After the Divorce, I Went Back to My Hometown, Pregnant and Became the Sheriff - Chapter 25

The chirping of birds outside startled Jiang Xu from his deep sleep. The curtains swayed gently in the wind, allowing bright daylight to filter through the gaps and into the room. He reached for the switch on the bedside lamp. On the nightstand sat a sticky note.

“I’ll take over the mission of picking up and dropping off Tongtong today! 😀

— He Xianxing”

Brushing his thumb over the elegant handwriting, Jiang Xu folded the paper, thought better of it, crumpled it into a ball, and tossed it into the trash can. He checked his phone; it was 10:43 AM. It had been a long time since he had slept in until such an hour.

Jiang Xu shook his aching head and opened his messaging app. His conversation with Shen Yucheng still ended at the message from the day before yesterday. He pulled the quilt up, covering his head completely, and quickly drifted back into a muddled sleep.

At dusk, He Xianxing shut down his computer and stood up. Seeing him so eager to leave, a colleague teased, “Inspector He, do you have someone special? Why have you been running off so early lately?”

“Nonsense!” He Xianxing replied as he walked out. “What cruel person made a rule that only people with partners get to leave early? I’ll go arrest them right now and uphold justice for the rest of us.” He put on a mock-ferocious expression.

“It’s not nonsense. Don’t you know that love requires a massive amount of time to maintain? Once people fall in love, they can’t wait to get off work every day. According to my meticulous deduction, there is a 90% chance you’re in a relationship!”

“Oh?” He Xianxing said thoughtfully. “And the remaining 10%?”

“Given your character, Inspector, the remaining 10% is that you’ve set your sights on someone’s spouse. After all, breaking up a home takes time, too!”

“What flawless logic,” He Xianxing raised an eyebrow provocatively. “So, our resident love expert is still single, then?”

“Wow, He Xianxing,” the single colleague snapped, stung by the remark. “You really have a wicked tongue!”

“Takes one to know one.” He Xianxing flashed a smug, though not unpleasant, smile. “I’m busy. I don’t have time to explain things to single people like you!”

He pulled open the office door with a light step, only to run straight into the stern face of Deputy Chief Inspector Ye Yilang.

Recently, Shen Yucheng had shut down the street race organized by Ye Yilang’s son, Ye Xihang. The modified cars were all impounded and ordered to be restored to legal standards, leaving many drivers complaining. Ye Yilang had naturally swallowed his pride to ask Shen Yucheng for favors several times, but Shen Yucheng hadn’t given him an inch. Furthermore, Shen Yucheng had discovered that many of the forensic technicians from that night were personally close to Ye Yilang. Although he hadn’t made a formal accusation yet, it was enough to leave Ye Yilang fuming.

Since He Xianxing was currently attached to Shen Yucheng’s special task force, he had naturally inherited Ye Yilang’s resentment and had been dealt several “small shoes” lately.

“Deputy Chief, you’re leaving too?” He Xianxing said with a grin, trying to bluff his way past.

Ye Yilang glared at him. “Leaving? No.” He blocked He Xianxing’s path. “Since you haven’t left yet, you can come help!”

“What?”

“Some fishermen pulled two bodies out of the West City River. We’re short-handed.”

“But isn’t the West City area handled by Criminal Investigation Team C?”

“Everyone with experience in Team C has been sent to S-City for training. The ones left behind are all green; they saw those bloated, floating corpses and vomited until their legs went weak. I don’t have time to explain. Move! Is there anyone else still in the office?”

Ye Yilang was like a whirlwind, rounding up the other remaining officers to serve as “volunteers” for Team C. It didn’t look like he was intentionally picking a fight.

He Xianxing clicked his tongue and had no choice but to call the kindergarten to say he would be late to pick up the child. As he was speaking, he saw Shen Yucheng emerge from the elevator looking travel-worn.

Realizing he wouldn’t be able to get away from Ye Yilang’s case anytime soon, He Xianxing walked over to Shen Yucheng. “Hey, Team Leader. Jiang Xu asked me to pick up Tongtong, but I’ve got a case and can’t leave. Do you have time to go get her?”

“Tongtong?” Shen Yucheng had been interrogating Su Wan at the detention center all night. He had completely forgotten his promise to Jiang Xu about picking up the child until He Xianxing mentioned it. He checked his watch. “Fine, I’ll go.” He decided the information Su Wan provided could wait a bit longer for verification.

Seeing Shen Yucheng agree, He Xianxing resumed his call to tell the teacher that someone else would be coming for Tongtong. Before he could finish his instructions, Ye Yilang was already barking at him to get downstairs. He hung up and started to run.

“Inspector He!”

He Xianxing turned back. Shen Yucheng asked, “Did his fever go down?”

He Xianxing narrowed his eyes. “It went down a lot late last night.” Then, as if thinking of something amusing, his lips curled. “But the Team Leader doesn’t need to worry. It wasn’t a fever.”

Shen Yucheng froze. “Not a fever? Then what…”

“Ah, he spent the night crying and shouting, begging me not to leave.”

Shen Yucheng’s face went deathly pale. He Xianxing had already turned and started humming a tune as he walked away. Shen Yucheng stared at He Xianxing’s receding back, his brows knit tight. Finally unable to restrain his rage, he gritted his teeth and shouted, “He Xianxing!”

Colleagues from other departments looked over curiously, wondering why the usually expressionless Special Envoy had suddenly lost his temper. Shen Yucheng clenched his fists, eventually letting them go in a futile release of tension under the watchful eyes of the crowd.

The persistent ringing of his phone woke Jiang Xu. He moved his fingers; the long sleep had left his limbs stiff. The phone had vibrated off the nightstand onto the floor. He picked it up to see a string of completely unfamiliar numbers.

“Hello?” Jiang Xu answered.

There was a long silence on the other end. Just as Jiang Xu was about to hang up, thinking it was a scam call, he heard the crackle of static.

“Officer Jiang.”

A distorted male voice, accompanied by rustling noise, came through the speaker. Jiang Xu’s pupils contracted instantly. His muddled brain snapped into focus.

“Oh, right. Should I call you ‘Public Security Officer’ now? Heh, it’s been a few years. How did you end up so low? You used to be quite the big shot.”

Jiang Xu steadied himself and asked in a deep voice, “Who are you?”

“Officer Jiang really is a busy man with a short memory.”

“If you think I shouldn’t have forgotten, then why hide your voice?”

The man on the other end gave a sharp laugh but didn’t answer. There was a sound of shuffling, and it seemed as if someone else had taken the phone.

“Daddy!”

For a moment, Jiang Xu felt a deathly vertigo. “Tongtong!” He covered his mouth, his heart racing.

“Mmm… Da…!” The child’s voice was suddenly pulled away. He could hear the faint sounds of a struggle.

“What do you want?!” Jiang Xu shouted, fighting to control his emotions. “If you have a problem, take it out on me! No matter what I did, the child is innocent. Don’t touch him!”

“Haha, how touching, Officer Jiang.” The man’s voice remained cold even as he laughed. “Wasn’t my brother innocent back then? Back then, you said that as long as we surrendered, you’d give us a way out. But in the end, weren’t all my brothers shot dead on the spot by your bureau?”

Restlessness and dread surged. Jiang Xu’s voice was hoarse. “…You’re the kidnapper who escaped back then?”

“Finally remembered?”

“I never forgot.”

“Is that so? I’ve been looking for you for a long time.”

“…If you’re here to avenge your brothers, let the child go first. I’ll do anything you want.”

The man on the phone laughed wildly for a long time before stopping. “Officer Jiang, let’s be clear: you are in no position to negotiate.” He paused. “200 Fusong Road, in the eastern suburbs. There’s an unfinished building project there. You know it, right? 5:15. I’ll be there with your precious son.”

“It’s already almost five o’clock!”

The man ignored him. “Remember, come alone. If you call even one of your colleagues, I’ll blow your son’s brains out.”

To punctuate his point, a “bang” from a gunshot rang out on the other end, followed by the child’s frantic wailing and the man’s piercing laughter.

Jiang Xu leaned against the wall to keep his balance.

“I understand. I’m coming now. Don’t scare him. He’s very timid. Please, don’t scare him, don’t hurt him. He’ll be afraid.”

The line went dead.

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