Mrs. Yu was a woman of quick temperament. Upon hearing that Yuqi had been sent to the Red Cross hospital, she immediately had Hongdou go downstairs to phone for a car, then went back to her room to change clothes, and full of joy, took Hongdou to the Red Cross to see Yuqi.

Her uncle and the others had already arrived earlier. Since Yuqi needed to give her testimony, family members weren’t allowed inside yet, so the three of them had no choice but to wait outside.

Ever since Yuqi’s rescue, her aunt and uncle both seemed to have come back to life. Though their eyelids were still swollen, their faces had regained some color. The whole family, having survived this disaster, radiated joy in every gesture — even the usually prickly Yuyuan had become much more agreeable.

Hongdou chatted with Yuyuan for a while, and taking advantage of a moment when a nurse and doctor went in to examine the patient, peeked inside. Through the snow-white curtain, she could only vaguely make out a bed. Could Chen Baidie have already been taken away so quickly? Earlier, He Yunqin had apparently also meant to come to the Red Cross, but on her way in just now, she hadn’t run into him at all — she didn’t know whether he’d temporarily gone to another hospital, or had personally come to take Chen Baidie away himself.

They waited until midnight. Yuqi still hadn’t woken up, but Yuan Ruoli arrived.

This was the first time Hongdou had gotten a proper look at Yuan Ruoli’s face. He appeared to be around thirty-five, with handsome, well-defined features. Though a businessman, he carried himself with a scholarly bearing. In front of her uncle and aunt, he conducted himself with the manners of a junior — speaking softly, with a respectful, deferential attitude.

This case, properly speaking, wasn’t Yuan Ruoli’s fault, but having nearly lost their beloved daughter, her uncle and aunt couldn’t help harboring some resentment toward him regardless. Given that Yuqi had been missing for so many days, worried about her reputation being damaged, and seeing that Yuan Ruoli seemed to have genuine feelings for Yuqi, they had no choice but to treat him with courtesy.

Just thinking of Yuan Ruoli’s unstable former wife was enough to leave a stone permanently lodged in both their hearts. They’d heard that his former wife had been detained by the police for several days over illegally confining Wang Meiping, and had only been released on bail thanks to Yuan Ruoli’s extensive efforts on her behalf.

Yuan Ruoli didn’t seem the type to be cold-hearted or ungrateful — with his former wife brought this low, there was no way he’d simply wash his hands of her entirely. As for what would happen going forward, the couple didn’t want to think too deeply about it — after all, they’d just been through a disaster themselves, and for now, as long as Yuqi was safe and sound, everything else could be worked out later.

By midnight, Yuqi finally woke up. The police, eager to return to the Public Concession police headquarters to report back, hurried in to record her testimony.

Through the thin door, Yuqi’s sobbing was impossible to conceal. Her uncle and aunt grew more and more distressed the more they listened. Once the police finally left, the whole family rushed in together, Hongdou following behind with the warm tonic soup her mother had sent Auntie Zhou to deliver overnight.

In just one short week, Yuqi had grown gaunt, her hair damp and matted against her face, looking as if she’d just been pulled out of a pond. Her complexion was sallow, with none of her former radiant beauty left. The whole family broke down crying the moment they saw her, weeping for a good half hour straight.

Fortunately, Yuqi had, after all, received an education and was accustomed to being out and about in society. Though still shaken, once she’d calmed down somewhat, she was finally able to recount, haltingly, what had happened when she was abducted the previous Saturday.

She said that she’d just come out of a jewelry shop and was waiting by the roadside for a car when, as luck would have it, the Lu family’s driver happened to pass by and asked where she was headed. Hearing she wanted to go back to Xinya Tea House for a lecture, he said he was headed to pick up Lu Jingheng anyway and could give her a lift partway.

Nanbao Trading Company was her father’s employer, so Yuqi had had plenty of dealings with the Lu family before. Back when Lu Jingheng had been courting her, she’d also run into this driver several times — her impression was that he was honest and steady, and well-trusted by the Lu family. Seeing that the car she’d called hadn’t come for a long while, she got in without thinking much of it.

But no sooner had they reached a secluded road than the driver struck her hard on the back of the neck with his palm, and she blacked out.

When she woke again, she was in a room with the windows shut tight, her hands and feet bound — she could neither move nor call for help. Only then did she realize she’d fallen for the driver’s trap. After that, morning and evening, the driver would bring in food and water. During this time Yuqi begged him several times to release her, saying that no matter how much money it took, if he’d just let her go, everything could be worked out.

The driver paid her no attention whatsoever.

Yuqi was held captive for many days in a row, so disoriented she couldn’t even tell day from night. Then last night, the driver carried another person in. When he pulled off the sack, Yuqi was shocked to discover the woman was Chen Baidie.

She looked as though she’d suffered quite a bit — there were bloodstains on her forehead and body — yet on closer inspection, she didn’t seem seriously injured. Yuqi had no idea where all the blood on her clothes had come from.

Hongdou set the soup bowl down on the small cabinet by the bed, and upon hearing this, thought to herself privately: Chen Baidie had been the first one abducted by Chen Jinsheng, yet Wang Meiping had been the first to be killed — and the method the murderer had used to kill her, driving wooden nails through her seven orifices while she was still alive, was not only cruel but would have caused massive blood loss. If Chen Baidie had been held together with Wang Meiping earlier, it was entirely possible the large bloodstains on her clothes had come from Wang Meiping.

They stayed at the hospital until well past midnight, but with no sign of her brother coming to pick them up, her uncle eventually drove them — herself, her mother, and Yuyuan — home separately in his car.

Three days later, Yu Chongyi presented a thick stack of case investigation files to Commissioner Bai.

“This is Chen Jinsheng’s confession. The evidence and testimony are all complete — he has nothing left to deny and has confessed to everything. According to him, back when he was a Daoist priest in Beiping, he learned a bit of Siamese mystical arts from an old Daoist master. Because his son didn’t have long to live, and his wife had difficulty conceiving, fearing the Chen family line would be cut off, he came up with this vicious scheme. The formation required impure yin people as offerings. Chen Jinsheng had long planned to search for offerings everywhere, but the whole affair was so dangerous that, fearing failure would bring even greater trouble upon himself, he’d kept putting it off.”

“According to Chen Baidie’s testimony, on August 22nd, she’d originally planned to stay for a few days at Mingquan Mountain with a few friends. That night, after returning from the theater, she’d borrowed a residence at Mingquan Mountain from a friend to stay in, and had specially noted down that residence’s phone number for the purpose. But later, she noticed the Lu family’s invitation card on her dressing table, and remembering that the Lu family’s villa at Mingquan Mountain was even grander, she wiped the number off the mirror, intending to borrow that villa from the Lu family to enjoy herself for a few days instead.”

“So the number she left on the mirror was for some residence at Mingquan Mountain?” Commissioner Bai had one arm draped over the back of his chair, as if he’d just finished a hearty drinking session — the smell of alcohol was noticeable from quite a distance.

“Yes. She called a car rental company for a car, originally intending to return to the film company to pick up a script. But as luck would have it, downstairs she happened to run into the Nanbao Trading Company young master’s driver. Chen Baidie, remembering she wanted to ask the Lu family for the key to the Mingquan Mountain villa anyway, changed her plans on the spot and asked Chen Jinsheng whether he was heading back to the Lu residence. Chen Jinsheng had still been wavering, but seeing this famous movie star and socialite deliver herself right to him, he took it as what he called ‘destiny’s arrangement’ and readily agreed. The moment Chen Baidie got in the car, Chen Jinsheng knocked her unconscious, and she’d been held captive ever since.”

“Chen Jinsheng really is a madman.” Commissioner Bai let out a drunken belch, leaning back in his chair and propping his long legs up on the desk. “And Wang Meiping? How was she chosen by Chen Jinsheng?”

Yu Chongyi lowered his eyes. “Chen Jinsheng was constantly at the Lu family’s beck and call, with little free time of his own, and since the formation had to be completed within twenty-one days, he needed to find the next offering quickly. Lu Jingheng often needed the car, and Chen Jinsheng, worried the young master might grow suspicious, didn’t dare drive around openly abducting people. He recalled that unlicensed prostitutes often came out to solicit near the train station, so he got hold of a rickshaw and went there to pick up passengers. On the very first day, he ran into Wang Meiping — seeing her dressed in gaudy, showy clothing, out alone at night from a back alley, he assumed she was that kind of ‘disreputable’ woman. Since he still had to return to the Lu residence that night to drive for Lu Jingheng, he had no time to be picky, and on impulse abducted Wang Meiping.”

Commissioner Bai watched Yu Chongyi with great interest. “Yu Chongyi, you really have improved a lot. Such a thorny case, and you managed to solve it in such a short time.”

Yu Chongyi, already feeling guilty, feared saying too much might give something away, and simply smiled awkwardly, frowning and staying silent.

Commissioner Bai stared at him for a while, then said with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes: “Surely you didn’t hire some outside help, did you?”

Yu Chongyi was quite startled by this, and hurriedly said: “Nothing of the sort. This subordinate has always handled cases strictly by the book, never daring to act on my own initiative.”

Commissioner Bai, smiling faintly, picked up a gold pen from his desk and toyed with it. “Catching the murderer who killed Wang Meiping, finding Chen Baidie and Pan Yuqi alive, and successfully bringing the vicious criminal Chen Jinsheng to justice — if I were to publicize this properly, this one case alone would be enough to make your name across the Shanghai Bund, Yu Chongyi.”

Yu Chongyi forced a smile. “Commissioner, you flatter me.”

Commissioner Bai smiled. “With this kind of ability, a three-rank promotion wouldn’t be out of the question. There’s a personnel reshuffle coming up at the department — go ahead, tell me yourself, how should I, as your superior, properly reward you?”

Yu Chongyi said solemnly: “This subordinate follows the Commissioner’s teachings and only seeks a clear conscience. Whether solving cases or eliminating criminals, it’s all done to help the weak and right wrongs — it has nothing to do with promotion or career advancement.”

“Good, good, good.” Commissioner Bai clapped his hands, took his legs down off the desk, and stood up. “Not bad — your case-solving skills have improved considerably, and so has your eloquence. At this rate, if you keep working under me, wouldn’t that be a terrible waste of your talent?”

A cold sweat broke out across Yu Chongyi’s back. “This subordinate has followed Commissioner Bai ever since joining the police department, and has never harbored divided loyalties. Wherever the Commissioner assigns me, I go — I would never dare voice the slightest complaint.”

Commissioner Bai laughed loudly. “It was just a joke — no need to be so frightened. Very well, you’ve worked hard these past few days. Now that the case is solved, go back and rest. In a few days I’ll review the case file from the start — rewards will be given where due, promotions where due. You won’t be shortchanged for your contribution, not one bit.”

Yu Chongyi, as if granted a reprieve, hurriedly said: “Then this subordinate will take his leave.”

After he left, another man who looked like a police officer came in, handing Commissioner Bai a stack of freshly developed photographs. “These past few days, Yu Chongyi really has been spending a lot of time with this Wang Bide fellow. It seems that’s largely how he managed to solve the case so quickly. Besides Wang Bide, He Mengmei’s second son has also been meeting frequently with Yu Chongyi — not sure yet whether young master He has any connection to the case.”

Commissioner Bai flipped through the photographs one by one, sneering. “This Yu Chongyi looks so honest on the surface, but he’s got no shortage of tricks up his sleeve behind the scenes. Wang Bide, of all people! Out of everyone he could have gone to, he chose Wang Bide, who’s long been at odds with me! Clearly he doesn’t think much of me as his commissioner.”

The young officer’s eyes caught on the promotion recommendation form on Commissioner Bai’s desk. His gaze fixed on it, and he lowered his eyes slightly. “Commissioner, you’ve looked after Yu Chongyi so well all this time, yet he refuses to stay loyal to you. This time, in order to get promoted, he didn’t hesitate to leak details of the case to an outsider — properly speaking, that’s not just dereliction of duty, it’s already a violation of the law. If the Commissioner were to be strict about it, even a prison sentence would be letting him off easy.”

Commissioner Bai gave him a knowing sidelong glance, but didn’t respond right away, continuing to flip through the photos. Just as he was about to toss the stack aside, his gaze happened to catch on something in the corner of one photo — a beautiful young girl. Lively and radiant, with a slender, graceful figure — even in a blurry black-and-white photo, the sweet, soft glow on her face was unmistakable.

He picked up that photo, examined it for a while without comment, and only on closer inspection noticed He Yunqin standing not far from Hongdou. He sneered coldly: “No status, no proper standing, and already going around openly with He Yunqin like this. No wonder that pair of siblings hold their noses so high at everyone — but they should think twice. What kind of family is the He family? Trying to marry up into that kind of family is a bit premature, isn’t it?”

The officer, hearing He Yunqin’s name, suddenly remembered something, and took out an invitation card from the stack of documents tucked under his arm, handing it to Commissioner Bai. “Mrs. He’s birthday banquet — they sent an invitation for the Commissioner.”

Commissioner Bai took the invitation and examined it carefully, then tucked it away in his robe.

“Commissioner, what should be done with this stack of photographs?” Seeing his promotion within reach, the officer still wasn’t willing to let it go, reminding Commissioner Bai once more of Yu Chongyi’s dereliction of duty.

Commissioner Bai shook a cigar out of its box. “Keep them safe. Don’t let them go missing when they’re needed. Public opinion outside is in an uproar right now, with plenty of criticism directed at the police department. I’m about to properly clean house — if any officer under me dares to carelessly leak top-secret case files from the department, that’s no small matter. It must be dealt with severely.”