Ye Qing and Black Bear were each sitting in separate detention rooms at the North City Sub-bureau, where Deputy Director Chen Tianyao, accompanied by several men, was conducting a surprise interrogation on both of them.
Director Chen slammed on the table and said angrily, "I'm telling you, stop pretending. We have gathered enough evidence to prove that you were the ones who planted those bombs. Don't delude yourselves with wishful thinking. Once you get to court, it will be too late to confess. Our policy is leniency for those who confess and severity for those who resist.
I advise you to confess honestly, so you might get a lighter sentence later on!"
Ye Qing remained calm and said, "If there's evidence, what need is there for me to confess? Can't you just sentence me directly?"
"You dare to talk back? Do you know where you are? I'm telling you, don't harbor any illusions of luck. You can't shoulder the responsibility for such a serious case. I'm giving you an opportunity right now; you'd better confess honestly!" Chen Tianyao gave Ye Qing a cold glance and added, "Otherwise, I guarantee you will definitely regret it."
Ye Qing sighed, "I really don't know who planted the bombs, and I can't confess to something I didn't do."
"Dammit, you're still so stubborn; I don't believe you can keep this up!" Chen Tianyao stood up angrily and shouted, "Do you think we wouldn't dare to lay a hand on you? I'm telling you, this is my territory. Don't test my patience!"
Director Chen was almost fifty years old this year and belonged to the older generation of officers. Over the years, he hadn't achieved much, and his current position was primarily due to seniority. He didn't play by the rules when conducting his business and had many friends from the Jianghu, carrying himself with a bandit-like demeanor. His speech and actions were rough and harsh.
This was precisely why Nian Hongcai assigned him to interrogate Ye Qing—to get a quick confession, they had to play hard.
Director Chen naturally understood Nian Hongcai's intentions. Seeing Ye Qing remain silent, he immediately walked over to Ye Qing.
Ye Qing sat in a chair, his hands cuffed behind him, almost fixed to the chair.
Director Chen circled around Ye Qing once and suddenly kicked Ye Qing's chair.
Ye Qing wobbled, but ultimately stayed seated and was not knocked over.
Director Chen was furious. He was accustomed to knocking people down with a single kick, and this failure made him feel very humiliated.
"Dammit, you won't speak, will you? Well, then just shut up for good!" Director Chen grabbed Ye Qing's hair, covered his mouth with his hand, and yelled, "Come over here and beat him!"
Several police officers immediately approached. These men were all loyal to Director Chen and were not new to this kind of activity. One of them picked up a thick book from the table, placed it against Ye Qing's chest, sneered at him, and said, "Not going to talk, huh? Fine, then don't talk!"
With that, the man punched hard on the book. Although the force absorbed by the book wouldn't leave any marks, it was still very painful.
Ye Qing frowned slightly. Such a punch would be difficult for an ordinary person to endure. However, the punch didn't cause Ye Qing any severe harm; there was pain, but it wasn't unbearable. What Ye Qing truly couldn't stand were the actions of these people around him—how could the police do such things? Were they any different from thugs?
The officer expected Ye Qing to cry out in pain, but when Ye Qing showed little reaction, he became furious and roared, "Fine, I'll see how many punches you can withstand!"
He then landed several more punches on the book, striking mercilessly without holding back.
Ye Qing furrowed his brows, and at that moment, Director Chen behind him let go and said, "Kid, I'll give you one more chance. Confess everything, or next time I cover your mouth, you won't get the chance to speak again!"
Ye Qing spoke in a deep voice, "I didn't plant the bombs and I don't know what to confess. I am willing to cooperate with your investigation, but I'm not here to be beaten by you!"
The police officers looked at each other, and Director Chen suddenly laughed, "Bastard, when I order you to confess, you start lecturing me? Not here to be beaten? Who the hell do you think you are? I'm telling you, even if the King of Heaven came here, he would have to be honest with me; and you dare to talk big. Do you really believe I won't kill you?"
"As long as you investigate according to standard procedures, I will cooperate," Ye Qing replied coldly, scanning the people around him, "However, if you want to keep hitting people, then I won't be polite anymore!"
Hearing this, Director Chen laughed even more wildly, "Kid, you're quite amusing. I've never seen someone who bluffs like you do; you really have guts. Not polite? Well, I'd like to see how you can be impolite with me."
As he spoke, Director Chen raised his hand to slap Ye Qing's face.
Ye Qing's gaze turned icy, and with a strong push of his feet against the ground, the chair slid backward by over a foot. That little distance caused Director Chen's slap to miss its mark.
Director Chen swung at air and was enraged. He pointed at Ye Qing and bellowed, "Hold him down, I'll personally kill him!"
Several officers moved to grab Ye Qing's chair, but suddenly Ye Qing let out a loud shout. The handcuffs around his hands, which were fastened to the chair back, were forcefully lifted, and he tore the wooden backrest off, standing upright.
"Stay back!" Ye Qing shouted.
Truth be told, the police officers were taken aback by Ye Qing's outburst. However, seeing that he was still handcuffed, they relaxed.
"Dammit, the bastard's got some strength, hold him down!" one officer cursed and advanced toward Ye Qing.
His hand hadn't even reached Ye Qing's shoulder when Ye suddenly lifted his foot and kicked the policeman in the waist, sending the officer tumbling to the ground.
The policeman immediately flew into a rage, charging at Ye, but he ended up just like his colleague, kicked by Ye such that he couldn't get up.
Including Chen Tianyao, there were five policemen in the room, and two had fallen in an instant. The remaining two policemen glanced at each other, their hesitation apparent, and they dared not approach further for the time being.
Chen Tianyao, however, was furious, bellowing, "Daring to attack the police, motherfucker, hold him down, hold him down!"
As Chen Tianyao spoke, he himself rushed toward Ye Qing. However, he fared little better than the other two officers, getting kicked to the ground by Ye, his face contorted in pain.
"You motherfucker, dare to hit me, I... I'll fucking end you!" Chen Tianyao struggled to his feet, pulled out his gun, and aimed it at Ye Qing.
The two nearby officers, startled by the situation, hurried over to stop Chen Tianyao.
"Director Chen, things are getting too big tonight, he can't die!"
"Yeah, if he dies here at the police station, who's going to carry this burden!"
"So many journalists are tracking this, he can't die here!"
The two continuously tried to persuade Chen Tianyao, who was so angry at this point he wouldn't listen to reason, brushing off his subordinates and shouting furiously, "This bastard is insane, assaulting officers and attempting to seize a gun. Is there any need for an investigation? The bomb was definitely his doing.
If he dares to attack the police and try for my gun, I'd be justified in killing him—who would dare say anything!"
As he spoke, Chen Tianyao aimed the gun at Ye Qing and yelled, "You think you're so tough? Show me how tough you are, hit me again, come at me again!"
Ye Qing frowned, thinking that by coming to the police station cooperatively, the matter would be properly investigated. He hadn't expected the true state of affairs here could be so far from what he imagined.
"If you kill me, you'll have trouble explaining!" Ye Qing said gravely.
"Who the fuck do I need to explain to, who do I need to explain to?" Chen Tianyao roared and, nearly in a frenzy, walked to within two meters of Ye Qing, pointing the gun at Ye's head and shouting, "I could blow your brains out right now and then claim you were trying to seize my gun. Everyone here is my man; they'll say you assaulted the police. What can they do to me!"
Ye Qing looked at Chen Tianyao coldly and slowly shook his head, "You're not fit to be a policeman!"
Chen Tianyao arrogantly retorted, "Fuck your mother, still mouthing off when you're close to death. Whether I'm fit to be a policeman isn't for you to decide. Right now, I am the cop, and you're the thief. What can you do to me!"
Just then, the door to the detention room was suddenly pushed open.
Chen Tianyao, seething with anger, turned and barked, "Who the fuck is opening the door for no reason?"
The policeman at the door jumped in fright and said with a quiver, "Director Chen, Captain Zhao Chengshuang from West City Sub-bureau is here..."
Chen Tianyao's brows furrowed, turning to look, only to see several officers pushing a wheelchair in, on which Zhao Chengshuang was seated.
Seeing that Ye Qing was unharmed, Zhao Chengshuang finally breathed a sigh of relief before turning to Chen Tianyao.
"Director Chen, what's going on here?" Zhao Chengshuang asked curiously, the situation inside the room looking a bit strange. Ye Qing was standing, handcuffed to the back of a chair that had now separated from the chair itself. Two officers were down on the ground, and Chen Tianyao was pointing a gun at Ye Qing, the entire scene terribly discordant.
Chen Tianyao frowned, put away his gun, and said, "Captain Zhao, what brings you here? I'm in the middle of interrogating a suspect and it's a bit busy right now. If it's nothing urgent, let's talk tomorrow, okay?"
"Sorry for the inconvenience, but I'm here about this incident," Zhao Chengshuang smiled and said. "Director Chen, Ye Qing is my best friend. I can vouch that he has nothing to do with tonight's events. Could I trouble you to make an exception and let me take him away first?"
Chen Tianyao's expression turned icy as he fixated on Zhao Chengshuang, saying, "Captain Zhao, we're both part of the police force, and you know the rules better than I do. With such a big explosion case tonight, Ye Qing, being the prime suspect, simply cannot leave the North City Sub-bureau at will. Even if he's your friend, I can't disregard the law for favoritism. Isn't that right?"
Chen Tianyao's words were a veiled criticism, essentially accusing Zhao Chengshuang of wanting to bend the rules to take Ye Qing away.
Zhao Chengshuang didn't take offense, just chuckled and said, "Director Chen, my father has already been in touch with Director Deng, who has agreed to let me take the suspect to West City Sub-bureau. Director Chen, please do me this favor. Rest assured, my friend certainly can't fly!"
Chen Tianyao's gaze turned frosty. To him, Zhao Chengshuang's words were like using Deng Liyang as leverage against him.
"Whether Director Deng agrees is his business. We operate by the rules. It's not like the rules of the police force cease to exist because of what Director Deng says," Chen Tianyao glared at Zhao Chengshuang, adding, "Sorry, Captain Zhao. If it's nothing important, I'd like you to step out. I've got to get back to work!"