Chapter 129

After the kiss, Song Wen released Lu Siyu and reached out to help him undo the buckle of his bulletproof vest around his waist. Just an hour ago, Song Wen had just taught him how to wear it. Lu Siyu cooperated, struggling with both arms to break free from the shackles. Then, Song Wen submerged underwater and removed a rope entangled around his legs.

The whole process seemed lengthy, but it was only a matter of seconds. Lu Siyu’s body finally broke free, regaining freedom. He felt Song Wen holding his hand, and with the coordination of his limbs, they both exerted force and swam out of the water. With a splash, the two of them broke the surface almost simultaneously.

The surface of the water was no longer a dark mass like when Lu Siyu sank, but was now filled with various lights. Instead of the buzzing sound from underwater, words could now be heard.

As the surface fluctuated, Lu Siyu breathed in precious air, coughing incessantly. He could feel Song Wen holding him, helping him maintain balance.

His heart was pounding in his chest – he was alive! Lu Siyu felt like he had returned from the depths of hell to the human world.

“They’re coming up, they’re coming up…” The people on the shore suddenly became excited.

“Damn, that scared the hell out of me just now…” Everyone found it difficult to describe the heart-pounding minute.

“Why don’t you use the ropes to pull them up!” Seeing the two emerging from the water, Tian Ming finally breathed a sigh of relief, and the port became noisy.

Ropes were thrown down from the shore, pulling up the two of them and the others who had just gone down to search. Then, several people went down to bring up Xie Jianing as well.

“Siyu, are you okay?” Fu Linjiang asked him with concern.

Lu Siyu coughed a few more times, feeling the water in his trachea being coughed out. After a while, he was able to speak and explained, “Just now underwater… my feet were entangled by a rope. But it’s okay now…”

He said it casually, but only he knew how close he had been to death during the over one minute underwater. Then he turned to look at Song Wen and said, “It was Team Leader Song who found me.” As he uttered these words, Lu Siyu’s eyes were warm, tears seeming to well up. Then he lowered his head, letting that tear mix with the seawater dripping from his hair.

Fu Linjiang said, “A few people were still taking off their clothes just now, and Team Leader Song jumped straight down. He still had a wound on his waist. It was lucky to find you on such a vast sea.”

With the murderer captured, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. The process this time was a bit tortuous, but the outcome was satisfactory, although the operation was still lacking a conclusion.

Soon, there was news from the maritime police that they had intercepted the medium-sized fishing boat at sea, and all the people on board had been captured.

Some police officers on the shore had been injured earlier, and soon ambulances and escort vehicles arrived to wait on the sidelines. The night at the harbor was already a bit cold, and Lu Siyu was soaked through, feeling even colder when the wind blew.

The harbor staff brought some blankets. Song Wen didn’t care about treating his own wounds and went to get blankets and towels directly. He walked to Lu Siyu’s side, who looked pale, obviously frozen.

Even for an ordinary person, going through such an ordeal would cost half their life, let alone him, who had just recovered from a serious illness not long ago.

“Wait, find a place to change out of these wet clothes. The seawater is only a few degrees…” Song Wen didn’t bother to dry himself off, instead, he wrapped Lu Siyu in the blanket, making him look like a zongzi.

Lu Siyu glanced at Song Wen and whispered, “Team Leader Song, thank you. It seems like… I owe you another favor.”

Song Wen apologized sincerely, “It’s because I didn’t take good care of you.”

“You’re still injured…” Lu Siyu spoke, looking at Song Wen’s wound, which had already stained his clothes with blood.

“It’s nothing serious…” Song Wen covered the wound with his hand, “Just a minor injury, not enough to immobilize me.”

As Song Wen spoke, Lu Siyu understood. The wound looked long and deep, soaked in seawater. How could the pain be bearable…

“When we were underwater just now… that…” Lu Siyu hesitated, he licked his lips lightly. Even now, the sensation of that kiss lingered, and just thinking about those minutes underwater made his body warm up, his ears flushing.

Song Wen cleared his throat and turned his head aside, “That was just a special situation underwater… Didn’t I perform CPR on others before…”

Even though their relationship was good now, it was unlikely for them to do such things, but underwater, everything happened so naturally. Song Wen could sense that Lu Siyu didn’t reject it, but he was unsure about Lu Siyu’s thoughts, afraid that he might overthink it.

Seeing him flustered, Lu Siyu found it even more amusing. He smiled quietly, watching him quietly. If there weren’t so many people around now, he really wanted to get closer to him. Just being by Song Wen’s side made him feel at ease.

Lu Siyu wanted to say something else, but then he slightly bowed his head.

“What’s wrong? Stomachache?” Song Wen asked, holding his cold hand. He was so familiar with Lu Siyu’s condition that he knew he was uncomfortable when he made such movements.

“It’s nothing… I just…” Lu Siyu had choked on several mouthfuls of cold seawater just now. By now, his whole body was soaked and cold, and the ice-cold water he had swallowed felt like ice knives piercing into his body.

The stomachache was triggered, starting to ache slightly. Cold sweat kept pouring from his forehead, but it was still within his tolerance.

Song Wen didn’t care about these things. With a pursed lip and without saying a word, he simply picked him up horizontally and walked towards the ambulance. With so many people at the scene, everyone was busy with their own tasks.

After this scene appeared, several people suddenly fell silent. The detectives and staff on the port who were busy with the aftermath quieted down for a moment.

Startled by him, Lu Siyu hurriedly tried to get down, but Song Wen’s grip was firm, and his strength was great. How could this person in front of him look like a wounded patient?!

Lu Siyu could only close his eyes and pretend to faint. He was only held by Song Wen after fainting. The captain of the detective team helping the injured officer… This way, things would seem more normal…

The officers who had been shot earlier had been sent to the hospital one after another. Some doctors and nurses remained on the scene in the ambulance to provide first aid and bandaging. Song Wen explained Lu Siyu’s situation to the doctors and decided to have him checked at the hospital along with the next vehicle. Then there would be time to deal with his own waist wound.

The doctor, seeing him jumping around, thought his injury was not serious. But after examining the wound, he frowned repeatedly, “Oh, your wound is so deep, you’ve lost so much blood, you need surgery and stitches. It’s even easier to get infected after being submerged in water…”

Song Wen just made a nonchalant sound, then turned around and saw Xie Jianing lying on a makeshift bed with his hands handcuffed. He was an important criminal and needed simple bandaging before being transferred to a special hospital for further treatment and detention.

In the end, the law would judge him, and death penalty awaited this murderer.

Song Wen looked at his opponent. During this time, they had been entangled with this perverted and ruthless man.

Xie Jianing saw Song Wen’s gaze on him. His hair was wet, his wound was bleeding, but at this moment, he seemed to not feel the pain of the wound. A smirk appeared at the corner of his mouth, “If it weren’t for you cops catching me, I would still be killing. By then, more people would die. That feeling is just too comfortable and wonderful. Can you understand that feeling?”

Lu Siyu, hearing his words, turned his face away from the hospital bed with some disgust, interrupting him, “I only know that people like you deserve no pity.”

Song Wen saw that Lu Siyu’s spirits were still good, and he relaxed. He turned to Xie Jianing and said in a low voice, “I don’t need to understand your pleasures, I just need to catch you.”

The police car and ambulance finally left, and order was restored at the port. Large cargo ships slowly entered the port, pushing the water aside and docking. Workers drove transport vehicles and began working.

As night fell, a heavy rain fell at the port, washing away the bloodstains. Tomorrow morning, the news of the arrest of this psychotic murderer by the police would be made public…

According to the report from the Nancheng City Bureau: Last night at 6:45 PM, at the Nancheng Port, the suspect, Xie XX, fired at the police. After the police’s attempts to stop him were ineffective, they decisively opened fire, causing Xie XX to be injured in the shoulder, ribcage, and leg, and he was eventually captured. During the arrest process, several officers were injured by shotgun pellets. The injured officers have received effective treatment, and their conditions are currently stable, with no life-threatening danger. The follow-up investigation of this case is still ongoing…

With this, the serial murder case in Nancheng has finally been solved, and the city, shrouded in clouds, has finally seen the sun.

There are always people who need to protect this city.

Dispelling darkness, welcoming light.

Before the National Day holiday on October 1st, the Criminal Investigation Division of the Nancheng City Bureau was preparing to hold a summary and commendation meeting in the briefing room.

Over the past half year, the city bureau has repeatedly solved various criminal cases. Some outstanding officers need to be commended, some new recruits have joined the criminal investigation team, and there have also been some personnel changes.

This meeting is very important. When Commissioner Gu issued the notice, he said that all personnel must attend without exception, no leave is allowed, and police uniforms are required.

Early on the morning of September 30th, Lu Siyu and Song Wen, who had been on sick leave for a few days before, didn’t wake up particularly early.

The first thing Song Wen did when he got up was to shave, then change clothes. He had been notified by Commissioner Gu long ago, knowing that he would receive an award this time and that the news of his promotion to the head of the division would be announced. Song Wen deliberately made a trip to the city bureau a couple of days ago, rummaged through the uniforms kept at the police station, and brought them home in advance.

Except for the day of his promotion when Lu Siyu received his uniform, he hadn’t worn it for so long.

The current autumn police uniform for detectives is light blue, long-sleeved, with black pants. The uniform includes a tie, a police cap, and shoulder epaulets.

Lu Siyu quickly put on his clothes. He still wasn’t quite used to this attire. Seeing Song Wen struggling with his tie, he walked over and helped.

Song Wen was having trouble, so he turned his head to let Lu Siyu do it for him. Lowering his head, Lu Siyu adjusted his shoulder epaulets and straightened his hat for him.

Licking his lips, Lu Siyu’s slender fingers moved quickly. “You’re the protagonist today, you mustn’t be late. I made sandwiches yesterday. If we don’t have time for breakfast later, we can eat them in the car.”

“No need to rush. We’ll leave a little earlier. We definitely won’t be late.” Song Wen said, turning his head to look at Lu Siyu. The light blue police uniform made him even whiter, and wearing the uniform made his slender waist and long legs more prominent. Four words popped into Song Wen’s mind: uniform temptation. He spoke up, “I didn’t expect this uniform to fit you so well. I should have let you try it on earlier.”

Lu Siyu replied, “Didn’t I have a chance to wear it before?”

Song Wen said, “You don’t know, when Zhu Xiao came over before, Lao Jia jokingly fooled him, saying that new recruits start from clerical positions and need to wear uniforms to work. He tricked the kid into wearing a police uniform for a week.”

Lu Siyu raised his eyelashes and glanced at him. “Do I still need to thank my seniors for their kindness?”

Song Wen said, “You are my apprentice personally trained by me. Who dares to use such words to trick you?”

As the tie was neatly tied and the clothes were tidied up.

The two went downstairs, hurriedly had breakfast, and raced all the way to the briefing room. After parking the car and entering, they caught up with the others taking their seats as the meeting was about to begin.

The briefing room had about a hundred seats, all coffee-colored chairs. The walls around were covered with soundproofing materials, making the leader’s speech clearer, while the ceiling was adorned with several rows of lights, illuminating the room brightly.

Song Wen and Lu Siyu walked through the crowd towards their seats. Song Wen sat in the front row, while Lu Siyu sat in the back row with other members of their team. Except for the three squads, the Forensic Identification Center led by Lin Xiuran also sat in the back.

As Song Wen crouched through the crowd, those who were informed beforehand nodded to him in congratulations.

Even Tian Ming smiled at Song Wen and said, “Captain Song has been promoted. Please take care of me in the future, big brother.”

Song Wen thanked each one in turn and finally sat down in his chair.

When the time came, the meeting officially began. First, Commissioner Gu, acting as the director, gave a speech. The old man sat at the front podium of the briefing room and began, “Today, we are holding a summary and commendation meeting for our Nancheng Criminal Investigation Division. Everyone here is family, there are no outsiders, so relax, there’s no need to be too serious. I’ll be presiding over this meeting to summarize our recent work and announce a few news items. First of all, I want to thank all the officers here for their dedicated efforts. Thank you for maintaining order in Nancheng. Our city bureau has selected this year’s outstanding officers and there have been some personnel changes…”

After summarizing several typical cases handled this year, Commissioner Gu continued, “In the course of this year’s work, Captain Song Wen of the First Team has performed exceptionally well and made outstanding contributions to the public security cause in Nancheng. After communication with the provincial leadership and approval from various government departments, I hereby appoint Comrade Song Wen as the head of the Nancheng Criminal Investigation Division. We also present the Outstanding Police Leadership Award. Please welcome Captain Song to the stage.”

For a moment, applause erupted below, and all eyes were on Song Wen. The officers began to discuss.

“Captain Song, he’s probably the youngest division head in the province, right?”

“Yeah, this is an exception. I’ve never heard of someone so young becoming a division head.”

“With his promotion and raise, it’s like riding a rocket. He’s indeed Commissioner Gu’s personal disciple.”

“Captain Song is young, but he was the top performer in the city bureau’s assessment last year, and he’s received first-class merits several times, right? Like the incident at Nancheng Tower last time, daring to go and defuse the bomb, not many people can do that.”

“I heard that in the Second Division, there were several cases where Captain Song helped with the sketches to find the culprits, and there’s also the recent serial murder case, where he played a significant role in solving it.”

“So, even Captain Tian didn’t say anything against his promotion. Captain Tian and Captain Cheng have more seniority, but if he can be promoted to division head, he must have exceptional abilities.”

Song Wen approached the stage from the side and received the certificate from Commissioner Gu. Commissioner Gu asked him to say a few words, so he turned and said, “Solving cases is not the effort of one person alone but the collective effort of everyone. Thank you to all my colleagues who have always supported me. I hope to continue working together to crack more cases. I hope I can lead by example and live up to the mission.”

As he spoke, Song Wen’s gaze swept over the old members of the First Division, finally settling on Lu Siyu. Lu Siyu also looked at him, and their eyes met. Then, Song Wen bowed, and applause erupted from the audience.

Next, Commissioner Gu announced other personnel changes. Fu Linjiang was appointed as the captain of the First Division, and the vice-captain finally became official. Lu Siyu was transferred to be an assistant to the division leader, directly under the leadership of Song Wen. Several new police officers who joined the force were also introduced.

Other awards were also presented, including the Outstanding Team Award and the Best Officer Award. Lu Siyu received the Best Newcomer Award, and the Department Award was given to Lin Xiuran’s Forensic Identification Center.

As the meeting came to a close, Commissioner Gu announced the work arrangements for the National Day holiday and the work priorities of the city bureau until the end of the year. After the meeting, everyone dispersed.

Commissioner Gu watched as everyone left and called out to Song Wen, “Song Wen, you did well in this case. Keep up the good work. You’ve just been promoted to division head, so take some time to get familiar with your new role. In the future, the three captains will report to you regularly. If you encounter any difficulties at work, feel free to come to me.”

Song Wen replied, “Don’t worry, Commissioner Gu. I’ve been working with Linjiang for many years, and I’m familiar with Captain Tian as well. I may not talk much with Captain Cheng, but he’s an experienced captain here. There shouldn’t be any issues.”

Commissioner Gu, looking at his proud protégé, nodded in satisfaction and continued, “By the way, while your career is going smoothly, don’t neglect your personal matters. I heard that Fu Linjiang and that girl from the last case… what’s her name, Min something, are still in contact. You should pay attention to this.”

Song Wen didn’t understand why Commissioner Gu brought up this topic. He wasn’t very clear about Fu Linjiang’s affairs, but the old man was gossiping again. He chuckled awkwardly, “I am paying attention to it, Commissioner. I’m already quite attentive, aren’t I?” He felt like he was almost wearing his feelings for Lu Siyu on his sleeve.

But Commissioner Gu asked again, “Did you see Xu Youyou just now? She’s from the provincial bureau under Captain Xu.”

Song Wen was taken aback and shook his head. He hadn’t had the time to pay attention to these things. After going on stage, he only glanced at his old colleagues from the First Team and then focused on Lu Siyu.

The old man put on a gossipy look and said, “She’s so busy with work, yet she specially came over to attend a meeting. You shouldn’t be so clueless. If you put just one percent of the effort you put into your work into your personal life, maybe you wouldn’t still be single.”

Song Wen protested, “No, Commissioner Gu, you’ve got it wrong. Besides, I’m very busy with work. My mind is always on the cases, and I haven’t had time to deal with these things. Besides, there are so many people in the city bureau. Why would you think she came to see me?”

Commissioner Gu snorted, “You youngsters always think you have plenty of time. But before you know it, you’ve let the good times slip away. I won’t nag you anymore. Just take care of yourself.”

Song Wen’s face fell, “Commissioner Gu, you just promoted me to division head. If something happens, wouldn’t it be embarrassing for you? Let me focus on my work for a while. Besides, I really don’t have the time or the mindset for romance right now. Let me stay single for now.”

After their conversation, Commissioner Gu left through the back door, and Song Wen turned around to see Lu Siyu waiting by the side of the stage. He suddenly felt like he was in deep water and couldn’t clear things up. He felt like he needed to explain a few things to him, but he didn’t know where to start.

Seeing him coming over, Lu Siyu took the award certificate and turned to leave. Song Wen hurried a few steps to catch up with him, “Hey, listen to me. Commissioner Gu was just gossiping. I’ve only met Xu Youyou a few times, and I didn’t mean anything by it…”

Lu Siyu gave him a glance and said, “What are you in such a hurry for? I didn’t say anything, and I know you and Xu Youyou have nothing going on. You’ve just been promoted to division head, focus on your work. Everything’s fine.”

Song Wen didn’t know if Lu Siyu was jealous or speaking the truth. “No, it was just to appease Commissioner Gu. Don’t take it seriously. Work is important, and love shouldn’t get in the way. But if you find someone you like, right?”

Then he suddenly remembered what Song Cheng had said to him before and looked at Lu Siyu cautiously. “Um, do you have any plans for Chinese New Year this year?”

Lu Siyu looked at him strangely, “Captain Song, are you confused? It’s just National Day now, and you’re asking about Chinese New Year?”

Song Wen was a bit unsure of what he was thinking. “Um… what I meant is, anyway, you don’t have anyone at home, so if you don’t have any plans, you can come home with me for Chinese New Year.” After saying this sentence, Song Wen, who hadn’t even flinched in front of the culprit, nervously waited for Lu Siyu’s answer.

Lu Siyu seemed to understand his meaning now. He should have understood.

Seeing Lu Siyu’s silence, Song Wen added an explanation, “Um, it’s my parents’ idea. My mom came over once, and she can’t stop thinking about the food you made. She’s mentioned it to my dad several times, and my dad asked… if we could spend the New Year together.”

Chinese New Year… family… these words hadn’t appeared in his life for a long time. Lu Siyu subconsciously wanted to agree, but he also felt a bit timid. When the words came to his lips, he couldn’t say them no matter what. At this point, he fully understood Song Wen’s intentions. He knew Song Wen was serious, and the more serious he was, the more afraid Lu Siyu was to accept that sincerity.

He was afraid of dragging him down.

Even more afraid… he had been hiding something all along, afraid that if Song Wen found out the truth one day, he would despise him.

He stood there, torn between two choices, not knowing what to do.

Song Wen looked at the heavy expression between his brows and wondered if he was too hasty and hadn’t prepared properly.

After a moment of silence, Lu Siyu lowered his head and said to Song Wen, “Thank you, Captain Song, but it’s still a long way off. Let’s talk about it later.”

Song Wen looked at Lu Siyu and felt that he was a bit unpredictable. He could only change the subject, “As division head, you’ll have your own office. We’ll have a separate one, and it should be ready. Let’s go take a look later.”

Lu Siyu nodded obediently and followed Song Wen, walking towards the office building of the city bureau.

He didn’t dare to hope for too much. At this moment, just being by his side was enough.

At the end of September, during the peak period of returning home, Zhuang Yi, who had come out of the high-speed rail VIP waiting room, was on the phone. “Yes, everything is as we discussed before. I did my best. This time it was really dangerous. You were too urgent when you urged me. If we hadn’t caught the culprit behind us, I would have almost fallen from grace.”

As he had come out first, he was already standing on the platform where the train carriage was about to stop, waiting for the train to arrive. There were also passengers behind him, coming one after another.

The person on the other end of the phone wasn’t very polite, “You took the money, so do your job. Isn’t that your duty? Professor Zhuang, don’t forget who has brought you to this level step by step, and who has given you your current status.” Although the person spoke with a smiling tone, there was a hint of threat in their words.

“However, I really have to admire you a bit more. The first deduction you made had some flaws, but then you quickly corrected those mistakes in the second program. After this time, Professor Zhuang, your reputation has risen quite a bit.”

“That was just luck,” Zhuang Yi said, standing on the platform. He knew the person’s words weren’t unfounded. They could make him, but they could also destroy him.

This time, if it hadn’t been for that young police officer analyzing the truth in time and giving credit to him, things wouldn’t have been resolved so smoothly.

But Zhuang Yi still had some doubts in his heart. He took a breath and couldn’t help asking, “There’s something I still don’t understand. Why did you want me to leak the details of this case to the media beforehand?”

From Zhuang Yi’s perspective, he couldn’t understand this at all. Those people were undoubtedly unrelated to the culprit, so why would they want the media to get involved and stir up trouble?

The person on the other end of the phone continued to smile and said, “Professor Zhuang, have you ever heard a saying?”

Zhuang Yi was puzzled, “What?”

On the platform, the train was arriving, making a rumbling noise as it approached rapidly, and the noise grew louder. Zhuang Yi pressed the phone to his ear and finally heard those words clearly, “Those who talk too much, don’t live long.”

As soon as Zhuang Yi heard these words, he felt someone push him hard from behind. His body lost balance instantly, almost falling towards the train. For a moment, Zhuang Yi felt like he was about to be crushed into pieces by the train…

The high-speed train almost grazed his body as it passed by, but fortunately, at the last moment, Zhuang Yi managed to steady himself. The train came to a gentle stop in front of him.

Zhuang Yi felt cold sweat on his back, and his limbs felt weak. His heart was pounding wildly, almost faltering. He looked at his phone, and the other party had already hung up.

This was Nancheng, seemingly calm on the surface but tumultuous underneath, filled with hidden dangers.

Everyone, seemingly doing their own jobs, was actually just a pawn on the chessboard.

The black and white pieces intertwined, at times seeming like the white pieces had the advantage. But the black pieces were already encircling in the shadows, the layout complete. Once the black pieces fell, the white pieces would be devoured.

The outcome of the endgame was still unknown.

Zhuang Yi pursed his lips and boarded the departing train. If possible, he never wanted to set foot in this city again in his life.

TN:

See you next time~