Chapter 8: Earned Merit — Why So Glum?

Yu Dazhang didn't answer the kidnappers — mainly because he didn't dare to.

"It was a misunderstanding just now…" — that was something he only dared to think in his head.

The officers coming up the stairs behind him were about to take control of the scene, but were startled by Yu Dazhang's sharp "Nobody move!"

They thought the kidnappers were resisting, but on closer look, all four kidnappers were standing obediently in place, not moving.

What is this about?

Seeing the tense look on Yu Dazhang's face, the captain of the First Squad, Wei Qian, also raised his gun.

"What are you…" He hurried to Yu Dazhang's side:

"What's the situation?"

"To stop them from escaping," Yu Dazhang replied quietly.

Wei Qian:????

Before we came up, you were shouting "Everything's under control," and now, just a moment later, you're more nervous than anyone.

Who are you performing for? Did a drama queen possess you?

Only the acting is just terrible.

"Good work."

Wei Qian thought Yu Dazhang was trying to Claim credit, so he tossed out a compliment.

This time when the new recruits reported in, he had gone too — after all, the First Squad needed fresh blood, and they had first pick.

When he saw Yu Dazhang, Wei Qian had passed on him right away.

With that build, could he be a criminal investigator?

Are you kidding me?

Must have gotten in through the back door.

But today he had to admit he'd been a poor judge — committing the mistake every man in the world makes: judging by appearances.

Setting aside how this kid had found the kidnappers, just the guts and nerve alone were more than any of those new recruits could match.

When the gunshot rang out in the factory building, he watched with his own eyes the two rookies he'd personally picked turn pale as a sheet.

After that they couldn't even keep up with the group and nearly fell — clearly their legs had gone weak.

Wei Qian didn't blame them, because that was exactly what new recruits should feel… fear, terror, helplessness.

What ordinary person isn't afraid of a gun?

Yet this fatso he thought least of not only wasn't afraid, he'd crept up and restrained the kidnappers.

He'd even snatched the gun away, and from the look of it, the kidnapper shot on the ground had been wounded by this fatso too.

How did he manage to disarm a gunman bare-handed?

Amazing.

Yu Dazhang had no mind right now to guess what Wei Qian was thinking.

He watched the woman on the ground being carried off on a stretcher, sweat already beading on his forehead.

The moment that woman woke up, everything would come out.

Beating up the hostage, saving the kidnappers…

The officer taking the statement would probably be dumbfounded.

He really hoped she'd never wake up — he wanted to silence her for good… Yu Dazhang's mind was already running wild.

And those four kidnappers — you lot really are useless.

Getting counter-killed by a woman — with that kind of skill, why bother kidnapping anyone? Go home and hold the baby.

You've ruined my police career.

No need to think about it — nobody can protect him this time; the nature of it is just too ugly.

When Yu Dazhang went downstairs, his legs felt like they were floating.

The new recruits who envied him saw him looking utterly lost, and couldn't help feeling puzzled.

This fatso clearly just earned merit — why does he look so downcast, as if he were the one who'd been arrested?

On the way back, Lu Zhongxin drove a car by himself and only let Yu Dazhang get in.

"Tell me, what's going on."

Lu Zhongxin deliberately drove slowly, letting the other vehicles go ahead.

"Master, if you'd just given me a quick rundown of the case, I wouldn't have made this mistake." Yu Dazhang was a little aggrieved, but helpless.

The thing had already happened — he knew complaining was pointless, but he just couldn't help grumbling a bit.

"Even just telling me the hostage was a woman would've been enough."

"Tell me the exact sequence of events first." Lu Zhongxin ignored Yu Dazhang's complaints and urged him coldly:

"There's still room to maneuver, but I need to know the whole story first."

The bystander sees clearest — Yu Dazhang knew that. Right now he was too agitated to come up with a good plan.

And Lu Zhongxin was the person he trusted most on the criminal investigation team.

"After you left, I was bored, so I ran a simulation from the kidnappers' point of view…"

Yu Dazhang gave a brief account of what happened, with a few alterations.

He didn't want anyone to know about his sharpened senses — not even Lu Zhongxin.

Please... bookmark... 6... 9... book... bar....!

For instance, the wisp of smoke he'd seen at the abandoned building's window was changed to a figure flickering past.

The part where he anticipated things going up the stairs was changed to him simply tackling the female hostage to the ground.

The business about digging at the kidnapper's wound later he simply left out — he really couldn't bring himself to say it.

"Where did you learn all this?" Lv Zhongxin glanced at Yu Dazhang, his eyes filled with scrutiny:

"Don't tell me you learned it at the police academy. The academy doesn't teach modes of thinking."

I learned it from you in my past life... Yu Dazhang replied in his heart.

Analyzing cases, deducing, hypothesizing—these were the most basic abilities of a criminal investigator, and he had learned them bit by bit from Lv Zhongxin through their work.

It was just that in his past life his brain had been a bit dull, and it took him several years to master it all.

There was no way around it; these things were honed slowly through practice and could not be achieved overnight.

But ultimately, one still needed sufficient intelligence.

Yu Dazhang knew clearly in his heart that his past self did not possess such strong logical thinking.

"If I say I learned it from watching movies, will you believe me?" Yu Dazhang spoke without a change of expression or a flutter of his heart.

Don't ask; if you do, the answer is that I've watched a lot of movies.

"Don't give me that nonsense!"

Seeing that Lv Zhongxin didn't believe him, Yu Dazhang suddenly remembered a movie line.

Recalling it, he repeated that sentence:

"When you have watched over a thousand movies, you will discover that there are truly no strange things in the world."

He was confident that Lv Zhongxin definitely hadn't heard it; this film, "Sheep Without a Grass," had only been released in 2019.

Even if Lv Zhongxin remembered it and watched this movie in 2019, he would be surprised and exclaim: This is my apprentice's line!

"If you don't want to say, then don't."

Lv Zhongxin of course would not be fooled by such talk.

If solving cases could be done just by watching movies, then what was the point of us criminal investigators?

After thinking for a moment, Lv Zhongxin felt it was necessary to remind this apprentice.

"Dazhang, don't be so reckless in the future. Life is only lived once."

Yu Dazhang was stunned for a moment, then gave a bitter smile:

"Master, I thought you would praise me for my bravery."

Lv Zhongxin looked straight ahead; a hint of warmth appeared on his serious face, and his tone was no longer as harsh as before:

"Knowing you cannot win yet still fighting to the death is stupidity named 'hot blood'; even if you win, it is merely the favor of fate."

He is saying that disarming the gunman with bare hands was too risky... Yu Dazhang did not want to dwell on this topic.

As a police officer, there is simply no qualification to avoid danger.

Knowing that Lv Zhongxin was concerned for him, Yu Dazhang did not refute but instead changed the subject:

"What now? This matter cannot be kept secret; both the hostage and the kidnapper know the truth."

"The kidnappers don't matter; they were already on the opposite side of us anyway." Lv Zhongxin answered with casual indifference:

"That woman is the key. As long as she doesn't expose you, this matter can be perfectly resolved."

"You mean... we go find that woman to negotiate?" Yu Dazhang felt it was not very reliable.

"Exactly. Only this method will work." Lv Zhongxin suddenly stomped hard on the accelerator:

"Sit tight. We must see her before the First Detachment does."

(End of this chapter)