blind eye? If the higher-ups blame us, I’ll take full responsibility!”

“Whether or not you can bear the blame is irrelevant. Right now, you and Yu Duqiu only have suspicions about Pei Ming, based on deductions. You might be right, but we need evidence. Do you think the prosecutor will approve it without solid proof?” Peng Deyu softened his tone. “Look, Ji, I know you’re very dedicated to this case and want to catch the killer who murdered your friend. But don’t forget, Yu Duqiu is still a suspect. You can’t trust everything he says, and you definitely can’t let him lead you by the nose. He’s very guarded and won’t tell you the whole truth.”

Ji Lin slapped his hands on the wooden desk, lowering himself as if in prayer, almost bowing. “I know, but at least what he’s saying isn’t baseless. You always tell me, ‘Don’t overlook even the slightest possibility.’ Right now, there’s a very real chance the Pei family is behind this series of crimes. Are we really going to stick strictly to the rules? The task force has been working for a month without any major breakthroughs. Aren’t you anxious? Rules are dead, but people are alive!”

Peng Deyu raised his hand as if to smack him but paused after hearing Ji Lin’s last words, momentarily stunned.

Ji Lin realized he’d been too impulsive and quickly stepped back. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have yelled at you… You’ve been working harder than anyone.”

Peng Deyu, with graying temples and heavy bags under his eyes, sighed deeply, the exhaustion evident in his voice. “Ah… you remind me of my younger self, fearless of anything. After all these years in the system, I’ve unknowingly grown timid, lost that drive.”

Ji Lin sheepishly smiled. “You sure don’t hold back when scolding us. Must’ve been cracking heads open with your bare hands back in the day.”

Peng Deyu shook his head. “Not that kind of fearless. I used to be even more reckless than you, sometimes completely disregarding the rules… Don’t give me that gossipy look. I promised someone I’d never speak about it.”

Ji Lin, attempting to probe indirectly, asked, “Who did you promise?”

Unexpectedly, Peng Deyu replied, “Yu Duqiu’s grandfather. Not that it matters—it’s not like you can ask him. I haven’t seen him in years. The man’s now retired and living in seclusion.”

Ji Lin knew he couldn’t get more out of him and muttered, “You’ve had deep ties with the Yu family for so long, even keeping secrets for them, but you’re telling me not to trust Yu Duqiu… Isn’t that a bit hypocritical?”

“I’m farsighted, not deaf. Do you think I didn’t hear that?” Peng Deyu’s hand, still hovering in mid-air, came down hard on Ji Lin’s head. “There are reasons for keeping those secrets, but I can’t tell you. That case back then was a major one. Like you, I deduced and suspected things, but with the limited technology at the time, we never found any evidence. The higher-ups ignored me, and in the end, it was ruled an accident. Looking back, it’s a shame… Alright, I’ll speak with the prosecutor’s office for you. If they don’t approve, there’s nothing more I can do.”

Ji Lin’s face lit up with joy. “You’re truly wise! I’ll bring you a banner of appreciation!”

Peng Deyu waved him off in disgust. “Get out of here! People will think I asked for it and report me. Get back to your post and keep an eye on Yu Duqiu. If anything happens to him, even the mayor will be shaking in his boots.”

Ji Lin scoffed, “He can go for a joyride in his sports car even while being hunted. What could possibly happen to him? I bet right now he’s at his company making big promises to his employees. That Themis project he’s been hyping for ages doesn’t even exist yet—just a few news articles, and somehow he’s conned ten billion in investments and got the mayor’s approval…”

Before he could finish, there was a sudden, frantic knocking at the office door, completely out of rhythm.

“That has to be Xiao Lu. You’ve turned her into an impatient person, just like you,” Peng Deyu said helplessly, then called out, “Come in!”

Sure enough, it was Lu Qing, her face tense and serious, and she even addressed them formally, “Director Peng, Captain Ji, we just got word that Yu Duqiu has apparently caught an undercover agent who infiltrated his company and is interrogating them upstairs. Right after that, Bai Zhao got injured for some unknown reason, possibly attacked by the undercover agent. He and Zhou Yi left from the rooftop by helicopter. And! Pei Ming suddenly arrived at Yu Duqiu’s company with a large group of people. Could it be that the undercover operation was exposed and now they’re going all out for a showdown? Yu Duqiu only has one bodyguard with him right now. Even though Big Fat Bro is tough, I’m worried…”

Ji Lin immediately strode towards the door. “I’ll take a team to check it out. Requesting authorization to carry firearms, Chief.”

Peng Deyu nodded gravely. “Alright, be careful. I’ll have the other squads on standby. If anything urgent happens, don’t act rashly.”