Chapter 138 The Bizarre Case

Almost simultaneously, several places in this residential area suddenly erupted in chaos.

"Police! Stop right there!"

"Don't move! All of you, don't fucking move!"

"Behave yourself!"

"Dare to run and see what happens!"

The few houses, which usually looked rather shabby, were suddenly surrounded by men in plainclothes. The sounds of tables and chairs overturning came from inside, followed by—bang, bang—two gunshots.

The surrounding residents were so frightened that they huddled under their blankets, trembling. Some of the braver ones peeked through the cracks in their doors and saw figures running around and people shouting.

Fortunately, it didn't last long. After about ten minutes, the noise stopped.

Once it was quiet outside, some courtyards were empty, some people had been arrested, and life seemed to return to normal.

The Yu family was confined inside the house, listening to the commotion outside, not daring to breathe loudly.

Yu's mother huddled in the corner of the kang (a heated brick bed), her body trembling like a leaf. Yu Li, sitting next to her, could feel that her mother's palms were covered in sweat.

Mr. Yu sighed, "Honey, don't worry... Go inside and we'll wait for you. It won't be long, just bear with it."

That's what they said. But to Mother Yu, those words felt like needles pricking her heart. Endure it? That's going to jail, not visiting relatives.

When it was completely silent outside.

Two men in plainclothes pushed open the door and entered, nodding to Yu's mother: "Let's go."

Yu's mother stood up, her legs feeling weak. She glanced back but said nothing.

Yu Li's heart suddenly clenched.

She thought of Li Jianguo.

No, it's Director Li. She always called him Director Li.

She hurried over and stood in front of the police officer, her voice trembling, "Comrade, I...can I still see Director Li tomorrow?"

The policeman glanced at her, his eyes holding something that was hard to pinpoint. He said, "Comrade, you've helped me out these past few days; the organization will remember it. You don't need to cooperate with Director Li anymore. Just live a good life from now on."

Live your life well.

Yu Li's tears streamed down her face instantly.

She was unwilling to accept it.

These past few days, she's been with Li Jianguo, watching movies, eating out, and listening to him talk about things she didn't quite understand but thought were very impressive. He's so great—capable, good-looking, and speaks and acts with composure and confidence, completely different from the rough and clumsy workers in the factory.

Where can I find such a good person again?

They've already gotten to that point, so why can't they continue?

She simply wouldn't believe it.

Yu Li stood at the door, watching her mother's retreating figure, but her mind was filled with Li Jianguo's face. She thought, "Director Li is so good to me, he must care about me. He definitely does."

She needs to find him and get to the bottom of this.

Of course, Li Jianguo knew none of this.

He's sitting in his office right now, chatting with Director Yang.

Several sheets of paper were spread out on the table, covered with dense writing. The two had recently come up with a new set of rules: engineers couldn't work day and night; they had to take shifts and rest, otherwise, what good things could they create if their brains were foggy? They also came up with a performance system—of course, they didn't dare call it performance, but rather a "labor competition incentive method," and they would test it out first in less important positions.

"That's great!" Factory Director Yang slapped his thigh. "I'll issue a notice tomorrow. Anyone who can come up with a way to cut costs will be rewarded with a month's to a year's salary, depending on how much they save. Everyone'll be eager to do it!"

Li Jianguo laughed: "As long as Director Yang is happy. We need to give people something to look forward to. If we keep our minds sharp, we can keep producing good things."

Just then, the door was pushed open with a bang.

Deputy Director Zhang came in carrying a large cloth bag, looking travel-worn, but with a smile on his face: "You two are still here? You've finally finished your work."

Li Jianguo and Factory Director Yang stood up abruptly.

"Is it all done?"

"All done." Deputy Director Zhang tossed the cloth bag onto the table, untied the rope, revealing stacks of bills inside. "Fifty thousand, not a penny less."

The two men leaned closer, their eyes lighting up. Director Yang picked up a stack of papers, weighed them in his hand, and grinned from ear to ear.

Deputy Director Zhang, seeing their expressions, was envious but didn't say much. He couldn't spend the money anyway; he'd have to hand it over in the end, so he'd just get a small reward in return. But what about the twenty cars that Factory Director Yang had promised…

"Where's my car?" he asked.

"I can't forget it." Factory Director Yang put down the money. "My engineers are working on an off-road vehicle lately, an all-terrain vehicle, something that can go anywhere, rugged, and even bulletproof. Interested?"

Deputy Director Zhang's eyes lit up immediately. He came from the front lines, and although he now sits in an office, he still has to run around when there are big cases. Those broken roads in the countryside mean that he has to get out and repair the Jeep every now and then, which is incredibly annoying.

"Does this car... need to be repaired so often?"

"No need," Factory Director Yang waved his hand. "If the quality is that bad, come find me."

"Alright! Alright!" Deputy Director Zhang rubbed his hands together. "When can we pick up the car?"

"You'll have to wait. It's still under development. If you're in a hurry, we'll give you the ones that come off the production line first. If you're not in a hurry, just wait for the finished product."

Deputy Director Zhang scratched his head, looking somewhat conflicted. How can something coming off the production line be the same as a finished product?

"I'll go back and discuss it with the bureau chief," he said. "We'll try our best to order it."

After delivering the money and finalizing the car arrangement, Deputy Director Zhang didn't linger and got up to leave. But at the door, he turned back and said to Li Jianguo, "Director Li, you can rest easy now. Everything that needed to be done has been done. Go do what you were supposed to do."

Li Jianguo breathed a sigh of relief.

He stood up, stretched, and his bones cracked twice. He'd been on edge for the past few days, and only now did he feel tired.

"Then I'll head back too. I'll get a good night's sleep tonight and go check out the new factory tomorrow."

There's a ton of stuff waiting for us at the new factory.

Factory Director Yang saw him to the door, adding with concern, "Take good care of yourself over there. Don't be like those reckless young people, risking your life without a care in the world. Health is the foundation of everything, remember?"

"I've got it," Li Jianguo laughed. "Would I really shortchange myself?"

Factory Director Yang shook his head: "That's the part of you I'm worried about. Don't cause anyone trouble."

The two went out and walked together to the car. Deputy Director Zhang also got in the car, and the two sat in the back seat. The driver started the car.

On the way, we chatted and the topic of the case came up.

"I have a case on my hands lately, it's fucking weird." Deputy Director Zhang leaned back in his chair, rubbing his temples. "After finishing this, I have to go over there and keep an eye on things. Four or five people have died, and we still can't find the killer."

Li Jianguo used to love reading detective novels, and he became interested upon hearing this: "What kind of case is so difficult? There are so many skilled people in the bureau, how come they can't catch a single person?"

"Easy for you to say." Deputy Director Zhang shook his head. "In the village down there, four or five people died, all killed in the woods. We did find the footprints, but they don't match up."

"Could it be that he borrowed someone else's shoes?" Li Jianguo said. "In those days, poor families would sometimes wear each other's shoes, and they might not even fit."

Deputy Director Zhang was taken aback and turned to look at him.

"It's actually fucking possible!" He slapped his thigh. "Director Li's brain is really sharp! We were only thinking about what kind of people did it, we never considered this possibility. We'll have them investigate when we get back!"

Along the way, Deputy Director Zhang recounted several cases, each more bizarre and outrageous than the last. Li Jianguo listened intently, and before he knew it, the car had stopped in front of the courtyard house.

Just as he was about to get out of the car, he heard the sound of ping-pong balls clapping inside, as if someone was fighting.

"What's going on now?" Li Jianguo frowned. "I just want to come back and get a good night's sleep, but they can't even give me some peace and quiet."

Deputy Director Zhang also came down: "Let's go in and take a look."

As soon as the two entered the courtyard, they heard a loud argument going on inside. Deputy Director Zhang barked out in a stern voice, "What are you all doing? It's so late, why are you making such a racket instead of sleeping!"