Chapter 35

When I saw Tan Yang’s swollen rear after he took off his pants in the bathroom, I was stunned—I’ll never forget that scene!

At the time, I only vaguely understood what had happened, but even the dumbest person could tell that bastard had done something terrible to Tan Yang!

After showing me his injuries, Tan Yang seemed to collapse completely—he gripped my hand tightly in the bathroom and sobbed: “Big Brother Shan! What do I do? Hu Feng said I have to be available whenever he calls, and warned me not to tell anyone, or else he’ll have someone hurt my sister! What do I do? I’m terrified, I’m in so much pain—but I can’t do anything. His family has money and power… Wuwuwu ！”

Do you know how furious I was then? I wanted to poison Hu Feng the same way I killed my old man! But we couldn’t get poison in prison, so I thought I’d hide a tool during labor—even just an iron nail would do!

Haha! I actually managed to steal a big iron nail! I hid it in my mouth, and that night, while Hu Feng was showering, I quietly followed him!

But everything turned out far simpler than I’d imagined!

When I reached the shower room and saw Hu Feng alone, I didn’t think—I rushed forward with the nail clenched between my fingers!

Haha, looking back now, I was truly a brave fool.

The nail only pierced a tiny hole in Hu Feng’s fat waist, but I was the one who got crushed—Hu Feng was tall and strong, and the few guys always with him heard his cry and burst in immediately…

Liu Baoshan’s eyes seemed to burn with fire as he said: “I didn’t achieve my goal of avenging Tan Yang—instead, I earned even worse abuse from Hu Feng from then on!”

Liu Baoshan’s body curled up like a frightened wildcat, tense and trembling.

Gu Changzheng guessed that Hu Feng had also assaulted him that day. At the time, both Liu Baoshan and Tan Yang, before Hu Feng and his family’s wealth and power, could only endure in silence.

Liu Baoshan looked up at Gu Changzheng and said slowly: “I killed that cop. I planned the whole kidnapping. Ren Jia was definitely taken by me. I was the one who killed him. I admit it all! Tan Yang’s worst crime is desecrating a corpse—but if they find he has a mental illness, hahaha! Director Gu, you know better than I do what happens next, right? Ah! Hahaha!”

Gu Changzheng sighed inwardly—he could see Tan Yang meant everything to Liu Baoshan, and he’d never betray him. And now, as Liu Baoshan said, the only charge they could bring against Tan Yang was desecrating a corpse; the police had no other evidence linking Tan Yang to the kidnapping or Ren Jia’s murder.

There was no other choice. Gu Changzheng glanced at Luo Fei, who nodded and called in the officer outside to take Liu Baoshan away.

In the office, Luo Fei looked at Gu Changzheng, still lost in thought, and said carefully: “Director Gu, the forensic psychiatric evaluation for Tan Yang is out.”

“The result is probably what Liu Baoshan wanted, isn’t it?” Gu Changzheng said calmly.

He wasn’t surprised Tan Yang was diagnosed with a mental illness—he suspected Tan Yang had been sick for a long time, and badly so.

“Alright, the case goes to the prosecutor’s office tomorrow. Get some rest,” Gu Changzheng sighed.

Since the 6.21 case began, over half a month had passed, and Gu Changzheng hadn’t spent a single proper night at home. Luckily, as a bachelor, he’d avoided much family hassle.

He remembered he hadn’t visited his Master in a long time. Checking the time, it was still early, so he dialed his retired Master—Lu Haoxuan, former captain of the Zizhen City Criminal Investigation Brigade.

Soon after the phone rang, it was answered by an elderly woman’s voice: “Hello, is this Changzheng?”

Hearing that warm voice, Gu Changzheng felt a surge of comfort. He grinned: “Aunt Wei, it’s me, Changzheng. Are you and Master home tonight? Can I come over and mooch a meal?”

“You little rascal—you knew I made chicken soup today, didn’t you? Haha! Come on over! Old Lu was just saying he wanted you to come eat—he’s thrilled you cracked the big case and can’t wait to hear your story!” Aunt Wei Wei Jie was a retired teacher; they had only one daughter, who passed the college entrance exam and moved to Daosheng City in the northern coastal region, where she now worked. So the household in Zizhen was just the two of them.

Gu Changzheng beamed: “I’ll call Jin Quan— if he’s free, I’ll bring him along. Is there enough soup?”

Wei Jie was gentle and kind-hearted; every time Gu Changzheng called her, he felt utterly relaxed, like a child playing with elders. He and Hu Jinquan had both been trained by Lu Haoxuan, and their bond was strong—he always liked to invite Hu Jinquan when visiting his Master.

Wei Jie readily agreed, laughing: “Come, both of you! I’ve learned a few new dishes—come be my guinea pigs! Hahaha!”

Gu Changzheng felt warmth spread through him. He happily replied, “Alright!” and chatted a little longer before calling Hu Jinquan.

Hu Jinquan had a dinner engagement he didn’t want to attend; he gladly canceled it when Gu Changzheng called, and they agreed to meet right after work.

Lu Haoxuan’s home was in the Public Security Bureau’s staff compound, located in the old southern district of Zizhen. The southern district was the city’s administrative and educational center, historically the birthplace of Zizhen’s urban development. Though its commercial vibe was less intense than Jiangdong’s, it carried a historical weight Jiangdong lacked, and its overall environment was quieter and cleaner.

At exactly 6:30 p.m., Gu Changzheng and Hu Jinquan arrived at the bureau compound—both had walked, both carrying two bottles of the same “Lang” brand baijiu.

“Haha, Old Gu, whose wine are we drinking tonight?” Hu Jinquan grinned, eyeing Gu Changzheng’s bottles.

“Quick, quick, let’s go upstairs! We promised to be there before 6:40—late and we’ll get scolded! As for the wine, make Master cough up his old Iron-Cap Five-Star—we’ll taste it!”

“Fine! You remind him then!”

While joking about their Master’s old liquor, they didn’t slow down—less than three minutes later, they’d sprinted from the compound gate to the third floor of Building No. 1, Lu Haoxuan’s home.

Before they could even knock, the old iron door creaked open from inside. A tall, imposing old man stood there, his hair pure white, face ruddy, wearing a white old-man’s shirt, dark blue trousers, and slippers.