S.C.I. (Volume I) - Case 5: Chapter 28

The Doppelganger Killer 28 - Flushing Out the Snake

"Wait a minute... hey!" Bai Chi trotted quickly behind Zhao Zhen, who was striding forward, and reached out to grab the man's arm.

Zhao Zhen stopped in his tracks, standing in place without saying a word.

"Why are you angry?" Bai Chi asked, tilting his face up.

Zhao Zhen glanced at him and answered a question with another question, "When did you start knowing him?"

"Who?" Bai Chi rubbed his head in confusion.

"Zhao Jue."

"That person just now was Zhao Jue?!" Bai Chi's mouth dropped open in shock.

"You didn't know who he was?" Zhao Zhen was astonished.

"I've only seen him twice in total," Bai Chi said. "I think he's pretty incredible, and honestly, he kind of feels a bit like Big Brother."

Upon hearing Bai Chi's words, Zhao Zhen looked somewhat taken aback.

"If he's Zhao Jue, doesn't that make him your uncle?" Bai Chi touched his chin, looking back and forth at Zhao Zhen. "Come to think of it, you really do look a bit like him. How come I never noticed before..."

"You mean you didn't think I looked like him before?" Zhao Zhen stared at Bai Chi and asked, "You forgave me and were nice to me not because of him?"

"Huh?" Bai Chi was completely baffled by the question. "What are you talking about? How could I be closer to him than I am to you?"

This time it was Zhao Zhen's turn to be utterly dumbfounded. After a long moment, he shook his head with a self-deprecating chuckle and reached up to massage his brow.

Finding him strange, Bai Chi thought for a moment before asking cautiously, "You... you aren't mad because of that, are you?"

Zhao Zhen sighed, walked over to sit on a flower bed outside the hospital, and said, "I've always thought that if I were you and someone had harmed me like that when I was young, I'd probably never forgive them for the rest of my life."

Bai Chi walked over, sat down beside him, blinked, and waited for him to continue.

"But you seemed to forgive me pretty quickly. I kept wondering if there was some reason behind it," Zhao Zhen said with a helpless smile. "Then just now, seeing Zhao Jue kiss you, I thought... oh, so that's how it is."

Having listened to Zhao Zhen through, Bai Chi finally understood and muttered under his breath, "I'm not that petty."

Inching closer to Bai Chi, Zhao Zhen said, "From now on, don't let anyone else kiss you."

"Who's 'anyone else'?" Bai Chi's face turned slightly red.

"Anyone other than me, of course," Zhao Zhen replied with a shameless grin.

Bai Chi didn't speak, casting him a sideways glance. Just as Zhao Zhen leaned in, wanting to say something more, Bai Chi's phone rang—blaring the theme music of Doraemon.

"Hello? Big Brother." Bai Chi stood up to answer the call. "Mhm, okay, I'll go buy it right now and come straight over when I'm done."

Hanging up the phone, Bai Chi turned back to Zhao Zhen. "Big Brother and the others are all back at the police station. They have an operation coming up, so I have to head back first. If I'm not back by dinnertime, just take the bento box out of the fridge and heat it up in the microwave." With that, he waved goodbye and sprinted off.

Zhao Zhen let out a long sigh, lit a cigarette, and boredly dug at his ear.

Right then, his own phone rang as well. Zhao Zhen hurriedly pulled it out to check, feeling a bit disappointed to see it was just an old friend.

"Hey, grand magician, the bartender at my club is sick. Come bail me out and hold down the fort for tonight," shouted the old friend on the other end.

"Huh?" Zhao Zhen couldn't help rolling his eyes. "Do you really think I'm a cure-all who can do anything?"

"Please! I've got some bigwigs coming in tonight, and not having a decent bartender looks terrible!" the person begged incessantly.

"Can't you just hire a couple of others?"

"The ones I hire aren't as handsome as you!" the caller stated simply. "Remember to come, okay? Please." With that, he hung up.

Fuming, Zhao Zhen closed the phone, shoved it into his pocket, stood up dejectedly, and decided to go home and sleep! He muttered under his breath the whole way, "Of all people to fancy, why did I have to fall for a dead-dense kid who doesn't know a thing?! If I have to wait for him to finally figure things out, am I really supposed to wait until the oceans run dry and the rocks crumble?!"

Police Station.

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang stepped into Bao Zheng's office and were greeted by a bizarre sight—Bao Zheng's naturally dark complexion had darkened to an unprecedented, unprecedented degree.

Sitting in the chair right in front of his desk, casually crossing his legs and sipping coffee, was Zhao Jue. Even more amusingly, Zhao Jue didn't stop talking while he drank: "Hey, Blackie, let me tell you, eating papaya really can lighten your skin! I heard about an experiment where they successfully used it on a chimpanzee, and it turned into a white chimpanzee! With your complexion, you wouldn't even need two or three months to look human again! Don't lose hope yet, even if the skin tone doesn't blend evenly and you turn out gray, that's still way better than soy sauce color."

Suppressing their laughter, Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang knocked and entered.

The moment Bao Zheng caught sight of the two of them, his anger flared anew. Glaring at Zhan Zhao, he demanded, "What is the meaning of this?"

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang exchanged a glance before answering, "My next phase of the plan requires his assistance."

"He's not a police officer; he cannot assist!" Bao Zheng stated coldly.

Neither Zhan Zhao nor Bai Yutang said anything, but Zhao Jue piped up lazily, "Don't be scared of him, you two. When he was young, he was way worse than you guys, and pretty dim-witted, too."

"Ahem..." Bao Zheng choked, coughing out the coffee he had just been drinking.

"His English was the worst back then," Zhao Jue cheerfully spilled the embarrassing details of Bao Zheng's youth. "Once, he chased a foreign pickpocket across nine streets before finally catching him, and then he shouted at the guy, 'Yurun! Run! Her's! Heiger is angry, yu lkeil a? Give yu seerrrible see see!'"

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang tried their utmost to keep straight faces, but the corners of their mouths still twitched uncontrollably. Turning their gaze back to Bao Zheng, they saw that his dark face had flushed a brilliant shade of pig-liver purple.

Zhao Jue chuckled merrily, adding, "So red mixed with black turns purple. I always thought it would turn brown."

Bao Zheng stared at him for two beats before sneering, "Want me to give him a call?"

Zhao Jue's expression abruptly shifted. Mumbling a soft "Petty!", he clammed up and didn't utter another word.

Both Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang were consumed by curiosity as to who this "him" referenced by Bao Zheng could be, to make someone like Zhao Jue tread so carefully.

"How do you intend to have him help?" Bao Zheng asked in a deep voice.

"We want to plant a hypnotic suggestion in Jie Jie to draw out Du She and Taber's entire faction."

"Hypnosis is unreliable!" Bao Zheng rejected flatly.

Zhao Jue shrugged and muttered under his breath again, "Tch... so feudal!"

"This hypnosis is exceptionally difficult. I can't do it alone; I need him to partner with me," Zhan Zhao told Bao Zheng. "Given the gravity of this situation, there are likely still innocent children being used as experimental subjects. The sooner we crack this case, the sooner we can rescue the victims."

Bao Zheng pondered for a moment before raising his eyes to look at Bai Yutang. "You're the team captain. What's your take?"

Without a moment's hesitation, Bai Yutang nodded. "I trust the Cat's judgment."

"Hypnosis is unethical and unacceptable!" Bao Zheng still harbored reservations.

"I think it's viable as well." From outside the doorway, Ouyang Chun walked in holding a folder. "Director Bao, this case is indeed far-reaching, and we've recently received intelligence that Taber is very likely to make a move in the near future. Therefore, we need to find a breakthrough as quickly as possible."

Looking somewhat defeated, Bao Zheng surveyed the group before him. When his gaze landed on Zhao Jue's face, he found the man blinking at him with a look of smug triumph.

"Sigh..." Bao Zheng sighed heavily and nodded. "Fine, but I'm calling someone else in!"

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang exchanged glances and asked, "Who?"

"Orders were left: the moment you and Zhao Jue come into close contact, he must be present!" Bao Zheng picked up the phone, casting a sharp look at Zhan Zhao.

"Who?" Zhan Zhao was even more baffled.

"Your old man!" Exasperated, Bao Zheng waved them away. "Out with you, go get ready."

Bai Yutang led a thoroughly bewildered Zhan Zhao out the door, while Zhao Jue slouched over Bao Zheng's desk, rambling on: "Tell Qishun to bring a watermelon on his way over! Watermelons are sweet this season. Oh right, should I have him bring you some papaya while he's at it..."

Once out of Bao Zheng's office, Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang were still filled with questions.

"What are these old geezers playing at?" Bai Yutang whispered to Zhan Zhao.

"Well, they grew up together, so being familiar is natural," Zhan Zhao reasoned. "Still, knowing Director Bao's ironclad adherence to principle and incorruptibility, if Zhao Jue really was as heinous as they make him out to be, how could they possibly coexist so peacefully?"

Bai Yutang shook his head as well. Right then, Bai Chi, who had just hurried back from the hospital, approached them from the opposite direction.

"Chi-chi, did you bring the items?" Zhan Zhao asked.

"Mm!" Bai Chi produced a bag and handed it over to Zhan Zhao. "I only managed to buy this many."

Bai Yutang unzipped the bag to take a look and found it filled entirely with toy pistols of various makes and models.

"Cat, what do we need so many toy guns for?" Bai Yutang asked, perplexed.

"You'll see in a moment!" Zhan Zhao smiled with an air of mystery.

At that moment, Zhao Jue also strolled out with his hands shoved in his pockets, glancing around as he muttered to himself, "Haven't been here in decades. This building has gotten quite respectable and grand." Walking closer, he caught sight of the bag of toy pistols in Zhan Zhao's hand and smiled knowingly. "Ah, so that's it. Not a bad idea, though the difficulty level is certainly quite high."

"Chief, everything's prepared!" Ma Han stepped out of the interrogation room. "Jie Jie is restrained. This kid seems to have gotten even stronger; if we hadn't had Luo Wen's help, subduing him wouldn't have been so easy."

"Play some light background music to relax his nerves, preferably Italian tracks," Zhao Jue instructed Ma Han cheerfully.

Ma Han glanced at Zhao Jue, then turned his gaze back to Zhan Zhao with a questioning look.

"Do as he says," Zhan Zhao nodded, and Ma Han turned and walked away.

With a thoughtful rub of his chin, Zhao Jue strolled over to Bai Yutang. "I'm hungry."

Bai Yutang looked at Zhan Zhao. Zhan Zhao pushed open the outer door of the interrogation room and gave Bai Yutang a nod—I want to talk to him alone for a bit too.

"Bai Chi," Bai Yutang patted Bai Chi's shoulder, "go to the cafeteria and buy something edible." With that, he walked over to sit on a chair by the interrogation room entrance, raising an eyebrow at Zhan Zhao—You two can chat all you want, but I'll guard the door. I certainly don't trust you staying alone with him for too long.

Looking slightly exasperated, Zhan Zhao stepped inside the room alongside Zhao Jue. As the heavy iron door clicked shut, Bai Chi shuffled over to Bai Yutang. "Big Brother, what do you want to eat?"

Bai Yutang arched an eyebrow. "A sandwich, loaded with thirteen spoonfuls of wasabi!"

"Are you trying to lose weight, Big Brother?" Bai Chi blinked.

Bai Yutang shot him a glare, prompting Bai Chi to scamper off immediately.

Through the one-way mirror of the interrogation room, Zhan Zhao and Zhao Jue stood side by side, looking at Jie Jie seated quietly inside.

The music had already begun to play, and Zhao Jue nodded approvingly. "Good choice of track. Your subordinate is quite sharp."

Zhan Zhao's eyes remained fixed on Jie Jie as he replied flatly, "He's not my subordinate; he's my colleague!"

"Heh..." Zhao Jue chuckled without commenting further.

"You'll handle this hypnosis session, and I'll assist," Zhan Zhao stated suddenly.

"Me?" Zhao Jue chuckled, amused. "Aren't you afraid I'll pull some tricks?"

"There are still some things I haven't figured out," Zhan Zhao said in a low voice. "And I don't know the exact extent of your capabilities, so I want to witness your strength firsthand. Besides, the fact that you're willing to help this time means you must have an agenda of your own. If your goal is simply to help Leonard fight for territory, that doesn't present any major issues."

Zhao Jue stared at Zhan Zhao for a beat before asking, "What if I'm on Taber's side?"

Frowning slightly, Zhan Zhao shook his head. "I don't think you'd lower yourself to helping Taber; that sounds far too lacking in taste. Besides, this operation carries certain risks because we're taking a shortcut, and taking shortcuts usually demands a price. But overall, at this stage, saving lives and curbing the escalation of this crisis take priority. Bai and I factored that fully into our decision, which is why we decided to ask for your help."

After a prolonged silence, Zhao Jue murmured to himself, "Perhaps the two of you really might find happiness after all."

Not understanding his implication, Zhan Zhao turned to look at him.

"As of right now, I am indeed helping Leonard," Zhao Jue let out a couple of chuckles. "Because he can also do me a huge favor."

After thinking for a moment, Zhan Zhao asked Zhao Jue, "What is your relationship with my old man?"

Zhao Jue paused, then muffled a chuckle behind his hand with a mischievous grin. "I'm not telling!"

As Bai Chi walked toward the elevator holding the sandwich Bai Yutang had ordered, he bumped into someone stepping out.

"Zhan... Uncle Zhan." Bai Chi greeted him with nervous trepidation.

Zhan Qi had seen Bai Chi two or three times before and gave a slight nod in acknowledgment.

Bai Chi's greatest fear in life was this specific type of ice-cold, elite-type elder. Standing together inside the elevator cabin, he felt as though he were about to be completely swallowed by the freezing aura radiating from the man beside him. Still, Bai Chi couldn't help stealing a cautious, sidelong glance to appraise him. No wonder Zhan Zhao is so handsome, he thought. His dad is a textbook handsome man... just a bit terrifying. And wow, he looks so young. Bai Chi stared blankly at Zhan Qi's hands resting by his sides, thinking, Such fair hands, and his skin looks so good—nothing like someone in his fifties at all.

"Not getting off?" Zhan Qi raised a hand to block the elevator doors, looking amusedly at the dazed Bai Chi standing inside.

"Ah!" Startled back to reality, Bai Chi realized the elevator had reached its destination long ago. Flushing crimson, he bolted out like a frightened rabbit.

Left alternating between laughter and exasperation, Zhan Qi thought to himself that this kid bore no resemblance to the Bai family whatsoever!

Stepping out of the elevator, Zhan Qi lingered in place for a moment, took a deep breath, and set off down the corridor.

Inside the interrogation room, Bai Chi handed the sandwich to Zhao Jue in accordance with Bai Yutang's instructions. Zhao Jue had just taken a happy bite when the door swung open and Zhan Qi walked in.

As their gazes met, an awkward tension fell over both men. Exchanging a watchful look, Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao observed their reactions—only to see Zhao Jue abruptly toss the sandwich aside, clutch his mouth, and throw himself straight into the arms of the approaching Zhan Qi, whining dramatically, "It's so spicy, Qi! It choked me to death..."

Zhan Qi froze stiffly in place, his face turning livid.

Bai Yutang arched an eyebrow at Zhan Zhao—See? Told you they have a deeply complicated history!

Zhan Zhao fumed inwardly—You dead rat, as if things weren't chaotic enough already!