Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
“Lil’ brat…” Leader Jin remarked, staring blankly at the chessboard. “Why do I feel like a few of my pieces are missing? There were definitely two cannons on the board, how is there only one now?”
“What kind of foggy memory do you have?” Zhao Yu asked, the corners of his lips curling up. “Take a good look, you’re finished this round! Just surrender!”
“What kind of joke is that! I move my cannon and take your wagon!” Old Jin said, moving his piece. “Little Zhao, the Rural Homicide Case can serve as a reminder to you! I think you can learn how to act by looking at the police officer who cracked the Reservoir Dismembered Body Case. Even after cracking such a big case, they chose to keep a low profile, and look! To this day we know who the killer is, but we still have no idea who apprehended him! Speaking of which, do you know anything about that case?”
“Of course! I’ve investigated it before!” Zhao Yu said. “The officer who caught the killer was from Wen Xi Police Station, but rumor has it that the person who solved the case had supernatural powers!”
“Supernatural powers? What kind?” Jin Zhenbang asked.
“Uhm… like clairvoyance? You know, if you touch something that belonged to the deceased, you’d be able to find the body, that sort of thing…” Zhao Yu said, picking up one of his pieces. “Old Jin, be careful, I’m going for checkmate!”
“What nonsense!” Jin Zhenbang looked at Zhao Yu incredulously. “Being able to find the body just by touching an item belonging to the deceased? If that’s the case, then how was the killer found? Isn’t your department a little too laid back?”
“That’s why I said it’s a rumor! I heard about it through the grapevine,” Zhao Yu said, putting his piece down. “Regarding that case’s data, it’s been locked away by the Confidentiality Bureau. Even us as police don’t have access to view it.”
“Ah, that makes sense!” Old Jin nodded his head in agreement. “Regarding the Bai Shan Reservoir Dismembered Body Case, it might be linked to some important case or individual, that’s why they came up with the supernatural theory! Xiao Zhao, if there’s an opportunity, why not investigate that too? Even though the killer has been found, there could still be some unsolved mysteries!”
“Then we’ll have to see if I’m lucky!” Zhao Yu said. “It’s not that I’ve never thought about it before, but to have that kind of authority I would need to be promoted to at least province head. But you’re right. If there’s a chance to go to Wen Xi I will ask around and see who this person with the supernatural powers is!”
“Forget about the supernatural power! That’s definitely some nonsense made up by the officials to distract people,” Leader Jin said. He picked up a chess piece and laid it down forcefully. “Ha! You never thought I’d still have a trick up my sleeve, did you? Your board is finished!”
“What?!” Zhao Yu focused and checked out the state of the board. To think that he’d been beaten when he had been close to winning! In a fit of rage, he pushed the pieces off the board and removed the stolen piece from his sleeves. “I’m not gonna play anymore! I have to go do some actual work instead of sitting here talking about nonsense with an old man…”
“F*ck you! And you said you didn’t steal?” Old Jin scolded. “What a cheater! To think you would use such underhanded methods against me…” Old Jin was about to throw the pieces at Zhao Yu, but Zhao Yu was already halfway to his car. Before he left the park, he turned back and smirked. The beautiful sunlight, clear skies, and flowers blooming in the garden radiated a sense of peace.
Zhao Yu sigh heavily. He had actually investigated the individual with the supernatural powers. At the start, he too had thought it was all a façade the police had come up with to cover up the Reservoir Dismembered Body Case. Much to his surprise, the person actually existed! They were actually able to find a body just by touching one of the items that belonged to the deceased.
Zhao Yu had speculated that the killer of the Bai Shan Reservoir Dismembered Body Case had left behind parts of the corpse, and that was why the person with the supernatural powers had been able to find them. The world truly was large and filled with wonders!
The system in Zhao Yu’s mind gave even more credibility to the possibility of this individual existing. He thought that if this person was a police officer, it’d be even more amazing. To crack such cases one by one would be like a game! If there was an opportunity to work together, it might even benefit Zhao Yu!
Speaking of the system, Zhao Yu remembered the hexagram he had just received. His conversation with Old Jin had ended but he had not met anyone special. Could it be the ‘Li’ wasn’t actually referring to Jin? Thinking back to the chess game, it seemed that not only had nothing special happened, but he had also not asked about the Hua Yun Mountain Massacre Case. Was the Gan Li hexagram trying to say a new case was about to unfold? Zhao Yu sat in his car thinking about it for over ten minutes and eventually decided it was meaningless. He started his engine and headed towards the gym.
He had yet to see his brothers, like Zhao Yang, and figured he should go say hello and maybe grab lunch. They were also male, so the hexagram could possibly be pointing to them. Once the hexagram reacted, there wouldn’t be peace. He had a feeling that something would happen at the gym.
However, nothing happened at the gym and he was able to chat with his brothers over a peaceful meal. The gym’s operations were stable and there weren’t many ups and downs. Zhao Yu’s brothers were following the rules and regulations, and even though their performance wasn’t exemplary, they were hardworking and had no complaints.
The brothers felt a sense of gratitude towards Zhao Yu. If it wasn’t for him, they would still be thugs wandering the street. Everyone appreciated the opportunity he had given them to turn over a new leaf and were glad that Zhao Yu had swung by.
Zhao Yu only had time for a simple meal without alcohol, as he still had to fetch his family in the afternoon. The family meeting also went off without a hitch. Based on the arrangement, after the handover he took his parents back to their old home. His brother had gone home earlier, as his children had to go to school.
Originally, his parents were unhappy that they had to be placed under police protection. Zhao Yu had lied to them and said that if they stayed in the safe house, they would be paid 50 yuan. This money ended up coming out of Zhao Yu’s own pockets. His parents were elated to learn they could earn money from this, so for the ten days they ate and slept well. They even put on some weight! His mum was reluctant to leave.
During the handover, Zhao Yu also introduced the bodyguard he had employed. He lied and said the bodyguard was from the police and cost nothing so that his mom wouldn’t worry about money. Family reunions were a joyous occasion, and his mom made dumplings for dinner. Everyone was in high spirits. At night, Zhao Yu did not detect anything happening with the hexagram. Lying in bed, he thought about his experiences with the previous hexagram, reexamining them.
If Jiang Xiaoqing’s situation was considered a chance meeting, then it would at best be a ‘Kan’ or ‘Xun’. The conversation with Leader Jin could be deemed ‘Gen’ if you pushed it, and the gathering with the others could maybe be a ‘Li’? Also, Zhao Yu had just received a thousand-yuan bounty. This was probably from solving the By-the-book Killer Case. Any more rewards that came to him would probably be related to ‘Zong’.
Then could it be the ‘Gan Li’ this time had no ominous meaning? Could the ‘Gan’ be a normal, peaceful reunion? Zhao Yu stayed awake until midnight, but the hexagram didn’t seem to end. Did that mean it would continue into tomorrow?
As he thought about everything happening, his phone rang. He jumped up in shock. Who could it be at this time of night? He had already called Miao Ying, so who else would be calling him? Looking at his phone, he quickly answered the call. There came the voice of a woman sobbing.
“Li Zhu, is that you? What happened?” Zhao Yu asked, concerned that Li Zhu was crying this badly.
Cui Lizhu continued to cry. “Boss… my dad… he left!”
