S.C.I. (Volume I) - Case 2: Chapter 8

The Killer Training Camp 08: Playing Sick 

The morning sunlight streamed through the sheer curtains, spilling onto the cream-colored floor of the bedroom.

The crisp sound of the alarm clock woke the sleeping man.

Gongsun frowned in a daze, reaching out to press the snooze button, but the alarm had already stopped on its own.

Soon, his consciousness began to blur again. Just sleep a little longer.

He had slept particularly well last night. Since November began, the weather had turned suddenly cold, and Gongsun, who was sensitive to the chill, was often woken up by the cold. For some reason, the blankets had been exceptionally warm last night, and so soft and cozy... how comfortable.

Gongsun hugged the warm "thing" beside him, snuggling against it, only to hear that "thing" gasp.

Immediately, Gongsun’s eyes flew open.

Looking up, he saw Bai Jintang smiling down at him, hovering over his body...

Gongsun, who was prone to violent morning grumpiness, instantly radiated layers of killing intent.

"Bai Jintang!!" he roared. He lifted his leg, intent on kicking the man off the bed so he could get up to wash his face and brush his teeth.

In the next room, the twins, dressed in Santa Claus pajamas, were busy by the wall.

"Boss—" The twins easily moved the wardrobe blocking the hole to the side. "It's a chance!! Why didn't you see it through to the end??"

Bai Jintang cast a disdainful glance at his two subordinates. "You have no taste. Let me tell you, a man like Gongsun is just like curry."

"Oh—please, enlighten us!!" The twins humbly sought wisdom.

"Heh heh—" Bai Jintang smacked his lips with satisfaction. "You have to stew it over and over again for it to really have flavor!!"

"Oh—" The twins nodded in admiration. "Boss, that pot of curry is right behind you."

...?! Bai Jintang whipped his head around to see Gongsun standing behind him with a face full of murderous intent, holding a bucket of water...

"Uh, Gongsun, you need to calm down!!"

"Calm down?" Gongsun sneered. "I'm very calm. I'm just here to help you cool off, too."

He raised his hand, and splash—

The twins dutifully pulled their heads back into the hole, and as they pulled the wardrobe shut, they didn't forget to give Gongsun a thumbs-up. "Nice work! Sister-in-law!!"

With a bang, the empty bucket flew through the air and smashed into the wardrobe.

Gongsun was so furious his face turned beet red. Panting, he turned back to see a dripping-wet Bai Jintang, still smiling as radiantly as ever. "You're at your cutest when you're angry!"

Gongsun bolted into the kitchen, grabbed a vegetable cleaver, and charged out. "I'm going to chop you up! Chop you up!!"

"Hahahaha—"

Next door:

The Da Ding and Xiao Ding twins crawled back under the covers.

"You know, I think we should have Xiao Zhao give Gongsun some psychological counseling, otherwise he's going to be driven crazy by the boss sooner or later!!"

"I think it's the boss who needs counseling. If he keeps this up, he's likely to get arrested by Xiao Bai!!"

...

After seeing off the irate Gongsun, Bai Jintang tied his tie in front of the mirror, perfectly content.

"Boss, everything is ready." The Ding twins said.

"I'll handle the board meeting myself!" Bai Jintang turned and grabbed his coat. "You two go investigate something."

The twins exchanged a look. "Boss, do you want to look into the shooting at the gala?"

Putting on his coat, Bai Jintang smiled. "Someone wants to give me a show of force. We’re new in town, we can't let people look down on us."

"Understood!" The Ding twins nodded.

"Oh, right!" Before heading out, Bai Jintang looked back. "You two, pull in a few clever brothers from the outside."

"...!" The twins were slightly surprised. "Boss?"

Bai Jintang smiled. "Don't worry, nothing else. Just have them secretly protect Gongsun and Xiao Zhao."

"...Understood."

9:00 AM, S.C.I. Office Conference Room

The table was piled with files regarding the serial sniper case and the red-light district slashings.

The S.C.I. members all wore grave expressions.

Bai Yutang briefly introduced Bai Chi to everyone, and then they quickly got down to business.

"The perpetrator from yesterday is named Yang Feng, 19 years old, a student in the chemistry department at M University," Dynasty said, holding the file. "His father abandoned him when he was very young, and his mother was a drug addict who died half a year ago from an overdose. Three months ago, he started committing crimes in the red-light district; the victims he slashed were all prostitutes and streetwalkers, along with the case from yesterday."

"I checked his computer!" Jiang Ping rubbed his hands together and placed a laptop on the table. "He also received an email. Look!"

Everyone looked at the display screen to see a short line of text:

"Only you can save them!"

The signature was still: Killertrainingcamp.

"The nature of this case needs to be re-evaluated!" Bai Yutang looked at Zhan Zhao. "Cat, you take it."

Zhan Zhao nodded and placed the lighter, sealed in an evidence bag, in the center of the table. "I initially thought this was a relatively simple serial murder case, but looking at it now, it's an organized crime case."

Bai Yutang nodded. "This 'Killertrainingcamp' is very likely an organization specializing in manufacturing crimes."

"I don't quite understand," Zhao Hu scratched his head. "Why? I don't see any motive! There’s no connection between the victims, and if it's a professional assassin organization, why are they using all these rookies??"

"Speaking of victims, I found something very interesting!" Jiang Ping quickly pulled up a folder on Qi Lei's and Yang Feng's computers.

"This is Qi Lei's computer, look!" Jiang Ping opened the folder, and inside were personal files on all the victims, including Professor Wilson and Jon Jin.

"Whoa! That detailed? They even know when he had his appendix removed??" Ma Han looked at the data and casually clicked on a video clip—it immediately showed an obscene scene, featuring a doddering old man entangled with a young girl...

"What is this?" Dynasty looked at Jiang Ping.

"Heh, this old man was the second victim, a famous businessman and philanthropist. This girl was one of his charity beneficiaries," Jiang Ping opened the data.

"Beast!" Zhao Hu spat fiercely. Is this how he does charity?!

"And that’s not all," Jiang Ping said. "The other two victims were total hypocrites, too!"

"What about Dr. Wilson and Jon Jin?" Zhan Zhao asked.

"That’s where it gets a bit strange!" Jiang Ping said. "I did a technical analysis. The evidence against the other three victims is real, but the so-called crimes of Jon Jin and the old doctor were fabricated."

"Fabricated?" Bai Yutang frowned.

Jiang Ping nodded. "That's right. The photos were computer composites; they aren't real at all."

"What about Yang Feng's computer?" Zhan Zhao asked hurriedly.

"The same!" Jiang Ping opened that folder next.

Inside were reports on prostitutes and streetwalkers; there were no detailed files on other victims, only Qi Le and a teaser for yesterday’s activity.

Bai Yutang turned to look at Zhan Zhao. "Cat, professional analysis."

Zhan Zhao nodded. "It's obvious. The common thread between Qi Lei and Yang Feng is that they both have certain personality disorders. Qi Lei is schizophrenic, and Yang Feng is paranoid... someone has been exploiting their traits to manipulate them into committing crimes."

"Qi Lei used a sniper rifle, Yang Feng used a knife and homemade gasoline bombs... and these skills are all related to their own specialties!" Dynasty said.

"Correct!" Ma Han nodded. "Qi Lei studied at a shooting club, and Yang Feng is a chemistry student... they made great use of their potential."

"Mm..." Bai Chi, who had been listening from the side, reached out and tugged at the hem of Zhan Zhao's shirt. Ever since arriving at the S.C.I., little Bai Chi had been following Zhan Zhao around like a puppy following its master, looking timidly at everyone.

"What's wrong?" Zhan Zhao turned to look at him.

"I... I would like to speak—" Bai Chi said cautiously.

"Heh—" The S.C.I. crew was amused. Seeing everyone laughing at him, Bai Chi became even more timid.

"Go ahead," Zhan Zhao said. "I want to hear your opinion, too."

"..." Bai Chi turned red and lowered his head. "Well... Qi Lei and Yang Feng are both M University students... their data... how did it leak from the school’s database? We could hack the campus database and see who accessed it during that time..."

SLAP! Jiang Ping slammed the table.

Bai Chi was so startled he nearly bit his own tongue, subconsciously grabbing Zhan Zhao's sleeve.

"Good kid! Why didn't I think of that??" Jiang Ping leapt up and rushed to his computer. "I'll hack that little school website in ten minutes!!"

...

The way everyone looked at Bai Chi changed instantly.

Zhan Zhao patted him on the shoulder. "Very good."

"Re... really?" Bai Chi blinked, shooting a shy glance at Bai Yutang. Bai Yutang smiled approvingly at him. Instantly, Bai Chi turned red and lowered his head, twisting the corner of his shirt.

Zhan Zhao looked at him and shook his head. Being a child of the Bai family really wasn't easy.

"Ma Han, how are things on your end?" Bai Yutang asked.

"I took a spin around the shooting club and sat in on a theory class. It’s not simple," Ma Han tapped his chin with his finger.

"Not simple?" Bai Yutang looked at him with interest.

"It seems casual, but the instructors were deliberately leaking knowledge about sniping," Ma Han said. "And after getting a membership card, the guns you use for practice aren't small-caliber practice pistols, but real, high-lethality firearms."

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang exchanged a look. Just as they were about to speak, they heard Jiang Ping shouting from the computer outside: "Boss! Boss! We have a discovery!"

Everyone rushed out.

Jiang Ping pointed at the computer screen, looking excited. "I accessed the campus network's administrator program and found that in the last six months, one ID has repeatedly accessed the information pages of both of these people."

"Can you find out who it is?" Bai Yutang’s eyes gleamed with excitement.

"I just called the telecom company, and they gave me a name." He handed a sticky note with the name on it to Bai Yutang.

Bai Yutang looked at the name and smiled, asking Zhan Zhao, "Cat, does this sound familiar?"

Zhan Zhao looked at the name on the note: Jia Zhengyan.

"Qi Lei’s class advisor?" Zhan Zhao asked in surprise.

"Heh..." Bai Yutang sneered. "Qi Lei is his student, so it makes sense he'd look at his file. But he and Yang Feng have absolutely nothing to do with each other. Why was he looking at his file?"

"Boss! Put him under surveillance!" Zhao Hu said.

Bai Yutang nodded. "We have to! But you're already exposed. Dynasty, Zhang Long, you two go!"

"Yes!"

"Then... then what about me?" Zhao Hu asked anxiously.

"You?" Bai Yutang pressed his hand on top of his head and gestured toward the reception room, where Qi Le was sitting. "You are to watch this girl 24 hours a day. Someone wants to kill her to silence her—she definitely knows something!"

The meeting ended quickly, and everyone went about their business. Ma Han followed Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang into the office. "Boss! I have an idea!"

Bai Yutang looked at him and sighed. "You rascal, are you trying to go undercover at the shooting club?"

"Mm!" Ma Han nodded earnestly. "That club definitely has issues. I want to pose as their next potential target, only..."

"Only, you'll need to feign psychological instability—it would be best if you clearly showed signs of multiple personality disorder," Zhan Zhao finished with a smile. "Right?"

"Heh." Ma Han scratched his head sheepishly. "Dr. Zhan, you really do have mind-reading powers... I'm just worried that the person manipulating them is also a professional, and they'll see through my act at a glance."

"Are you sure you want to do this? It could be very dangerous, and faking psychological distress is extremely exhausting!" Zhan Zhao asked Ma Han seriously.

"Mm!" Ma Han nodded firmly.

"Good!"

Afterward, Zhan Zhao sat down and explained to Ma Han in detail the causes, symptoms, and characteristics of multiple personality disorder... Not to mention Ma Han, even Bai Yutang and Bai Chi, who were on the side, were trembling in fear as they listened.

Two hours later, Zhan Zhao patted Ma Han on the shoulder with satisfaction. "You've graduated!"

Ma Han jumped up with joy. "I'll start this afternoon!"

"Wait a minute!" Bai Yutang stopped him. "Test it first before you go!"

"Test?" The other three looked at him in unison. How?

Bai Yutang pointed toward Zhan Zhao's office next door. "In a moment, I'll send someone in. If you can make them believe you have a multiple personality disorder, then I'll let you go!"

Ma Han walked into Zhan Zhao's office full of confidence. Bai Yutang shouted toward the outside: "Zhao Hu—"

Zhao Hu ran in with a coffee. "Boss, what is it?"

Bai Yutang sighed. "Are you and Ma Han very close?"

Zhao Hu nodded. "Yeah."

Zhan Zhao frowned and said, "Ma Han is acting a bit off, but he won't tell us when we ask. You’d better go check on him."

"???" Zhao Hu was stunned. "What’s wrong with him? Is he going through a breakup?"

Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao shook their heads. "Go take a look. He’s in the office next door."

"Alright!" Zhao Hu skipped off to the office next door.

Entering the door, he saw Ma Han sitting blankly in a chair, staring up at the ceiling with dull eyes.

"Brother, what's wrong?" Zhao Hu asked, leaning in while sipping his coffee.

Ma Han slowly lowered his head, staring into Zhao Hu's eyes. "What do I do? I think I'm finished."

Zhao Hu continued drinking his coffee. "Hey, give it a rest. It's not like it's your first breakup."

Ma Han stared at him in silence for a moment, then said slowly, "There seems to be... a woman living inside my body..."

"PFFFT—" Zhao Hu sprayed a mouthful of coffee all over Ma Han's face.

...

Ten minutes later, Ma Han walked out of the office leisurely, gave a V-sign to Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang, who were waiting at the door, and walked away.

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang pushed the door open to enter, only to see Zhao Hu sitting blankly on the sofa, looking as if he’d suffered a heavy blow.

"Hu Zi, are you alright?" Bai Yutang asked softly.

"Ah—" Zhao Hu looked at Bai Yutang, then shifted his gaze to Zhan Zhao. "Doctor... check me out. I think I have multiple personality disorder too..."

Bai Yutang pointed toward the door. "So, just now, Ma Han..."

"Oh!" Zhao Hu nodded and said foolishly, "He’s definitely splitting badly!"

Zhan Zhao nodded. "And you?"

Zhao Hu tilted his head. "I... I think I'm splitting too..."

...

Bai Yutang pulled Zhan Zhao out and closed the door on Zhao Hu. The two returned to Bai Yutang's office, expressionless, and closed the door.

Three seconds later, everyone heard a thunderous, earth-shaking burst of laughter erupt from Bai Yutang's office. Even Bai Chi, standing at the door, was clutching his stomach, unable to stand up straight from laughing... In the laughter, everything was simple and pure.