Special District 9 Chapter 38: A Lone Wolf For Life?

In the alley.

Grabbing his coat tightly around him, Qin Yu asked Old Cat with a frown, “Qi Lin is with you?”

“Un.” Old Cat nodded. “He was shot. I got a doctor to take a look at him.”

“What happened to him?” Qin Yu continued asking.

Old Cat organized his thoughts before telling Qin Yu what he knew about the situation in detail.

After hearing everything, Qin Yu paced around the alley deep in thought for a moment before asking, “With how things have blown up, do you think that you’ll be able to hide him?”

Old Cat fell silent upon hearing that question.

“I don’t think that’s possible. Those on Yuan Ke’s side will not let this go easily,” Qin Yu added.

Old Cat shook his head wryly as he took out an e-cigarette and took a deep puff of it before saying, “The reason why I was looking for you so urgently is because I need you to do something for Qi Lin.”

Qin Yu was slightly taken aback. “What is it?”

“I’ll find a way to bail Qi Lin out and send him, his mother, and his little sister out of Songjiang. I need you to help liaise with some of your friends in the Development District and secure him a footing there,” Old Cat got straight to the point. “Fate will decide whether he’s able to get out or not, but I should still do whatever I can for him.”

Qin Yu looked at Old Cat and replied with equally direct words, “I don’t think my relationship with Qi Lin is close enough for me to go to that extent for him.”

Old Cat was taken aback by Qin Yu’s response.

“… This isn’t a simple murder case. There are many conflicts of interest and deeper reasons behind this matter. You should also know that once I help him, I’ll be dragged into this mess as well. If something happens to me, who will be there to help me?” Qin Yu asked with a composed voice.

Old Cat took another puff of smoke from his e-cigarette.

“Old Cat, I went through hell for many years in the Development District in order to get myself the residential rights and a job in Songjiang. You have Superintendent Li on top of you, but I have no one at all,” Qin Yu told Old Cat earnestly. “I’m sorry, but I can’t help you with this matter.”

Old Cat raised his head to look at Qin Yu, and all of a sudden, he burst into laughter. “You are an ambitious and capable man. I can understand the rationale behind your decision.”

Qin Yu didn’t speak a word.

“Qin Yu, do you know why Qi Lin ended up taking this step?” Old Cat asked softly.

Qin Yu continued looking at Old Cat quietly.

“The two of you are actually quite alike. You two have a clear motive in life. You know what you want, and you are able to remain calm no matter what you are facing. You believe that you’ll always be able to weigh the pros and cons of any situation. The only difference is that one of you is too hard and the other one is too soft,” Old Cat took another puff of smoke as he said with a light chuckle.

“But I want to tell you that it isn’t necessarily the best thing for a person to live too rationally. Qi Lin is one good example. If a person doesn’t have a single friend he can trust in life. I don’t believe that he’ll be able to achieve a lot in life… I came here to look for you because I thought of you as a brother. I thought that we were friends, so I didn’t hold back with you… It seems like I thought wrong. It was just one-sided thinking from me. I apologize for my rudeness.”

Qin Yu’s forehead furrowed a little upon hearing those words, but he still didn’t say a thing.

“I’ll think of a solution myself. You can go back now,” Old Cat turned around and left.

With his hands inside his pockets, Qin Yu watched as Old Cat walked away when he suddenly shouted, “You know deep down that Superintendent Li has been avoiding the issue regarding the medicine smugglers. You won’t get out easily if you were to get involved too.”

Old Cat continued walking on as he replied, “Even that bastard Tiger knows to protect his friend during crucial moments. How can I, Old Cat, be any less than him? I don’t know whether I can out of this or not, but I know that I’ll do anything to bail Qi Lin out.”

After saying his piece, Old Cat got into his car and left.

…

Before this incident occurred, Old Cat would always berate Qi Lin as if the latter was his son or something. From the perspective of an outsider, it would appear that there was an unequal relationship between the two of them, that Qi Lin was no more than a lapdog standing next to Old Cat.

However, when Qi Lin met with danger, when those whom he was close with usually were eager to shun him, the one who gritted his teeth to help him ended up being the one who had looked down on him all this while, Old Cat.

It was true that Old Cat looked down on Qi Lin quite a bit.

But their friendship was true as well.

Old Cat was such a person. It didn’t matter how well a person was doing, he simply wouldn’t get along with a person whom he couldn’t get along with. However, once he viewed someone as his friend, he would definitely reach out to help him if the latter was in trouble.

With a lowered head, Qin Yu walked back to his dormitory. There were many thoughts drifting around his head, leaving him feeling a little frustrated inside. Old Cat’s words had left a ripple in his mind.

During his time in the Development District, Qin Yu trusted no one at all. He had seen the vilest side of humanity there. There were too many beasts who would sell their wife and children just for a bite of food or a job. Over time, his heart gradually grew cold. This was a natural self-protective mechanism of the mind, such that Qin Yu wasn’t cognizant of this either. He might have become strong mentally, but at the same time, he lost the warmth that a human should have.

And with Old Cat’s words replaying endlessly in his head, he began to doubt himself for the first time. Was his rational and intentional way of living really correct? Should he continue living the way he did back at the Development District here in the Special District Nine as well?

Life was long and lonely. Could he really walk to the end of it all alone?

Old Cat’s standing and connections in the Police Bureau was far greater than him, and he still dared risk it all to bail Qi Lin out. On the other hand, Qin Yu was a demon who had come from the Development District, and yet, he was overly worried about this little space he had finally built for himself. Were his eyes set on something far too narrow over here?

Qin Yu believed that his relationship with Qi Lin wasn’t at the point where they would be willing to die for each other, but how did the life-and-death buddies of others even come about in the first place?

As such thoughts flowed through Qin Yu’s mind, his footsteps slowly came to a halt. Old Cat’s silhouette appeared in his mind again.

He criticized Qi Lin every day. He appeared to be a lackadaisical person who couldn’t be relied on. Yet, he was willing to charge through a minefield for his friends when it came down to it. Was it worthwhile for him to go to such lengths to befriend such a person?

Qin Yu worried and hesitated, but in the end, he still took out his phone.

“Goddamnit. Even the smartest person would become dumb after hanging out with a fool…” Qin Yu sighed as he dialed a number.

Tens of seconds later, the call connected. “Hello?”

“Let’s talk about the smuggled medicine.”

Qin Yu turned around and left through the backdoor of the bureau. With hastened footsteps, he quickly headed to the opposite end of the street.

…

New Epoch Road, on the second floor of a villa.

Yuan Ke locked the door before walking over to the window to speak, “Qi Lin doesn’t have many friends. Old Cat is the only one.”

“Old Cat and Superintendent Li’s relationship…” The man on the other end of the phone frowned slightly as he advised, “It won’t be easy for me to look into this.”

“You just need to dig out where Qi Lin is, I’ll settle the problems with those above,” Yuan Ke replied coldly. “No matter the cost, we must obtain the supply route and get rid of him.”

“I understand.”

…

In a storage facility within Fortune Road.

The doctor was just about to leave after washing Qi Lin’s wounds when Old Cat suddenly held him hostage at gunpoint. “You can’t go yet. I’ll let you go once my friend is out of here. Don’t worry, I’ll compensate you properly for your effort.”

“How can you go back on your words?” the doctor cursed angrily. “Are you a thug?”

“Cut the crap. If you push me too far, I don’t know what I’ll do,” Old Cat snickered as he locked the doctor inside a room. After that, he turned to his friend, who had come over to help, and asked, “Can you find a way to send Qi Lin out of here?”

“… The person he killed is Yuan Hua’s blood-related uncle… It’s already complete chaos out there. It’s too difficult to send him out at a time like this,” the friend replied with an awful look on his face. “You also know the limits of my capabilities.”

Old Cat scratched his head and said, “Say, do you think that we can get the help of the military?”

“Hard to say,” the friend replied with a shake of his head.

Lying on top of a broken wooden bed, Qi Lin coughed violently before saying, “You don’t need to care about me… Just send my mother and my little sister out safely.”

“Shut your trap!” Old Cat berated in irritation.

…

New Epoch Road, on the second floor of a villa.

Ol’ Three limped his way down the stairs before shouting to the twenty or so people gathered within the villa, “Our brother has spoken. Put aside everything else you are doing right now, we’ll be mobilizing everyone for the operation. Within 12 hours, you are to dig out where Qi Lin is!”