Chapter 76: Xie Weiran! Is your crab… cooked?!
While Xie Zijing was still worried about Quan Nu and Qin Ge’s journey, Qin Ge had already started contacting Leo and preparing to head south.
There wasn’t much luggage, but because it was a rushed trip, there wasn’t much time to prepare.
“Leaving tonight, huh.” Gao Tianyue called him, “I’ve already bought your plane ticket. Once you get there, connect with the people from the South China office. Someone will assist you in finding Jiang Yong, though they don’t know the real reason we’re looking for him.”
Qin Ge asked, “What’s the pretext?”
Gao Tianyue replied, “Jiang Yong is suspected of embezzling funds meant for special human subsidies.”
Qin Ge said, “…Can we not use such a defamatory reason?”
Gao Tianyue said, “He’s our witness, we’re not defaming him. Finding him will allow us to capture the real embezzler based on his testimony. That’s what the documents say, and that’s what you should say. Understand?”
Qin Ge said, “Alright. So, I don’t need to worry about things here at the Adjustment Department?”
Gao Tianyue replied, “Finding Jiang Yong is the top priority.”
Qin Ge acknowledged with a hum and was about to hang up when Gao Tianyue called out several times, “Aren’t you going to ask about Xie Zijing?”
Qin Ge replied, “Not interested.”
Gao Tianyue said, “Xie Zijing is now at the Criminal Investigation Division. The captain plans to have him follow Lei Chi to get familiar with the department’s workflow. Lei Chi seems quite welcoming to Xie Zijing, and Xie Zijing even…”
“I don’t want to hear it,” Qin Ge interrupted, “Don’t talk about it, Uncle Gao.”
When he said “Uncle Gao,” Gao Tianyue immediately fell silent. Qin Ge hung up the phone and continued packing.
His apartment wasn’t big, but it used to be filled with Xie Zijing’s belongings. While Xie Zijing was in the hospital, Qin Ge had packed up his things and moved them to Xie Zijing’s place, organizing them carefully so nothing seemed out of place.
However, this made his home feel empty and disorganized.
The long-haired rabbit lay limp on the sofa, covering its eyes with its ears.
Qin Ge brought over his computer and found a zombie movie for it to watch, starring its favorite actor in a new film.
But the rabbit showed little interest and seemed listless.
“…You want him to hold you while you watch?”
The rabbit twitched its ears, revealing its black eyes.
“Forget it,” Qin Ge said, “It’s not going to happen.”
He grabbed a keychain from the table and tossed it to the rabbit. The keychain had a soft rubber lion’s head. The rabbit held the lion’s head with its paws, looked at it for a while, then puckered up and kissed it.
Qin Ge: “…”
He snatched the keychain back and threw it into his suitcase, not letting the rabbit play with it anymore.
“Qin Ge is going to the South China office to assist Quan Nu with research, I know that,” Lei Chi said, looking at the file in front of him, “But why do I have to go too?”
“This is a case reported from the South China region,” the captain explained, “It’s a major case, and the South China office has requested assistance from headquarters. Their supervisor called me sixteen times, specifically asking for you.”
In the past six months, seven women had been murdered in succession, each in a different manner, but all with one common characteristic: they were all special humans, and each bore signs of abuse.
“The latest victim, the seventh, was a guide. She was burned alive on an abandoned boat at sea.”
Lei Chi’s expression grew more severe, “Seven victims already, why are we only hearing about this now?”
“Ask them when you get there,” the captain said, “Leave as soon as possible. Qin Ge is leaving tonight. I know you have a lot of work, but try to wrap things up and depart within the week.”
Lei Chi threw the file back onto the captain’s desk, “No, wait…this is strange. Why bring up Qin Ge if I’m going for work?”
“Qin Ge has a special mission in the south.”
The captain explained the situation with Jiang Yong.
“You’ll accompany Qin Ge, both to protect him and to help him find Jiang Yong.”
Lei Chi was anxious, “Qin Ge is leaving tonight, and you want me to go by the end of the week? Doesn’t he need protection now?”
The captain said, “Two people from the South China office are already here to accompany Qin Ge back. These two are researchers specializing in rare special humans; they actually came to headquarters to collect information on Quan Nu.”
These two people didn’t know Qin Ge’s true purpose; they just thought they were reception staff specially arranged by the headquarters.
Lei Chi held the file in his hand and thought for a moment, “Can I bring an assistant?”
“Is the Criminal Investigation Division’s welfare so good?” Xie Zijing laughed, “I just reported today, and I can go on a business trip right away?”
Xiao Liu smiled, “Too naive, do you think a business trip is a good thing?”
Xie Zijing asked, “Isn’t it?”
Xiao Liu said, “The last time I went on a business trip, it was to Shandong to investigate a corpse burning case.”
Xiao Zhang, next to Xiao Liu, said, “I’ve been on three business trips this year, each time to assist the local office in investigating vicious cases, such as corpse melting, dismemberment…”
Xiao Chen, next to Xiao Zhang, said, “And me, I went to the border and dug in the snow for a week, uncovering a pile of skinned rare animals. It just happened to warm up during those days, and the animal corpses left outside soon began to thaw. Oh, the smell… I’ve been vegetarian for two months now, can’t even muster the energy to use the stair machine at the gym.”
Xie Zijing: “…”
“You can’t refuse.” Lei Chi handed him a business trip form, “Fill it out quickly, I’ll submit your name too.”
Lei Chi always seemed secretive, making Xie Zijing feel there were some secrets about this trip he didn’t know. Lei Chi gave the case files to Xie Zijing, asking him to study them first. When Xie Zijing opened them and saw the number of deaths and the various causes of death, he felt a bit uncomfortable.
“…Cha Lao?!” Xie Zijing was startled when he turned to the third page, “Even the Cha Lao was killed?”
“A Cha Lao has died.” Xiao Liu shook his head, “The South China office definitely won’t get a bonus this year.”
Lei Chi said, “Talking about bonuses? These are human lives!”
Xiao Liu quickly shrank back, not daring to make a sound.
Xie Zijing was completely immersed in the case files.
The South China office’s jurisdiction is large, and this time, all seven murders occurred near the coastline, with the killer seemingly lurking along that stretch of coast.
This person, or group, targeted women who were alone, and without exception, they were all special human women. Among them were five sex workers, one ordinary employee, and the last one was the Tea Elder.
The first girl was found dead in a dark alley, strangled. She was a single mother and a guide.
The second girl was an ordinary company employee, a young guide working late at night. After losing contact with her family, her body was found in a roadside ditch the next morning.
The third was the Cha Lao. She was found half a month after going missing, her buried body already decomposing, and the tea bushes above the soil withered.
The fourth was a semi-zombie woman. The first parts of her body found were her feet, in a river. Her hands and legs were later found in a trash bin.
The fifth…
Xie Zijing closed the case file. He turned to Lei Chi and asked, “When do we depart?”
At the airport, Qin Ge received a call from a stranger, who claimed to be a companion sent by the South China office.
“We just left the Special Management Committee.” The woman’s voice carried a soft southern accent, “Where are you, Teacher Qin?”
“You can just call me Qin Ge.” Qin Ge said, “Shall I wait for you at the airport?”
The woman replied, “Okay, don’t leave.”
Qin Ge said, “…I won’t leave.”
He ended up waiting for over an hour. As the time for the flight’s departure approached, Qin Ge tried calling the number several times, but it always showed as unreachable.
Just as Qin Ge was preparing to go alone, a girl came running from another direction in the departure lounge, panting and sweating profusely.
“Teacher Qin!” She grabbed Qin Ge’s hand and said, “You’re as handsome as in the photos!”
By this time, Qin Ge was already a bit impatient, “You’re too late, aren’t you? Where’s the other person?”
“The plan changed; today I’ll go back with you first,” the girl said, “My colleague will stay in Beijing for a few more days; he will return home after picking up the Quan Nu.”
Qin Ge nodded.
The girl introduced herself as Xie Weiran, a member of the Rare Special Human Research Institute of the South China office.
“Teacher Qin, have you ever seen Quan Nu in person?” Xie Weiran asked, “Is he handsome? I mean, beautiful?”
Qin Ge honestly replied, “Never seen him.”
Xie Weiran said, “Then it’s a first for both of us!”
Qin Ge asked, “Why do your words always seem to have an undertone?”
Xie Weiran replied, “Don’t misunderstand me.”
Qin Ge felt a bit tired. At this moment, he suddenly saw something blue moving by his feet, which startled him. After pulling his feet back, he realized it was a mitten crab.
Qin Ge said, “…Xie Weiran, is this…your spirit body?”
Xie Weiran nodded, “Yes. I’ll take a photo as a memento.” She took out her phone, lifted the mitten crab, and took a picture with the departure lounge as the background.
Seeing Qin Ge’s expression, Xie Weiran laughed, “Don’t be afraid, it doesn’t pinch people. It’s very gentle and will make you happy.”
She handed the mitten crab to Qin Ge. He hesitated for a moment before taking it.
The mitten crab was indeed very quiet. It blew a few bubbles, waved its pincers at Qin Ge, and then remained still.
But its body slowly changed color, from blue to red.
Qin Ge said, “Xie Weiran! Your crab…is cooked?!”
Xie Weiran took another photo with her phone, “No, no, it’s one of its skills, to make you happy.”
Qin Ge said, “…If you usually saw a cooked mitten crab running in front of you, would you be happy?”
Xie Weiran looked at him, “Honestly, no. I can see it, but I can’t eat it.”
They both looked at the mitten crab in Qin Ge’s hand.
It turned even redder.
Xie Weiran said, “Ah…it’s shy. It really likes you, Teacher Qin.”
Qin Ge: “…”
He felt his long-dormant eyelid start to twitch again.
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