"Nonsense, Uncle Hu, he's just an old fox!" Hu Jia's tone was clearly tinged with disgust.
"Xiao Jia?" Ouyang Wen didn't understand why Hu Jia's attitude had changed so drastically.
"There's something very wrong with him," Hu Jia said.
Because of the third sentence being exposed, Hu Jia had completely given up on Qiao Huali.
Otherwise, how else could the Blade people know that sentence? It could only mean that Qiao Huali had spoken it.
It was obvious that Qiao Huali had not only betrayed them, but had done so thoroughly.
"I should have realized long ago that the third sentence was with Qiao Huali."
For so long, everyone had been rushing around for these four sentences.
The first sentence, Hu Shulong gave to Feng Si, because Feng Si was a close contact at the crime scene.
The second sentence, Hu Shulong gave to Li Zhenhui, because Li Zhenhui was his partner, and they were investigating the shooting case together.
The fourth sentence, Hu Shulong gave to Yang Shaoquan, because Yang Shaoquan could stay away from Chongqing and was his close friend.
As for the third sentence, Hu Shulong giving it to Qiao Huali was also perfectly logical. Because Qiao Huali was not only a friend, but also a work partner, and the leader of the shooting special investigation team.
Hu Shulong did not leave these four sentences to Hu Jia and Ouyang Wen, but it was precisely these four sentences that only the two brothers could possibly decipher.
Perhaps Hu Shulong wanted to use these four sentences to save everyone's lives. But he never imagined that the Qiao Huali he trusted would betray that trust.
"I even suspect that Qiao Huali betrayed us six or seven years ago," Hu Jia said.
Hearing Hu Jia's analysis, Lu Qingqing and Ouyang Wen also felt disheartened. A spiritual betrayal was far more hurtful than an active betrayal.
...
Since they already knew about Qiao Huali's betrayal, and with Tong Meng and Tong Hua secretly monitoring them, Hu Jia and the others had been very well-behaved during this period, doing nothing and staying out of trouble.
Meanwhile, the Blade people had dispatched a large number of personnel to Brazil, searching for places with lychee, knotweed, bamboo, and scented tobacco.
And because Hu Jia had said that Zhongxian had already been investigated, the Blade people only invested a small amount of manpower in searching Zhongxian. Their elite forces were all scattered in other districts and counties of Brazil.
Upon learning this news, Hu Jia and the others became even more hesitant to act. The other side had already gone down the wrong path, the wrong direction, and they didn't want their private actions to inadvertently lead them back onto the correct track.
And so, another half month passed.
That day, Qiao Huali suddenly announced the reopening of the shooting case.
Everyone was stunned by this news. This case had been dragging on for 11 years, what else was there to investigate?
Hu Jia and the others also looked grim. He understood the Blade people's objective too well.
It was to openly collect the clues they held.
After all, once a special investigation team was formed, they would hold analysis meetings on the case every day.
What would they discuss in these meetings? Wouldn't it be about clues? And then these clues would be spread throughout the entire Blade organization with a flick of Qiao Huali's lips.
"Despicable!" Zhou Fengjiu was so angry he wanted to curse.
"Since it has come to this, there's nothing we can do to change it," Hu Jia quickly calmed down. "From now on, when everyone gets a clue, we'll first screen it internally. Which ones can we talk about, which ones can we not, which ones can we embellish, and which ones can we omit details from."
"Yes, in short, don't give them any useful information," Lu Qingqing agreed.
Qiao Huali personally appointed the special investigation team, with Hu Jia as the leader, and Lu Qingqing and Tong Meng as members.
Ouyang Wen was not among them. As the chief captain, he had to participate in the investigation of other cases.
Faced with this situation, Hu Jia pretended to go and talk to Qiao Huali, questioning why Tong Meng was included. However, Qiao Huali said that this was a direct order from Director Xie Xi.
Hu Jia raised an eyebrow and pretended to leave reluctantly, but inwardly he sneered.
This play had finally escalated to an open confrontation.
As for Hu Jia's escape, Qiao Huali had more or less guessed that Hu Jia and the others suspected him, but since no one had shown it yet, he was happy to play dumb.
Oh, and something else happened in between. Wasn't Lu Qingqing getting closer to Xiao Qi? They had even planned to go shopping at a bookstore.
But on the day of their planned outing, Hu Jia, disguised from head to toe, with only his two big eyes blinking, showed up.
This infuriated Lu Qingqing. You might as well have come out in the open.
Wrapped up like that, it was impossible not to attract attention.
When Hu Jia heard this, it seemed to make sense. He immediately went back and changed his disguise.
Lu Qingqing was bewildered. I didn't mean for you to change your disguise. I meant for you not to go at all.
Finally, under Lu Qingqing's stern and forceful coercion, Hu Jia finally chose to give up.
Lu Qingqing and Xiao Qi met at the bookstore. This bookstore was quite presentable. At least, to an uninformed person walking in, it would seem like a decent-sized bookstore with a good selection of books.
Lu Qingqing feigned the air of a literary youth, browsing each row of bookshelves.
She lingered particularly long in the more secluded corners.
After a thorough inspection, there were no issues with the entire bookstore. Finally, her gaze fell upon the bookstore owner's office.
"Ah." Lu Qingqing exclaimed.
"What's wrong?" Xiao Qi asked anxiously.
Lu Qingqing extended her slender finger, and blood welled up from the tip of her middle finger.
"There's a nail on it. I didn't notice and cut myself." Lu Qingqing frowned, as if in pain.
"Wang Er, go get the antiseptic," Xiao Qi instinctively called out. A bookstore assistant quickly ran up. She glanced at Lu Qingqing, then at her finger, and then at Xiao Qi's face.
"Go."
"Okay, okay."
Wang Er turned and ran off.
Lu Qingqing pretended not to hear Xiao Qi and the assistant's conversation and angrily walked towards the bookstore owner's office.
"Where are you going?" Xiao Qi tried to stop her.
Lu Qingqing shifted her foot, narrowly avoiding Xiao Qi's hand, then quickly twisted the doorknob and burst in.
The room was empty.
Lu Qingqing quickly scanned the room. There was a wardrobe in the corner, and nothing else.
"Qingqing." Xiao Qi followed her in, his eyes showing a change.
"Hmph, what a shoddy bookstore. They don't even deal with a hazard as simple as a nail. Where's the bookstore owner? I wanted to reflect on the issue with him, but he's not here." Lu Qingqing appeared furious, making Xiao Qi doubt himself, was he being too sensitive?
"The bookstore owner isn't here. The assistant will help you with it later." Xiao Qi said, trying to lead Lu Qingqing out.
How could this be?
Lu Qingqing had finally managed to get in, and she definitely had to figure out if there was a secret passage and where it was.
"How could the bookstore owner not be here?" Lu Qingqing didn't care anymore. "Oh? He wouldn't have seen me get injured, feared trouble and lacked money, so he hid in the wardrobe, right?"
Saying this, Lu Qingqing, with lightning speed, yanked open the wardrobe.
Uh...
It was empty. All she saw was the bottom panel of the wardrobe.
Lu Qingqing's eyes narrowed, and she quickly adjusted her demeanor. "He's really not here." After saying that, she completely ignored Xiao Qi's murderous gaze. "So what if he's not here? This bookstore still belongs to him. I won't leave until he compensates me at least one silver dollar."
This was overheard by the assistant who had just entered. He stumbled, thinking this woman had too much greed. An injured finger and she wanted one silver dollar?
Black!