Ren Yi sat on the edge of a flower bed in a shopping plaza, staring at the electronic map on his phone. The little yellow dot had stopped moving and was now stationary at a particular location.
Gong Yingxian was there now, wasn’t he? Could Bai Yan be there too? Was he safe?
Ren Yi sighed softly and lowered his phone. Under the night sky, couples walked past him hand in hand, and watching them made his heart ache.
He wanted to be like them too. On a Saturday night, he wanted to go out with Gong Yingxian, have dinner together, watch a movie—just enjoy an ordinary relationship.
He hadn’t realized even that was a luxury.
As he sat there thinking, a hand suddenly landed on his shoulder. Ren Yi jumped, his entire body snapping rigid.
A faint feminine fragrance drifted into his nostrils. He looked up and saw Qiu Yan sitting down beside him. He let out a breath of relief.
“You got here pretty quickly.”
“I wasn’t far away.” Qiu Yan glanced around. “Are you being followed?”
“I don’t think they know where I am yet. What about you?”
“No.” Qiu Yan turned her attention back to him, then gave him a sidelong look with an almost teasing smile. “Didn’t you look in a mirror before leaving home?”
Ren Yi rubbed his face. “What’s wrong?”
“You’ve got the face of a man who’s been thoroughly indulging himself, plus all those hickeys. At a time like this, you two still have the leisure to enjoy yourselves?” She pointed at her own neck.
Ren Yi immediately pulled up his collar, embarrassed. “I… I didn’t notice.”
“I’m kidding.” Qiu Yan smiled.
“…Could you be serious for once, considering the situation we’re in?” Ren Yi said irritably. Then, after a moment’s thought, he added, “How did you know we’d seen each other?”
“You smell a little like him. I can’t really explain it, but I’ve always been sensitive to smells. Besides, you took the risk of arranging this meeting with me, so you must have some news.” Qiu Yan looked at him. “Where is he? Take me to him.”
“He came to see me two days ago. He left a few hours ago.” Ren Yi told her everything that had happened over the past two days.
Qiu Yan fell silent when he finished.
Ren Yi watched her nervously.
“Let me see.”
He handed her his phone. Qiu Yan studied the screen and remained silent.
Finally, unable to bear it any longer, Ren Yi was about to ask what she was thinking when she spoke.
“Have you read all the files from the Gong family arson case?”
“No. There were too many. I picked out the important ones.”
“I asked two interns to organize and summarize all the files for me. There were indeed several gaps and damaged sections, but I assumed that was because of how long ago the case happened. If what Bai Yan said is true, then one person looks rather suspicious.”
“Who?”
“One person’s incident report was incomplete. But based on the reports filed by the others, he was the first person to enter the underground garage.” Qiu Yan looked directly into Ren Yi’s eyes. “Your brigade commander, Chen Xiaofei.”
Ren Yi’s breath caught in his throat.
“I think Yingxian has probably thought of him too. He just can’t tell you.” Qiu Yan frowned. “Besides, this is still only a theory. We don’t have concrete evidence yet. We’d have to obtain the original version of the portion of the report that Zhang Wen concealed.”
Ren Yi lowered his head. This time, it was his turn to fall silent. He genuinely didn’t know what to say, or even what he was thinking at that moment.
With the investigation having reached this point, nothing surprised him anymore. He simply felt numb and exhausted. He wanted everything to come to light as soon as possible. He wanted this tragedy, which had dragged on for nearly twenty years, to finally come to an end. He wanted the guilty to face justice and for no more innocent people to be hurt.
Ren Yi took a deep breath. “If you think Captain Chen is a suspect, investigate him. Don’t go out of your way to spare my feelings. Based on what I know of Captain Chen, he’s not that kind of person. But I want to know the truth just as much as you do.”
“Of course I’ll investigate him. But right now, the most important thing is to deal with Yingxian’s situation.” Qiu Yan sounded worried. “Yellow Flame is extremely dangerous. When we investigated his background, we discovered that he may have been involved in a homicide before.”
Ren Yi was just about to ask for more details when he suddenly froze.
“You investigated Yellow Flame’s background? Wait. Didn’t Bai Yan tell Yingxian about Yellow Flame?”
Qiu Yan froze too. Her eyes shifted slightly as she realized she’d let something slip.
“Yingxian had already disappeared with Bai Yan by then. How did you know about Yellow Flame? Have you been in contact with them?” Ren Yi pressed her. “What’s really going on? You’re not all playing me for a fool, are you?”
Qiu Yan sighed helplessly. “Don’t get worked up. It’s not what you think.”
“Then what is it? What else are you keeping from me?” Ren Yi felt as though he hadn’t even figured out the truth about Zhang Wen yet, and now Yellow Flame had entered the picture too. He understood that, as a police officer, Qiu Yan wasn’t obligated to tell him everything. But after becoming this deeply involved, was he still supposed to be kept on the outside?
Qiu Yan explained gently, “Captain Ren, it’s not what you think. We genuinely had no idea Yingxian would leave with Bai Yan. I haven’t been able to contact him since then either.”
“Then why did you already know about Yellow Flame before that? It makes no sense…” A sudden flash of insight crossed Ren Yi’s mind, and he instantly guessed the answer. “Could it be… he was the one who set the Wen Hui Shopping Mall fire?” His voice trembled slightly.
Qiu Yan pressed her lips together before finally admitting it. “Yes. After investigating for some time, we narrowed down the suspect. But it wasn’t until that day at the Jianxing Hotel that we confirmed the arson suspect in the Wen Hui Shopping Mall case was the same person as Bai Yan’s accomplice who escaped with him.”
Ren Yi was momentarily stunned, his eyes nearly bulging with fury. An overwhelming murderous rage surged through him. He clenched his teeth, hatred flooding his heart.
“It was him. He’s the one who killed Sun Dingyi.”
“That was the main reason Yingxian didn’t want you involved. He was afraid you’d act impulsively and put yourself in danger.”
“He was afraid I’d act impulsively? Is he not even more impulsive than I am?” Ren Yi snapped angrily. “Whatever the reason, he shouldn’t have gone off to face the danger alone!”
“Exactly. That’s why you were right to come to me. There are very few people Yingxian can trust now. We have to find him as soon as possible and help him catch Yellow Flame.”
“Then let’s go. The location on this map is probably where he’s hiding Bai Yan. During the days he was missing, he must have had somewhere to stay.”
“Let’s go.”
On the way, Ren Yi gradually calmed down and asked Qiu Yan about Gong Feilan.
He couldn’t imagine the kind of blow the girl must have suffered. Being attacked in the cold-storage facility had already left her trapped in a fear she would struggle to overcome for a long time. Then her own biological father had died a horrific death.
Just imagining the innocent, youthful smile on Gong Feilan’s face disappearing forever made his heart ache.
“She isn’t doing well,” Qiu Yan said heavily. “We made up a story to explain the cause of her father’s death. She’s a very clever girl, though, and I don’t know how long we’ll be able to keep the truth from her. Her mother is staying with her for now. Once she’s emotionally stable, they’ll take her abroad.”
Ren Yi sighed.
“Sometimes I wonder whether that family is cursed,” Qiu Yan said miserably. “First Yingxian’s family, and now Feilan’s father…”
“Yingxian has always done everything he can to protect Feilan. No matter how much he hated Yue Xingu—even if Yue Xingu really was the one who set the fire all those years ago—Yingxian would never have tortured him himself. So there’s no way Yingxian killed him.”
“Of course we believe Yingxian,” Qiu Yan said. “I’ve listened to the recording. Those words were nothing more than angry threats. They can’t serve as evidence on their own. But the materials found in Zhang Wen’s rented apartment really do look bad for Yingxian. After all, Cai Qiang was injured in the explosion.”
“So Zheng Pei seized on those two things and managed to get Yingxian wanted and you suspended?”
“He couldn’t have done that by himself. He was sent down by a higher-level department specifically to investigate this case. Someone with greater authority is driving him. During our covert investigation into the Gong family arson case, we used police resources. There was nothing inherently wrong with that, but if someone wanted to be strict about the rules, it technically violated regulations, since the case hasn’t officially been reopened.
“We never dared to formally request that the case be reopened because we were afraid of interference from forces we couldn’t anticipate. We wanted to wait until we had conclusive evidence and were fully prepared before making that move. But now he’s seized on this as grounds to accuse us of abusing public resources and misusing police manpower. Add Yue Xingu’s death and Yingxian’s alleged assistance in Bai Yan’s escape, and that’s how things reached this point.”
“Then if Yingxian can catch Yellow Flame, or even capture Purple Flame, he can prove his innocence, right?”
Qiu Yan shook her head. “The situation is too complicated now. More things could happen that none of us can predict. So I don’t dare make any promises. Let’s find him first.”
According to the tracking device, they found an old four-story building near the city’s Fifth Ring Road. Several small convenience stores and eateries occupied the ground floor, while a jumble of signs hung above the businesses on the upper floors.
Ren Yi tilted his head back and looked up at the building. He couldn’t imagine Gong Yingxian resting in a place like this. No wonder he couldn’t sleep well.
Qiu Yan didn’t get out of the car immediately. Instead, she leaned back against her seat.
“Captain Ren, I’d like to ask you something. Don’t think I’m being nosy. I’ve actually wanted to ask for a long time, but never found the opportunity.”
Ren Yi could guess what she was about to ask. He simply gave a calm “Mm.”
“What exactly is your relationship with Yingxian now?” Qiu Yan asked bluntly.
“We’re a couple. We’re lovers.” Ren Yi answered without the slightest hesitation.
Qiu Yan gazed deeply into Ren Yi’s eyes. She saw determination, sincerity, and fearlessness there. Suddenly, she smiled with unmistakable relief, then gave him a mischievous wink.
“Which one of you tops?”
Ren Yi was mortified. “Th-that’s not important.”
“Of course it’s important! Sheng Bo and I made a bet about how old Yingxian would be when he finally lost his virginity. I lost this round. I thought he had no chance of getting laid for the rest of his life.” Qiu Yan switched off the engine and pulled out the key. “Come on, satisfy my curiosity.”
Remembering how Qiu Yan had teased him about the hickeys, Ren Yi figured she’d never let him live it down if she found out the details. So he ignored her and walked straight toward a convenience store.
Qiu Yan took out a hundred-yuan banknote and addressed the young boy tending the shop.
“Hey, kid. Have you seen a tall man wearing a mask around here over the past few days?”
The boy nodded. “Yeah. He always wears a white mask and gloves.”
“When was the last time you saw him? Do you know where he lives?”
“I forgot. A couple of days ago, I think. He probably lives upstairs.”
“Okay, thanks.”
There weren’t many residents in this building, so even if they searched each apartment one by one, it wouldn’t take too long. Just as they were about to leave the convenience store and head upstairs, they saw a familiar, tall, long-legged figure emerge from the stairwell, accompanied by a slender man.
It was Gong Yingxian and Bai Chicheng!
The two exchanged a tacit glance and retreated into the convenience store without saying a word.
Gong Yingxian was carrying a large backpack and gripping Bai Chicheng by the shoulder. They walked one behind the other toward an inconspicuous car and got in.
Qiu Yan said, “Check whether the tracking device is still on him.”
Ren Yi pulled out his phone and checked. “It hasn’t moved. I stuck the device inside the packaging for a light bulb. He probably didn’t notice it, but he didn’t take it with him either.”
“Then we’ll have to follow them.” Qiu Yan got into the car. “Good thing I don’t usually drive this one. He won’t recognize it. Still, we need to keep our distance. He’s extremely alert.”
Ren Yi watched the car ahead as it approached a turn, his expression worried.
“Do you think he’s going to find Yellow Flame?”
“It’s possible.” Qiu Yan started the engine and quickly followed.