Chapter 320: Not One's Own Master!

Because of money?

No.

That's the most superficial desire.

If Hong Liuwen would lose his bottom line over money, he wouldn't have a record like this.

Money is good, but it's not enough to shake a veteran criminal investigator with firm convictions.

Above that is physiological desire.

For example, women.

Looking at Hong Liuwen's past, he's not a lecher.

He divorced ten years ago and has been single ever since, and it doesn't look like he plans to remarry.

This shows his divorce wasn't because of a third party.

Plus, at his age, women are dispensable to him — there's no need for him to take such a risk on their account.

Above that is the desire for respect.

It's a psychological need only power and social status can satisfy.

There's one phenomenon that's especially interesting.

Leaders all love going to work, and they don't even want to retire.

When others bow and scrape to you, when they show you respect and recognition, that moment…

Money, women — none of it compares to the sense of achievement, which feels more real, more tangible, and more satisfying.

Looking at Hong Liuwen before him, Yu Dazhang truly couldn't think of anyone who could give him power and social status.

Even criminals don't have that kind of ability.

So Yu Dazhang's earlier words weren't a bluff against Hong Liuwen — he was genuinely curious.

Curious about what made Hong Liuwen fail to hold his bottom line.

"If you'd asked properly, I'd naturally cooperate with you." Hong Liuwen's face darkened:

"But if it's this kind of baseless suspicion, then I'm sorry — I have things to attend to."

A majesty that needed no anger.

These years as vice station chief weren't wasted — he certainly had the presence… Yu Dazhang didn't retreat in the slightest, still staring at Hong Liuwen as he said with a straight face:

"We both know what the truth is. Why play dumb?"

After those words, the room fell silent.

Hong Liuwen didn't respond, just silently looked at Yu Dazhang across from him.

What does that mean?

Yu Dazhang felt a bit uncomfortable being stared at like that.

Clearly, his side was the one interrogating Hong Liuwen, but now it felt as if Hong Liuwen were the one examining him — this role reversal left Yu Dazhang deeply confused.

They stared at each other, both seeming to search the other's eyes for an answer.

After a long while.

I think I've been a bit too presumptuous… Yu Dazhang stared fixedly at Hong Liuwen before him, as if trying to see through his exterior to the thoughts deep within.

At the same time, his mind was racing, considering every possibility and response.

Money, women, power…

To move Hong Liuwen with any of these, one key prerequisite was needed:

He had to need these things.

Put another way, he had to have the active desire to obtain them.

But after Yu Dazhang's analysis, he found these things didn't seem to hold much attraction for Hong Liuwen.

In that case, change the approach.

Passive!

The reason Hong Liuwen lost his bottom line wasn't that he wanted to do it himself, but because he was in a passive state.

Not his own master!

The moment this hypothesis surfaced in his mind, Yu Dazhang immediately felt many things could be explained.

Five years ago, while tipping off the target, Hong Liuwen also let Fang Peng leave safely.

This was something Yu Dazhang had never been able to figure out — he always felt Fang Peng's return had been too smooth.

If there was a mole in the task force, they wouldn't let someone who knew the inside story go like that — he'd be a ticking time bomb sooner or later.

Yet Hong Liuwen not only did this, he personally saw Fang Peng off to the car.

So could there be a possibility…

That he wasn't deliberately leaving a flaw, but was protecting Fang Peng from being caught back by those people?

At this thought, Yu Dazhang's view of Hong Liuwen underwent a fundamental shift.

Things didn't seem that simple.

Perhaps Hong Liuwen had his own bitter difficulties and helplessness, forcing him to adopt what seemed like a contradictory approach.

He'd been going down a dead end before!

Looking at the whole thing from a new angle, Yu Dazhang suddenly felt a sense of sudden enlightenment.

Next came verification.

"Are you very disappointed?" Yu Dazhang suddenly spoke.

This seemingly inexplicable sentence made Hong Liuwen's whole body jolt violently.

He looked at Yu Dazhang with a mix of surprise and bewilderment:

"Why would you ask that?"

Guessed right… Yu Dazhang pressed his advantage and continued:

"You thought that after Fang Peng was rescued, it wouldn't be long before police from out of town noticed something off about the case."

"But you didn't expect that after he returned to Songhai, he actually didn't pursue the matter any further."

"You figured your clumsy method really did manage to suppress the whole thing — five full years without being discovered — and you… also waited five years."

While saying all this, he kept watching the changes in Hong Liuwen's expression.

When he saw the other's chin lift slightly while the corners of the mouth curved downward, he felt even more certain.

Hong Liuwen was blaming himself!

Lu Zhongxin and Zhang Sen, meanwhile, stared at Yu Dazhang with blank, bewildered faces.

The reversal had come too fast — neither of the two had been able to catch up.

Hong Liuwen had been waiting all along for the out-of-town police to come investigate him?

What a wild imagination!

Then why didn't he just turn himself in?

Even if you're making up a story, please use your brain, will you?

Yu Dazhang simply didn't look at them; in his eyes right now there was only Hong Liuwen across from him.

"If I hadn't met you in person, I never would have thought of this angle."

He shook his head and continued speaking to Hong Liuwen:

"You do possess all the qualities a veteran criminal investigator should have — rich experience, a meticulous mind. From the moment you walked in, your tone, expression, and movements were all very natural."

"But someone like you actually left such a huge loophole five years ago."

"The job was done too sloppily — any colleague could see the trick in it. So there's only one possibility…"

"You did it on purpose!"

At this point Lu Zhongxin and Zhang Sen understood too.

At the same time they also realized there was something very wrong with this case.

A seasoned veteran criminal investigator committing such a low-level mistake — that simply didn't make sense.

Put yourself in his shoes.

If this had been their job, they would never have left so many loose ends.

Even if they didn't report it to the city bureau, they would immediately mobilize the police from the local police station to go investigate the factory.

That way the "verified" version would hold up, and no one else could find fault with it.

And on the factory side, once the people had fled that was enough — there was no need to move the goods at all.

Looking at it now, the decision to move the goods was probably also Hong Liuwen's idea — done specifically to leave the police clues and a handle against him.

Lu Zhongxin couldn't help shooting Yu Dazhang an appreciative look.

This disciple of his really was clever — when it came to playing mental games, among the people he knew few could match Yu Dazhang.

"Judging by your age, you must have only just joined the police not long ago." Hong Liuwen spoke up.

A smile appeared on his face as he looked at Yu Dazhang and asked:

"How old are you this year?"

"Twenty-three." Yu Dazhang answered honestly.

"So young." Hong Liuwen sighed:

"At your age you're already leading a team to handle a case in another jurisdiction — that shows how much your leaders trust you. I'm quite curious, though — what kind of person could have trained a disciple like you."

The criminal investigation team has a tradition, the same everywhere in the country — masters take on disciples.

Through the master's "passing on, helping, and guiding," new officers can quickly adapt to the job and master the necessary skills.

Hearing Hong Liuwen's words, Lu Zhongxin silently lowered his head, looking down at his own toes.

Zhang Sen, on the other hand, turned his head to one side and pressed his lips hard together, trying not to laugh out loud.

My master is standing right there, isn't he… Yu Dazhang held on tight, refusing to let himself look at Lu Zhongxin.

So awkward~

Is he deliberately trying to drive a wedge between master and disciple?

(End of chapter)