Luo Wenwu had already rushed to Yongchuan and found Xie Xi's old home.
One piece of good news, one piece of bad news.
The good news was that Xie Xi's wife and child were living well, with no worries about food or clothing.
The bad news was that both of them were being held under house arrest by the Dao Ren.
Luo Wenwu learned that Madam Xie had brought her child back to visit relatives, but somehow their old home caught fire. With the help of kind-hearted people, they found a temporary place to stay.
However, after they moved in, they realized that the fire was started by these very people, and the kind-hearted people were not kind at all.
The fire had occurred nearly a month ago, and Madam Xie and her son had been confined in Yongchuan for a month.
They were trapped in a small courtyard in Wangcheng Slope. This courtyard was located at the foot of the slope, so if Luo Wenwu climbed a little higher, he could get a panoramic view of the courtyard's surroundings.
Luo Wenwu hid in the shadows and observed for two days. The captors treated Madam Xie and her son quite well, except for forbidding them from leaving the house. They were allowed to move freely within the courtyard's boundaries.
Luo Wenwu pondered for a moment and devised a plan.
First, he needed to contact Madam Xie and her son and gain their trust.
Gaining trust wouldn't be difficult, as he and Director Xie worked in the same system. Madam Xie had seen him before; even if she couldn't recall his name, she would recognize his face.
The challenge lay in how to make contact with them.
According to the intelligence he had gathered, Xie's son was only an 8-year-old boy who absolutely loved Ye Er Ba.
So, Luo Wenwu disguised himself as a peddler carrying a pole, selling Ye Er Ba, and passed by the small courtyard precisely at noon every day.
"Ye Er Ba, fragrant and sticky Ye Er Ba!" Luo Wenwu shouted his wares.
After a few calls, he heard the boy in the courtyard clamoring.
He wanted to buy some.
At first, he could hear Madam Xie's reprimands. Later, he heard Madam Xie calling out the name of one of the courtyard's overseers.
Shortly after, the courtyard gate opened, and a man emerged. He first glanced at Luo Wenwu suspiciously, then took out money and bought three Ye Er Ba.
"Are you from around here? Why haven't I seen you before?" The overseer had hawk-like eyes that constantly scanned Luo Wenwu from head to toe.
"I live by the moat up ahead. Business has been tight lately, so I'm trying to make a little money." Luo Wenwu replied meekly, not forgetting to promote his Ye Er Ba. "My good sir, if you like them, buy a couple more. My Ye Er Ba is truly excellent, made with ancestral skills."
The overseer ignored Luo Wenwu. Instead, in front of him, he unwrapped the leaves from the Ye Er Ba and broke open the pastry inside with his hand.
He took a look. "Alright, since your Ye Er Ba is so good, I'll buy three more."
Saying this, he picked three more. This time, however, they didn't unwrap the pastries but turned and left.
Seeing the gate close, Luo Wenwu sneered contemptuously and breathed a sigh of relief.
He had to thank his two days of surveillance. He had noticed that the overseer was very cautious and would always inspect any items they bought from outside.
Indeed, he had done the same just now.
Fortunately, he hadn't tampered with the Ye Er Ba.
Thus, Luo Wenwu persisted in going to the vicinity of the small courtyard every day, shouting his wares. The overseer habitually met him every noon and bought a few Ye Er Ba.
Finally, one day, the overseer stopped inspecting the Ye Er Ba.
Luo Wenwu was delighted. The next day, he arrived as scheduled.
He saw the overseer buy three more. As Luo Wenwu took the money and was about to leave, the overseer called out, "Wait, don't be in such a hurry."
Luo Wenwu turned back. The overseer had opened the leaves again and was inspecting the Ye Er Ba.
Luo Wenwu's pupils dilated. Damn it!
"Is there anything else, my good sir?" Luo Wenwu pretended not to notice the man's actions and greeted him with a smile.
"Hmm, I'd like to buy three more." The overseer smiled and handed over a few more copper coins.
Luo Wenwu happily packed up and left. As he walked, he grumbled to himself.
This man is too cunning. He deliberately didn't inspect for the past two days just to make me let my guard down. Fortunately, I didn't do anything today, or this would have been a huge mess.
However, as long as he got through today, it meant there would be no more inspections from now on.
He could finally make his move.
All tasks were proceeding in an orderly fashion, but the slowest was the Tang Yingge rape and murder case, spearheaded by Ouyang Wen.
This was because reopening and retrying a case that had long been closed was inherently difficult.
Moreover, Qiao Huali simply refused to sign off on it.
Fortunately, Li Yang returned at this point. He found Xie Xi and told him about Luo Wenwu's trip to Yongchuan. Xie Xi then revealed his predicament.
"So far, other than asking me to agree to Tong Meng joining the task force, they haven't asked me to do anything else."
"But they haven't let your sister-in-law and your young master go either."
"Yes, that's what worries me."
If their only goal was to get Tong Meng into the task force, they could have released the hostages once that was accomplished. But now, holding them for so long implied that even more excessive demands would follow.
"Can you guarantee the safety of his wife and son?" Xie Xi was somewhat swayed upon learning that Luo Wenwu was already involved in protecting his wife and child.
After all, no one wants to be held hostage.
"With Wenwu on it, you can rest assured!" Li Yang didn't want to make an absolute promise, but he trusted Wenwu. He was the kind of person who would rather lose his own life than fail a mission.
Xie Xi understood, but he was still somewhat concerned. However, with Li Yang's assurance, even though his heart was uneasy, he felt he had found a reason to resist.
"For the safety of my wife and child, I can only secretly facilitate your efforts," Xie Xi said.
Li Yang was overjoyed. "That's enough, that's enough."
With that, Li Yang handed over a form for the retrial of the case. "Let's start with this matter."
The rape and murder case that occurred four years ago was reopened, and the news spread quickly.
Before Tang Yingge could react, Ouyang Wen directly brought him back to the police station.
By the time Qiao Huali learned about it, Ouyang Wen had already assembled the task force for the case reopening.
"Director Xie dislikes getting involved in grassroots matters, doesn't he?" Qiao Huali found Xie Xi directly. "Besides, I've always been in charge of the Criminal Investigation Department. If I, his direct superior, don't know about something, but it's officially established now with your signature, how am I supposed to manage the work in the future?"
Xie Xi didn't know that Qiao Huali was one of the Dao Ren. Therefore, when faced with Qiao Huali's complaints, he thought the man was merely unhappy about his meddling in his departmental affairs.
"Old Qiao, I was inconsiderate about this. When Li Yang brought over a document, I didn't think much of it and just signed it," Xie Xi said with a chuckle.
Qiao Huali was furious. Although he was the one pulling the strings behind the scenes, here, at the police station, he was still the subordinate.
Furthermore, Qiao Huali knew that Xie Xi was someone who didn't bother with details. In the end, he had to treat this as a coincidence.
Alas, he had no choice but to treat it as a coincidence. After all, the task force had already been established.
"What right do you have to arrest me?" Tang Yingge roared in the interrogation room.
"On the grounds that I suspect Wei Xiumei's death is suspicious." Ouyang Wen glanced at him. "Besides, do I need a reason to arrest you?"