Xiaotao took me to meet the witness. Qin Guozhu's secretary was a tall, skinny man with broad shoulders and a slightly neurotic style.
According to him, Qin Guozhu met with a mysterious man in the early morning on July 13th and the evening on July 17th. He overheard their conversation about Qin Guozhu's son being a murderer. The other party claimed to be a professional at cleaning up such messes. They settled for a price of four million yuan per person.
During their second meeting, the man explained there were some complications. He planned to find the young masters a few scapegoats so the price would be doubled so Qin Guozhu was forced to pay another ten million. Thinking the man was simply greedy, Qin Guozhu lost his temper and only calmed down after the man muttered something to him. Qin Guozhu suddenly turned around.
“Do you have a recording?"
The secretary smiled bitterly, "How could I? This whole thing is terrifying! If I recorded it and was discovered, the next one to die would be me!"
I showed the secretary the photo taken by Song Xingchen and asked if this was the man Qin Guozhu met with. After studying the photo for some time, he admitted, "I can’t tell. He wore a mask that day."
I couldn’t help but wonder out loud, "Will his testimony be accepted in court?"
“The case is extremely brutal. I think the court will handle it with caution,” replied Xiaotao. “The indirect evidence we have and the witness testimony should be enough!"
"Why are you willing to stand up and testify?” I turned to the secretary. “Is it your conscience speaking?"
The secretary glanced at Xiaotao, his little careless act revealing much information. "Isn't it the duty of every citizen to report a crime?" he lied.
"Thank you then!"
Upon leaving, I lowered my voice and asked Xiaotao, "Did you pay him perjure?"
Xiaotao laughed at the seriousness of my tone. "You’ve got it all wrong. I did spend money, but it’s definitely not perjury."
In fact, Xiaotao had contacted her father and revealed information about the case. As a commercial competitor of Qin Guozhu, he secretly assisted his daughter through some of his contacts upon catching wind of an opportunity to bring his competitor down. Finally, he bought off Qin Guozhu's secretary at a staggering price.
"Money makes the world go round,” sneered Xiaotao. “This is what Qin Aonan taught me. I’m merely using his methods against him."
"But if this matter gets out, you’ll lose your job!" I argued.
"Extraordinary circumstances call for extraordinary measures. If we continue like this and allow the scapegoats to go to court, the real murderers will be free and at large."
I nodded helplessly, "Don’t worry, I have your back. I won’t speak a word about this to anyone!"
The rest of our investigation went very smoothly. Xiaotao applied for an arrest warrant and arrested the four young masters as well as Qin Guozhu. At the same time, she made a huge fuss and published details of the case to the public, building pressure from public opinion.
Xiaotao had grown a lot since the time we first met. Although her methods lay in a grey area, her righteous, genuine heart remained the same which I very much admired.
Amid the outcry of public opinion, the four young masters became public enemy number one. Their fathers’ companies were also implicated with stock prices diving, employees resigning and suppliers suspending partnerships.
Netizens shared prayer and blessings for the six victims on Weibo with the post being forwarded by millions. The public expressed its meager form of justice with its actions!
We were glad to see that justice still existed in this world and the evil would eventually be punished.
On August 15th, the case of the four young masters was officially tried. On that day, I attended the trial with Xiaotao. The prosecutor, an old classmate of Director General Cheng, was well known for his unyielding integrity in the judicial circles. The battle of words in court was incredible; the prosecutors refuted the lawyers' defense one by one.
When the judge summoned the witness to appear in court, there was no movement for quite some time. Then, a bailiff whispered a few words into the judge’s ear and a temporary adjournment was announced.
The charged atmosphere was suddenly doused with a bucket of cold water as the spectators burst into a noisy discussion. We were still unaware of the situation even after Xiaotao made a few phone calls. A smirk rose to Qin Aonan’s lips and my heart sank within me like a plummet of lead.
Right then, Xiaotao received a phone call. After a brief conversation, she reported, "Song Yang, something’s happened. One the journey to the court, the car carrying the witness was knocked over by a truck. The witness and several bailiffs died on the spot!"
I couldn't believe my ears. "It's the Dog Trainer again!" I snapped.
There was no point in visiting the scene of the accident now. Fiddling with the phone in her hand, Xiaotao cursed, "Damn it, we were so close!"
Since the witness was unable to appear in court, the case was postponed indefinitely. The four young masters walked out of court arrogantly with Qin Guozhu. Facing a group of reporters who flocked around them, Qin Aonan showed his middle finger.
From the side, Xiaotao watched helplessly, her fists clenched angrily.
Right then, something flew out of the crowd, hitting Qin Guozhu on the face. It turned out to be a rotten egg.
"You will receive retribution sooner or later!" shouted a man in the crowd.
"Where the hell are the police?” barked Qin Guozhu. “Isn’t there any justice?"
The outraged crows threw any items they had on hand at Qin Guozhu and the four young masters, forcing them to return to the court. At this moment, my attention was attracted by a burning bottle flying towards them.
With a bang, the burning bottle exploded on the steps of the court, the flame aggressively spreading so the crowd dodged away in fear.
"You beasts! You murdered my daughter! I’m going to kill you!" came a thunderous roar. Wang Xuebing charged out of the crowd, holding a military dagger in each hand as he strode across the flames, murder evident in his eyes. Before the rest of us could react, the daggers pierced Qin Guozhu’s arm.
Qin Guozhu screamed like a dying pig, clutching his bleeding arm. "Murderer!"
Qin Guozhu was soon kicked away by Wang Xuebing whose goal was the four young masters. Xiaotao stood motionlessly on the side, watching the scene play out without the slightest intention to call for backup.
"Call the police!” I urged. “Are you just going to stand here and watch this happen at the doors of the court? What a great shame for the public security and judicial system this will be!"
"They deserve it!" Xiaotao spat through gritted teeth.
"Is it worth losing an old soldier for these scum?" I retorted.
Sighing helplessly, Xiaotao called the SWAT team for reinforcements.
In the face of this vengeful father, the four young masters hopped all over the place like frightened chickens. The bailiffs ran out, hoping to stabilize the hostile man. But upon witnessing Wang Xuebing’s ferocity, no one dared to come forward.
Qin Aonan stumbled down the steps. Wang Xuebing seemed determined to kill him as he honed in on his target, military daggers flashing with a dangerous glint. Qin Aonan screamed and ran towards the sidewalk.
Noticing danger, pedestrians on the street ran away. Xiaotao and I immediately chased after them. As a veteran soldier who fought against Vietnam, Wang Xuebing was a fast runner. I ran out of breath very quickly. Meanwhile, Xiaotao pulled out her gun and commanded, "Drop the weapon!"
The three of them disappeared into an alley, followed by the sound of gunfire. My heart sank with a sense of foreboding. When I reached the alley, I found Wang Xuebing lying on the ground, clutching his chest while gasping for air. Qin Aonan leaned against the wall, head drooping to one side. A dark bullet hole marked the spot between his eyebrows and the skin surrounding the hole charred black.
Xiaotao was holding the gun in her hand, the barrel still smoking.
"Song Yang, I didn't kill him! You have to believe me!” she cried in a panic.
My head was a mess but I feigned composure. “Calm down. Tell me, did you accidentally hit him?"
"No, I swear I fired into the sky but he suddenly collapsed!" trembled Xiaotao.
I felt as if I had taken a bat to the head. It was a well-designed trap. The dog trainer had declared war on us!
I stared into Xiaotao's eyes and assured her, "I promise to clear your name!"