Crimson Instinct

Chapter 140: Invisible Zhang Xiulan

*Xin Lei*

It was quite late in the evening when we all had dinner, but nobody could really eat much. Liao Huifang was in her room who refused to have any food. It was understandable. So, I didn't force her.

Bro rested his head on his hand as he listened to everything that Luo Zhiqiang said - about our conversation with Zhang Chao and Zhang Ning in the hospital.

"Zhang Xiulan shows similar traits of a psychopath. She killed Zhang Ning's pet and later on her mother, Zhang Qiyue. She tried to attack Zhang Ning, which forced Zhang Chao to send her abroad for her treatment under the guise of studies."

Bai Li said, "That woman used a voice changer too to speak. She also hinted at Zhang Ning that she must know why she attacked her. So we can only guess that Zhang Xiulan is back. We have told Zhang Chao to find out about her and inform us, but I am sure he won't say a word."

Bro snorted. "Of course, he wouldn't. Why would he willingly tell us about her, even if found out? Politicians are crafty."

I typed. "Plus, he is salty about the fact that we forced him to confess about that innocent driver's murder. He wouldn't tell us anything simply because he wants to take revenge."

Shi Ruiling frowned. "But who would have helped her? To pull that off in Tianjin Port, I don't think she did it alone. Somebody else messed up with that gantry crane while she went off to attack Zhang Ning."

"Not just gantry crane," Bro gravely said, "the fact that she could return to Beijing and was in hiding for one whole year from the Zhang family; she must have found outside help. Zhang Chao is influential."

I recalled everything that happened in Tianjin Port until now, and something didn't add up.

I typed. "Something doesn't add up."

Bro raised his right brow, and he seemed amused. "Ho...so, my dumb sister finally detected that something is wrong with the whole situation."

My brow twitched.

"There is still hope, I guess." He chuckled.

Fuming, I grabbed one pillow and threw at him, but he easily dodged it like a pro.

"You really like to bully her, don't you?" Bai Li shook his head.

Bro coldly sent him death glares. "Don't interfere between a brother-sister relationship. You are already showing your true colors, aren't you?" He sneered.

"..."

What true colors?

Bai Li smiled as he turned in my direction. "Ignore your brother. I know that my Xin Lei is smart."

I blushed and hit on his shoulder.

Yuan coughed from my side.

*Crack*

The pen that bro held in his hand cruelly broke into two pieces. I could literally feel as if I was in the Arctic. The cold winds he let off were just too harsh to bear.

"That was so cringy." Bro glowered at us. "And what the hell is 'my' Xin Lei? You have got quite the guts. Heh! Aren't you too eager? Oh, is it because you were a monk for thirty-two years? Now is your hidden horniness coming out?" He sneered.

My mouth twitched.

"You are just jealous because you cannot be that sweet like me." Bai Li came up with an equally good response.

"Sweet? It's disgusting." Bro's expression was ugly.

"Zhen, you are in no position to comment about Bai Li being a monk, okay? You are just a year younger than him, that means thirty-one, and we started dating about just a year ago. So, for the past thirty years, you weren't also any less than a monk." Shi Ruiling rolled her eyes.

Silence.

It seemed as if Bai Li was itching to comment on something, but he held back.

Bro turned his head in slow motion towards her, and well...his smile was not very... pleasant.

Bro narrowed his eyes and laughed. "I sometimes wonder whose girlfriend you are."

"I always stand on the side of justice." Shi, Ruiling thoughtfully nodded her head. "You are unnecessarily bullying him. I won't stand for it even if I am your girlfriend." She smiled and winked at me.

Sister-in-law...I sobbed. You are the best!

Bro seemed in a worse mood than before. He shot a glare at me, and I straightened up. "When are you going to start?"

Huh? Oh, what I felt wrong about the situation

"Clearly, you are getting dumb."

I harrumphed and typed. "Well. I don't understand the point of collapsing the gantry cranes. Weren't they there for a deal? Why would she jeopardize it just to kill Zhang Ning? I mean sure she might hate her, but she could have got other chances to attack her. And we stopped the deal. So it failed. So why?"

Bai Li nodded. "That is the part which doesn't fit. We stopped the deal. The clients were unable to escape, after which Luo Zhiqiang and your team caught them. They suffered a loss of up to millions of dollars. For what? Just to kill Zhang Ning? Weren't they preparing for this deal for quite a while? So why would they risk it like this?"

He asked bro, "Did the clients confess anything?"

"No." Luo Zhiqiang shook his head. "They don't know anything about them. They didn't know what they looked like. All communication was via phone or mails, which cannot be tracked. They lead us to a dead end."

"What about Zhao Wenyan? Didn't he hand over the USB to them?"

"He was only there for Yi Xing. They planned to expose Zhang Chao through the clients, so they pretended to be from their side and save Zhang Ning. We checked the USB too. It didn't contain any confidential information about China that could threaten national security."

I typed. "This is too strange. Well, they pretended as someone from the Zhang party, but when was the real boss going to come? Zhang Xiulan appeared after the cranes broke down. She didn't appear before. So when was she planning to meet the clients? And that also means that the real USB is still with her. Perhaps she could plan another deal."

Bro squinted his eyes. "We are tracking the movements of Zhang Xiulan too. But there is no information about her."

"What do you mean?"

"Yup." It was Qi Qiang who spoke after a long time through the monitor. "When you talked about Zhang Xiulan, I already started to search for her information. But as brother Xin Zhen said, there is absolutely nothing, not even a single photo of hers. It's like somebody has very expertly kept her identity hidden."

I typed. "It must be Zhang Chao. When Zhang Xiulan killed Zhang Qiuyue, he might have erased all information about her so that the truth doesn't come out."

"Maybe. But the scale at which it is hidden, I don't think it can be completely him. I also hacked the data when she was sent abroad, but all the files and records are deleted. From childhood until now, there is nothing about her. Like you will seriously even doubt the existence of Zhang Xiulan in this world if her father and sister wouldn't have told you about her."

I was stunned.

Qi Qiang said, "But I am still trying. I have to make sure that they don't doubt anyone trying to access their information."

We nodded.

"Duan Deming is in your custody, right? Did he say anything?" Bai Li asked.

 "No." Bro coldly said, "We haven't done extensive interrogation, but he was just laughing like crazy. He thinks that his boss or whatever will plan something to save him out of our clutches." He snorted. "As if."

"Lin Zihao and Su Weiyuan are also busy trying to locate Rodey's whereabouts. He would be careful more than ever now."

"What do you think about his escape?" 

Bai Li said nothing. I looked at him, and he seemed as if something was really bothering him. Bro didn't push him for an answer, either.

"Boy." Bro looked towards the monitor.

Qi Qiang was startled. "M-me?"

"Who else is a young boy here?" Bro said.

Qi Qiang coughed. "I-I am twenty-three"

"Yet not old enough to be a man. Anyway, my team will be supporting you to complete your software to go into that Dark Web."

He nodded.

"Luo Zhiqiang. Ask Team B to keep trying to find out about Zhang Xiulan."

But he didn't respond. Luo Zhiqiang looked in a daze, and it seemed as if he didn't hear him.

"Zhiqiang?" Bro called him again.

Luo Zhiqiang snapped out. "Zhen."

Bro quietly stared at him for a few seconds and then said, "Ask Team B to continue the search about Zhang Xiulan."

He nodded.

Was he okay?

"Sis." Qi Qiang called.

I looked at him questioningly.

"How is Liao Huifang" He seemed disheartened. "She must be in a lot of pain Sis Chuntao was everything for her. She is my good friend, and even though we argue sometimes, I care about her. She has refused to eat, but don't let her be hungry."

I faintly smiled. I typed. "I know. It may take a while to come terms to her death, but we all are here for her and you too, right?"

He nodded. "Yes."

Bai Li said, "We are depending on you to reach the culprits. Do your best to help your friend so that we give justice to Liao Chuntao and everybody else."

Qi Qiang seemed determined. "Yes, brother. I will."