Hiding at the alley entrance, he watched the passing crowd and took a deep drag from his cigarette.
But he hadn't smoked in so long that the taste choked him, making him cough for several seconds.
Not far away, Lü Qingqing had just parted ways with her classmates. He quietly followed behind her.
Was this the woman Li Yongqiang had mentioned?
She did have a certain spirit about her.
The man pulled down his hat brim, wrapped his scarf tighter, and felt a warmth he hadn't experienced in years return.
"Miss, could you tell me how to get to No. 8 Longxiang Alley?"
"Hmm, it's just..."
Lü Qingqing suddenly remembered that No. 8 Longxiang Alley was the old Hu family residence. Her gaze sharpened instantly. "Who are you?"
The man walked alongside her. "Li Yongqiang."
Hmph, this man was definitely not Li Yongqiang, even though he'd used his scarf to hide his face.
"Li Yongqiang? Don't know him. Go to the Legend Office to find him."
"I don't know him either. Besides, I already went to find him and couldn't. That's why I came to you, hoping you could guide me."
The man's fingers twitched slightly. Lü Qingqing's eyes flickered. "Then let's go."
Lü Qingqing led the man through left and right turns, quickly entering a narrow alley.
"It's this way. Now, tell me your name," Lü Qingqing tried to peer through the man's scarf to see his face. Just moments ago, the man had made several hand gestures—secret signals that Li Yongqiang and Lü Qingqing used to communicate.
Circle and cross!
He was saying: I know him well, not only did I go to find him, but we also met.
Li Yongqiang had told her that these were secret signals only he, Hu Jia, and Ouyang Wen understood. Since this man knew them, she would tentatively consider him an ally.
Seeing Lü Qingqing staring at his face, the man unhesitatingly removed his scarf. What met Lü Qingqing's eyes was a weather-beaten face, appearing to be around fifty years old.
"Allow me to introduce myself, Feng Xin. Outsiders call me Feng Si."
The man's words stunned Lü Qingqing, her eyes widening. This person was Feng Si? The Feng Si that Ouyang Wen couldn't find?
Now Lü Qingqing understood why Li Yongqiang had sent him to find her.
It was indeed inconvenient for both of them to appear at the same time.
However, "Li Yongqiang once said he hadn't met you and had no news of you. How can you prove you are Feng Si?"
"You don't need to worry about that. Since he sent me to find you, it proves he doesn't doubt my identity."
Lü Qingqing pondered for a moment, finally believing the man.
"I cannot be seen in public for long. Meet me tonight at 9 PM outside Hongyadong. I have clues about the shooting ten years ago." With that, Feng Si re-wrapped his scarf and turned to leave.
Watching Feng Si's retreating back, Lü Qingqing instinctively wanted to find Li Yongqiang, but she stopped after two steps. Clearly, if Li Yongqiang could come to her directly, he would have. His not coming meant it was inconvenient.
Lü Qingqing's guess was correct. Li Yongqiang indeed couldn't come.
At this moment, he was covered in wounds, struggling to breathe as he lay on the ground.
"Tell me, who was the person who came last night?" The masked man, holding a police baton, rhythmically tapped it against his palm.
"I don't know. I really don't know." Li Yongqiang coughed, the pain in his chest intensifying.
"You don't know? Do you really take me for a fool? What does 'Red Pearls are Lovely' mean?" The masked man stomped on Li Yongqiang's back. Overwhelmed, Li Yongqiang collapsed to the ground again.
"What pearls? He was a thief, a robber trying to steal my heirloom." Li Yongqiang continued to explain with difficulty.
"Heirloom? You're so poor, and you have pearls as an heirloom?"
"I do, I really do. They're inside the pillow. Go and see if you don't believe me."
Hearing Li Yongqiang's words, the masked man waved his hand. A subordinate roughly tore open Li Yongqiang's pillow. Indeed, a pearl was hidden inside. However, it was only about the size of a little finger. Was this thing worthy of being called an heirloom?
"You know my family's situation. Such a large pearl, wouldn't you want to keep it safe?" Feeling the pressure on his back lessen, Li Yongqiang seized the opportunity to explain further.
"Hmph!" The masked man took the pearl and examined it closely. "You'd better be honest and cooperate with our work. Otherwise, I won't hesitate to send you to meet your father."
A flash of hatred crossed Li Yongqiang's eyes, which he quickly replaced with an expression of utter fear. "Sir, don't worry, I will cooperate fully. Um, could you perhaps return the pearl to me?"
The masked man flicked his fingers, and the pearl dropped to the ground.
Li Yongqiang scrambled over and picked it up, clutching it to his chest as if it were a priceless treasure.
Seeing this, the masked man's contempt was undisguised. He squatted down and patted Li Yongqiang's face. "Remember, don't think about escaping."
The man's laughter faded into the distance. Li Yongqiang stood by the window, his face etched with hatred.
He took the pearl from his chest and a slight smile appeared on his lips. He had kept this pearl for ten years and never expected it to be useful.
Just last night, the person he had waited for ten years had appeared.
He had indeed never met Feng Si, but his father had told him before they parted that if someone approached him reciting "Red Pearls are Lovely," that person would be Feng Si.
At the same time, his father had given him this pearl in case of an emergency.
Last night, Feng Si had uttered the phrase "Pearl Governor," and Li Yongqiang had been so surprised that he almost couldn't contain his tears.
His trembling hands longed to reach out and see the man hidden in the darkness. But he restrained himself. He shouted, "Get lost!"
Then, he lifted his bedsheet.
A bug had been installed again; he couldn't respond to Feng Si's signal.
So, he pretended to be chasing a thief and lunged forward.
Feng Si was no weaker. Ten years of living on the run had honed his environmental awareness. Although he hadn't seen the bug, it didn't prevent him from inferring Li Yongqiang's intentions.
As they wrestled, Li Yongqiang softly uttered, "Ten years the fruit ripens in the courtyard," thus matching Feng Si's signal.
With tacit understanding, they fought their way towards the door. Once they estimated they were out of listening range, Li Yongqiang hastily explained his situation and told him to find Lü Qingqing.
Presumably, Feng Si had now contacted Lü Qingqing.
...
At the dinner table, Lü Qingqing was somewhat absent-minded.
She couldn't understand why Feng Si, who had disappeared, had suddenly reappeared, nor what trouble Li Yongqiang had gotten himself into.
She ate grain by grain, like a lifeless robot.
"What are you thinking about again?" Hu Jia waved his hand in front of her eyes.
"Oh, nothing!" Lü Qingqing skillfully concealed her thoughts.
Hu Jia placed a piece of meat on her plate. "The city police department is going to make a big move soon. We might have to go back."
"Ah?" Lü Qingqing blinked, then understood what Hu Jia meant.
In 1927, Chongqing established its city and a new government, which brought about numerous changes in administrative departments, including the city police department.
Oh, right, she heard they were going to change its name to the "Chongqing Municipal Police Bureau."
But these were not important for now. What was important was that the Special Operations Team would return to the city police department and would no longer have the right to act independently.
"You don't want to go back?"
"I don't mind. I just heard there will be personnel changes after we return."
Personnel changes?
Lü Qingqing understood Hu Jia's meaning immediately. Currently, the city police department had a criminal investigation team and a special operations team. If these two departments merged, they would surely become Criminal Investigation Team 1 and Criminal Investigation Team 2.
Then, someone would have to be chosen between Hu Jia and Ouyang Wen to oversee the criminal investigation teams.
Hu Jia had no ambition for power, but he was afraid that Ouyang Wen, upon becoming the captain, would interfere with his police work again.
"Don't worry, Ouyang won't stop you from investigating cases anymore, nor will he kick you out of the police force. That task has already been handed over." Lü Qingqing couldn't help but chuckle and quickly reassured Hu Jia.
"Already handed over?"
Seeing Hu Jia's puzzled gaze, Lü Qingqing genuinely lost her appetite.