Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Zhao Yu couldn’t remember how many nights he had been like this. Yesterday’s hexagram had just ended and a new one started. Zhao Yu was lying on his desk, looking at the ten whiteboards set up in front of him. He looked very exhausted but he couldn’t stop thinking about the case. Was the unsolved cases master at the end of his career?
Zhao Yu despised the Secret Service. “You couldn’t find the treasure in 80 years. Do you think you can use this to pull me down? It’s a total joke. It’s not a big deal. No one can solve this case.” He knew that he should accept the fact that he couldn’t solve the case on his own. He didn’t know why but he still felt very disappointed. Was it because his work as a detective had always been so easy for him? No matter what big case there was, he could eventually crack it in the end. So, this was a doomed setback arranged by the system? Was it in order to help him grow?
Looking at the tons of files in front of him, Zhao Yu knew that he could not easily give up on this case, although he felt terribly dizzy. “Maybe the treasure can never be found. No one should blame me. After all, they don’t even know if it exists… But I want to solve the case,” Zhao Yu said to himself.
“The five old experts died and the murderer is still at large. I must find justice for them and catch the real killer. I have solved so many difficult big cases. Even the Headless Female Corpses Case and the Devil Case didn’t stop me. The experts’ death wouldn’t be the most difficult one I’ve solved. If I lost, that would be so embarrassing!” he said. Zhao Yu nodded softly. From what they had already found, whoever killed the five experts were pros, even better than Cheng Lingfei. They were highly skilled at murder. If the police hadn’t found Tao Xiang’s list of names, no one would have even known that the experts were killed.
He couldn’t give up the investigation just because the case was difficult. The murderer must pay for his crime with his life. That was Zhao Yu’s purpose for coming into his present life. No matter what enemy was waiting for him. He made up his mind to find out the identity of the murderer. But how?
Zhao Yu pinched his temple hard and scolded himself. “You say you have more than ten thousand ways to solve the case? But now you can’t come up with one possible way. So many people are waiting to see you fail. You can’t let them get what they want.”
Ah… Hero, please accompany me to pursue my dream… His phone ringtone sounded so abrupt in the silence of the night. Zhao Yu answered the call and heard a familiar voice coming from the other end of the phone. “How are you, honey? Is there any progress? Are you still working on your whiteboard in the office? You answered my call so quickly this time. You remember to take care of yourself.” Hearing Miao Ying’s comforting words, Zhao Yu felt much better. He immediately filled her in on his latest plans and what had happened to him.
After listening to Zhao Yu’s explanation, Miao Ying comforted him. “It’s OK, don’t worry about her. I’ve asked my dad. The old man wouldn’t tell me the truth, but I still managed to find out about his plan. Honey, you must not put too much pressure on yourself. Just do your best,” she said.
“What do you mean by his plan? What does your father want to do?” Zhao Yu asked.
“I guess when my father found out you wanted to take the northeast treasures case, he wanted to kick you out of it. He did it because he knew that this was not an easy case and that I would go with you. He didn’t want this to delay our engagement,” Miao Ying explained. “However, in New Zealand, my father had learned a lot about you, so he conspired with Li Jing and the others to get you off the case. However, he still underestimated you. He didn’t expect that things wouldn’t go as he wished. Now things are out of his control.”
“You not only saw through Li Jing’s plot but also beat a group of agents.” Miao Ying sounded a little frustrated as she continued. “Do you know? From the moment you took charge of this case, things were no longer under my father’s control. So that’s how it is now.”
“Ah?” Zhao Yu frowned. “Now? Do you mean the deadline?”
“Yes,” Miao Ying replied. “But that’s only my guess. But my father’s always evasive with me about this. It seems that some powerful higher-ups have gotten involved. They are the ones who gave you the deadline, that was their idea.”
“Em…” Zhao Yu stammered.
“This is not hard to understand,” Miao Ying said. “There are two reasons for the deadline. One is due to their appreciation for you, the other is as a potential punishment. The Secret Service’s elite agents were all good at fighting, but you beat them despite being totally outnumbered. There are few guys in the whole country who could do something like that. So, I think the higher-ups must think highly of you and want to get you into the Secret Service.”
“I didn’t expect that.” Zhao Yu rolled his eyes.
“But,” Miao Ying continued, “they don’t want it to look too obvious. They need a reason to recruit you. That’s why I say there’s a punishment. In fact, I think the deadline is a warning to you. They want you to get to know how the Secret Service works first and to understand the difficulty of the treasure case. That’s their real purpose.”
Zhao Yu shook his head. “Oh? Really? They don’t feel very welcoming.”
“It’s obvious,” Miao Ying said with a smile. “Two months is an impossible deadline to give to someone searching for a national treasure. Look, they just want to see that you make an effort. Once the deadline passes, whether the case is solved or not, the Secret Service will send their invitation.”
“Two months later happens to be our engagement day. So, your father also knows about the deadline?” Zhao Yu asked.
“He should know,” Miao Ying replied, still smiling. “My father is torn on this. On the one hand, he hopes that we can live a safe and happy life away from danger. But on the other hand, he also wants you to be able to take charge of things by yourself so that you can inherit his business in the future.”
“Wow.” This time, Zhao Yu was shocked and stammered, “So… Secret Service… Later…”
“The Secret Service is a bigger stage than that of the criminal department. I think it’s a better playground for someone like you. I’m looking forward to how you play with those big names, ha ha… ” Miao Ying said. Zhao Yu was stunned into silence.
“OK. Don’t think too much, honey,” Miao Ying said. “No matter what happens in the future, you still have to do your own work. I just want to tell you that no matter what others say about you, just do your best. Don’t put too much pressure on yourself. I can’t bear watching you struggle too much.”
“Um. You know me best. Don’t worry, I will take care of myself,” Zhao Yu said with a smile. “By the way, how is your work? When can you come?”
“In a short time. Writing the report is like creating a long novel,” Miao Ying said softly. “Fortunately, I’m now only waiting for the work being done abroad to finish up. In a few days, I’ll let Zeng Ke take it over from me, and I’ll come to join you.”
“I’m waiting for you to come,” Zhao Yu said.
“By the way, there is something else I wanted to talk to you about,” Miao Ying said suddenly. “I thought of a new reason why the five experts may have been killed.”
“Oh? What did you think of?” Zhao Yu asked as his eyes brightened.
“Honey, it’s all because of Tao Xiang’s notes,” Miao Ying said seriously. “Have you thought about it? Maybe the five experts’ death has nothing to do with the treasure.”
