Chapter 67

Still in the same area, when the detective arrived, Old Yang saw Bak. The young man, with an innocent look, was shirtless and being detained in the back seat of the police car. This wasn't a violation; the scene was chaotic, and some necessary measures were allowed to prevent the suspect from escaping. Besides, he wasn't even handcuffed now.

The first officer on the scene had already written a concise report of the initial investigation. Old Yang glanced at Bak from a distance but first went upstairs to examine the scene. The scene wasn't complicated, and there wasn't much damage. The property manager's photos were even shown to Old Yang. The bank card and fruit knife were both placed in evidence bags for inspection.

Finally, he came downstairs and opened the police car door: "Bak? Tell me what happened?"

Bak shrugged indifferently: "Xiaoli Zhou, a salesperson at the real estate agency, is my friend. She received a client's call to show the house and then called me for help. I came over on my motorcycle and saw her manager hurrying down the stairs, so I suspected he was involved and detained him. To save time, I might have been a bit rough. Upstairs, there was a sedative, and Xiaoli was in a state of confusion and unable to control her body. The so-called client had ulterior motives and was injured by her self-defense. When I arrived, he was already unconscious. All I could do was provide first aid, which didn't damage the scene." He handed over his phone: "This is the last call she made to me."

Old Yang took the phone and started flipping through it, saying casually, "Induced vomiting and gastric lavage, where did you learn that?"

Bak replied simply: "Basic knowledge."

Old Yang, without looking up, said: "What about the injured? Before I arrived, the hospital said the on-site first aid was very timely. If it had been a few seconds later, the blood loss would have been too much to save."

Bak still kept it simple: "Common sense."

Old Yang smiled: "I saw the photos taken at the scene. It took you one minute and forty-seven seconds from the time you received the call. You rode over, hit someone, went upstairs, and provided first aid. Can I say you were prepared? And why weren't you wearing latex gloves?" Bak's dustproof gloves had already been collected as evidence and placed in a transparent bag with a number.

Damn gloves, Fang Lingying had once teased Bak about them, and it seems they were indeed noticed. Bak, helpless, said: "Our workplaces are very close. The real estate agency is right next door, and I'm familiar with these roads. There's a conflict between Manager Chen and Xiaoli. You can check with their company. I just came to help after the incident because I'm Xiaoli's friend, and she trusted me enough to call me."

The criminal investigation vehicle arrived, and Old Yang, leaning against the back door of the police car, finally looked Bak in the eye: "Just friends?"

Bak averted his gaze: "I wash cars, she sells second-hand houses. Such simple identities don't need to be investigated, right?"

Old Yang, seeing a bit of joy on Xiao Shao's face as he approached, said straightforwardly: "Alright! Give me your phone number, keep it open, and if there are any updates, I'll contact you. You can go, but if Manager Chen's injuries worsen, you won't be off the hook."

Bak also noticed the young officer's curiosity, took the phone, and reported his number: "Which hospital is the injured person in? I want to visit Xiaoli."

Old Yang shook his head: "She's involved in a criminal case, and non-relatives can't visit casually."

Bak tried to negotiate: "She has a mother. I'll bring her mother. There was a sedative at the scene, so you can imagine what happened. Her mental state must have been severely impacted. Can't you show a bit of humanity?"

Old Yang looked at him, paused, and then took out a business card: "If you contact her family, call me."

Bak thanked him and pushed open the other side of the police car door. Xiao Shao, who had intended to come over and see, bent down and was met with a loud slam as the opposite door closed. He looked up to see Bak disappear into the crowd without a word.

Bak still had to find his broken motorcycle. It turned out that either the security guard had tampered with it or he had revved the engine too much, causing the front wheel to twist and the lights and fuel tank to deform. Bak, dressed in his work clothes, glanced at it from a distance. He knew he'd have to claim it and put in the effort to dispose of it, so he quietly slipped away.

He had to walk back to the car wash, which wasn't too far. However, a police car was already parked outside the real estate agency, and two officers were questioning the employees one by one.

The young guys at the car wash stretched their necks to watch the commotion. Bak found a familiar guy and quietly borrowed the motorcycle keys, riding out from the other side.

The camaraderie among the working class was strong. The guys noticed that the black beauty hadn't returned and that Bak had quietly avoided the police, so they covered for him!

Riding the motorcycle, Bak found it quite amusing, reminiscent of the camaraderie on the battlefields of years past. He realized he shouldn't be too isolated in his own emotions.

Following the route he had taken to drop Xiaoli off that night, he parked the motorcycle under her apartment building. Looking at the layout of four units per floor, Bak decided to use the simplest method: knocking on doors one by one!

Sometimes the simplest method is the best. In less than ten minutes, Bak found Xiaoli's home on the fifth floor. At 1:30 PM, just as he was about to knock on the door pointed out by a neighbor, the old, rusty security door creaked open, and a woman in a dress came out. Bak hesitated for a moment, unsure whether to call her "aunt" or "sister"!

At first glance, she looked just like Xiaoli, especially the optimistic sparkle in her eyes, which was kind and a bit carefree. Bak knew he had the right person: "Are you Xiaoli's...?"

The woman was completely at ease, her eyes scanning Bak: "I'm her mother... who are you?"

Bak didn't want to explain too much: "A colleague... she had an incident. Can you come with me to the hospital to see her?"

To his surprise, she was cautious: "Are you lying? She was fine this morning!" She reached for her phone and started dialing, then carefully moved a bit away. Bak stepped back, more interested in observing the mother.

Indeed, Xiaoli didn't seem much younger than him, but this mother, with her premature white hair and aged appearance, was quite different from the well-maintained mothers of wealthy families. From Xiaoli's cries that night, it seemed her family situation wasn't great.

Her dress was simple, unlike Liu Shufen, who wouldn't dress so plainly. At first glance, she really looked like Xiaoli's sister, but the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes confirmed she was the elder.

The call was quickly answered, and her face changed dramatically. She spoke a few words and then handed the phone to Bak: "There's a police officer? What did she tell you...?"

Xiaoli's voice was weak: "Is that you? We're at the Third Central Hospital. Please bring my mom over."

Bak briefly responded and hung up, guiding the elder down the stairs, which he found a bit awkward.

Even when she got on the motorcycle, Bak felt he should drive to work from now on. Since they were friends, frequent pick-ups and drop-offs would be common. Having Xiaoli's mother sitting behind him made him feel a bit uneasy!

Despite her tears and urgency to see her daughter, the mother's voice on the phone, asking for leave, didn't sound like a young woman's: "Please, please cover for me. Xiaoli is in the hospital. I'll be back as soon as possible!"

With a family member present, Bak indeed saw Xiaoli at the hospital. Although she couldn't speak much, a female officer was sitting by her bed, and Xiaoli's phone was in her possession. She could nod in response: "Let me know if you need anything... I'll help you find a lawyer."

Xiaoli, with a bandaged head and in a hospital gown, hugged her mother and cried. But when she saw Bak at the door, her tears flowed uncontrollably, and she bit her lip to stop crying. Her left hand was still receiving an IV, and she released her mother to reach out to Bak, her eyes filled with unspoken words.

Bak, uncomfortable with such a sad scene, was relieved when the female officer intervened: "The investigation is still ongoing. Visits are limited to treatment. Family members should be restrained. Please find someone to accompany her, preferably a woman." She blocked Bak from approaching, likely to prevent him from colluding.

Bak scratched his head: "Do you have any other relatives?"

Xiaoli, like a child who hadn't been comforted, started crying and shaking her head. Her mother, also in tears, said: "No, it's just the two of us. I'll stay..."

Bak made up his mind: "I'll go first. I'll find someone to come. You have to go back to work later, and it's important that Xiaoli's injuries aren't..." He had intended to say they weren't too serious, but seeing the teary-eyed girl puff her cheeks at him, he stopped and quickly left the scene.

Feeling a bit guilty, he went home to get his mother's help.

Sure enough, when Liu Shufen heard it was a girl Bak knew from work, she was immediately energized. She quickly prepared some hot soup from Liu Changyuan's stall and urged Bak to drive over. If Bak hadn't stopped her, the two women would have come along to see what was happening.

On the way, Bak briefly explained the situation. The Chinese teacher praised: "Such a girl, rising above her circumstances! Good!"

Bak's face was conflicted: "She just has a tough family situation, not exactly 'rising above muck.'"

The elementary school teacher, being educated, said: "At least she's clean and upright! That's already a good point... Now that you have a car, you can show it off, right?" Liu Shufen, sitting in the passenger seat with the thermos, was very enthusiastic.

Bak immediately felt that asking his mother for help might have been a mistake.

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