S.C.I Mystery Series Volume 2 Chapter 16

The Innocent Murderer 16 - Surprise Attack

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"Why do they all pretend to be An Lingli?" Zhan Zhao stretched his hand out and tapped his chin gently. "Does this murderer have a relationship with An Lingli, or is she particularly familiar with her?"

"And if her purpose is to use her boyfriend to sneak into the police station, it's riskier to pretend to be An Lingli." There was a hint of interest on Bai Yutang's face, "If people recognized that she wasn't An Lingli, wouldn't that cause her more trouble?

"That young police officer..." Zhan Zhao asked, "Is he also in my book club?"

"This is not clear." Bai Chi said, "But I heard that he was a very good person and often went to the elderly community centre to take care of the lonely elders."

"Oh~~" Zhan Zhao nodded.

"What's wrong Cat?" Bai Yutang looked at Zhan Zhao, "You seem to be particularly interested in that young police officer."

"Mhmm." Zhan Zhao nodded, "Do you need a reason to kill someone? If that fake An Lingli was afraid of having her identity discovered, then there would be no reason to kill the little cop and leave Zhang Yankai behind, right? So, there should be another reason to kill him... And, it may not be her who killed him. The police uniform was taken off... A girl's body size should be much smaller... Wearing an ill-fitting police uniform in the police station and wandering around, it's unnecessary!"

Bai Yutang looked at Luo Tian and Bai Chi and said, "You two should check for any clues relating to Zhao Jing's parents. Also, ask Yang Yang about the details."

"Yes sir." Luo Tian hugged Luo Yang and left with Bai Chi. Bai Yutang called Ma Han and Zhao Hu again. "You two go to check if there is any special relationship between all the deceased so far."

Ma Han and Zhao Hu were taken aback, looked at each other and asked Bai Yutang, "That... a special relationship?"

"Cough..." Bai Yutang coughed lightly, "The dead man has something to do with Fang Wo, and Fang Wo has something to do with Yan Li..."

Having said this, Bai Yutang paused and looked at the two of them.

The two tilted their heads, wondering "Then what?"

"And Chen Jiayi and Qi Le should know more about Yan Li and Fang Wo..." Zhan Zhao smiled and finished speaking for Bai Yutang, "So Captain Bai wants you to ask about the gossip between them."

Ma Han and Zhao Hu looked at Bai Yutang with "why don't you?!" expressions.

Bai Yutang looked up at the sky, not looking at the two of them, and spoke to the others, "Everyone else continue to watch surveillance videos. As long as the murderer entered the police station, even mosquitoes will definitely leave a shadow in the surveillance videos!" After that, he pulled Zhan Zhao, "Cat, let's go out and check An Lingli and the little police officer."

After Gongsun left the SCI office after getting off work, he thought for a while and called a taxi to go to the International Hotel.

Going straight to the suite on the top floor, Gongsun took out the key card and opened the door of the suite that Bai Jintang often lived in.

Gongsun went into the room, looked around and found no one... Could it be that Bai Jintang has already gone back?

Gongsun wrinkled his nose, gave a "hum". He turned around, walked to the elevator entrance, and decided to go home to sleep.

Soon, the elevator door slowly opened. Gongsun raised his head and the first thing that his eyes landed on was a Doraemon's mask.

Gongsun was stunned. He saw a person in the elevator who was not tall and who was wearing a black hoodie. To top it off, they were wearing a Doraemon mask. Through the small holes cut out of the mask's eyes, Gongsun saw a pair of cold eyes staring at him. The moment their eyes were looking at his, Gongsun unexpectedly felt that the look in their eyes... was smiling. 

The person's hand was slowly taken out from behind them. When he saw that the person was holding a cold dagger in their hand, Gongsun felt a chill go down his spine. After the person drew the knife, they rushed towards Gongsun suddenly. Although Gongsun was a little frightened, he was not too flustered. He instinctively stepped aside and avoided the blade. But before he got back to his senses, the person rushed over again with the knife in their hand. Gongsun was anxious and picked up the trash can beside him to block it. The person's knife hit the trash can, and their movements were stagnant. He took the opportunity to kick their knees. Gongsun wanted to run, but the person's eyesight was quick; they reached out and grabbed Gongsun's arm, and with a strong hand, threw him to the side...

"Hmph..." Gongsun felt that the person was quite strong and he hit the elevator door.

Gongsun felt dizzy from the strong impact. As he saw the person rushing over with the knife, he felt that the elevator door behind him suddenly opened slowly...

The person had rushed in front of Gongsun's eyes, but the knife they raised had not yet come down. He saw a hand suddenly come out of the elevator, grabbing the person by the collar. The person was lifted up and thrown to the ground.

Bang! The person hit the ground heavily and screamed. Gongsun had already crawled into the elevator. Looking up, he saw Bai Jintang standing in the elevator with a pale face, looking down at him. With their eyes locked together, Gongsun saw Bai Jintang's cold face. He raised his head and walked out of the elevator quickly.

The masked person had just stood up when they saw Bai Jintang approaching. He reached his hand out to grab their neck, lifting the person up and pressing them against the wall. Then he took off the mask and was shocked.

Gongsun also stood up at this time, and under the mask was a familiar face – Pang Ji.

"You're looking for death." Bai Jintang's face was ugly and his eyes were cold. Gongsun saw that the situation was not good, so he quickly stepped forward and grabbed his hand. "Wait a minute, just hand him over to the police."

"That's too easy for him." Bai Jintang frowned.

Gongsun rubbed his still dizzy head, "Something isn't right about him. How could an old man be so strong? He couldn't even stand up on his own feet that day."

The movement of Bai Jintang's hand paused for a while, but he still pressed Pang Ji against the wall. The old man's face turned purple.

Gongsun took out his phone, "Let him down first, I'll call someone." After speaking, he called the SCI office. Bai Jintang threw Pang Ji to the ground, only to see that the old man had bloodshot eyes and blood on the corners of his mouth. He still wanted to stand up. Bai Jintang realised that he didn't want to stand up to escape, but instead he wanted to attack Gongsun.

"Mother fu..." Bai Jintang kicked Pang Ji, "What does this lunatic want to do?"

"Something probably stimulated him..." Gongsun looked down at Pang Ji's situation, "His pupils are dilated, he is either crazy or sick."

"Is there a difference?" Bai Jintang frowned.

Gongsun shook his head. Maybe it was because he stayed up for an all-night autopsy last night but his head felt dizzy as soon as he shook it. His vision turned to darkness. He listened to the sound of footsteps in the stairwell before fainting. 

"Brother!" Several bodyguards who had been in charge of Gongsun's safety all rushed up, "We saw him on the top floor, so we didn't dare to follow."

Bai Jintang only pointed at Pang Ji coldly, "Watch him and wait for the police to come." After he finished speaking, he reached out and carried Gongsun into the room. He shouted, "What are you doing standing there in a daze? Call the doctor!" 

"Yes sir!" The subordinates were startled into a cold sweat. Two of them held down Pang Ji, and the other two ran downstairs to find a doctor.

Soon, the doctor and the twins came. Because both Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao had gone out, Zhang Long and Wang Chao came to the hotel instead.

"He's okay. It's just anaemia and exhaustion." The doctor put down his stethoscope and said, "Just make sure he takes a rest."

Bai Jintang nodded.

After the doctor left, the twins closed the door gently and waved to Zhang Long and Wang Chao, who had handcuffed Pang Ji and were looking into the room, "Don't come in, you will be slaughtered."

"Is Gongsun okay?" Zhang Long asked, "Do we need to inform Captain?"

"Tell him that he's okay." Da Ding said, "Just leave it to Brother, save Xiao Bai and Xiao Zhao from worrying."

"Okay." Wang Chao nodded and took out his cell phone.

Zhang Long pulled Pang Ji and nodded to the twins, "Then we'll leave first. Call us if you need anything." After speaking, the two left with Pang Ji who was still acting crazy.

The twins glanced at each other and shrugged. They looked at the Gongsun's special bodyguards with their heads drooping, who were listless and pale.

"Don't worry." Xiao Ding teased them, "Come on, smile!"

The one responsible for Gongsun's safety is an Italian man named Kevin. He had been with Bai Jintang for many years. Now, he had no blood left in his face and said, "It's all my fault. I thought that Gongsun came to find Brother, so I just waited downstairs in the car... I..."

"Don't be nervous, don't be nervous." Da Ding smiled, "It's okay." Although the two said that, they were nervous in their hearts. It has been a long time since they saw Bai Jintang's horrible expression... They patted on their chest – Such a scary face~~

...

On the way to the nursing home.

...

Zhan Zhao hung up the phone, sighed, and looked at Bai Yutang.

"Is Gongsun okay?" Bai Yutang asked as he drove, "Is that old man Pang Ji really crazy? If he had succeeded, then wouldn't that mean that I caused him to kill Gongsun?!"

Zhan Zhao patted him, "Don't worry, didn't Zhang Long just say that Gongsun is okay, Plus Brother arrived in time. However, what I care about is why Pang Ji wants to kill Gongsun."

"It's understandable," Bai Yutang said, "The reason why Pang Ji's daughter was driven out and then murdered is directly related to Gongsun. The old man is probably out of mind because his son is being detained again."

"Hmm... Actually, Pang Ji hates Brother the most." Zhan Zhao touched his chin. "It's not easy to get Brother, so he can only start with Gongsun. But why is it so coincidental that he appeared in the hotel at that time?"

"It's really unbelievable." Bai Yutang frowned, "When Gongsun wakes up, let's go to the hotel."

"Mhmm." Zhan Zhao smiled bitterly, "The atmosphere around Brother is probably so heavy that even mosquitoes can't fly in it." He said, shaking his head, "It's dangerous, what a coincidence..."

"Cat." Bai Yutang glanced at Zhan Zhao, "Looking at your deep expression, what did you think of?"

Zhan Zhao smiled slightly and said, "Sometimes, the more you try to cover something up, the more obvious it is. The more the coincidence, the less the coincidence actually is."

Bai Yutang raised his eyebrows and said with a smile, "Let's see if this is a coincidence." Then, he pointed to the top of the mountain, "There is the nursing home."

"We can't drive the car in?" Zhan Zhao leaned out of the car window and looked out. There was a roadblock in front of them. After the roadblock, the road started winding its way up to the top of the mountain, "It's so far away."

"Is this a nursing home?" Bai Yutang parked the car in the parking lot on the side of the road, opened the door and got out. "It's an inconvenience for the elderly to walk around. If a car appeared while they were walking then it would be dangerous." After speaking, he made a face to Zhan Zhao, who didn't want to walk, and said, "Let's go, Cat. You can't just eat all day long and not exercise, be careful of growing a belly."

Zhan Zhao looked disapproving, "I won't!"

"But it's strange." Bai Yutang walked up the road, chatting with Zhan Zhao, "You eat all day and don't exercise, and yet you don't get fat. Are you really a cat?"

Zhan Zhao disagreed, "You white mouse, don't you know that mental exercise can consume a quarter of the total calorie intake. Also, I was born with a fast metabolism and our diets are based around carbohydrates. Plus, the schedule of a police officer has no regular schedule so it's impossible to get fat."

Bai Yutang was dizzy when he heard it, and stretched his hand out to pinch Zhan Zhao's arm, "Mhmm, there is not much meat, and it's all fat. Looks soft..."

Zhan Zhao reached out and punched, "Dead mouse!" But when his fist hit Bai Yutang's arm, he regretted it. That mouse was so hard that he pinched it with dissatisfaction.

The two fooled around as they continued walking. Once they got to the top, they heard gunshots in the distance.

Bai Yutang only heard the sound of bullets flying through the air and his body responded instinctively, "Cat!" He threw Zhan Zhao down beside him and they rolled into the grass beside them.

Reaching down and taking out his gun, Bai Yutang frowned, "The gun sounded far away, and the location was at the foot of the mountain!" After speaking, he didn't hear Zhan Zhao's reply, but he felt that he was holding on to his arm tighter than before. Bai Yutang was shocked and he turned his face quickly. He saw that Zhan Zhao's face had turned pale and he had sweat on his forehead, "Cat!"

Bai Yutang's heart was suddenly in his throat. He grabbed Zhan Zhao to check him for injuries, anxiously asking him, "What's wrong?"

Zhan Zhao was gently pulled by Bai Yutang and fell into his arms, whispering, "My leg hurts."

Bai Yutang looked down and saw that there was a bullet hole in Zhan Zhao's calf that was bleeding out. Bai Yutang stared at the blood on Zhan Zhao's leg and his face instantly changed.

‿︵‿︵ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ・❉・ ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ‿︵‿︵

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Translator Notes

How dare somebody hurt our precious Cat (ू˃̣̣̣̣̣̣︿˂̣̣̣̣̣̣ ू)

Please feel free to comment any mistakes I made so I can improve and do better as I go through the book.

Translated: March 16, 2021

Re-edited: December 7, 2023