Chapter Sixty-Two: Bearing Good News but Not Bad

“In that case, you really can’t become a police officer back home. Otherwise, there are only two possible outcomes: either you end up offending half your relatives, putting your parents in a tough spot, or you break the rules and wait to be disciplined!” Hearing this, Kang Ge couldn’t help but feel a bit helpless himself.

“Exactly. I can’t count on that group of unselfconscious people to suddenly become considerate. The best solution is to get as far away as possible. Originally, I was even thinking about applying somewhere farther away, you know!” Yan Xue pointed out the car window. “But Xia Qing and the others are all planning to take the exam in W City. I thought about it; from W City to my hometown isn’t exactly close, but not too far either—should be just right. It’ll still be manageable to go home and visit my parents now and then. Otherwise, with our unreliable days off, who knows how long it would take for me to get home even once.”

“And what about the other half of the reason? Didn’t you say escaping those troublesome relatives was only half the motivation?” Kang Ge suddenly pressed for details. “The other half isn’t just to keep Xia Qing and the others company, is it?”

“Being able to keep them company is just a bonus, not the main reason I made my decision. I feel there’s another good side to coming to W City: it’s easier for my parents to feel at ease.” When Yan Xue spoke about this, her tone lightened, free from the frustration she’d shown when mentioning her annoying relatives.

This answer was clearly unexpected for Kang Ge. “You being away from your parents actually makes them less worried?”

“That’s right!” Yan Xue nodded with a smile, giving herself a thumbs-up. “Someone as clever as me is rare, you know! Most people think being by your parents’ side, seeing them every day, is what makes parents feel secure. But that’s not really true. The closer you are, the harder it is to hide anything from them, and the more they know, the more they worry.

“This way, with just the right amount of distance, it’s actually better. I get to decide what to tell my parents and what to keep to myself!”

“You know, I never thought distance could act as a kind of information filter!” Kang Ge admitted.

“Absolutely, tested and proven! Once, I got stabbed in the stomach with a knife while making an arrest. I was pretty lucky—it was just a flesh wound, didn’t touch any organs, and I recovered after a few days in the hospital.

“If I’d been working back home, that would’ve been impossible to hide! If my parents had known, they probably wouldn’t have stopped worrying for ages—constantly anxious, imagining the worst!

“But here in W City, they still don’t know I ever went through something like that, so there’s nothing for them to be scared about after the fact.”

Yan Xue spoke lightly of that incident, clearly pleased with her own cleverness in keeping her parents in the dark. In truth, though, she had suffered greatly from that injury.

The pain during her hospital stay was secondary; the hardest part was the recovery at home. As luck would have it, her father happened to be on a work trip to W City at that time. He spent his days working and, after hours, would come to Yan Xue’s rented apartment to cook for her and help with chores.

Yan Xue, already well into her recovery, had no desire to reveal her injury. So every morning, she’d change clothes and leave the house as if heading to work, but in reality, she’d go rest at Xia Qing’s place and return at dusk, pretending to have just finished a day’s work.

The routine itself wasn’t so hard; the real challenge was her abdominal wound. Any big movements would pull at the stitches and cause pain, but she still had to act normal in front of her father.

Had this happened to Ren Yaya, who was always calm and methodical, perhaps the difficulty would have been halved. But Yan Xue was lively and energetic, the type who could never sit still. Maintaining “normalcy” while injured was a real test for her.

Once, she bent down quickly to hand something to her father and was struck by such a sharp pain she nearly blacked out. She excused herself to check in the bathroom—luckily, the wound was only slightly bleeding and hadn’t opened up. She’d had a close call but managed not to give herself away.

Fortunately, her father’s trip lasted only four days. When he left, he filled the fridge with cooked food before returning home, finally allowing Yan Xue to rest and recuperate in peace.

“I got lucky that time—it was my dad who came to W City. He’s pretty careless, not very observant. If it had been my mom, I definitely would’ve been found out!” Yan Xue recalled the situation with a smile, not a trace of melancholy, actually finding it quite amusing. “You have no idea how easy it is to fool my dad! That time, when the pain nearly made me break out in a cold sweat, he saw me wiping it away and asked what was wrong. I told him I was just hot.

“He went on and on about how great it is to be young and full of energy. There I was, sweating bullets, and he was complaining about how chilly it was!”

Yan Xue told her story as if it were a joke, with not a hint of self-pity or sadness. Kang Ge listened, unable to suppress a sigh.

“What’s wrong?” Yan Xue worried she’d brought up something unpleasant for Kang Ge and asked quickly.

“Oh, it’s nothing.” Kang Ge waved it off. “It just struck me how everyone’s so different. If something like this happened to my silly little sister, she’d be milking it for sympathy for ages, playing the pitiful victim. If she were half as independent and optimistic as you, my mom would have a third less gray hair!”

“Only a third?” Yan Xue laughed, expecting him to say half.

“The rest—well, a third comes from the passage of time, and another third from my own efforts!” Kang Ge grinned and wiped his face. “With the work we do, it would be strange if our families didn’t worry!”

“Exactly. Because of our job, I was just unlucky enough to get stabbed once, and it wasn’t even that deep—didn’t hit any organs. Compared to those who get seriously injured or even lose their lives, I’m already very fortunate. How could I not stay positive?” Yan Xue understood the unseen Kang Ge’s sister. “If I were your sister—a college student living a steady life, suddenly stabbed out of nowhere—I’d probably be depressed for half my life, just thinking about it would get me down.”

The two of them chatted for a while, using Yan Xue’s mother’s phone call as a jumping-off point, taking a brief break from the busyness of their day. Then they drove back to the police station. Luo Wei had contacted them earlier, saying there had been significant progress in the investigation of Li Xuelin and that a meeting was needed.

When Yan Xue and Kang Ge returned to the team office, Qi Tianhua and Luo Wei were both wolfing down wraps. Seeing them come in, Luo Wei didn’t bother to be formal; he waved them over with his mouth full, calling out a muffled greeting. Having seen each other at their messiest during crime scenes and arrests, they no longer cared much about appearances and were much more relaxed together.

“Have you two eaten?” Luo Wei asked, looking from Yan Xue to Kang Ge. “If not… Well, Yan Xue, sorry, it’s not convenient for you—just have to bear with it. But Lao Kang, I can tear off a piece of this wrap for you from the back!”

Kang Ge leaned over for a look. “No need, thanks! First, I’ve already eaten. Second, those wraps you bought don’t even smell good!”

“You’re picky!” Luo Wei was especially relaxed around Kang Ge, making him seem even friendlier. “Kang, I’ve always heard you’re good in the kitchen. When this case is over, let’s have a get-together at your place—will you cook?”

“Sure, I’ll provide the venue and the ingredients. As for the cooking, as host, I’ll make three of my best dishes, guaranteed to look and taste great. For the rest… It’s up to you all to show what you’ve got! Everyone contributes a signature dish—how’s that?”

“Deal! No problem! I’m not great at stir-fries, but I do have a knack for cold dishes. Once this case is wrapped up, let’s make it happen!” Luo Wei, always the life of the party, lit up at Kang Ge’s invitation.

Most of their peers either lived at home with their parents, or, if from out of town, rented small apartments—not exactly ideal for hosting a group. And as for public venues, discipline often kept them from going out to such places together.

Kang Ge was different. Though a local, he’d long since moved out and had his own place, making it much easier to host friends than in a rented apartment.

Recently, the team had been busy non-stop. They’d barely caught their breath after one case was sent for prosecution before Xu Wenrui’s case broke out, so everyone was in dire need of a little relaxation and something to look forward to.

Once Qi Tianhua and Luo Wei finished their simple dinner and the others arrived, the meeting officially began. It was straightforward: new developments in the investigation of Li Xuelin.

By looking into Li Xuelin’s daily movements and contacts, Luo Wei and the others quickly discovered a striking coincidence: this frustrated, depressed middle-aged man was also a client of the so-called “Master Baili Jiufang.” And from the information gathered, his connection with “Master Baili Jiufang” began well before Xu Wenrui’s grandmother had ever sought the so-called exorcism, and it wasn’t a one-time thing—they’d interacted many times over the years.

The amount of money Li Xuelin spent at “Master Baili Jiufang’s” place far exceeded the “incense money” Xu Wenrui’s grandmother had given—he was a true “pay-to-win player.”

As for what exactly Li Xuelin was seeking in all those visits, and what he hoped to achieve with all that money, only the parties involved would ever really know.

After Luo Wei and Qi Tianhua exchanged updates, Yan Xue and Kang Ge shared their findings and deductions with the rest of the team, so everyone could discuss the next steps in the investigation.

After hearing their side, Qi Tianhua was a bit uncertain. “I think Kang and Yan’s analysis makes sense. We discussed before whether the killer really understood how deadly the Panther Cap mushrooms were—whether the death was an accident or part of the plan. Based on your findings, we can draw some conclusions about motive, then narrow down suspects whose mindset fits that analysis.

“But now, with Li Xuelin pulling Master Baili Jiufang back into the picture, do we really need to dig further into this so-called master? We’ve pretty much already ruled him out as a suspect.”

“What do you think?” Kang Ge turned to Yan Xue.

“Absolutely. We need to at least figure out how that charlatan managed to scam Li Xuelin, what tricks he used, and whether he encouraged or incited Li Xuelin to do anything foolish.”

“I agree with Yan Xue,” Kang Ge said, echoing his partner’s view. “Let’s talk to Duan Yong, find out what bad advice he gave, then use what we learn from him to open a breach with Li Xuelin and hear his side of the story.

“You’ve all seen the surveillance footage of Li Xuelin following Xu Wenrui. Whatever else, while Xu Wenrui was still alive, Li Xuelin was clearly observing him. Anything the cameras missed, Li Xuelin might have recorded in his own memory.”

Though they didn’t say everything out loud, Qi Tianhua, no rookie, understood and set aside his earlier doubts.

After the tasks were redistributed, it was already late. The day’s work was over. Everyone went home to rest and recharge for the next day’s busy investigations.