Chapter 25

25 Investigation Mission (Part 1)

Unaware that the Director was shamelessly squeezing benefits for him, Li Ang stood a kilometer away from the middle-aged nurse’s home, using Yang Tou’s soul vision to repeatedly “scan” the souls of everyone within range with wary eyes.

Although his first mission after joining had succeeded without incident—aside from a bruise on his shoulder from the rifle’s recoil—he never forgot the conversation he’d had with the Red-Haired Director before joining, nor that startling statistic.

The overall mortality rate of the Cleanup Bureau is eight per thousand, and it’s eight per thousand every month.

Both Senior Emma and the Red-Haired Director had repeatedly emphasized to him: no matter the situation, he must remain cautious, cautious, and even more cautious, because the targets the Cleanup Bureau faced came in too many forms, and he might at any moment encounter one that precisely countered his abilities.

Even that hospital incident proved it—Senior Emma, who had immortality as backup, had still been caught off guard, half her body swallowed into the hospital’s floor; had he and Yang Tou not been pre-positioned as snipers, she would have been left waiting for the Director to rescue her.

And even more chillingly, this incident occurred just three streets away from the Cleanup Bureau—if Senior Emma had been caught, she could still wait for the Director to save her, but what if this incident had happened in some remote, uninhabited mountain forest? Or what if the Red Brick Road Hospital could move, making its location impossible to pin down?

Even if she survived thanks to her immortality, she might still be locked away for months, years, or even remain conscious and motionless, trapped in a state of absorption inside concrete slabs—far more agonizing than death…

Breathe… cautious, cautious, and even more cautious!

After recalling the details of his last mission, Li Ang took two deep breaths and repeatedly warned himself: even if a situation seemed harmless, if it had any possible connection to “anomalies,” he must remain vigilant.

Though he possessed a unique badge as a bonus and would surely grow stronger in the future, in terms of pure survival ability, he was currently unfit to even polish Senior Emma’s shoes—yet she, with her immortality, had still been caught off guard; how could he afford to be anything but twice as careful?

…

After repeatedly confirming the soul states of everyone around him, especially the middle-aged nurse’s family, and verifying their emotions remained stable with no signs of anomaly, Li Ang shoved the grumbling Yang Tou into a shopping bag and hurried toward the neighborhood where the nurse’s family lived.

After showing the building manager his Cleanup Bureau credentials and stating he was a government official investigating the hospital director’s embezzlement, Li Ang easily gained the manager’s trust—thanks to credentials identical in format to those of the Police Department—and the elderly woman even put down her half-knitted wool and personally escorted him upstairs.

“Officer, the Han family are good people. She works at Red Brick Road Hospital, but she’s nothing like that money-sucking director—you absolutely mustn’t wrongfully accuse an innocent person.”

The building manager, an elderly woman likely over sixty, shuffled her thick, wild white curls as she slowly climbed the stairs with Li Ang, chattering on:

“Twenty years ago, when she was still a girl, she was already a nurse at that hospital—always diligent, never made a mistake. When my husband broke his leg and spent half a month in the hospital, she cared for him more meticulously than our own daughter.”

“The only thing that could be called a flaw about her was her stubborn honesty. By seniority, she could’ve become head nurse ten years ago—but head nurses handle drug records, and she refused to collude with those people in falsifying logs, so every promotion passed her by…”

After rambling on without pause, the building manager quietly passed the fifth floor where the middle-aged nurse lived, leading Li Ang toward the sixth floor, which was all empty units, all the while stealing glances at his expression.

And she cautiously probed:

“By the way, Officer, are you here to ask Han to testify against those people who cheated patients, or are you here to take her in for questioning?”

“…“

So if I say I’m here to arrest her, you’re just going to pretend you didn’t hear me?

After a moment of disbelief, Li Ang, now standing on the fifth floor, couldn’t help but remind her:

“Auntie… her house should be on the fifth floor, right? Didn’t you go up one floor too many?”

“Huh? Oh! Oh! I’m old, memory’s not good, hehehe.”

The building manager’s composure was excellent—she wasn’t flustered even when caught, but slowly shuffled back down the stairs, yet still didn’t lead Li Ang to the nurse’s home; instead, she turned left toward another empty unit.

“…“

Wait… I already know her house is on the fifth floor, and you’re still trying to lead me elsewhere? This is really too blatant.

“Tsk…”

This little black-skinned dog is suspicious—he must’ve done his homework before coming!

Seeing Li Ang refuse to fall for it and instead stand firmly outside Han’s door, waiting for her, the building manager’s eyelids and mouth both drooped at once. She hobbled back on her bowed legs, banged loudly on the nurse’s door, and glared as she threatened:

“I’m telling you, if you’re investigating, investigate properly—don’t try to smear Han! Those filthy affairs at the hospital have nothing to do with her!”

“And if Han comes back and finds even a scratch or any sign of distress, I’ll personally testify—I’ll file a complaint with the Police Department for illegal interrogation!”

“…“

Under the building manager’s suspicious glare, the nurse’s door creaked open from inside, revealing a middle-aged man with a weary face.

Seeing Li Ang’s unfamiliar appearance, the scholarly man adjusted his glasses and asked, slightly startled:

“Excuse me, who are you looking for?”

“He’s…”

“I’m here for your wife, Mrs. Han.”

Raising his voice sharply to drown out the building manager, Li Ang cut in:

“I’m Li Ang. Your wife was the nurse in my sister’s ward—has she mentioned me to you?”

“Oh! Yes! Yes!”

Hearing Li Ang’s words, the weary man’s face brightened. He pushed open the door and strode forward, gripping Li Ang’s right hand and shaking it vigorously.

“Thank you and your colleague for arriving in time yesterday and shutting off the hospital’s gas valve! Oh, and if not for your sister noticing something wrong and telling Han to slide down the bedsheet early, she might’ve…”

“Oh my! I don’t even know how to thank your family! We should’ve visited you—but you came first!”

“You’re too kind. My sister received much care from your wife. Yesterday, she merely suggested tying the curtain together—it was your wife who ensured they both escaped safely.”

“No, no, it was your sister…”

???

Watching the two men shaking hands warmly, one endlessly thanking the other’s family, the building manager standing nearby, eyes wide with shock, froze in place.

Wait… wait a minute… let me process this…