Chapter 21: The Good and the Bad

Chapter 21: Good and Bad

Tian Yang was a man of follow-through and great loyalty. After driving An Changpu home the previous night, he conscientiously gave him a ride to the office early the next morning, saving An Changpu the inconvenience of the commute. Although An Changpu’s ankle had gained a lot more mobility after a day and a half of rest, it was still best to avoid driving until it was fully healed.

Upon arrival, Tian Yang handed An Changpu—who was still technically classified as a wounded officer—over to Qin Ruonan, while he went off to handle his scheduled tasks. As for investigating the reasons why Song Chengliang had previously failed his probationary period at the entertainment company, that naturally fell to An Changpu and Qin Ruonan to investigate together.

At that moment, Qin Ruonan suggested that since this was merely following up on details Mo Dou hadn't checked thoroughly earlier, there was no need to waste two people's manpower, and she could easily handle it alone. With that, she drove off by herself, leaving her partner stranded in the Major Crimes Unit.

"Do you guys think she's been acting a bit strange these past two days?" An Changpu watched Qin Ruonan hurry away alone. Wondering if he was just overthinking or if it was truly the case, he couldn't help but seek confirmation from the people around him.

Mo Dou offered no comment on the matter, but Tian Yang chuckled, remarking that anyone with eyes could tell Qin Ruonan was acting unusual. However, as for why she was acting that way, if An Changpu—her everyday working partner—had no clue, then the rest of them stood even less chance of knowing.

Since he was left at the Public Security Bureau, An Changpu refused to let himself sit idle. He investigated Cui Lidong’s financial situation. Just as he had previously suspected, it wasn't just Song Chengliang’s relentless pursuit of Cui Lidong that felt strange; Cui Lidong’s absolute refusal to compromise regarding Song Chengliang’s so-called extortion was equally baffling. Although demanding a one-yuan compensation given Song Chengliang’s ear injury did smack of asking for the moon, An Changpu knew that a hairdresser's income was by no means low. Was it really worth it for Cui Lidong to risk so much unpleasantness and trouble, stubbornly fighting Song Chengliang to the bitter end, just over a single yuan?

Fortunately, a branch of the bank where Cui Lidong held his account was located near the Public Security Bureau, and walking there slowly would only take a few minutes.

This investigation truly uncovered something. The numbers in Cui Lidong’s bank account were pitifully small, with very little savings. Aside from irregular, varying cash withdrawals, he would make a remittance through the bank at regular intervals. The destination was his hometown, and the amounts varied. Averaging out the previous records, he made three to four remittances a year, each ranging between eight thousand and ten thousand. The account holder of the recipient account also shared the surname Cui, so the destination of these funds seemed beyond doubt. Even though his mother had passed away from illness, his father was still alive. Regardless of whether their father-son relationship was good or bad, it would not diminish Cui Lidong’s filial obligation to support him.

Additionally, there was another fixed monthly remittance sent to a public account. The organization holding this public account was a fundraising institution dedicated to helping impoverished children who had dropped out of school to return to their studies.

This remittance was very consistent, sent out punctually every month without a single interruption.

Upon returning to the Public Security Bureau, An Changpu called that fundraising organization to inquire about Cui Lidong’s donations. The feedback he received was that Cui Lidong regularly sponsored two young boys. Both boys came from relatively impoverished families, but their academic performance was not as exceptional as other children on the verge of dropping out, so they had previously lacked a specific sponsor. It wasn't until Cui Lidong sought them out and proactively offered to sponsor "problem youths" that things changed. Since the organization did not shelter true problem youths in the literal sense, he chose to sponsor these two children instead.

Having confirmed this matter, An Changpu suddenly felt an urge to have a chat with Cui Lidong.

Before long, he met Cui Lidong in the detention room. Expecting that Cui Lidong would be under immense mental pressure and looking haggard after being detained on suspicion of murder, An Changpu was surprised to find him soundly asleep under a cotton quilt when he walked in.

"Officer An?" Woken up, Cui Lidong sat up from the bed, his eyes bleary with sleep. He yawned and looked behind An Changpu, his expression showing a hint of disappointment upon discovering that only An Changpu had walked in.

An Changpu smiled at him and sat down on the bed opposite. "Did I interrupt your rest?"

"Not at all, not at all. I don't really have much going on anyway, and since idleness is just idleness, I happened to fall asleep," Cui Lidong hurriedly exchanged polite pleasantries with him. Seeing An Changpu approach, he showed no tension and remained quite relaxed.

After he finished speaking, An Changpu did not reply. Silence fell between the two of them, and for a moment, nobody spoke.

"Officer An, can I ask you a question?" Cui Lidong stewed in silence for a moment before suddenly raising his head to look at An Changpu.

An Changpu nodded. "Sure, go ahead."

"Do you like women with long hair or short hair?"

An Changpu was momentarily stunned. The question was deeply personal and completely out of left field. He looked at Cui Lidong, trying hard to decipher any hidden meaning in his expression and demeanor to see if he was beating around the bush or harboring some ulterior motive. However, after staring for a long time, Cui Lidong appeared entirely sincere.

"Whether you like a woman or not is certainly not measured by the length of her hair," An Changpu said with a smile, considering it an answer to Cui Lidong's inquiry.

"I know, I just wanted to ask—if you absolutely had to choose one, which kind do you like?" Cui Lidong refused to drop the subject.

An Changpu frowned slightly, maintaining a calm tone as he replied, "If I really have to choose, I lean toward long hair."

With that, he waited for Cui Lidong to explain the reason behind asking such an irrelevant question. Instead, Cui Lidong said nothing more, merely looking at An Changpu deeply before finally letting out a long sigh.

Feeling deeply uneasy under that stare, An Changpu took the initiative to break the strange atmosphere.

"Don't carry any heavy psychological burden staying here. If there's any unpleasantness, or if you need to communicate with us, feel free to reach out," he told Cui Lidong.

Cui Lidong nodded. "I'm not worried. I didn't do it, so you guys couldn't possibly wrong me. Sister Qin will definitely help me find out the truth and clear my name!"

At the mention of Qin Ruonan, the lines on Cui Lidong’s face—which bore no relation to handsome, yet possessed a remarkably distinct contour—instantly softened. He said, "Sister Qin has a kind of unyielding drive, a persevering spirit. She treats people genuinely, unlike some girls nowadays who only have a pretty face while being utterly vain and realistic inside! Whoever she favors is truly blessed."

An Changpu smiled evasively and nodded. His purpose in coming today was certainly not to sit here chatting with Cui Lidong about his partner.

"Cui Lidong, you sponsor two impoverished youths on a regular basis, right?" he changed the subject and asked.

Cui Lidong paused, as if surprised that they even knew about this, but then quickly admitted it. "Yes. Actually, I was just thinking about it these past two days—another half month and it'll be time again. I don't know if I'll be able to get out by then."

"Why donate so much money every month to help those two kids?"

"It's nothing much. I'm just afraid that if they run out of money for school and end up wandering society prematurely, the world will gain two more scumbags like me in the future." Cui Lidong’s tone was flat, a smile hanging on his face, but that smile was laced with bitterness.

An Changpu felt a pang of discomfort as well. Hearing someone refer to themselves as a scumbag gave him a strange feeling, making his chest ache uncomfortably.

"Guan Heshun is a friend of yours, isn't he?" An Changpu waited quietly for a moment before speaking up. When he mentioned Guan Heshun's name, the expression on Cui Lidong’s face already gave him a definitive answer. "It's likely he won't be bothering you anymore for a long time. He stirred up trouble back in your hometown and is about to be transferred to the public security authorities there for handling. Coupled with his criminal record, the sentence this time won't be light."

Cui Lidong’s face flushed red and turned pale. He realized that his previous denials of being tracked down by old acquaintances from society had already been seen through.

"I didn't dare tell you those things before... There already weren't many good people in my family, and if you added a bunch of bad company to the mix, you definitely would have thought I was a bad seed too." Cui Lidong awkwardly rubbed his cheeks with force. "Everyone in my family, young and old, who's served time in prison, detention centers, or police stations outnumbers the people with clean backgrounds. The reason I ran to C City was to get away from them. Otherwise, I would never wash the mud off my past in this lifetime, nor would I ever be able to live honorably and cleanly!"

After quite a while, An Changpu left the detention room with a heavy heart. Cui Lidong had opened up to him, sharing quite a bit about his past, his determination to turn over a new leaf, and his difficult circumstances. This had touched An Changpu somewhat, slightly altering his internal perspective of Cui Lidong.

When he returned to the Major Crimes Unit office, Qin Ruonan had also returned, bringing back the real reason why Song Chengliang had been fired.

It turned out that while working at that entertainment company, he frequently dug up inside gossip known only to staff members but kept confidential from the outside world, and then sold it to the entertainment sections of newspapers as a side hustle. As a result of his leaks, an up-and-coming minor star's career was abruptly cut short, and the entertainment company suffered financial losses. Upon investigation, the mastermind turned out to be this probationary employee, so he was naturally shown the door. Due to the fallout and the pressure from the entertainment company, Song Chengliang remained in obscurity for a long time—which was probably why he eventually ended up settling at a struggling food company.

"The good and bad in people are really not easy to tell apart," An Changpu murmured after listening to Qin Ruonan’s account.