There was no response from the other end of the phone.
Ren Yi didn’t speak either. He waited patiently for Gong Yingxian.
After a long while, Gong Yingxian asked in an extremely quiet voice, as though afraid of disturbing someone, “Go on.”
“Do you remember the protective suit you wore when you helped me deal with that chemical tanker?”
“I remember.”
“The gas masks we wore had a single, continuous lens over the eyes, like ski goggles or diving goggles. The exhaust valve was short, thick, and cylindrical, and there was a large filter canister on each cheek.”
Gong Yingxian began to sense where he was going with this.
“Those were modern gas masks. Well, not exactly modern—I was already using that type when I attended the Armed Police University. But the older models didn’t look like that.” Ren Yi took a deep breath before continuing. “The old masks, the ones from my father’s generation, had two separate, large, round lenses over the eyes. There were no filter canisters hanging off the cheeks. The filter and the exhaust valve were integrated into one piece, forming a single filter nozzle. It wasn’t as thick as the exhaust valves we use now, but it was longer.”
“You’re saying… the bird mask I saw might actually have been an old-fashioned gas mask.” There was a slight tremor in Gong Yingxian’s voice.
“I think that’s possible,” Ren Yi said. “For one thing, I told you before that I suspected the culprit might have been wearing protective equipment. For another, you were very young at the time, and it was the middle of the night.”
“I was young, but a six-year-old child should still be able to tell a bird from something else, shouldn’t he?” After saying this, Gong Yingxian began to doubt himself, too. In his memory, it had clearly been…
Clearly been what? Apart from his absolute conviction that it had been a bird mask, the actual image of what the mask looked like was nothing more than a blurry impression in his mind.
“Six-year-olds are already in primary school. They can certainly form lasting memories,” Ren Yi said with a frown. “This is only a theory. During class today, I saw a foreign-made emergency mask and suddenly thought it looked a little like the one Ziyan wore. That got me thinking… Anyway, you can keep it in mind as a possibility.”
“I… I don’t know.” When investigating a case, Gong Yingxian was always decisive and efficient. It was rare for him to lose confidence in his own judgment. Even during those few frantic minutes at the concert, when a single mistake could have led to irreversible consequences, he had never doubted any of his decisions. As it turned out, every one of them had been correct.
But now, he was genuinely confused, because human memory could be deceptive.
“I’ll send you some photos of old gas masks,” Ren Yi said gently. “Yingxian, don’t panic. The truth will come to light eventually. When it does, all their schemes will be exposed.”
“Okay,” Gong Yingxian said. “This is a very important lead. If we can verify it, it could be a great help to the investigation.”
“Mm. Back then, there weren’t many ways to buy things, especially unusual equipment like this. We might be able to trace something.”
“Ren Yi, have you ever considered…” Gong Yingxian hesitated. “That the person might have been… someone connected to the fire service… or something along those lines?” In the end, he still couldn’t bring himself to say the words firefighter.
Ren Yi bit his lip. “…I have. Emotionally, I don’t want to consider that possibility. But rationally, it’s entirely possible.”
The case had been so complicated, yet it had been closed so simply and quickly. Perhaps there had been more than one insider.
“Emotionally, I don’t want to believe there were problems within the police back then, either. But rationally, there clearly were,” Gong Yingxian said gloomily. “I’ll keep investigating. You… have you finished your training?”
Ren Yi sensed that Gong Yingxian had swallowed the words he really wanted to say and abruptly changed the subject, making his final question seem somewhat out of place. He knew there was no evidence yet, and talking about it further would do little good, so he didn’t press him.
“It finishes this afternoon. There’s still one more class this afternoon.”
“I haven’t been able to get away to see you these past few days. What time does it end? I’ll come pick you up.”
“You should take care of your own work. They’re arranging a vehicle to take us back to our companies this afternoon.”
“I want to come pick you up.” Ever since the incident at the barbecue restaurant after their last meeting, Gong Yingxian had felt uneasy.
Ren Yi smiled faintly. “Then I’ll see you at five-thirty.”
When he returned after the call, he found that everyone had left the classroom to go to lunch. Only Yan Jue was still sitting in his seat.
“Why aren’t you going to lunch?”
“Waiting for you.”
Ren Yi laughed. “Why wait for me?”
“You spent the entire class distracted, and you didn’t look too good, either.” Yan Jue gazed intently at him. “You’re a high-priority protection target now. Isn’t it reasonable for me to check on you?”
“I’m fine now.” Ren Yi gathered his things. “Come on, let’s get lunch.”
The two left the classroom side by side. Yan Jue kept glancing at Ren Yi from time to time.
Ren Yi said helplessly, “I really am fine. That phone call just gave us a useful lead.”
“Was it Officer Gong?”
“Mm-hmm.”
Yan Jue fell silent for a moment, looking a little dejected. “So there’s nothing I can do to help you?”
“Who says that? Weren’t you the one who helped me seal off the pipe at the barbecue restaurant that day?”
“I can help you with other things, too. Just ask.”
Ren Yi smiled. “Will do.”
During lunch, some colleagues from the publicity department were taking photographs with a camera.
Someone teased them, “What’s so interesting about taking pictures of us eating?”
“We’re documenting the food we get here.”
The camera gradually made its way over to Ren Yi’s table. Looking casual, Yan Jue slung an arm around Ren Yi’s shoulders and flashed a hearty smile at the camera.
“Four Fires, look at the camera.”
“Hey, wait until I’ve swallowed this bite!” Ren Yi hurriedly stuffed the food into his mouth, his cheeks puffing out like a squirrel’s. He ended up choking and covered his mouth as he coughed repeatedly.
Laughing, Yan Jue patted him on the back. “Take your time, take your time. What are you rushing for?”
Everyone around them burst out laughing.
Ren Yi finally managed to catch his breath. “It’s your fault! You suddenly wanted to take pictures. These people are ruthless. They’ll publish even the ugliest shots of me.”
The photographer chuckled. “That’s what makes it real! I recorded the whole thing. What great footage!”
“Fuck, cut it out! Cut it out!”
“Captain Ren, you’re awfully concerned about your image, aren’t you? Don’t worry. To preserve the good image of our firefighters, I’ll definitely cut out that swear word you just said.”
Yan Jue picked up a tissue and wiped the corner of Ren Yi’s mouth for him. Then he gently turned Ren Yi’s chin and examined his face carefully.
“There. Handsome again. Go ahead and take the picture.”
The two smiled at the camera, and the shutter clicked repeatedly.
After their final class that afternoon, the three-day training course came to an end.
Ren Yi returned to his room, packed his luggage, and waited for Gong Yingxian to pick him up. Just then, someone knocked on the door.
When he opened it, he found Yan Jue standing outside.
“Come in and sit for a while.”
“What’s the point of sitting around? We’re going downstairs to get on the bus.”
“Oh, I told the group leader I wouldn’t be taking the bus. Someone’s coming to pick me up.”
Yan Jue paused. “That Officer Gong again?”
“Yep.”
Yan Jue’s thick eyebrows drew together. “He really doesn’t seem to trust you out of his sight.”
“He’s dealt with those freaks face-to-face, after all. Now there are undercover police officers following me wherever I go.” Ren Yi raised his eyebrows. “Pretty impressive treatment, huh?”
“You two really are close.” Yan Jue stared at Ren Yi. “You already have police officers protecting you, yet he still insists on coming to pick you up himself.”
For a moment, Ren Yi didn’t know how to answer, so he tried to play it off with a joke. “We still need to discuss the case.”
“I’ll head down first, then.” Yan Jue’s expression was rather sour. “If you’re free tonight, let’s play some games. Just call me whenever.”
“No problem. See you later.”
Just then, Ren Yi’s phone rang. He glanced down and saw that it was Gong Yingxian. Apparently, he had arrived early.
“Hello? You’re here? Okay, I’ll be right down.”
After hanging up, Ren Yi picked up his luggage. “Come on, let’s go down together.”
When they reached the ground floor, the minibus arranged to take them back was parked outside. Company commanders were gradually boarding, while the black Jeep Wrangler was parked just behind the minibus.
The Wrangler’s window slowly rolled down.
In weather this cold, there was hardly any reason to open a car window. Besides, Ren Yi knew this particular vehicle all too well.
Gong Yingxian had lowered the window so he could see the person standing beside Ren Yi. Since they were wearing identical uniforms and were still some distance away, he couldn’t make out the other man’s face at first. Only when they came closer could he confirm that the person chatting and laughing with Ren Yi was none other than Yan Jue.
Gong Yingxian let out a displeased snort.
Ren Yi waved at him and called out, “Wait a moment!”
He shook hands with the various company commanders and exchanged a few polite remarks, such as, “Let’s get together for drinks next time,” before watching them board the bus.
When it was Yan Jue’s turn, Ren Yi held out his hand and joked, “See you in the King’s Canyon!”
Yan Jue curled his lips into a smile. As he took Ren Yi’s hand, he suddenly pulled him into his arms and hugged him, giving him two firm pats on the back.
“See you.”
At the same time, he turned his head and stared directly at Gong Yingxian inside the car. His expression seemed calm, yet there was something in his eyes that was difficult to decipher.
Gong Yingxian narrowed his eyes. A small flame of anger suddenly flared inside him—he felt as though Yan Jue was deliberately provoking him.
Ren Yi was a little surprised, but didn’t think much of it. He patted Yan Jue on the back, too.
“Off you go.”
After they separated, Yan Jue boarded the bus. Ren Yi got into Gong Yingxian’s car, tossed his small bag onto the back seat, and rubbed his hands together.
“It only took a moment to get from the hotel to here, and my hands are already numb. Damn, it’s freezing today.”
Gong Yingxian pressed his lips together, still thinking about the look Yan Jue had given him. The more he thought about it, the more annoyed he became. But then again, perhaps he was reading too much into it. It was perfectly normal for male friends to put their arms around each other’s shoulders.
“Are you going to close the window?” Ren Yi asked, looking at Gong Yingxian in confusion.
Gong Yingxian snapped out of his thoughts and rolled the window back up.
“Have you eaten?”
“Not yet. The food in the canteen here is terrible.”
“I’ll take you somewhere to eat.”
“Your place? No, I can’t. I need to get back to the station.”
“No. We’ll go to… a restaurant.”
Ren Yi stared at him in astonishment.