Chapter 135: 135: Touch my people, you’re looking for a beating! (One more 2)
The person hadn’t come in yet. Outside, Qiao Nanchu glanced through the door.
The wind was really strong.
He strode back, put on a jacket, and then came out, “Why did you come up here?”
It was his ex-girlfriend, someone somewhat familiar.
“Just happened to be passing by this area,” Zhang Zixi replied, carrying a canvas bag with her hair tied in a ponytail, looking like a student just out of school, “I still owe you for the rear-end collision repair, and since you never came looking for me, I took the liberty of stopping by.”
He said, “I forgot.”
...
The response was very perfunctory.
Same old, same old. He was like this five years ago too.
“Have you been very busy recently?” she asked casually.
His reply was precious, “Busy.”
She smiled, the dimples on her cheeks shallow, “Aren’t you going to invite me in to sit?”
“Just instant coffee, want some?”
She nodded.
Qiao Nanchu turned to push the door open, entered first, and Zhang Zixi followed behind him.
Not bothering to hold the door or wait for the lady. Utterly graceless. The above musings stemmed from a gossipy heart hiding in all directions, peering from the shadows.
Qiao Nanchu made a cup of instant coffee and placed it on the table, “Did you come back to the country for work?”
The question was like catching up with an old friend.
Just that the setting wasn’t quite right; he hadn’t invited her into his office but had pulled out a chair for Zhang Zixi in the shared pantry outside instead.
She sat down, not at all bothered by the curious glances of the Criminal Intelligence Department colleagues ‘accidentally passing by, “A bit of both, official and personal matters.”
“Still staying at the old place?”
“Yeah.”
After that, he didn’t speak anymore and almost finished his coffee.
The instant coffee was very sweet.
Zhang Zixi didn’t like sweets, but he probably didn’t remember. He had forgotten even five years ago. She set down her cup, “Aren’t you going to say something?”
“Say what?” He actually thought it over for a moment and then came up with a change of topic, “That Wang or was it Li, are you still with him?”
Both were wrong. The man she cheated on him with years ago was surnamed Xu, something he never remembered.
Zhang Zixi shook her head, the look of loss in her eyes fleeting before she said with an air of nonchalance, “We were never together.”
“Oh, is that so?”
After that, Qiao Nanchu fell silent again.
A little while later, he stood up and made himself another cup of coffee.
Zhang Zixi picked up her bag, “May I use the bathroom?”
He tilted his chin, pointing the way, “Straight down, then a left turn.”
No sooner had she left her seat than Li Xiaodong came in with a cup, pretending to fill it up with water and casually greeted, “Who was that, Captain Qiao?”
“Ex-girlfriend.”
“…”
Talk about explosive news!
Just as Li Xiaodong was about to dig for more gossip, Qiao Nanchu held up his hand to stop him, taking a call from Vice Captain Xing of the Criminal Investigation Team.
“Another case?”
Vice Captain Xing said it wasn’t a criminal case, “Do you know Wen Baiyang?”
Qiao Nanchu stood up from his seat, “What happened to her?”
Vice Captain Xing said, “She hit someone on the subway, and the victim is accusing her of assault.”
Assault?
With her little strength?
“She won’t talk, don’t touch her, I’ll be there soon.”
Bang!
He knocked into the table, coffee spilling everywhere, but he didn’t bother cleaning it up, his steps were hurried.
Li Xiaodong called out from behind, “Captain Qiao, where are you going?”
“Criminal Investigation Team.”
Could it be a major case?
But that wouldn’t make sense. Even when that crime syndicate was taken down last time, he was drifting along, leisurely puffing on a cigarette.
What was concerning was, “Your ex-girlfriend is still—”
The man had already walked away…
Li Xiaodong rested his chin on his hand, deep in thought. Something was fishy.
He cleaned up the coffee on the table and thoughtfully made another cup for his boss’s ex-girlfriend before returning to the office. Just as he was at the door, he heard Lu Ning’s voice.
“Who are you? This is the office area for the Intelligence Department; outsiders aren’t allowed in.”
“Sorry, I was looking for the bathroom.”
“The bathroom is on the left.”
“Thank you.”
“It was Captain Qiao’s ex-girlfriend. She went to the wrong place.”
The Criminal Investigation Team and the Criminal Intelligence Department don’t share an office, but they are close by, just a ten-minute drive apart.
Qiao Nanchu arrived in eight minutes.
Vice Captain Xing teased him, “You got here pretty fast.”
Qiao Nanchu asked directly, “Where is she?”
Vice Captain Xing pointed behind him, “There.”
On the chair behind, the young girl, who had been sitting with her head down, looked up upon his arrival.
Sitting across from her was a man in his thirties or forties, bald, with a swollen blue nose and a robust build, wearing a jacket with a black dragon tattooed on his neck. Thinking the young girl was staring at him, he snapped ferociously, “What are you looking at! You damn mute.”
Vice Captain Xing simply said, “It’s him.”
The one whom Wen Baiyang ‘assaulted.’
Even inside the police station, that bald guy didn’t know to hold back, still arrogantly taunting, “Deafie, can you hear me cursing you?”
Qiao Nanchu stood there, observing Wen Baiyang.
Her eyes were very red; she had been crying.
Normally, he wasn’t very fond of violence, but if he lost his temper, he couldn’t say he wouldn’t hit someone.
He walked over and kicked the bald man hard in the back.
Caught off guard, the bald man fell to the ground, struck by a solid kick that left his back aching and numb. Enraged, he turned around and roared, “Who the hell are you!”
Qiao Nanchu pointed at Wen Baiyang, “Her family member.”
Upon hearing this, the bald guy grew even angrier, leaped up, and stepped onto the chair, “You mother—”
He didn’t care to listen and just kicked him again.
This kick was even harder, sending the bald man crashing into the chair across, nearly shaking his lungs out. Glaring at the source of his pain and having been kicked twice in a row, he was somewhat intimidated and didn’t dare rush forward. Instead, he bluffed by shouting, “You openly assault people in a police station; I’m going to sue you!”
“Assault?” Qiao Nanchu approached and shielded Wen Baiyang with his body. “Who saw it?”
Still, he denied it!
The bald man turned and shouted, “Officers, he’s beating someone up!”
The officers, from A to D, all looked up at the ceiling.
The bald man: “…”
Still confused, he took another kick to the chest.
The bald man collapsed on the ground, no longer getting up, wailing pitifully.
Qiao Nanchu hadn’t had his fill yet. He rolled up his sleeves and was about to kick again when someone from behind held him back; he turned around to see the young girl’s red eyes pleading him by shaking her head.
Vice Captain Xing couldn’t stand to watch, “Captain Qiao, we’re still in the police station.” It’s enough; otherwise, we’ll need to detain you too!
Captain Qiao?!
Shit, the bald man was speechless; this motherfucker turned out to be a cop, and he went ballistic, “I’ll sue—”
Qiao Nanchu just turned his head.
The bald man immediately quieted down.
“Give me a few minutes.” Qiao Nanchu nodded to Vice Captain Xing and then took Wen Baiyang to the interrogation room, closed the door, and asked her, “Are you hurt anywhere?”
She replied with sign language, “No.”
He pulled up a chair for her to sit, while he stood, leaning forward slightly, “It’s just us here, tell me.” He wasn’t quite clear on the details; Vice Captain Xing had merely summed it up with two words over the phone—”indecent assault.”
Just hearing those two words, he had thought of killing that guy.
She hesitated, remained silent with her head down for a long time before finally looking up and using gestures to tell him what happened.
“He pressed against me with that area.”
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She tried not to cry with her eyes reddening, “I was very angry, so I hit him with the computer.”
“But I hit him too hard.”
Tearing up, she didn’t know whether it was from frustration or a sense of grievance.
Qiao Nanchu squatted down, looking up at her, “It wasn’t too hard. He deserved it.” He reached out and touched her head, “You did nothing wrong.”
October, the golden autumn season, the Silver Pine in the neighborhood left the ground littered with dry branches. The autumn atmosphere was desolate, only the scattered Red Leaf Photinia added a bit of vibrant red.
Two old ladies walked one after the other, carrying shopping bags, heading towards the buildings in the neighborhood.
Laughing and chatting along the way, when they turned into the path through the greenery, the old lady with the small curly hair in the front suddenly remembered something, “Let’s go from the back.”
Her companion was puzzled, “Why?”
The curly-haired old lady pulled her back to retrace their steps, talking about the neighborhood gossip, “I heard there’s a weirdo living in Building Seventeen.”
“What kind of weirdo?”
The old lady spoke loudly, “A young girl, always wrapping herself up tightly, only showing her eyes. Last time Old Wang said he saw her eyes were red and glowing. It scared him to death.”
“No way, who would dare live in that building then?”
The old lady glanced back, feeling a chill on her back, she hurriedly pulled her coat tighter, “Indeed, no one lives there. Besides that young girl, there’s no one else.”
“Such an odd thing? Did the girl rent the whole building herself? Surely not bought it?”
“Who knows.”
The voices faded away, the sunset was about to fall. Shadows stretched long on the pebbled path. At the end of the path, Building Seventeen stood tall, seventeen floors high touching the clouds, bathed in the glow of the evening light spreading gold.
The delivery guy carried a bag, walking briskly; he looked up a few times to confirm the numbers on the building before taking out his phone to make a call, “Hello.”
“Hello.”
A young girl’s voice, clear and gentle, with a hint of laziness and carelessness, slightly cold in tone.
What a nice voice, thought the delivery guy.
“Delivery.” The guy spoke politely, “I’m at the bottom of Building Seventeen, which floor do you live on?”
“Please wait, I’ll come down to get it.”
There were muffled sounds on the other end of the phone, then the sound of a door closing.
The delivery guy was about to say he could deliver it upstairs when the door at the stairway of Building Seventeen suddenly opened. The guy looked up and saw a hand.
Long and slender fingers, pale like porcelain, with neat and clean nails.
Above that, was a face, excessively pale skin like it hadn’t seen sunlight for years, giving a hint of sickness, a high yet delicate nose, and thin lips pressed together, looking cold and aloof when not smiling.
The first look, just seemed excessively beautiful.
The second look, one would be drawn into those phoenix eyes, long and slender, slightly upward-tilted at the corners, pupils colored with the darkest ink, three parts depth, three parts coldness, and the remaining, an ancient coldness, like stars in the summer desert, dazzling and hard to look away from, yet making one afraid to look longer.
So young, how could there be such desolation, how could her eyes be filled with the weariness and emptiness that comes after years of hardship.
The guy was stunned, staring at that face.
Click.
The door opened wider, the girl stepped out with one leg, slender and long, revealing a pale ankle under the nine-part black pencil pants. She wore a black-and-white over-the-knee long shirt, with a gray hoodie inside. The hoodie was casually draped over her head, revealing her collarbone, with strands of short hair sticking out from the hood, slightly messy. She wore no warm colors, except for a pair of pink bunny plush slippers.
“Yunji Noodle Restaurant?” she asked, her voice still as clear and slightly cool as on the phone.
The delivery guy came back to his senses, hurriedly handing over the bag, “Your delivery.”
“Thank you.”
She took it, then retracted her leg, and turned to close the door.
Her hand was so cold.
The guy realized later, the place her finger pads brushed still carried a bit of residual chill. He scratched his head, walked away, then couldn’t help but look back after a few steps. The sky was dark now, and the once dim window was lit up, the light from the sensor lamps broke through the window. From the first to the seventh floor, the lights almost simultaneously lit up.
A gust of wind blew, giving the delivery guy goosebumps, he quickly turned and left.
Bang!
The door slammed shut, the two pink bunny slippers were kicked off at the entrance. She pulled off her hoodie, carrying the food container inside.
Her name was Zhou Xufang, living alone.
In Building Seventeen, only she lived there, not rented, the entire building belonged to her. Because she was different from others, she could only live alone.
She lived on the seventh floor, two units connected into one, over two hundred square meters of space, looking very cold and deserted at a glance. To the left of the entrance was the cloakroom, with many types of clothes, but mostly black at a glance. To the right of the entrance was the bathroom, also separated by glass, one-way visible, only a corner of the ultra-large bathtub visible through the door crack.
Walking further in, three steps up the stairs, to the right was the bed, all black bed sheets, lacking any lively color, the floor at the end of the bed scattered with a few pieces of clothing. To the left were four computers, one side a black lacquered wooden dressing table, a lazy sofa in the middle, a glass coffee table, with a projector in one corner of the table. Next to it, a delicate glass box filled with colorful cotton candy.
The white walls and black floor, the entire two hundred square meter area, except for the pink bunny slippers at the entrance, there were no warm colors, devoid of any human presence and smoke.
She put the delivery down, stood barefoot on the black plush carpet, picked a pink cotton candy from the glass box and put it in her mouth, just bit open the disposable chopsticks packaging, the computers on the table activated.
On the screen, a bright yellow SpongeBob popped up, filling the entire screen.
Code name Shuangjiang, real name unknown, age unknown, identity background and address all unknown. She was Zhou Xufang’s partner. Zhou Xufang never heard her voice nor saw her appearance, only knew she was a young girl.
“Are you awake?”
Three words popped up at the bottom of the screen, in bold red SimSun font.
Zhou Xufang unwrapped the delivery bag, “Yes.”
“Got a new job.”
“I’m on vacation.”
Zhou Xufang didn’t look up, her hair just past her ears, bangs slightly covering her eyes; she ate her noodles quietly, with excellent manners, eating slowly and deliberately.
“This one is easy.” After a moment, words scrolled on the screen again, “It’s a female client, wants us to nab someone. She said it’s her sweetheart, wants to play the beauty saving the hero.” Shuangjiang added, “The commission fee is five hundred thousand.”
Zhou Xufang’s chopsticks paused, her long eyelashes drooped, making her profile look much softer with her head bowed.
After a while, SpongeBob on the screen jumped twice, Shuangjiang asked, “Take it?”
She ate a mouthful of noodles, “Take it.”
As long as it didn’t harm the heavens or set fires, anything that made money, they would take.
The next day happened to be the fifteenth, the moon was very round, surrounded by stars, casting a soft glow over the whole city. As the night lamps lit up, the city was bustling and lively.
In a finely decorated club, ancient paintings adorned the walls, carvings of hollow flowers, and along the way, Corinthian Roman columns displayed various flowers, a faint floral scent lingered in the corridor.
The flowers were meant to match the occasion, but alas, they came at the wrong time.
The club lounge manager hurriedly ran, instructing the waiters, “Quick, put away all the roses.”
The head waiter came over, puzzled, “Manager, why suddenly take away all the flowers?”
The manager was anxious, tugging at his tie, using a handkerchief to wipe the sweat on his neck, “An important guest is coming, who can’t stand the smell of roses.”
An important guest?
In a high-end club, all the visitors were VIPs. The head waiter was unsure who it was, asking the manager, “Who?”
The manager squatted down, picking up a fallen rose petal, “The Jiang Family’s important guest.”
Now, the head waiter understood.
In the Imperial City’s Jiang Family, there was only one who could be called an important guest, the youngest son of the Jiang family, famous far and wide. Speaking of that beauty…
The manager urged, “Hurry up, the person is almost here, be quick and don’t leave a single rose behind.”
About ten minutes later, the manager received a call, quickly bringing a few deputy managers to greet at the elevator entrance.
Ding—
The elevator door opened, the person was not visible, but the coughing was heard first, one bout after another, slightly suppressed.
When the elevator door fully opened, the tall figure was backlit by the glass lamps in the corridor. The person leaned against the left wall of the elevator, wearing a black long coat that reached past the knees. Underfoot was a pair of custom leather shoes, inside a white shirt and casual pants, the collar unbuttoned, revealing a long neck. Because of the cough, even the Adam’s apple was flushed pink, gently moving.
He lowered his head, still coughing, his long hand pressed at his collarbone. Because of the severe coughing, even his fingertips were slightly red.
The manager stepped aside to greet him respectfully, “Mr. Jiang.”
In the Jiang family, only this one person was addressed as Mr. Jiang, the rest naturally had to have their names appended to it, showing the difference in status.
The man in the elevator finally raised his head. His hair was cut casually, highlighting his smooth contours, his bone structure extremely beautiful. His skin was pale, and just after coughing, his lips, pressed lightly together, carried a touch of red, with a thin layer of redness on his cheeks — three parts sickly, three parts delicate, three parts charming, and a touch of lazy carelessness.
Moreover, he had a pair of standard peach blossom eyes, slightly pink around the edges, shaped like peach blossoms, with moisture, the corners slightly upturned, the black and white of his pupils not clearly defined, giving a seemingly drunken haze. Such a look, every frown and smile was exquisitely beautiful, making one’s heart beat faster.
This was the Jiang family’s youngest son, Jiang Zhi, the most beautiful person in the Imperial City, breathless after three steps, coughing after five steps, truly a delicate and precious sick beauty. This charming person, stunning yet without any hint of femininity, with his peach blossom eyes, every glance, every move, a lazy indifference infused with inherent nobility and distance, noble and aloof bred within an aristocratic family.
The manager, a man in his forties, was stunned despite having seen this beauty before, took a while to find his voice, “I-I’ll lead you there.”
The manager stammered nervously, treating this lord with both respect and fear, knowing well enough that this ancestor had a bad temper, upsetting him would surely lead to trouble.
Jiang Zhi responded softly with a “mm,” his eyelids lifting slightly. His languid demeanor seemed as if he hadn’t fully woken up. His legs were long and slender, but he walked very slowly.
“Cough, cough, cough.”
He slightly bent his back, covering his mouth and nose as he coughed lightly. His brows furrowed gently, and the hair on his forehead was a bit disheveled, adding a touch of illness to his appearance.
Ahead, the manager leading the way slowed his pace repeatedly. For such a short distance, he ended up breaking out in a cold sweat for no apparent reason.
Opening the door to the private room, the first thing that caught his eye was a sharp-looking face with sword-like eyebrows and starry eyes. The manager respectfully greeted, “Mr. Xue.”
Xue Baoyi, the second son of the Xue Family.
His mother gave him a tough-guy face but ironically named him Baoyi, a name for ladies because of a dream she had during pregnancy, hoping for a daughter. Instead, she had a son. Currently, Xue Baoyi was sitting at the gambling table. In the dimly lit room, his blue-purple hair was the most eye-catching feature. He had a rugged face and was smoking a cigarette as he called out, “Brother Zhi is here.”
Jiang Zhi’s grandmother was a lady from a prestigious family, and their household retained some old-fashioned customs. Boys were called “ge’er” and girls “jie’er.” The young gentlemen friends liked to tease him by calling him “Brother Zhi.”
Xue Baoyi and Jiang Zhi were childhood friends, as their families had business ties and had known each other since they were toddlers.
This gathering was organized by Xue Baoyi. Although the elite circle in Imperial City wasn’t large, it still had clear hierarchies. Jiang Zhi was at the top of this elite group. If it were not for Xue Baoyi and tonight’s birthday boy being close friends, they wouldn’t have been able to invite this little ancestor.
The group of spoiled rich kids in the room greeted him eagerly, with tones indicating a wish to ingratiate themselves with him.
Jiang Zhi lazily lifted his eyelids, “Put out those cigarettes, this place is all smoky.”
Xue Baoyi chuckled, “Alright, alright, as you say.” Nudging the others, they all put out their cigarettes. He then threw a card onto the table, “How about a few rounds?”
The smell of tobacco hadn’t completely dissipated from the room. Jiang Zhi coughed a couple of times, found a clean spot, and nestled there listlessly, “Didn’t you lose enough last time?”
Xue Baoyi drew a card and laughed nonchalantly, “I’m hoping to win back my losses this time.”
Qiao Nanchu wasn’t in a hurry, pulled up a chair and sat down, “Do you know what I do?” He didn’t wait for an answer and continued, “I’m a police officer.” His hand rested on the table, tapping it, “This is the police station.”
His meaning was clear in a single sentence—do you really want to cause trouble on my turf?