Chapter 20: Must Firmly Uphold Materialism

The noise from the falling LED lights at the police station was loud, prompting the police officers on duty to come outside and assess the situation.

Hearing the voices of people talking over there, Xu Huai remembered that he still had business to take care of here.

“I’ll go in and see what’s going on first.” Xu Huai looked at Fu Cang. “Thank you for your trouble. I’ll take it from here.”

Hearing Xu Huai say that, Fu Cang didn’t take the initiative to take over, only nodding: “I’ve checked around here, including Li Fang’s house. There’s nothing there. But it can’t be ruled out that they’re hiding. I only took a quick look.”

Xu Huai thought to himself, ‘As expected, Song Lianzhou still didn’t believe him.’

He also wondered if something was wrong with him while he was in the car earlier. After all, he hadn’t noticed anything unusual at Xie Jing’s house.

With Fu Cang’s words, Xu Huai felt a sense of relief.

Xu Huai: “When I first took on Li Fang’s commission, I told Song Lianzhou about this situation. Logically speaking, I should be very sensitive in this regard. I can notice even the slightest abnormality. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have been able to take on the next commission so quickly.”

Fu Cang had worked with Xu Huai a few times before and knew Xu Huai’s abilities: “Yeah. But now that the child can’t be found, it seems that this matter is getting troublesome.”

Fu Cang raised his hand and lightly flicked the black snake around his neck, which was beginning to stir, signaling it to be quiet: “If it’s man-made, the police wouldn’t have any clues at all.”

“Why don’t you go look at the surveillance footage and study it? Song Lianzhou only asked me to come here to check the surrounding area and guard the employer before you arrived, to prevent anything from approaching after they smelled the scent. Now that you’re here, I’ll go back first.”

Xu Huai nodded: “Okay.”

Fu Cang turned around, but turned back after only two steps, seemingly inadvertently glancing at Xie Jing, and said to Xu Huai: “Don’t you need me to leave my son here to help you?”

Xu Huai’s eyes twitched.

How would it help? Would he drape a black snake around his neck like Fu Cang and use it to intimidate whoever kidnapped Li Fang’s daughter?

Xu Huai: “No, thanks.”

He refused very decisively.

Xu Huai: “I don’t want to be detained by the police before I even see Li Fang.”

Carrying potentially dangerous wild animals without any protective measures raises suspicions of privately owning protected animals. Regardless of the charge for which he was detained and questioned, it would be troublesome enough.

The black snake on Fu Cang’s neck naturally heard these words as well. It propped up its body again, but Fu Cang grabbed it with one hand, pulled it off his neck, and stuffed the black snake into his bag like he was bundling rope.

Fu Cang lowered his voice: “Alright, you’re always pestering people and making them dislike you.”

Xu Huai didn’t show it on his face, but he was greatly shocked inside.

Why are Fu Cang’s movements so practiced?

“See you.” Fu Cang nodded to Xu Huai after packing up his son. “Be careful.”

After watching Fu Cang walk away, Xu Huai turned his gaze back to Xie Jing on his side.

Xu Huai: “Let’s go?”

The streetlights cast an even light, and due to their position, the shadows on Xie Jing’s face were deeper. Looking at Xie Jing’s eyelashes, which were half-hidden in the darkness, Xu Huai inexplicably felt that his employer seemed a little unhappy.

The car behind them automatically locked, and Xie Jing followed Xu Huai as he stepped forward: “Yeah.”

Xu Huai: “What’s wrong?”

Hearing Xu Huai say that, Xie Jing stopped. Only then did he notice that his emotions had been showing just now.

But since Xu Huai had asked, Xie Jing went along with it and said, “Are all of your colleagues such dangerous people?”

Dangerous?

Xu Huai tilted his head, thinking.

Dangerous wasn’t the word, but the people in the [National Security Special Protection Department] were all a bit “strange.” Otherwise, they wouldn’t be able to handle those abnormal events.

And “strange” and unknown things weren’t necessarily all dangerous.

Xu Huai didn’t answer directly, falling silent.

If he genuinely had to answer, some matters would be somewhat troublesome to explain. There were too many aspects involved that were beyond the understanding of ordinary people.

Xie Jing raised his hand, and Xu Huai’s gaze followed his movements.

He noticed a striking mark on Xie Jing’s arm, where faded purple marks were already visible. It was clearly newly formed and beginning to turn red.

Looking at the position and appearance, it should have been whipped by Fu Cang’s son’s tail.

And the force of the whip wasn’t small.

Xu Huai: “…”

Bad, bad, bad!

He couldn’t believe it; his employer acted this way the moment he got distracted. He wondered why Xie Jing was unhappy. After being treated like this, how could Xie Jing be happy?!

Xie Jing covered the red mark with his hand and rubbed it: “It doesn’t hurt as much as it did just now.”

Meaning it hurt a lot when he was hit just now, but it’s better now.

Xu Huai: “…”

Fu Cang is entirely responsible.

Xu Huai: “I’m sorry, I’ll settle the score with him.”

Xie Jing didn’t comment on Xu Huai’s solution, only curving the corners of his lips and glancing at Xu Huai.

Xu Huai’s heart was alarmed by this glance, and he was about to say something…

Xie Jing: “Let’s go to the police station first.”

Roughly meaning: That’s it, business is important.

At the entrance of the police station, a police officer who was standing near the fallen LED lights noticed someone approaching. Just as he was about to remind them to be careful, he looked up and saw that it was Xu Huai, and immediately called out Xu Huai’s name.

Xu Huai stopped and looked over at the sound.

Seeing that the person looked familiar, Xu Huai searched his memory and recalled that he had been his previous employer.

It wasn’t exactly an employer; he helped him with a small favor and didn’t charge him.

Xu Huai remembered that this person’s surname was Zhang, and like him, he was a recent college graduate. Because the public security bureau he was assigned to was far from his home, he rented a house.

When Little Zhang rented the house, he didn’t know that someone had died there half a month earlier. After securing a low price, he thought he had landed a great deal, but after living there for three days, strange noises happened every night, and he didn’t sleep well a single night.

When Xu Huai met this person while buying breakfast, he saw his pale face, the dark circles under his eyes as if he had been punched twice, and the faint yin energy lingering around him. He estimated that if this continued, he would probably get seriously ill.

Xu Huai was free anyway, so he asked if there was anything strange in his house.

As soon as Xu Huai spoke, Little Zhang was shocked. After learning what Xu Huai did, he took three steps back, as if Xu Huai would reach into his pocket and rob him.

He even loudly said that he was a staunch materialist and that Xu Huai was a scammer.

Attracting a crowd of onlookers, it was very embarrassing.

Xu Huai remembered that this Little Zhang had mentioned his workplace at the time. Recalling it, it was really at this Wangjiaba Police Station.

Seeing that the person greeted him, Xu Huai said: “On duty, staunch materialist.”

Zhang Ou’s expression froze: “…”

Zhang Ou had indeed been a staunch materialist for the first twenty-three years of his life. But recently, strange things had been happening in his rented house, and he had been tormented to the point of exhaustion.

Just when he was wondering if he was suffering from acclimatization, someone inexplicably came over and offered to help him solve the strange things in his house, free of charge.

Zhang Ou thought this person was a scammer and wanted to refuse, but then he heard the person say, “I don’t want your money. A college student doesn’t scam another college student.”

The latter sentence was like a strange, unspoken code, and Zhang Ou hesitated.

The recent college graduate who called himself Xu Huai walked around his house and drew a talisman. That night, all the noises were gone, and he slept better than usual. From then on, Zhang Ou’s materialism was no longer as firm.

Now that he had met Xu Huai again, hearing Xu Huai call him that and tease him, Zhang Ou was a little embarrassed.

Although Xu Huai’s behavior and abilities convinced him, they were about the same age, so Zhang Ou didn’t use any honorifics: “Don’t tease me, bro. I admit I’m not so firm anymore.”

Xu Huai glanced around, his gaze landing on the other police officers at the entrance, circling and coming back: “Must be firm.”

Zhang Ou didn’t quite understand Xu Huai’s meaning, making a questioning sound: “Huh?”

Xu Huai: “Look to your left. There is a poster on the wall promoting measures against superstition and fraud. Don’t say it so loudly.”

Zhang Ou couldn’t help but take a breath, suddenly realizing something, and repeating Xu Huai’s words: “Must be firm.”

Zhang Ou: “Brother, I really want to improve.”

Xu Huai: “…”

It isn’t necessary to tell him everything. He’s just a recent graduate.

“By the way, you’re here so late because…” Zhang Ou said, realizing that he shouldn’t reveal the name of the person who called the police, and stopped in time.

Xu Huai raised his chin, looking towards the police station lobby: “If nothing goes wrong, the only person who called the police in there is my employer.”

Zhang Ou moved his gaze to Xie Jing again.

Xu Huai: “Also my employer.”

One inside, one next to him, plus Zhang Ou himself.

“Ah, this, you really are…” Zhang Ou’s expression was exceptionally wonderful at this moment, stopping halfway as if he were searching his brain for a word to describe the situation.

Zhang Ou: “Business is booming?”

Xu Huai almost choked on his breath when those words came out.

Even Xie Jing, who had been observing the two of them from the side, couldn’t help but let out a low chuckle when he heard this.

Zhang Ou also realized that something was wrong and quickly changed the subject: “They’re in the lounge next to the surveillance room. I’ll call my boss and ask him to come down and take you up.”

After Zhang Ou finished the call, a middle-aged police officer arrived shortly afterward. Xu Huai didn’t recognize the person, but the middle-aged police officer recognized him:

“Your minister told me that you and your friend can have access. Just follow me upstairs.”

Xu Huai: “Okay.”

Song Lianzhou’s emotions were indeed a bit unstable, always bristling like a hedgehog, but he was exceptionally meticulous in his work. Particularly regarding the details, he had only mentioned that he might bring his current employer, and Song Lianzhou had already factored Xie Jing into his considerations.

Just as they reached the second floor, before they even entered the lounge, Xu Huai could already hear Li Fang’s crying. Perhaps it had been going on for too long, but Li Fang’s voice was now a bit hoarse.

“She came to report the case around 11 PM. After learning about the case, our station immediately retrieved and reviewed the surveillance footage at the time, and found that her daughter, Zhao Qian, entered a blind spot and disappeared.”

The middle-aged police officer had naturally been handling this matter without sleep until now. After staying up all night, his face couldn’t hide his fatigue.

There was another commotion in the lounge, seemingly someone knocking over something made of glass.

The people outside the door then heard Li Fang’s sharp voice from inside the room: “Why isn’t he here yet?! He’s the one who destroyed the things in my house! He’s the one who lost my daughter! Is he trying to avoid responsibility now?!”

“If my daughter doesn’t come back, I’ll make him pay with his life!”

Every word was spoken clearly. Xu Huai wasn’t deaf; he could hear it.

First, Zhang Ou said at the entrance of the police station, which had anti-superstition posters, that he was no longer a staunch materialist. Then, Li Fang said in a society ruled by law, inside the police station, that she would make him pay with his life.

Xu Huai thought that his employers were all unique, a bit quirky.

“She didn’t have this attitude on the phone,” Xie Jing spoke, his voice a bit cold.

Hearing this, Xu Huai glanced at Xie Jing.

That’s not right, the word “all” was misused.

Actually, Xie Jing was quite normal.