Brother Huang followed He Chuan Zhou to the office, his steps slightly slower, lagging behind. He took out a cigarette from his pocket, held it between his fingers, and took a sniff.
He Chuan Zhou turned around, noticing that Brother Huang seemed like he had something on his mind, and asked, "What's up?"
"Nothing much." Brother Huang put the crumpled cigarette back into his pocket. "I was just thinking, if He Xu were still here, you wouldn't have to go out of your way to be so understanding of others."
He Chuan Zhou stopped walking, waited for Brother Huang to catch up, and said seriously, "Not really. I've always been strong since I was a child and learned to be tolerant. When my mom was hospitalized, my dad arranged for me to stay at a colleague’s house…”
Brother Huang, sensing that she was about to make some unserious remarks, quickly interrupted, "Uncle and Auntie were very fond of you. They said they had never seen such a well-behaved, sensible, and smart child. When it was time for you to leave, they were so reluctant, crying and asking your dad to let you stay with them for a few more days."
"Maybe not that much, but I was indeed quite likable." He Chuan Zhou waved her hand modestly. "When my mom's funeral was over, my dad came to take me home. He was so exhausted during that time that he overslept one morning, so I dressed myself, bought breakfast, and went to school. So the first person I learned to be understanding of was my dad."
At that time, He Chuan Zhou had just started first grade. She had thick, long hair but didn’t know how to tie it up, so she arrived at school with her hair all messy and had to ask the teacher to help her fix it.
Her clothes were also not properly worn, with the inner sleeves bunched up, making her look disheveled. The teacher helped straighten her collar and sent her back to class.
It was only after 9 a.m. that He Xu woke up, panicked when he realized she was gone, and anxiously searched for her, only to find out she had already gone to school.
He bought a bun and a bottle of milk, stood outside the window, and saw her seriously writing at her desk. He called her out.
"I've already eaten; I took two yuan from the cabinet," she told him. "You can just leave money on the table from now on; I can go to school on my own."
He Xu nodded but then hugged her and cried.
In some ways, He Xu felt he had failed.
He always wanted to be a gentle and strong father who could solve all of her problems. But she didn’t rely on him as he had hoped; instead, she became independent earlier than expected.
She would carry a backpack nearly half her height, struggling to keep up, running after the bus.
She would go to the police station with an umbrella on rainy days to pick He Xu up and bring him home.
She would stand on a stool to heat up food, attend parent-teacher meetings on her own, and comfort herself even when she fell or got hurt.
Just like how her mother had held her hand before she passed away, asking her to take care of her father—she had done everything she promised.
Brother Huang smiled at her, but with a hint of bitterness, he commented, "Your dad probably didn’t feel happy about that."
Her smile stiffened a bit, then she withdrew it, raising her eyebrows. "Why are parents' thoughts so hard to understand?"
"Well, that’s how parents are, always contradictory," Brother Huang said, lightly patting her shoulder as they walked forward together, showing rare maturity. "They want their kids to be strong, but they also want them to be a little vulnerable. They want them strong to avoid getting hurt but vulnerable so they don’t get hurt from being too strong. People have selfish desires—it’s not a crime. And sometimes, adults aren't as strong as kids."
He Chuan Zhou only came to understand this later in life.
When her mother passed away, she was able to maintain a normal life, motivating herself to be diligent, to improve, and to take good care of He Xu.
But after He Xu’s death, she lost the basic desires of a human being for a long time, withdrew from the world, and subjected herself to extreme self-criticism and introspection.
She often pondered aimlessly when alone, shrouded by the shadows of misfortune all day, sometimes standing by the window, even wondering if people were like stones submerged in water, endlessly carved and shaped by the current.
Some people are born by tranquil shores, while she seemed to have been placed under the relentless knife of a rapid stream, where even a passing shadow could leave a mark.
When all the sharp edges were eventually worn away, only then, in hindsight, would it not be so painful.
But now, those negative or pessimistic thoughts seemed distant, and even the difficulties or choices of Jiang Zhaolin or Tao Siyue didn’t seem to matter much anymore.
She said, "I also have someone who's always on my side."
Brother Huang didn’t wait for her to say the name, already understanding and agreeing, "Yes, that’s right. Zhou Tuoxing is a good guy. He may not be forceful in his pursuit, but his attitude is passionate. I suggest you treat him well, don’t scare him away."
She chuckled softly and, as they reached the door, held it open, signaling for Brother Huang to go first.
"Brother Huang, technically, shouldn't you call my dad 'Uncle'?"
Brother Huang turned his head, arguing, "Based on his age at the time of passing, he’s only a few years older than me. At most, I’d call him 'brother.'"
She replied, "Who’s calculating age at the time of passing?"
Brother Huang wouldn’t budge, "Why are you pulling rank for your dad when you’ve got nothing better to do?"
Hearing the two of them return, the people inside, who had been discussing something, paused and looked toward them.
Xu Yu reported, "Captain He, we’ve pulled up the footage from the internet café, and it was indeed Wang Yifei who logged in. He used someone else’s ID, set up the timed posts, and then left. I’ve asked the local police to check the street surveillance to see if we can trace where Wang Yifei is staying now."
Another colleague added, "But this happened two days ago, and not all the streets in that area have surveillance. Even if everything goes smoothly, it will take some time to comb through."
"The tech team also got back to us. After a preliminary analysis of the audio, there’s no distinctive background noise in any of the four videos, suggesting that the filming location is relatively quiet. It’s probably not near a station, intersection, overpass, airport, or similar places."
They pulled out the whiteboard and began writing down all the known clues.
Xu Yu, holding a marker, pointed at the screen, "Also, according to the information provided by our colleagues in the district, Tao Siyue didn’t take anything with her when she left the apartment. The clothes she’s wearing in the videos are different from what was captured on the surveillance footage, so she must have bought them later. Would Wang Yifei really kidnap someone and then give them a bath and change their clothes? It doesn’t make sense to me."
The others nodded in agreement.
"I also think their reactions don’t quite match what you’d expect between a kidnapper and a hostage. The masked person is sometimes aggressive, sometimes calm, with emotions that don’t transition smoothly."
"And Tao Siyue confessed way too quickly. She didn’t show the fear of death that you’d expect. In the last two videos, if Wang Yifei hadn’t pulled back his hand fast enough, she might’ve cut her own throat on the knife."
"So, are they putting on an act for us?"
He Chuan Zhou moved to the center of the room, leaning against the edge of a desk, and signaled for them to continue.
"If the two of them are acting, I don’t think there’s an immediate danger to their lives," Shao Zhixin cautiously suggested, observing everyone’s reactions. "We just need to keep reviewing the footage until we find them."
He quickly raised his hand to show his commitment, carefully adding a humble request while leaving room for her to deny it, "I can do the reviewing, but can we get more people to help out? Is that okay with the organization?"
A colleague said, "There’s just too little information to go on from the videos so far. If they still need to buy things, we can go to nearby malls or stores to ask around, see where they’ve been recently. That should help us narrow down a general area to search."
He Chuan Zhou raised her hand to signal everyone to pause the discussion and said, "First, we need to figure out why Wang Yifei and Tao Siyue made these videos. What are they trying to achieve?"
Without hesitation, Shao Zhixin replied, "It's obviously to create public outrage."
"And then?" He Chuan Zhou continued, "If public outrage could get people convicted, society would be in chaos by now."
"Maybe they're trying to manipulate Shen Wenzheng’s company’s stock price? Based on the cases involving Tao Xianyong and Han Songshan, it seems to have some effect."
"Could it be that she's trying to draw out other victims to come forward and testify against Shen Wenzheng? I don’t believe that Shen Wenzheng has only harmed Tao Siyue over the years. Other women might have evidence."
A colleague asked, "Doesn’t Tao Siyue have any evidence herself?"
He Chuan Zhou confidently responded, "If she had any, she would have presented it by now. She doesn’t."
The group fell into thoughtful silence.
Brother Huang stepped forward and said, "In the first video, Tao Siyue seemed unusually distressed by the room. Could we speculate that this room is where Shen Wenzheng assaulted her, though it’s been abandoned since?"
He Chuan Zhou nodded in agreement.
Xu Yu took a deep breath and stood up straighter, saying, "So this could be a place Shen Wenzheng knows about, but we don’t yet. Are they trying to draw out other victims, lure Shen Wenzheng, or do they hope we’ll use this clue to investigate and uncover more of his crimes?"
Brother Huang clapped his hands and spread them out, "Maybe it’s all of the above?"
Shao Zhixin chuckled nervously, "They can't be that naive, can they?"
Brother Huang replied, "They’re desperate, with no evidence and no way out. It’s normal for them to think boldly. If even one of their bets pays off, it’s a win for them."
What concerned He Chuan Zhou the most wasn’t their safety. Rubbing her sore neck, she said, "If their goal is to force the police to open an investigation against Shen Wenzheng, this level of attention won’t be enough. There might be more explosive revelations coming."
Shao Zhixin seemed almost excited, "So should we wait and see?"
Brother Huang, infuriated by this comment, grabbed a stack of papers from the desk and slapped them against Shao Zhixin’s chest, yelling, "Wait for what?! If something else blows up, who’s going to be under pressure? Us! Do you think you’re just a bystander watching the drama unfold online?"
Shao Zhixin muttered, "Ah..."
Brother Huang slammed the papers back on the desk, about to say something more when his phone rang. He pulled it out and saw that it was from Director Feng.
"Why is he calling me?" Brother Huang looked as if he were holding a hot potato, feeling a bit panicked. "I’m just a deputy team leader!"
He Chuan Zhou instinctively took out her phone and checked it, confirming there was no urgent message. She then said calmly, "Maybe because I’m too 'fragile.'"
Brother Huang scolded her, "How do you even have the face to say that?"
He answered the call, and as expected, Director Feng sternly reprimanded him about the South District Police Station’s recent frequent appearances on social media. After expressing his displeasure, Feng’s tone shifted, "If He Chuan Zhou is in good shape, bring her along and come over immediately."