Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Previously, Zhao Yu had puzzled over why Yang Wentao would appear near Qinshan Water Reservoir. He thought hard and long about it but could not figure it out. After Zhang had cursed him just now, he suddenly figured out! The secret lies in “familiarity!” Yang Wentao chose to discard the dead body at Qinshan Reservoir, and he came back after being on the run. What did this imply? It meant that he was very familiar with this area! That’s right! He knew this place well, and knew that it was a good place for him to hide from the police!
Zhao Yu had seen Yang Wentao’s file. He was not from Qinshan, and did not have any relatives near the reservoir. He did not even like fishing or outdoor sports! Logically, he there was no reason for him to be familiar with this place! Then…why was he familiar with this place?
Thinking about it further, Zhao Yu quickly thought of something: work! Yang Wentao was a clerk in the technology bureau. Could it be that he knew this place well because of some work requirement? Zhao Yu had never been a civil servant and had no idea what the technology bureau was for; however, he used his phone get on the internet, and quickly understood the work nature of the technology bureau. Although most of the employees were researchers based in the office, there were also large-scale scientific research projects that required extensive field research.
Environment, hydrology, medicine, agriculture…as long as it involved scientific research, it was related to the technology bureau. Could it be that…Yang Wentao had previously been involved in some research near Qinshan Water Reservoir? Such as the reservoir’s fisheries, water treatment, etc…was that why? Was he aware of some place near the reservoir that was suitable for him to hide? Was he hiding there!?
After mulling it over, Zhao Yu felt that he had possibly realized a key clue. He immediately called Peng Xin to ask if she had Yang Wentao’s employment record. Did he take part in any large-scale scientific research projects involved Qinshan mountain area?
Peng Xin was taken aback by Zhao Yu’s questions, and did not understand why he wanted Yang Wentao’s employment record. Since Yang Wentao had committed homicide, and it had even been a crime of passion, Peng Xin had no need to check Yang Wentao’s work. After Yang Wentao escaped, she basically focused all of her energy on Yang Wentao’s relationships, and had not considered his work!
Zhao Yu was uncertain whether his hunch was accurate or not. He told Peng Xin his suspicions truthfully. Peng Xin agreed with Zhao Yu’s thinking and immediately sent someone to investigate. Zhao Yu thought that he would need to wait for some time, but he received Peng Xin’s call just as he reached the gas station.
Peng Xin sounded very excited over the phone, “Yu! You’re really awesome! We just called Yang Wentao’s colleague to inquire, and guess what? His colleague said that five years ago, Yang Wentao was in charge of a reformation project in Yinpan Mountain’s old silver mine. That project was active for three years, and they made numerous field trips there! However, the project was stopped due to funding problems!”
Silver mine!? Zhao Yu frowned. He had thought that it would be a project related to Qinshan Water Reservoir! But it was the silver mine instead? “Wait…Yinpan Mountain? Yinpan Town?” Zhao Yu thought for a moment and was stunned! Ah, holy sh*t! Wasn’t I going to go to Yinpan today? Its location is east of the reservoir! Oh…my goodness!” Zhao Yu had goosebumps all over. Could it be…Yang Wentao had been hiding in the abandoned mine of Yinpan Mountain all along? Yinpan Mountain was very close to the reservoir, and could be reached in a few hours by foot…
Zhao Yu was pondering as Peng Xin spoke again, “Yu, it’s such a pity! If only we had thought of this earlier! He was definitely hiding in the mine before, but he’s gone west now, so he’s probably no longer there!” Zhao Yu wanted to say something, but stopped as he was unsure.
“How about this!” Peng Xin said, “We have limited manpower now. I’ll get Dafei and Lee to investigate the mine area. You will also go and check things out. The three of you will try to see if you can find something, okay?”
“Okay!” Zhao Yu nodded. Even without Peng Xin’s instructions, he already intended to go to Yinpan Town. Zhao Yu felt that him wanting to go east that morning, and finding out about the mine area was probably not just a coincidence! Moreover, the system had given him a “Gen” hexagram which represented work. Perhaps he might find something at Yinpan Town!
After filling up the gas tank, he went straight to Yinpan Town. Zhang had been right. Although the mountains were not too high from Yulangdian to Yinpan Mountain, there were many cliffs on both sides of the road, and it was necessary to drive cautiously. Zhao Yu did not even care about lunch and drove all the way to Yinpan Town.
Yinpan Mountain got its name due to the fact that it had a silver mine in the past. It was situated at the front end of the Qinshan Mountains, and there were basically no high mountains. It was said that the silver mine had been active until the eighties, but on a very small scale. After the start of the twenty-first century, it had been totally abandoned!
The land near Yinpan Mountain was barren, and there was little vegetation, making it looking dull and desolate. Yinpan Town was also pathetically tiny, and the whole town only had one main street. There were not many hotels, and the environment was completely unsanitary and appalling.
Zhao Yu could not take any more and bought a few packs of instant noodles to quickly fill his stomach. It was almost sunset, but Zhao Yu still began his investigation work as planned. He held Yang Wentao’s photo and started look around house by house.
After he finished visiting half of the street, the sky was already completely dark. Zhao Yu went to the best hotel in the small town to stay for the night. Although it was the best hotel there, there was not even a shower, and he had to use the public toilets to wash up. Zhao Yu disliked the foul smell in the room. After he quickly finished his dinner, he sat at the entrance of the hotel and drank beer as he pondered about his investigation.
After investigating, no one had seen Yang Wentao. It seemed like Yang Wentao may not have come here at all, and that he previously hid deep inside the mine. Information had shown that although the population was sparse near Yinpan Mountain’s mine, the surface area was not small. Inside the huge mountain, there were mining pits everywhere, and some mining pits could even be traced back to the Yuan and Ming Dynasties. It was also like a maze inside the mining pits. Even the locals did not dare to go too deep in.
Yang Wentao was previously involved in a project related to the mine area, and was thoroughly knowledgeable about the inside. If he had gone right inside, how could he be found? It was especially cold and chilly in the mountain at night. The small town only had a few street lamps, and many of them were dirty, making the dusk look even dimmer.
A wolf-dog walked over from the back of the hotel and took a weak glance at Zhao Yu. Without making a sound, it curled up its body and laid beside Zhao Yu.
Zhao Yu side-eyed the dog. This wolf-dog was rather big with a black head. Its body had mud caked onto it, and looked very filthy. To make things worse, one of its eyes seemed to have been injured at some point. It was closed tight, and the dog looked blind!
A blind dog? Zhao Yu sighed and shook his head, feeling sorry for the dog. He remembered that he still had half a bag of dried beef in his car and went to his car to get it. He threw the few pieces of dried beef to the blind dog, and the dog ate them hungrily.
Zhao Yu found the car seat comfortable and continued sitting there, then turned on the radio. The radio was playing an oldie called “Waves.””I can’t see, I can’t hear, I can’t think, I can’t touch, the two of us together…A man, a dog, a glass of wine, a night, suddenly turning old…”
“A man and a dog?” Zhao Yu thought. He looked at the blind dog outside the car window and shook his head as he contemplated. This song was quite apt…
“Eh? Wait…” Looking at the blind dog gobbling down the dried beef, another thought sprung up in Zhao Yu’s head.