Chapter 269: Thunderstorm Night

On December 10, 1999, a regular weekend, my Master Gu Changzheng—who was then just an ordinary detective in the Jiangdong Branch—and his colleague and close friend Hu Jinquan were invited by their Master, Lu Haoxuan, then captain of the Jiangdong Branch Criminal Investigation Unit, to dinner at his home.

Going to Master’s house for dinner on weekends was common.

“Oh, is this a tradition?” Su Ruonan tilted her head and smiled at Luo Fei.

Luo Fei, who was telling the story, smiled and looked at his Master Gu Changzheng, who was chatting with the municipal bureau leaders, then patted Su Ruonan’s head. “Who visits more often than I do?”

The two exchanged a smile. For this bachelor Master, Luo Fei and his wife felt a filial affection, like children toward their father. It wasn’t so much about going to Gu Changzheng’s house for free meals as it was about using that excuse to keep him company, talk with him, and clean his house.

Luo Fei took Su Ruonan’s hand, and they slowly walked toward the cemetery gate, as Luo Fei continued telling the story of his Master Gu Changzheng and his wife Fang Jie:

That December 10 evening was their first meeting. The atmosphere at the old captain’s home was warm; originally, the old captain had arranged for Master Gu Changzheng to escort Teacher Fang home, but an unexpected case forced them to part abruptly. (See the Chang Brothers Case.)

Later, when Master spoke of that night, he said he knew from the first glance that she was the one. Perhaps this was what they called “one glance, ten thousand years.”

Though Master was buried in the series of violent cases sparked by the Chang brothers’ feud with the Zhang siblings, it did not stop their growing connection.

Teacher Fang and Teacher Wei, the wife of Old Captain Lu Haoxuan, were colleagues, and naturally, Teacher Wei and her husband created many opportunities for them to meet.

Their feelings deepened daily, and under the old captain’s arrangement, they married at the end of 2000, after the Chang brothers’ organized crime case was resolved.

That period was the happiest time of Master’s life. Though I had not yet joined the police force, I could feel it from his stories—until that fateful night.

It was July 2001…

July was the hottest month of the year in Zizhen City. Fang Jie was on summer break and already two months pregnant, though her husband Gu Changzheng did not yet know.

Her high school classmate, Pan Tingting, director of the obstetrics and gynecology department at the Zizhen Maternal and Child Health Hospital, told her the hospital had just installed new color Doppler ultrasound equipment, and at eight weeks, the fetus could be clearly seen.

Fang Jie made an appointment with her to visit the hospital that day, planning to print out the baby’s photo as a surprise for Gu Changzheng.

They had originally planned to meet at ten a.m., but Pan Tingting had an emergency surgery, so the time changed to four p.m. The weather remained scorching hot. Gu Changzheng was busy at the station, so Fang Jie left home at 3:30 p.m., hailed a taxi, and headed for the hospital.

Everything at the hospital went smoothly. Looking at the photo of the baby, no bigger than a raspberry, Fang Jie’s heart swelled with sweetness.

She immediately called Gu Changzheng, inviting him to dinner near Yinzuo Building that evening, intending to tell him the good news then.

Unfortunately, Gu Changzheng’s phone went unanswered. As a police officer’s wife, she was used to it—she knew her husband must be on duty and had left his phone behind. She laughed and asked Pan Tingting to join her, partly to thank her old classmate.

It had been a perfect day, everything going smoothly, and Gu Changzheng’s absence didn’t dampen Fang Jie’s spirits.

Dinner ended at eight p.m., when the heavens turned cruel—suddenly, a heavy downpour began.

Even then, Gu Changzheng had not called her back. Looking out at the rain, Fang Jie felt a faint pang of regret.

She had hoped to tell her husband this joyous news at this very restaurant, their first private date.

Pan Tingting seemed to sense her thoughts. With a cheerful smile, she bid farewell, saying she would leave the rest of the evening to the couple.

Fang Jie smiled warmly, said goodbye to her old classmate, and sat alone at the table, waiting for Gu Changzheng’s call. She knew that no matter how busy he was, if he could call, he would call her first.

Time ticked away. The restaurant emptied, until only her table remained.

Seeing the waiter’s frequent glances, she offered an apologetic smile, until the clock on her wrist struck ten—her phone still lay silent on the table. Disappointment rose, but she crushed it down.

Before becoming a police officer’s wife, she had prepared herself for sacrifice. She just never imagined this sacrifice would be so complete.

As the taxi carried her away from Yinzuo Building toward home, the thunderstorm returned—stronger than before. The driver drove cautiously; the windshield wipers could barely keep up with the torrential rain.

When the car was about one kilometer from their home, the driver stopped at a traffic light. Suddenly, two blinding beams of light shot from the side—right toward Fang Jie’s seat!

———

By the time Gu Changzheng received the call from the traffic police, Fang Jie was already lying in the hospital morgue.

The other vehicle was a pickup truck; the driver was found to be under the influence of a large dose of drugs.

Because the pickup was taller than the taxi and traveling at high speed, it struck the right rear side of Fang Jie’s taxi. The impact was so violent that the taxi door was instantly torn open and crushed inward. Fang Jie had no time to react—her right abdomen was impaled by the broken door.

The pickup continued roaring forward until it was finally stopped by a thick ginkgo tree in the median barrier.

When the traffic police and ambulance arrived, Fang Jie had no vital signs.

The accident investigation concluded quickly: the driver, Tang Xiaofeng, was a known drug user, repeatedly subjected to compulsory detoxification, and a repeat offender. On the day of the accident, after partying with drug associates in a hotel, he suffered intense hallucinations, seized the pickup keys from his friend Zhang Jie, and drove into the rain seeking thrills.

When collecting her belongings, Gu Changzheng learned Fang Jie had been pregnant. Later, at her funeral, he burned the ultrasound photo of their baby for her, saying in his own words: “I don’t deserve to have them. I am an utterly unworthy husband, an unworthy father…”

During that time, Lu Haoxuan brought him home every day, afraid he would spiral out of control.

Afterwards, the perpetrator Tang Xiaofeng did not flee—he turned himself in and was sentenced to five years in prison. The incident was classified as a major traffic accident. Though Tang Xiaofeng had driven under the influence of drugs, his punishment was standard, and Gu Changzheng had no grounds to complain.

Here, Luo Fei let out a heavy sigh, his face filled with sorrow.

Su Ruonan gripped his arm tightly. “Wasn’t the Zizhen organized crime syndicate just dismantled? How could drugs still be circulating?”

Luo Fei’s expression changed—he stared fixedly at Su Ruonan.