Insights Chapter 119: Punishment

Chapter 119: Punishment

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

Gu Yanchen took Shen Junci into a taxi, letting Shen Junci lean against him. He kept a close eye on Shen Junci’s condition, ensuring his consciousness remained clear. Soon after, news came from Yu Shen’s side. They found a gun on Ke Roushen and also discovered a blood-stained weapon. They arrested those people on charges of fighting, illegal possession of firearms.

Shen Junci was tense just now, but now he relaxed. He curled up, feeling the increasing pain from the wound. Plus, it had been a long time since he had been in a fight, and his heart was beating irregularly. However, his mind was particularly clear. He quietly said to Gu Yanchen, “Call Qi Yi’an to come over and bring sutures and hemostatic forceps.”

Gu Yanchen was startled, “You don’t mean to have him help, right?”

Shen Junci didn’t find it strange, “Captain Gu, the structure of a living body is exactly the same as that of a dead body, which is why doctors start learning from dissecting corpses.”

After considering for a moment, Gu Yanchen said to Shen Junci, “Don’t force yourself. If you cut into the organs, it’s definitely not a joke. Even if we take a taxi to Lincheng, you’ll still need to go to the hospital.”

“I know. If the injury is severe enough to cause abdominal infection, then it becomes serious. It’s definitely something that can’t be handled at home. Right now, I estimate the injury isn’t that serious.”

When they got out of the car, Gu Yanchen gave the driver an extra two hundred yuan for cleaning. He carried Shen Junci directly into the elevator and went upstairs. Once inside the house, Shen Junci lay on the chaise longue, his blood-soaked clothes being undone, revealing the wound.

Fortunately, the knife wasn’t large, and it only went halfway through the tip, about six centimeters in length.

Gu Yanchen handed him a clean towel to press against the wound, and only then did the bleeding visibly slow down. Fortunately, because Gu Yanchen had just been injured, there were plenty of bandages at home. Also, because he had been discharged early, the doctor had prescribed some antibiotics and local anesthetics, which could be used now.

Qi Yi’an arrived shortly after, carrying an investigation kit, thinking there was a case. When he saw that Shen Junci was injured, he was so frightened that he stepped back, “Teacher, I can’t do this…”

It was Shen Junci who comforted him, “There shouldn’t be any damage to the internal organs. Just help me.”

Suturing one’s own wound is something ordinary people can’t do. But Shen Junci had done it more than once. The last time, he cut his arm and stitched it up himself. Shen Junci asked Qi Yi’an to boil water and prepare some disinfection tools and medication for wound cleaning.

Then he turned to Gu Yanchen, “Over there, people have been arrested. Mansion 13 won’t just let it go. We can’t delay too long. Go to the City Bureau.”

Gu Yanchen knew that Shen Junci cared about the case and didn’t want him to see himself in a sorry state. Seeing Shen Junci pale and sweating on his forehead, with his fingers pressing on the wound, Gu Yanchen was both worried and heartbroken, reluctant to leave.

Shen Junci urged again, “Go, you need to quickly clear up the case. Those people can only be safe once that’s done. I didn’t take this stab wound for nothing.”

In his heart, Gu Yanchen didn’t want to leave, but reason told him not to be emotional. He bent down, reached out, and hugged Shen Junci.

Shen Junci patted his back. Then he whispered, “I’ll communicate this matter with the provincial department, including my injury and Yan Chi’s matter. Keep the City Bureau in the dark for now.”

Gu Yanchen nodded, then turned to remind Qi Yi’an. If there were any developments, he must contact him promptly. Then he washed his hands, changed clothes, and left. He first went across to check. Li Zhongnan had already settled Yan Chi and Xie Yuna in two bedrooms. He was also treating Yan Chi’s wound.

Gu Yanchen quickly met with them, handed them the surveillance he had bought earlier, and left new spare phones for Yan Chi and the others to install the surveillance in the corridor and watch for people coming up and down.

Then he drove to the City Bureau.

Gu Yanchen didn’t bother to be polite with Ke Ruhai and the others, directly taking them to the interrogation room. Bai Meng turned on the listening device nearby and put on the earpiece. Lu Ying interrogated Ke Ruhai, while Yu Shen dealt with Ke Rushen. Before entering the interrogation room, the two communicated with Gu Yanchen.

Lu Ying asked, “Captain Gu, what do we need to ask?”

Gu Yanchen’s expression was unusually serious, “Whether it’s tonight’s events or anything we can find from the past. Ask about all the crimes one by one, and we’ll sentence them accordingly. No matter how heavy the sentence is, it must be handed down!” He paused and added, “Pay attention to interrogation techniques. Sometimes when they don’t speak, it’s another kind of answer. We can get some information from that. Then we investigate backwards based on that information.”

After arranging everything, Gu Yanchen sat in the observation room.

Tonight’s drama wasn’t just in the interrogation room but also outside the City Bureau.

The reason for arresting Ke Ruhai and Ke Rushen was obstruction of law enforcement and illegal possession of firearms. The police didn’t have substantial evidence related to them and Mansion 13 case. But no evidence didn’t mean they had no connection to those people or that they were innocent.

Capturing these two people, detaining them in the City Bureau tonight, was crucial to the entire situation. Brother Security Company had been operating in Penang for five years, and the two bosses had been involved in multiple illegal activities, hiring so many thugs. Just imagining it, you could tell that this company wasn’t clean. However, none of the people in their company had ever entered the gates of the City Bureau, and even this company had no record of any criminal activities. This was obviously abnormal.

This time detaining them sends a signal to their backers.

No matter what happened in the past, from now on, they’re being watched. This is an important step in testing the waters.

Sure enough, after being detained for just over an hour, Director Ding’s phone rang. “Captain Gu, I’ve received three plea calls. I’ll apply pressure on the Fourth Division. I’ll also compile a list of everyone who pleaded tonight and everyone asking for information. Keep them detained, and once we find evidence, send them to the detention center. I want to see what big fish we can catch next.”

Following the instructions from the medical examiner Shen, Gu Yanchen didn’t tell Director Ding about Shen Junci’s injury or that they found Yan Chi. He only mentioned that Yan Chi hadn’t been caught by the other party and might have escaped.

Director Ding urged him to quickly check for any clues from the Ke brothers.

After finishing the call with Director Ding, Gu Yanchen turned to look into the interrogation room where the two brothers were being questioned. Lu Ying was diligently conducting the interrogation. The elder brother, Ke Ruhai, sat on the interrogation chair, his bulky frame barely fitting in the narrow seat.

“We were really having a company outing today. As a security company, we always take our brothers out for training. When we passed that intersection, a car suddenly braked, causing a rear-end collision with the car next to it. We called the police and waited for the traffic police to handle it. Everything was legal and proper. It’s just that we had multiple cars parked at the scene, causing a traffic jam. As for the incident with the police officer, it was just a misunderstanding. I really didn’t intend to use force. No, absolutely no one hired us. If we knew the police were taking action, why would we deliberately obstruct it?”

After listening to a few sentences, Gu Yanchen turned to observe the interrogation on the other side. The younger brother, Ke Rushen, gave answers almost identical to what Ke Ruhai said. The twins seemed to be telepathic, even their tone and demeanor in answering were almost the same. However, the younger brother was obviously more talkative, speaking a bit more.

After listening for a while, Gu Yanchen noticed a detail. When Ke Rushen hesitated while answering certain questions, he would pause, his eyebrows would raise, and then he would smile. This smile wasn’t pleasant or natural; it seemed forced and awkward. It was like a false mask was put on his chubby face.

Gu Yanchen even felt like Ke Rushen didn’t realize he was smiling.

Continuing to listen, Gu Yanchen became more convinced that this smile was related to lies. Perhaps it was a habit Ke Rushen developed over the years. He would smile while lying. Afterward, Gu Yanchen took a stack of documents compiled by Bai Meng and entered the interrogation room, sitting next to Yu Shen.

Gu Yanchen went straight to the point. “Ke Rushen, how many years has your security company been operating?”

“For five years. Although we were involved in some related businesses before, they were mostly under someone else’s company. We officially started five years ago.”

Gu Yanchen asked, “Are you and your brother twins?” This question naturally received an affirmative answer. Gu Yanchen continued, “What percentage of shares do each of you hold?”

“We each hold fifty percent.”

Gu Yanchen also asked about their birthplace and information regarding their primary, middle, and high school education. As he asked these routine questions, the fake smile on Ke Rushen’s face disappeared. After about ten minutes of questioning, Gu Yanchen looked up at Ke Rushen and asked, “What’s the story behind the injury on your neck?”

The fake smile reappeared on Ke Rushen’s face. He chuckled awkwardly, pulling up his shirt collar to cover the scar. “A few days ago, I was practicing with my brothers and accidentally got hit too hard. It has nothing to do with tonight.”

This was an obvious lie. Gu Yanchen didn’t know how he got injured during the scuffle, but the truth definitely wasn’t as Ke Rushen described it. That injury should have been inflicted by Shen Junci. The person sitting across from him was the one who had harmed Shen Junci.

Gu Yanchen ruthlessly exposed, “The scars from old injuries and new injuries look completely different. Our medical examiner will come later to examine the injuries.”

Ke Rushen pretended not to understand, “As security workers, we often get superficial injuries.”

Gu Yanchen continued to inquire, “Last year, your company’s registered income was three million one hundred and eighty thousand, but the basic personnel salaries and fixed expenses for the office building amounted to around three million five hundred thousand. Is your company involved in charity work?”

Ke Rushen chuckled again, “Officer, in business, there are profits and losses… Last year’s business wasn’t very good.”

From his expression, Gu Yanchen confirmed that this security company must have some unrecorded and untaxed black income. He chatted casually with Ke Rushen for a few more moments, then took out a bullet stored in an evidence bag.

“Tonight, the police found a shell casing in a warehouse that matches the model of the gun found on you. We will conduct ballistics and gunpowder residue tests.”

Ke Rushen’s smile froze for a moment, then he smirked even more obsequiously. “Well… I was at the shooting range this afternoon before coming here. My hands haven’t even been washed since then. Even if you find residues, it doesn’t prove that I fired the gun, right?”

As he spoke, he wiped the sweat off his forehead with his hand.

Having observed enough, Gu Yanchen suddenly became serious. “Possessing firearms is illegal. According to Article 128 of the Criminal Law, in especially severe circumstances, the sentence is more than three years of imprisonment. If combined with assault, the penalties will be cumulative.”

Upon hearing the possibility of imprisonment, Ke Rushen seemed a bit flustered.

Gu Yanchen continued sternly, “The person who hired you tonight, was it the Mansion 13?”

Ke Rushen was already intimidated by the previous questions, and he didn’t know how much Gu Yanchen knew or what information he had. He was clearly thinking about how to fabricate lies to clear himself of any involvement and escape punishment.

Subconsciously, his lips tightened slightly, his eyebrows raised, and then he forced a smile again, “Officer, I really don’t understand what you’re talking about. I don’t know anything about any mansion…”

Gu Yanchen had already confirmed during previous questioning that these were micro-expressions before Ke Rushen fabricated lies. These expressions had appeared repeatedly when asked about his injury and firing the gun. These details from the interrogation were not enough to be used as evidence, but they were extremely beneficial for their subsequent investigation.

Gu Yanchen then pressed a photo of Yan Chi on the table in front of Ke Rushen. “Did they ask you to find this person?”

Ke Rushen felt like the photo was burning his hand. He pushed it back to Gu Yanchen, shaking his head repeatedly with a forced smile. “Officer, I don’t know this person.”

In Gu Yanchen’s eyes, this expression was almost equivalent to a confession. He had gotten the answer he wanted.

Then Gu Yanchen flipped through the back of the documents, which Bai Meng had searched for, containing all the relevant online reports about Ke Rushen and Ke Ruhai. In the past, these reports had not been taken seriously, and many were dismissed. Some had even been deleted, and it took Bai Meng’s efforts to retrieve them.

“Four years ago, you severely injured a homeowner during demolition. Two years ago, due to loan collection harassment, at the Xin Yuan Hotel, you and your men severely injured a female student. On May 11th last year, your company’s employees pushed a woman and her child into the river. The woman fell into a coma, and the child died. This was because her husband was an environmental auditor and had obstructed the construction of nearby factories. Your company subsequently obtained a psychological assessment report, allowing you to evade legal consequences to this day.”

“… “

One crime after another was recounted. Forced smiles, forced smiles, forced smiles—the false masks on Ke Rushen’s face seemed to be deeply engraved. At least half of the accusations in the reports were true. Even if they were sentenced to life imprisonment, it would be considered lenient.

Gu Yanchen questioned with doubt why these matters had existed in his city for so long, yet he, as a member of the Criminal Investigation Division of the City Bureau, had been unaware? After Xu Chenghuang, the evil hadn’t disappeared; it had just taken on a different form. How many people in this seemingly legitimate security company had been living under the shadow of these individuals?

Gu Yanchen asked the final question, “Over the years, have you been employed by the Hetu Trading Association?”

Ke Rushen’s fake smile froze, his lips trembling, cold sweat forming on his forehead. He laughed and said, “I don’t know anything about any trading association.”

Ke Rushen’s heart sank. Reaching this point meant that the police were already aware of the Hetu Trading Association’s existence and their connection to the association.

Whether they spoke or not, they were finished.

Many of the things they had done were done to help the association. If they confessed, the association would kill them to silence them. If they didn’t speak, the association would still suspect them.

When Han Qingyi died, the two brothers still thought it was because he was careless and didn’t handle things cleanly, revealing his flaws to others. They never thought they would end up like this. They thought that chasing after Yan Chi tonight wouldn’t leave any concrete evidence, and the association would find a way to get them out. But unexpectedly, this time was different from before—they had kicked the iron plate.

Gu Yanchen already had his answer. He sneered and turned to Yu Shen. “You continue questioning. Treat our guests well tonight.”

As the night deepened, Penang City Bureau’s Criminal Investigation Building gradually quieted down. Gu Yanchen left the observation room, his mind still on Shen Junci. He sent him a message.

After a while, Shen Junci replied, “The suturing is done, everything’s fine here.”

Only then did Gu Yanchen feel slightly relieved. He bought a cup of coffee from the vending machine at the City Bureau, took a sip, and silently reviewed the case in his mind.

At that moment, Bai Meng opened the door. “Captain Gu, we have good news. We’ve decrypted Ke Ruhai’s phone. He had installed a monitoring app for that Fishing Master game, and it was linked to his account. We found several new female victims in his purchase records by tracing the addresses provided by customer service.”

At home, Shen Junci had already finished dressing his wound and was half-leaning on the bed. He had only received a small amount of anesthesia during the suturing, and he remained conscious throughout. The wound was deep, but fortunately, it hadn’t punctured any internal organs.

After ten stitches, the wound was dressed. Shen Junci took the medicine and felt a bit dizzy, partly due to loss of blood and partly due to a slight fever. After Qi Yi’an finished packing up, he told Shen Junci to go home first. Li Zhongnan stayed behind to keep him company.

Shen Junci drifted in and out of sleep for a while, waking up again around midnight. He tried to distract himself by chatting with Li Zhongnan.

Li Zhongnan asked, “Does Gu Yanchen know about your situation?”

Shen Junci replied, “I haven’t talked to him about it yet. But I have a feeling he knows.”

Li Zhongnan then asked, “What are your plans going forward? When will you hand Yan Chi over to the police?”

Shen Junci’s face turned pale, and he said, “Let’s wait a little longer. It’s not the right time yet. The police won’t be able to protect him now.” He lowered his gaze and continued, “And the longer he’s missing, the more anxious the Mansion 13 will become.”

Yan Chi’s identity was sensitive. He had been involved in criminal activities and was currently their only witness. Once Yan Chi was taken to the City Bureau, they wouldn’t be able to keep him under their watch alone. If someone wanted to kill him to silence him, it would just provide those people with a target.

If the City Bureau made a move, the Fourth Branch would immediately cooperate to block the roads. As soon as people from their brother company were arrested, someone would immediately call to plead for leniency. It was like a Werewolf game; they couldn’t tell how many wolves were among them. How to use Yan Chi, this chess piece, was crucial.

It was past midnight when Gu Yanchen returned home.

Li Zhongnan stood up and said, “I’ll head back now. We’ll keep in touch.”

Gu Yanchen saw Li Zhongnan off. The smell of blood in the room had faded a bit, replaced by the scent of medicine and incense. He sat down by the bed and asked Shen Junci, “Is the pain still severe?”

Shen Junci looked at him, his face pale, his features dark as ink. He shook his head. In fact, the anesthesia was wearing off. Every breath was painful, and his chest felt heavy. These next few days were bound to be difficult, but he didn’t want Gu Yanchen to worry.

Gu Yanchen leaned over and gently kissed Shen Junci. He continued, “I’ve arranged for you to take a few days off. Rest well, and if you feel uncomfortable, you should go to the hospital. If necessary, I’ll discuss it with my stepfather and see if we can get a doctor to make a house call.”

“I’m okay for now, but if things get worse later, I’ll consider it,” Shen Junci said, mustering up some energy. Then he asked Gu Yanchen, “How’s the progress?”

Gu Yanchen replied, “We found that fishing app on Ke Ruhai’s phone and identified new victims. We just had a meeting with the cyber police tonight. They said it would be difficult to locate the server if we only knew the room location.”

Shen Junci pondered for a moment and said, “Maybe I can give it a try.”

Despite looking extremely weak, his expression seemed to suggest that he had everything under control.