Chapter Three: Deceived

Chen Junhua emerged from the restroom, drawing in a deep breath before heading straight toward the young, refined man who exuded confidence as he sat surrounded by five women. Leaning down, Chen whispered a few words into his ear.

The young man gently set aside his dice cup, his smile fading. He addressed the five women, "That's enough for tonight. You all may leave now."

The five beautifully dressed women were in the midst of their merriment and were taken aback by his words. They exchanged surprised glances. Chen Junhua quickly stood to smooth things over, "Ladies, we have business to attend to. It's too late for you to return to the Arts Academy dormitory now, but if you speak to the manager downstairs, he'll arrange for you to stay in the hotel upstairs. That's all for tonight—until next time."

Among them, one girl who carried herself with a certain purity and seemed to be their leader, perhaps confident in her charm and her perceived closeness to the young man, swayed her hips suggestively as she sidled up to him, pouting, "Brother Tao, what's gotten into you tonight…"

"Get out! If you don't leave now, I'll slap you to death, you little tramp!" The young man, always so courteous and poised, finally lost his temper and roared. The girls, faces blanched with fright, scrambled for the door and were gone in an instant.

Chen Junhua gave an order to Xiao Liu, "Go stand by the door—don't let anyone in!"

Once the door was closed and calm restored, the young man glared at Chen Junhua, clearly annoyed. "You can't even handle such a trivial matter? Didn't you assure me everything was under control?"

"Young Master, please don't be angry yet," Chen Junhua replied bitterly. "This is some damn bad luck—turns out that duty doctor, Kang Ning, actually managed to save that slut Zhen Qian. Later, he even noticed the fresh injection mark Xiao Liu made. Damn it, this Kang Ning is even more meticulous than I am, and I've been a cop for over ten years!"

The young man raised a hand, signaling for him to stop. "Wait! Did you say his name is Kang Ning?"

"Yes, that's right."

"Damn! So fate brings enemies together, does it?" The young master gritted his teeth. "Turns out he's the boyfriend of that bitch Liu Yiqing from the newspaper. No wonder Liu Yiqing always acts so prim and proper in front of me—she once claimed her boyfriend was a hundred times the man I am. Well, this is a perfect opportunity to deal with him. Let's see just how capable this Kang Ning really is!"

Chen Junhua asked anxiously, "Young Master, is this really wise? The old man only just managed to bury the incident with the death during the demolition at Hudong Village. If something else happens now—"

"Then tell me, how do you propose we deal with this mess? Should we just wait for Kang Ning to file his report with the hospital tomorrow? Or wait for the next set of lab results? By the time we try to cover it up, it’ll be too late! Have you ever heard of a drug addict injecting themselves with such a massive dose of heroin and still living for several hours? If they follow this thread… Hmph, and you still hope to be promoted to head of narcotics? Even my father wouldn’t be able to protect you!"

The young master fell silent, glancing sidelong at Chen Junhua.

"But Young Master, I handled Zhen Qian just as you instructed…" Chen Junhua protested, unwilling to concede.

"Who told that slut Zhen Qian to blackmail me? And didn't she end up in your bed as well?" The young master sneered at him. "If you don’t take care of Kang Ning tonight, I’m washing my hands of your mess. At worst, I just won’t pursue Liu Yiqing anymore."

Chen Junhua slumped into the wide leather sofa, his face alternating between pale and green. After finishing a cigarette, he steeled himself. "Fine, I’ll do it. But Young Master, if anything happens to me, you have to look after my family!"

The young master laughed heartily. "And you call yourself an old hand? Always chasing skirts behind your wife’s back and this is all the courage you have? Relax, I’ll go with you tonight. I want to see for myself just how much better this Kang Ning is than me."

At this point, the middle-aged man who had been sitting silently until now spoke up. "Young Master, you shouldn’t go. Director Chen, Xiao Liu, and I are more than enough. Besides, as long as we lure him out, it’ll be simple. If something happens to you, how could I ever face your father?"

The young master laughed again and stood up. "With you there, what do I have to fear from some pretty boy? A veteran of underground fighting in Guangdong and Guangxi for nearly a decade, plus two energetic police officers—are we really afraid of one little pretty boy?"

Chen Junhua, sweating profusely, asked, "Young Master, are we actually going to kill him?"

"You’ve been a cop for over ten years and this is all you’ve learned? Just lure him out with the medical records, rough him up so he’s half paralyzed and unconscious for a few days. Once that slut Zhen Qian’s body is cremated, who could trouble us? Don’t forget, even though I’m in real estate, I graduated in law. And the law is all about evidence!" With that, the young master burst into laughter.

At 4:15 a.m., a Toyota van was parked in the shadows beneath the trees on Lakeside Avenue. Inside, Chen Junhua took out a second phone and dialed Kang Ning’s number, his eyes fixed unwaveringly on the emergency room entrance across the street.

Kang Ning, seeing an unfamiliar number, hesitated a moment before answering. "Hello, who is this?"

"Dr. Kang? This is Chen Junhua from Lakeside Police Station. I’m with my supervisor, and we’re driving over now. Please come out immediately with the medical records. The supervisor needs to review them before deciding on the next steps. Remember, don’t alert anyone around you—anyone nearby could be a suspect."

"I see. All right, but don’t take too long—I’m on duty," Kang Ning replied after a moment’s hesitation.

Grabbing the medical records, Kang Ning walked to the emergency hall, told the two weary nurses on duty, "I’ll be out for a bit, back soon," and stepped through the doors. He looked left and right along the sidewalk, soon spotting the van parked thirty meters to his left, where, under the streetlight, Chen Junhua was already beckoning him over. Kang Ning quickly walked toward him.

"Thank you for coming, Dr. Kang. Come, get in the car and we’ll talk," Chen Junhua said, ushering him into the van.

No sooner had Kang Ning sat down than Chen Junhua slammed the door shut, and the van sped off toward Qingshan. Startled, Kang Ning was about to ask what was happening when Chen snatched the medical records from his hands. "These are the records?"

"Yes," Kang Ning replied, puzzled by Chen Junhua’s abrupt manner as he glanced around. "Where are we going? Who is your supervisor… uh—"

Before he could finish, a strong arm snaked around from behind, locking tightly around his neck. Realizing he was in danger, Kang Ning instinctively slammed his head backward into his attacker while kicking and clawing desperately. Blood streamed down the face of the middle-aged man grappling him, but he only tightened his hold. Chen Junhua, seeing Kang Ning still resisting, delivered three savage punches to his exposed right side, sending violent spasms through Kang Ning’s body. As Kang Ning’s hand continued to struggle, Chen raised his fist once more and pounded the side of Kang Ning’s head, finally bludgeoning him into limp unconsciousness.