Chapter 5: Unexpected Gains

Chapter 5: An Unexpected Catch

"Where would the Jiang family get a 30-year-old?"

The novel hadn't mentioned it.

Jian Ruochen leaned back in his chair, probing, "How did you meet Mr. Jiang?"

Huo Jinze bit his lip, a confession seemingly difficult to utter. "We met at Tianquandu Entertainment City. He claimed to be from the Jiang family."

Jian Ruochen frowned.

*The Rich and Powerful* had also mentioned Tianquandu Entertainment City. It was a Lu family enterprise, notorious for its depravity.

The protagonist, Jiang Hanyu, after failing an exam, got drunk one night and accidentally stumbled into Lu Qian's private room, where they fell in love at first sight.

Jian Ruochen sighed. "He didn't tell you his full name? Do you remember what he looked like?"

Huo Jinze shook his head. "No, he wouldn't let me ask. He wore a casual suit and glasses, with upturned, narrow eyes. His appearance was rather ordinary."

He suddenly recalled the watch Mr. Jiang wore on his wrist.

The strap seemed to be gold, the dial emerald green, and it was encrusted with glittering diamonds.

"He wore an expensive watch... I don't know its exact name. Is this information too vague for the police to find him?"

This was Hong Kong in the 1990s.

Some lived in gilded cages, worldly and residing in luxurious mansions.

Others couldn't even afford a proper home, forced to live on construction sites near quarries or in dilapidated fishing boats in the harbor, barely scraping by.

Jian Ruochen remained silent for a moment before asking, "How much did Mr. Jiang give you? What exactly did he tell you? And what about Chai Jinwu?"

Huo Jinze replied, "Mr. Jiang gave me HK$200,000 in one go. It seemed like a transaction, but I had no other choice. He threatened that if I didn't comply, I'd be stuck at Tianquandu forever."

Outside the interrogation room, Chen Yunchuan cursed, "Bastard!"

Tianquandu Entertainment City was infamous in Hong Kong police circles, a place where many drowned themselves in hedonistic pleasures.

Rumor had it that 80% of Hong Kong's missing men and women could be found there.

Huo Jinze spilled everything: "He brought your bracelet with him and carefully explained when and where to plant it. As for Chai Jinwu... I hated him, so after attacking Feng Jiaming, I acted on impulse and tossed his watch near Feng Jiaming’s body."

So that was it. Chai Jinwu was merely collateral damage.

With this, Huo Jinze's motive made perfect sense.

Jian Ruochen stood up and patted Huo Jinze’s shoulder. "Thank you for your cooperation. Once the police close the case and the prosecutor's office conducts the pre-trial hearing, if you show genuine remorse, I'll help you find a good lawyer. At the very least, you won't face the death penalty."

Feng Jiaming had toyed with people's hearts, and his hands weren't clean. He deserved his fate.

Huo Jinze's eyes widened in surprise, welling up with tears, his cheeks burning with shame.

He couldn't quite articulate what he was feeling.

For the past year, he had lived without any dignity. Only Jian Ruochen had treated him like a human being.

If only he hadn't committed the crime.

"If I hadn't committed the crime... would you have been my friend?"

Jian Ruochen smiled. "Focus on reforming yourself. I'll come see you when I have time."

Outside the interrogation room.

Guan Yingjun's eyes darkened as he flicked the burnt-out cigarette butt into his portable ashtray.

Would an ordinary person know about pre-trial procedures?

Even if he knew such obscure information—

Knowing he was under suspicion, he still openly revealed it.

Utterly fearless.

Truly a master of manipulation.

Anyone who let their guard down around Jian Ruochen would be captivated, sweet-talked into dizziness, and left as mesmerized as Huo Jinze.

But no police officer would let their guard down around someone even a fool could see was suspicious.

Guan Yingjun glanced at the officers observing nearby.

They were gushing in admiration:

"He got it out of him just like that? Detective Guan couldn't break him after two hours."

"What kind of approach is this? It's like chatting, not interrogating."

"No idea, the police academy never taught this."

A young officer grinned and joked, "Maybe this suspect responds better to soft tactics. Jian Ruochen is handsome, after all. I've never seen a guy this handsome—"

*Smack!*

Guan Yingjun slammed the folder containing Jian Ruochen's profile onto the side table outside the interrogation room. The junior officers immediately fell silent.

Under his sharp gaze, they swallowed their words.

Guan Yingjun withdrew his gaze and knocked on the interrogation room door.

*Knock, knock.*

Jian Ruochen turned to look at the door.

Guan Yingjun stood there, his eyes dark and intense. "Jian Ruochen..."

Jian Ruochen hummed softly, "Hmm?"

His eyes were clear and innocent, as guileless as could be.

Just as Guan Yingjun opened his mouth to speak, his phone rang.

He pulled out his Xiaolingtong and pressed the answer button. The device looked tiny in his large palm.

Jian Ruochen subtly pricked up his ears.

Guan Yingjun: "...Hello? His parents? ...Understood."

He hung up the phone, lowered his gaze to the person listening in openly, and said meaningfully, "Your family's here to get you."

If Jian Ruochen had truly been replaced, his family would surely have noticed something.

Guan Yingjun added, "I'll go with you."

Perhaps there would be an unexpected catch.

"Alright," Jian Ruochen readily agreed.

Huo Jinze's confession mentioned a "Mr. Jiang" who harbored ill intentions toward him. The Jiang family also had Jiang Hanyu, who was waiting for his blood transfusion and would gladly bleed him dry.

To him, the Jiang family was no different from grim reapers. It was all the better if Guan Yingjun could accompany him.

Jian Ruochen walked with complete confidence, showing no sign he knew he was suspected.

Guan Yingjun gave a slight smirk and followed closely behind Jian Ruochen.

The young man's neck was slender and pale, his body draped in oversized clothes, his back exuding a frail, sickly look, as if it could snap at the slightest touch.

No one would have imagined that someone so beautiful and frail could harbor the heart of a predator, being utterly smooth and calculating in his dealings.

Guan Yingjun rubbed his forehead.

The two walked up to the inquiry room.

Jian Ruochen reached out first, turned the handle, and looked at the person inside.

A man, around thirty years old, wore a pair of gold-rimmed glasses on the bridge of his nose, concealing the shrewd glint in his pale-colored eyes.

Jian Ruochen: ...

Interesting.

Could he also be surnamed Jiang?

The man frowned and stood up. "Jian Ruochen. When Lu Qian came to pick you up, why didn't you leave with him?"

Jian Ruochen entered the room, standing perfectly still like a silent statue.

*I'll stay quiet—you keep talking.*

The disdain and impatience in the man’s eyes were practically dripping. "You even dared to kill someone?"

Jian Ruochen went even quieter.

The police had already identified the perpetrator. If this man had been sent by the police, he would surely know that Jian Ruochen hadn’t killed anyone.

If he had been contacted through the school, the most the counselor would say was: "The student was brought to the police station to assist with the investigation."

Now the question was, aside from the "Mr. Jiang" who hired the killer, who would be so adamant in believing that he had committed murder?

Jian Ruochen turned to look at Guan Yingjun.

*Your culprit's right here.*

*Detective Guan, what do you plan to do?*

Guan Yingjun shut the door of the inquiry room behind them.

The silence hung heavy.

Jian Ruochen cast a pitying glance at Mr. Jiang.

*Hah, like catching a rat in a trap.*

He waited for Mr. Jiang to be handcuffed.

But Guan Yingjun didn't move, instead turning to look at Jian Ruochen. His deep, dark eyes glinted with cold intensity as he said meaningfully, "Why aren’t you answering? Don’t you know him?"

Jian Ruochen: ...

*Oh, so Detective Guan doesn’t just want to catch the rat in the trap.*

*He also wants to wait for us to fight while he reaps the rewards!*

At this moment, only playing vulnerable could catch people off guard.

Jian Ruochen blinked, the corners of his eyes drooping as he let out a befuddled "Huh?" toward Guan Yingjun before turning to Mr. Jiang. "Who are you?"

Mr. Jiang choked back his anger, his face flushing red with rage.

Everyone in Hong Kong who wanted to curry favor with the Jiang family knew his name!

Jian Ruochen couldn’t possibly not know—was this an intentional slight?

He spoke word by word, "I am the manager of Jiang Ting Manor, Jiang Yongyan."

Jian Ruochen nodded. "Oh."

That indifferent, single word made Jiang Yongyan’s flushed face instantly turn from red to green.

Guan Yingjun’s gaze wandered over Jian Ruochen. When the young man nodded, the messy hair sticking up on his head trembled along with the motion.

He looked quite innocent-looking but deceptive.

"Why did you avoid answering the first part of Jiang Yongyan’s question?" Guan Yingjun met Jian Ruochen’s confused gaze and reminded him, "Lu Qian."

That was a big name.

Tianquandu Entertainment City was booming under his management, and the entire West Kowloon Major Crimes Unit would love to take a bite out of him.

Hearing this name, Jiang Yongyan immediately understood.

Thinking of Jiang Hanyu, who was still waiting for blood back home, his expression softened and he said, "Don’t hold a grudge against Lu Qian. Weren’t you crazy about him? As long as you return home, the marriage agreement will take effect immediately."

A bit of juicy society gossip slowly surfaced in Guan Yingjun’s mind.

Jian Ruochen stated with full confidence, "Like Lu Qian? What I like now is the billion-dollar inheritance I just received."

Screw love—how could it compare to 10 billion?

The juicy gossip in Guan Yingjun’s mind slowly twisted into a question mark.

Jiang Yongyan thought he'd lost his mind. "A billion-dollar inheritance?"

He suddenly felt an absurd sense that things were getting out of hand. Where did Jian Ruochen get a billion dollars?

If he had money, would he still be the same beautiful fool who would come crawling for the slightest favor, giving in to whatever they wanted?

If the Jiang family couldn't control Jian Ruochen, what was Jiang Hanyu supposed to do?

Jiang Yongyan was so panicked that he grabbed Jian Ruochen's wrist. "Come with me to the ancestral home—now!"

"Now is when Xiao Han needs you the most! Having the same blood type as Xiao Han and being able to give him a transfusion is a privilege. As long as you can save Xiao Han, Chairman Jiang will acknowledge you as his son!"

Jian Ruochen:...

The last time he heard dialogue this outrageous was... well, the last time.

His mind flashed to Lu Qian's face.

Just as shocking, just as jaw-dropping.

Guan Yingjun, hearing no response, glanced down at Jian Ruochen in surprise.

The person who had been so eloquent in the interrogation room now looked pale, with messy hair hanging to one side and drooping eyelashes that hid his clear, cunning eyes.

His lashes trembled slightly, his lips pursed together, looking disappointed and wronged.

He didn’t even try to pull away when his wrist was gripped red.

Guan Yingjun frowned, reached out, and grabbed Jiang Yongyan’s shoulder, yanking him back.

Jiang Yongyan grunted in pain and had to let go of the person he was holding.

Jian Ruochen snapped out of it.

He glanced down and saw a red mark on his wrist. He rubbed the spot, feeling like ants were crawling under his skin.

He had originally intended to feel out why Jiang Yongyan had hired a killer to frame him, but now he couldn’t stand another second here.

He wanted to go home and take a shower!

Jian Ruochen suddenly shot back: "Mr. Jiang, many murderers return to the crime scene after committing their crimes, and some even approach the police afterward, trying to fish for information about the case."

"So which kind are you?"

Guan Yingjun:...

Aren’t they both murderers either way?

Jiang Yongyan’s face changed abruptly. "What do you mean?"

Jian Ruochen, feeling a bit tired, picked the nearest chair and sat down, propping his head up wearily. "The moment you arrived, you accused me of killing someone. But the police have sealed the information—how did you know about the murder? Huo Jinze has confessed everything. He said you hired a killer to commit murder and tried to pin it on me."

"You!" Jiang Yongyan pointed at Jian Ruochen, his hand trembling.

Guan Yingjun stepped sideways, blocking Jiang Yongyan, and said sternly, "Watch what you’re saying!"

Jian Ruochen peeked out from behind his protector and made up a lie on the spot: "Detective Guan means that if you try to lay a hand on anyone again, we’ll charge you with assaulting an officer. That’ll add to your charges, and with multiple offenses combined, they might just give you the death penalty."

Guan Yingjun:... Not quite.

He was about to speak but caught Jiang Yongyan raising his arm out of the corner of his eye, as if trying to reach around him for the person behind.

He immediately whipped out handcuffs and snapped them onto Jiang Yongyan’s outstretched hand.

Jian Ruochen:...

He seemed so by-the-book, but he was actually quick to adapt.

He pulled back, his gaze fixed on Guan Yingjun’s lower back, and murmured, almost as if he could read his mind, "Is this the unexpected catch you wanted?"

Guan Yingjun swiftly cuffed Jiang Yongyan’s other hand, glanced at Jian Ruochen, and said softly, "No."