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墨書 Inktalez
There are indeed two types of people living in darkness: one type is a Criminal, and the other is an undercover agent. The difference between the two lies in the fact that one enjoys the darkness while the other pretends to enjoy it. Once a police officer becomes an undercover agent, they must abandon everything they once had.
Identity, friends, even family must be forsaken. Moreover, once the choice to go undercover is made, there can be no contact with family—this is both an order and a rule. If there is a vulnerability, there is leverage. If there is leverage, one cannot continue as an undercover agent. When an undercover agent sacrifices themselves, their name will not appear, and their achievements will go unrecognized.
Because of the sacrifice of police officers, their families remain. To deter other officers from becoming undercover agents, Criminals will go to great lengths to target the families of fallen officers. From an eighty-year-old mother to young children, none will be spared. This serves to intimidate other undercover agents into giving up early.
If my parents were indeed undercover police officers, then to prevent me from being implicated, they might have abandoned me at the prison gate and fabricated a Criminal father to confuse others. This is not impossible. It could also explain why there is no record of my father in Qingcheng Prison.
But if that were the case, what has happened to my parents after twenty years? As I pondered this, my heart sank. Five years as an undercover agent is common; ten years is rare; twenty years is almost unheard of. If my parents had returned to their roles as police officers, they would surely have come looking for me.
Yet twenty years have passed, and I still have not heard a word about them. This means that things do not bode well.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I never expected that what I had gained was the grim possibility that my parents had already sacrificed themselves. But if they truly had perished, they would have certainly avoided holding a memorial service to protect their family; most people would not even know that these two individuals were police officers.
When I was thrown into prison during an emergency situation, no one knew I was the child of a police officer. Therefore, I would need to inquire with higher-ranking officials to uncover the truth behind this matter. It was unfortunate that if I were still part of the Special Operations Group at this moment, I could ask Captain Shao to help me inquire with the Deputy Director; but now...
"Do you know what happened to my parents? Do you have any clues about what transpired back then?" I looked at Zhao Mingkun, hoping he could provide me with more information.
Zhao Mingkun shook his head gently and said, "I don't know much more than that. However, we are still Alive now; perhaps we can eventually find out more. You know what I do—I learned from a captured Criminal that your parents were likely undercover in a drug trafficking organization. This organization has evolved over time; thanks to police efforts, it has grown larger yet more clandestine."
"But!" Zhao Mingkun's tone shifted as he continued, "They have also become increasingly cautious and cunning, and you should recognize these individuals."
My eyes lit up as I spoke: "You mean Lai San!"
Zhao Mingkun looked out the window and paced around the room as if deep in thought before finally saying, "That's right. Over twenty years ago, Lai San began getting involved with Drugs. In the following years, he learned about the production and sale of Drugs from others and developed an addiction during this time."
I nodded; Captain Shao had taken me on my first case involving Lai San, but I hadn’t realized he was connected to events from twenty years ago. I wondered if he knew anything about my parents' situation.
"Addicts are easy to control," Zhao Mingkun continued calmly. "Lai San began helping with drug trafficking as a way to prove he wasn't an undercover agent—a crucial part of his role. At this point, Lai San had already become a member of this organization. The norm for these people is to sell drugs to support their habit. After this Drug Lord was taken down back then, Lai San disappeared for a long time."
At that moment, Zhao Mingkun's words began to connect with what Lin Shu had told me long ago, forming a complete picture. I spoke up, "The operation back then didn't catch all the drug dealers; there were a few who slipped through the net. They discovered that my parents were undercover, and so they hunted them down. In a dire situation, they left me at the entrance of Qingcheng Prison."
I tugged at my hair, the pain sharpening my focus. "After that, Lai San voluntarily entered the Rehabilitation Center, escaping pursuit in the most dangerous yet safest way. Inside the Rehabilitation Center, Lai San managed to overcome his gambling addiction through sheer willpower. Once he got out, those in power had fallen, so Lai San took over the Drug Trafficking Network and started operating on his own."
"Until! We discovered this drug trafficking network again!" I continued. "Lai San, Old Zhang, and others are all part of it. So if we find Lai San, we can uncover what happened back then! It's ironic that it all leads back to him!"
Zhao Mingkun looked at me and said, "But after you all discovered him, Lai San and his men defected to Wu Zui."
I furrowed my brow and asked, "But who exactly is Wu Zui? He always wears a mask and never shows his true face. Plus, he doesn't seem very old; how can he command so many people? What do you know about Wu Zui?"
Zhao Mingkun turned to me and said, "You'd best stay out of Wu Zui's affairs. Don't you realize how many times he's targeted you? You could leave this world behind and live a normal life, start a business—I've got plenty of money; I could give it all to you. Just go to a city where no one knows you and stay away from these matters."
Zhao Mingkun's tone was almost urgent.
I didn't understand why Zhao Mingkun was so protective of me. It seemed like she was looking out for me at every turn. Yet I couldn't grasp why she felt this way; it was as if she had some special feelings for me that weren't romantic. There had to be something she was hiding from me.
I looked at Zhao Mingkun in confusion and asked, "But why? Why don't you want me to get involved in this mess?"
"Do you understand that you could die at any moment?" Zhao Mingkun lowered her voice but spoke with conviction. "I don't want you to die in your twenties."
"Aren't you in the same situation?" I countered. "You're thirty this year; seven years ago, you were the same age as I am now. You've been through it too."
Zhao Mingkun scoffed lightly and replied, "We're not the same. I've actually killed people; my hands are stained with blood. Many of them were innocent! They did nothing wrong; they were just living their lives. But I killed them—just like that, without mercy!"
"And you?" Zhao Mingkun nearly shouted. "You're different; you've never killed anyone. Even though you're wanted, once Shao Shilin gets serious about it, he can quickly prove your innocence. Ever since Yang Juan became a vegetable, he's not the same anymore—he's become dazed and confused. If it weren't for that, he wouldn't have chosen someone else to investigate this matter. Do you understand? You're his only hope; that's why he'll prove your innocence."
I was left speechless, quietly watching Zhao Mingkun tremble with emotion.
After a long pause, I finally spoke up: "The Special Operations Group was established to catch you; do you understand?"
Zhao Mingkun said, "I know more about what happened back then than you do. Shi Huacheng shot Yang Juan, and Shao Shilin stabbed Shi Huacheng in the neck. Fortunately, neither of them died. Unfortunately, one became a vegetable forever, and the other could never speak normally again."
After a pause, Zhao Mingkun continued, "If the people in the organization hadn’t been caught, Shi Huacheng wouldn’t have been executed. Do you understand? Shao Shilin wants to capture me because he hopes to execute Shi Huacheng as soon as possible. He wants to execute his former master, my adoptive father."
"But Shi Huacheng shot Yang Juan," I said. "Is that how a master treats his disciple?"
Zhao Mingkun shook his head and replied, "Shi Huacheng is bad to the core. Yet he is also good to the core. Back then, his marksmanship was among the best in the police department. That shot was aimed at Shao Shilin's shoulder. But when Yang Juan suddenly appeared, it struck her in the chest instead. Do you think he wasn’t heartbroken? Do you think he has a heart of stone?"
"If it weren't for saving his daughter Shitou, why would he have done that?" Zhao Mingkun's eyes were filled with tears. "And if it weren't for saving Shitou, why would I have done this? Betting my life on a path from which I can never turn back. Yes, from the moment we made that decision, the ending of our story was already written. What other choice do we have but to walk this dark road to the end?"
Zhao Mingkun knelt on the ground, silently shedding tears.
"Do you know? Before I turned twenty, my adoptive father Shi Huacheng told me he would make me a police officer." Zhao Mingkun's voice was low; I could hear her struggling to hold back her emotions. "I waited for twenty years, but when I woke up one day, everything had changed. The daughter of a criminal will always be a criminal; it's an unchangeable fate!"
Zhao Mingkun looked at me and said, "But you are different. Do you know? The son of a police officer should never become like me, even if you can't become a police officer yourself. I have no choice left, but you still do; you still have options. Don’t throw away your life walking down a dark path. Even if it means I’m begging you."
I didn’t know when silence and darkness became the norm in my life; I had grown accustomed to such an environment and such a life. It felt like being in a pitch-black room where a woman knelt on the ground crying. This scene seemed familiar to me; deep within my memories, something echoed her sorrow.
Ordinary people seek madness while mad people pursue ordinariness.
Yet none of them could attain what they desired.
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