Chapter 275: You Helped Me This Much, So Help Me One More Time

Li Shang did not answer directly; he hesitated for a moment, made a shushing gesture toward Hou Wendong, then took out his phone, dialed a number, and put it on speaker.

A "beep-beep-beep" waiting tone came from the receiver, each sound like a hammer striking Hou Wendong's heart.

The wait was interminably long; every passing second magnified Hou Wendong's fear, a torment that even surpassed the week he had spent being tortured.

The call connected, and a man's mellow voice came through: "Hello, Captain Li."

Hou Wendong's eyes widened in rage; he immediately recognized that familiar voice.

Li Shang glanced at Hou Wendong, took a deep breath, and said: "Secretary Du, let me tell you some good news — I found Hou Mi."

The voice on the other end instantly turned urgent: "What? When did you find him? Where is he?"

Li Shang replied: "Right now. We found Hou Mi in an abandoned warehouse in the suburbs; he's still alive."

The other end fell silent for a moment, then asked: "But this week's search and rescue yielded no results — wasn't the operation already declared a failure? How did you..."

Li Shang let out a soft sigh and said:

"Yes, although Li Xiuwan provided the truth, the several locations she told us her ex-husband might be hiding in — we never found anyone."

"Li Xiuwan didn't look like she was lying, so the search had to be temporarily halted; but just now, I unexpectedly received a tip..."

On the other end of the phone, Du Ziteng — awakened in the middle of the night — already in a foul mood, grew even more irritable.

He bolted upright on the bed, gritted his teeth, and pressed out word by word: "A tip?"

The suppressed anger in his tone seemed to travel along the phone line, making the temperature in the entire warehouse seem to drop several degrees.

Li Shang's gaze fell again on Hou Wendong's tightly bitten lips; he explained unhurriedly:

"This is a tip from a gang down below. This week we've received many similar pieces of intelligence; I held almost no hope, just took Chang Erbing along for a routine check. Didn't expect..."

Li Shang paused slightly, his voice turning low and deep:

"Result — we really found Hou Mi. The situation was critical; Erbing and I had no time to report to the bureau, had to act immediately. Fortunately the outcome was good — we subdued the criminals and rescued Hou Mi."

Du Ziteng's face turned iron-green; he had already hinted to Li Shang before, and he didn't believe Li Shang's near-miraculous case-solving ability would fail to understand his implication.

"So Li Shang is deliberately confirming with me again, making me owe him a favor?" Du Ziteng's brows knotted into a lump; he mused darkly.

Du Ziteng could understand Li Shang's caution, but he still felt annoyed — charitably called prudence, uncharitably it exposed the petty small-mindedness in the other's bones.

The phone fell into a brief silence.

Li Shang and Chang Erbing exchanged a glance, their eyes flashing with a hidden look; Hou Wendong noticed none of this — he strained his ears, all attention on the phone, his lips bitten to shreds.

After a long while, a reply came from the phone, the voice exceptionally low:

"Meaning, after you rescued Hou Mi, you reported directly to me, without even notifying anyone else — is that right?"

Li Shang answered without hesitation: "Yes, Secretary Du. The moment I rescued Hou Mi, I called you immediately."

The voice on the other end grew even lower, the depths laced with an indescribable strangeness:

"Then, right now there are only you and Chang Erbing at the scene, correct?"

Li Shang drew a deep breath, decisive: "Indeed, Secretary Du."

On the other end, Du Ziteng climbed out of his warm bed, stepping barefoot onto cold tile.

The room was a bit cold; goosebumps rose on his skin. He slowly crouched down, burying his entire face in his knees.

He listened quietly to the phone, his voice carrying a barely perceptible tremor:

"Captain Li, I'm very glad you cracked this case; I'll certainly request a commendation for you from the Councilor. I feel with Captain Li's ability, serving as Bureau Chief of the Patrol Bureau is more than sufficient — so Captain Li mustn't forget the matter you agreed to that day sitting in that chair."

Li Shang deliberately stayed silent for three seconds; those three seconds were excruciating for Secretary Du, and made Hou Mi feel each second drag like a year.

After three seconds, Li Shang asked as if uncertain: "You want me to kill Hou Mi, right?"

Hearing Li Shang ask so bluntly, Du Ziteng felt even more uncomfortable, but at this moment his reason had already been ignited by ambition; he could no longer care about much.

Du Ziteng was shaken by Li Shang's direct question, displeasure rising in his heart, but now his ambition blazed like a raging fire, consuming his reason.

He jerked his head up, revealing his face from behind his knees — that face soaked in cold sweat was filled with sinister ruthlessness. His voice, cold and resolute, came through the mouthpiece:

"Captain Li, you're going to command the Patrol Bureau in the future — how can you speak so imprecisely? Hou Mi clearly died from torture by the criminals; Captain Li merely arrived a step too late."

Hearing this, Hou Wendong's emotions completely spiraled out of control; his voice turned sharp and piercing with rage and despair:

"Du Ziteng, you despicable, shameless petty man — have you forgotten who brought you into the secretariat? It was me, Hou Wendong, who promoted you. I helped you so much, you..."

On the other end of the phone, Du Ziteng's five fingers clenched the handset, knuckles whitening from the force; he made no response to Hou Wendong's curses, merely waiting in silence.

After a few seconds of stillness, Li Shang's calm voice came through the phone:

"Secretary Du, do you have anything else to say to Hou Mi?"

Du Ziteng didn't have much to say originally, but prompted by Li Shang's question, he couldn't help sighing, and spoke slowly into the mouthpiece:

"Hou Mi, I know you helped me a lot — so help me one last time. I guarantee I, Du Ziteng, will remember your kindness for the rest of my life."

Hou Wendong wanted to curse more, but Li Shang seized his throat; he could only let out helpless, violent gasps, the sound filled with despair and unwillingness.

Listening to the struggling breaths from the handset, Du Ziteng said with a touch of unbearable feeling: "Captain Li, Hou Mi fears pain — let him pass peacefully."

Li Shang's voice through the mouthpiece was cold and firm: "Understood, Secretary Du. Please accept my condolences."

Hearing the words "accept my condolences," Du Ziteng couldn't bear to listen to Hou Mi's dying gasps any longer; he feared his conscience would be too tormented, that he'd have nightmares if he fell asleep.

Du Ziteng hung up the phone, his whole body limp as he collapsed onto the cold tile, layer upon layer of trembling goosebumps rising on his delicate skin.

His throat first emitted broken, low, stifled sounds like weeping laughter, but soon it gradually turned into unbridled, manic laughter.

(End of Chapter)