S.C.I. (Volume II) - Case 6: Chapter 7

The Innocent Killer 07 - The Grand Feast

At seven-thirty in the evening, cars pulled up one after another in front of S City's International Hotel. Unlike the large-scale parties or salons held in the past, most of the vehicles parked at the entrance tonight were police cars, and the people stepping out of them lacked any celebrity air, some even looking quite modest. Of course, a few dazzling public figures were mixed in during this time, but they were relatively low-profile compared to their usual eye-catching selves.

There were no reporters at the main entrance, no red carpet, and only parking valets were continuously busy at work.

Bao Zheng's car pulled up to the building. After getting out, he glanced around and didn't see Bai Yutang's conspicuous sports car. His brow twitched, and as he checked his watch—one minute shy of seven-thirty—he gritted his teeth, muttering, "Brat!"

"Chief Bao, they're here," Lu Fang pointed toward the rear.

Bao Zheng turned back and saw four cars approaching from a distance, the lead vehicle being Bai Yutang's Spyker C8. He frowned, "Why do they arrive at a banquet like they're heading out on a mission?"

Lu Fang couldn't help laughing.

By this time, other guests had arrived successively. Quite a few people were drawn to Bai Yutang's car, thinking some celebrity had arrived, and stopped to watch.

The car doors opened, and the people inside stepped out...

"Hah~~" Bao Zheng clearly heard a chorus of intakeed breaths.

Lu Fang covered his mouth, smiling, and whispered to Bao Zheng, "Chief Bao, did you know? Whenever SI goes out on a mission, girls always gather around to watch."

Bao Zheng felt his eyelid twitch again.

The SI members who stepped out of the cars were indeed quite a sight. Several guests were whispering among themselves, asking who they were, and upon learning it was the renowned SI, they were all astonished and secretly praised them, remarking that they truly possessed both talent and looks.

Among this crowd of "looks," the most eye-catching were naturally Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao, who stepped out from the leading vehicle...

Bai Yutang was still wearing that timeless white suit of his, which Mother Bai had specially prepared for him to wear to wedding banquets. Because of his severe germophobia, Bai Yutang wore strictly white apparel. Among his suits, he only owned two: this white one, worn to attend happy occasions, and his sole black suit, reserved for funerals. Usually, Bai Yutang preferred white sweaters, white jackets, and white trench coats, keeping things as understated as possible. It was just that white was a bit too blinding, but color was merely supplementary; the core of the issue still stemmed from his excessively striking face and exceptional physique. When a man possessed the kind of irresistible charm that women found hard to resist, wearing all white meant he was simply destined to play the role of Prince Charming! Zhan Zhao glanced sideways at Bai Yutang, who was practically twinkling with a "pikapika" aura, and muttered under his breath, "Damn rat."

Actually, while cursing Bai Yutang, Zhan Zhao completely failed to notice that half of the gazes here were fixed right on him. An indigo blue suit was Zhan Zhao's most frequently worn outfit... Scholars generally liked wearing suits, but Zhan Zhao had a somewhat "ulterior" purpose for wearing them: suits made him look a bit more "sturdy"... When wearing a sweater or stripping the suit away to just a shirt, he looked just like a handsome college student—elegant and scholarly—with the crucial addition of a face that made everyone who saw him swoon, easily causing crowds and commotions.

Compared to Bai Yutang's flamboyant appearance, Zhan Zhao came across as much softer. Simply put, Bai Yutang's handsomeness might make people feel a sense of threat—women loved it, but men standing beside him usually felt uncomfortable—whereas Zhan Zhao was the standard crowd-pleaser, appealing to all ages and genders alike.

Stepping out of the car behind them were Gongsun, Bai Chi, and Jiang Ping.

Because Jiang Ping had been a homebody for too long, his presence was extremely faint and can be overlooked here. Behind him, the cold elegance exuding from Gongsun contrasted sharply with Bai Chi's cuteness, creating a striking sense of contrast.

In the words of the Ding twins, a person like Gongsun could fascinate men and infuriate women; he possessed a poison-like attraction toward men, which was precisely why he was constantly chased by so many headless flies, driving Bai Jingtang into a state of high alert and prompting him to hire a horde of bodyguards to watch him like a hawk.

Bai Chi was the type older folks tended to adore. However, the suit he wore tonight felt genuinely awkward on him, giving the impression of a child desperately trying to dress up as an adult—far from looking even half mature, he only appeared increasingly adorable.

In the car behind them were Ma Han, Zhao Hu, and A Luo. The reason SI was S City Bureau's star unit, aside from having leaders blessed with exceptional looks, was that the various team members were also quite a sight to behold.

Ma Han was the cool, tough type, probably related to his past stint as a sniper, and he was also a type women loved.

Zhao Hu was the sunny type, feeling very approachable and easy to bully, always wearing a smile on his face.

A Luo was a newer addition to SI. Unlike the maturity of the others, which made them more charming, his personality was exceptionally gentle, especially given his memory loss, the arrival of Yangyang, and his gratitude toward the entire SI. Yet, hidden within this gentleness was a sense of vicissitude brought by time, making him feel particularly alluring. However, A Luo was absent-minded; because he worried about leaving Yangyang home alone, he had entrusted his precious boy to Bai Chi to take home as a companion for Risotto. He wondered if Yangyang was behaving and doing his homework, what he had eaten for dinner, whether he had eaten any candy before bed, and if he had brushed his teeth.

In the rearmost car were Zhang Long, Wang Chao, and Xu Qing.

Zhang Long belonged to the least police-like among all the police officers; he usually looked somewhat roguish, and his personality was very quick-witted.

Wang Chao's appearance was very ordinary and common, the type who wouldn't stand out if thrown into a crowd, though definitely not ugly.

Xu Qing was taller and much sturdier, somewhat unkempt and looking quite wild.

In short, when this line of people stood outside, they could definitely give people a brightly dazzling feeling. Take your pick—there was bound to be a style that suited you.

"Young Master Bai," the parking valet recognized Bai Yutang, greeted him quickly, and guided the entire group up via the private elevator.

This special treatment only fueled even more speculation among the crowd regarding their identities.

Bao Zheng shook his head, but looking at the older, more ordinary image of the general public police officers, he still felt that bringing this bunch of brats along was the right choice—it was a matter of the police department's dignity and face.

The special elevator was wide and spacious. Everyone praised it, agreeing it lived up to a six-star hotel as the elevator carried them straight to the top floor. The doors opened, and as they stepped out, Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao saw the familiar grand hall, though the decor had been completely renovated, and reportedly, ever since the previous incident, the hotel had replaced all of its glass with bulletproof panes.

Zhan Zhao leaned over and lowered his voice to ask Bai Yutang, "Bai, how much wealth do you think Big Brother has in total?"

Bai Yutang thought for a moment and replied in a hushed tone, "Who knows? You'd have to ask Gongsun. For all we know, Big Brother might have surrendered all his finances over."

As expected, he received a fierce, scathing side-eye thrown by Gongsun, causing the two young men to quickly hold back their smiles and shut up.

The numerous guests in the hall were gathered in groups of three or five, laughing and chatting. Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao swept their gazes across the room but didn't spot Bai Jingtang, wondering silently if he hadn't returned yet.

Just as they walked into the hall, someone shouted, "Tiger!"

Zhao Hu shrank his neck instinctively and turned around trembling, only to see Qile running toward him. With a gut reaction to lift his legs and run, he was yanked back by Ma Han beside him, failing to escape and getting caught red-handed by Qile.

"Why aren't you answering my calls?!" Qile demanded fiercely.

Zhao Hu gave an awkward laugh and scratched his head. "Um... things were busy these past few days."

Tonight, Qile wore a sharp black pantsuit, looking full of energy. After glaring fiercely at Zhao Hu, she smiled and greeted Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao.

Both Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao felt a sense of gratification. Their fate with Qile could be said to have started right in this very hall; in their mind's eye, they still saw the female student from half a year ago wearing heavy smoky eye makeup, looking haggard to the bone and suffering deeply from drug addiction. But now, the young girl before them was already a famous rock band lead singer with a massive following. Her drug addiction had long since been broken, and she radiated vibrance and youthful energy. What was even rarer was that Qile made no attempt to hide her past, openly admitting that she used to be an addict and was now clean. She and her band dedicated almost all of their energy outside of singing to charitable causes, engaging in all kinds of anti-drug awareness campaigns and encouraging misguided youths to start over. Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang often thought this girl was truly remarkable. The funniest part was that Qile frequently claimed she had a boyfriend who was a cop, someone who had saved her life, and she swore she would never marry anyone else in this lifetime. Zhao Hu had definitely treated Qile purely like a little sister at first, but after being hounded relentlessly and worn down by the young lady until he suffered endlessly, he finally fell for her.

Qile pulled Zhao Hu aside to go see Chen Yu and the others, and the group chatted animatedly in murmurs.

The rest of the SI members also scattered. Xu Qing, Jiang Ping, and the others walked over to the windows to chat with old acquaintances, while A Luo seized the opportunity to run into the hallway to call Yangyang.

Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao each held a glass of champagne handed to them by a waiter when Ma Han suddenly murmured, "Boss, look who that is."

Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao followed Ma Han's gaze and froze. In the crowd not far away, a flamboyant woman stood out. Although meticulously styled, her advanced age was still discernible. She wore an opulent evening gown and expensive jewelry, making her look quite dignified and poised. However, what attracted Bai Yutang and their attention wasn't this woman, but the man arm-in-arm with her—dressed in a pristine white suit—Fang Wo!

Bai Yutang frowned. Fang Wo had suddenly vanished not long ago, and the people dispatched to trail him had lost his tracks. Just as the team was racking their brains without a clue, they never expected him to show up here.

"What, do you have a preference for older women?" A clear, bright female voice sounded from behind them, causing Ma Han's scalp to tingle.

"What's so interesting to look at?" Behind him, a pretty woman in a purple gown walked up and linked her arm through Ma Han's. "Am I not better-looking than her?"

Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao tactfully held their champagne glasses and slipped off to the side.

Ma Han looked somewhat helpless at Chen Jiayi, who was smiling beside him. "Why are you here?"

"Heh heh," Chen Jiayi laughed cheerfully. "I knew you were here, you see. What were you looking at? Is that person a suspect of yours?"

Ma Han raised an eyebrow slightly and asked Chen Jiayi, "You know that guy?"

Chen Jiayi took a look and said, "The woman is the initiator of tonight's party, the president of Yan Corporation, Yan Li."

"And the man beside her?" Ma Han asked.

"I have no idea," Chen Jiayi shook her head, then thought for a moment and added, "Though word has it that tonight Yan Li is getting engaged to her boyfriend, whose name has finally been cleared after a grave injustice."

"What?" Ma Han was startled.

"Why are you so nervous?" Chen Jiayi glared. "Yan Li is old enough to be your mother, her daughter is already eighteen!"

Ma Han sighed, "I wasn't—"

"Come on, you're not allowed to look." Chen Jiayi pulled her arm back and dragged Ma Han away.

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang, standing not far away, had heard the entire conversation between the two and exchanged puzzled glances. A boyfriend whose name was cleared after a grave injustice... wasn't that Fang Wo? Why on earth was Fang Wo getting engaged to Yan Li tonight?

"No wonder so many people wanted to rescue Fang Wo," Gongsun stepped forward from the side and said, "With Yan Li's clout, she could naturally find plenty of experts to help him and even mobilize the media."

"Zhao Zhen is here too," Bai Yutang suddenly raised his glass and pointed toward the direction of the elevators.

Bai Chi looked over and saw Zhao Zhen strolling leisurely out of the elevator as usual. After entering the hall, he looked around left and right, seemingly searching for someone.

"Haven't seen him in days..." Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao both frowned, asking Bai Chi, "How come Zhao Zhen looks like he's lost a lot of weight, Chichi? Are you abusing him?"

Bai Chi glared. "No way, I feed him feasts of fish and meat every single day. He's been preparing for a new performance lately."

"That's right," Zhan Zhao suddenly said, "I watched a compilation video of Zhao Zhen's magic tricks online a while ago... That trick where he throws himself into a meat grinder is truly insane!"

"And the one where he walks vertically down a glass window from the thirty-sixth floor," Bai Yutang added. "How does he even do that?"

Bai Chi shook his head and said with a hint of awkwardness, "I have no idea. I never dare to watch his magic performances."

As they spoke, Zhao Zhen's gaze landed on the group, but instead of walking over immediately, he stared blankly at Bai Chi—who was dressed in a suit—for a moment, then leaned against the wall and started laughing.

Bai Chi's face flushed crimson. He knew full well how bizarre he looked in a suit, but Zhao Zhen didn't have to laugh quite like this, did he?!

After laughing heartily for a moment, Zhao Zhen walked over leisurely with his hands shoved in his pockets. Being a big celebrity, quite a few people recognized him, and a wave of eager gazes followed him.

Zhao Zhen easily weaved through the crowd, came up to Bai Chi and the others, nodded at Zhan Zhao, Bai Yutang, and Gongsun as a greeting, and then pulled Bai Chi into a sideways hug, laughing, "Chichi, do children's clothing stores sell suits these days?"

Bai Chi's face darkened as he watched the other three struggle to hold back their laughs, turning their faces away.

Clenching his teeth, Bai Chi glared at Zhao Zhen and demanded viciously, "Why are you here?!"

Zhao Zhen reached out and pointed at Yan Li not far away. "Didn't I tell you? I'm performing for her entertainment complex this time."

"She... she's so old, though," Bai Chi suddenly breathed a sigh of relief, turning back to glare at Zhao Zhen. "And you said she was staring at you and drooling?!"

Hearing that, Zhao Zhen was startled for a moment before bursting into laughter again. "You're still holding a grudge."

Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao exchanged glances. Ever since just now, they had a strong feeling that after losing weight, Zhao Zhen's facial contours were beginning to look more and more like Zhao Jue's, especially when he smiled.

"What happened to your hand?" Bai Chi suddenly fixed his gaze on Zhao Zhen's wrist. When Zhao Zhen raised his hand to look, Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao also frowned—those were clear rope-bound marks.

"Got hurt during practice earlier," Zhao Zhen dismissed it casually and gave Bai Chi a tug. "Let's go grab something to eat, I'm starving."

"You still haven't eaten this late?!" Bai Chi angrily pulled Zhao Zhen off to the side to get food.

Before long, the only luminaries left standing in place from SI were Bai Yutang, Zhan Zhao, and Gongsun, and naturally, the topic of conversation was Fang Wo.

A little while later, the hall grew more and more crowded, drawing many high-ranking figures from the political and business circles. Bao Zheng lived up to his title as Chief, with numerous people coming over to shake his hand and greet him. Bai Yutang asked Zhan Zhao with a smile, "Cat, doesn't tonight look just like Chief Bao's wedding banquet?"

Zhan Zhao chuckled and shot Bai Yutang a sidelong glance. "You've got a lot of nerve. If he hears you, he'll have you cleaning toilets tomorrow..." Before he could finish, he froze. Bai Yutang beside him froze as well, watching as the elevator doors opened to reveal two men stepping out... Bai Yunwen and Zhan Qi.

The two of them immediately executed about-faces on the spot. Bai Yutang asked nervously, "Why would the old men be here?"

"How should I know? Your old man is at least a bit easygoing; my old man has never attended parties like this," Zhan Zhao whispered back, feeling even more nervous. As the two murmured, they heard Gongsun give a gentle cough. Startled, they felt a chill rise up their backs. Turning around, they saw both of their fathers standing right behind them.

"Dad, Uncle," the two boys greeted obediently.

"Mm," the two elders nodded, and after the four of them stared at each other in large-versus-small eye contact for a moment, the two fathers turned away to greet and chat with other people.

Bai Yutang pulled Zhan Zhao back into a corner. The more they thought about it, the more suspicious and baffled they felt.

Gongsun shook his head and asked, "How long has it been since either of you went home?"

Zhan Zhao blinked. "Um... probably three or four months? How about you, Bai?"

Bai Yutang wore a mournful expression. "About the same." The two immediately understood—their fathers had used this opportunity to come check up on their two unfilial sons who never came home.

Gongsun couldn't help laughing. These two kids had standard happy family backgrounds and never lacked care and pampering, which was why despite being so mature and independent in their careers, they still acted like children in front of their families—truly an enviable life.

"What a coincidence," a female voice echoed from behind. Gongsun turned around, and Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao curiously looked over as well, seeing a stylish, sexy woman standing right before the three of them.

Gongsun felt his temples throb with a sharp ache. Standing right in front of him was none other than the "most important woman to Jingtang" who had come looking for trouble at the cafe outside the police station two days ago.

"I heard tonight's guests are police elites," the woman asked Gongsun with a cold chuckle. "You don't seem to be a cop, though?"

Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao exchanged glances, both looking slightly surprised.

Bai Yutang signaled Zhan Zhao with his eyes—Who is she?

Zhan Zhao frowned slightly—Never seen her.

Bai Yutang looked upward—Seems hostile toward Gongsun.

Zhan Zhao looked downward—Could she be an ex-girlfriend?

Bai Yutang widened his eyes—No way? Won't Big Brother blow his top?

Zhan Zhao narrowed his eyes—Good thing Big Brother isn't here tonight.

"Do you need me to send someone to drive you back?" the woman asked with a hint of smugness. "I consider myself half a host here."

Gongsun sighed helplessly, deciding it was wisest not to pick a fight with this woman. He took a sip of his drink, puckered his lips toward the direction where Bai Yunwen was standing, and smiled at her, "Elder Bai is over there."

The woman's expression turned icy in an instant.

Bai Yutang looked puzzled—Cat, isn't Elder Bai just the old man? Does she know him?

Zhan Zhao was equally baffled—Could she be a friend of your dad's? But why would a friend of your dad's hold a grudge against Gongsun?

The woman stared at Gongsun for a moment, reached out to snatch a glass of champagne from a passing waiter, and sneered, "Let's see who's going to block it for you this time!" With that, she raised her hand and hurled a glass of wine straight at Gongsun's face.

Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao both gasped in alarm. Right at that moment, a figure suddenly flashed beside them, and a man abruptly blocked the way in front of Gongsun. Gongsun raised his head and caught sight of a familiar back... The woman looked even more dumbfounded, hurriedly lowering her glass in a panic, "Jingtang..."

Bai Jingtang stood in front of Gongsun with a cold face, lowered his head to glance at the wine slowly dripping down his chest, and lightly brushed it off. He raised his eyes to look at the woman before him, his expressionless face showing a trace of faint annoyance.

The woman instantly turned pale as her eyes welled up with tears.

Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao behind him dropped their jaws, trading glances and discovering that each other's eyes were likewise filled with excitement—Whoa! So dramatic, so full of twists and turns!