Under normal circumstances, if something happened in Beijing, they would look for Zhou Hui. If something happened in the northwest, they would look for Chu He. Moreover, these two held special positions and were not to be bothered unless it was a major incident. If the capital’s protection circle was considered a sensitive area where even minor incidents required Boss Zhou to be brought in to keep things under control, then the Phoenix Wisdom King was essentially a mascot. You couldn’t even dream of finding him unless an earthquake of magnitude eight or higher was predicted.
Of course, the Phoenix Wisdom King also occasionally provided spiritual faith services for the big shots in the Military Commission and the Political Consultative Conference. This typically involved opening his office door to allow people to come in, piously kneel before his desk, burn three sticks of incense, and then tearfully confess their sins. These sins ranged from formulating a bad policy that could potentially bring disaster for a hundred years (possible) to failing to manage their household properly, such as the Nth mistress of the sixth grandson of the fourth son of an eighth concubine getting pregnant again. The list was endless.
Occasionally, when Team Leader Feng Si came to work, he would chime in with a comment or two, such as, “To prevent an earthquake, shouldn’t you just ask the NDRC to postpone the oil price adjustment?” or “We can’t have any aviation accidents, so let’s have the NDRC postpone the oil price adjustment.” And also, “If she’s pregnant, then have the baby. What else can you do? Remember to contribute to balancing the national newborn sex ratio.”
These big shots didn’t know that Feng Si had already (unilaterally) had a falling out with the Heavenly Dao, so any advice from the Phoenix Wisdom King was generally interpreted as the highest directive from Buddha. The number of times oil prices had been postponed because of this was unknown.
From this, it was clear that if someone died somewhere in Beijing, it had nothing to do with Chu He. The case file wouldn’t even have a chance of landing on Yu Jingzhong’s desk. If it weren’t for the fact that a big shot from the Military Commission had personally called and made the situation sound particularly severe, Deputy Chief Yu might have just assigned a member of Team One to it, and that would have been the end of it.
As it turned out, Deputy Chief Yu held his nose and took Chu He to the scene, only to find that the situation was not at all what he had understood.
Firstly, the body was found not in the military compound, but in the private residence of the high-ranking official’s eldest son’s eldest grandson—a detached villa in the Chaoyang District. Secondly, the deceased was not a family member, but a young male prostitute from a bar whom the eldest grandson had picked up for a one-night stand.
Reality was ugly. Normally, if a bar boy like this died, they would at most ask a contact to file a report, fabricate a cause of death like a sudden heart attack to cover up the scandal, and no more than five people would ever know about it.
But the trouble was that the old man was in high spirits today and had a sudden impulse to visit his grandson. The old man had supposedly been a scout when he first joined the army. Even in his seventies, he wasn’t resting at home and hadn’t forgotten his old reconnaissance skills. As a result, upon entering unannounced, he discovered a dead person on his grandson’s bed.
The old man was so shocked he almost passed out. A dozen direct relatives were crowded on the first floor of the villa, and the eldest grandson also looked quite frightened, pacing restlessly in a corner.
After hearing the whole story, Yu Jingzhong was furious. “You called me and brought both Team Leader One and Team Leader Four here for this trivial matter?”
The old man’s eldest son, surnamed Liao, was now a vice-minister with real power in a certain state department. He usually appeared refined and elegant on television, but now his face was flushed with anxiety. “No, no, no, the old man’s original intention was just to ask Team Leader Zhou to take a look, since the death was rather strange…” Vice-Minister Liao thought to himself, You brought Team Leader Four yourself. Who would want to provoke such a troublemaker who’d rather become a demon after his ex-husband cheated on him? This is a person who could be a peerless beauty saving all living beings one second, and then pick up a butcher’s knife and become a demon the next!
However, Yu Jingzhong was ninety percent sure that this “red third-generation” had played too rough in bed and killed the person, and was now for some insane reason using the Special Affairs Department to clean up his mess. He hated these kinds of things and didn’t want to hear any more nonsense. He turned to leave. “Bag the body, call the police. Don’t waste the Special Affairs Department’s resources for no reason. I’ll send a team member over later to give you some psychological comfort.”
Chu He was always easygoing when it came to his professional duties. He heard this and followed Yu Jingzhong out without any objection. But they had only taken two steps before Vice-Minister Liao rushed over to block their path. “Wait, wait! We really didn’t kill him! The problem is, we can’t call the police. That… that body is still—”
Yu Jingzhong was already seething today and was about to lose his temper, but he saw the vice-minister’s face was covered in cold sweat from anxiety. He finally told the truth. “—that body is still hopping around!”
Yu Jingzhong froze and turned back to see Chu He looking up toward the second floor.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
A strange and continuous banging sound was coming from the ceiling above them.
“A jumping corpse. I thought it was something serious.”
Everyone’s eyes turned to the doorway, where Zhou Hui had just pushed the door open and sauntered in.
This man had really made a habit of showing off; he couldn’t live without being flashy. The same black suit that looked slim and ascetic on Chu He, on him, it was an explosion of hormones and testosterone. If he were a flower, he would probably bite all the other flowers in the world to death, then forcibly capture that bee named Chu He and gobble it down in one go.
“A jumping corpse is a small matter. Go file a report with Unit 547, get in line, and the mission should be assigned in about half a month.” Zhou Hui said casually. “During this period, the entire residential area must be sealed off. No living people or animals are allowed in. Just dispatch a company of armed police to stand guard. Come here, ex-wife, it’s dangerous over there. Come, I’ll hold you.”
Zhou Hui held out his hand, but Chu He didn’t move.
Vice-Minister Liao looked as if he had seen his savior, rushing over with a mournful face, wanting to hug Zhou Hui’s leg. “Team Leader Zhou! We really don’t have time to queue up at the Special Affairs Department! If this gets out, our family is finished! Your Special Affairs Department doesn’t want another shake-up in the military factions, right? Your State Security just had its own turmoil…”
Zhou Hui ignored him, his hand still extended toward Chu He, smiling and nodding.
His eyes were very deep, his brow bones high, and his nose straight. His features were exceptionally three-dimensional and distinct. A face this handsome could appear a bit wicked, especially when he smiled, always giving people a sense of extreme dominance and cold pressure.
“Come here,” he said. “Don’t stand there.”
Chu He was silent for a moment before finally walking over, and Zhou Hui grabbed his wrist.
He pressed on Chu He’s pulse, grunted, and it was unclear whether he was satisfied or not. He kept holding Chu He’s wrist and turned to Vice-Minister Liao, smiling lazily. “Following procedures means there’s a waiting time. We can’t help it with so much to do. We’re on the state’s payroll, we have no choice.”
The thumping from upstairs grew more intense. Even the chandelier swayed, showering down fine dust.
The filial sons and grandsons downstairs panicked, quickly moving the old man back. A few timid ones were already trembling in a huddle.
“Of course, of course,” Vice-Minister Liao, truly a master honed in the political arena, was able to understand the hidden meaning even in such an urgent situation. He immediately said, “We don’t have to follow procedures. We can privately hire Team Leader One and Team Leader Four to resolve the situation. We’ll also trouble Deputy Chief Yu to be present to provide guidance. Naturally, a token of our appreciation will be sent afterward…”
Zhou Hui pinched his nose. “Don’t joke around. My ex-wife doesn’t accept money. You’d be better off kneeling in front of his desk and burning incense for three months.”
Vice-Minister Liao immediately refused firmly. “How can we take back a token of appreciation once it’s offered? Since Team Leader Four doesn’t like this, then giving it to Boss Zhou is the same! How about this amount?” He held up five fingers.
Yu Jingzhong’s mouth twitched slightly at the side, but Zhou Hui was unfazed. “No, no, no, it’s not the same, not the same at all. You’d better go burn incense first.”
Vice-Minister Liao immediately held up seven fingers. “Sorry, I was flustered just now, that…”
“Buy high-quality sandalwood,” Zhou Hui said pleasantly. “The cheap stuff gives me a headache. That Laoshan sandalwood is pretty good.”
Deputy Chief Yu covered his eyes, unable to watch. Vice-Minister Liao gritted his teeth, likely driven to desperation by the increasingly dense banging from upstairs, and held up one finger. “This amount! Plus double after it’s done! As long as it’s resolved before dark!”
Zhou Hui finally seemed a little tempted. He turned to Chu He with deep affection. “Ex-wife, look… is this amount enough for a betrothal gift?”
Chu He was silent, so Zhou Hui immediately added, “Just the betrothal gift. The bride price will be separate.”
Everyone stared at Chu He, their gazes as hot as the midday summer sun. If there were an egg on the ground, it would have been cooked through.
Under everyone’s watchful eyes, Chu He was silent for a while before finally saying, “Two million.”
Before Vice-Minister Liao could react, he slowly added, “Two million each… including Deputy Chief Yu.”
As Deputy Chief Yu went upstairs, led by Vice-Minister Liao and his son, he turned back and gritted his teeth at Zhou Hui. “You’re too damn skilled at this. Be honest, how much have you raked in using this method before?! Six million for one jumping corpse, that’s daylight robbery!”
Zhou Hui immediately cried foul. “It wasn’t me who asked for it! They voluntarily offered donations to His Highness the Phoenix Wisdom King!” He then turned and whispered to Chu He, “Darling, you finally understand the importance of how a market economy works. But what happened to your cold and noble persona? I remember you used to take money from my pocket even to buy a popsicle.”
“…” Chu He said, “It’s not too late to change my persona now.”
The group arrived upstairs. The bedroom door was solid peach wood and hadn’t collapsed yet due to its sturdiness, but it looked close. Large cracks radiated from where the door met the wall, trembling with the next round of impacts, shedding a constant stream of plaster dust.
“This is it,” Vice-Minister Liao stood at the end of the hallway, his face ashen, not daring to come closer. “It’s all my son’s fault for not behaving himself, for bringing these unsavory people home and causing all this trouble… Liao Liang! Get back here!”
The eldest grandson, Liao Liang, had apparently had a very passionate night. His shirt was still stained with makeup, but his expression was clearly uneasy. “I’ll go open the door for them…”
“Get back here!” Vice-Minister Liao, fiercely protective, pulled his only son back and roared.
Zhou Hui was still educating his ex-wife. “A man’s financial power is very important. It’s the same in the natural world. Only the strongest male is qualified to win the female’s heart. Only after ensuring an adequate food supply and a safe nest can he impregnate the female… That’s why I’ve been investing in industries and real estate in the human realm for the past few years. Although that guy Fan Luo nominally owns the entire Four Evil Paths, my liquid assets are definitely no less than his…”
Chu He was a little frustrated. “You’re overthinking it. I really don’t know how much money the Demon Lord has.”
“With the wave of market and financial reforms, the economic development of the human realm will definitely not be slower than the Demon Realm’s. Although the Demon Realm’s mineral resources are far richer than the Heavenly Dao’s, the human realm’s financial market activity and maneuverability are streets ahead of the Demon Realm’s…”
“I really don’t know,” Chu He said, extremely helpless. “Why don’t you go ask Maha? Maha should be in the Hell Path, right? Just have him bring back a couple of valuable things from the Demon Lord’s palace.”
Zhou Hui actually considered it for a moment, probably secretly weighing the value of the precious items in the Demon Lord’s palace against the potential losses his eldest son’s visit home might cause.
“Forget it,” he finally decided. “Da Mao’s career is developing well. It’s better not to call him back for no reason.”
The banging grew louder and more frequent. Perhaps stimulated by the presence of living people outside, faint roars could even be heard from within the bedroom.
Vice-Minister Liao dragged his son back to the top of the stairs, seemingly ready to make a run for it the moment the door broke. “Um, Team Leader Zhou, the jump-jump-jumping corpse, it—”
Zhou Hui waved a dismissive hand at him. “You guys leave first. Tell everyone in the villa to get out. The two of us will stay here—ah, and Deputy Chief Yu will stay to supervise the work. The rest can come back after it’s resolved.”
Vice-Minister Liao was eager to flee, but Liao Liang stood his ground. “Wait, I’m not leaving either.”
“What are you doing? Didn’t you hear Team Leader Zhou?! You debt collector from a past life—”
“I caused this mess. I can’t leave until it’s resolved,” Liao Liang said firmly. “Besides, if I can get killed by a jumping corpse right under Team Leader Zhou’s nose, then this ticket wasn’t worth six million, was it?”
Zhou Hui seemed to find it a bit amusing. “Kid, are you trying to provoke me?”
“That’s not my intention. I just want to take responsibility for what I should,” Liao Liang said sincerely. He was tall and looked quite refined and reliable. Although his face showed anxiety, he wasn’t as terrified as his father. “I already feel terrible for involving my grandfather. I want to help resolve this and at least do my part.”
His father was about to scold him, but was interrupted when Chu He suddenly spoke. “If he wants to stay, let him. It’s not that serious.”
Vice-Minister Liao was taken aback, but Chu He said no more. After speaking, he turned and nodded slightly at Zhou Hui.
There was always something in their gazes that others couldn’t understand. With just one look, Zhou Hui understood his meaning and gave a slight lift of his chin to show he got it.
“Then you can stay here. Just don’t get in the way later,” Zhou Hui turned and said lazily. “Those who are leaving, leave quickly. If the jumping corpse breaks down the door later, don’t blame me for taking the money and running.”
Vice-Minister Liao had no choice but to leave, looking back every three steps as he went downstairs to lead his family in a hasty evacuation of the villa. A few minutes later, only the four of them remained in the hallway. Zhou Hui signaled for Liao Liang to step back, then blocked Chu He with one arm and kicked the door open with a loud bang.
The door panel slammed against the wall with a thud, bounced back solidly, and was stopped by Zhou Hui’s foot.
However, there was nothing in the bedroom. The banging sound had strangely disappeared.
The room was filled with a messy bed and a chaotic assortment of things scattered on the floor. Four pairs of eyes scanned the room, but couldn’t even find a ghost of a shadow.
“It… it was right here,” Liao Liang was a bit bewildered. “There were sounds just now, you all heard it!”
Zhou Hui walked to the bed, stroking his chin with a “tsk tsk.” On the bed were women’s lingerie and restraints. At least seven or eight different kinds of whips hung by the bed, along with other miscellaneous items like low-temperature candles, a metal endoscope, and dildos. Some still had English labels, clearly imported from abroad.
“Brother,” Zhou Hui said with sincerity, “if you really played someone to death in bed, we’re not responsible for cleaning up after you. The police station is two bus stops to the left when you go out. Be good now.”
Liao Liang gritted his teeth and swore to the heavens. “It really wasn’t me! We barely used any of these things last night. Look, they’re all clean if you don’t believe me!”
Chu He actually took a closer look with the attitude of a scientific researcher, but was quickly pulled away by Zhou Hui, who ordered imperiously, “Lao Yu, come and see.”
“…” Poor Yu Jingzhong, a man who hadn’t even recovered from last night’s blow, was now being told to examine such wicked things. He felt terrible, standing frozen by the bed for a long while before asking gloomily, “Is it really two million?”
Zhou Hui snapped, “Why would I lie to you! I’m just asking you to look, not use it on you! Even if you wanted to use it yourself, you’d have to see if the little beauty is happy about it!”
Yu Jingzhong’s expression was like that of a man going to his execution. He finally gritted his teeth and instructed, “Then remember to wire my two million to Yan Lanyu.” Then, with a constipated look, he picked up an electric vibrator with two fingers, examined it closely, then checked a few other sex toys that looked capable of causing some degree of injury before reluctantly nodding. “New.”
“I haven’t used a lot of this stuff. I just used the handcuffs last night for a little fun, really!” Liao Liang was about to go mad with frustration. “If handcuffs can kill someone, then I have nothing more to say! What the hell is going on?!”
“Then how did he turn from a living person into a jumping corpse?” Yu Jingzhong asked, wiping his hands on his pants.
“I swear to God I don’t know! I met him in a bar at the Workers’ Stadium. We both drank too much last night, came back, probably did it once, and then fell asleep. This morning, my grandfather suddenly showed up, came straight into my house and knocked on my bedroom door. I woke up with a start and saw him standing by the bed, staring straight at me. His face already didn’t look like a living person’s. The moment I moved, he jumped at me—”
“You escaped from the bedroom and locked the jumping corpse inside?” Zhou Hui asked.
“Yeah! I knew something was wrong with him right away, I thought he was on drugs! But then I thought, even if he took drugs, it shouldn’t kick in the next morning!” Liao Liang excitedly rolled up his sleeve and showed them the scratch marks on his arm. “Luckily I escaped quickly, otherwise—”
Chu He suddenly shouted, “Watch out!”
Liao Liang froze. He saw Chu He lunge forward, grab him, and shove him aside. In the next instant, a black shadow swooped down with a gust of wind, its sharp claws grazing past his ear, instantly leaving four deep scratches on the wall he had just been leaning against!
Liao Liang cried out, “Jump-jumping corpse!”
The black shadow landed with a thud. It was a naked young man, but his face was now pale and bluish, blood trickled from his pupils, and his mouth was unconsciously agape, drool dripping from between his sharp teeth. He no longer looked human at all.
The nails on his hands and feet were extremely long, some even curled, but they were as sharp and ferocious as blades. Chu He must have been grazed by the claws when he dodged, as his ring finger had a tiny nick on the side, which now showed a long, thin cut.
“Hiss—” The jumping corpse’s stiff gaze immediately locked onto Chu He’s hand. The thirst for blood made its pale face crack into a terrifying smile. “Hiss—hiss—hiss—”
Chu He clutched his hand and took half a step back. The next second, the jumping corpse lunged at him like lightning!
—Bang!
A loud noise shook the entire bedroom. Zhou Hui casually lowered his foot. The jumping corpse flew like a cannonball to the other side of the room, embedding itself deep into the wall, motionless.
“Damn it,” Zhou Hui said coldly, grabbing Chu He’s hand to take a look.
Chu He’s fingers had well-proportioned knuckles and neat nails, and they were quite long—the kind of long that, without even trying, would look elegant just resting on an armrest. A hand like this would be very pleasing to watch playing the piano, or even doing nothing, palms clasped, fingers intertwined in bed, it could give one a thrill that sent blood rushing south.
Chu He wasn’t concerned about the scratch, teasing, “That’s a six-million-yuan kick.”
“Go wash your hand,” Zhou Hui said with a cold face. “It’ll be trouble if it gets infected.”
Chu He went to the bathroom to wash the wound. Zhou Hui and Yu Jingzhong went to pull the jumping corpse out of the wall, tied it up with sex toy whips, and then found the handcuffs to secure it to the bedpost. The jumping corpse woke up after a short while and struggled constantly, the handcuffs making a teeth-grinding metallic scraping sound. Fortunately, these were proper police restraints, not some novelty product, so the jumping corpse couldn’t break free no matter how much it struggled.
“Wh-what now?” Liao Liang hadn’t recovered from the near-death experience, his face still pale as he spoke.
“I’m going to the bathroom. We’ll take it back to the Special Affairs Department for further examination later,” Zhou Hui clapped his hands, satisfied. “Remember to make the transfer. There’s a two-point fee for card payments.”
Liao Liang immediately and repeatedly assured him it was no problem and ran to ask Yu Jingzhong for his account number. Zhou Hui didn’t bother with collecting the money. He clapped his hands and walked straight to the bathroom. Chu He had his back to him, facing the sink and washing his hand.
His eyelashes were lowered. From this angle, his lean shoulders and shoulder blades were very prominent, but his figure was also very solitary and straight.
Zhou Hui walked up behind him, placed one hand on his shoulder, and took his other hand to examine the wound under the running water, asking casually, “What do you think of this matter?”
“It’s strange.”
“Oh? How so?”
“To escape from a jumping corpse with only a minor scratch, that requires the speed of a trained fighter. And a jumping corpse is formed when a living person’s yang energy is rapidly sucked away, leaving only yin energy in the body, skipping the step of death to become a corpse directly. I don’t think that guy surnamed Liao could…” Chu He paused, then said softly, “…get to that… state in just one time.”
Zhou Hui laughed. Like a gentleman, he lifted Chu He’s wet hand and sucked on the injured ring finger. The sensation of the hot, wet tongue made Chu He’s body jolt as if electrocuted, and he leaned heavily against the sink.
“Every time I see you get hurt, I’m in a very bad mood.”
Zhou Hui smiled faintly, but his smile seemed to hold a trace of chilling coldness.
“I can’t even bear to see you get a tiny scratch, yet you were about to give your life for Maha, and you’ve held a grudge against me for stopping you ever since.”
He licked and kissed the knuckle of Chu He’s ring finger, his sharp canine teeth provoking a subtle yet intensely stimulating pain in the nerve endings.
Chu He subconsciously tried to pull his hand back, but Zhou Hui held it like an iron clamp. He could only bite down hard on a small piece of flesh on his lip to swallow the moan that was rising from deep in his throat. His other hand braced against the marble edge, the force so great that his nails changed color.
He couldn’t see his own expression. His vision was blurred as if covered by a layer of mist. He didn’t know that his eyes were glistening with moisture, watching Zhou Hui with a mesmerized, shimmering gaze, an expression that made one want to press him to the ground like spring mud.
“Do you know what I was just thinking? I was thinking that those unlined metal handcuffs would look very good on you…” Zhou Hui whispered in his ear, his voice carrying the wicked seduction of a snake’s tongue. “I’ve been too good-tempered these past few hundred years, which is why you’re always thinking of running away. It’s really testing the limits of my patience.”
Chu He couldn’t escape. His lowered gaze fell on Zhou Hui’s strong shoulders and arms. He gasped involuntarily, “You…”
“If you push me a couple more times, I’ll have a reason to make a move,” Zhou Hui’s voice actually held a hint of regret. “But if I make you cry then, I won’t know what to do.”
Chu He’s face suddenly looked flustered. “—Zhou Hui!”
Zhou Hui finally removed his hand from the small of Chu He’s back, casually wiping it on the soft nape of his neck, leaving a suggestive wet mark. “Just kidding.” He said affectionately, “How could I ever make you cry, darling? I promise I’ll make it so you can’t even cry.”
Chu He’s expression was a mixture of anger, shame, and something else. He quickly washed his face and rushed out with water still dripping from his cheeks. Zhou Hui laughed triumphantly, went over to forcefully pull him back, and walked out with his arm slung around his shoulder.
