S.C.I. (Volume II) - Case 6: Chapter 24

The Innocent Killer 24 - Flushing Out the Snake

At night, along the country road, a cool breeze blew. On both sides of the fields, the scent of green grass mixed with wild flowers filled the air, insects chirped incessantly, and stars twinkled in the sky.

"Cat... your dad really knows how to cook. No wonder he raised you to be such a picky eater." Carrying Zhan Zhao on his back, Bai Yutang praised as they walked.

"That goes without saying." Zhan Zhao slumped over Bai Yutang's back, holding a toothpick in one hand while resting his chin on Bai Yutang's shoulder, using one hand to steady his chin and the other to pick his teeth. "It's so far. Where did you park the car?"

"Down the mountain," Bai Yutang said helplessly. "If I parked too close, I was afraid your dad would find out."

"Even if it's far, it's still going to be discovered." Zhan Zhao poked him with the toothpick, poke, poke, poke. "You might as well have parked closer."

"I'm carrying you, and I'm not even tired. What are you complaining about?"

"Hmph, you're too slow."

"Ouch, you poked my gum!"

"Serves you right!"

"You damn cat—"

"Giddyup!"

...

After bickering all the way, the two finally made it into the car. Bai Yutang started the engine and asked, "Cat, where to first? Are we going to interrogate that pair of crab father and son?"

"Hmm..." Zhan Zhao rubbed his chin. "It's too late now. We can only go question that father and son, and leave everything else for tomorrow morning."

"Are we still taking you back there afterwards?" Bai Yutang asked, his eyes lighting up at the prospect.

"Who wants to go back?!" Zhan Zhao glared at Bai Yutang. "I'm going home."

Hearing this, Bai Yutang beamed from ear to ear, stepped on the gas, and drove toward the hospital.

Pang Qing and Pang Ji were both severely injured and staying in the intensive care unit. Zhan Zhao couldn't help silently sighing... The Bai brothers certainly didn't hold back when they struck.

The police officer on duty opened the door to let Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao in. Zhan Zhao refused to let Bai Yutang carry him on his back, asking only for support as he walked.

Inside the ward, Pang Ji was still hooked up to a respirator, while Pang Qing sat blankly against the headboard. Lifting his gaze to see the two enter, he didn't say a word.

Zhan Zhao watched the two of them for a moment, then asked Pang Qing, "How are your injuries?"

Pang Qing let out a cold laugh. "Spare me the cat crying over a dead mouse and pretending to be merciful."

Bai Yutang remained unimpressed. "You just don't know any better. When a cat cries over a mouse, it's genuinely heartbroken!"

Zhan Zhao shot him a withering, vicious glare—you still have the mood to mess around?!

Bai Yutang raised an eyebrow—I was telling the truth!

Zhan Zhao glared at him again, warning him not to spout nonsense, before turning back to Pang Qing. "I can understand your desire to get revenge, but you'd better use your own brain and stop letting yourselves be used as someone else's chess pieces."

"What do you mean?" Pang Qing raised his head, his eyes full of suspicion.

"You know full well what I mean." Zhan Zhao smiled slightly. "Otherwise, how do you think Pang Xiaoqin actually died?"

Pang Qing furrowed his brows, seemingly deep in thought, his face shifting through a kaleidoscope of expressions.

Satisfied, Zhan Zhao nodded at Bai Yutang. "Let's head back."

Bai Yutang looked somewhat surprised, staring at Zhan Zhao with a raised eyebrow as if asking—we're done questioning them?

Zhan Zhao smiled slightly—we're done!

Bai Yutang frowned—where is the important part?

Zhan Zhao gave a mysterious grin—I'm not telling you!

Helplessly, Bai Yutang still supported Zhan Zhao out of the ward and back into the car. Once inside, Bai Yutang asked, "Cat, what kind of medicine are you selling in your gourd?"

Zhan Zhao smiled mysteriously. "Bai, do you have a listening device in your car?"

"Huh?" Bai Yutang was startled, then laughed. "Cat, what do you want with shady stuff like that?"

"Go find one!" Zhan Zhao smiled. "I have a use for it."

Bai Yutang sighed and called Jiang Ping. Sure enough, Jiang Ping had one on hand, so the two drove back to the police station to pick it up. After grabbing the wiretap from downstairs, Bai Yutang asked Zhan Zhao, "Where are we going to use it?"

Zhan Zhao smiled: "The editorial office on South Street!"

"You mean your editor's place?" Bai Yutang was taken aback. "Cat, does this have something to do with your editor?"

"Qian Mingyue is a rather strange person," Zhan Zhao said. "Don't you think she's a bit too enthusiastic about making me famous? If it were just about sales, my books are already bestsellers, and maintaining a sense of mystery is a good thing anyway. Is there really any need to be this earnest?"

Bai Yutang thought about it. "That's true... But she doesn't seem directly connected to this case... Ah!"

Realization dawning on him, Bai Yutang looked at Zhan Zhao. "Someone is coercing her!"

Zhan Zhao raised an eyebrow. "This woman is quite capable and doesn't look like the type to let herself be manipulated at will. Therefore, I'm more inclined to believe someone is threatening her!"

"So, once she accomplishes her goal, she's bound to report back to that person." Bai Yutang nodded. "Not bad, Cat. No wonder you wanted a wiretap."

"I also had Jiang Ping monitor Qian Mingyue's phone," Zhan Zhao smiled. "As long as she's in play, we're bound to make some headway this time!"

Driving along, Bai Yutang asked, "Then how do you plan to make her take the bait? You're not actually going to hold some kind of book signing, are you?"

"Of course not." Zhan Zhao smiled cunningly. "Don't I have a ready-made option? I want to meet the members of my fan club!"

"Oh..." Bai Yutang nodded. "Sneaky cat!"

Arriving downstairs at the South Street Publishing House, Zhan Zhao leaned out to look up. Sure enough, the windows were brightly lit.

"This Qian Mingyue really seems to love working overtime," Bai Yutang remarked.

Zhan Zhao unbuckled his seatbelt and got out of the car. "I heard she's the president of this publishing house. Since she's working for herself, of course she goes all out."

The two went upstairs and found the editorial office door half-open. Through the crack, they saw Qian Mingyue buried in proofreading manuscripts, though for some reason, she looked utterly exhausted.

Zhan Zhao knocked lightly on the door and pushed it open.

Even though they had knocked first, their entrance still startled Qian Mingyue. When she saw clearly that it was Zhan Zhao, a smile touched her face, but the moment she noticed Bai Yutang trailing right behind him, her complexion paled a fraction—she probably still remembered the last time Bai Yutang came looking for her. Seeing her expression change so richly in a split second, Bai Yutang couldn't help a dry chuckle.

"Zhan..." Qian Mingyue hastily stood up with a smile. Spotting Zhan Zhao being supported by Bai Yutang, she looked surprised. "Oh, what happened to your foot?"

"It's nothing," Zhan Zhao smiled. "Just sustained a minor injury."

"How can you be so careless." Qian Mingyue hurried over to pull up a stool for Zhan Zhao to sit on, chattering as she went, "Aren't you in an administrative role? Is desk work even that dangerous?"

Zhan Zhao smiled as he sat down, while Qian Mingyue busied herself offering Bai Yutang a seat before rushing off to pour some tea.

"Right, what brings you here so late... Is something the matter?" Qian Mingyue asked cautiously, casting a sidelong glance at Bai Yutang.

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang exchanged glances—Qian Mingyue seemed exceptionally terrified of Bai Yutang, and it probably wasn't just because of their previous encounter.

"Oh, we just happened to be passing by and saw the lights on in your office, so we thought we'd drop by to discuss something with you." Zhan Zhao's smile was as relaxed as he could make it, and Qian Mingyue seemed to slowly relax as well, asking, "Oh? What is it?"

"I want to hold a fan meeting," Zhan Zhao said.

With a loud clatter, the cup in Qian Mingyue's hand slipped and shattered, and scalding water splashed onto her hand, making her jump in surprise.

"A... A fan meeting?" Qian Mingyue was both shocked and delighted. "Really?"

"That's right," Zhan Zhao nodded. "Is there a problem?"

"Oh, no, I just meant... you were always reluctant before, but now, all of a sudden..." Qian Mingyue clearly harbored some doubt.

"Of course it's not for profit," Zhan Zhao said. "It's just that I can't handle official duties right now anyway, and since I'm idle with nothing to do, I wanted to meet a few readers face-to-face... You can handpick the attendees, keep the group small—a dozen or twenty people will be enough. However, we cannot notify the media!"

"Gou... Good, good!" Qian Mingyue nodded frantically. Both Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao saw the unconcealed joy beaming across her face crystal clear.

"Then we won't disturb you any longer." Bai Yutang helped Zhan Zhao to his feet while helping Qian Mingyue nudge the stools out of the way, adding, "We'll take our leave."

"Ah, won't you stay for a cup of water before leaving?" Though Qian Mingyue offered polite hospitality with her words, she had already set down her cup and was practically herding them toward the door. Both Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang understood implicitly—Qian Mingyue was truly in a rush.

Without lingering any longer, the two bid farewell and left.

As she escorted them to the stairwell, Qian Mingyue suddenly called out, "Zhan."

"Hmm?" Zhan Zhao turned back, looking up at Qian Mingyue near the top of the stairs.

"Um..." Qian Mingyue offered a faint smile and lowered her voice to advise, "Be careful."

Zhan Zhao nodded and let Bai Yutang support him down the stairs.

Once downstairs, they got into the car and drove off. As they rounded the corner, Zhan Zhao clearly saw Qian Mingyue watching them leave from the window.

The car stopped just around the corner. Bai Yutang pulled out the walkie-talkie connected to the wiretap, turned up the volume, and waited.

Sure enough, the moment Qian Mingyue watched them leave and retreated back into the room, her breathing turned heavy. After pacing around in circles for a bit, she muttered to herself, "Great, thank heavens, thank heavens..."

Then she whipped out her phone and began dialing.

Jiang Ping had been standing guard in his office all along. The moment the phone showed activity, he immediately began tracing it.

"Hello... It's me." Qian Mingyue's voice crackled through the wiretap. "He... he wants to hold a fan meeting!"

"Yes... really, I'm not lying to you!"

"Huh? Notify the media?" Qian Mingyue sounded somewhat troubled. "He won't allow that..."

"Alright, alright, don't rush me, I'll do it... But you have to give me the stuff!"

"Okay... Okay!" With that, she hung up the phone.

After a brief silence, Qian Mingyue whispered to herself, "Zhan, don't blame me. For you, it's just getting some exposure, and it's not a bad thing anyway. But for me, it's a matter of life and death!"

With that, she took out her phone again and began calling television stations and news magazines.

Bai Yutang put down the walkie-talkie and looked at Zhan Zhao. "This woman really has problems."

Zhan Zhao nodded, his mind still replaying Qian Mingyue's warning of "be careful." Regardless of anything else, those words had been sincere; Qian Mingyue was forced into everything she did, so she couldn't entirely be blamed.

The moment Bai Yutang caught Zhan Zhao's expression, he knew the other man's sympathies were acting up again. He reached out to pinch Zhan Zhao's cheek. "Don't go feeling sorry for her either. Who knows what illegal activities Qian Mingyue has gotten herself into? The fact that she's so terrified of me means it can't be anything lawful."

Zhan Zhao looked at him with a helpless expression. "Right, you're the great and powerful Cat Man Inspector!"

"The Cat Man Inspector is you." Smiling, Bai Yutang leaned in close, right about to steal a kiss, when his phone rang. Seeing it was Jiang Ping, he hurriedly answered.

"Jiang Ping, how's it going?" Bai Yutang demanded the moment he picked up.

"Traced it," Jiang Ping reported. "The call was made from a mobile phone. The ID card number used to register the phone number has been verified—it belongs to An Lingli."

"What?" Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao were both utterly stunned.

Jiang Ping continued, "Chief, please don't make me pull stunts like this in the middle of the night anymore. When I saw the name An Lingli pop up just now, my hair stood on end. If Ma Han and Zhao Hu hadn't been on duty in the lounge, I probably would have bolted in terror."

"Look at how easily spooked you are." Bai Yutang shook his head, holding the phone out toward Zhan Zhao. "Cat, any other instructions?"

Zhan Zhao spoke into the phone: "Jiang Ping, can you trace the location where An Lingli's phone received calls?"

Jiang Ping replied, "Yes, the location is around the university district."

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang exchanged glances—just as expected.

"And," Bai Yutang added, "You've tracked the locations An Lingli called afterward, right?"

"Tracked them," Jiang Ping answered. "They were all TV stations and newspaper offices."

"Have Lu Fang notify them one by one in the name of the police," Zhan Zhao instructed. "Tell them Zhan Zhao's fan meeting has been canceled and no reports are to be made. Make sure they cooperate and drop the matter entirely!"

"Understood." Jiang Ping hung up the phone and immediately set to work carrying out Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang's orders.

"Cat, what now?" Bai Yutang asked.

Zhan Zhao yawned. "What else? Go home and sleep, of course. Tomorrow morning, bright and early, we're going to dig into Uncle An's background!"

"His background?" Bai Yutang was puzzled. "Cat, at worst Uncle An concealed the fact that his wife went crazy a long time ago. What else could there be? Why are you so keen on digging up his dirt?"

Zhan Zhao thought for a moment before saying, "If my hypothesis is correct... Uncle An is hiding a massive secret!"