Chapter 117

The City Bureau was divided into six teams, plus several patrol teams from relevant police stations, making a total of ten teams conducting nightly patrols. Despite any previous reluctance, when it came time for the task, everyone obediently dressed up, with not a single team backing down. However, the skill level in cross-dressing varied among the officers.

The six teams of the City Bureau utilized specialized tracking vehicles provided by the police department. Each night, from 10 PM to 1 AM, for three hours, they patrolled back and forth in the dimly lit corners of the urban areas.

Now, it was the fourth night of surveillance, and in the blink of an eye, a week had passed since the last incident.

Throughout this week, everything had been quiet, with significantly fewer reported incidents.

It was autumn now, and as night fell, the entire city gradually became shrouded in darkness, with temperatures dropping.

Unfortunately, the air quality was worrying today. After 10 PM, a thin layer of white mist appeared on the streets, drastically reducing visibility. As the night grew deeper and the mist thickened, the scenery twenty meters away seemed to be shrouded in mist, transforming the entire city into a fairyland.

For the past few days, Xu Youyou had been coordinating with Song Wen’s team. Commissioner Gu decided to utilize Xu Youyou’s skills as the 519 case seemed to be evolving into a long-term operation. So, the only female team member from that department was brought over. Xu Youyou had a straightforward personality and accepted the task without much fuss.

Currently, Lu Siyu and Xu Youyou were out on the streets, each acting separately, while Song Wen provided backup in the shadows, and Zhu Xiao monitored from the car.

The City Bureau’s dedicated patrol car was a small van with the back emptied out and converted into a monitoring station. Three surveillance screens were placed around the perimeter, with Zhu Xiao sitting inside, intently watching the surveillance feed.

After circling around for about an hour, Lu Siyu knocked on the door and entered the car.

Having adapted to Lu Siyu’s cross-dressing over the past few days, Zhu Xiao no longer blushed and felt heart palpitations upon seeing him. He offered Lu Siyu a seat and let him sit down.

Lu Siyu sat down, wrapped in a coat, with no expression on his handsome face, looking somewhat listless. Although he hadn’t suffered from stomach problems or taken painkillers lately, his body clock, developed from staying up late with Song Wen, was causing him fatigue past 11 PM, with his eyelids starting to droop, and he could only rub his temples with his fingers.

At this moment, Song Wen also returned, knocking on the car door as he approached, holding a plastic bag.

“I saw a 24-hour convenience store nearby and bought some late-night snacks,” said Song Wen as he handed Zhu Xiao a cup of oden and then took out a cup of hot milk with a straw, handing it to Lu Siyu. Finally, he opened a bottle of cola for himself. “Let’s hold on a bit longer. If there’s rain forecasted later, and nothing happens by this time, we might finish early tonight.”

Zhu Xiao was puzzled. “They say ten mists clear in nine, so will it actually rain with such heavy fog? Could the weather forecast be wrong?”

Song Wen shook his head. “That saying refers to water mist. But this fog now is likely caused by severe pollution, and have you heard of the saying, ‘Long rains bring thick fog, and long fog brings clear skies’? I reckon it’s going to rain tonight.”

Lu Siyu took the cup of hot milk and held it in his hands, drinking a few sips. His spirits improved slightly, and he said calmly, “Let’s wait a bit longer. Ordinary people might avoid going out in the rain, but these deranged criminals won’t. Sometimes, the weather can even be a stimulating factor for them. Today, with heavy fog and impending rain, it’s good weather for committing a crime.”

In theory, as time passes, the closer it gets to the next crime being committed.

Song Wen leaned against Lu Siyu and looked at him. With his head down and a few strands of hair falling, his chin looked sharper, making Song Wen somewhat puzzled. Although he was in his twenties, when drinking milk, he always took small sips, his mouth moving lightly, looking like a baby.

At this moment, with Lu Siyu dressed in women’s clothing, he exuded an even more breathtaking allure. Song Wen felt that such a person should be cherished and protected, held in the palm of one’s hand and close to one’s heart.

Seeing Song Wen staring at him, Lu Siyu’s eyes flickered, and he raised his long lashes, looking back at him with confusion.

Song Wen quickly turned his head and took a sip of cola, almost choking. Today, this bottle of cola was unusually sweet, with excessive sugar content.

As the group replenished their energy, the car door suddenly knocked, and a girl with long hair popped her head in. “Hey, I’m freezing out here, and you guys are already eating.” She entered the car and took off her wig, tapping Song Wen’s leg. “Make room for me to come in and warm up.”

This person was Xu Youyou, who had been with their team for the past few days. With the significant drop in temperature in Nancheng today, she had been walking on the deserted streets for nearly an hour and was freezing cold.

Song Wen asked Zhu Xiao to turn the car’s air conditioning to the maximum and handed her a cup of hot milk tea. “Madam, of course, we bought yours. How could we forget you?”

Xu Youyou coughed softly. “With this weather and the high PM levels, and we can’t even wear masks…”

Having spent the last few days with Song Wen’s team, she glanced at Song Wen and then at Lu Siyu, who was drinking milk in the corner, and muttered softly, “Why am I milk tea, and he’s milk?”

Song Wen thought to himself that she wasn’t easy to please. Even tea needed to be more expensive than milk. Just as he was about to respond, Zhu Xiao reached out and said, “You ladies all like milk tea, right? If you don’t want it, give it to me.”

Xu Youyou stopped him. “No, I love it. It’s just that milk tea makes you gain weight, and I don’t understand why men treat things differently.” After saying this, she looked up at Song Wen.

Zhu Xiao glanced at Lu Siyu, then at Xu Youyou, with a sentence stuck in his mouth. It seemed that, aside from height, Lu Siyu was more beautiful and needed more care…

Song Wen explained, “He has a weak stomach and can’t drink that. As the team leader, I have to care for my subordinates.”

Xu Youyou didn’t say anything more, lowered her head, and sipped on the milk tea with pearls.

Song Wen noticed that ever since the last mission they went on together, Xu Youyou had occasionally been confrontational with him. Song Wen hadn’t interacted much with girls before and found it a bit difficult to deal with. He couldn’t figure out whether this girl disliked him or liked him.

Lu Siyu remained silent throughout, lazily leaning against the backseat with no expression on his handsome face. After finishing his drink, he handed the box to Song Wen, who instinctively collected the trash in a bag.

Meanwhile, Zhu Xiao had finished his oden, handing over the empty box. “Captain Song, can you throw this away for me?”

“After eating the snacks I bought, you’re asking me to throw away your trash? You have hands and feet, go do it yourself.” Song Wen handed him the garbage bag. “The trash bin is twenty meters south. Thanks.”

Zhu Xiao grumbled about Song Wen’s double standards in his heart, then obediently went to throw away the trash. A minute later, he jogged back to the car, rubbing his hands. “Not to mention, it’s been much quieter at night recently. The anti-vice team was complaining yesterday. Ever since we started patrolling, they haven’t been in operation for almost a week.”

Song Wen said, “On the night when Captain Tian’s group just started, they caught a drug dealer. The Anti-Narcotics team that was on surveillance at night also reported that several mobile drug points had been cleared out.”

Since they started their nightly patrols and surveillance, the crime rate in the entire Nancheng had plummeted.

Zhu Xiao said: “We should apply to Commissioner Gu for more overtime pay later.”

Song Wen said: “What are you thinking? We haven’t caught the murderer yet.”

“Sigh, I wonder when these overtime days will end.” Zhu Xiao stretched lazily. “In this situation, even the culprit needs some courage to commit a crime again.”

Lu Siyu drank hot milk, feeling better. Without a word, he reached his hand around Song Wen’s back and lightly scratched his hand, as if a lazy cat extending its claws.

Song Wen suddenly understood. Lu Siyu had mentioned at dinner that he wanted to ask about the progress of the investigation into Gu Zhibai’s case. He felt that if he asked directly, Xu Youyou might not answer. Now, this gesture was prompting him to inquire.

Song Wen looked at Xu Youyou, who hadn’t spoken for a while. “Has your team been busy lately? Last time I saw you interrogating Gu Zhibai, then the person was almost taken away by Lawyer He. Any updates?”

Xu Youyou hesitated for a moment, looked at the three people in the car, swallowed the last pearl, and handed the empty cup to Zhu Xiao.

Zhu Xiao immediately complained, “Why is it always me?” He grumbled, but obediently got up and got out of the car to dispose of the milk tea cup.

As Zhu Xiao walked away in the fog, tears welled up in his eyes. If he had known, he would have joined the deputy’s team. Here, he was always the third wheel or in a chaotic situation.

After Zhu Xiao left the car, Xu Youyou finally spoke up. “We haven’t been investigating that direction recently. Captain Xu changed the focus to events from over a decade ago. We’ve been quite busy lately. It’s unlikely we’ll solve the case in the short term, but there has been some substantial progress.”

During this pause, Zhu Xiao returned after disposing of the trash. Xu Youyou put on her wig. “I’ve rested enough.”

Song Wen checked the time. “It’s half past eleven. If everyone is ready, let’s get to work. Just a little more perseverance.”

Xu Youyou adjusted her dress again and opened the car door. “I’ll go out for a stroll again.”

Lu Siyu also stood up and got out of the car. Song Wen checked his equipment and touched the gun hidden on him before heading out as well.

Lu Siyu’s route was to the left, Xu Youyou went right, and Song Wen’s route was in the middle, separated by a block of about a hundred meters from them. It was not easy to expose themselves, yet they could react quickly.

The temperature difference between day and night in autumn was particularly large. Tonight, with fog and clouds but no wind, as the night grew deeper, the entire city quieted down. Thick fog enveloped everything, with distant streetlights shining faintly through the mist, resembling dim starlight.

Xu Youyou tightened the collar of her coat and walked forward with her head down. In just thirty minutes, she had walked four blocks, gradually heading towards a secluded and deserted area. The surroundings were extremely quiet.

Suddenly, there was a crackling sound in her earpiece, startling Xu Youyou.

Zhu Xiao’s voice came through: “Hey, Great Auntie, the visibility on this road is too low. Slow down, the camera is shaking too much, can’t see clearly.”

Xu Youyou snorted: “Great Auntie? Did you just call me that?”

Zhu Xiao felt aggrieved: “It was Captain Song who called you that, why can’t I?”

Xu Youyou said: “I, this old lady usually walk at this speed. Calling me ‘Great Auntie’ makes me feel old. Calling me ‘Auntie’ would be more appropriate.” With that said, she still slowed down a bit.

*female equivalent of laozi. Arrogant term of referring to oneself.

“Well, I dare not take advantage of Captain Song… Yes, this speed is about right,” Zhu Xiao said as he adjusted the equipment.

He was listening attentively when suddenly a woman’s scream came through the monitor from Lu Siyu’s side, followed by the camera abruptly shaking.

“F*ck!” Zhu Xiao was adjusting the volume on his earpiece when he was pierced by the scream. He quickly removed the earpiece from that ear and urgently contacted Song Wen on the walkie-talkie, “Captain Song, it seems like something happened on Lu Siyu’s end!”

On the other side, Song Wen had already heard it on the same frequency and responded, “I know, I’m on my way!”