Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
It was seven in the evening, and Zhao Yu and the others were at their secret base. Ran Tao had just returned with a bloody nose and a swollen face.
The moment he arrived, he complained to Zhao Yu, “Team Leader, that woman is so explosive! She would rather die than give me any information! So, I followed your instructions and fought her! Now look at me!”
“Seriously?” Wu Xiumin crossed her arms and said, “You’re a man, and you’re from a motorized troop, and yet you still can’t even fight against a woman?!”
“What are you talking about?” Ran Tao asked in distress. “That Sis Fire didn’t even move an inch! She had five or six male underlings do her dirty work for her! I’m telling you, even though I look bad, those b*stards ain’t in any better shape! In the end, if the Jinping Police hadn’t taken out their guns, I would have definitely knocked them all down!”
Zhao Yu complimented Ran Tao, “You did great! That’s exactly what I wanted!”
“What?” Ran Tao creased his eyebrows, then quickly guessed the situation. He then turned to ask Zhao Yu, “Team Leader, why am I getting the feeling that you already knew long ago that I would be beaten up?”
Cough cough… Zhao Yu coughed, then explained quickly, “I only expected that the woman would definitely never give you the information! You’re getting beaten up was merely a byproduct!”
“Is that so?” Ran Tao still felt suspicious. “Why do I feel like I was being used?”
“Woo! Here come the skewers! Move away, move away…” Then, Zeng Ke ran in with a big bag of hot mutton skewers, asking, “Who wants a kidney, I’ve got a lot of them!”
Smelling the fragrant mutton skewers, Zhao Yu took two steps back, then opened the door to one of the rooms. He shouted to Cui Lizhu, who was in the room, “Hey, come and eat!”
“Team Leader…” Wu Xiumin creased her eyebrows, while she gestured with her fingers to remind Zhao Yu that Cui Lizhu couldn’t eat such foods after her recent surgery.
“Oh…Well, why don’t I order a delivery for you, then?” Zhao Yu asked.
Just as he asked this, Cui Lizhu came out of the room. She took one of the skewers and said, “Mutton skewers are great. I haven’t eaten any grilled food for a very long time. Let me have some more! Mm… Is there any back muscle-tendon left?”
“Mm…” Ran Tao saw Cui Lizhu and was shocked. He quickly lifted his head to look at Zhao Yu, asking with his eyes, Why is she here?
It turns out that, after Zhao Yu had arrived at the hospital, he had brought Cui Lizhu away, claiming that it was for the purposes of his criminal interrogation. As the Jin Ping Police were the ones guarding her, they naturally didn’t dare stop Zhao Yu.
Plus, according to the latest instructions from the Central Criminal Division, Zhao Yu was an official legal investigator for the Gem Theft Case and Cui Lizhu was related to Gem Theft Case. Hence, it seemed only proper that Zhao Yu wanted to interrogate her.
After they left the hospital, Zhao Yu sent Cui Lizhu to their secret base, according to his initial plan. Of course, on the way there, Zhao Yu explained the entire situation to Cui Lizhu! As she was worried about her father encountering danger, she naturally expressed her willingness to fully cooperate.
“I’ve asked the higher ups!” Zhao Yu was eating a delicious skewe, while talking to his teammates. “They’ve said that the deadline of seven days starts tomorrow at dawn. So, it hasn’t officially started yet! That means that we still have time to enjoy ourselves!”
After he finished speaking, Zhao Yu was the first to turn and open a can of beer. He lifted his head, then took a big gulp.
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“Team Leader, you sure are optimistic!” Wu Xiumin shook her head and said, “Forget about seven days, even if they gave us seventy days, that simply isn’t enough time! What if the gemstone is already overseas? What do we do then?”
“Hehe…” Zhao Yu took another big gulp, giggle, then told everyone, “Look closer, all of you. Wu Fangfang is eyeing us with hostility, and there are people within the Central Criminal Division who tried to exclude us from these proceedings!”
He then took another gulp, swallowed deeply, and continued. “So, remember this, after the investigation starts, you all have to give me your 100 percent!”
Although Zhao Yu wasn’t speaking loudly, his imposing manner made it seem like he was roaring. “I’m telling you, I will get the gemstone back, no matter what!”
Then, Zhao Yu raised his beer can and finished it! Zeng Ke, Wu Xiumin, and Ran Tao were dumbfounded. Then, Ran Tao and Zeng Ke quickly grabbed a can of beer and started drinking, while Cui Lizhu looked at Zhao Yu , a slight speck of indifference in her eyes.
After they had enjoyed enough food and drink, the investigation for the Gem Theft Case kicked off officially. On the screen, the blue gemstone with the magical charm had appeared once again.
Although it wasn’t as precious as a diamond or a red gemstone, its blueness was deep, like a starry night, which gave people a mysterious feeling. As such, people called it the Stone of Fate.
Using the infamous Tamil Star as an example, besides its being ill-fated, it witnessed many dynastic successions in ancient India. So, it really deserved its name, the Stone of Fate! However, it remained unknown if Zhao Yu’s fate would change because of the stone…
“Back then, my dad and I lived in a coastal county in Cao Hai. It was a small town that was peaceful and stood aloof from all worldly strife. I studied there in high school, while my dad worked in the post office…” Cui Lizhu introduced her experience in detail.
“I felt that the reason my dad was called the King of Thieves was not because of how skilful he was, but because he was better at disguising himself than anyone else. In fact, I remember that there was a female boss of a fish stall that took a liking to my dad, so she always sent seafood to our place. Sometimes, she sent so much, we couldn’t even finish it all…” she giggled a little at the memory.
“However, my dad’s original occupation was never interrupted by his postal work. Sometimes, he’d accept a deal, then disappear for a few days. If it was something simple and nearby, he would bring me along with him. It was during those times that my skills improved tremendously!” she added.
“Then, about six years ago, before the blue gemstone was stolen, my dad told me that he had just accepted a big deal.” Cui Lizhu had finally touched on the important point. “He said that he would need about ten days, then he would return for me! Back then, I didn’t feel that anything was off. After all, my dad’s mental health was good.”
She paused for a moment, then continued her story. “Just as my dad left, I heard on the news that the gemstone had been stolen. I was shocked, especially because I was if it was my dad’s doing or not. I remembered that my dad always kept a low profile, so I figured that he wouldn’t steal items that would cause such a major ruckus!” Cui Lizhu sighed.
“Then, I waited, but he didn’t return, even after ten days!” Cui Lizhu sighed yet again, then added, “In fact, he didn’t return for half a month! In the end, he returned after more than thirty days had passed! However, he wasn’t in good shape!”
Cui Lizhu recalled as she spoke, “In the beginning, he was forgetful. His sentence structure was also messed up. Sometimes, he would look at the clock, and still he couldn’t differentiate whether it was day or night! Then, his senses of taste and smell deteriorated. In the end, he became just like he is now!”
Her lips quivered, as she struggled to continue. “When he first came back, I was in a hurry to know the truth. I once asked him many times about the Tamil Star! Sometimes, he would tell me that he was the one who stole the gemstone! But, other times, he would claim that it wasn’t him! As such, I never knew what to believe.”
She then held up her hands, obviously feeling helpless. “I sent him for a physician’s check-up. In fact, we’ve seen many doctors. They all say that his head was hit, which led to severe brain damage. They explained that his situation would only worsen, and that the possibility of recovery is extremely low.”
She sobbed a bit, then forced herself to finish her explanation. “Then, there were those that I’ve told you about before. We came to Jinping and settled down in the nursing home, so I had to seek help from Ma Qing in Zhang Ping street to make a living! That nursing home is very expensive!”
“Alright!” Wu Xiumin interrupted, shaking her head helplessly. “At the end of the day, it’s still like nothing has been said! We are not even sure if Tao Xiang was the one that stole the gemstone!”
“Yeah!” Cui Lizhu said, not denying her words. “if my dad had told me where the gemstone was, do you think that I’d ever need to live like how I was living?”
“No, that’s not right…” Suddenly, Zhao Yu shook his head, then asked Cui Lizhu, “Why do I feel like your dad seemed like a fake?”