Chapter 284: The Request Before Execution

Today no one got drunk, but everyone still drank well.

Apart from Qu Tuotuo, the father and son pair each hit just the right amount.

After the meal, Yu Dazhang drove Qu Tuotuo home, and since both of them had been drinking, they called a taxi at the front gate.

On the road.

"I want to discuss something with you," Qu Tuotuo said softly.

Yu Dazhang nodded:

"What's there to discuss? If you have something to say, just say it—I'll go along with whatever you want."

After today's meal, he felt genuinely grateful toward Qu Tuotuo.

As children, who doesn't wish for their parents to be in good health?

And Qu Tuotuo had taken his dad and mom to the hospital for a checkup, and even bought medicine for his mom—that hit exactly the right note with Yu Dazhang.

And during that time she had also made a trip to Xicheng to see him, and left Ye Zhiyu a hundred thousand yuan.

She was afraid Yu Dazhang wasn't eating or sleeping well out there, that he was shortchanging himself.

Yu Dazhang wasn't stupid—of course he could feel her good intentions.

The person who loves you doesn't care how high you fly; she only cares whether you've eaten your fill.

So without a second thought, he agreed on the spot.

"Then I'll say it." Seeing him agree so readily, Qu Tuotuo hesitated instead:

"My family is going to hold a small banquet, and I want you to come with me."

What's there to even discuss about that… Yu Dazhang nodded without the slightest hesitation:

"No problem. Which day?"

"The day after tomorrow." Qu Tuotuo said hesitantly:

"I have to be upfront with you first—actually, this banquet is being held for you."

Yu Dazhang was caught off guard.

The day after tomorrow wasn't his birthday either, and besides, Qu Wannian wouldn't throw him a birthday banquet.

"Then you'd better spell it out for me." He was genuinely a bit confused now.

"It's like this." Qu Tuotuo explained:

"There are still a lot of people trying to set me up with boyfriends. My parents have explained things many times on their end, but nobody believes it."

"So we held a family meeting and decided to throw a small banquet, invite the people closest to us, and in a way announce our relationship publicly."

A once-and-for-all solution, huh… Yu Dazhang felt this sounded pretty much like an engagement.

Just telling everyone that Qu Tuotuo already had an owner, and to stop eyeing her.

"Who exactly are you inviting?" Yu Dazhang thought it best to get this straight.

If someone said something offensive at the event, that wouldn't be good.

Having just come through the Han Lianwu case, his mental state was far from stable right now.

"Most of them are relatives on my side, plus my family's old family friends."

Qu Tuotuo lowered her head, curling one finger after another, muttering as she went:

"Eldest uncle, Third uncle, eldest aunt, eldest maternal uncle…"

Only when all ten fingers had curled into fists did she look up at Yu Dazhang:

"The total number won't exceed fifteen."

Judging by the headcount, these really were the people closest to her family.

In S Province, Yu Dazhang had heard Ye Zhiyu mention the Rule of 150, and the number of close family and friends was around fifteen people.

"Alright, for something like this I should show my face."

Since getting to know Qu Tuotuo, he hadn't done much for her, so this time he had no reason to refuse.

"But I don't have a suit." Yu Dazhang suddenly remembered—he didn't have anything to wear for a formal occasion.

He had had a suit made back in police academy, but he'd put on weight since then and it hadn't fit for ages.

"You don't need one—it's not a business banquet." Seeing him agree, Qu Tuotuo's eyes curved into crescents:

"Keep it casual, whatever you normally wear is fine."

Then there was no problem… Yu Dazhang set his mind at ease.

In his view, this was just a small occasion—stage fright didn't exist. Back in S Province, a roomful of men in white shirts hadn't fazed him, let alone a few businessmen.

"If…" Qu Tuotuo hesitated, then still spoke up:

"Someone says something disrespectful to you, you don't have to consider me, and you don't have to put up with it on my account."

Could that even happen? Yu Dazhang figured people in Qu Wannian's circle wouldn't do anything too out of bounds—at least on the surface they wouldn't embarrass anyone.

"I… I'll do my best."

The next day.

Yu Dazhang had just woken up when he got a call from his master, Lu Zhongxin.

The two of them hadn't been in touch for over a month.

Everyone was busy, especially since both master and disciple were stubborn straight men—unless something special came up, they each went about their own business day to day.

"Something up, Master?" Yu Dazhang asked.

!

"I just went to the squad to look for you, and they said you had today off." Lu Zhongxin spoke quickly:

"The First Brigade got a call from the detention center—Zhou Zizhe wants to see you."

The moment he heard the name "Zhou Zizhe," Yu Dazhang couldn't help but furrow his brow; he really had no goodwill toward this person.

Moreover, it had been almost half a year since Zhou Zizhe was caught, and if everything went smoothly, the verdict would already have been handed down.

"Did he say what it was about?"

If it wasn't anything important, Yu Dazhang planned to refuse.

"Zhou Zizhe is to be executed this morning. This is the request he made before his death." Lu Zhongxin explained:

"The detention center will certainly pass it along to him, but the decision is yours."

He actually didn't struggle… Yu Dazhang was somewhat surprised by Zhou Zizhe's resolve.

If he had appealed, he could have dragged it out for at least another half a year, or even longer.

"Alright." Yu Dazhang agreed.

No matter how much he disliked the man, out of humanitarian consideration, a request made before execution still had to be granted as much as possible.

He arrived at the detention center.

In a separate room, Zhou Zizhe sat behind a table wearing handcuffs and shackles.

Yu Dazhang, meanwhile, sat in a chair three meters away from him.

"I heard you had today off. I'm sorry for taking up your hard-won vacation time."

Zhou Zizhe looked very calm, not a trace of nervousness or panic on his face.

"No problem." Yu Dazhang smiled:

"No matter what, we did know each other for a while. Coming to see you off is only right."

He noticed that compared to before, Zhou Zizhe hadn't lost any weight—if anything, he'd gotten fatter, and his once sharp, angular features had rounded out considerably.

Is the detention center raising people this well now?

"It's laughable. A week ago when the warden asked who I wanted to see, I actually couldn't come up with an answer."

Zhou Zizhe shook his head self-deprecatingly, a complex emotion surfacing in his eyes:

"You know the situation with my biological parents—there's no need to meet them. My adoptive father has already been dragged down by me, and I have even less face to see my adoptive mother."

"Last night I didn't sleep at all. It wasn't until early this morning that I realized the only person I could seem to see was you."

For a person to have sunk to this point is quite something… Yu Dazhang could no longer tell whether Zhou Zizhe was pitiable or hateful.

"Just a visit?" he asked.

The two weren't close enough to chat casually like friends, so Yu Dazhang was certain Zhou Zizhe had summoned him for a reason.

Or rather, he had something to entrust to him.

"You're as sharp as ever, but also too cold."

Zhou Zizhe answered with a smile:

"I found out about the village of the child-traffickers later. I had to thank you in person, and at the same time I don't want to owe you any favors."

"For this meeting, I want to give you a big gift—consider it a clean slate between us."

(End of chapter)