Blank Charge

They were clearly a couple, but they liked to make it seem like they were having an affair.

The next morning, around five o’clock when it was still dark, Yang Shiyu quietly returned to his own home.

Over time, Zhuang Yu noticed that the person tracking Yang Shiyu wasn’t constantly watching him twenty-four hours a day. They would only appear after Yang Shiyu finished work and would stake out until around nine in the evening. If they didn’t see any signs of Yang Shiyu leaving the house, they would leave.

It seemed that WangTai didn’t have much suspicion of Yang Shiyu.

He was just cautious and had someone keeping an eye on his “partner.” totally understandable for someone like him.

However, things could escalate quickly in no time. Both Jin Zhou and Yang Shiyu were afraid of something happening, so they continued to live separately in their own homes.

A few days later, Jin Zhou received a call from Luo Xueqing, saying that they should have a meal together for the Winter Solstice.

In this southern city, there was a tradition of drinking mutton soup during the Winter Solstice. Around the time of the Winter Solstice, the mutton soup restaurants in the city were  always crowded.

Luo Xueqing managed to reserve a table on the third floor of the largest mutton soup restaurant in the old district. Jin Zhou arrived just in time and noticed that Ren Wenli was dining with her subordinates on the first floor, while Xie Yao and his colleagues were having a meal on the second floor. Previously, Yang Shiyu had mentioned that he would have dinner with other judges in the third floor private room.

—It seemed like the police, prosecutor, and court were all there.

When going upstairs, Jin Zhou casually greeted Ren Wenli and Xie Yao, and then sat down at the table reserved by Luo Xueqing.

In addition to Sun Yi, Yu He, Xiao Wu, and Xiao Wu’s girlfriend, there was also an unfamiliar face sitting at the table.

“Jin Zhou, how did he end up here?” Sun Yi pointed to the person next to him, Zhuang Yu, with his chin, looking displeased.

“I invited him,” Jin Zhou sat down in the empty seat next to Luo Xueqing and added seasonings  to the dipping sauce dish. “Winter Solstice is a lively occasion, the more the merrier.”

“It’s only fun with acquaintances,” Sun Yi muttered unhappily. “Inviting a random person takes all the fun away.”

Zhuang Yu looked at Sun Yi, furrowing his brow and asking, “Who are you calling a random person?”

Sun Yi shrank his neck and dared not speak.

In fact, Jin Zhou had invited Zhuang Yu on a whim. Both Yang Shiyu and he were going to the gathering, and since Zhuang Yu had no friends or family, as his elder brother- it wouldn’t be right to leave him out.

Initially though, Zhuang Yu didn’t want to come, but in the end, it was Yang Shiyu who persuaded him to accompany Jin Zhou, so he reluctantly agreed.

Although that day’s dinner was Luo Xueqing’s treat, it was she who asked Jin Zhou to be in charge of inviting people, so the more, the merrier. She didn’t mind.

“Aren’t you having a company dinner today?” Jin Zhou dipped a spoonful of hot mutton soup into the dipping sauce and asked Luo Xueqing beside him.

In addition to the police, prosecutors, and court, there were also many employees from other companies having their meals in the restaurant.

It was a customary tradition that companies would have dinner the day before the Winter Solstice, and families would have dinner on the Winter Solstice day.

“I was just about to tell you about it.” Luo Xueqing prepared a dipping sauce for Luo Zihao on the other side, put down the spoon, and said to Jin Zhou, “I was fired.”

“What?” Jin Zhou paused while pouring wine.

“I featured the arrest of WangTai’s secretary.” Luo Xueqing said, “Have you seen the news?”

“No.” Jin Zhou shook his head. He had been busy with Liu Yongchang’s case recently and didn’t have time to check his phone.

“You didn’t see it, Brother Jin.” Sun Yi, sitting opposite, interjected, “Many people are discussing that masquerade party.”

“really?” Jin Zhou curiously took out his phone and quickly found many similar news headlines—

The news mentioned a secret masquerade party, but Luo Xueqing hadn’t posted any videos, just wrote, “According to insiders, WangTai will expand his shady collaborations through a secret masquerade party”

“You are quite bold, sis.” Jin Zhou looked at the phone screen. “It’s all ‘reported’ and ‘speculation.’ Aren’t you afraid of WangTai suing you for defamation?”

“Of course I couldn’t provide the evidence.” Luo Xueqing said, “If the video is exposed, WangTai might conclude that you filmed it.”

“How are you worried about me at a time like this?” Jin Zhou put down his phone, frowned, and said, “You just lost your job because of this, and now WangTai might come after you. It’s not worth it.”

“Don’t worry.” Luo Xueqing smiled indifferently, “I’ve already found a new job, so that’s why I wasn’t afraid to expose him.”

“A new job?” Sun Yi on the other side asked.

“It’s an online media platform, much larger than our TV station.” Luo Xueqing said, “I don’t want to work under that station manager anymore. Next, I plan to start with previous social news, gradually dig into WangTai’s affairs, and maybe even uncover the details of your parents’ car accident.”

Jin Zhou was startled by her words, and quickly persuaded, “No, you shouldn’t get involved. WangTai is a dangerous person.”

As soon as he spoke, Jin Zhou suddenly realized that Yang Shiyu restricting him from involving himself was the same as him restricting Luo Xueqing, not letting her get involved in WangTai’s affairs at all costs.

Now he understood Yang Shiyu more and more. Looking at Luo Xueqing’s fragile appearance, he would rather not let her get involved at all.

Perhaps reading the worry in Jin Zhou’s eyes, Luo Xueqing smiled lightly and said, “Attorney Jin, do you think I’m a person without principles?”

The words sounded somewhat familiar to Jin Zhou, and he quickly remembered. It was the question Luo Xueqing asked him when they left the court after he helped her obtain a compensation of 480,000 yuan.

“Between the public welfare and the settlement amount,” Luo Xueqing paused, “I chose the settlement amount.”

Jin Zhou didn’t expect that after all that time, Luo Xueqing would still harbor resentment and regret.

“I thought about it,” Luo Xueqing continued, “why did I make such a choice—”

“It’s human nature,” Jin Zhou said, but was interrupted by Luo Xueqing.

“—that was such a huge mistake.”

Hearing that, Jin Zhou understood what Luo Xueqing meant. What WangTtai did was a heinous act, and she couldn’t turn a blind eye to it.

Jin Zhou sighed helplessly and said, “But you also have to consider Zihao.”

“You can rest assured, Lawyer Jin,” Luo Xueqing said, “I am fully prepared.”

“What do you mean?” Jin Zhou curiously asked.

Luo Xueqing didn’t answer and lightly patted Jin Zhou’s shoulder, saying, “It’s a secret.”.

Except for the tense atmosphere when they first mentioned WangTai, the rest of the gathering was pleasant and everyone wished Luo Xueqing good luck in her new job.

ZiHao still had his arrogant demeanor, ignoring everyone. When Luo Xueqing asked him to show respect to people present, he simply replied with a single word, “No.”

Sun Yi began to lecture Zi Hao, saying that children shouldn’t behave like that as they would suffer in the future when they entered society. However, Zhuang Yu told Zi Hao that if he didn’t want to show respect, no one could force him.

The two of them argued back and forth, but in the end, they reached an agreement that Zi Hao should learn to be independent, as that’s what it means to be a man.

Seeing that, Xiao Wu and his girlfriend decided they wouldn’t have children in the future, but they still sought parenting advice from Luo Xueqing. Meanwhile, Yu He focused on eating and finished most of the lamb in the pot.

Jin Zhou had drunk quite a bit of lamb soup, and as the dinner was nearing its end, he went to the restroom on the first floor to freshen up before heading to the table where Ren Wenli was sitting.

“Officer Ren, I see you have been quite busy towards the end of the year,”

Asking the waiter for a clean cup, Jin Zhou sat down next to Ren Wenli.

Their glasses clinked, and Jin Zhou finished his drink in one go, while Ren Wenli, who had to return to the bureau later, took just a sip.

“Busy to the point of being overwhelmed,” Ren Wenli put down her glass and shook her head in frustration.

“I heard they arrested several suspects in the serial murder case. Any progress?” Jin Zhou asked.

“No, they’re all unrelated,” Ren Wenli said with a headache. “I feel like we’re stuck in a dead end, unable to catch the killer.”

“Relax, there are many unsolved cases in the world,” Jin Zhou said in efforts to comfort Ren Wenli. He then changed the topic and asked, “By the way, what about Zhao Qing? You should know that WangTai is the mastermind, right?”

“We know, but what good is that? We don’t have any evidence,” Ren Wenli said and exhaled.

The prosecutors were upstairs, and Jin Zhou bid Ren Wenli after talking for a while before taking his cup and heading to the second floor.

“Are you talking about Zhao Qing?” Xie Yao and his colleagues weren’t drinking, so Jin Zhou poured himself a glass of soy milk and clinked it with Xie Yao. “This case went straight to the Intermediate People’s Court. It’s either life imprisonment or the death penalty.”

“Is he willing to confess about WangTai?” Jin Zhou asked.

At that point, the dinner was in its second half, and the people at the table were engrossed in their own conversations, paying no attention to Jin Zhou and Xie Yao.

“No,” Xie Yao shook his head, “he stubbornly insists that it has nothing to do with WangTai.”

“Tsk, so loyal,” Jin Zhou clicked his tongue.

“By the way,” Xie Yao suddenly asked, “how did you come to know about this case?”

“Isn’t it all in the news?” Jin Zhou had already prepared his explanation, “They say that WangTai is the real mastermind.”

“It’s best not to believe in such rumors,” Xie Yao said, “Even if it’s true that WangTai is involved, spreading baseless claims without evidence isn’t good.”

Prosecutors were often strict, and Jin Zhou clinked glasses with Xie Yao, saying “Alright.” However, just at that moment, he felt two sharp gazes behind him. He wanted to turn around and look, but he saw that everyone at the table was looking behind him, saying goodbye to someone.

“Have you finished eating?”

“We’re about to leave too.”

“Take care.”

As Jin Zhou turned his head, he saw several familiar judges coming downstairs, obviously having finished their meal and preparing to leave.

He stretched his neck but didn’t see Yang Shiyu among the people saying goodbye to each other.

“where the fuck did he rush off to,” Jin Zhou murmured subconsciously.

“What’s wrong?” Xie Yao followed Jin Zhou’s gaze trying to figure out who he was looking for.

“It’s nothing.” Jin Zhou drank the soy milk in his cup with a puzzled expression. His butt was just about to itch again.

At midnight that night, Jin Zhou sneaked into Yang Shiyu’s house.

To show his determination, he even brought a pair of handcuffs he had purchased online. However, when he eagerly arrived in front of the bedroom door, he noticed Yang Shiyu had locked the door.

“Damn, are you kidding me?”

Yang Shiyu’s voice came from inside the bedroom , “Find your own key.”

 Find his own key? Wasn’t he rushing to get screwed,?

Half an hour later.

Jin Zhou finally found the key in the toolbox. He opened the bedroom door, and the suppressed anger finally erupted, “Yang, today I’ll show you what a real stud looks like!”

……….

Half asleep, Jin Zhou was awakened by a vibration.

He thought it was his alarm clock , but when he reached for his phone, he realized it was a call from Sun Yi.

“Brother Jin, something bad has happened to Reporter Luo!”