TFS Chapter 26

In the hazy night, Fang Jun drove to Zhang Shun’s apartment building. He turned off the engine and placed the food and fruit he had bought on the way on the passenger seat. The moon hung over the willow branches. Fang Jun sat quietly in the car for a moment, contemplating Zhang Shun’s true intentions. He held his phone, set to silent mode, in his hand, then picked up the packaged items from the passenger seat and walked towards Zhang Shun’s apartment.

As the doorbell rang, Zhang Shun saw Fang Jun through the visitor display on the wall of the entryway. He opened the door and warmly greeted Fang Jun, “Come in, come in. I was going to make a late-night snack, why did you buy so much?”

Fang Jun walked into the house, handed the items in his hand to Zhang Shun, and replied with a smile, “You’re always so busy. How long has it been since we had a good meal together? It’s rare for us to get together this time. I was thinking the sun was rising in the west, it’s so strange.”

“You could’ve just come, no need to bring anything.”

The two chatted while arranging the late-night snack on the dining table. Zhang Shun took out two cans of pull-tab beer, which surprised Fang Jun a little. “You can actually drink a little now? Don’t you need to be on standby 24 hours a day anymore?”

“You can drink a little, but don’t drink too much. I’ll have a driver take you back later,” Zhang Shun replied.

Fang Jun was even more certain that Zhang Shun must have encountered something important. “Let’s just be direct with each other. What trouble have you run into?”

Zhang Shun looked at Fang Jun, the corners of his mouth slightly raised. “Your sense of smell is too sharp. Let’s talk while we eat.”

Fang Jun narrowed his eyes slightly, staring at Zhang Shun. He picked up a can and took a sip of the ice-cold beer, silently waiting for him to continue.

“You’ve recently encountered a case.” Zhang Shun scratched his head, wondering where to begin.

Fang Jun nodded. “Is it the one from the press conference a while ago? I heard the city has formed a special task force, it’s a pretty serious and vicious incident.”

Zhang Shun pursed his lips. “Yes, you are in charge of this special task force.” He took a bite of food, then put down his chopsticks. “You followed a clue and found a pair of twin sisters. You’ve already taken control of the younger sister, and the details of the crime have been explained clearly. But you still don’t feel at ease.”

Fang Jun’s heart skipped a beat. Over the years, although they treated each other like brothers, Zhang Shun was known for not bringing work home, let alone sharing details with others. He recalled Chen Yi’s phone call, and had an idea in his mind.

His face remained unchanged, “It seems this matter really bothers me. Since the details of the crime have been explained, what other complications have arisen?”

Zhang Shun observed Fang Jun, not missing any change in expression. “Her older sister, you should also know her, her name is Chen Yi.” He stopped there. Fang Jun looked natural, “Chen Yi?” he repeated the name.

After a few seconds, as if recalling something, “Yes, yes, I remember now, there is such a person.”

“She’s a freelancer, how do you know her?” Zhang Shun couldn’t help but look at Fang Jun.

The smile on Fang Jun’s face froze slightly. “Is this an interrogation?” Then the smile returned to his face. “She used to work in my younger brother’s real estate company, she was in the general manager’s office. I met her a couple of times, I have a slight impression.” Fang Jun’s words were half true, but they still surprised Zhang Shun. “I didn’t see that Chen Yi had that work experience.”

Fang Jun’s chopsticks hovered in the air, then slowly lowered. He said seriously, “Then I don’t know. But I remember that Chen Yi is quite pretty, she shouldn’t lack job opportunities. Maybe she changes jobs frequently.”

Zhang Shun took a sip of tea, lost in thought. “I’m usually so idle, there aren’t many people I have an impression of. It seems she has something that caught your eye.”

The implied test in his words made Fang Jun’s heart tighten. In his opinion, this was definitely a trap, but in his position, he had to greet the person in front of him with a smile, no matter which identity he was facing.

Fang Jun pretended to be annoyed and said, “Look at what you’re saying. As long as anything happens to our brothers, I’m happy about it. Isn’t that my job? The leader just doesn’t say it, but he keeps it in his heart. Sometimes I talk to him about you, and he’s also worried about you.”

These words made Zhang Shun fall silent again. Fang Jun looked at Zhang Shun’s expression and advised him again, “I know you’re busy, but if you can invite me to dinner, can you also go home to have dinner with the old man? It’s been so many years, let some things be swept away by the wind.”

“We’re just eating as brothers, let’s talk about whatever comes up. You don’t need to worry about this. I’d rather talk to you about this Chen Yi, what kind of person do you think she is?” Zhang Shun pulled the topic back again, it was unclear whether he was avoiding the topic of his relationship with his father or deliberately leading Fang Jun back to this topic.

Fang Jun put on a look of recollection. “She’s quite clever, and seems to have a high EQ. Otherwise, she wouldn’t be in the general manager’s office.”

“How long did she work before resigning?”

“I really don’t know, should I ask for you?” As he said that, Fang Jun took out his phone from his suit, intending to call Fang Yu, but Zhang Shun stopped him. “You can help me ask later.”

Fang Jun looked at his expression, he wanted to persuade him, but sighed, and finished the beer in the can.

*

The next morning at 8:15 AM, Chen Yi went to the Shengshi City Public Security Bureau Criminal Investigation Squad again, and followed Shen Qing into the interrogation room. This was her second time in this room. She was a little puzzled. She originally thought she was just going to assist in recording a statement again, but they were meeting in the interrogation room again.

When Zhang Shun walked into the interrogation room, Chen Yi looked up at him. She was wearing no makeup today, and dressed plainly, but it was difficult to hide her elegant temperament.

“Three days before Yan Haoyu’s death, you met Chen Xin at a coffee shop. What did you put in her bag?” Zhang Shun asked the question directly, staring at Chen Yi squarely.

Chen Yi couldn’t detect any friendliness in his tone. She thought for a moment and said, “She had some old photos of me from before, and wanted to use them to threaten me not to see Yan Haoyu anymore. I took advantage of her going to the restroom and looked through her bag.”

“Old photos?” Zhang Shun repeated softly.

“Although Yan Haoyu and I broke up, I still wanted him to have the best impression of me,” Chen Yi said calmly, her tone light and breezy.

“Was there anything in her bag that caught your attention?” Zhang Shun continued to ask.

Chen Yi’s eyes were blank, then she shook her head. Zhang Shun whispered a few words to Shen Qing beside him. Shen Qing glanced at Chen Yi and then left the interrogation room.

“Chen Xin usually doesn’t sleep well, does she have the habit of taking medication? Do you know?”

Chen Yi shook her head again. “I don’t know.”

“After you became a freelancer, what kind of work did you do?”

Chen Yi’s heart beat like a drum. She had prepared for this question in advance, and said truthfully, “I worked in a real estate company, but I resigned after not long.”

Zhang Shun’s eyes darkened, it matched up.

“Officer, does this have anything to do with Yan Haoyu’s case?” Chen Yi asked back.

“Do you know Fang Jun?”

Chen Yi bit her lip. “I know him. I met him in a work setting.”

“It seems that although you didn’t work for long, you were quite favored by the boss. Since you were appreciated by the boss at the company, why did you resign?”

Chen Yi subconsciously avoided Zhang Shun’s gaze. “The company is big, and the work in the general manager’s office is also quite busy. I’m not really suitable for such high-intensity work.”

“How long after you resigned did you get together with Yan Haoyu?” Zhang Shun didn’t respond to her teasing, but instead directly turned to another question.

“About one or two months later,” Chen Yi carefully recalled the time and gave an answer.

“Then you’re very lucky. First you were appreciated by the boss, and then you met Yan Haoyu. When did you meet Yan Haoyu?” Zhang Shun asked this question again, trying to find loopholes in Chen Yi’s answer.

“Not long after I resigned, I hadn’t started doing fashion blogging yet, and was considering a transition. Through Chen Xin’s introduction, I met Yan Haoyu.” While answering, Chen Yi observed Zhang Shun’s expression. Her tone was calm and composed, as if everything was taken for granted.

However, Zhang Shun always felt that everything was too smooth, without a trace of hesitation or flaw, as if it had been rehearsed in advance.

“Is that so?” he replied faintly, with a hint of doubt in his eyes. The atmosphere of the conversation became subtle and tense.

Shen Qing returned to the interrogation room with the printed communication records, and made conspicuous marks with a red pen. In the time between notifying Chen Yi to go to the police station and early this morning, there were no call records between Chen Yi and Fang Jun, but this didn’t mean that the truth was hidden in these seemingly ordinary records.

Among the many call records, a record of a call to a strange number caught Shen Qing’s attention. She found that Chen Yi had frequently called this strange number within this month, no less than five times.

In order to verify the authenticity of this number, Shen Qing tried to call back, but was told that the other party had turned on the phone. Through the police database, she found that this number had no real-name registration, and this card belonged to a “space card” that had been circulating in the market for a long time.

Faced with this series of clues and doubts, Zhang Shun decided to temporarily terminate the interrogation of Chen Yi. He didn’t let Chen Yi leave. He needed more time to find evidence to make up for his intuitive “distrust” of Chen Yi.

*

As the sun set in the west, the Provincial Committee Courtyard was lit up with twinkling lights, quiet and solemn.

Zhang Shun’s car slowly drove inward from the guard post. The guard looked at Zhang Shun, and was a little dazed. “You’re back.”

He nodded, continuing to drive the car through rows of old plane trees, and finally stopped in front of the Zhang family’s mansion. This mansion had been renovated by Zhang Yu, decorated simply and plainly according to his father Zhang Shirong’s preferences, retaining the deep marks left by the years on it, without losing its majesty.

Zhang Shun opened the car door and walked towards the mansion. He didn’t remember how long it had been since he had returned. The last time seemed to be two or three years ago. He took a deep breath, standing behind the door a little hesitant.

The nanny Li Jie, inside the door, opened the door first. She was preparing dinner, with some food placed in the courtyard. As soon as she went out, she saw Zhang Shun, a look of astonishment flashed quickly in her eyes, and then a smile appeared on her face. “Ah Shun, you’re too busy. I haven’t seen you in so long. You didn’t even say hello when you came back. Wait a minute, I’ll make a few more dishes you like tonight.”

Zhang Shun looked at Li Jie’s busy figure, a warmth welled up in his heart. But recalling Li Jie’s role in the TV series and Rui Yichen’s identity as a second-generation official, he couldn’t help but have many thoughts. He still shook his head with a smile. “Li Jie, don’t bother, I’m just coming back to take a look, I have to leave later.”

After the death of the mistress of the Zhang family, there was only one loyal Li Jie who took care of the internal and external affairs of the family. Over the years, Li Jie had completely become a member of the Zhang family.

Hearing this, Li Jie’s movements paused. “Ah Shun, did you have a disagreement with the Secretary? Why don’t you want to stay for dinner?”

Zhang Shun sighed and reached out to pat Li Jie on the shoulder. “It’s nothing like that, you know my job, I work day and night. It’s just that I can’t find the time right now.”

Pity flashed in Li Jie’s eyes, she had heard some of the real reasons why he moved out of the house. She sighed and didn’t persuade him anymore.

“Let me help you take these in.” Zhang Shun quickly stepped forward to lend a hand, and carried the packages of ingredients into the house together.

Hearing the noise, Provincial Party Secretary Zhang Shirong also walked from the study to the small hall. “Da Li, who are you talking to?”

“Secretary, come and see, Ah Shun is back.” The smile on Li Jie’s face was sincere, making people feel warm.

As the door slowly opened, Zhang Shirong’s figure came into view. Zhang Yu didn’t lie, Zhang Shirong’s back was more hunched than it was a few years ago, and the hair on his temples was also streaked with some frost.

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