CH 22

Criminal Psychology 22

From Xing Cong Lian’s point of view, this matter was intriguing.

For instance, he wanted Lin Chen to wait a little longer as punishment for selfishly faking his death without telling him a single thing. However, if he did this, he would end up as the one who suffers. 

Therefore, he came up with different scenarios to act out for when he meets Lin Chen again. But when he heard Jiang Zhe’s words, all of them became obsolete. 

Holding the rail while walking up the stairs, he felt that fate was always so interesting.

On the second floor, the stairway was occupied by an angry Huang Ze and an even angrier Jiang Zhe.

Separated by these two figures, when Lin Chen and Xing Cong Lian saw each other, they both felt that the scripts they had each drafted beforehand had become useless in an instant.

Like water that flows into the sea or how winter melts into spring.

As it turned out, a reunion was an ordinary event.

Since it was nothing special, there was no need to be excited.

Walking as if he didn’t see Huang Ze and Jiang Zhe, Xing Cong Lian brushed past them and headed straight towards Lin Chen.

Lin Chen’s face sported some injuries. His lips were cracked, his cheek bruised, and he had blood on his face.

“He hit you?” Xing Cong Lian was tall. Wearing a police jacket, along with the chilly spring breeze and smell of tobacco mixed with mint, he appeared cold, yet somewhat sweet.

“Yeah.”

“Painful?”

“En.”

Lin Chen responded, but no reply followed. When he looked up, his gaze met Xing Cong Lian’s, whose eyes were green, slightly blue, and as deep as the ocean.

Lin Chen just noticed that Xing Cong Lian had cut his hair to an inch long. His mixed-race appearance was very handsome.

Lin Chen seldom paid attention to people’s looks. He always observed things that had little to do with appearance, such as mood or attitude. But today, all he could do was stare at Xing Cong Lian’s face.

Of course, the captain didn’t know that what Lin Chen was admiring was his appearance. He just thought Lin Chen was waiting for him to talk.

So he patted the man’s shoulder and after some time, said, “It’s good you are alright.”

He thought Lin Chen would reply, but the man stood still.

In the past 180 days, Lin Chen occasionally thought about what Xing Cong Lian would say if he knew he wasn’t dead.

Mixed-race people have always been different, but he never thought Xing Cong Lian’s reaction would be this mild.

It’s good you’re alright…

No other words could be so light, yet so heavy.

Lin Chen felt touched.

Of course, Xing Cong Lian was unaware of Lin Chen’s thoughts.

And so, finally seeing this man in front of him once again, Xing Cong Lian closed their distance and hugged the one who had come back from the grave.

His hug wasn’t tight and was at most two to three seconds.

Catching a whiff of his scent, Lin Chen sighed and breathed in a few times.

Xing Cong Lian’s gaze once again fell on Lin Chen’s face. Huang Ze’s hit had been too heavy, which made him turn and take a closer look at the man. Xing Cong Lian’s eyes were cold as if saying, “If anyone has the right to hit him, it would be me. What right do you have to hit him?”

Xing Cong Lian and Lin Chen’s conversation and subsequent hug took less than a minute. But in Huang Ze’s eyes, the two men were over-the-top. On top of that, Xing Cong Lian was glaring at him with disdain. Huang Ze had never felt this despised his entire life. With this one look, Xing Cong Lian successfully ignited his anger.

Holding back Jiang Zhe, who was already ready for a fight, Huang Ze coldly said to Xing Cong Lian, “It’s been more than two hours since the crime occurred, and Captain Xing chooses to arrive now?” Before Xing Cong Lian could answer, he added, “If you didn’t know that Lin Chen was here, how long would you have let these passengers wait?”

As the head of the superior inspection department, Huang Ze said these damning words, ignoring the officers who arrived ahead to appease the passengers.

A slight commotion arose from some of the passengers who agreed with him.

Xing Cong Lian could give many reasons as to why he was late, such as tracking new clues or being stuck in a traffic jam. But if he gave these reasons, it would only appear as if he was making excuses and shirking responsibility, which wasn’t appropriate.

In this case, no defense was the best defense.

He patted Lin Chen on the shoulder then nodded to the passengers, “Everyone can leave once the vehicles arrive. Sorry for the inconvenience.”

“Captain Xing, you’re just going to let the passengers leave? Have you finished taking their statements? Can you afford to bear responsibility if you miss a big lead?” Huang Ze sneered.

“Are you in a hurry?” Xing Cong Lian asked Lin Chen.

“Not for the time being.”

Xing Cong Lian nodded then pointed to Lin Chen as he turned to Huang Ze, “The big lead said he won’t leave for the time being.”

Huang Ze was so angry, he almost choked.

“The captain’s ‘lead’ refers to a suspect in a major murder case?”

Seeing that Huang Ze was at a disadvantage against Xing Cong Lian, Jiang Zhe couldn’t help but butt-in.

“Consultant Jiang,” Xing Cong Lian called out.

Startled, Jiang Zhe turned, but Xing Cong Lian continued with a faint smile, “This is a country ruled by the law. We pay attention to evidence when speaking and doing things.”

“What do you know?!”

“Jiang Zhe!”

Jiang Zhe and Huang Ze both spoke simultaneously. Being stopped twice, Jiang Zhe started to get upset.

“For a captain, it can’t be easy to access top-secret information,” Huang Ze said.

Jiang Zhe shot Xing Cong Lian an icy glare but chose to stop talking.

“Is the captain not going to follow regulation?” Huang Ze’s voice turned sharp.

“I’m not sure. I’m about to see the crime scene now. Does Inspector Huang want to join us?”

Even when people kept stirring up trouble for him, Xing Cong Lian remained as polite and courteous as ever.

“In this case, Captain Xing can go back with Mr. Lin first. The Jiang Province Police is in charge of the case now, so Captain Xing should go take a rest.” Huang Ze stepped forward and patted Xing Cong Lian’s shoulder.

Xing Cong Lian had been on this serial hijacking case for more than a month, yet with several casual sentences from Huang Ze, he was kicked off it. Had it been anyone else, they would’ve gotten angry and made a fuss. However, Xing Cong Lian didn’t react because he looked down on Huang Ze and his choice of action.

“Alright, you’re the boss here, you have the final say.” Mouthing for Lin Chen to go with him, he left with his hands in his pockets. 

Lin Chen calmly followed.

The two chatted in whispers as they walked.

“How did you find me?”

“On the bus, you glanced at the brat before he acted.”

Standing to the side, Inspector Huang became even angrier when he caught bits of their dialogue lingering in the air.

———

In the R&R Station parking lot, Yang Dian Feng waited in the car for Xing Cong Lian to return. 

Seeing another person beside Captain Xing when he came back, though, was shocking.

“How is it?” Sitting in the front passenger’s seat, Yang Dian Feng asked with concern.

“It’s alright. Inspector Huang just won’t let us check.”

“How could this be?!”

Xing Cong Lian didn’t care in the slightest. He opened the door and looked at Lin Chen, who had fastened his seat belt in the back. “It has nothing to do with you. Huang Ze just wanted to kick me off this case.”

“I know, but according to the Cross Province Cooperative Case Handling Ordinance Article 4 of Chapter III, for a major case, to ensure reasonable handling of police resources, the local police should follow the deployment ordered by a superior. But if it doesn’t affect the investigation process, the local police also has the right to investigate the case.”

“You’re really familiar with regulations, especially that latter part.” Xing Cong Lian lit up a cigarette and left it between his lips. He started the engine with a plan beginning to form in his head and asked Lin Chen. “Do you want to check this out together?”

“Sure.”

Hearing Lin Chen’s answer, a smile appeared on Xing Cong Lian’s face. This smile was genuine and sincere, something that didn’t escape the eyes of the man sitting beside him.

Looking at Lin Chen through the rearview mirror, a trace of hostility flashed through Yang Dian Feng’s eyes.

Ten minutes later, the trio arrived at the actual crime scene.

A bright yellow warning tape weaved around the bus. Two Malinois dogs with mahogany fur had just returned from their search. One of them had a bright yellow shoe in its mouth and refused to let it go.

“What’s the matter?” Xing Cong Lian asked as he approached the dogs.

“They said they tracked for 10 kilometers and only found one shoe.” Wang Chao, who arrived at the crime scene earlier, squatted and stroked the search dog’s head.

The handler tried to take the shoe away from the dog when Lin Chen silently walked up to Xing Cong Lian. When Wang Chao looked up, he was greeted with Lin Chen’s calm, but battered face.

The corner of Lin Chen’s lips was bruised, and his cheek was swollen. Wang Chao couldn’t help but hammer his fist to Xing Cong Lian’s back, “You actually used such a heavy hand against my family’s Ah Chen, you beast!!!”

When Wang Chao’s fist made contact with his back, Xing Cong Lian was in the middle of examining the shoe, and his face was sent flying right to it. He was about to shout his injustice when a faint smell attracted his notice.

He sniffed again. Apart from the smell of grass and bamboo-shoots, there was another scent mixed in.

“This smell, isn’t it a perfume?” Without him knowing, Yang Dian Feng had squatted next to Xing Cong Lian, commenting on the scent.

“Huh?”

“It smells a lot like Miracle, but I’m not too sure.”

“What’s that?”

“It’s a lady’s perfume, a lot of girls like it.” Yang Dian Feng was very familiar with this. 

“However, judging by the smell, it’s very likely he applied it straight onto the shoes…”

“To interfere with our tracking,” Xing Cong Lian agreed.

“Right?” Yang Dian Feng turned to smile at Xing Cong Lian with a reverent gaze. “Fortunately, you’re still willing to continue this investigation.”

Wang Chao couldn’t see because he was standing, so he nudged Lin Chen. “Did the boss come down with something?”

Lin Chen shook his head. He didn’t know, either.