"What the fuck do you mean you were attacked? Is my family hurt? Is Wei Ying okay? A'Yuan isn't hurt, is he? Was Yanli there? Did we lose anyone?" Jiang Cheng was yelling into the phone out of fear and fury. "Who the fuck are these people, Huaisang?"

"They're all okay. We didn't lose anyone. We don't know but one of them survived and -"

"I want in. Do you hear me, Huaisang?" The yelling had lowered into a pissed off hiss that was somehow more disturbing.

"The assassin's still here. Come with your sergeant. She should be on her way soon. She has interrogation training and she might just keep us from ripping the bitch apart." Huaisang said.

He was standing in the linen closet again. Knowing this call would be loud and angry.

"Have they been moved somewhere safe?"

"Yes. I'll take you to them as soon as you arrive. Once you're sure they're okay, and Yu Bin is safely in the room, we'll have a discussion with the survivor."

"On my way. I'll text when I get close. Wait. What's wrong with Yu Bin?"

"He's okay now. He needed surgery to clean out the infection. There's more but I'll tell you when you arrive. I'll meet you downstairs. I need to pick up a new set of fans."

They didn't bother to say goodbye.

Jiang Cheng threw open his door and bellowed, "Sergeant Liu!"

He was sitting at his desk when she arrived. He gestured at the chair across the desk. She sat stiffly.

"Perhaps you'd like to tell me what your plans are today?" His voice was controlled anger. He was willing to let her explain versus his previous tendency to just explode.

She nodded to herself. It was an improvement. He was growing.

"Inspector Nie Huaisang contacted me approximately two hours ago. He said they had been attacked. None of our people had died, and they had captured one of the attackers. He knew I had interrogation training, though I had not used it in years. He wanted me to come to the hospital to aid in the interogation as well as keep the situation in hand for the criminal's protection. I told him not to tell you about the attack until you were back at the station long enough to gear down. They obviously had the situation in hand, and your family was safe. I did not want you distracted during a potentially violent situation, sir." She looked him in the eye as she gave her report. She had made the right decisions, and she knew it.

"I was going to ask if you wished to go with me after Inspector Nie told you. I thought him telling you would be more efficient since he was there and I was not, sir."

Jiang Cheng was furious. At most of the world actually but he had to admit her reasoning was sound.

"I don't like it. Not one little bit, but - " He gave an angry grunt of annoyance then nodded his reluctant agreement.

"Now send in Fanxing. Give me ten, and then we're out of here." Jiang Cheng said with a growl.

The Sergeant left with a spring in her step and a very small smile on her face...

He didn't want to be reasonable. He wanted to yell until he felt better and then go to the gym. He wanted to pound his frustrations away on the sand bag. He looked at his hands, and the blood smeared bandages. Holding the shield and baton combined with the pressure of the gloves meant he'd ripped the scabs open again. Odd that he hadn't felt it.

He hadn't realized until this moment that not even that outlet was available.

Fanxing knocked on the door frame.

"Inspector?"

"Come in. How are you doing?" Jiang Cheng asked.

"I'm fine, sir."

There was a shadow in his eyes that was more than fatigue.

"You brought honor to yourself and the department. There's a good chance your actions helped diffuse the situation. Thank you." Jiang Cheng's voice was sincere. Kind. For this moment, he could shove the anger back behind his inner wall.

"I will be putting you in for a commendation." He paused and looked Fanxing in the eye. "If the events wear on you, come talk to me. We'll find a way to lighten the load."

Fanxing stood dumbfounded for a moment before bowing deeply.

"It was my honor, sir."

Fanxing matured in that moment. The inspector could see a glimpse of what the young man could become.

"I think we will see great things from you." He smiled, surprising himself, and shook hands with the young man.

"Thank you, sir!" Fanxing returned the smile. Small and hesitant, but it was a smile.

"Dismissed." and Fanxing was back out into the noisy main office.

Jiang Cheng called Sergeant Feng Mingjing.

"Yes, Inspector?" was the quick response.

"How do you feel after last night?" Jiang Cheng asked.

"Tired but functional, sir. May I ask why?"

"I want you to take Zheng Fanxing out. Feed him. Put at least two beers in him and make sure he gets home. I'll Alipay** you the money for everything." Jiang Cheng said. "It's his first death."

"I'll take care of it, sir. Not a problem."

"Thank you, Sergeant."

In the quiet of his office, he transferred the funds and then sat for a few moments. Staring at the coke he had swilled down, hoping it had enough caffeine to keep him moving for just a few more hours.

He stood feeling the grind of fatigue in his joints and his gritty eyes.

It didn't matter. He could do this because he had to.

He firmly seated his pistol in the holster then slipped on his work jacket and grabbed his laptop in its bag. He snagged a coke for on the way over. Just to be sure.

"Sergeant!" he yelled as he opened his door.

Sergeant Liu Tingyu was ready and waiting. She had been talking to some of the younger officers. Jiang Cheng alnost smiled. He knew exactly what she was saying.

"Go home, eat, and have a large glass of water.  Then shower and go to bed! It has been a long night, and you need to recharge." Her voice could be heard across the majority of the department.  

He was lucky to have a Sergeant of her caliber. If Huisang tried to steal her again, he really would have to shoot him. Friend or not.
-----

Two and Three looked at each other. They had not planned on this situation.

They couldn't get the police to take them seriously.

The first officer they managed to connect with (after thirty minutes on hold) asked if they were reporting a violent crime. At Three's tentative "No?", the officer had hung up.

They tried again.

The wait was shorter, and Two began by saying, "We have Jin Guangshan, and we need you to come pick him up."

The officer laughed.

"You and half the city seem to have Jin Guangshan. Thank you for calling."

"Wait! We really d-"

The line went dead.

"Now what?" Two asked.

Three was chewing his bottom lip like it was a filet mignon.

"We do what we did to get him here. We put him in his suit with a black mask and take him on the subway." Three said. He didn't sound convinced even if it was his idea.

"If he makes a scene and people realize who he is, they will tear him - and probably us - apart." Two said, feeling slightly nauseous.

" Yeah..." Three agreed quietly. "Got any other ideas?"

"Other than just staying here with him? No, not really." Two looked at the still sleeping and once again snoring soon-to-be ex-mayor sprawled on their couch. "Not thrilled with him being here frankly. I don't want anyone to think we were helping him."

"Me neither."

They looked somberly at each other.

"Subway it is."

It took almost an hour to get dressed, then get Jin Guangshan to wake up enough to get dressed. They had rinsed off the worst of it, but the suit was still damp and smelled of puke. It seemed appropriate for the man and his deeds.

A cup of coffee seemed to make their unwanted guest a  little more aware.

"This is what will happen. You will wear your mask. You will say nothing during the trip to the police station. If people realize who you are, you are most likely a dead man. We are your only chance to get there alive. Do you understand?" Three was deadly serious.

What the coffee didn't do, Three's statement did.

"I'm not going out there!" Jin Guangshan blustered.

"Yes. You are. We don't want anyone to think we were trying to help you. We saved you so you could face justice. Give us a problem, and we will feed you to the mob." Two said with a gleam in his eye.

Three smiled inside as he watched his best friend play the role of 'bad tax man'.

Jin Guangshan grumbled but looked down.

"Ready?" Two asked Three.

"Ready."

Three masks later, they left the apartment and headed toward the elevator.
-----

Nie Mingjue gave a nod to the officer on guard at Wen Chao's door. The man politely bowed and opened the door for the inspector.

Inside, Wen Chao was sitting in a sullen scowling heap, ignoring the grinning guards who bowed to Nie Mingjue.

Wen Chao's nose was swollen and bruised enough to give him a black eye on the left.

It looked good with the other bruises.

Nie Mingjue pointed vaguely in Wen Chao's direction.

"What happened to him? Did that happen during the attack?"

The seated officer gave a wheezing laugh ending with a grimace.

"The doctor who fixed him up gave him that. It was magnificent! She's this tiny woman, but she started off by slapping him and then stabbed him with a needle immobilizing him. She treated his wound and then wham! she punched him hard enough his nose bled." Peng Zhan laughed until he was gasping and holding his ribs.

"I feel privileged to have witnessed it, sir!" he said when he had managed to get his breath back.

"Do you know the doctor's name? We should send her a thank you card and flowers." Nie Mingjue laughed.

Wen Chao's face was mottling in fury.

Peng Zhan scribbled a name on a scrap of paper to protect the doctor's identity and handed it to the inspector.

Dr. Yu was written on the paper.

Nie Mingjue grinned.

'There simply can't be two Dr. Yu's with matching descriptions in the hospital.' he thought. 'This doctor is getting more interesting by the moment.'

"I had the pleasure of meeting her recently. I'll take care of getting her flowers. She definitely deserves them." He looked positively smug.

"Thank you, sir. Please give her our respects." Peng Zhan wheezed with a smile.

Wen Chao listened to the laughing with veins standing out on his forehead. Totally ignored, he had become a joke.

"ENOUGH!!"  Spittle flew as he screamed in rage. 

"I am Wen Chao!! She will die! You will die! I will have you in brothels as my whores!"

Nie Mingjue cocked an eye brow at the explosion as he listened to the continuing stream of vitriol flowing from Wen Chao's open sewer of a mouth.

He had heard Jiang Cheng got to punch this bastard. Now he finds out Yu Qing got to as well?

Nie Mingjue was feeling a little left out. Besides, after what Wen Chao had done to his A'Sang? He felt he deserved a shot at him.

"Do we have surveillance in this room?" he asked casually.

"No, sir. We have our chest cams**, but that's it." an officer responded.

Nie Mingjue made a vague gesture over his chest while watching the continuing tantrum of Wen Chao.

Peng Zhan's eyes widened slightly. He pulled the other officers toward him and began to discuss how to handle Wen Chao's screaming. The cams were all pointed inward toward the huddle.

In the middle of a screeching commentary about selling their children, there was a startled squawk and then blissful silence.

There were the soft clicks of the door opening and closing. Then more silence.

Wen Chao was apparently sleeping. Oddly sprawled, granted, but still eyes closed, breathing just fine, asleep.

"The exhaustion from the injury must have caught up with him." Peng Zhan  beamed.
-----

She sat handcuffed to the bed. The body of her partner and friend lay on the floor in front of her. At least the cop had finally covered him with a sheet.  Up to that point, his dead eyes had stared at her.

Stunned at how fast his life ended in an explosion of blood and brains. Slightly accusing that she hadn't been there to save him.

All of it laid bare in those dead eyes staring at her.

She ached to cry, but her eyes remained dry. The information had been wrong. There wasn't supposed to be anyone there. A quick job. Easy cash he'd said.

'If I get out of here, he's a dead man.' snarled through her thoughts.

~♡~♡~♡~
Alipay is the Chinese equivalent of PayPal.

A chest cam (camera) is used by police to have a video record of interactions.

I'm fully aware that Nie Mingjue should not punch Wen Chao since he is not only a prisoner but restrained. However, on occasion, I simply can't resist. 😁

I keep discovering comments I didn't know about. I answer them as I find them!! I so appreciate the time y'all take to read, vote, and comment on my scribbles!! Thank you!!

Thank you also for your amazing patience. I have a few days, so I will try and get more written for a Wednesdayish update. ❤️😊❤️

With Smiles and Hugs!!!
❤️🍫🫖❤️