Chapter 032 Progress

After the little imp took the deworming medicine, her stomach began to ache and she often vomited. She looked miserable, spending the entire day shuttling between the bed and the bathroom. By evening, her face had grown even paler. At last, she finally fell asleep, and I sat beside her as Luo Feng knocked and entered the room.

Luo Feng glanced at the little imp and asked how she was doing. I only shook my head in silence.

He brought back news: he and Chen Fan had investigated and found no evidence that Yun Gao had ever visited the entertainment establishment in question. Moreover, Luo Feng discovered that Yun Gao was a man of upright habits—he never frequented such places, not even bars, and his usual social gatherings were always held in upscale restaurants.

I considered for a moment—whether or not Yun Gao visited the entertainment establishment, it didn’t necessarily connect him to the rumor about the place being “unclean.” Luo Feng nodded; his investigation had been thorough. He found that Yun Gao had at least some dealings with many of the people who did frequent such venues.

Luo Feng said this was unsurprising. Most people who visited those establishments had some money or reputation, and the social circle in the harbor district was small. It was perfectly normal for Yun Gao to have business relationships or casual friendships with them. However, this connection also made it plausible that the rumor originated with Yun Gao.

Luo Feng was still digging for more. He had questioned many people, but none could say who first spread the rumor. In this particular circle, everyone claimed they’d heard it from someone else within the group—never from an outsider.

Luo Feng laughed. “Do they take me for a fool? Obviously, someone is lying.”

He was right—a rumor must have an origin; it was impossible for everyone to be “just passing it on.” But for now, Luo Feng had reached a dead end. He asked what I planned to do next. I glanced at the sleeping little imp, thought for a moment, and said I wanted to meet those hostesses in person.

The investigation had reached an impasse. Our only hope now was to find out who spread the rumor about the entertainment venue. Once the rumor circulated, business dried up; this gave the hostesses a legitimate reason to leave the establishment temporarily, avoiding scrutiny.

I’d already questioned the main hostesses and the proprietress; if any of them were involved, they deserved an award for acting. Luo Feng handed me the list again and asked if I needed help. I shook my head, saying I’d go alone.

Luo Feng’s men had already investigated these women and found nothing out of the ordinary. The hostesses who’d left were numerous and scattered. Originally, I’d hoped to avoid tracking them all down one by one; it was just too time-consuming.

After Luo Feng left, I was about to head out when the little imp woke up. She grabbed my hand and insisted on coming with me. Since I couldn’t leave her alone at the hotel, I took her along.

I visited the hostesses who’d left the establishment, one by one.

None were particularly cooperative. Some took a flirtatious approach and would only talk if I played along, while others were impatient and felt I was interfering with their business. The little imp followed me silently, behaving oddly—she didn’t speak a single word the entire time.

As the sun was setting, I took her to eat. The weather was cold, and our breath turned to white mist. She still couldn’t eat, and I was growing anxious, when she suddenly said, “Brother Fang Han, are you looking for someone?”

Only then did I remember an important clue I’d overlooked. When Lao Jiu and his men entered the entertainment venue, the little imp was already in the courtyard—perhaps she’d seen something. But after I showed her photos of Lao Jiu and his companions, she said she couldn’t recall them.

Even so, the little imp offered a glimmer of hope. She said that when she’d gone to the kitchen of the establishment for food, she often heard someone muttering there. I paused, and after listening to her description, I realized she’d overheard someone making phone calls in the kitchen.

I asked what she’d heard. She thought for a moment and said the person’s speech was fragmented, mostly monosyllables like “Mm,” “Okay,” or “Oh.” For a ten-year-old girl to find it odd, the person’s reactions on the phone must have been truly abnormal.

The little imp had heard the voice several times, but each time she’d hidden under the kitchen counter, so she never saw who it was. However, she was sure she’d recognize the voice. After recalling, she said none of the people we’d already interviewed sounded the same.

I glanced at the list. Night had fallen and there were still five people left to find.

After dinner, I took the little imp’s hand and continued the search.

Luo Feng called, worried for my safety. I told him I intended to use the little imp to identify our target. Luo Feng sounded surprised. “Are you crazy? You trust that ghostly girl so much?”

I looked down at the little imp beside me. She was smiling back up at me, baring her sharp teeth.

“I think she’s special. We have no other leads—this is a desperate measure,” I replied.

Luo Feng let it go, then told me he’d confirmed the rumor about the entertainment establishment was indeed connected to Yun Gao. His words were interesting—he didn’t say Yun Gao started the rumor, only that he was involved. Luo Feng explained, and as I listened, I frowned.

He’d found that one of Yun Gao’s subordinates was a frequent visitor to the establishment. Through various means, Luo Feng learned that not long ago, Yun Gao and his subordinate had dined together at a restaurant, along with other colleagues.

After the subordinate got drunk, he started talking about the entertainment venue—first praising the hostesses, but as the night wore on, he began to mention the rumors of it being “unclean.”

At that time, the venue was still lively. The rumors were just beginning to spread and weren’t taken seriously—most people dismissed them as gossip. Luo Feng quietly asked others who’d been at the dinner. They all said Yun Gao seemed to be hearing the rumor for the first time.

Afterwards, Yun Gao went to the restroom and was gone a long while.

A vague suspicion formed in my mind, so I asked Luo Feng the date of the dinner. He gave it to me, and I quickly noticed something: two days after Yun Gao’s dinner, the establishment suddenly went quiet, and the rumors exploded, no longer just casual talk.

Luo Feng asked if I had any theories. I nodded and told him, “I suspect Yun Gao wasn’t the originator of the rumor, but he amplified it.”

Luo Feng was puzzled. “He has an alibi for the time of the crime—he’s not the killer—so why would he make the rumor bigger? What is he playing at?”

I smiled faintly. “He has many tricks. He’s manipulating public opinion, trying to frame his own sister, Yun Qing, as the perpetrator. Keep watching Yun Gao—he’s definitely involved.”

After hanging up, the little imp and I continued searching. After she eliminated a few more voices, we arrived outside a bar.

It didn’t take me long to find our next target inside.

She was a short-haired woman dressed provocatively, sitting beside a man whose hand roamed freely over her body. When I called her name, she shot me an impatient look. The man, annoyed by the interruption, got up and stalked toward me.

As the short-haired woman spoke, the little imp tugged my hand and whispered that this was the voice she’d heard. My heart skipped, and I readied myself, but the man blocked my way. He was shouting something, but my attention was fixed on the woman; I didn’t catch his words.

Seeing me pursue her, the short-haired woman seemed flustered and tried to leave.

As the man became aggressive, I was preparing to act when he suddenly let out a scream. Looking down, I saw the little imp had grabbed his wrist and sunk her teeth in hard. The man’s face twisted in pain. I knew the little imp had held back—otherwise, there would have been blood everywhere.

I shoved him aside, grabbed the little imp, and chased after the short-haired woman, who kept glancing back at me with a grin.

We caught up just as she reached the fire escape behind the bar. As she was about to flee down the stairs, I seized her shoulder.

She spun around, terrified. “What do you want?”

I sneered. “Why are you running?”

She hesitated, then retorted boldly, “If you chase me, shouldn’t I run?”

I smirked. “No need to be afraid. I’m just here to ask about Lao Jiu and his men. It seems the case is finally moving forward.”

She shook her head quickly, asking why we’d come again, insisting she’d already told everything. She meant Luo Feng had already questioned her once. I quickly sized her up, then deliberately grabbed her by the throat—her face flushed red almost instantly.

“Cut the crap. I want the truth. If you don’t talk, you’ll never speak again.” My gaze was icy.

She struggled, unable to break free, gasping, “I’ll report you.”

I snorted. “I’m not the police. Report all you want. This is your last chance—I want the truth.”