NB Chapter63

When I spoke of who I was and my connection to Auntie Yang, Pang Azhu remained indifferent.

Even after I told her that she was the only contact Auntie Yang had left behind, she still didn’t open her eyes.

The Buddhist Hall was cold and damp, goosebumps began to prickle on my arms after standing there for so long. I stood while Zhang Mingsheng knelt, both of us waiting before the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas for this formidable woman to react.

It wasn’t until I felt thoroughly steeped in the scent of sandalwood that Pang Azhu spoke again. “Actually, she and I aren’t related by blood. I’m my mother’s child with her ex-husband. Her own mother died young, and her father was my mother’s third husband.”

“She was a good person; she was smart and very headstrong. Once, she caught a customer giving me a hard time at the mall and stepped in to handle it. Afterward, she insisted on taking me to dinner and even paid my rent for several months.” Pang Azhu’s eyes remained closed. “She said her father was always marrying and divorcing, yet she had no close siblings to speak of; meeting me was just fate.”

“She had so much money, so I figured there was no harm in taking advantage of her generosity and enjoying myself a little.”

Zhang Mingsheng kept his head lowered.

“I truly can’t wrap my head around it. How could a woman as capable as her agree to a marriage that didn’t suit her in the least and then give birth to a burdensome child?” Pang Azhu suddenly sat up, her gaze fierce.

A crisp slapping sound echoed through the hall.

Zhang Mingsheng’s head jerked to the side as a red handprint blooming on his left cheek.

“Back then, I was overjoyed when I heard she was going to run away. She said she’d made an arrangement with Zhang Jianliang; they were going to pack their bags and head their separate ways. It’s a pity I was nothing more than a despised mistress then, I had no money to give and no power to help. She told me she’d had plastic surgery; to this day, I don’t even know what she ended up looking like.” She stood up and began to pace, her tone desolate.

Zhang Jianliang, that must be Zhang Mingsheng’s father.

“Their separate ways?” I asked. “They didn’t leave together?”

Pang Azhu picked up a cigarette case from the altar, pulled out a long cigarette, and lit it using the incense burner; borrowing the Buddha’s own flame. She took a drag, exhaled a cloud of smoke, and wore an expression of sheer exasperation. “If they wanted to be together, why would they bother running away?”

“But their bodies were found together.”

“That’s you, police’s, concern. I have no interest in untangling all those messy entanglements. No matter how many hands were involved, there’s only one culprit: his grandfather, Zhang Yaonian. I’m just waiting for the chance to chop that fat bastard into eight pieces and feed him to the fish.” Pang Azhu reclined back into her chair, smoking leisurely. “As for you,” she raised a hand before pointing toward Zhang Mingsheng, “I’m going to ship you off to Southeast Asia to work. If you survive, that’s your luck. If you don’t, you can go keep your mommy company.”

No wonder. No wonder Zhang Mingsheng never sought Sister Azhu’s support in all those years.

Sister Azhu was simply waiting to grind Zhang Yaonian into mincemeat. With her wealth and power, she didn’t need to play strategic games; with a flick of her finger, she could have Zhang Mingsheng hauled off as forced labor.

“Sister Azhu…” I started.

“However, this boy once told me he wanted to avenge his mother personally, and I agreed.” Sister Azhu glanced at Zhang Mingsheng. “I was waiting to watch the show, but then he suddenly came running to tell me someone wanted to see me, which turns out to be you.”

I looked at Zhang Mingsheng.

He really had offered up his head just to fulfill my request.

“Logically speaking, you two are like brothers. Your bond must be quite deep if he’s willing to risk his life just for you to have a meeting with me.” Sister Azhu tilted her head slightly, her gaze moving back and forth between me and Zhang Mingsheng, a faint, almost childlike smile playing on her lips.

“No,” I said, my voice raspy. “We are enemies.”

“Good! You hate him, and I hate him too; that makes us friends. Someone, bring me a knife!” Sister Azhu shouted, and someone immediately emerged from the side of the hall to present one.

It was a boning knife, its edge visibly razor-sharp, the blade glinting with a cold silvery-gray sheen.

“…Sister Azhu, regarding their disappearance back then…” I tried to pull her attention back to the matter.

“I told you, I don’t care,” Pang Azhu said while weighing the knife in her hand. “Zhang Yaonian treats people like pigs and dogs. Since he’s the one pulling the strings, do you think I care which pawns he used?”

“But we still don’t know how Auntie Yang died.”

“What does it matter? All I know is that she’s dead.” Pang Azhu looked at me, her eyes deep and dark, finally revealing the experienced ruthlessness of a woman in her forties, and perhaps a touch of madness as well.

She handed the knife to me. “I can listen to everything you have to say, hear your analysis, and even lend you a hand. But first, I want you to cut off one of his fingers!”

Her eyes pinned me down like nails. “As soon as you do it, you’ll be one of mine. I’ll give you everything I have to help you. Officer Yu, you’re a cop; no matter what connection you may have to my sister, I have no reason to trust you. In the end, what you had with her was just a chance encounter. She’s dead; that feeling won’t carry over to anyone else, least of all between you and me.”

“Officer Yu, I suggest you think it over carefully.”

Cold sweat broke out on my forehead.

Pang Azhu didn’t even blink, her gaze fixed straight on me.

I took the knife and knelt down onto the floor, seizing Zhang Mingsheng’s hand and pressing it firmly against the wooden boards.

He didn’t struggle. When my palm touched the back of his hand, I realized his skin was freezing.

Without a moment’s hesitation, I brought the blade down.

With a heavy clack, the blade struck the floorboards, splitting a thin crevice just a millimeter away from Zhang Mingsheng’s pinky finger.

I threw the knife aside, knelt on the floor, and turned toward Pang Azhu. “What use is his finger? Sister Azhu, it is already my great fortune just to meet you. One day, I will bring you Zhang Yaonian’s fingers to repay your kindness.”

Pang Azhu’s expression was unreadable, her eyes were still fixed on me.

I continued, “I can quit being a police officer and join Hongtang. If you need someone in Southeast Asia, I can go there too.”

“Are you two truly enemies?” Pang Azhu rested her chin on her hand while studying me thoughtfully.

“Yes, I hate him,” I replied. “But since he used his life to trade for this meeting, I cannot be ungrateful. I ask Sister Azhu to show mercy.”

“Now it seems I’m the one being difficult,” Pang Azhu said with a squinted smile as she reclined back into her chair. “I’ve always had the least patience for you police. Speak, what is it you want me to help you with?”

I looked at her and calmly uttered a single sentence.

I wanted her to help me investigate several high-ranking police officers; to track their bank statements, their property holdings, and their investment trends over the last few years.

Among them was my own mentor.

In the police killing case, there were three victims of high status. Zhang Mingsheng had tacitly admitted that he was involved in their deaths.

As for the remaining three, they were likely copycat crimes.

Zhang Mingsheng surely had his own ways of investigating these officers, but the moment he started digging, he would inevitably strike using his own methods, which would then draw out the copycat killer.

That person must have a connection to the case from all those years ago; all I had to do was follow the trail.

The process would undoubtedly be arduous and full of twists, but while corrupt cops taking dirty money deserved what was coming to them, what crime had the young, idealistic officers committed?

Right now, no one had died yet. The crimes hadn’t happened. There was still a chance to make amends for everything.

Ultimately, I also didn’t want Zhang Mingsheng to kill again.

By handing the task to Pang Azhu, even Zhang Mingsheng wouldn’t dare to interfere lightly.

After hearing my request, Pang Azhu nodded, giving her word. “Just that? My promises are worth their weight in gold; it seems you haven’t fully seized the opportunity.”

“I wouldn’t dare trouble you further, Sister Azhu. There are some things I’d still prefer to do myself. Besides, this one task alone is enough to cost me ten years of risking my life in Southeast Asia. I’d still like to return to Hong Kong to retire in my old age.”

Pang Azhu clapped and laughed heartily. She turned to Zhang Mingsheng and said, “I like him much more than I like you.”

Zhang Mingsheng kept his eyes lowered with a submissive smile on his face. “Yes.”

“Get lost!” Her voice rang out sharply through the Buddhist Hall. Then she closed her eyes and leaned back, her expression calm and serene, as though she had drifted off to sleep in an instant.

Zhang Mingsheng bowed his head. “Thank you, Auntie.”

He stood up, brushed off his trousers, and reached out a hand to help me up.

I didn’t take it. I pulled myself up on my own and turned to walk out.

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