Case 1  Su San Under Escort

“Qiu Feng, save me, Qiu Feng, Qiu Feng...”

A chill enveloped Qiu Feng’s entire body, his chest feeling like it was being crushed by a large stone, as if suffocating in the rain of that night.

“Qiu Feng, Qiu Feng, you overslept on your first day of work.”

Qiu Feng felt his body being nudged. He sat up abruptly, realizing that it was already bright outside, the summer morning sun eagerly streaming in through the gap between the curtains.

“Having nightmares again?”

“Mom, what are you doing here? You startled me.” Qiu Feng felt a bit embarrassed, trying to conceal his panic left by that dream.

“I’ve been calling you for almost half a day, and you just noticed my presence. You guys in the Criminal Investigation Division really can’t ignore us forensic examiners.” Qiu Feng’s mother, Ms. Feng Xuemei, was now wearing a mask, an apron, and even a hat to prevent hair from falling. But what was more out of place was that she was holding a spatula.

“Chief Feng, are you cooking or checking for poison in the food?” Qiu Feng tightened the blanket around himself, almost naked, as his mother barged in like that.

“Are you again thinking about the thing seven years ago? I thought you had forgotten all about it, which is why you chose to go to the police academy and work in the front line.” Ms. Feng whispered to her son with lowered head.

“No, Mom, what happened seven years ago doesn’t affect me anymore. But Deng Qi still hasn’t been found, and those boys who went missing during that time are still unaccounted for. It’s been so many years, and the case remains unsolved. Besides, we have Dad as my role model at home. I need to learn from him.” Qiu Feng felt a bit guilty. He blamed himself for not saving Deng Qi out back then. Later, his determination to study was partly to investigate the missing cases himself, and partly due to his special admiration for that graceful and spirited policewoman.

“That’s good then. Your father, well, he’s still troubled by this after so many years. He just doesn’t want you to follow in his footsteps. He only wants you to choose a safe path. But you still chose to be a policeman as him.”

“Ahem...”

A cough was heard from outside the room.

“It’s your first day at work and it’s already this late, why aren’t you up yet for breakfast?” Qiu Hongbin’s voice carried a hint of dissatisfaction.

“Yes, Dad.”

Qiu Feng breathed a sigh of relief as his mother left with the spatula. For the past seven years, two figures had lingered in his mind: one was Deng Qi in slumber, and the other was that vigorous figure in the rain.

“I’m running late,” Qiu Feng rushed to the dining table, grabbed a slice of bread, and gulped down some milk. Before his parents could say anything more, he quickly left and closed the door.

It took a while after Qiu Hongbin saw the door closed before he picked up his phone and made a call.

“Cui, yes, it’s me. No worries. No need for special treatment. Don’t let others know about the relationship between him and me. Yes, just treat him like you would with any other officer.”

“You really are impartial,” his wife, who was spooning porridge into a bowl, said unhappily.

“This is our son’s request,” Qiu Hongbin indicated his innocence.

“Like father, like son,” Feng Xuemei put the bowl down heavily in front of her husband.

“Qiu Feng is grown up now, with his own ideas. As long as it’s not going off track, we should support him, right?”

Feng Xuemei could only sigh helplessly.

Yunyao was a prefecture-level city, neither too big nor too small. Qiu Feng’s parents were both criminal investigators at the Municipal Public Security Bureau, so due to the welfare housing policy, they enjoyed the privilege of living in the police family compound. That’s why he could sleep until late in the morning.

The Municipal Public Security Bureau was a place Qiu Feng had often visited since he was a child. When his parents were busy and his grandparents were away, it became a place he would come to after school. Sometimes his parents were so busy that he kept waiting until falling asleep and then be carried back home.

This day, however, felt completely different. Qiu Feng was here to report as an intern police officer, and he would finally get to meet his lifesaver from back then.

With that in mind, he hurried a few steps and arrived at the office of Wen Fei, the Deputy Chief of the Second Criminal Investigation Corps of Yunyao City Public Security Bureau.

Wen Fei was buried in the documents on his desk. Upon hearing a knock on the door, he didn’t lift his head but simply said, “Come in.”

“Chief Wen, intern police officer Qiu Feng reporting.”

“Oh, it’s you, kid. Are you starting work today?” Wen Fei recognized Qiu Feng’s voice and suddenly remembered. The bureau chief had specifically instructed him a few days ago that Qiu Feng, the son of Deputy Director Qiu Hongbin, was going to join the criminal investigation division. It was then that Wen Fei realized that the outstanding student from the Criminal Police Academy was actually the son of the current deputy director of the Public Security Bureau.

“Yes, I am.”

“Look at me, so busy I forgot.” Wen Fei, with heavy dark circles under his eyes, stood up and walked over to Qiu Feng. He looked him up and down. Qiu Feng was wearing a simple white short-sleeved T-shirt and gray casual pants. His face and the skin exposed to the sun during long-term training had turned a wheatish color, exuding youthful vigor.

“Youth is wonderful. You’ve got a lot of drive.” Wen Fei marveled at the young man before him, but he also worried about Qiu Feng’s identity. If something were to happen to this young man under his leadership, how could he explain it to his superiors? He might even lose his job.

“Chief Wen, I have only one request. Please help me keep this secret. I’m just a regular police academy graduate and intern.” Qiu Feng could see the change in Wen Fei’s expression and knew exactly what he was worried about.

“Alright, I’ll introduce you to our colleagues then.”

“Chief Wen, the ballistic analysis results for the June 7th shooting case are out. It seems our presumption was correct. There was indeed a disagreement within the gang due to uneven distribution of the loot...”

A figure was about to fall in front of him just as Qiu Feng stepped out. Reacting instinctively, he caught the person’s arm, only to realize it was a girl. Instantly flustered, he didn’t know where to place his hands.

“Don’t touch me.” The girl swiftly stabilized herself, realizing that the college student-looking guy in front of her had just tried to help her.

“I... Um...” Qiu Feng wanted to explain.

“Thank you.” The girl said softly, then handed the report to Wen Fei.

“Well done, Yu. You’ve done a great job.” Wen Fei glanced over the report handed to him by the girl, and exactly, the ballistic analysis directly corroborated their previous assumptions.

“Can we make the arrest?”

“Approved for arrest. Take Bai Xiang and Yan Yang with you,” said Wen Fei, writting down instructions on the report.

Yu, the girl in front of Qiu Feng, turned out to be the policewoman who had saved him years ago. Qiu Feng had imagined many scenarios for their reunion, but he hadn’t expected it to be like this.

“Alright, we’ll go get our equipment right away.”

“By the way, Yu, take him with you too.” Wen Fei said, pushing Qiu Feng out.

In the police car, there seemed to be some awkwardness. Bai Xiang was driving while Yan Yang kept glancing at the back seat. Normally, the seat next to Mu Yu belonged to him, but today it was taken by a rookie.

“Hey, who are you?” Mu Yu had been organizing her equipment all along. It was only now that she noticed the person who had been pushed to her by the chief was sitting next to her, staring at her.

“Hi. I’m Qiu Feng. Today is my first day on the job.” Qiu Feng tried to make eye contact with Mu Yu, unsure if she remembered him.

“Oh, the newcomer. Let me give you an update. This case is about a shooting incident at the entrance of the Yingxin Park last month. The two sides originally belonged to the same theft gang, but due to internal conflicts, they shot on the street. It’s been confirmed that the firearms held by both sides are homemade pistols. Where they got them is still unclear. We’re going to arrest one of the suspects now, named Zhao Pengcheng. Here’s his photo.”

Mu Yu handed a photo to Qiu Feng. The man in the photo had a face full of flesh, but the most important feature was a prominent scar on his left cheek.

“Later, don’t act recklessly. Just follow behind me. We’ll first assess the situation and not act rashly. Understood?” Mu Yu raised her voice.

“Understood,” Qiu Feng didn’t know why Mu Yu suddenly became so solemn.

“You two heard that too, right?” Mu Yu poked Bai Xiang and Yan Yang in front.

“Every time we go out on a mission, you say the same ones. How could we forget?” Bai Xiang nodded silently, but Yan Yang turned back and smiled at Mu Yu.

“Yan Yang, I’m not joking with you. Every time we go out on a mission, we need to take it seriously and return safely. Although we are police officers, and we have sworn to sacrifice ourselves for the people at any time, we cannot risk our lives recklessly. Each of you has parents and family. I don’t want to see your families suffer the pain of losing loved ones.”

“Yu, Yu, don’t get upset. I just wanted to lighten the mood. I remember every word you said to me.” Yan Yang saw that the girl in the back seat was trembling with anger because of his words, so he immediately stopped being frivolous.

“What’s going on? Don’t be angry. We are all at your command,” Qiu Feng didn’t expect this delicate girl to burst out with such great energy. No wonder seven years ago, she could easily subdue a man much taller than herself.

Obviously, Mu Yu didn’t want to talk anymore. She turned her face away towards the window.

“Don’t ask anymore,” Yan Yang whispered to Qiu Feng while waving his hand.

Just when the atmosphere in the car was about to freeze, the car came to a stop.

“Yu, I think we’ve arrived. Can you please check the map?” Bai Xiang, who had been silent, finally spoke up.

1 “Su San Under Escort”: Su San is a character in Peking Opera. In this theatrical piece, Su San, wrongly accused, is imprisoned but eventually vindicated and released, symbolizing the triumph of justice over injustice, reflecting the traditional Chinese value of seeking fairness and justice. The first case is suggested to relate to this quotation.