The Same Fate Awaits All Sins Chapter 9

Malice – 09

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Niu Bo hesitated for a long while before speaking softly. "Officer, swear to god, I really had nothing to do with his death. It was my boss who asked me to make the call to arrange the meeting, how was I supposed to know he'd end up dead? Before you showed me his photo today, I didn't even know his real name! My girlfriend... she won't be in any danger, will she?"

"Niu Bo, explain the situation to us clearly. Don't worry, we will assign people to protect your girlfriend and her unborn child." Lu Zheng looked at Niu Bo, his gaze carrying a kind of unwavering determination that made him oddly trustworthy. "Can you provide us with more details about your boss?"

Niu Bo nodded and continued, "My boss is the owner of the Cnclub nightclub. I don't know his real name, everyone on the streets calls him 'Old Knife', we just pick up the goods from him and sell them to smaller clients. As for this Zhang Bin you mentioned, I only knew him as Bin Zi. He had a way of getting his hands on stuff belonging to rich folks, but he couldn't sell it himself, so he came to me to help. I heard some of that rich people's jewellery and watches can sell for tens or even hundreds of thousands."

"Did you help him sell those items?" Lu Zheng asked.

"How could I have that kind of connection? I just passed the stuff on to my boss, he ate the meat, and I drank the soup. Bin Zi simply traded the stuff for some white goods from me," Niu Bo replied.

"Do you know why your boss suddenly asked you to meet with Zhang Bin last night?" Lu Zheng continued to press.

"I really don't know. When Boss tells me to do something, I don't dare to ask questions! Around eight p.m. last night, I was at the club when Boss called, saying that Bin Zi had gotten a batch of some high-quality goods. Because things have been hot recently, we couldn't make the deal at the club anymore. He told me to arrange a meeting at ten at the abandoned warehouse by the highway. Right after I made the call, that idiot Sha'er showed up with his people looking for trouble. A few days ago, he harassed my girlfriend, and I taught him a lesson. This time, he came back for revenge, so I grabbed my guys and fought back. I don't know who the coward was that called the cops, but you know the rest! If you don't believe me, you can call Sha'er in and ask him!" Niu Bo answered earnestly.

Gu Yanta slammed the table and said sharply, "You and Sha'er should settle your grudges yourselves! Right now, the focus is on your involvement in drug trafficking and premeditated murder, these are felonies! You'd better provide more details and try to make up for your sins, or there'll be no good outcome for you in court!"

Niu Bo shouted somewhat anxiously, "Officer! That's really all I know! If I'd known Zhang Bin would die, I'd never have made that call!"

"Alright, Niu Bo, we've got a general understanding of the situation now. What we need is for you to cooperate with our investigation, help us make contact with your boss and gain his trust. At the moment, they don't know that the police suspect Zhang Bin's death was murder, let alone know you're involved. Only by catching them all in one sweep can you and your girlfriend truly be safe, don't you think?" Lu Zheng said.

At this point, Niu Bo realised Lu Zheng had been bluffing him, but it was too late. He had already let something slip in front of the police. There were no secrets that could stay hidden forever, once he left the police station, it was only a matter of time before he was eliminated. He figured he might as well see it through to the end. Perhaps, if they were all caught, he could at least save his own life.

"Okay! But you must guarantee the safety of me and my girlfriend!" Niu Bo gritted his teeth and agreed to Lu Zheng's request.

"Captain Gu, in that case, we can release him for now," Lu Zheng said as he looked at Gu Yanta.

"Alright!" Gu Yanta then glared at Niu Bo, "If you dare to play any tricks, you know what will happen, right? We wouldn't even have to come after you again, they'll get to you first. Can you arrange for us to meet your boss tonight?"

"I know I know Officer, I may not be educated, but I've at least been around for so many years," Niu Bo said. "Don't worry, Officer, tonight at Cnclub."

As Gu Yanta and Lu Zheng exited the interrogation room, Ma Qin looked astonished and admiring. "Consultant Lu, we spent half the day questioning him without results, but as soon as you stepped in, it was done, impressive! Professor Chen's students really are amazing!"

"You're too kind, Officer Ma, Niu Bo wasn't exactly a tough nut to crack, you were just a little too hasty," Lu Zheng replied with a slight nod.

"Ma Qin, how can you be so clueless? Don't tell anyone you were trained by me when you go out!" Gu Yanta was annoyed by Ma Qin's exaggerated reaction.

"Boss, that's not fair..." Ma Qin started to argue back.

"Hey hey, cut it out, don't waste time here, hurry up and get things ready for Consultant Lu and me, we have to go undercover at the nightclub tonight!" Gu Yanta interrupted, shutting down Ma Qin's retort.

"Yes, sir!" Ma Qin turned and hurried off.

"Consultant Lu, why do you think the nightclub owner would kill Zhang Bin? I can't figure it out. He helped Zhang Bin sell the stolen goods for him and made a big profit, wouldn't killing Zhang Bin be the same as cutting off a source of income?" Gu Yanta asked.

"I'm not entirely sure either, Captain Gu. I don't have any supernatural abilities, I'm not as magical as you think. Everything will have to wait until we meet the boss," Lu Zheng replied.

"That's right, regardless of whether he killed Zhang Bin, we need evidence of their drug deals first. It would be best to take them all down in one go!" Gu Yanta said seriously.

"Boss!" Chen Chen rushed in. "The results from the material evidence team are back. The residue on the cup belonging to Huang Chufeng's roommate contains benzodiazepines, a key ingredient in sleeping pills. Huang Chufeng's alibi can basically be overturned! But there's still no direct evidence proving Huang Chufeng drugged him, what should we do? Apply for an arrest warrant or just bring him in to assist in the investigation?"

"Bring him in to assist in the investigation!" Gu Yanta paused briefly before continuing. "Since Huang Chufeng managed to leave no traces at the crime scene, he must have strong counter-surveillance abilities, so going straight to arrest might alert him. Besides, we don't have direct and conclusive evidence now, he could easily clear himself of suspicion."

"Is Lu Yu's computer hard drive still unaccounted for?" Lu Zheng asked, raising his head.

"Yes, no relevant electronic devices were found at Zhang Bin's residence," Gu Yanta replied.

"It wouldn't be at Zhang Bin's," Lu Zheng said. "If we assume Huang Chufeng is the killer, why would he swap out Lu Yu's hard drive? Could it be connected to Zhang Bin's death? The contents of that hard drive may be the key to this case!"

"Apply immediately to summon Huang Chufeng to assist in the investigation!"

Gu Yanta checked his watch. "It'll take at least half an hour. Let's go, Consultant Lu, there's a mutton place near the station, Brother will treat you to dinner!"

Chen Chen's sharp ears caught this. "What? Boss, that's too much! You're treating Consultant Lu to mutton while we're slaving away and eating instant noodles!"

"Go, go, go... Consultant Lu is here to help, go do what you're supposed to be doing!"

"I... don't eat mutton," Lu Zheng replied. "How about we just have instant noodles?"

Chen Chen immediately realised he had said the wrong thing and waved his hands frantically. "No, no, no, Consultant Lu, we don't have any extra instant noodles left! There's more than just mutton at the restaurant by the station, hurry up and go eat with Boss!" With that, he bolted away in a flash.

"There's also a stir-fry place near the station that's pretty good, we could just get a couple of simple dishes there," Gu Yanta suggested.

"Alright then," Lu Zheng reluctantly agreed. "Let's just grab something simple."

The restaurants nearby were frequented by local civil servants. After exchanging greetings with three prosecutors and four judges, Gu Yanta and Lu Zheng finally sat down.

"Any dietary restrictions?" Gu Yanta asked as he flipped through the menu.

"Yes, mutton," Lu Zheng replied, blowing away the tea leaves floating on the surface of his cup before taking a sip.

"I already know that, anything else?" Gu Yanta asked.

"Nothing else," Lu Zheng replied slowly.

"Alright, then you must eat what I order!" Gu Yanta turned to the waiter and said, "Sautéed pig's kidney, sautéed and thickened pig's intestines, bandit pork liver, garlic stir-fried lettuce, and three servings of rice."

"Why... why is it all organ meat?"

"Didn't you say you only avoid mutton?"

"Ah... fine..." Lu Zheng relented. "But I don't really like organ meat either..."

"Why didn't you say so earlier? Waiter!" Gu Yanta was about to change the order.

Lu Zheng stopped him. "Don't bother changing it, it's too troublesome, let's just eat quickly."

A few minutes later, the dishes were served. Lu Zheng picked at the food, managing to eat some green peppers and lettuce before putting down his chopsticks.

"Hey, hey, how can a grown man still be a picky eater!?" Gu Yanta tapped the chopsticks in Lu Zheng's hand with his own chopsticks.

"You've got kidneys, intestines, and liver here, it's not exactly appetising." Lu Zheng set his chopsticks aside.

"Then why didn't you let me change the order? Are all rich kids this hard to please? Here, eat some pork liver to replenish your blood. Look at how pale your face is, you must be anaemic." Gu Yanta took matters into his own hands, piling a large helping of pork liver into Lu Zheng's bowl.

"I'm not anaemic, and I'm not some rich kid," Lu Zheng looked at the heap of pork liver in the bowl and was a little speechless.

"What? Are you saying you're not your parents' biological child?" Gu Yanta teased.

"I am, but it doesn't really make much difference. My family's always been busy, I started living in the school dormitory when I was ten, so I didn't feel much different from anyone else. Stop calling me rich kid in the future." Lu Zheng said.

"Didn't your father go to America for business, you didn't go with him?" Gu Yanta asked, he really wasn't too clear about Lu Zheng's life.

"Why would I? I was fine living in the school dormitory." Lu Zheng finally managed to pick up a piece of pork liver and put it in his mouth, his expression complicated and difficult to describe.

"Haha..." Gu Yanta couldn't hold back his laughter, it was the first time he'd seen Lu Zheng display such vivid facial expressions. "Eat more, eat more!"

With that, he added more kidneys to Lu Zheng's bowl.

"I'm done eating," Lu Zheng declared, pushing his bowl away.

"Wait, wait! This is the first time I'm treating you to a meal, you can't go back hungry, people will laugh at me! What do you want to eat?" Gu Yanta hurriedly grabbed the menu again, but before he could open it, his phone rang.

"Boss, Huang Chufeng has arrived, you and Consultant Lu better hurry back!"

‿︵‿︵ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ・❉・ ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ‿︵‿︵

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Translator Notes

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

Translated: November 18, 2024 by Angel

Edited: December 12, 2024 by Angel