Chapter 72

Steal?

Hearing that he was being asked to steal, Zhang Sen shrank back involuntarily.

It had nothing to do with courage; the problem was he had never done such a thing before.

If he were to ask openly and honestly, he would have no psychological burden.

But stealing was different; feeling guilty as a thief wasn't just talk, it was genuine fear.

He glared at Yu Dazhang:

"Why don't you go?"

"Come, look at my build." Yu Dazhang stood up and pointed to his belly:

"Someone like me, it's hard even to bend over; asking me to perform tasks like stealth, that would be torturing me."

He had quite a bit of self-awareness... Zhang Sen looked at his large belly; indeed, it wasn't suitable.

The word 'stealth' was well-chosen, much nicer sounding than 'steal'.

Seeing Zhang Sen still hesitating, Yu Dazhang hurriedly added:

"Later tonight, you go quietly and borrow the notebook; after we finish reading it, we'll return it."

Although the meaning expressed was the same, processing the previous words with artistic refinement made them sound much more comfortable.

Comrade Zhang Sen nodded.

If you had said it like that earlier, I wouldn't have argued with you.

"Then let's rest first." Zhang Sen compromised, lay down on the other bed, and closed his eyes.

Ten o'clock at night.

The two of them noticed the lights on the farmhouse corridor had gone out.

Zhang Sen rolled over and sat up, speaking softly:

"It's only ten o'clock; why turn off the lights so early?"

"Look at where we are." Yu Dazhang didn't get up at all, just turned his head slightly:

"Generally, in such remote villages, there are no entertainment programs at night; many local residents turn off the lights and rest after eight."

Zhang Sen felt his words were somewhat exaggerated and couldn't help but refute:

"Can they sleep? Aren't all young people nowadays lying in bed playing on their phones?"

In 2014, short videos were just rising, mobile games were at their peak, and WeChat achieved true popularity in that same year.

Various apps came out in all sorts of forms.

It was also in this year that the group known as 'head-down tribe' emerged in large numbers.

The following year, urban head-down tribe members became a high-risk group for spinal cord injuries.

The reason Zhang Sen raised this question was that online fraud also began to rise in this year.

"Still the same saying: look at where we are." Yu Dazhang lay on his side on the bed, half-opening his eyes, looking half-asleep:

"How many young people nowadays stay in the countryside? It's 2014; it's long past the agricultural society era."

Hearing this, Zhang Sen nodded:

"No wonder when we first entered the village, I saw many children playing but didn't see their parents; turns out they are all left-behind children."

After chatting for a while, the two silently fell silent by mutual understanding.

Another hour passed.

"It's about time." Yu Dazhang sat up from the bed and said in a low voice:

"It's past eleven; the people at the entrance must be asleep. Go."

"Okay." After Zhang Sen agreed, he got out of bed quietly, walking to the door.

He pulled the door, but it wouldn't open.

Only then did he realize the hand he had placed on the doorknob was trembling slightly.

His legs were also feeling a bit weak.

He gritted his teeth, took a few deep breaths, then forcefully twisted the doorknob.

After seeing him go out, Yu Dazhang silently prayed in his heart.

Brother Sen, wish you safety.

He made Zhang Sen do this out of helplessness.

If two experienced veteran detectives had fallen, someone must have discovered their true identities at some point.

Therefore, for safety's sake, all investigative actions must be based on one premise: do not expose true identities.

About five minutes passed.

The door was pushed open from outside; Zhang Sen walked in carefully holding a notebook, and shut the door behind him. "Why are you covered in sweat?" Yu Dazhang asked in a low voice.

"Nonsense, go try it yourself and you'll know." Zhang Sen placed the notebook on the table in the room, then found a chair to sit down:

"Petty theft is truly not work for humans."

"You'll get used to it." Yu Dazhang replied offhandedly.

What kind of words are those?

Zhang Sen glared at him.

At this moment, Yu Dazhang's attention was entirely on that notebook.

He took the case files from his bag, spread them flat on the table, and first located the identity information of the two missing officers.

After memorizing the last six digits of both their ID card numbers, he began checking them one by one in the notebook.

The last page had nothing; he continued flipping forward.

Two pages, three pages...

When he flipped forward to the fourth page, he finally found the registration information for those two officers.

Please... do.... save 6... 9... book....! (Note: "6 9 書" is internet slang for "book" — kept as-is per source)

"Quite detailed." Yu Dazhang muttered to himself, then pointed it out for Zhang Sen to see.

The two men's registration entries were right next to each other, and the date was marked at the top of the notebook.

"Four days ago!" Zhang Sen quickly spotted what was off:

"Today is the third day since they lost contact. Counting it out, they lost contact on the second day after moving into this guesthouse."

"Then it took them over a week before that just to investigate their way here?"

In Zhang Sen's view, the delay was a bit too long.

After all, it had only taken him and Yu Dazhang two hours to get here.

Are you questioning the criminal investigation unit's ability to handle cases? Yu Dazhang shot him a look, displeasure in his eyes:

"That kidnapping case was sixteen years ago. Finding any new lead at all is already remarkable."

"We were able to get here this fast entirely because we followed their route."

"If we started investigating from scratch, we might not even find a new lead."

This was the second time Yu Dazhang had noticed Zhang Sen being a bit impatient.

As if he were worried about something.

Even if in the end neither the people nor the gun could be found, the responsibility wouldn't fall on Zhang Sen's head.

Yu Dazhang truly couldn't understand his state of mind at that moment.

Could it be an eagerness to earn merit?

That possibility couldn't be ruled out... Yu Dazhang didn't agree, but he understood.

Only human nature, after all.

"Let's go."

He stood up, glanced at Zhang Sen who looked like he wanted to say something, then put the materials on the table back into the bag he carried.

"Go?" Zhang Sen asked, puzzled:

"It's so late — where to?"

"The next stop. I never planned on spending the night here." Yu Dazhang said as he picked up the notebook on the table.

He tore off the page with his and Zhang Sen's identity information, crumpled it into a ball, and stuffed it into his trouser pocket.

Then he picked the paper scraps off bit by bit, until no trace could be seen at all.

After finishing all this, Yu Dazhang handed the notebook to Zhang Sen:

"When we go out later, put it back wherever you took it from."

"Got it." Zhang Sen replied, taking the notebook.

After checking the room once more and confirming nothing was left behind, the two of them slipped out quietly.

Passing by the doorway, Zhang Sen opened the notebook to the page with the registration information, then gently set it down on the counter.

After another glance at the boss sleeping behind the counter, confirming he wouldn't wake up, the two of them slipped out of the farmhouse without a sound.

Once in the car, Zhang Sen let out a long breath, then asked:

"Still heading southeast?"

"Right." Yu Dazhang took out his phone and opened the electronic map:

"Drive another half hour, then we'll find somewhere to park and rest in the car for the second half of the night."

(End of chapter)