Chapter 145: Walking in the Dark + mini side stories

"Second Act: Black Round Table."

The lights have been dimmed on the stage as if to reflect the name of the act.  The Young CEO He Ya Yao, the young and handsome architect designer Ji Zi Chang, and the middle-aged newly rich contractor Zhang Fu Cai sit around the small and simple-looking round table.

Of course, whether these six individuals are real or the ones underground are, no one knows right now.

He Ya Yao says, "We must obtain that piece of land.  We all know how many billions of dollars the 'Super Project' can bring.  You guys know how much you'll get out of the share too."

Ji Zi Chang says with doubt, "But Young CEO, that piece of land……"

He Ya Yao interrupts, "You shut up!  You just need to take care of the design and other people will take care of the land a.s.sessment companies and their representatives."

Ji Zi Chang keeps quiet.

Zhang Fu Cai grins and leans over, "Young CEO, don't worry, I will definitely arrange everything!"

He Ya Yao smiles, "Oh right, have you taken care of that old man?  That Hongying Textile Factory?"

Zhang Fu Cai pats his chest, "Leave it to me!  That old man is just an idiot. He says that for the sake of the hundred or so old and weak employees, he doesn't want to close and move the factory.  He won't leave the dormitory either. I will make them leave."

……

The curtains close again.

Whether it's the "audience" at the square or the many people watching over the internet, they are all intrigued by this "performance" even though there are explosives, bloodshed, and lives in danger behind all of this.

Everyone seems to understand the context of the show now.  It's just another everyday story in this city and at this time; collusion between people of a certain cla.s.s in exchange for money as well as forcing a woman into prost.i.tution.

The atmosphere at the square is rather peaceful.  But at the same time, the police are not wasting any second or any minute as they prepare to take action.

_____

Han River Bridge.

Qin Wen Long, Zhou Xiao Zhuan, and the others hop out of the car and look toward the commercial area at the peninsula from afar.  From about 1 to 2 kilometers away, they can only see clouds floating in the blue sky as the Yangtze River and the Han River flow quietly.  The buildings are still and grand in the sunlight. There is no sign of a ma.s.sive and frightening incident happening right now.

Xiao Zhuan feels sourness in his heart as he continues staring toward the area.  But he immediately finds his energy and shouts, "Captain! I'll go over with the SWAT team!  We will definitely bring them back safely!"

Qin Wen Long nods.  He watches the SWAT team in their full gear crouching as they spread out and make their way to the square quietly.

A criminal investigator comes running over, "Captain, the bomb squad has already arrived at their designated area!  They have indeed found a number of bombs under the bridge and on the roads surrounding the peninsula!"

"Dismantle them!  Dismantle them quietly!" Qin Wen Long roars.  He raises his head and looks toward the peninsula again, "After setting up the boats and the helicopters, wait for my orders.  Be careful not to alert the criminals."

At the front of the bridge, the artery to get into the peninsula, police officers and the special units are all working anxiously and furiously.  Qin Wen Long knows very well what situation they're in: the seven-member organization is holding over a thousand civilians as hostages and occupying the peninsula.  Even if they can save a large number of people with boats and helicopters, this bridge is still the main route.

No matter how all-knowing the seven-member organization is or how much they've prepared in advance and have been able to bury bombs months ago to carry out this plan, they only have four people.  They can't possibly be able to fight against a couple of hundreds of police officers. Therefore, Qin Wen Long can dispatch his troops fearlessly and reconstruct this path of survival——of course, they're risking their lives to do it.

They just need time.  One hour, or maybe several hours?

This brings another problem.  Based on how intricately the seven-member organization plans, this must be in their expectation.

Therefore, what exactly do they want to do during this time?

_____

"Third Act: The Downfall of the Hypocrite."

The lights are brightly lit.  The old owner of Hongying Textile Factory, Zhou Feng Mao, is still in his inexpensive attire as he stands in the spotlight.

This is his monologue: "I will definitely not sell the factory!  We converted to being a nationalized industry. There are one to two hundred young and old workers all making a living under my guidance.  In these last two years, we've started seeing gains in revenue from the factory, so everyone depends on me, the old man. Furthermore, if I sell the factory and the dormitory and take the compensation payment, with the housing prices today, where will they all live?  I have a conscience and will definitely not sell!"

Everyone at the square is concentrated in watching the performance.  Some are discussing with others beside them; someone even shouts out, "Bravo!"

And then, the newly rich Zheng Fu Cai comes on stage and the two of them sit at a table.

They have their backs toward the camera, so the audience can only hear them talk and observe their body gestures.

Zhou Feng Mao says, "I won't sell it no matter what you say!"

Zheng Fu Cai doesn't respond.  He raises his hand and makes a two with his fingers.

Zhou Feng Mao says, "I won't sell it!"

Zhang Fu Cai holds up three fingers.

Zhou Feng Mao, "I'm not selling it!"

Four fingers.

Five fingers.

Zhou Feng Mao goes quiet.

Zhang Fu Cai chuckles, "Hehheh," and says out loud, "Money can buy anything.  Old Zhou, you will never be able to make this much money even in several lifetimes.  Hurry and sign the contract! If you continue to be difficult, be careful of something happening to your young and old ones in your family, especially your son who's studying in college right now!  As for the workers in your factory, we'll compensate them based on normal standards. With that money, they won't starve to death!"

Zhou Feng Mao raises his head, "I'll sign it.  But don't tell anyone outside about this."

……

The audience in the square lets out another sound of shock.

"Holy s.h.i.+t!  He really signed it!"

"He's got no backbone!  Such a hypocrite!"

"Cunning old man!"

"Expose him, expose him!  We should explode him to death!"

A lot of people are shouting and the crowd at the square are actually a little worked up.

And it has only been a little more than ten minutes since everything started.

The curtains close again.  It's as if this is a real performance.

_____

Underground.

After staying here for a while, Su Mian feels even more dampness and coolness in the air.  After finis.h.i.+ng his last sentence, "Find these six individuals, otherwise, a bomb will……BOOM!" L's image and the other six victims disappeared from the screen.

It's back to silence everywhere.

The four of them don't have anything to say.

Han Chen releases his hand to let the injured Ding Jun sit leaning against the wall for a while.  He then reaches out his arm toward Su Mian. Su Mian opens the clip that she recorded just now and gives it to him.  Xu Si Bai takes a step forward and all three of them start to watch.

Since Su Mian is the type who likes to show off, her skills in taking photos with the phone are quite good.  The image of the screen is filmed quite clearly. Su Mian focuses on watching the video this time to catch the details:

Out of the six individuals, the location that is the easiest to make out is the middle-aged chubby man who claims to be Zhang Fu Cai, the contractor.  His face is fierce looking yet he looks frightened. He's sitting in front of a white wall, but there are no furniture or decorations beside him or anything that symbolizes the place he's at.  A lamp s.h.i.+nes above his head. Both of his hands are tied behind his back. The camera films only down to his knee area; there are a few stains on his pants, but it's hard to make out what it is.  And they can't tell what's on the ground, but very faint streaks of light reflect on his face.

"Water," the three of them say at the same time.

Su Mian raises her head and exchange gazes with Han Chen and Xu Si Bai.  The three of them remain quiet.

This means that Zhang Fu Cai is sitting in an area with water and the water is not deep.

And among the six individuals, the darkest image is the handsome and elegant looking architect designer Ji Zi Chang.  L probably placed a very small lamp below his face.  His face is the only area that can be seen clearly. Everywhere else is pitch black.  His body seems crooked as if he's being squeezed into something. His breathing is also quick.

"A narrow gap," Han Chen says.

"He's in a closed off area depleted of oxygen," Xu Si Bai says almost at the same time.

Su Mian presses her lips and doesn't say anything.

She always knew how smart and sharp Xu Si Bai is.  But every time she works on a case with him, he rarely cares about inferences and details of solving the case; he only spends his energy on the forensics side of things.

But today, he's fully focused and is putting in all his effort.

Perhaps it's because lives are in danger.  But he's not hiding his coldness and stubbornness in front of Han Chen right now.

Sigh……

Su Mian glances at them.  One of them is cold and handsome, the other is quiet and refined.  Even when they're both watching the video with their heads down to solve the same challenge, their aura of not getting along is strong.  But this is not the time to be thinking about these things. Su Mian can care less, so she lowers her head and concentrates on the video.  Her method of capturing the details is different from the two of them. She pays more attention to psychological behaviors instead. What is L's preference for hiding these people?

Of course, they can ignore these six individuals and not follow the route that the seven-member organization has set out for them and find a way out for themselves instead.  But based on L's personality, he would be very mad and kill all six individuals if this was the case.  Furthermore, based on the sound of the explosion just now, it must be chaos above ground.  If they go out now, how will they find the seven-member organization? If they stay here, although they're trapped, they can work their way and be able to face them directly.

The video is almost at the end.  That sound of explosion plays again.  The six individuals in the image are all startled and show expressions of fright.  But Su Mian thinks of a problem: there are only two individuals whom they have clearer clues on, but how will they be able to locate the other four?

Han Chen rewinds the clip with her phone in his hand.  The lighting around them is dim but he is standing straight.  The furry collar of his black police coat is a bit ruffled and is blocking a part of his face.  His police boots are covered with dust. But his face is chisel as he swipes his finger across the screen; fast forward, rewind, slow motion, fast play.  He's watching the video with full concentration.

At times like this, this outstanding and intelligent man can always bring her a sense of calm and safe kind of energy.

Although Xu Si Bai carries a sense of coldness, he's standing very close to Han Chen.  His handsome face is slightly tilted downward and is watching the video very closely.

Two men are united in action, including not saying a word.

Su Mian rubs her chin and her mind is working at high speed.

Zhang Fu Cai.

A place with water; shallow water.

What area in a mall would have water?  A water reservoir? No, no. How could L possibly lock someone in such a common place with no technical skills?

A thought flashes across her mind: a children's pool?

No, that can't be.  She frowns.

This Zhang Fu Cai is clearly not the good father figure in L's mind, so how could he possibly put him in a children's pool?  L would think that he was tainting the place.  Although she's unsure of why the seven-member organization has decided to choose these six individuals, there must be some kind of bigger plan.  And L would definitely not do anything else but mock these people.

……

She thinks she knows where Zhang Fu Cai is hidden at now.

Just as she's about to speak, she hears Ding Jun shouts, "Come and take a look over here!  There's a map of the shopping mall!"

Han Chen lowers the phone and the three of them hurry over.

It's a commonly seen flat diagram map of the mall that has been printed on a metal plate.  And then below it is a very pretty column, standing in a corner of the wall——it's mostly for customers to refer to.

Han Chen turns on the flashlight on the phone.  The four of them examine the map in better lighting.

They're quite lucky.  The drawer of the map clearly has great attention to detail and is very careful.  This isn't one of those diagrams with rough outlines of the overall shape of the mall.  Instead, every line is drawn straight and neatly and in proportion. There are even some lightly drawn lines and numbers everywhere beside the shapes to mark distances.

Based on the diagram, the phase two of the underground mall has three levels and occupies a great distance; from the century hotel to the entire square and all the way to the edge of the river has already been dug out.  Every level is about ten or so meters high. And where they are is at the lowest level in the left-most corner. From the sound of the explosion just now, they should be very near the border of the square above ground.

Su Mian is a bit dumbstruck looking at the map.  She sees Han Chen reaching out his hand and is deep in thoughts.  His long and slender fingers follow the lines on the map inch by inch as he measures them.

Ding Jun and Xu Si Bai on the side are both stunned.  Su Mian, on the other hand, is rather excited.

She knew that Han Chen would be able to think of a way!

——Although she can't tell what he's doing right now or what kind of method he has thought of.

Han Chen finishes measuring the lines very soon.  He raises his head and sees Su Mian staring at him with gleaming eyes full of joy and affection.  Han Chen smiles before speaking.

"Sound," a crisp voice says on the side.

Su Mian and Ding Jun both turn to look.  They see Xu Si Bai pressing both hands on the flat diagram with his eyes clear as water, "We can use sound to locate."

Su Mian looks at him and then turns to look at Han Chen subconsciously.  Han Chen's expression is indifferent as if he didn't hear him. He doesn't look at Xu Si Bai either.  After a few seconds of silence, he answers, "Four of them are on the same level as us but in a farther area; one of them is on the second level, and one of them is on the first level."

__________

Mini Side Story: The First Bet

Actually, when they made their first bet back then, Han Chen was already pretty shameless.

They were just normal friends at the time despite they already had feelings for each other.  It's just that they didn't show it. On a certain day, while investigating a case, Han Chen said suddenly, "Let's make a bet.  Let's see who can find the evidence first."

She was so proud and confident of herself, so she responded, "Sure.  What are we betting?"

Han Chen answered, "If I win, let me look into your eyes up close."

She asked curiously, "Why do you want to look into my eyes?"

Han Chen explained without changing his expression, "It's because I've been studying subtle facial expressions lately.  And your eyes are the clearest and purest out of all the women I've seen."

Of course, Han Chen had never read any books on subtle expressions in his entire life.  But he pretended that he had and said these words in a serious manner, so he successfully made her blush as well as agreeing with the bet.

In the end, Han Chen won as expected.

On the day of fulling the bet, Han Chen led Jin Xi to his dorm room.  The reason was that his place was well lit. Han Chen had always kept his distance from other women, so she didn't think otherwise and followed him.

They stood in front of the window.  He lowered his head while she tilted her chin up.

She thought that all he would be doing was to examine her at a close distance.

But he reached out his arms suddenly and held her face in his palms.  A young man's fingers touched upon her cheeks just like that. She was completely dumbstruck.  It was because it was the first time that she had let a man touch her face……

"Close your eyes," he said.

She was stunned, "How would you examine my eyes if I close them……"
Seeing his dark brown eyes, she suddenly understood what he was trying to do.

And he stared back at her and knew that she understood.  He was such a b.a.s.t.a.r.d. He wouldn't let go. He ordered her calmly, "Close your eyes."

She wasn't as calm as him though.  She felt as if her heart was about to pop out of her chest.

And then she closed her eyes.

He lowered his head and kissed her.

Mini Side Story: A Man's Secret

Now that they've been in a relations.h.i.+p for a while, Han Chen naturally starts to think about a "certain something."  It's just that he has always had very little contact with women ever since he was little. And he has no experience in this area.  But she's so hard to please and pacify. Therefore, he feels a need to study on this subject beforehand.

But among his group of young master buddies, who don't have a woman beside them when they were teens? (other than the forever old virgin Ji Bai)  For someone in their early twenties to be studying on this certainly makes Han Chen feel like he's lost at the start of the line.

Therefore, in the next few days, every day after work, whenever she can't accompany him, he would sit in his single dorm room and start reading and learning……Which is why she's been feeling that the way he looks at her carries a sense of "deep and unreadable" kind of meaning.

Until the day comes……

In the morning afterward, she wraps herself with a blanket to cover up the hickeys all over her body as she asks with a sullen expression, "Is this really your first time?"

Han Chen even refrains smoking; he puts a piece of xylitol gum in his mouth and chews on it.  He feeds her one as well before answering her in a relaxed manner, "Of course."

Just as she wants to press further, his phone rings.  It's one of his buddies. A loud voice comes on, "Chief Han!  How's it going? Wanna come for a game? You're not being a goody two shoes and waiting at your girlfriend's school again, are you?"

She can hear the person talking on the other end of the phone.  She asks curiously beside him, "What did he call you? Chief Han?"

Han Chen glances at her.  He can't suppress his feeling of content, after all, so he puts the phone against her ear and persuades her gently, "He's making fun of me.  Here, help me fire back at him and tell him that, 'he's no longer one.'"

Although she doesn't quite understand the meaning, she will definitely take her boyfriend's side.  Therefore, she shouts crisply toward the phone, "Hmph! He's not one anymore! He wasn't one a long time ago!"

Her vibe must have been too strong.  The person on the other end has gone silent!  She turns around full of proudness. But she sees Han Chen staring at her with his eyes carrying a deep smile that's enough to melt her.

He flips himself on top of her, hugging her and kissing her non-stop……

Not long later, she finally understood the meaning behind "Chief Han" through another person's mouth.  She was so embarra.s.sed that her face was completely red. She ignored Han Chen for several days. She couldn't believe he made her say those shameless words!

But sometimes, when she thinks about it by herself, she blushes and quietly feels that this nickname is quite suitable……

Chief……(virgin)……Han……