Chapter 111
Good news arrived before dawn: the Major Crimes Unit, after a relentless search, finally located the two children. Tian Xinxi, showing some conscience, left Dingding and Lele half a bag of bread and two bottles of water before leaving. The siblings survived on these meager provisions for a few days, and after a hospital check-up, aside from slight dehydration, they were found to be otherwise unharmed.
Once the two children's conditions stabilized, Tiger happily reopened Cafe Tiger and invited a group of people to celebrate. Yin Jincheng was treated as a VIP, and the Major Crimes Team B now enjoyed lifetime free meals at Cafe Tiger. Iris used to clink glasses with Yin Jincheng; because of Chloe and having worked together on several cases, they were now quite familiar with each other, and even chatting alone wasn't awkward. Zhuang Zhuoyuan was waiting at the bar for a cocktail, and before he'd even eaten a few peanuts, Yu Xueli approached with a mischievous grin and a mysterious air: "Sister-in-law didn't drink today."
Zhuang Zhuoyuan really wanted to say that the special drink would be hers later, but he was more interested in seeing what Yu Xueli was up to, so he went along with what he said and said, "She recently said she wanted to change her Mummy's drink."
Yu Xueli smiled even more meaningfully: "So you're really going to be parents again? My sister said she saw Iris at Dr. Yep's place a couple of days ago."
Ye Xiuyun? Zhuang Zhuoyuan didn't know Iris had recently gone to the obstetrics department again. But thinking about it, he knew it was impossible. An accident might happen once, but it's unlikely to happen twice. Besides, she didn't necessarily go to the obstetrics department just for a checkup; she had accompanied Chloe there before… Thinking of this, he glanced at Iris, who was chatting happily with Yin Jincheng. Seeing that neither of them looked unusual, he ruled out the possibility of her being a younger sister. Then who could it be? Zhuang Zhuoyuan sifted through the girls who were close to Iris, and it seemed that only Alice fit the bill. He remembered how Iris had mysteriously told him she had good news a few days ago, and suddenly wanted to gossip with Zhang Jiguang about it. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Su Wenqiang, sitting in a corner of the booth, pick up a glass of lemonade. Zhuang Zhuoyuan nudged Yu Xueli: "Ali, Madam didn't drink today either."
It started as a joke, but when he mentioned it to his wife, Iris's strange expression immediately made Zhuang Zhuoyuan realize that he had unknowingly stumbled upon the truth. He was extremely surprised: "Ali didn't know about this?"
Iris sighed: "Not everyone is as brave, decisive, and confident as your wife."
If his wife were also a Flying Tiger… Inspector Zhuang immediately stopped his wandering thoughts. Impossible, he would never agree to her wanting to become a police officer. Iris rolled her eyes at him. Inspector Zhuang had been acting strangely sensitive lately. She couldn't tell if he was still troubled by shooting Tian Xinxi while Dingding and Lele were still missing, or if he was uncomfortable about leaving his sniper post. Since even his own thoughts were a tangled mess, Iris didn't know how to comfort him and could only spend more time by his side.
Zhuang Zhuoyuan was never a taciturn person; even when something serious happened, he would tell Iris about it soon enough. This time, his unusual behavior stemmed not only from a desire to re-evaluate his career but also from the need to maintain secrecy after accepting a special mission. Pan Zilong had roughly explained the process of promotion after training to him, but during their conversation, he also privately asked him for a favor: to secretly investigate Zhong Wei'en's activities.
This sounds strange. Chung Wai-yan belongs to the CIB and is under Tan Sir's command. Even if they found out that she had a problem, they should have followed the procedure to suspend her from her duties first and then conduct an internal investigation. Why would they find a Flying Tiger to be an undercover agent? What's even stranger is that this order was issued by Pan Zilong.
Pan Zilong smiled bitterly, shedding his superior's authority, and spoke to Zhuang Zhuoyuan in a brotherly tone: "To put it more formally, when A'en was an undercover agent, I was her contact person. The bond we formed while fighting side by side is something outsiders can hardly understand. After she got into trouble, I felt very guilty. After she returned to the police force, I really wanted to help her so that she could have a better life."
Zhuang Zhuoyuan was aware of this. On several occasions, Iris had told him that Inspector Pan had inquired about Zhong Wei'en's recent situation, and had even bought some food and utensils to ask her to deliver to Zhong Wei'en, without telling her to tell him directly. Inspector Pan had indeed played a significant role behind the scenes in Zhong Wei'en's reinstatement. All in all, his concern seemed genuine.
Taking a sip of wine, Pan Zilong began to smile bitterly: "It was precisely because she was thrown into the sea back then that a rift appeared in our relationship. When A'en came back this time, her personality had changed drastically. At first, I thought it was due to post-traumatic stress disorder. After all, no one can be without resentment after walking through the gates of hell. But gradually, I realized that she was suspicious of me. I think she still can't let go of what happened back then and is determined to find out who exposed her identity."
"And she suspects you're the mole?" Zhuang Zhuoyuan blurted out.
Pan Zilong remained silent and slowly nodded.
Zhuang Zhuoyuan remained silent. He shouldn't make any judgments at this moment. Pan Zilong was trying to clear up his doubts, but it was hard to guarantee that this wasn't a trap to lure him into.
“Back then, I could have been promoted smoothly, but because of the undercover operation, I failed the assessment. And my wife divorced me because of a series of trivial matters that followed.” Pan Zilong wanted to prove his innocence, but the more he spoke, the more powerless he became: “If I really wanted to harm A’en, I would never have done it at that time. Besides, I have no reason to harm her. And now, she is indeed following me. I found out a couple of days ago that she moved into my neighborhood. She is probably already eavesdropping on me.”
In this situation, it would probably be more appropriate to call the police. Zhuang Zhuoyuan suggested, but Pan Zilong shook his head and refused: "This is the last resort. Right now, I suspect that she may be stuck in her own thoughts due to emotional problems, so I want to ask you to help me find out about her situation first, and then we can deal with it accordingly. In short, we should try to minimize the harm to her."
Pan Zilong's final tone was earnest, but Zhuang Zhuoyuan remained calm. He tried to remain composed, quickly analyzed the situation, and ultimately agreed to help Pan Zilong with his investigation in the name of brotherhood.
Between Pan Zilong and Zhong Wei'en, one of them must be the culprit. Chuang Cheuk-yuen, caught in this conflict, has no choice but to stand on his own side after careful consideration, relying on his experience and intellect to judge right and wrong. Pan Zilong needs his help, and Chuang Cheuk-yuen also needs help; the best candidate is Chan Hon-tao. Chan Hon-tao's abilities are undeniable, and he and Chuang Cheuk-yuen have a life-or-death bond. In the event of any unforeseen circumstances during the operation, their years of working together would greatly increase their chances of handling the situation. Furthermore, as a member of the Flying Tigers, he can also be informed of any unusual movements by Pan Zilong and intervene accordingly.
Zhuang Zhuoyuan didn't plan to tell Iris about this. After all, she had connections with both of them, and she would be upset if either of them were to suffer. Moreover, judging from the current situation, neither of them was easy to deal with; one was cunning and shrewd, and the other was reckless when he went crazy. Therefore, even with Derek by his side, Zhuang Zhuoyuan didn't want Iris to take any risks.
He also had to find ways to reduce his wife's meetings with those two. Being used as a pawn was secondary; being taken hostage would be disastrous, especially since Iris had recently taken Tangyuan out for social events. Zhuang Zhuoyuan privately told Derek about it, and later, after thinking about it, he also told Jennie about it. Jennie had her own plans for her daughter and grandson's safety; she was more curious about why Zhuang Zhuoyuan would suspect Pan Zilong.
Zhuang Zhuoyuan chuckled awkwardly, saying it was his intuition that guided him: "He talked too much, so much that it seemed like he was trying to evoke my sympathy."
“Hmm, let’s look into it then,” Jennie said supportively. “If we need manpower, we can draw from the security personnel at our home and company, or we can contact AK, who has more professional staff.”
Zhuang Zhuoyuan was surprised to find that being an undercover agent could be so open and aboveboard. He nodded, a smile playing on his lips. Having family to discuss things with was definitely better than bearing the burden alone. Should he also tell Iris about it? A thought flashed through his mind, but after thinking it over, he decided to wait and see. It wouldn't be too late to decide after confirming who he wanted to help.
Fortunately, Iris has been quite busy lately. On one hand, she's helping Tiger with his business in the UK; on the other hand, at his behest, she's actively helping the orphanage find Dingding and Lele's biological parents. After the kidnapping, the two children desperately need to return to normal family life. For their mental and physical well-being, Tiger has decided to abandon his original insistence that he doesn't necessarily have to raise the children himself; seeing them grow up happily is enough. The children's happiness is more important than anything else.
Iris, now a mother, understood his thoughts. So, before her husband, Sir Zhuang, even went to look for AK, she had already hired a large group of people to search for clues about the child's parentage throughout England and Hong Kong. Finding a needle in a haystack is certainly difficult, but money makes things much easier.
While helping the orphanage, they couldn't neglect the nursing home. The renovations they'd promised to do for Xie Jiaxing's godmother's nursing home were nearly complete, and ULO regularly provided welfare services to the elderly residents during holidays. Iris had gone a few times with them and now habitually volunteered several times each quarter. Zhuang Zhuoyuan hadn't been feeling well lately, and she'd originally planned to invite him along for a change of scenery to cheer him up, but shortly after starting work at CIB, Zhuang Sir was immediately faced with overtime. Iris waited for him at the agreed time but he didn't appear, only receiving an apology text message. Disappointed, she could only drag Derek along to do the hard labor.
Derek was speechless: "You know what, watching you date really makes me not want to date at all."
“Heh,” Iris glanced at him sideways and retorted without hesitation, “Have you ever been in a relationship?”
The two tormented each other the whole way, engaging in pointless and meaningless conversations, yet Derek somehow found it amusing. He had only imagined such a scenario before he was 10 years old, and had never lived such a life in over twenty years. Now, however, he had decided to compromise with reality, because after his birthday, he suddenly realized that he was no longer young. Before, he didn't care about life, living each day as if it were a day earned, but this year, when AK gave him his birthday red envelope, he specifically mentioned that he should plan for the future.
AK promised a future, an idea that, though somewhat strange, truly gave Derek a glimmer of hope. His young lady was his lucky star; as long as he remained loyal to her, he could have a peaceful life.
"Derek, have you changed your ways?" After arguing with her for so long, even Iris, who is usually oblivious, could sense that something was wrong. She instinctively felt that this was a good change, but she was more curious about who had caused this change in him: "Oh, young man, you're in love."
"Shut up." Derek really wanted to manually mute her, and even more so, he wanted to say those words, but Iris was the boss, the kind of person who had the right to deduct wages, so he didn't dare to be too vulgar. He could only shift the blame to his friend: "Look, those two are the ones who've got their brains filled with love potion."
"Larine! Oh my god!" Iris screamed, immediately running to her best friend. "Honey, when did you get back? Why didn't you tell me? Did Jacob come with you? Good heavens, are you both okay?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
