Special District 9 Chapter 156: Hiding In The Face of Trouble

Qin Yu’s initial interest toward this ‘missing son’ case was sparked from the close relation between Wu Yao and Yuan Ke, and the high possibility of a partnership occurring between the two of them. So, he wanted to investigate this case and see if he could make use of it to deal with Yuan Ke.

He was well aware that now that Yuan Hua, Xing Zihao, and Old Ma were dead, there was practically no hope for reconciliation between both sides at all. Since that was the case, it would be better for him to take the initiative than to wait for the enemy to come knocking on his door.

However, as Qin Yu came in close contact with the family members of the victims, his thoughts began to change.

There used to be five people in the old man’s family—an old couple, a young couple, and a small boy who had yet to turn three. The family was reliant on the young couple for their livelihood, and their wages at Bambi Entertainment City could only barely sustain their monthly expenditure. The old man doted a lot on his little grandson, often heading to the street to buy little snacks for him and trying to improve the diet of the family. As such, while this family did face a fair share of financial woes prior to the incident, they still had their little joys in life.

But as soon as something happened to the young couple, this family was ruined.

The small boy wailed desperately for food, and the old lady was ailing on the bed. All that was left to prop up the household was the old man. He was still suffering from the grief of having lost his son, but at the same time, he wanted to push this case forward to redress his son’s grievances.

But how long could they possibly sustain this for?

Give it another half a year, no, just three months would suffice; this old couple which had no stable income would have nothing to feed themselves and raise their grandchild anymore.

Qin Yu and the others stood in the living room, looking at the helpless old man, the old lady lying on the bed, and the small child. The earlier story had riled them up, turning the bit of self-centeredness they had in themselves into burning indignance.

It was one thing if they hadn’t chosen to wear this uniform, but since they had put them on, a time would eventually come when they had to face the responsibility that came with it.

Qin Yu stood outside the bedroom for a long while before turning to Zhu Wei and asking, “Who brought some money in their pockets? Let’s pool our money together for the child’s sake.”

They were all poor folks slaving off for a living, and they were definitely no kind soul either. But at the very least, they carried the ability to empathize with others. With everyone forking out around twenty to thirty dollars each, they managed to pool together slightly more than a hundred dollars, which they placed on the table.

“Gramps, you happened to miss me while I was still doing better,” Qin Yu told the old man with a smile. “If it had been half a month ago, I could have been a bit more generous, but I really don’t have anything on me right now. It’s not a lot of money, but buy something for your grandchild with it.”

The old man stared at Qin Yu, shocked.

“Take it,” Qin Yu said. Then, he uttered softly, “I’ll look into the case and inform you if there’s any progress.”

“… Thank you,” the old man looked at the crowd before him in gratitude.

…

Ten minutes later.

Sitting in the car, Qin Yu and his group rushed back to the Police Bureau while discussing the case together.

“It won’t do for us to investigate this case openly,” Qin Yu said as he smoked on his e-cigarette. “Wu Yao has some background. If news were to leak, we’ll face great resistance in every step of the way we take.”

“Yeah, we can’t do it the normal way,” Zhu Wei nodded in agreement.

“We’ll discreetly approach the employees from Bambi Entertainment City,” Qin Yu pondered for a moment before instructing. “The old man said that most of them knew about the story.”

“Alright, I’ll try coming into contact with them later at night then. I’ll call you if I get any new info.”

“That’ll do for now,” Qin Yu replied with a nod.

…

Eight at night.

Zhu Wei managed to ask the manager of Bambi Entertainment City out for a meeting through a friend, and he informed Qin Yu about it.

In the car, the manager politely offered his hand to Zhu Wei and Qin Yu, saying, “I’m honored to meet you today.”

“Yes, pleased to meet you too.”

After shaking hands with the two of them, the manager asked with a grin, “May I know if there’s anything I may help you with?”

“We’re currently investigating a case, so we’d like to find out some details from you,” Zhu Wei said.

The manager was a little surprised before quickly replying with a smile, “Of course! I’d be more than glad to uphold social justice in this world. Feel free to ask anything, I’ll do my best to cooperate with you!”

“I didn’t bring my notebook with me. Are you fine with me recording our conversation down?” Zhu Wei asked.

“Yes, it’s not a problem at all!” the manager replied.

Zhu Wei took out an audio recorder before nodding at Qin Yu.

“I’ll be starting then.”

“Yes, shoot off!”

“Is there a waiter in your Bambi Entertainment City that goes by the name of Tong Fusheng? He has a wife named Weng Mei. Based on what I know, they should be working at your place,” Qin Yu said.

The manager froze in the spot.

Qin Yu waited for a brief moment before repeating the question once more, “Do you know them?”

The manager looked at Zhu Wei with nervous eyes for a moment before awkwardly replying, “Boss, may I ask what case you’re looking into?”

“The two of them have gone missing,” Qin Yu replied with vague details. “Someone has been causing a ruckus in our Police Bureau regarding the case every single day. Our higher-ups can’t take it anymore, so they sent us here to look into it.”

“Bosses, I’m really sorry to say that I don’t know too much about this case, so I won’t be able to offer any help to you,” the manager replied with slyly. “Why don’t you try asking others instead?”

“You’re the hall manager of Bambi Entertainment City. Are you certain that you don’t know anything about this matter?”

“… Yes, that’s right.”

“Then do you know Tong Fusheng and his wife in person?”

“Y-yes, I do.” The manager contemplated for a moment before nodding. “But I don’t know what happened to them after they went missing.”

Qin Yu eyed the manager’s expression tightly for a long while before finally stretching his hand over to turn off the audio recorder in Zhu Wei’s hands. With a very gentle voice, he said, “There are only the three of us in here now. No one will know what you said.”

“…!” The manager hesitated for a brief moment, but he still chose to shake his head, insisting, “Boss, I really don’t know anything at all.”

“Give us some info, and we’ll take care of you if anything happens to you in the future,” Qin Yu said with a slight frown. “Like I said, there are only the three of us here. I’m not recording anything anymore. Just tell us what you know; treat it as if you’re making a friend.”

The manager’s eyes quickly flickered around as he considered this matter. He finally pointed his finger at Qin Yu’s audio recorder and verified once more, “Is it really turned off?”

Qin Yu tossed the audio recorder over and said, “I’ll let you hold it.”

“Sigh!” The manager sighed deeply with helplessness in his tone. “Bosses, I can tell that the two of you are good people. As fellow brothers trying to make a living, I’ll give you some words of advice. Don’t investigate this case any further.”

Qin Yu’s eyes lit up. “So, you know what’s going on?”

“Don’t ask anything more than this. I won’t say even a word more regarding this case,” the manager told Qin Yu. “I’m only a small manager working here. It’s tough enough to make a living for me, I don’t dare to get myself in any mess at all.”

“Would you be willing to speak if I give you some money?” Qin Yu tried asking.

“I won’t get involved in this even if you give me 100,000 dollars,” the manager replied adamantly.

Silence descended within the car following those words.

The manager waited for a brief instant before he reached for the car door and said, “Bosses, I still have things to attend to, so I’ll be leaving now. If you wish to have some fun at Bambi in the future, you can look for me. I’ll make some arrangements for you.”

Zhu Wei stared at the manager for a moment before suddenly calling out, “Bro, you know why Wu Yao dares to act so arrogantly? It’s ‘cause there are way too many people like you in the world who turn a blind eye to injustice. He knows he can get away with it, that’s why he dares. I’m not asking you to testify or anything, can’t you just drop us some leads?”

The manager’s body stiffened.

“Tong Fusheng’s son is not even three yet, his mother is severely ill, and his father is in no state to earn money,” Zhu Wei said with a quivering voice. “If we don’t crack this case, they won’t be able to receive any compensation. By then, the ones who die aren’t just Tong Fusheng and his wife but an entire family of five.”

The manager clenched his fists tightly and hesitated for a while. In the end, he raised his head and replied, “No matter what you say, I won’t be getting involved in this matter. However… if you really insist on investigating this matter, you can look for Shanshan in our store. She’s friends with Tong Fusheng, and she knows quite a bit.”

After leaving behind this info, the manager opened the door and left.

…

One at night.

Shanshan had just gotten off work and was sitting at a food stand. He looked at Qin Yu with his eyes swimming around the place fearfully as he said, “U-Uncle Tong has also looked for me a few times… but I dared not to say anything much about…”

“If no one steps forward for this case, we won’t be able to investigate this matter at all,” Qin Yu sighed with a deep frown. “Your childhood friend and his wife would have all died in vain.”

Shanshan took a few sips of water as he snuck glances at Qin Yu with sweat dripping from his forehead. “Are you… really able to guarantee my safety?”