Insights Chapter 10: Changes Over Time

Chapter 10: Changes Over Time

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

Penang, at Gu Yanchen’s home. It was another long night, with moonlight casting its glow over the city. Most people were in the embrace of dreams, and a quiet stillness enveloped the surroundings.

Gu Yanchen opened his eyes, feeling like he was in a dream. This dream was so vivid that he couldn’t easily break free from it. The surroundings were chaotic, filled with the scent of alcohol. It was a grand party with laughing men and women, sinister faces, swaying chips, and a spinning roulette wheel that tempted people to immerse themselves in the madness.

Money was squandered, hands slipped into clothes, and exquisite food and wine were consumed. People shouted loudly, laughed, indulged to the extreme, revealing the most primitive ugliness amid the extravagance. Then, gunshots rang out. The first shot hit the hanging lamp, plunging the surroundings into darkness. Gunshots continued, marking the beginning of a fierce battle.

He watched as people fell one by one, some familiar, some strangers, some good, and some bad. Among them was Xu Chenghuang, the underground emperor of Penang for many years, trembling and begging for mercy in front of the gun, tears streaming down his face.

The scene suddenly changed, and Gu Yanchen found himself standing by Lin Xianglan’s hospital bed. Lin Xianglan’s face was pale, gripping his hand tightly. With all his strength, he pleaded, “Gu Yanchen, you must take care of Lin Luo for me… take good care of him. That child is too stubborn… I can’t rest assured…”

He uttered a simple “okay.” Lin Xianglan seemed to release a long-held breath.

The scenes from memory turned into fragments in the dream. In the dream, he frantically searched for Lin Luo. Phone calls went unanswered, and he eventually turned it off. He finally found the teenager in a karaoke bar room. He seemed to be sleeping, eyes closed, and red blood blooming on his white clothes like a fresh flower…

Gu Yanchen abruptly opened his eyes, sitting up. Sweat covered his forehead, and his heart was pounding. Darkness surrounded him, and he was in bed at home, haunted by the cursed dream again. Gu Yanchen stood up, lit a cigarette for himself, and walked out of the bedroom. He pulled back a corner of the curtain, gazing at the dark city. The entire city was silent, like a dormant beast or a vast, quiet sea.

The scent of tobacco gradually calmed his heartbeat.

It had been five years since Lin Xianglan’s death, yet Gu Yanchen still occasionally dreamed about that time. In his youth, he thought it would be just an experience that time would fade away. But today, he increasingly confirmed that some things would be remembered for a lifetime.

Those experiences had penetrated deep into his bones. A part of him seemed to be stuck in the past, including the memory of that young man.

Eight years ago, after graduating, he was assigned to the Penang City Bureau. Interrogations, arrests, case closures – Lin Xianglan personally guided him, treating him like his own son. Two years later, he handed over the case involving Xu Chenghuang to him and promoted him to the head of the special task force.

Xu Chenghuang was a formidable figure in Penang, involved in all sorts of illicit activities related to drugs, gambling, and more. Gu Yanchen, then a justice-driven detective, earned the appreciation of his superiors through hard work. Starting with small cases, they unraveled complex relationships. In the end, the police uncovered several connected homicide cases, dismantled Penang’s largest underground casino, and collaborated to destroy a new drug trafficking network.

The case took over a year, and eventually, they uprooted the entire underground group, sending several key members, including Xu Chenghuang, to prison. Penang’s dark forces were no longer in power. It was a thrilling victory.

Lin Xianglan was commended, and Gu Yanchen faced a promising career. Just as things were going well, Lin Xianglan suddenly fell ill. The old chief had a long-standing heart condition, occasionally hospitalized, but always avoiding serious issues and rushing back to the City Bureau whenever a case arose. This time, however, his illness was different. It rapidly deteriorated, and he collapsed at his desk, devoted to his duty until the end.

“Take care of Lin Luo,” were Lin Xianglan’s last words.

At that time, Gu Yanchen was only 24, and Lin Luo was 21. Gu Yanchen felt like he had gained a younger brother. They had known each other for a few months. Their initial meetings often ended in disagreement, but gradually, a connection formed. Lin Luo’s severe injuries and coma became a thorn in his heart.

Gu Yanchen, known for keeping his promises, couldn’t fulfill Lin Xianglan’s last request. He tried everything, searching for the best doctors, striving for better medical solutions to wake Lin Luo from his comatose state. The comatose teenager was like a small candle. Gu Yanchen tried hard to protect it, not wanting the flame to extinguish.

In the end, he received a notice of brain death.

Lin Luo’s death was somewhat sudden. Gu Yanchen was on a business trip, and by the time he arrived at the hospital, all he saw was the pristine bed. On that day, Gu Yanchen felt like his heartstrings were abruptly shattered.

Recalling this, Gu Yanchen exhaled a puff of smoke. He walked to the living room, turned on the light, and opened the coffee table drawer. Inside were photocopies and investigative materials. Whenever he couldn’t sleep, he would review them, noting down new leads and discoveries.

Over the years, he kept Lin Xianglan’s last words in mind. On the surface, he had seemingly settled into logistical work for four years, but he never gave up on investigating those matters in secret. Gu Yanchen could sense a force in Penang, manipulating events from behind the scenes.

Justice evolved over time, taking on different forms from the past to the present. Surveillance, the internet, and smartphones had fundamentally changed people’s lives. Evil, too, underwent updates. Past crimes were blatant, fierce, and arrogant, instilling fear in people. Today’s malevolence had adopted a different guise, better concealed and more adept at deception, making it harder to guard against.

Years ago, robbers would raid banks and jewelry stores, kidnap children and trade lives for wealth. Now, such acts would be considered foolish. A single internet cable could lure countless gamblers, and with servers hosted abroad, apprehending criminals became nearly impossible.

The wicked had also harnessed the power of the internet, no longer relying on physical altercations. Some individuals even transformed completely, whitewashing their pasts, amassing capital, and becoming influential figures capable of influencing the world.

Gu Yanchen silently observed it all. He was a patient sniper, sharpening his skills, awaiting the right moment. Recently, due to a lack of leads, his investigation had stagnated. That’s when Director Ding approached him, mentioning the formation of a new department. Gu Yanchen agreed, becoming the head of the Special Criminal Division. This would grant him higher authority and access to more information.

Among the numerous files, Gu Yanchen picked up Lin Luo’s record. When Lin Luo faced his ordeal, he had just graduated from college, aged 21. He lingered in a coma for several months, passing away at the age of 22. Then, he picked up the file on Shen Junci, 27 years old, similar in age to Lin Luo.

At the first glance of Shen Junci’s file, Gu Yanchen felt a sense of familiarity. He thought that after five years, if Lin Luo were still alive, he might have matured like Shen Junci, becoming the excellent talent his father expected him to be. But he knew the dead could not return to life.

Lin Luo was the young man he witnessed dying, gradually withering away from a vibrant person to a tortured soul, enduring prolonged suffering, with blades cutting through his body and tendons snapping. Most of the time spent with Lin Luo was watching him lying in a hospital bed, connected to various devices, frail like a candle on the verge of extinguishing.

Lin Luo and Shen Junci only shared a faint resemblance in temperament and were close in age. Shen Junci’s appearance, family background, education, and experiences were completely different from Lin Luo’s. To ascertain if Shen Junci had any connection to Lin Luo, Gu Yanchen carefully examined Shen Junci’s file. Naturally, Shen Junci could not be Lin Luo. He had childhood photos, teachers’ evaluations, class pictures, and all academic records were accessible.

His father was a prosecutor in the provincial capital of Ruicheng, and Shen Junci enrolled in medical examiner studies in college. The year he graduated, his parents died in a car accident, leading to a one-year hiatus before completing his degree. Aside from this incident, his life had nothing particularly extraordinary. What kind of connection could exist between these two individuals?

Gu Yanchen scrutinized the file for a while, circled a marked phone number, and planned to verify it later. Then he packed up the information. Regardless of whether he was Lin Luo, Gu Yanchen could sense that Shen Junci’s arrival brought some changes.

Returning to the frontlines of criminal investigation, he unexpectedly felt a bit excited and eager about the upcoming cases. The flame of justice in his heart burned brighter than before. Suddenly, Gu Yanchen felt that having like-minded companions, fighting side by side, was something he longed for. Without any hesitation or second thoughts, he was ready to pursue the truth, uphold justice, keep his promises, and face any challenges, even if it meant going through fire and water or risking his life.

It was as if Lin Xianglan was still around. Everything seemed to be the same as back then, yet at the same time, everything felt different.