Special District 9

As soon as Qin Yu entered the office, Old Cat entered right after and asked, “What are you busy with?”

“Jabi told me that he wanted to give his death gratuity to the two children he’s raising,” Qin Yu said as he drank a little bit of water. “I have just finished writing the report for that, and I was about to submit it.”

“Ah.”

“What about those three on your side? You don’t need to settle them?” Qin Yu asked.

“My right-hand man is settling them. He’s talking to their families at the moment,” Old Cat replied. “I don’t like dealing with such situations, so I didn’t go with him.”

“I see,” Qin Yu nodded.

“Hey, do you have anything up later on?” Old Cat suddenly asked.

Qin Yu pondered for a moment before replying, “The same old stuff—interrogating those two. I don’t think I got anything particularly important up.”

“Then do you want to follow me to Qi Lin’s house?” Old Cat asked as he feigned his usual lackadaisical attitude. “He won’t be able to receive the additional frontline risk pay after being sent to the back office, so his salary will be taking a cut… I’m worried that he’ll hang himself over that.”

Having known Old Cat for some time, Qin Yu realized that Old Cat had a foul mouth, and he tended to neglect the emotions of others when he spoke. Despite so, he did care deeply about his friends.

Old Cat realized that he went overboard yesterday in the breakfast store, so he wanted to pay Qi Lin a visit. But at the same time, he felt a little awkward heading there alone, especially after the fight they just had the previous day, so he wanted to pull Qin Yu along with him.

“Let’s go in the afternoon after work then. I need to follow up with Zhu Wei regarding the interrogation first,” Qin Yu said as he looked at the clock.

“Alright. I’ll come and call you in the afternoon then.”

“Sure.”

…

Afternoon, as soon as the bell signaling the end of working hours rang, Qin Yu sat down on Old Cat’s electronic vehicle and headed straight over to Qi Lin’s family.

In this era, those who were working in the Police Bureau were generally regarded to be faring decently. They were considered to be of middle income in Special District 9. Even though they faced considerable danger in their line of work, it was still a stable job where they were guaranteed a salary every month.

Despite so, Qi Lin still lived a tough life. His house was located in the suburbs of Black Street Sector, right next to the slums. Most of those living in this area didn’t have a stable job. Those who were younger could still take on strength-related chores to earn a living, but the old and sickly didn’t have the privilege to do that. As such, living from day to day was a huge struggle for them.

Songjiang didn’t have the resources to distribute rations and help everyone, so starvation was a real problem that the poor faced here. Crime rates were extraordinarily high in the region too. It wasn’t uncommon for people to go missing from time to time.

The reason why Qi Lin lived in this area was due to his financial woes. The houses here were much cheaper, and electricity and water were only available at fixed timing. It was due to the low cost of living here that he and his family were able to barely survive thus far.

Of course, a huge part of the reason why they were still able to make ends meet was also due to Qi Lin making full use of the resources in the Police Bureau wherever possible. He would try to grab dinner at the canteen after work before heading home, and he would bring the dirty clothes from home over to the Police Bureau to wash too…

Walking into the residence where Qi Lin’s house was located, Qin Yu scanned the surroundings and noted that the residence was rectangular shaped. It spanned an area of roughly four hundred meters, but most of this land belonged to the landlord. Qi Lin had only rented two small and squeezy rooms here.

Between the two rooms and the rest of the residence, there was a wall and a metal door. Outsiders might be intrigued by this design, but those living in the region knew that the wall and metal door served as a precaution against thieving tenants. At night, before sleeping, the landlord would first lock the door so that the tenant wouldn’t head to the other parts of the residence.

However, as Qi Lin had lived here for a long time, as well as the fact that he was a policeman, the landlord has chosen to leave the metal gate open as a sign of respect and trust toward Qi Lin…

Shortly after entering the residence, they saw Qi Lin sitting in a daze on the steps. He had a bitter expression on his face.

“What are you doing?” Old Cat went up to him and asked.

Surprised by the two guests, Qi Lin stood up and asked, “What are you two doing here?”

“We came here to see if you are dead yet.” Old Cat was known for his inability to talk properly to others.

“Come in.” Qi Lin seemed to be the type to quickly forget about conflicts and awkwardness. Not mentioning anything about what had happened yesterday, he quickly adjusted his mood and welcomed the two into his room with a smile.

“Where’s your mother?” Old Cat asked.

“My mother is resting in the opposite room. My younger sister is doing some chores at someone else’s house, so she isn’t home at the moment,” Qi Lin replied. “Come in and have some water.”

“Nah, we’ll go and greet your mother first.” Old Cat was carrying a few bags of food he had specially prepared for Qi Lin’s mother.

Qi Lin was quiet for a while before he shook his head, “It’ll be best not to.”

“What’s wrong?” Qin Yu asked.

“We fought earlier.”

“What?” Hearing those words, Old Cat berated, “You suffered some grievances in work, so you vented your anger on your mother? How old are you? Can you be more mature?”

“Like hell. She’s the one venting her anger on me,” Qi Lin replied with a sigh. “Why is she so determined to have me bring a daughter-in-law back for her? I’m going to lose 100 dollars every month after moving to the back office, and that’ll only make it even harder for us. How am I to find her a daughter-in-law with our current financial state?”

“Why the sudden rush?” Old Cat asked curiously.

Qi Lin hesitated for a moment. He beckoned for those two to enter the room before he began explaining the situation.

Qi Lin’s mother was afflicted with liver problems, but they had been delaying treatment because they didn’t have the money for that. Her condition worsened over time as her vital organs withered under the strain, causing her time to become limited. The old lady wasn’t educated, and she had lived a life full of woes. Her only wish now was to see Qi Lin marry and meet her grandchild before her death…

Her deeper reason for doing all of this, Qi Lin was actually aware of it as well. The old lady simply didn’t want him to spend money on her any longer. She wanted him to find a wife, settle down, and live his own life.

In Qi Lin’s room.

After hearing Qi Lin’s words, Qin Yu fell silent. He didn’t know what kind of advice he could offer Qi Lin.

On the other hand, Old Cat contemplated for a moment before asking, “Even if you want to find a woman to settle down with, there is a process to it. How are you to find a daughter-in-law for her all of a sudden?”

“She talked about this matter with the neighbors, and they recommended her to find an intermediary. What she wants me to do is to buy a wife. However, you know about my current situation too. My salary has been cut, and there’s no guarantee what will happen after I move over to the back office too…” Qi Lin said with a conflicted look on his face.

After hearing those words, Old Cat pondered for a moment before replying, “I think you should do it.”

“Don’t talk nonsense,” Qi Lin said with a wave of his hand. “If I were to be kicked out of the Police Bureau once the punishment is meted out, what am I to do afterward?”

“It won’t happen,” Old Cat replied with a lowered head. “No matter what happens, I’ll ensure that there’s a place for you in the Police Bureau.”

Qi Lin widened his eyes slightly upon hearing those words.

“Tell me honestly. Is your mother’s condition dire?” Old Cat asked softly.

There were a few seconds of silence before Qi Lin replied with a deep sigh, “Without treatment, the best we can do is to delay the worsening as far as possible… It’ll be hard to tell how long more she has.”

“You should get a wife then,” Old Cat said. “It’s about time for you to marry anyway. You can’t possibly take leave from work and run back home every single time something happens. You need someone to take care of things at home for you too so that you can focus on other stuff.”

“But I don’t have…”

“Wait a moment,” Old Cat tossed these words to Qi Lin. He turned to Qin Yu and asked, “Come out with me for a while.”

“Old Cat, there’s no need for that,” Qi Lin immediately stood up and said.

Old Cat pointed his finger at Qi Lin and berated, “I told you to wait here.”

Two minutes later, outside the residence.

Smoking on his e-cigarette, Old Cat looked at Qin Yu and asked, “Do you have money?”

Qin Yu blinked his eyes and said, “I can only lend him 500 at most.”

“That’s not enough.” Old Cat shook his head.

Qin Yu replied without any hesitation, “That’s all I can afford right now.”

Old Cat raised his head and said deeply, “If Qi Lin can’t return the money to you soon, I’ll pay you on his behalf by Christmas.”

Qin Yu looked at Old Cat in surprise. He carefully contemplated this for a few seconds before replying, “I have 1500 with me at the moment. I’ll let you take 1300, and I’ll keep the remaining 200 for food.”

“Thanks, bro.” Old Cat patted Qin Yu’s shoulder.

“Sigh, I just want to ask you this question.” Qin Yu looked at Old Cat curiously and asked, “How do you intend to raise the money if Qi Lin is unable to pay me?”

“I’ll find a way to raise the money even if I have to pimp myself out at Dirt Street.”

“The heck…” Qin Yu was speechless. “I don’t want to lend you my money anymore.”

“It’s settled then,” Old Cat chuckled as he went back into the room. “Qi Lin, get the intermediary. The two of us will put together 3500 for you, and you’ll have to find a way to raise the rest.”

Standing in the tattered room, Qi Lin stared at the two for a while before bowing deeply, “I… I’ll definitely find a way to pay this money back to you.”

…

Qi Lin actually didn’t want to disobey his mother’s wishes because he knew that this could very well be her final wish.

Three in the afternoon, Qi Lin, together with Qin Yu and Old Cat, drove out of Songjiang City with the huge sum of money they had pooled together. Their destination was Beitai Village.

Traveling through the frozen Songjiang, the wheels of the car were swiftly cloaked in a layer of snow. They parked and alighted at an unknown road before walking three kilometers to get to the entrance of Beitai Village. There, they made a call to the person they were going to meet.

After waiting for around half an hour, an old lady dressed in a military coat walked over to welcome them with a reddened face, “You’re here to buy a person?”

“Do you need to be so blunt?” Old Cat remarked in displeasure. “We’re here to look for a wife.”

“Follow me,” the old lady said before walking away.

The three of them traveled through the tattered residential area before entering a house that was hardly windproof at all.

The old lady tugged the metal doors open, pointed at the dozen people of all races and nationalities sitting on the ground, and said, “White, black, we have every type that you want. As long as you have the money, everything is negotiable.”

Standing by the doorway, Qin Yu crinkled his nose a little as he said, “Qi Lin, you should go in and pick.”

“Do they have residential passes?” Old Cat asked casually, feigning to be knowledgeable.

“This little brother over here, would I need to introduce them to you if they had residential passes?” the old lady rolled her eyes. “They would be able to find customers themselves over at Dirt Street.”

“… Sis, you sound very experienced.”

“Tsk,” the old lady clicked her tongue. “Who doesn’t have a story behind them nowadays?”

Old Cat couldn’t argue with that.

The old lady patted Qi Lin’s shoulder and said, “Little brother, there’s no need to feel embarrassed. The customer always comes first in business. Go in and have your pick. There’s a torchlight over there. If you can’t see their faces clearly, you can shine the light on their faces…”

Qi Lin was indeed feeling a little embarrassed. He stood by the doorway, appearing to be a little uptight.

Peng!

Old Cat kicked Qi Lin into the house as he said, “Hurry up. The sun is going to set.”

Qi Lin hesitated for a moment before walking in.

…

Back in Songjiang, a silhouette scanned his surroundings furtively as he made his way over to Qi Lin’s room. He peered through the window and called out, “Qi Lin. Qi Lin. Are you home?”

Footsteps suddenly pattered behind him, causing the silhouette to jolt in shock. He immediately lowered his head and held the gun inside his clothes tightly, but when he turned around to take a look, it turned out to just be a passer-by.