Chapter 21

Just as Luo Jingyao was frowning in thought, a team of police officers entered through the main entrance, clearly heading straight toward Zhao Weiqing’s small room.

The crowd had originally planned to follow them and continue watching the commotion, but they were unexpectedly blocked by another team of officers. Disappointed murmurs quickly spread through the group.

Suddenly, the phone in Luo Jingyao’s hand lit up.

She glanced down briefly, then pushed her way through the crowd and exited through the main entrance of the mall. After a quick turn, she arrived at the side door.

Lin Jiafan was already there waiting for her, his tall figure nearly blocking the narrow doorway completely.

“The forensics team extracted traces of powder from the aluminum-plastic blister pack I brought back—the one containing the pills. It confirmed that aside from benzodiazepine, a common sedative also used for pain relief, it also contained methamphetamine derivatives, which are classified as controlled psychoactive substances—soft drugs often found on the black market.”

“Based on that, Pang Guangbuyi managed to retrieve Zhao Weiqing’s medical records from a year ago. He had been repairing the railings on the second floor of the mall when he accidentally fell due to insufficient safety precautions. The records show he suffered a mechanical fracture in his right upper arm and a severe concussion.”

“After receiving treatment, he was discharged from the hospital about a month later. His attending physician had advised him to consult a psychiatrist once he recovered, but there’s no record showing he ever followed up.”

Which meant Zhao Weiqing didn’t obtain the drugs through legal medical channels.

Even taking a generous view, no legitimate pharmaceutical company would mix those two substances into a single pill—one that not only relieves pain and calms the nerves but also has a strong addictive property. If that wasn’t a drug, what was?

“So now the police are taking him in for investigation under the charge of illegal drug use?” Luo Jingyao asked curiously, leaning through the doorway. Unfortunately, the hallway was long and offered no clear view—only the sounds of footsteps and voices echoed through the corridor.

“Yeah. At the same time, they’re planning to search Zhao Weiqing’s residence to see if there’s further evidence linking him directly to the deaths of Zhuo Meiling and Gong Lingling.”

At this point, Lin Jiafan glanced at his watch before speaking again, a hint of regret in his tone:

“Unfortunately, Zhao Weiqing himself is currently missing. He’s not in the room, and none of the mall employees claim to have seen him.”

“Our next step might be a temporary lockdown of the mall to locate him.”

He’s gone?
Now, of all times?

The timing felt far too convenient. A wave of unease surged in Luo Jingyao’s chest. Could it be that he had noticed something when they visited earlier that morning?

She opened her mouth, visibly frustrated, but no words came out.

Perhaps sensing her thoughts, Lin Jiafan calmly shook his head. “Even if he did sense something, we still have to do what needs to be done.”

Two murders within a week—this suggested the killer’s cooldown period was extremely short. The police didn’t have the luxury of waiting for him to slip up. They had to act first, even if it meant the suspect might escape.

It was better than standing by helplessly, watching another life get taken.

For people like them, every investigation was a gamble—betting that justice would triumph over evil.

Luo Jingyao nodded slowly, half-understanding. She knew Lin Jiafan’s words were meant to comfort her, so she quickly pulled herself together.

“I’ll head back first. You go on with your work.”

The man nodded slightly and, without lingering, turned and disappeared into the shadows with his tall, upright figure.

When Luo Jingyao returned to the mall through the main entrance, she was surprised to find that most of the spectators had already left. A few police officers were going around persuading everyone to disperse.

In the end, those uniforms still carried enough authority to keep the average person in line. The crowd gradually thinned out.

Just like before, she blended in with a few others and quietly returned to the basement level.

The atmosphere in the training area was unusually relaxed. With such a major incident unfolding in the mall—and with Boss Jiang nowhere in sight—neither the trainees nor the coaches were focused on training.

Listening to all the wild speculation about why the police had shown up, Luo Jingyao casually made her way back to the coaches’ lounge.

Sure enough, all five coaches, including Xiao Ping, were inside. They were sitting in a circle, deep in animated discussion.

“I’m telling you,” one of them said, “maybe the mall was operating illegally. What if they’re shutting the whole place down?”

“Maybe someone died? In a dump like this, who’d even notice a few corpses hidden in some dark corner? Honestly, I’ve been smelling something foul every time I come to work lately.”

“Is the mall shutting down a good thing? If the mall’s closed, how’s that supposed to be good for our training center? I say we should contact Sister Jiang and have her ask the manager what’s going on.”

Hearing this, Xiao Ping spread his hands helplessly. “I’ve already tried. No one’s answering the phone, and she hasn’t replied to any messages. It’s like Sister Jiang just vanished into thin air.”

Vanished into thin air?

Luo Jingyao, who was standing nearby and overheard, raised an eyebrow. Something didn’t feel right.

Given Jiang Qi’s obsessive control over the training center, going off the grid like this was completely out of character.

Clearing her thoughts, she said, a little skeptically, “That can’t be. Just yesterday morning, even when she wasn’t around, she practically monitored us 800 times through the security cameras. She’s probably just caught up with something. I’ll try calling her again.”

Xiao Ping curled his lips with a “go ahead and try” expression.

The next second, Luo Jingyao found Jiang Qi’s number on her phone and dialed without hesitation.

Beep… beep… beep…

The other end of the line was met with an endless busy tone, followed by a robotic voice:
“The subscriber you are trying to reach is currently unavailable. Please try again later…”

She didn’t give up. She called again—twice more.

On the final attempt, a mechanical voice informed her that the phone had been powered off.

Because she had the speaker on, the other five people heard everything loud and clear and exchanged uneasy glances.

“That’s really unlike Sister Jiang… but hey, her not showing up means the trainees get a few hours off, and we can chill too.”

“Oh right! I unlocked a new skin in the game last night—who’s up for a round?”

The suggestion was met with enthusiastic agreement, and before long, the small lounge was buzzing with excitement.

While the others were caught up in their game, Luo Jingyao quietly slipped out and found a secluded spot to make a phone call.

“Hello?”

“No one at the training center can reach Jiang Qi. I think she might have gone missing too,” Luo Jingyao dropped the bombshell as soon as the call connected.

Lin Jiafan fell silent on the other end.

The police had already been looking into Jiang Qi, and just like Luo Jingyao, he couldn’t help connecting her disappearance to Zhao Weiqing’s.

“I just came out of the mall’s surveillance room. The police pulled all the internal and surrounding footage from today. Zhao Weiqing was last seen at 9:13 a.m., heading in the direction of the nearby subway and bus stations. Pang Guangbuyi is checking those feeds now to trace his movements.”

He paused briefly before continuing, “I’ll also have Pang Guangbuyi check the cameras near Jiang Qi’s residence.”

If the two disappeared at the same time, it likely wasn’t a coincidence. There might be clues to uncover from Jiang Qi’s end.

“I’m heading back to the station soon. Want a lift?” he offered.

Luo Jingyao didn’t hesitate to accept. Zhao Weiqing’s movements had already revealed some answers. Staying here any longer wouldn’t serve any purpose.

She took one last glance at the cheerful chaos inside the training center, then hung up the call and left without looking back.

On the way back to the Jinshi City Police Bureau, she sat in the back of Lin Jiafan’s jeep, resting her forehead against the window, staring blankly outside.

She didn’t know how much time had passed, but eventually, she dozed off.

When the jeep finally rolled to a stop in the station’s courtyard, Lin Jiafan noticed in the rearview mirror that Luo Jingyao had fallen sound asleep. Loose strands of hair had slipped over her face, revealing only her delicate features.

She must be completely exhausted. Chasing suspects and playing the role of an undercover agent—one drained the body, the other the mind.

After hesitating for a moment, he decided not to wake her. Instead, he rolled the driver’s side window down a crack and got out.

Leaning against the front of the vehicle, Lin Jiafan drank the last of his coffee, stretched his neck in all directions to stay alert, and took the opportunity to mentally review the progress of their recent case.

Suddenly, a voice called out urgently from the building:
“Captain Lin! Captain Lin! You’re back—why aren’t you coming upstairs?!”

Looking up, he saw Pang Guangbuyi hurrying toward him. In a blink, the young man was standing right in front of him. Lin Jiafan held up a hand in a shushing gesture and instinctively glanced at the jeep.

“Huh?” Pang Guangbuyi blinked in confusion but lowered his voice obediently. “You asked me to check the surveillance near Jiang Qi’s home, right? We actually spotted Zhao Weiqing on camera at the entrance of her neighborhood!”

“The time was around 9:50 a.m.,” he added, pulling up photos on his phone. “Then, at 10:07 a.m., another camera caught both Zhao Weiqing and Jiang Qi leaving together.”

Lin Jiafan took the phone and carefully reviewed the two images.

That would save them time tracing Zhao Weiqing’s movements. The two of them clearly had something going on.

“I think I heard you mention Zhao Weiqing? What about him?”

A sudden voice startled Pang Guangbuyi so much he jumped. He turned and saw Luo Jingyao, yawning as she stepped out of the jeep, eyes half-closed.

Recalling how he’d just been scolded by the captain for talking too loudly, Pang Guangbuyi turned back to Lin Jiafan with a stunned look and practically cried,
“Huh?!!”