Chapter Twenty-Five Farewell, My Kind Feelings

  The sound of the police whistle grew louder, and Wang, the deputy captain of the accident handling team, arrived at the scene with two traffic police officers. Jiang Wei went up to greet him and pulled Deputy Captain Wang aside, who was observing the scene. The two exchanged a few words in hushed tones.

  "The deceased was a fugitive with serious crimes who we were just about to apprehend."

  "Murder to silence?" The scene clearly showed intentional tire tracks, making Deputy Captain Wang think that the perpetrator might have grasped some important figure's secret.

  "Absolutely not, this kid's case is clear-cut, it's the kind that deserves severe punishment, and if caught will be executed immediately."

  "It doesn't look like an accident at all! What did you mean, Xiao Jiang?" Deputy Captain Wang asked with some displeasure.

  "The car that hit him belongs to a young punk I busted last year. A couple of weeks ago, the same kid was shot by the deceased."

  Deputy Captain Wang: "Is it revenge killing?"

  Jiang Wei did not continue the topic: "The deceased injured one of our prison guards while escaping from prison, and the injured person has now been diagnosed as a vegetable, leaving behind two six-year-old twin children."

  Deputy Captain Wang cursed angrily: "Is there still such a thing! Son of a turtle, even if he was crushed to death, it wouldn't be too much."

  Jiang Wei: "Tonight, brother wants to invite you to have a simple meal with your elder brother, let's discuss this matter specifically and see how to handle it."

  Deputy Captain Wang was slightly surprised, as Jiang Wei was notorious in the bureau for being arrogant and looking down on others. The fact that he would offer to treat him to dinner today clearly had something to do with this case. Deputy Captain Wang was a top-notch detective, but he wasn't a man of iron face and impartiality in his daily life. He didn't want to offend young Jiang Wei, so he nodded in agreement.

  "Alright, where shall we eat? I'll come over once I'm done here."

  Jiang Wei: "Come on, have a drink of Wuliangye at my place, what's with this matter today?"

  "According to the preliminary investigation at the scene, it cannot be completely ruled out that it was a deliberate collision, but it is more likely to be an accidental event. This requires meeting with the deceased's family and determining if there were any suspicious circumstances in the deceased's social relationships before further conclusions can be drawn."

  Jiang Wei raised his voice: "The deceased had only one younger brother, who was a fugitive. He was a notorious local tyrant before his death, with countless enemies and complex social relationships. It's not easy to investigate his social connections."

  Deputy Captain Wang inferred that there was no one who would pursue the cause of this man's death, and he had a bottom line. He nodded: "The brake marks are obvious, the front of the car is severely damaged, it is clear that at the time, the driver was not prepared for the sudden appearance of the deceased, and should have been hit while dodging. After listening to your account of the situation, things became even clearer. It's estimated that this kid was rushed by his brother under your command, wanted to intercept the car and escape, but suddenly appeared on the road, and was hit head-on by a speeding vehicle."

  Baoli Gang followed the traffic police back to the division. Before getting out of the car, Ye Haodong had already instructed him that it was an accident, saying that he was driving tired and his eyes were blurred at the time, and the mountain dragon tiger suddenly rushed out, and since it was sudden, you didn't guard against it and hit it. As long as the matter is settled, pay a fine, and compensate for some money to solve it.

  At dinner time, in a private room of a restaurant near Jiang Wei's home, Ye Haodong and Wang Maosheng, the deputy captain of the traffic police brigade, shook hands under Jiang Wei's introduction. The three people in the private room didn't mention what happened during the day. After chatting about some irrelevant topics and finishing dinner, Jiang Wei gave all the cigarettes and liquor he had received to Wang Maosheng. Wang Maosheng also didn't decline, and took the things away with a big smile. Ye Haodong followed him out and secretly handed him an envelope containing 5,000 yuan. In 1994, this amount of money was equivalent to half a year's salary for Wang Maosheng.

  The dead man, Shan Longhu, had it coming to him. Ye Haodong's subordinate, Bao Ligang, avenged himself by running someone over, but there was a reason for it. Moreover, Jiang Wei's face was involved in this matter, and with Ye Haodong's wealth and influence, no one would dare to pursue the case further. Under these circumstances, Wang Maosheng was happy to do a favor that benefited him as well.

  After Wang Maosheng left, Jiang Wei's smile from just now suddenly disappeared.

  "I thought you would be a decent businessman, doing something that benefits the country, the people and yourself. But today's matter has disappointed me greatly. The only reason I'm helping you is because you saved my mother, this is the only thing I can do for you. From now on, there will be no relationship between us."

  Ye Haodong smiled bitterly: "I used to think so too."

  Jiang Wei was perplexed and angrily asked: "Then why are you still doing this foolish thing that could get you killed again?"

  Ye Haodong's eyes flashed with a few points of frenzy: "When that whatever dogshit power management director stopped supplying electricity without any reason, when the bullet from Shan Longhu's revenge hit my chest, I knew that the rules of this world are not measured by my standards. The tree wants to be still but the wind will not stop, in a weak-eat-strong world, what I need to do is become stronger, let them follow my rules to be human."

  "Otherwise, there's no need to be human?"

  Ye Haodong smiled: "There's no such overbearing, but becoming my enemy is undoubtedly, and the attitude I use to deal with enemies and treat friends follows a rule; when people respect me for one foot, I will respect them for ten feet."

  Jiang Wei thought for a moment, Ye Haodong's usual performance was the best interpretation of this sentence.

  "No matter what you think, the dignity of the law cannot be challenged. Even if Shan Longhu has committed a capital offense, your private actions of killing him still violate the law. This is my first time bending the law for personal reasons, although there are mitigating circumstances, but the law does not tolerate emotions. I hope this is the last time."

  Yue Haodong: "Violated the Road Traffic Safety Law, violated the traffic law, this is an accident, we did not intentionally hit him to death, you didn't do anything either. I and Deputy Captain Wang hit it off as soon as we met, invited you out for a drink, everyone had a great time, that's all."

  The dinner party didn't end on a bad note, but neither did they part on particularly good terms. The two of them each harbored their own concerns as they headed home.

  The biggest mistake people often make is to always use their own rules to demand the world, but forget that the world also uses its rules to demand us. So the law is like gold, silent and hard to resist. In this competitive world, Ye Haodong chose to become a carnivorous lion as his goal.

  Jiang Wei understood Ye Haodong's choice, but he absolutely disagreed. He thought that from now on, he would never have any private dealings with Ye Haodong again. However, he didn't expect that this matter was only the beginning of their mutually supportive relationship.

  On the eighth day after Shan Long's death, the court finally made a ruling on this 'traffic accident'.

  Bao Li Gang was found guilty of causing a fatal car accident due to reckless driving, resulting in one death and severe consequences. He was fined 10,000 yuan. The owner of the car, Ye Hao Dong, was ordered to pay 60,000 yuan in compensation to the deceased, Shan Long Hu's family. However, since Shan Long Hu was a fugitive with a criminal record, and his crimes had caused tragedy for another family, the court decided to award the compensation directly to the family of the police officer who became a vegetable due to Shan Long Hu's actions. The compensation was paid in cash on the spot, and those who received it were satisfied. Ye Hao Dong also achieved his goal of using money to protect his brother from imprisonment. Everything ended peacefully and fairly. However, this fairness was actually the result of Ye Hao Dong's first involvement in a corrupt transaction.

  On the last Sunday of 1994, Ye Haodong and Jiang Lan spent the day at the movies. The newly imported Hollywood blockbuster "The Fugitive" was the main feature at the Xin Guang Cinema that day, with Harrison Ford's portrayal of Dr. Richard Kimble's tortuous experience captivating the audience's attention. It was one of the few action films starring Ford after he turned 50, a classic among classics. However, Ye Haodong and Jiang Lan couldn't recall any scenes from the movie after it ended. Throughout the film, neither of them spoke, seemingly engrossed in the movie, but their secretly clasped hands transformed the ambiguous feelings between them into concrete reality. The young couple, savoring the delight of first love, was clearly distracted - their minds were elsewhere.

  That evening, on the way to send Jiang Lan back home, they passed by a small park. Ye Haodong suddenly thought of Song Jinwei and Liu Wenwen, whom he had never met but was extremely clear about. He suggested going in for a stroll. Jiang Lan hesitated shyly for a moment before agreeing.

  The development of things was originally in Ye Haodong's control, but in the end it was greatly beyond expectations.