Due to the emergency in Room Five, the meeting was declared adjourned. All remaining investigators were asked to leave, and only four people remained in the meeting room: me, Ouyang Pianzuo, Nicholas Hugo, and, of course, the acting head—Sun Fatty.
Once everyone had left, Sun Fatty glanced once more at the ashes in the box, then turned to Ouyang Pianzuo and said, "Can you determine the order in which these talisman papers were burned?"
Director Ouyang shook his head. "Impossible. These were meant to be discarded, but they weren't destroyed out of concern that the remnants might affect the owners. They were just laid out according to the names. There's no order anymore."
Sun Fatty had more or less expected that answer and didn't dwell on it. He shifted his gaze to Hugo and asked, "Not to pick on you, Director Hugo, but what's your take on this?"
Hugo looked as if he couldn't believe his ears. He glanced to both sides as if making sure no one else was around, then pointed to his own nose and said, "Sun, are you... talking to me?"
During Gao Liang's tenure, meetings like this one always had Hugo as an observer. Aside from very rare cases involving Western religion, Gao Liang seldom sought Hugo's opinion. The change in leadership at the Bureau was clearly something Hugo hadn't fully adjusted to.
Sun Fatty gave him a faint smirk. "You see anyone else around?"
Only then did Director Hugo register what was happening. He blinked several times, as if flipping through all the relevant knowledge and experience in his head, before saying, "There's a story in early Catholic tradition... about how Cain killed his brother Abel, and was punished by God—"
Before he could finish, Sun Fatty waved a hand and cut him off with a look of resignation. "Okay, stop right there. Let's pretend I didn't ask."
Finally, Sun Fatty turned to me and said, "Lazi, what do you think? Speak your mind."
I scratched my head, looked at him, and said, "Logically speaking, the two of them just got hold of the Heavenly Principle Diagram. They should've gone into hiding in the mountains to master its contents before showing their faces again. There's no reason to be this high-profile right now. Lin Feng suffered serious losses last time—I don't believe he still has some ace up his sleeve. Even with Director Wu gone from the Bureau, those two don't really have the power to stir up trouble anymore."
Sun Fatty squinted slightly as he nodded. "Go on—what do you think they're really trying to do?"
I hesitated before saying, "I think they're trying to distract us. Lin Feng and Hao Zhengyi must be planning something big. This whole stunt is just a smokescreen to throw us off. When they finally make their real move, we might mistake it for part of the distraction and let it slip right by."
That was the most I could manage. Back when I was still a soldier, I used to be able to think a little more clearly. But ever since I joined the Bureau and met Sun Fatty—especially recently—I've gotten used to relying on him to do the thinking.
Sun Fatty blinked in slight surprise after hearing me out. He stared at me for a moment, then let out a small smile before turning to Ouyang Pianzuo. "Either way, start by matching the talismans with their corresponding locations. Let's see if Lin Feng and Hao Zhengyi both showed up in those places at the same time."
Then he turned to Hugo. Director Hugo waited eagerly for his orders. But Sun Fatty opened his mouth, paused for a long moment, then said, "Well, I'll still have to rely on you to keep an eye on the place."
With that, the small meeting came to an end. Ouyang Pianzuo and Hugo returned to their respective offices. Just as I was about to head back to Room Six, Sun Fatty suddenly called out to me.
"Lazi, don't go yet. Come sit with me for a bit. There's something I want to talk to you about," he said, sighing softly.
That sigh carried an unmistakable note of sorrow—something completely unlike him. What could've happened?
With curiosity brewing, I followed Deputy Director Sun to his office.
He locked the door himself, then stood by it, listening closely for a while. After making sure no one was eavesdropping, he finally returned to his seat. But he didn't say anything—just stared blankly at the computer screen in front of him.
After a long silence, I couldn't hold it anymore. "Da Sheng, if there's something on your mind, just say it. If it's about Lin Feng and Hao Zhengyi again, then maybe you should call Ouyang Pianzuo and Hugo back—they've got more experience than I do. Worst case, I can bring Old Wu here. Don't worry, Shao Yiyi is still in the Bureau. Old Wu wouldn't dare touch you with her around."
Finally, there was a flicker of light in Sun Fatty's eyes. He snorted and said, "Can't count on those two. Ouyang's more interested in academic research than solving real cases. And Hugo... he's something else entirely. Plays dumb when he shouldn't and acts all sharp when it's better to lay low. The guy's performance is so forced, it's like he's begging me to notice."
"Hugo's pretending to be clueless?" I said, surprised.
Sun Fatty gave a faint smile. "Maybe not on purpose. So much has happened lately, and Europe's attitude toward the Bureau has probably shifted. Hugo's just following orders from above—can't really blame him."
He paused for a moment, then looked at me again. "Enough of that. Let's not waste time on useless chatter. There's something I've been bottling up for days now. Might as well spit it out today... and let you be miserable with me."
As he spoke, Sun Fatty carefully pulled a USB flash drive from the inner pocket of his jacket. After a brief moment of hesitation, he plugged it into the computer's USB port and said to me, "This was given to me by Gao Liang's eldest nephew after his funeral. It might still be a little early for you to see this, but regardless of whether you can accept what's in it or not, everything you see today must be kept strictly confidential. If this leaks, it could completely upend what we currently understand about the attack on the Bureau."
Seeing how grave and serious Sun Fatty had become, my heart began to race. I quickly said, "Maybe it's better if I don't watch it. Da Sheng, I'm not good at keeping secrets—you're scaring me here."
"Too late. Why should I be the only one stuck with this miserable burden?" Sun Fatty muttered as he turned the computer screen toward me. He opened a video file from the USB drive, and what appeared on the screen was none other than Gao Liang—the very same Gao Liang who had died a few days ago at the hands of Hao Zhengyi...
The video had been recorded in Director Gao's office. He was sitting at his desk, playing with a small turtle shell in his hands. After giving the camera a slight smile, he said, "Fatty, by the time you're watching this, I should already be gone. Honestly, not getting to see my own funeral—I can't help but feel a little bitter about that."
He held the tiny turtle shell up to the camera and continued, "Remember this little thing? You and the others found it inside Yinbai's stomach, back when you were with Wu Rendi. The only reason this video even exists is thanks to this little guy."
Gao Liang paused for a moment. When he spoke again, there was a clear trace of unwillingness in his tone. "It's a pity that even with the Dragonborn Divination Shell, I can only see what happens up until the moment I die. As for what happens afterward... I'll have to trouble you to stop by my grave and fill me in, so I can understand it down there."
It looked like he was about to get to the heart of the matter. Gao Liang placed the Dragonborn Divination Shell in front of him and looked directly into the camera. "Fatty, I know what you're wondering. With an artifact like this that can defy fate, why would I still choose to walk this path? Believe me, I tried to change my fate once—but the price to keep myself alive was too steep. It was more than I could bear. Rather than endure that cost, I'd rather go first. And besides, I'm at ease leaving the Bureau in your hands."
He then pulled out a pack of cigarettes, lit one, took a few drags, and gave a small smile. "You know, knowing exactly when you're going to die isn't all bad. I had been thinking about quitting smoking... but now I've got the perfect excuse to keep puffing away."
After a few more drags, he got down to business. "No more rambling. I've got a few serious things to entrust to you. First—about Bangchui. I promised him I'd make arrangements for his next life, to get him reincarnated into a good family. I didn't look into it too deeply, so I can't say for sure, but odds are I screwed him over. I won't be able to make it in time to keep that promise. You'll need to go find Yang Xiao and ask him to help. With your relationship, he won't be able to refuse."
He paused again and took two more puffs before continuing. "Then there's Wu Rendi. Years ago, he and I had a pact—he would stay in the Bureau as long as I was here. Now that I'm gone, he'll probably ask to leave. I had thought about giving you a few tips on how to make him stay, but on second thought, maybe this should be a test for you. If you can't even get past this, then you have no hope of holding the Bureau together. Don't make me roll in my grave, Sun Fatty."
At this point, he had smoked down to the filter. Gao Liang stubbed out the cigarette in the ashtray, then looked at the camera and said, "And one more thing—the position of Director of the Bureau. After I'm gone, the Ministry will likely send someone new to the Bureau. You absolutely must stop that. If outsiders come in, we'll end up with amateurs leading the professionals, and the Bureau will sink into a swamp. But the Director's chair isn't right for you either. My recommendation is that you hand it to Yang Chengwu. Let him take the pressure from the Ministry of Public Security off your back. Once that's done, the rest will be easier to manage."