Chapter 124: Verbal Sparring

“Had breakfast yet?”

After leaving the alley, Cheng Qianfan spotted Li Hao.

“I had pan-fried buns and douhua.” Li Hao said with a smile.

“Let’s walk and talk.”

Cheng Qianfan glanced into the distance. A little beggar was looking this way somewhat timidly. When he saw Cheng Qianfan nod and smile at him, the little beggar immediately broke into a simple, delighted grin.

That was one of Li Hao’s subordinates.

Li Hao himself had grown up as a beggar. Now that he had a proper job and had acknowledged Cheng Qianfan, a police officer, as his elder brother, he had practically become a role model in the eyes of many young beggars.

These little beggars had also become Cheng Qianfan’s eyes and ears.

Though inconspicuous, nothing that happened in the streets and alleys escaped their eyes and ears.

“Brother Fan, I found out.” Li Hao lowered his voice. “Miyamoto Saburo was killed.”

“When?”

“Probably a little after two o’clock yesterday afternoon, by a small river near Hua Gonggong Alley.”

“What else?”

“Pidan saw someone who looked very much like Officer He appear in Hua Gonggong Alley.”

Pidan was the little beggar from earlier.

Cheng Qianfan shook his head.

That fellow He Guan probably thought he had done everything flawlessly, when in reality there were holes everywhere.

“I’ve already told Pidan not to mention this matter to anyone,” Li Hao said.

“Tell Pidan not to beg in Hua Gonggong Alley for the time being,” Cheng Qianfan said.

He quickly rejected his own decision.

A little beggar suddenly abandoning the area where he usually begged would be difficult to explain without a suitable reason.

“Go find Big-Head Yang and arrange for Pidan to sell newspapers,” Cheng Qianfan said.

“Understood.”

Big-Head Yang was a friend of Li Hao’s and was also a former beggar.

Li Hao was loyal to old friends and had asked Cheng Qianfan to arrange a newspaper-selling job for Big-Head Yang.

Since Big-Head Yang had pity on the young beggar Pidan and let him help sell newspapers, such a development would appear perfectly natural.

Upon arriving at No. 22 Rue Vallon, the Central Police Station, Cheng Qianfan did not head directly to the main hall.

Instead, he first went to the Deputy Chief Inspector’s office.

Jin Kemu was delighted to see Cheng Qianfan carrying a gift.

The items themselves were not valuable, merely some local Hangzhou pastries.

What mattered was that a subordinate had thought of him.

“Uncle Jin, it’s been many days. Your complexion is looking better and better.” Cheng Qianfan smiled. “According to physiognomy, this means great fortune is arriving.”

“You little rascal, your mouth is sweeter than honey.” Jin Kemu burst out laughing. “Your trip to Hangzhou went smoothly enough, I assume?”

“Thanks to Uncle Jin’s good fortune, nothing went wrong.”

“I heard that boy He Guan came looking for you yesterday?” After exchanging pleasantries for a while, Jin Kemu suddenly asked.

“That’s right.” Cheng Qianfan smiled. “That kid Aguan. I was planning to take a nap at noon, but he came by a little after two in the afternoon. The two of us drank tea and chatted for quite a while.”

Jin Kemu cursed.

“That little brat skipped work again.”

“Don’t scold him.” Cheng Qianfan laughed. “Otherwise Aguan will definitely accuse me of tattling.”

“That stubborn mule.” Jin Kemu rubbed his temples. “If he were even half as capable as you, I’d have a lot less to worry about.”

Naturally, Cheng Qianfan could not simply agree with that assessment.

Instead, he praised He Guan’s loyalty and sense of righteousness, saying that his colleagues all spoke highly of him.

The two men chatted about everyday matters.

Jin Kemu expressed concern for Cheng Qianfan’s wellbeing, while Cheng Qianfan subtly flattered Jin Kemu.

The atmosphere was excellent.

Cheng Qianfan knew that what he had just said had reassured Jin Kemu.

He never underestimated the investigative capabilities of the police station.

Some cases remained unresolved not because they could not be solved.

Sometimes they could not be investigated.

Sometimes people simply did not want them investigated.

The murder of Miyamoto Saburo involved a Japanese national.

Its “negative impact” was considerable.

After an entire night of investigation, certain clues must already have pointed toward He Guan.

Since it involved his own nephew, Jin Kemu had certainly questioned He Guan privately.

Whether He Guan had confessed everything or concealed part of the truth, Cheng Qianfan did not know.

But in the eyes of a seasoned veteran like Jin Kemu, He Guan’s little tricks would be impossible to hide.

Furthermore, one thing was certain.

He Guan would have told Jin Kemu that he had gone to see Cheng Qianfan yesterday.

Thus, Cheng Qianfan’s role as a time witness was extremely important.

His decision to visit Jin Kemu first thing upon arriving at the police station was not merely procedural.

It was also intended to put Jin Kemu at ease.

Neither of them uttered a single word about the Miyamoto Saburo case.

Cheng Qianfan did not mention it because he had to pretend ignorance of the case.

Only then would his testimony carry greater weight.

Moreover, as a Chinese man who was supposedly sympathetic toward the Japanese “at heart,” he could only serve as a witness for He Guan if he remained unaware of the case.

Otherwise, all his efforts to enter the East Asia Common Culture Academy and cultivate a pro-Japanese image would become flawed.

To use an analogy, if there happened to be a Japanese agent lurking around He Guan, and the Japanese learned that Cheng Qianfan had knowingly provided false testimony after learning that He Guan had killed Miyamoto Saburo, then the favorable impression the Japanese had of Cheng Qianfan would suffer and suspicion would arise.

He carried too many secrets.

Cheng Qianfan never believed there was such a thing as a perfectly concealed spy.

That included himself.

The reason one remained undiscovered was simply that suspicion had not yet fallen upon them.

Once a spy came under scrutiny, exposure and death were usually close behind.

Therefore, he had to appear ignorant of the case and convince Jin Kemu of that ignorance.

Even if Jin Kemu would never betray him in order to protect his own nephew, Cheng Qianfan still had to proceed in this manner.

Trust no one.

Never entrust your safety to confidence in any person or any circumstance.

That was the principle by which spies survived.

He knew Jin Kemu was waiting.

And he too was waiting.

If his judgment was correct, someone would soon come to question him.

He needed to be questioned before he officially “learned” of the Miyamoto Saburo case.

Presumably, that was exactly what Jin Kemu wanted as well.

Looking at the outstanding young man before him, Jin Kemu could not help sighing inwardly.

He had spoken sincerely just now.

If He Guan possessed even half of Cheng Qianfan’s ability, he would thank heaven for it.

At the same time, Jin Kemu felt relieved.

He had been discreetly observing Cheng Qianfan throughout their conversation.

The young man probably knew nothing about the foolish thing He Guan had done.

Killing a Japanese national was a major case.

An old fox like Jin Kemu had never believed in loyalty and brotherhood.

The reason he had climbed to his current position was because many people who believed in such things had been used by him and stepped on by him.

If Cheng Qianfan knew that He Guan had killed Miyamoto Saburo, Jin Kemu could not be certain that Cheng Qianfan would still dare act as a witness for him.

Therefore, before Cheng Qianfan learned about the case, he needed to lock in Cheng Qianfan’s testimony.

Even if Cheng Qianfan later discovered the truth, it would be too late to retract it.

And Jin Kemu believed that with Cheng Qianfan’s intelligence, once he had agreed to serve as He Guan’s witness, he would not back out even if he regretted it later.

There would be no benefit in doing so.

“You’ve seen Translator Xiu since returning, haven’t you?” Jin Kemu asked.

“I visited Teacher yesterday,” Cheng Qianfan answered truthfully.

“Mhm.”

Jin Kemu nodded approvingly.

He stood up and patted Cheng Qianfan on the shoulder.

“You’re one of the people I think highly of. Old Ma has never been in particularly good health. You’ll need to devote more attention to the affairs of the Third Patrol.”