Chapter 84

Zhuangzhuang had really been training. When he was kicked and sent flying, he actually managed to brace his landing with knees and elbows, keeping his balance—and didn’t spill a single drop from the oil dish he was holding.

He turned his head and glanced behind him, surprised.

“Wait, Dad, our ancestral tomb is really on fire.”

Though Tan Wenbin came from a family of police officers and had once been carried like a memorial plaque by Li Zhuiyuan and Runsheng in front of the local precinct, the term “family of officers” in this case referred to a legacy of honor and responsibility—not actual family influence.

Tan Wenbin hadn’t believed his dad would show up at first, because he understood a bit about how internal promotions worked.

Yet here his father was—in full uniform.

On the drive to the school, Tan Yunlong had been chatting with his new colleagues about parenting. He’d shared his own “child-rearing wisdom,” suggesting that it was normal for kids to be playful and clueless when young, and that they’d wise up with age.

Mostly, it was to reassure his colleagues—and maybe show off a little.

As they approached the school gate, he casually pointed at it and said his son had just gotten into this school this year.

Even as they climbed the steps to the restaurant just now, his colleagues were still asking for parenting advice. But the moment they stepped behind his son, they heard that comment.

That sarcastic jab about himself and the family tomb, delivered with uncanny precision in the local dialect—his new colleagues probably forgot which province he was even from.

And this wasn’t the first time. It seemed like every time he was just about to feel proud of his child, to enjoy that normal parental longing for validation, his son would expertly wreck the moment.

You’d think the kid hadn’t grown up. But over the past year, he’d changed completely. Yet if you said he was truly mature… he never quite acted like it.

“Dad, are you here in Jinling for a training program or an award ceremony?”

Tan Yunlong ignored his son, took out his ID, and went through procedure. “There are still a few questions we need you all to answer. Go ahead and eat—we’re not in a rush.”

Runsheng asked, “Tan-uncle, want to join us?”

“No need, we already ate.”

Li Zhuiyuan set down his chopsticks, and the others followed suit.

Recently, Runsheng and Yin Meng had already gone through two rounds of questioning. He and Tan Wenbin had also been interviewed, since they were on campus at the time.

“Let’s get started, then.” Tan Yunlong walked over to Li Zhuiyuan, motioning for his colleagues to begin the procedures with the others. “Let’s not waste their business hours.”

“Dad!”

Tan Wenbin called again, but Tan Yunlong simply pointed at another officer—like entrusting a child to a guardian.

Tan Wenbin slumped his shoulders and went to sit at the counter for questioning.

Li Zhuiyuan led Tan Yunlong down to the basement. Sun Hongxia’s room had been sealed off, but Tan Yunlong personally tore open the tape and brought him inside.

“Congratulations, Tan-uncle.”

But Tan Yunlong was clearly here in investigative mode—not for any seminar or award ceremony.

And if this was about a work transfer, there’d be no reason to pull in a township-level officer from Nantong.

“Heh, Xiaoyuan, I’m still a bit foggy-headed myself. Can’t believe they suddenly transferred me here.”

“Your work position hasn’t changed?”

“I’ve come over first. The paperwork’s still in progress.” Tan Yunlong pulled out a cigarette but didn’t light it—just held it between his fingers as his eyes swept over the room. “Before I got to the school, I was planning to finish the process, then visit you and Wenbin. Didn’t expect to run into you here. When I saw the name ‘Lu Runsheng’ in the case file, it felt familiar. Turns out it really was Runshenghou.”

Back home, dialects ran thick. Names often got abbreviated or had suffixes added. Old friends of decades might not recognize each other’s names in print at first glance.

“Tan-uncle, were you transferred here specifically to investigate this disappearance?”

Tan Yunlong fell silent for a moment, spinning the cigarette in his hand. “Xiaoyuan, is Wenbin still smoking?”

“He is.”

“Did he smoke this time too?”

“He did. We still smell like his cigarettes.”

Tan Yunlong stretched. “Not likely we’ll find any useful leads. I just came back from that temple on Jun Mountain. Burned clean to the ground.”

“I think the focus should be on the real culprit from that case seven years ago.”

“You think it was him?”

Li Zhuiyuan shook his head. “Whether it was or not, we can’t let the real killer stay free.”

“Yeah. You’re right.”

“Tan-uncle, did Wenbin dig up those case files because of that old case?”

Tan Yunlong answered firmly, “No.”

“Then it’s connected to your old case.”

“I’d like to know why too.” He stepped out of Sun Hongxia’s room and finally lit the cigarette. “That’s it for the questioning, Xiaoyuan. Let’s head up.”

Li Zhuiyuan followed him upstairs. The others had finished their interviews as well.

They all had strong nerves—nothing suspicious would slip during these sessions.

They had hidden some things to avoid disrupting their lives, but in truth, this case had nothing to do with them.

No living person had died by their hands. That night, they’d only resolved—or rather, released—a Dead Sinker who had stopped resisting.

“Xiaoyuan, once I’m done with my work tonight, want to grab a late-night snack?”

“Sure.”

“Which building is Ran Qiuping the dorm aunt for?”

“Ours.”

“Then take us over there for another look.”

“Tan-uncle, I’ve got something to do. Let Wenbin go with you. I’ll see you at supper.”

“Alright.”

Li Zhuiyuan really did have something to do. Ah Li had made him a new canvas cover by hand.

With the new canvas, he’d have a new book jacket—only then would he dare open that cursed book’s old cover and try reading what lay inside.

As he left the building, he called out to Tan Wenbin, “Wenbin-ge, see you tonight for supper.”

Tan Wenbin raised a hand in a “got it” gesture. “Understood, Old Sichuan.”

After Li Zhuiyuan left, Tan Wenbin assumed his role as the tour guide.

“Dad, are you really being transferred here?”

“Mm.”

“That’s not by the book. Dad, be honest with me. Have you fallen?”

“What?”

“Did you pull strings behind the scenes? Bribe someone?”

“You that worried about your old man?”

“Of course. I didn’t even get bonus points for the college entrance exam thanks to you. Don’t mess up my political background too.”

“Heh.”

“Dad, you’ve got to be a good cop.”

“Don’t need you to teach me that.”

“So, which area are you assigned to?”

“Right here for now.”

“What the hell. I was in your jurisdiction before the exam, and still in it afterward. Did I even take the exam for anything?”

“Then drop out, go back to high school, and retake the exam. Aim for one of the universities in Beijing.”

“Well, well, Officer Tan, shooting for a capital transfer now, are we?”

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