Chapter 248: Chapter 209: The Gift
"Mr. Lu, did you have something for me today?" Yang Xiao tried to appear calm. He had brought his gun, as well as that drama robe.
"Training," Lu Youdao turned around, and under the dim light, his ghostly face twisted even more. "Didn’t Huang Qiang tell you?"
"Brother Huang is too busy; I think he must have forgotten." Yang Xiao tried to seem more relaxed, but he was certain that Lu Youdao’s visit boded ill.
No, he was the visitor.
Lu Youdao pushed open the first door—the same room where they had trained last time. The setup was the same, with dark red curtains hanging all around, and a ghost camera with a wooden box exterior placed in the center.
Lu Youdao took a piece of velvet from his pocket and slowly wiped the lens of the ghost camera, while Yang Xiao stood behind him.
Checking his phone, Yang Xiao glanced at it as if casually, then put it back in his pocket. His face betrayed nothing, but his heart was racing to the extreme. There was no signal on his phone; this hadn’t been the case last time, which meant Lu Youdao had blocked the signals here.
No way up to heaven, no way down to earth, Yang Xiao couldn’t help but think of this phrase.
"What have you been busy with lately?" Lu Youdao, with his back to Yang Xiao, suddenly asked.
"The tasks at the bureau aren’t too heavy. I’ve been mainly busy with training," Yang Xiao replied truthfully, seeing no need to hide this.
"Day and night in training, it must be hard on you," Lu Youdao’s hoarse voice gained a chilly edge.
In a heartbeat, Yang Xiao shivered. He smelled a hint of danger. More importantly, he realized something—his meeting with Fu Qingzhu the previous night must have been exposed. Lu Youdao was dropping a hint.
"Not really, I train during the day and most of my evenings are free. I meet friends, eat out, have some drinks. People aren’t machines; they need to relax and have fun."
"Old friends or new?"
"You could say a new friend, someone who joined me on my first nightmare mission. He helped me a lot during the mission, and I’ve always wanted to find a chance to thank him." Now that he was exposed, there was no point in hiding any longer. But how to speak and what to say—that was a matter of skill. He needed to give Lu Youdao the impression he had uncovered the truth himself, peeling back the layers.
"You are from the Patrol Defense Bureau; remember your status and be careful not to associate with unscrupulous people, lest you get burned."
"Hmm... he’s not unscrupulous. His name is Fu Qingzhu, from the Apostles Union. Director Nalan has met him too. We got to know each other after a bit of a fight."
"I know this man. The case at the North City Ancient Forest Mountain Range was his doing, right?" Lu Youdao slowly turned around, looking at Yang Xiao.
Members of the Patrol Defense Bureau weren’t seat-warmers. The fact that they could find out this information didn’t surprise Yang Xiao, but how to respond now was the real test.
Fortunately, Yang Xiao was a decent actor. His face remained calm, but his hands involuntarily clenched, and his breathing pattern was disrupted. "I don’t understand what you’re talking about. As far as I recall, the case at the Gulin Villa has been solved, and the criminal was shot to death in the chaos."
In departments like the Patrol Defense Bureau, which was quasi-military, betraying a friend was a big taboo. Yang Xiao wasn’t about to make such a mistake, plus he had good reasons to protect Fu Qingzhu.
Lu Youdao appraised Yang Xiao for a moment, then suddenly laughed. "Don’t be nervous. Fu Qingzhu isn’t one of us at the Patrol Defense Bureau, and besides, he only killed a few informants. It’s not a big deal."
Yang Xiao didn’t speak; this was tantamount to agreement.
"What did you two talk about when you met?"
Yang Xiao appeared hesitant, his gaze uncertain and occasionally evasive, while Lu Youdao’s stare grew sharper. "Captain Yang, I am willing to believe in your loyalty to the organization, but your behavior is indeed disappointing."
"I... I am guilty, I apologize for betraying the trust of the organization, for letting down Director Nalan’s nurturing," Yang Xiao suddenly deflated as he confessed, "I took benefits from Fu Qingzhu, 500,000 cash and... and..."
"And what?"
"There’s also a camera box, inside... there are three ghost photos." As if seeking redemption, Yang Xiao quickly rummaged through his backpack and pulled out a flat silver box, holding it out with both hands in front of Lu Youdao, "I confess, I surrender it!"
Seeing the silver box, Lu Youdao’s eyes flashed with surprise; apparently, he hadn’t known about Yang Xiao’s possession of such an item. "Do you know how you came to have this thing?"
Yang Xiao fell silent again; he absolutely would not say that Fu Qingzhu was connected to the murder of Sun Buhuan.
Seeing Yang Xiao fall silent once more, Lu Youdao sighed. "Well, I won’t make it hard for you. Aside from these things, did Fu Qingzhu say anything else to you?"
Yang Xiao was taken aback and blurted out, "He has other good stuff and didn’t share any with me?"
Lu Youdao was momentarily stunned, then seemed to relax. The wariness in his eyes slowly dispersed as he handed the photograph box back to Yang Xiao, "This is your possession, earned by your own abilities, keep it safe, you will definitely need it in the future."
"Thank you for the organization’s trust!"
"Captain Yang, you are a reliable person who doesn’t betray friends or gossip behind their backs. No wonder Nalan Shuo holds you in such high regard," Lu Youdao’s demeanor became unusually gentle, "The accident that happened here last time wasn’t revealed by you, which saved me a lot of trouble."
"I don’t like owing people favors. I have a gift I want to give you, which you will find very useful." Lu Youdao reached into his pocket with his left hand, which was missing half of its palm. After a moment, he pulled out a metal box the size of a liquor flask.
The box looked very old, its edges were accompanied by speckles of rust. When opened, inside was a delicate digital camera.
There was also a rope on the right side of the camera that could be tied around the wrist to prevent it from falling.
"This camera functions similarly to the Ghost Camera. Although its stability and imaging quality are not as good as the Ghost Camera’s, its portability far surpasses the latter and can be used in emergencies," Lu Youdao said, patting the wooden case of his Ghost Camera and comparing the advantages and disadvantages of the two.
"However, you need to be aware of something. The camera’s film is built-in and cannot be replaced. At full capacity, it can take 10 shots. I have already used it four times, so there are six shots left. Use them sparingly; at critical moments, they can save your life." Lu Youdao handed the camera, along with its box, to Yang Xiao.
For Yang Xiao, this was indeed a valuable item. In his view, the biggest downside of the Ghost Camera was its large size, making it inconvenient to carry.
Upon receiving the digital camera, the joy on Yang Xiao’s face was unmistakable, "Thank you, senior! I had no idea we had such treasures in the Patrol Defense Bureau!"
"It’s not standard issue from the Bureau. A friend gifted it to me a long time ago; it’s one of the original prototype machines made in very low quantities," said Lu Youdao with a hint of melancholy in his voice.
"I see," nodded Yang Xiao.
"Now I’ll show you how to use it; this camera operates differently from the Ghost Camera." Lu Youdao took the digital camera, stepped on the pedal under the Ghost Camera, and the next second, the dark red curtains covering the entire wall slowly pulled back, revealing a large glass dome and the classical high-backed chair inside.
This was also a Resentful Eye, with an invisible deformed clown ghost perched atop it.
Lu Youdao, holding the digital camera, gestured for Yang Xiao to approach the glass protective dome, "Go near the protective dome and observe the changes up close."
Soon, with his backpack on his shoulders and following Lu Youdao’s instructions, Yang Xiao stood next to the glass dome, only a step away from the bizarrely shaped high-backed chair.
Before Yang Xiao could react, a flash of white light passed by, and Lu Youdao quickly pressed the shutter without warning him.
Seeing Yang Xiao’s surprised look, Lu Youdao picked up the camera and calmly explained, "I didn’t take your picture, come take a look."
Yang Xiao moved closer and stared at the digital screen on the back of the camera. Indeed, the image didn’t include him, just the high-backed chair separated by the glass dome, with the terrifyingly deformed clown ghost appearing on it.
The clown ghost was motionless, seemingly asleep on the chair.
Apart from the poor imaging quality and the rather blurry picture, everything else looked quite similar to the photos taken by the Ghost Camera.
Under Lu Youdao’s guidance, Yang Xiao quickly learned how to operate the digital camera. He did not intend to take another test shot, as each use consumed one of the limited number of shots left, especially since Lu Youdao had just used one.
After explaining the camera, Lu Youdao sent Yang Xiao on his way. As the training room’s iron door opened, Yang Xiao felt like he was coming back to life.
"Captain Yang, don’t share anything about this camera," Lu Youdao warned in a low voice, standing inside the door.
"I understand, senior, don’t worry."
"Furthermore, that Fu Qingzhu is a member of the Apostles Union. Try to limit your contact with him in the future; the man is very scheming, be careful not to be harmed by him."
"Thank you for the warning, senior!"
With the metal box of the digital camera slung around his neck and a backpack containing the Drama Robe on his back, a pistol tucked into his waist, Yang Xiao felt a sense of security.
After seeing Yang Xiao off, Lu Youdao closed the iron door, moved to a metal box similar to an electrical panel nearby, entered a password, and soon, the signal jamming was lifted.
Pulling out his cell phone, Lu Youdao leaned against the wall and dialed a number. After a moment, the call connected, and his raspy voice sounded unnervingly calm, "Yang Xiao isn’t a problem. The strength of the Resentful Eye he possesses is not as great as we anticipated, at least not enough to threaten or awaken the malevolent clown ghost."
After a pause, Lu Youdao took a deep breath and continued, "Also, the Resentful Eye lost by the Qi Family isn’t with him. If it were, given its power, the malevolent clown would surely be roused. Our investigation into Yang Xiao can be concluded for now."
Having said that, Lu Youdao hung up the phone. On the other end, not a word had been spoken throughout the call, only the faint sound of breathing confirmed that someone had been listening.
