Chapter 39: White Mist in the Woods 4
During their struggle, a dozen more colleagues arrived, some to help out early, others to play mahjong. They had been discussing the Qingquan Mountain rules zone the entire bus ride, and their conclusions were largely the same as the investigation team’s: it was nine times out of ten related to the drag racers.
“Captain Zhuang, we heard that only Xiao Yi from the First Division went in this time?”
Zhuang Ningyu nodded. “Yi Ke’s individual skills are very strong. He’ll have no problem carrying out the mission alone.”
The others all agreed. After all, setting other things aside, Yi Ke had definitely done the Third Division a huge favor back at the Yin Bar incident. With things having come to this, it was indeed hard for Zhuang Ningyu to justify leaving early. He was forced to stay and continue chatting, unable to even return to his room. His popularity was just too good; almost every colleague who passed by had to run over to greet Captain Zhuang, express their concern for his health, pour out their feelings of missing him, and then ask about Xiao Yi in the rules zone.
After so many questions, Zhuang Ningyu felt like a repeater machine. The world was so noisy. He didn’t want to talk; he wanted to go to the yoga room and strike the singing bowl with the instructor.
By the time the banquet was over, it was already two in the afternoon. Guests who had activities continued with them, while those who didn’t headed to the parking lot in small groups, ready to take the bus back to the city. As for Zhuang Ningyu, Huo Ting had indeed arranged a car to pick him up. But the driver waited and waited until almost everyone was gone and still saw no sign of Captain Zhuang. Upon asking, he learned that the protagonist of our story had, after finishing the third-to-last course at the banquet, declared he was too full and needed a walk. After saying goodbye to the groom, he had vanished.
The traffic police officer in charge of sealing the mountain entrance reported over the phone, “Yes… Captain Zhuang did enter the mountain alone half an hour ago… He said he was going to catch up with some old colleagues from the First Division… He seemed to be in a good mood, even brought us some pastries and wedding candy… What’s wrong, Chief Huo? Were we supposed to stop Captain Zhuang?”
Huo Ting replied, “…Forget it, no need.”
The wind was barely a whisper.
Zhuang Ningyu walked alone on the mountain road, his mood like that of someone on a spring outing. After being sealed off, Qingquan Mountain was eerily quiet. In the early years, there were still many original residents on the mountain. Later, as the surrounding area became more commercialized, most of them chose to rent out their old courtyards to businesses and move to Jincheng. Now, fewer than ten old households remained. After the rules zone appeared, the government had collectively relocated them to several nearby resettlement areas in just a few hours.
In this society disrupted by rules, the efficiently operating state machine did indeed provide the public with the greatest sense of security.
“Ningyu,” Ye Jiaoyue called. “Chief Huo said you’ve entered the mountain?”
“Yes.” Zhuang Ningyu reported his coordinates. “I’m almost at Willow Bay.”
Willow Bay was the most artistic commercial area on Qingquan Mountain. There were no firewood chicken restaurants or mahjong parlors; it focused on a yuppie vibe, with vegetarian restaurants, dessert shops, cafes, as well as some home goods stores and art galleries. Zhou Huanchang’s MotoZ restaurant was also located here.
Zhong Mu and a few team members had just searched the restaurant inside and out but hadn’t found Zhou Huanchang. There was an old-fashioned camera at the entrance that would trigger a photo whenever a figure passed by. However, due to the limited memory card capacity, they could only confirm that Zhou Huanchang had returned to MotoZ around five o’clock yesterday afternoon. As for whether he left and at what time, it wasn’t recorded at all.
“What did he come back for?” Zhuang Ningyu asked.
“The staff said it was to receive a delivery. We just contacted the owner of a seafood shop in Qingshiqiao, who confirmed that he had indeed arranged to meet Zhou Huanchang here yesterday afternoon. The fish was to be delivered at six, but he actually arrived at 6:05. Unloading took about twenty minutes, and the owner left alone by 6:30.”
Zhou Huanchang’s mode of transport up the mountain was his newly purchased motorcycle, which was now also missing. Zhong Mu continued, “Because there’s no concrete evidence that Zhou Huanchang is trapped in the rules, the police also came to the scene to collect evidence. It’s currently a joint investigation by both departments.”
The restaurant had three floors. Zhou Huanchang often stayed overnight, so the entire third floor was essentially his “home,” where he entertained guests, worked, and rested. In the bedroom, seven or eight packaging bags and price tags were scattered about. Zhong Mu explained, “It’s protective gear like balaclavas, gloves, and goggles, as well as a riding suit. Zhou Huanchang didn’t go down the mountain with the seafood shop owner yesterday afternoon. He said he had other things to do. He probably stayed here, intending to go up the mountain to test his new bike alone after the law enforcement officers left late at night.”
Zhuang Ningyu asked, “In such a hurry? Knowing that people were cracking down on drag racers.”
“When there’s a joint enforcement operation, that’s when Qingquan Mountain is at its most empty. What motorcyclist wouldn’t want to have an entire mountain to themselves?” Zhong Mu spread his hands. “There’s another reason. The bike he wanted to test is a new model that’s been extremely popular in the community lately. Everyone is waiting to see which expert will be the first to release a detailed review. Besides being the owner of several physical stores, Zhou Huanchang is also a top influencer in the circle. He definitely wanted to seize this hot topic.”
“No wonder.” Zhuang Ningyu glanced around again. “Alright, you guys carry on. I’ll go check other places. By the way, don’t tell Xiao Yi I’m in the mountain, so he doesn’t get distracted.”
Zhong Mu nodded. “Okay, Captain Zhuang, no problem. But why would Xiao Yi get distracted if he knew you were in the mountain?”
Zhuang Ningyu was caught off guard, but his mind had always been quick. He could effortlessly invent twenty answers in a second. “Because he would misunderstand that it was Chief Yi pulling strings behind the scenes again, wanting to find someone to take care of him. But that’s not the case. I just wanted to come into the mountain to see you all and get some fresh air.”
Zhong Mu actually believed him, even finding the answer quite reasonable. This showed that in certain aspects, she still had a lot of room for improvement.
Before leaving, Zhuang Ningyu grabbed two Order Maintenance Department action packs and a patrol motorcycle. He didn’t go to find Ye Jiaoyue immediately, but sent her a message, shared his coordinates, and then rode up to the mountain peak alone.
Rewinding a few hours, before the banquet started, he had been scrolling through Zhou Huanchang’s social media. Through it, he had found dozens of active influencers in the local riding community. Just as Zhong Mu had said, the new bike Zhou Huanchang was going to review had a cool design and was extremely popular. Even before its official release, it was frequently mentioned in the comments. The most frequently featured location was a place called “Comb Road,” located at the highest point of Qingquan Mountain. It got its name because the mountain road was densely winding, looking like a comb on the map.
With its high hype and high difficulty, this road would have been the perfect place for Zhou Huanchang to test his bike. The winter day was bleak. Even with a helmet, Zhuang Ningyu’s cheeks stung from the wind. He slowed down, driving slowly along the side of the road. Ye Jiaoyue’s voice came through his earpiece, “Ningyu, have you arrived?”
“I’m here.”
“Don’t move. Stop there and wait,” Ye Jiaoyue said. “We’re ten minutes away.” Her sixth sense was always sharp on missions; she was likely worried that Zhuang Ningyu would be pulled into the rules zone first, just like Yi Ke.
Zhuang Ningyu was obedient this time. “Alright, I’ll wait for you by the roadside.” He took off his riding gloves and rubbed his frozen hands. It was quiet all around, with the faint roar of an engine audible in the distance. However, due to the mountain echoes, he couldn’t accurately determine which direction the sound was coming from.
Yi Ke had been regularly uploading mission reports. The little girl had not appeared again after disappearing. He Yu remained quiet and silent. She and Yi Ke had very little in common; their conversations would dry up after more than ten sentences. Fortunately, she had a rabbit on hand to pet from time to time, pretending to be busy so that their time together wouldn’t be so awkward.
Yi Ke: [Are you back in the city?]
Zhuang Ningyu initially wanted to ignore it, but ignoring it would likely be followed by a phone call. So he had to reply perfunctorily: [No, on the road.]
It wasn’t a lie. He was indeed on the road; it was just that of the thousand roads in the world, this road was not that road. Yi Ke, however, was not easily fooled and pressed further: [Which road?]
Zhuang Ningyu was speechless.
The call that was bound to come would always come. Looking at the name on the screen, Zhuang Ningyu felt a baseless sense of guilt. After a brief and rapid hesitation, he ultimately chose to press the hang-up button, then replied as if nothing had happened: [Bad signal.]
Yi Ke: [Go back.]
Zhuang Ningyu couldn’t stand any notification sounds now. Every “ding” made his heart tremble. He hadn’t intended to interfere with Yi Ke’s mission, but the other’s mood had clearly already been affected by him. A few minutes later, with a slight sense of giving up, he called Yi Ke back. The other person answered quickly but said nothing. In the silence, Zhuang Ningyu asked uncertainly, “You’re not crying again, are you?”
On the other end, Yi Ke was about to be driven mad by him.
Zhuang Ningyu cleared his throat and asked as professionally as possible, “How’s the situation in the rules zone?”
“I don’t know, haven’t had time to look,” Yi Ke replied. “Haven’t finished crying yet.”
Zhuang Ningyu was speechless, standing by the chilly roadside, letting out several crisp sneezes from the winter wind.
Yi Ke’s heart softened again. He coaxed, “If you’re cold, hurry down the mountain and go home. I’ll have someone send you some stewed soup. Where are Captain Ye and the others?”
“They’re heading to my coordinates. This might be Zhou Huanchang’s disappearance point,” Zhuang Ningyu said, looking at the jeeps speeding around the mountain bend. “They should be here in about five minutes.”
Disappearance points were often closely linked to rules zones. Zhuang Ningyu was clearly aware of this, so before the other could speak, he added, “You focus on your work. I’ll take a car back to the city later.”
Yi Ke said, “Okay.”
Then the two of them fell into silence again.
And silence often magnifies embarrassment and ambiguity a thousand-fold.
From a rational perspective, this silence was unnecessary. After all, as a former captain of the Order Maintenance Department, it was perfectly reasonable for Zhuang Ningyu to check on his old colleagues on a mission in a nearby rules zone after a wedding banquet. He didn’t need to explain himself to anyone. But Yi Ke happened to be that person outside of “anyone.” He possessed a kind of overwhelming, inexplicably righteous confidence. And this confidence was cleverly packaged; all the forceful pressure was hidden inside the shell of a sincere and well-behaved rainy-night puppy. All that was visible was a pair of wet eyes and a whimpering sound after being rejected. Although Zhuang Ningyu had rejected many people and was skilled enough to teach a class on it, Yi Ke was clearly outside the scope of his experience.
The distant mountains were a pale, faint blue.
If, at a time like this, Yi Ke suddenly blurted out a word or two, like some of the inappropriate terms of address he had used before, then Zhuang Ningyu could justifiably hang up the phone. But Yi Ke was also silent, a silence with a hint of deliberateness. He clearly knew when was the best psychological moment for silence and could keenly capture the rare awkwardness his counterpart revealed in that silence—an awkwardness completely different from his usual composed and dignified demeanor. It was like a peach wrapped in a hard ice shell, slowly melting out a slight sweetness in the spring.
Zhuang Ningyu frowned. “What are you laughing at?”
Yi Ke denied it, “I’m not laughing. My nose is a bit stuffy.”
The convoy of jeeps disappeared into the last mountain bend and then quickly reappeared among the withered trees. As the distance between them grew shorter, Zhuang Ningyu let out a huge sigh of relief, finally having a reason to hang up. He walked forward, waving his hand to signal. The next moment, the convoy suddenly honked their horns, startling a flock of migratory birds resting in the forest—
“Ningyu!” Ye Jiaoyue leaned most of her body out of the car window, shouting with a voice that seemed about to tear her lungs apart, “Get out of the way!”
A chill suddenly crawled over his entire body. Zhuang Ningyu’s pupils contracted. He instinctively dodged to the side of the road. Turning back, he saw a motorcycle careening wildly through the white mist. Zhou Huanchang’s face was terrified, his helmet hanging from his hand, completely panicked and disoriented. In the end, he charged straight at Zhuang Ningyu!
BOOM—
After the loud crash came the ear-piercing sound of tires screeching on asphalt. The four jeeps passed through the white mist one after another, then screeched to a halt by the roadside. The team members threw open their doors and rushed out, but Zhuang Ningyu and Zhou Huanchang had already vanished without a trace.
Ye Jiaoyue: “…”
Qinggang: “…”
Huo Ting, upon receiving the report: “…”
Inside the rules zone, Zhou Huanchang leaned on a tree with one hand, bending over and vomiting until he was dizzy. After he finished, he turned back, weak and exhausted. Through a blur of tears, he recognized the man before him as the dedicated mascot for the Order Maintenance Department’s short videos. A hint of despair colored his voice, “You’re Captain Zhuang?”
Zhuang Ningyu, sitting on the motorcycle, calmly reassured him, “It’s alright. I’ll get you out. First, tell me, where have you been from six o’clock yesterday afternoon until now?”
