TWO Intern Detective Hou
Regardless of what changes occurred in Yang Yong's family, the sun still rose as usual. The Shian Factory continued to operate at its own pace, and the mailman delivered newspapers to subscribers' doors every day on time.
Yang Yong couldn't accept the reality of his daughter's sudden death and refused to believe that she lay in the cold, dark funeral home. Every day when he left home, he would imagine his daughter going off to school with her backpack. Each time he entered the house, he still felt her presence and could almost hear the faint sound of piano music.
One day, he walked into the house, carrying a few newspapers that had accumulated in the mailbox. It was usually his daughter who cleared the mailbox daily, but in recent days, the papers had piled up, blocking the mailbox. Yang Yong tucked the papers under his arm, walked to the living room, and stood there for a long time before placing the papers on the table.
He didn't know what to do next, his ears filled again with the faint sound of a piano. His eyes wandered around the room, searching for his daughter's figure, when suddenly, he saw her—his familiar daughter. Her performance photo was printed on the Jiangzhou Evening News, occupying an eighth of the page, exceptionally clear, and lifelike.
Yang Yong staggered forward as if struck by a bullet and grabbed the newspaper. The fourth page of the newspaper was dedicated to Yang Fan's drowning, with her performance photo prominently displayed. The article lavished praise on her beauty and speculated on the circumstances surrounding her death, though it ended with a sentence like, "With the arrival of autumn rains, one must take extra care," the intent to exploit the deceased for attention was as obvious as the ambitions of Sima Zhao, known to all.
A surge of blood rushed to Yang Yong's head, and he felt as though his brain was about to explode. He clutched the newspaper and ran outside, jumping onto a bus to the city. Once he arrived, he jumped off the bus and sprinted to the newspaper office.
Entering the building, he screamed, "Where is Zhu Jianwei? Zhu Jianwei, you b*st*rd, get out here!"
The security guard downstairs tried to stop Yang Yong, leading to a scuffle that ended with Yang Yong smashing a small flowerpot over the guard's head, leaving him bleeding profusely.
After Yang Fan's incident, Hou Guolong and Li Yongmei had stayed in Jiangzhou, planning to return to the provincial capital after Yang Fan's cremation. Hou Guolong, usually busy, took the opportunity to rest at home. He received a call from Qin Yu and hurriedly told his wife, "Don't wait for me for lunch; I have to go out."
Li Yongmei, displeased, scolded, "It's rare for you to be back in Jiangzhou. You promised not to go out, so why are you leaving again?"
Hou Guolong bent over to put on his shoes and replied, "Today, the Jiangzhou Evening News published an article about Yang Fan's drowning, using a large photo of her. Yang Yong got furious and went to the newspaper office to confront the reporter, but ended up fighting with the security guard and cracked the guard's head open. Yang Yong has been taken to the police station, and I have to get him out."
Li Yongmei pointed to the bedroom ,"Keep your voice down; don't let our son hear this."
Hou Dali, who had been lying weakly in bed, suddenly sat up upon hearing his father's words. He waited by the window until his father had gone far, then found an excuse to leave the house. The nearest newsstand was out of copies of the Jiangzhou Evening News, so he walked down the street to another newsstand in the town square.
Approaching from the other direction was a man with slightly graying hair.
Hou Dali and the man reached the newsstand at the same time, each buying a copy of the Jiangzhou Evening News and standing nearby to read it.
The newspaper featured a performance photo of Yang Fan. This photo, which had previously been posted on the bulletin board at Jiangzhou No. 1 High School, had been skillfully reprinted by the journalist, capturing Yang Fan's likeness with exceptional clarity, making her seem almost alive. Hou Dali noticed that both the editor and photographer of the article were Zhu Jianwei.
The man beside him rolled up the newspaper and walked off under the street trees, disappearing into the crowd.
Hou Dali entered a store, bought a butcher's knife, and tucked it into his waistband before heading straight to the newspaper office. Unlike Yang Yong, who lacked experience in street fights and lost control in his fury, getting entangled with the security guards before even reaching Zhu Jianwei, Hou Dali had picked up some street smarts during his time in the provincial capital. He calmly inquired at the downstairs office about Zhu Jianwei's location.
He pushed open Zhu Jianwei's office door and called out calmly, "Reporter Zhu."
The tall, thin man sitting in the leather chair looked up arrogantly and asked, "Who are you?"
Sitting opposite Zhu Jianwei were two others, one of whom was Officer Chen Yang, who had visited Hou's house with Zhu Lin during the investigation. With a police officer present, Hou Dali didn't draw his knife. Instead, he said, "I have something to discuss with you."
Sensing something was off, Chen Yang asked, "Hou Dali, what's going on?"
Suddenly, Hou Dali took a step forward and slapped Zhu Jianwei hard across the face, shouting, "You scumbag, rubbing salt in other people's wounds—how vile!"
Chen Yang grabbed Hou Dali, preventing him from striking again.
After the earlier confrontation with Yang Fan's father, Zhu Jianwei realized that this young man must also be here for Yang Fan. A news story that sparked widespread attention was a journalist's success. Spitting out a mouthful of blood, he sternly said, "The news is not subject to any force's influence. The city's Public Security Bureau cannot interfere with the press, and your violence cannot prevent the public from knowing the truth. Are you a family member of the deceased? I have the right to hold you accountable for your actions, but considering your feelings, I'll let it go."
Having been part of the provincial circle, Hou Dali was no stranger to confrontation, but he was still young and lacked practical experience. Zhu Jianwei's self-righteous speech left him momentarily speechless. He knew most of what Zhu said was nonsense, but he couldn't find the words to refute it. Unable to argue back, Hou Dali's anger flared even more, and he lunged at Zhu Jianwei again, only to be restrained by the two officers.
After leaving the newspaper office, Hou Dali discarded the butcher's knife in a trash can.
He wandered home like a lost soul to find his father had already returned.
Hou Dali asked, "Is Uncle Yang still at the police station?"
Hou Guolong replied, "He's out. The officers understood his situation and didn't make things difficult for him. Yang Fan will be cremated tomorrow. Poor child."
Thinking about Yang Fan facing the cremation fire, Hou Dali felt his heart being torn apart. He returned to his room, his thoughts filled with regret: If I hadn't gone to hang out with those guys from the provincial capital and had taken Yang Fan home instead, this wouldn't have happened. This thought gnawed at him like a venomous snake, impossible to shake.
The fire roared, and Yang Fan's brief life ended amidst the sorrowful cries of her family.
Yang Yong and Qin Yu couldn't bear to handle their daughter's ashes, so Qin Yu's sister and Hou Dali took care of it.
Before Yang Fan's death, Yang Yong had only known that his daughter got along well with Hou Dali. But after going through her belongings and reading her diary, he saw how much his daughter had cared for Hou Dali, and thus agreed to let him accompany her on her final journey.
When the ashes came out, many were in large chunks. The crematorium workers used wooden tools to crush the ashes into finer pieces, with harder bones being broken down with a wooden mallet.
Throughout the farewell ceremony and other stages, Hou Dali remained expressionless. He had cried so much in secret in recent days that he had no tears left. But when the mallet struck the skull, he felt Yang Fan's piercing pain and her unwillingness to leave the world, and his tears flowed uncontrollably, soaking his chest.
"Newspaper Girl, I know you were murdered. I swear I will find the killer and avenge you!" Hou Dali vowed, holding the urn. He didn't speak aloud, only to his soul. After experiencing such a painful loss, if he couldn't catch the killer, his soul would never be at peace.
The cemetery was crowded with graves, each marked by a headstone with a photograph. Most of the photos were of elderly people, some of middle-aged, and very few of the young. After the ashes were placed, a granite cover was laid on top, sealing the divide between the living and the dead. Qin Yu sat by her daughter's grave for a long time, unwilling to leave.
Yang Yong, looking haggard, his hair and beard gray and dry, stared intently at the now unfamiliar but once familiar Hou Dali. "Thank you for everything you've done for Xiao Fan. We're moving away from Jiangzhou. We'll come back every year to visit her grave; you should come see her when you can."
With that, he choked up and embraced Hou Dali tightly.
After parting ways with Yang Yong and Qin Yu, Hou Dali walked back in a daze. He didn't even notice the honking of a car that sped towards him. The driver swerved at the last moment, avoiding a direct collision, but still clipped Hou Dali, sending him flying.
Hou Dali remained unconscious for twelve hours. During that time, his mind was filled with fragmented details of the events at Shian Bridge. Countless pieces of imagery swirled in his brain, forming ever-changing pictures, none of which supported the idea that Yang Fan's death was an accident.
While their son was unconscious, Hou Guolong and Li Yongmei stayed by his bedside. After he awoke, Li Yongmei immediately decided to donate to a temple. Since becoming a renowned entrepreneur in the country, Hou Guolong had found that while most worldly matters were manageable, the spiritual and mystical aspects of life remained elusive. Both he and his wife, once staunch atheists, began to bow to fate, believing in gods and spirits, and became regular donors to temples in the provincial capital.
Sitting by her son's hospital bed, Li Yongmei patted her chest, saying, "You scared your mother to death!"
"If you don't want to stay at Jiangzhou No. 1 High School, you can study abroad anytime," Hou Guolong suggested, not wanting his son to fall back into the same reckless lifestyle he had in the provincial capital. He was ready to send him abroad directly.
But Hou Dali shook his head. "I'm not going anywhere. I'm staying at Jiangzhou No. 1 High School."
Half a month later, Hou Dali was discharged from the hospital. As he walked back into school, he felt that Yang Fan's death marked a clear and irreversible change in the world. Everything was subtly different, and every person he knew seemed to have changed in some way. This transformation was deeply hidden, but Hou Dali could sense it. After pondering for a long time, he realized that he, too, had undergone an irreversible change—there was no going back to the way things were.
Just as Hou Dali was about to enter the school building, his classmate Jin Chuantong ran up to him, speaking in a hushed, secretive tone. "Did you hear? Chen Lei got into some serious trouble."
Both Hou Dali and Jin Chuantong were second-generation rich kids. While the Hou family business was one of the top enterprises in the province and well-known nationwide, the Jin family owned a local real estate company with a strong reputation in the area. At school, they were seen as students with "severe social tendencies who somehow got into Class One, severely affecting the class's academic atmosphere"—a conclusion given by their homeroom teacher, nicknamed Mr. Du Glasses.
After what had happened to Yang Fan, a life-altering event for Hou Dali, he wasn't interested in Jin Chuantong's secretive tone and continued walking.
Jin Chuantong, unable to comprehend Hou Dali's sudden change in mood, persisted, "Hey, hey, don't walk away. Listen to me. Chen Lei once wrote love letters to Yang Fan—everyone knows that. When the police went to his house to check, they stumbled upon something unexpected."
Hou Dali stopped in his tracks, his eyebrows bristling, and he grabbed Jin Chuantong by the collar. "What did they find?"
Jin Chuantong, who was rather thin, gasped for air, sticking out his tongue. "Let go, I can't breathe."
Hou Dali slowly released his grip, his brows relaxing. "Spit it out, don't keep me hanging."
Jin Chuantong rubbed his neck and caught his breath before continuing. "When the police questioned Chen Lei, they accidentally found a stolen motorcycle at his house. He got caught by sheer bad luck. Tonight, why don't we go out and have some fun to shake off the bad vibes?"
"I'm not playing anymore," Hou Dali shook his head and headed towards the classroom.
Jin Chuantong was startled to notice that Hou Dali was carrying a large backpack. His jaw nearly dropped in shock. Hou Dali, who had "seen the world" in the provincial capital, had always scoffed at carrying a backpack outside of school. At the beginning of the semester, he had mocked Jin Chuantong several times for carrying a backpack. Ever since then, Jin Chuantong had avoided carrying a backpack whenever possible, so it was shocking to see Hou Dali carrying one now.
Jin Chuantong quickened his pace to keep up with Hou Dali, saying, "Who would have thought, Chen Lei always had good grades, yet he was part of a theft ring. He hid it well!"
Hou Dali found Jin Chuantong's rich-kid antics childish and ignored him, walking straight into the classroom. As he entered, all eyes turned towards him, finally settling on the conspicuous new large backpack.
To Hou Dali, this new backpack was symbolic.
While lying in the hospital, Hou Dali had made an important decision: to study hard, get into the criminal investigation program at Sannan University of Political Science and Law, and become a detective so he could find Yang Fan's killer.
After Yang Fan's drowning, the police had decided not to open a case, and thus no investigation took place. Hou Dali cursed the police as useless, but after his anger subsided, he realized he couldn't change their decision. So, he made a life-altering decision: to become a detective and find the killer himself, avenging Yang Fan.
When Hou Guolong learned of his son's plan, he felt both joy and concern. He was glad that his son seemed to have matured overnight, focusing on something meaningful, but he was worried about his son's decision to become a police officer. In most families, having a son become a police officer would be something to celebrate, but for Hou Guolong, his son's primary responsibility was to work at the family business and eventually take over. Running the Guolong Group was what truly mattered. Becoming a police officer was not part of the plan.
After Hou Dali made his intentions clear, Hou Guolong, still holding onto some hope, tried to reason with his son while he was still in the hospital. "I support you going to college; that's a great thing. But I suggest applying to Sannan University of Finance or Sannan University."
Hou Dali responded directly, "Dad, there's no need to beat around the bush, and I won't either. I want to be a police officer because of Yang Fan. Once I solve her case and catch the killer, I'll come back and work at the company."
Hou Guolong was exasperated. "Captain Zhu is one of the top detectives in Jiangzhou. He's solved many major cases. If he's concluded that Yang Fan's death was accidental, then it was an accident. There's no killer, so how will you solve the case? And if you can't solve it, does that mean you'll never return to Guolong Group?"
Hou Dali replied slowly, "If I get into the criminal investigation program and become a detective, at least it's a legitimate career, and it's only temporary. If I continue down the wrong path, dabbling in drugs or getting into fights, that would truly be the wrong direction."
The business community in the provincial capital was generally anxious about their children's education, given that many of the next generation had gotten into trouble with the law. The mention of such a possibility made Hou Guolong jump as if shocked by electricity. "Fine, fine, fine. If you want to apply to the criminal investigation program, go ahead. Just don't say these unlucky things in a fit of anger."
"I'm not speaking out of anger; I really want to study criminal investigation."
"Xiao Fan's tragic death has been hardest on her parents. If anyone should pursue justice, it's them. Your Uncle Yang is now working at a private hospital in the provincial capital, and your Aunt Qin has gone with him. They've essentially accepted that Xiao Fan's death was an accident."
"No matter whether they accept it or not, I still hold my belief that without external force, Yang Fan could not have fallen into the water. If I give up on investigating this matter, my life would be meaningless."
After talking with their son, Hou Guolong and Li Yongmei could only comply with his wishes. Although applying to the Police University wasn't the ideal choice, it was certainly better than him becoming a troublemaker.
Yang Fan's death was like a nail deeply embedded in Hou Dali's mind, preventing him from facing life the way he used to. The police didn't file a case, and society was powerless to help, leaving him alone to deal with the psychological trauma of Yang Fan's tragic death. Both his body and mind exhibited symptoms akin to post-traumatic stress disorder, though no one considered it from that perspective.
Hou Dali, with his poor academic performance, had entered Jiangzhou No. 1 High School through special connections, making it quite challenging for him to get into the criminal investigation program at Sannan University of Political Science and Law. Fortunately, he was only in his first year of high school, and as long as he studied diligently, there was still hope. To quickly improve his grades, he decided to hire private tutors for English, math, and Chinese, dedicating his weekends and holidays to extra lessons.
For most families, private tutoring is expensive, but Hou Guolong wasn't concerned about the money; he was more worried about whether his son could maintain his determination until the college entrance exam. He discussed their son's plans with his wife, Li Yongmei, and they came to the following conclusion: If their son was like a rooster laying eggs—stubborn at first but lacking perseverance—then it would prove that he was an ordinary person, not cut out to take over the business. In that case, they'd focus on leaving him enough money to live comfortably for the rest of his life and hire professional managers to run the company. However, if he could persevere and get into Sannan University of Political Science and Law, then he would indeed be a capable person, deserving of inheriting the family business. Even if he became a police officer, he would eventually have to take over the company.
After Yang Fan's death, Hou Dali, a rich second-generation kid, completely distanced himself from the wealthy circles of the provincial capital and Jiangzhou, becoming a silent and introverted high school student. He spent his days between school and home, focused solely on studying, while also maintaining a rigorous exercise routine.
By 2004, just before the college entrance exam, Hou Dali had risen to fourth place in his class during the mock exams, demonstrating excellent performance. Both Hou Guolong and the teachers took turns trying to persuade him to apply to Tsinghua or Peking University. However, after the exam, Hou Dali didn't even consider other options and only applied for the criminal investigation program at Sannan University of Political Science and Law.
The criminal investigation program at Sannan University was the first undergraduate program of its kind approved by the Ministry of Education, and many leaders in the Sannan criminal investigation system were alumni of this program. Hou Dali had thought long and hard about this decision, ultimately deciding to become the junior of these influential criminal investigation leaders.
Hou Guolong sighed privately: With his son's intelligence and determination, getting into Tsinghua or Peking University wouldn't have been a problem. It was a pity that by choosing to study law, his son's future connections would be mainly within the police circle, rather than in higher echelons, potentially limiting his prospects—what a loss.
Li Yongmei, however, dismissed this as "greed," remarking that her son's decision to take the right path was more important than anything else. The changes she had seen in her son over the past two years had brought her immense joy, and she was absolutely satisfied.
After receiving his admission letter to Sannan University of Political Science and Law, Hou Dali went to the cemetery to pay respects to Yang Fan.
Since the car accident, Hou Dali had noticed something odd with his mind. Known for his keen observational skills, which had earned him the nickname "Four-Eyed Dog," his abilities seemed to have been significantly enhanced after the accident. His eyes now worked almost like a camera, with his vision becoming wider and clearer, allowing him to quickly and accurately capture every detail. What surprised him even more was that when he closed his eyes, the images he had seen would automatically play back in his mind, clear and structured, like a video replay function, cycling over and over for him to review and analyze.
Jiangzhou Cemetery was built on a hillside, and from the top, the countless tombstones looked like a vast army. Standing at the top, Hou Dali tested his newfound abilities: closing his eyes, he could mentally recreate the tombstones, layer by layer. Any tombstone he had seen before would reappear in his mind, with the photos and inscriptions on them vividly clear.
Hou Dali spent some time observing the tombstones in his mind, mentally conversing with the lifelike image of Yang Fan. After their "conversation," he carefully wiped Yang Fan's tombstone photo with a handkerchief.
His phone rang. Yang Yong's voice sounded distant yet familiar, "How did your exams go?"
"I've been accepted into the criminal investigation program at Sannan University of Political Science and Law. I'm at the cemetery, visiting Xiao Fan's grave."
Yang Yong, who secretly visited Jiangzhou on his daughter's birthday each year, always found her grave meticulously maintained, with fresh flowers that had not withered, covered in dewdrops and full of life. Hou Dali, once known for his charming personality, had gained a poor reputation at Shian Factory after becoming a rich second-generation kid. Who would have thought that this so-called delinquent was actually a deeply affectionate person, consistently tending to Yang Fan's grave and even enrolling in a police university for her sake?
Though the case was debatable, the fact that Hou Dali had come this far out of love for his daughter moved Yang Yong to tears as he spoke to him on the phone.
Yang Yong had originally wanted to tell Hou Dali that his wife was pregnant again, but after learning that Hou Dali was at the cemetery, he decided not to mention it. A strange thought crept into his mind—that having another child would be akin to abandoning Yang Fan, severing the connection with his daughter. This idea was irrational, yet once it took hold, it was difficult to shake.
Hou Dali's time at Sannan University of Political Science and Law was markedly different from that of his classmates. He entered university with a strong motivation to solve Yang Fan's case and was highly focused on his studies, showing no interest in activities unrelated to his field, such as dating. Although he lived and interacted normally with his peers, he felt a deep sense of disconnection, viewing everything and everyone through the eyes of an observer. Even when he participated in group activities, played, drank, or danced with his classmates, he remained emotionally detached, unable to fully engage, which deprived him of genuine happiness.
While his classmates, having just survived the grueling college entrance exams, relaxed and dabbled in romance and gaming, showing little dedication to their studies, Hou Dali's diligence quickly set him apart, making him a top student early on.
By sophomore year, some of his classmates had set their sights on graduate school or were active in social organizations, rapidly advancing and making a name for themselves on campus. However, many others remained aimless, drifting along.
During this period, Guolong Group thrived, with Hou Guolong frequently appearing on domestic rich lists. Despite this, Hou Dali remained low-key at university, choosing not to pursue a graduate degree, avoiding romantic entanglements, and shunning social activities, focusing solely on his studies. His single-mindedness earned him the nickname "the freak" among his classmates.
Throughout his four years at university, Hou Dali only made a public appearance once. He discovered that his unique visual and spatial perception abilities were particularly suited to criminal investigation, and he found ways to enhance and train these skills. During simulated case exercises, he could mentally reconstruct crime scenes with remarkable accuracy, even identifying details he had missed during the actual simulation.
To test his abilities, Hou Dali participated in a game show on Sannan TV called Super Detective King. The show featured a special challenge: contestants had to identify a single modified block among 45,000 Rubik's Cube blocks.
To boost ratings, the show had a designated "seed" contestant, who had to memorize the positions of 22,500 blocks in a wall of cubes before the show. During the show, one block was adjusted, and the contestant had to identify the altered block from memory. Although the contestant could view the two Rubik's Cube walls beforehand, memorizing 22,500 blocks required exceptional memory skills—a feat only a genius could accomplish.
Hou Dali, participating in this challenge, had a significant advantage. Without needing to memorize, he could visualize the two cube walls in his mind and convert them into 3D images. When the images overlapped, the adjusted block automatically stood out. This extraordinary ability earned him the title of Super Detective King on the show, causing a sensation at Sannan University.
Before graduating, a senior professor from the criminal investigation department, Professor Fei, offered to supervise Hou Dali as a graduate student. Professor Fei had a strong academic background, and many of his former students held leadership positions in the criminal investigation field. Securing a place in Professor Fei's research group would have greatly benefited Hou Dali's career in criminal investigation. However, Hou Dali politely but firmly declined the offer, determined to return to Jiangzhou as a police detective—a decision that many found regrettable.
The fleeting passage of time makes the university years seem like only a brief moment in life, and before he knew it, it was already 2007, the beginning of his internship period.
Before starting his internship, Hou Dali had a drink with his classmates and then packed his bags to head to his assigned unit.
Xia Xiaoyu, the head of the Jiangzhou branch of Guolong Group, had been cultivating connections in Jiangzhou for years and had extensive networks. It was through his arrangements that Hou Dali was able to intern at the Jiangzhou Criminal Investigation Team.
Solving the case of Yang Fan's fall into the water, which was never officially investigated, was the reason Hou Dali chose to attend the Law University. After entering, he quickly realized that solving this case would be incredibly difficult. If he gave up, Yang Fan would never find peace. Therefore, no matter how challenging it was, Hou Dali was determined to pursue it to the end—it was perhaps his destiny.
A Twelve-Year-Old Cold Case
Returning to Jiangzhou from Yangzhou, the provincial capital, Hou Dali received a call and went to the office of the Criminal Investigation Team Leader, Zhu Lin.
It had been years since they last met, and Zhu Lin looked even thinner than before. Not only was his hair graying, but his temples and beard were also turning white. Some people are handsome when they are young but become ordinary as they age. Zhu Lin, however, was the opposite—though he had been quite plain in his youth, his graying hair now gave him a dignified and even charismatic appearance, enhanced by his sharp gaze, making him look almost like a star.
He scrutinized the Sannan University of Political Science and Law student standing before him, who was saluting him, without saying a word.
Six years had passed, and the once immature rich kid had completely transformed. He was now tall, poised, and noticeably more mature than his peers, resembling an experienced detective.
Zhu Lin's opinion of Hou Dali had undergone a change over time. After Yang Fan's disappearance, Zhu Lin had seen the high schooler, Hou Dali, drunk out of his mind at the Hou family home, leaving a terrible impression. However, later on, Hou Dali risked his life to rent a boat and search along the river for Yang Fan, searching for three consecutive days until he finally found her at a bend in the river. Zhu Lin had then developed a respect for the young man's sense of loyalty and courage, softening his earlier judgment.