If that were truly the case, then my performance in this drama would have been entirely for naught, and more critically, Chen Yujia's probability of evading justice would have multiplied exponentially.

I said to Gao Jianning, "You stay here and work honestly. I’m going online."

Gao Jianning immediately protested, "No way, this is pure oppression!"

"That's right, it is oppression. Do you intend to start a rebellion?"

"I'm telling Magistrate Jiang!"

"Hah! Do you still think you're three and a half years old? Even if you tell him, before Magistrate Jiang returns, I call the shots here. Work diligently, and whatever you do, don't make me recalculate our previous tab."

Having dealt with Gao Jianning, I immediately got in touch with Professor Michelle online and shared my concerns.

Michelle replied, "What you are suggesting is plausible. However, this is a murder case, and it connects to a series of major homicides. Even if Chen Yujia doesn't care about his own life, he must care about success or failure, as that was his original motivation. He cannot betray himself. Given this, his state of mind must shift. Though he is intelligent, even the smartest person possesses a human heart. As long as he genuinely cares about something, he will act in ways he normally wouldn't."

"I hope so."

"Be patient. He will struggle between reason and his fundamental nature for a while before he makes his move."

Suddenly, I asked, "If you were him, would you do it?"

Michelle paused for a moment, then replied, "Yes!"

Then, he typed another line: "Although he hasn't acted yet, he is definitely monitoring that driver through some channel. You could try to make him believe the driver is living extravagantly. That might push him to make a decision sooner."

My eyes lit up, and I typed back a string of characters: "You are also an anomaly, a true yaonie."

"Yaonie? In Chinese, it means a very powerful demon or monster. I love that nickname! Call me Yaonie from now on."

A dark expression crossed my face. This guy's thought process was too perverse; he actually enjoyed being called a powerful monster. So I typed another string: "In China, the most powerful monster is called the Black Mountain Old Demon (Heishan Laoyao). You can use that name."

"Black Mountain Old Demon! Fantastic! From now on, I am the Black Mountain Old Demon."

At that moment, a suppressed giggle came from the side. I turned to see Gao Jianning standing there silently, peering over my shoulder at the chat log, clearly amused.

"Brother, you’re too mean! Why let him call himself the Black Mountain Old Demon? Why not 'A Chinese Ghost Story'?"

"Get lost! Can't you see I'm doing important work? Besides, he agreed to it. You’d better worry about stripping all those vegetables instead of minding my business."

"Who is that? A foreigner? When did you make friends with a foreign buddy?"

I casually typed: "Black Mountain Old Demon, bye-bye!" Then I turned to Gao Jianning and said, "This Old Demon is no ordinary person; he's world-famous."

Gao Jianning immediately leaned in close, "Brother, tell me quickly, what's his background?"

"Want to know?"

"Yes, I desperately want to know!"

I shook my head slightly, then said slowly, "Then first, tell me: did you ever tell Feng Siyan about faking your death?"

I had wanted to ask this for a long time, but knowing he wouldn't tell the truth, I waited until now, finally seizing an opportunity.

Gao Jianning froze at the question, his eyes instinctively darting around. I immediately warned him, "Don't lie, or I’ll call her right now. I'll know immediately."

That move pinned him down completely. He meekly confessed, "I told her the next day. You absolutely must not tell Magistrate Jiang, or I'm finished."

I slapped him on the head and yelled, "You thick-headed fool who values romance over friendship! Even if you don't tell Magistrate Jiang, you're still finished!"

Gao Jianning knew he was in the wrong, let me berate him, and repeatedly said, "I won't dare again, I won't dare again!"

I huffed angrily, "Hmph, that little girl doesn't seem like a saint either. She acted so convincingly, she even fooled me. You're going to have your hands full with her from now on."

I remember that period when Feng Siyan looked at me like a betrayed wife. To think that little girl was only putting on an act. It truly is hard to know a person’s heart just by knowing their face. Such an icy, proud woman had such incredible acting skills. It seemed she was another national disaster waiting to happen.

"By the way, why did Magistrate Jiang call you over today?"

"He told me to come for dinner and discuss the next phase of work. I didn't expect to run into you."

I glared at him, "Feeling very unlucky?"

"Very lucky, as lucky as believing in Brother Chun for eternal life." The kid was running his mouth again.

Just as the shredded beef strips were coming out of the wok, a voice called out, "Smells delicious! Looks like we're in for a treat today."

I walked out with a grim expression, looking resentfully at Magistrate Jiang, my demeanor almost matching that of the Ghost in A Chinese Ghost Story. Magistrate Jiang even started to feel a bit uneasy under my stare.

He asked cautiously, "What's wrong? Did seeing Gao Jianning make you overly excited?"

I said ominously, "Magistrate Jiang, this is the last supper. I hope you enjoy it."

Magistrate Jiang shuddered, cursing, "What’s gotten into you today, scaring people like this? You even brought up the Last Supper—are you deliberately trying to ruin my meal?"

"Magistrate Jiang," I said slowly, emphasizing each word, "I have tolerated this for a long time. Tell me, why is Gao Jianning getting to stay comfortably in a hotel while you have me stuck here as a permanent laborer?"

"Oh, so that's what this is about." Magistrate Jiang looked visibly relieved, paying absolutely no mind to my feelings, and replied casually, "Gao Jianning told me you're quite the whiz in the kitchen, and since your aunt isn't home, I invited you, Master Chef."

"Gao Jianning! Get out here right now!" I roared, my eyes wide and ready to devour someone, "I’m going to skin you alive!"

At that moment, Gao Jianning suddenly poked his head out from behind Magistrate Jiang, grinning sheepishly at me, "Brother, don't blame me for this. Back when I was at your place, you boasted constantly about how ruthless you were while cooking. I mentioned it to Magistrate Jiang long ago. I really didn't mean any harm."

I wasn't listening to his excuses and lunged at him like a hungry wolf. Gao Jianning’s screams immediately filled the room, while Magistrate Jiang sat leisurely by the table, picking up a piece of dry-fried shredded beef, praising how delicious it was while enjoying the spectacle of me and Gao Jianning tearing each other apart.

After the meal, Magistrate Jiang finally got down to business. Apparently, there was an order from his superiors requiring Gao Jianning to travel to another province for a different operation.

Gao Jianning was already a semi-official member of the Bureau of Special Operations and could be recalled to his original unit at any time. Since they needed him back, Magistrate Jiang couldn't keep him. Therefore, I would be taking over Gao Jianning's duties.

The thought of leaving this dark, sunless place filled me with an undeniable joy. I quickly said to Magistrate Jiang, "I need to stay at a hotel, the Hongyun Grand Hotel."

"Wang Lei, why bother with a hotel? Isn't staying at home cozier? You should just stay here," Magistrate Jiang began to persuade me.

This was a matter of principle; I wouldn't budge an inch. "Absolutely not. Staying here interferes with my... well, it completely lacks any sense of... privacy. You figure it out." Having finally caught him in a moment of weakness, I intended to put on quite a display.

And so, under my intense protest and demand, I finally got my way and took the hotel key from Gao Jianning, moving into a spacious and comfortable luxury suite.

Once I moved in, I realized that Magistrate Jiang would have let me move into the hotel regardless of my strong demands. The Hongyun Grand Hotel was directly across the street from the residential building where the driver lived, and the floor I was assigned was the exact same floor as his apartment. Furthermore, because the hotel floors were slightly higher than the residential building, my vantage point offered a perfectly clear panoramic view of the driver's entire home.

I fiddled with the high-powered binoculars set near the window. Through the lens, I could tell the driver's life was quite meager. Out of all the buildings on that block, only two did not have metal security grates on their windows; his family home was one of them. Moreover, when I zoomed in on their apartment, I could clearly see there was hardly any furniture inside. The walls were only simply painted with putty—a typical poor household.

This driver was named Li Youshan, forty-eight years old. He had a son with his wife. The son was about my age but was intellectually disabled and incapable of supporting himself. A family already struggling would find life even more unbearable, especially since Li Youshan was terminally ill.

This was precisely why Chen Yujia approached him: only someone in such a desperate situation would risk their life for a mere hundred thousand yuan. But because of this, Li Youshan would never betray Chen Yujia. He would use the scant seven or eight months he had left to protect that sum of money so his wife and son could live a slightly more comfortable life after he was gone.

Perhaps he possessed a sense of justice and conscience, but for the sake of his family, he had lost these, sinking into the role of a murderer. Facing this killer who had only a few months left to live, I truly didn't know what to think. Legally, he might face the ultimate penalty, but in terms of family bonds, he was a good husband and father.

Sometimes, people are this contradictory, just as the old saying goes: 'Loyalty and filial piety cannot be perfectly balanced.' People are always sacrificing one for the other. But if everyone in society were like Li Youshan, disregarding the law for the sake of their own family ties, killing to destroy someone else’s family, I truly dared not imagine what the world would become.

At that moment, Li Youshan was sitting at home. His disabled son was beside him, endlessly turning a child’s toy over and over in his hands. His wife was busy preparing lunch in the kitchen. Everything was so quiet and peaceful, making it impossible to imagine their lives were connected to a premeditated murder case.

Suddenly, Li Youshan stood up and walked toward the door. The door opened, and he disappeared behind it. I quickly put on my disguise and hurried downstairs. Since the floors were the same height, I practically reached street level at the same moment as him. However, the hotel entrance and Li Youshan's stairwell were diagonally opposite each other, so my appearance wouldn't draw his attention.

Li Youshan walked slowly ahead, and I trailed him from a distance, following him for an entire block. Li Youshan suddenly turned and walked into a mahjong parlor on the street corner. I quickly moved to the opposite side of the street, standing in an inconspicuous spot, secretly monitoring everything inside.

But just as Gao Jianning had said, Li Youshan was only there for recreation. He came out in less than an hour. I followed him as he wandered the streets for another loop before returning to our starting point.

After this surveillance trip, I hadn't sat down for a single minute, and I felt quite weary. I couldn't help but miss the good old days at Magistrate Jiang's house: eating and sleeping.

Li Youshan entered his building corridor, and I walked back to the hotel. But the moment my foot crossed the hotel threshold, I immediately pulled it back, turning swiftly to hide behind the corner of the exterior wall. Using the reflection of the bright glass door, I observed everything inside.

It turned out I saw people from the Fourth Criminal Investigation Team—Ding Qingyuan and Cong Lin.

I wasn't the criminal; they were my colleagues. Yet, driven by a strange intuition, my first reaction upon seeing them wasn't to walk up and greet them, but to quickly hide. This was indeed hard to explain. Although I was currently in a period of "underground work," there was no need to be this tense, as if I were facing an enemy.

Using the glass reflection, I saw Ding Qingyuan and Cong Lin questioning the bar staff and checking the computer records.

My heart felt a secret curiosity. Weren't they supposed to be handling the cases of Ji Chenglin on Changqing Road and the church priest? Why were they here investigating people? Did the killer happen to be staying in the same hotel as me?

After a moment's thought, I started to chuckle again. This group must have gone astray again, because the killer was Chen Yujia, and he would absolutely not be staying here. Still, I had no intention of warning them. Not when that punk Hong Yang was so irritating, coupled with the unnerving, smiling viper Fu Zhen—that was enough to make me quite unhappy with the Fourth Team.

While I was lost in thought, I felt danger closing in from behind. Just as I was about to move, a pair of strong hands clamped down on my joints. Though I couldn't see the person, I was certain they were an experienced investigator because their grappling technique revealed their identity.

I knew my current appearance might arouse suspicion, and lurking near the hotel entrance certainly didn't help. I quickly whispered, "Brother, I'm one of yours, let go!"

Unexpectedly, a familiar voice hit me like an anesthetic dart, paralyzing me completely.

"Hmph, Wang Lei. We were looking for you!"

It was Hong Yang!

What was this annoying guy up to?

Wait, Hong Yang's words sounded wrong. What did he mean, 'We were looking for you'?

Did that mean the target they were searching for in the hotel... was me?

How was that possible? I wasn't a criminal. Why would they be looking for me?

A string of questions made me forget to say anything to Hong Yang. I let him hold my arm firmly, pressing down hard.

Then, Hong Yang shouted toward the people inside, "Come out, we've got him!"

Got him?

These bastards actually thought I was a criminal!

I suddenly spoke in a deep voice, "What the hell are you doing? I'm on a mission! Let me go right now!" With that, I twisted my body and delivered a powerful back-kick to Hong Yang. I had long wanted to teach this arrogant guy a lesson, and this kick would serve as the vanguard.

Hong Yang was distracted, greeting the others inside, and wasn't prepared for my sudden move. The kick landed squarely in his lower abdomen. He grunted and staggered back two steps, the grip on my arm easing considerably. I took the opportunity to break free from his control and dashed rapidly toward the other side of the entrance.

However, Ding Qingyuan and Cong Lin had already blocked the way. Judging by their stance, they genuinely believed I was a criminal. I saw that little girl Cong Lin was actually reaching for the gun at her waist!

I didn't want to escalate things here and risk alerting Li Youshan across the street, so I stopped and stood still, addressing them, "Although I don't know why you're arresting me, there must be a misunderstanding. I'll go with you now, but you cannot reveal my whereabouts to anyone outside. Also, I need to call Director Jiang."

Ding Qingyuan and Cong Lin looked at Hong Yang, who nodded. "Let him call. Director Jiang is part of the Bureau; it's fine."

The three of them surrounded me in a triangular formation. I pulled out my phone and called Magistrate Jiang. After ringing more than ten times, the call finally connected.

"Magistrate Jiang, I've been apprehended by the Fourth Criminal Investigation Team. You need to find out what's going on quickly."

"What? Say that again!"

Even Magistrate Jiang couldn't believe his ears. As the person involved, I was even more bewildered. What kind of freaks were these guys from the Fourth Team?

"Damn it, what are those bastards trying to do? I don't know anything! Don't worry, I’ll go find that old rascal Fu Zhen right now and demand an explanation..." Suddenly, Magistrate Jiang’s voice softened. He said, "For now, only I know about your situation. To prevent your movements from being exposed, you need to find a way to escape. I will report this to the Bureau leadership as quickly as possible and order everyone in the Fourth Team to keep silent."

Magistrate Jiang hung up before I could say more. I felt like throwing my phone on the ground. What in the world was happening? I, a high-ranking police officer, was being forced to flee like an escaped convict. I truly didn't know what Magistrate Jiang was thinking.

But my movements absolutely could not be exposed. If I went back to the station with these three, I would have no secrets left. And what Magistrate Jiang said made a certain kind of sense: if I escaped halfway, Hong Yang and the other two would surely pursue relentlessly. During that time, Magistrate Jiang could explain the situation to the Bureau leadership, and then, through an order from above, make Hong Yang and the others stand down, preserving the secret that I hadn't left the country.