Chapter 36: Who Is the Informant?

After hanging up the phone, Zhou Hui hesitated for a moment before turning to Yu Bai. “They’ve found the killer in the fifth case. He’s at Second Hospital right now. Want to come take a look?”

Truth be told, Zhou Hui wasn’t entirely sure if she should tell Yu Bai, but since Yu Bai was now the City Bureau’s consultant on the case, she felt it necessary to keep her informed.

Yu Bai lowered her head to stub out her cigarette and slowly uttered a single word: “Okay.” Then she flashed a gentle smile and leaned in close to Zhou Hui. “Thank you for trusting me, Officer Zhou.”

Zhou Hui’s body trembled slightly. Yu Bai’s enigmatic demeanor always managed to pluck at her heartstrings without warning. It took her a few seconds to snap out of it before she lifted her foot and headed upstairs.

“Let’s go up and change. We’ll head out now.”

Yu Bai had always been amazed by Zhou Hui’s efficiency when it came to casework—she could pull seventy-two-hour shifts without batting an eye. Yu Bai hurried after her and couldn’t resist muttering from behind, “Captain Zhou, do you have to be in such a rush? It’s already eleven-thirty at night. Even people’s police need to rest sometimes!”

Zhou Hui didn’t look back. “The case comes first. I don’t need rest.”

Yu Bai: “…”

Once they entered the break room, Zhou Hui wasted no time. In just a few deft movements, she helped Yu Bai into a spare jacket. Fortunately, her actions were fairly gentle, showing some consideration for Yu Bai’s disability.

But when Yu Bai saw the Peppa Pig print on the jacket, she couldn’t help but wince.

By the time the two arrived at Second Hospital, it was nearly midnight. Han Wei was standing outside the ward door, chatting with Zhao Min.

Han Wei leaned against the hospital corridor wall and let out a cheeky grin. “Little Princess, did personally going out to nab Jiang Jiwen tonight wear you out? All that running around, and I heard you even clashed with some staff at the club. Did you get hurt? Are you tired? Come rest in your big brother Han Wei’s arms.”

“Cut it out.” Zhao Min backed away three steps, looked up at him, and forced out a couple of insincere “heh hehs.” “Don’t even dream about it. Even if I dropped dead from exhaustion, it wouldn’t be your turn.”

Ever since their breakup, Zhao Min had seen through Han Wei’s true colors. She had pegged him as nothing more than a flirtatious playboy who chased anything that moved—utterly unreliable. Naturally, she had no intention of going easy on his attempts to rekindle things.

But Han Wei was even more persistent than she’d imagined. Undeterred by the rejection, he kept up his playful grin. “Little Princess, do you have to be so heartless? I’m serious about you. You have to believe in my sincerity. I’m thinking about you twenty-four-seven, every minute of every hour. Every moment, I just want to see you, be with you, even if it’s just to chat. Talk like that really hurts my feelings.”

“As if I’d believe you.” Zhao Min rolled her eyes at him. “Go dump those two girlfriends you’re currently dating first, then come talk to me!”

Han Wei’s eyes lit up. “Whoa! Little Princess, you care about me that much? You even know how many girlfriends I have right now. See, you do still like me, don’t you?”

Zhao Min gritted her teeth. “No—”

She didn’t even want to deal with him anymore. Spotting Zhou Hui and Yu Bai standing not far away, she hurried over and called out, “Captain Zhou, Yu Bai.”

One glance at the scene told Zhou Hui that Han Wei was behind it all. He was dragging the Criminal Investigation Team’s reputation through the mud.

Lately, Han Wei’s pursuit of Zhao Min had grown more aggressive, and she was struggling to fend off his relentless advances. Spotting Zhou Hui and Yu Bai felt like seeing her saviors.

Zhou Hui shook her head in dismay at Han Wei’s disgraceful behavior toward the team’s standards, completely missing the brief eye contact between Yu Bai and Zhao Min. Zhao Min glanced at Yu Bai before quickly averting her gaze, unable to meet her eyes directly.

Yu Bai’s expression was meaningful yet calm as still waters, which only heightened Zhao Min’s anxiety. She knew her unauthorized actions that evening would not be tolerated by Yu Bai, and facing her now left her feeling more than a little guilty.

Yu Bai didn’t let her gaze linger on Zhao Min. She had no intention of addressing the issue between them here.

She followed silently behind Zhou Hui.

Once Zhou Hui had finished lamenting, her eyes shifted to peer through the glass window above the ward door. Inside, a man lay on the bed. He wasn’t particularly tall, and sprawled out like that, he looked even smaller. His head was wrapped in layer after layer of bandages, and his arms and legs were suspended in slings.

Zhou Hui jerked her chin toward Han Wei. “He’s the killer in the fifth case?”

Han Wei nodded. “Yeah, name’s Jiang Jiwen. By the time Zhao Min and the others got there, he was passed out drunk. Probably started trouble at the bar and got beaten for it. He just woke up.”

Zhou Hui narrowed her eyes without responding to Han Wei. Instead, she turned her gaze toward Zhao Min. “Where did your Narcotics Squad get this tip from?”

The pointed question hung in the air. Han Wei had been so preoccupied with checking on Zhao Min that he hadn’t noticed the issue before, but now Zhou Hui had brought it up, and the same doubt stirred in him.

Zhao Min’s expression tightened for a moment, but she quickly composed herself. “An informant gave us the information.”

Zhou Hui had no intention of letting her off that easily. “An informant? What’s their name?”

Under Zhou Hui’s relentless pressure, Zhao Min’s demeanor shifted to outright aggression. With a smile, she retorted, “Officer Zhou, do our Narcotics Squad’s informants need to report to your City Bureau Criminal Investigation Team?”

Zhou Hui blinked in surprise. Zhao Min always seemed to carry a certain hostility toward her, though she had no idea where it stemmed from.

She pressed on. “We’re handling this case jointly now, so the Criminal Investigation Team has the right to know every detail. Who is the informant?”

“You…” Zhao Min started to reply, but then she caught Yu Bai subtly shaking her head at her from behind Zhou Hui.

A wave of grievance washed over Zhao Min. She held her tongue, but her animosity toward Zhou Hui only deepened.

Han Wei could sense the tension thickening and hurried to defuse it. “Uh… we can discuss that later. The suspect’s right here now. Why don’t we start by questioning him?”

Zhou Hui brushed aside Zhao Min’s inexplicable hostility, pushed open the door to the ward, and stepped inside. Han Wei followed close behind.

That left only Yu Bai and Zhao Min standing outside the ward.

Zhao Min glanced at Yu Bai with evident awkwardness. She knew she’d pushed too far lately—crossing Yu Bai’s boundaries time and again, shattering her personal space, inching ever closer.

But what Zhao Min couldn’t fathom was why Zhou Hui could approach her so freely, live under the same roof, even relocate her office to the hospital as if determined to spend every waking hour together, all without Yu Bai mounting any real resistance.

Those traits Yu Bai had once despised most, the ones Zhao Min had labored endlessly to erase without success, seemed to melt away in Zhou Hui’s presence—to the greatest possible degree.

Yu Bai, so discerning and particular, had cast aside every one of her habits for Zhou Hui.

It was infuriating. Zhao Min refused to be outshone by Zhou Hui like this. A suffocating frustration lodged in her chest, neither rising nor falling, and every preferential treatment Yu Bai showed Zhou Hui only stoked the jealous flames higher.

Worse still, Yu Bai was draped in Zhou Hui’s Peppa Pig jacket. The sight of Peppa Pig now grated on Zhao Min’s nerves.

How could Yu Bai bring herself to wear something so hideous? Just days ago, she’d shown up at the police bureau sporting three pearl hair clips. Had a few days with Zhou Hui really warped her taste this badly?

Zhao Min could scarcely picture it.

“…” Yu Bai watched Zhao Min glare daggers at a pink cartoon pig and felt a pang of helplessness.

Pouting with resentment, Zhao Min stared at Yu Bai, feeling deeply wronged. She knew Yu Bai understood her feelings perfectly well, grasped her intentions, yet still kept her firmly at bay.

Right now was no different. Yu Bai had seen straight through her thoughts, but she merely regarded her with mild exasperation, her lovely face curved in a smile. Casually, she said, “Come to my place tonight. I have something to tell you.”

It was always the same. Anger, rage, sorrow—all her emotions masked behind that impenetrable smile.

Like an unyielding shell, it encased her completely, barring any glimpse inside. Zhao Min searched in vain for a chink in Yu Bai’s armor. She was perfection incarnate—flawless, unassailable, almost inhuman.

She resembled a meticulously sculpted masterpiece, forever elevated, forever gazing down. Interacting with her felt like being suspended midair, toyed with at her whim, unmoored and adrift on clouds.

And yet, this paragon who tolerated no imperfections in public, permitted no one to peer behind her facade, allowed no intrusion into her space—had flung open a door for Zhou Hui with effortless grace.

Zhao Min’s mind looped endlessly back to Zhou Hui. Her resentment toward the woman only swelled, but she clung to enough rationality to reply, “Okay.”

Yu Bai glanced up at the answer, offering a faint smile in acknowledgment. With nothing more to add, she brushed past Zhao Min and pushed open the ward door.

They pushed open the door and saw Jiang Jiwen lying on the hospital bed. His arms and legs were encased in plaster casts, his entire face swollen, and he kept letting out nonstop groans.

Officer Zhou had her hands stuffed in her pockets as she leaned against the bed and asked, “Jiang Jiwen, where were you from one-thirty to three-thirty a.m. on May seventeenth?”

Jiang Jiwen’s eyes were nearly swollen shut, so he didn’t notice Yu Bai standing silently in the corner of the room, blending seamlessly into the background. “At home,” he said.

“Who can prove it?”

Though Jiang Jiwen could barely move a muscle, he wasn’t one to play straight. “Officer, I live alone. How am I supposed to prove I was home watching the soccer game that night?”

Officer Zhou cut him off icily. “Jiang Jiwen, think it over before you answer. You weren’t home that night at all. You went to the East District. You killed someone there.”

“Killed?!” A sly glint flashed in Jiang Jiwen’s puffy eyes. He laughed it off carelessly. “Officer, you’ve got to have evidence to back up claims like that. No proof? I’ll sue you for defamation!”

In the corner, Yu Bai slowly raised her head. Scattered flecks of light danced in the depths of her pitch-black eyes, flickering indeterminately beneath the dim glow of the hospital ward. With impeccable poise, she smiled and said, “Mr. Jiang, if you’re not willing to cooperate, I think we may need to continue this conversation somewhere else.”

It was a deep, steady voice.

The moment it reached Jiang Jiwen’s ears, his pupils dilated instantly.