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墨書 Inktalez
"Remember this well," Beiyue said, "If it has anything to do with me, my father must know..." She paused, wondering where her father had gone.
Cui Ming smiled and nodded, accepting the hope that Beiyue offered him. Although he didn't care much for that hope, he was willing to accept it.
Beiyue asked, "What about this crystal?"
"Boss, it may not even belong to me. And even if it does, I've only worn it for two years while you've had it for twenty; it's practically your possession." Cui Ming stood up and said, "Boss, I’ll take my leave now."
"Alright." Beiyue nodded and added, "You don't have to call me Boss; just use my name."
"Okay."
Beiyue watched as Cui Ming closed the door behind him and recalled a saying: don’t easily trust your own eyes. When she first met Cui Ming, he had been staring at her chest as a prisoner, and she had labeled him a pervert and a lecher. Little did she know there was more to the story.
After returning, Cui Ming was deep in thought when Li Qing couldn't help but ask, "Lost your mind?" Seven minutes on the second floor—surely he hadn't done anything too outrageous? But then again, with his physique... heh...
"I was contemplating a life philosophy," Cui Ming replied solemnly.
"What philosophy?"
"Sometimes the simplest methods are far more effective than the most complicated ones."
"I am truly amazed by this great philosophy of life."
Cui Ming did not tell Beiyue the whole truth; there were some things left unsaid. The Hypnotist had once told Cui Ming that since he had such a deep impression of the crystal, it must be related to it. However, childhood memories can often be very distorted, and what one sees under hypnosis may not necessarily reflect what actually happened.
Cui Ming would not dwell on this matter. He was a carefree person, able to take things lightly. Over the years, he had only occasionally been curious about who his parents were. His upbringing in the Thieves Guild and Charity School meant that he was surrounded by people without parents. During his time in prison, he had come to believe that Beiyue was that girl who loved to laugh and cry, which was a stark contrast to the icy demeanor of Beiyue he knew now.
Cui Ming thought absentmindedly, "Fate really depends on fate." Without this crystal, he would still be hiding away, believing in that person's words, struggling to grasp the secrets of fortune-telling. It was because of this crystal that he had become a practitioner. Turn left? Turn right?
The doorbell interrupted his thoughts. Beiyue was on the second floor; he couldn't expect Ding Ze to answer the door, so he decided to go himself... Cui Ming stepped outside and opened the front door of the villa, only to find Zhao Wei standing there in full Armed police attire. Zhao Wei leaned against the doorframe with a cigarette in his mouth, exhaling smoke directly into Cui Ming's face, causing him to stagger back. With Zhao Wei's rough appearance, there was no trace of a police officer about him.
"What do you want?" Cui Ming asked as he waved away the smoke.
Zhao Wei pushed Cui Ming aside and walked in. "Did you hear that Lincoln Manor has been blown to ruins?"
"I know," Cui Ming replied.
"Do you know who did it?"
"I do."
Zhao Wei paused for a moment, then turned around and sat down, propping his feet up on the coffee table as he asked, "Who?"
"Why should I tell you?"
"Cut it out, I know it's the York Clan's doing." Zhao Wei slammed a document onto the coffee table. "Write down your testimony; I'm going to demand compensation from the York Clan."
Cui Ming pulled out a chair and sat across from Zhao Wei, asking, "What's the benefit of signing?"
Zhao Wei replied, "You should be asking what the downside is if you don't."
"What downside?" Beiyue interjected as she descended from the second floor, standing in front of Zhao Wei with a cold expression. "Evelyn doesn't have the guts to threaten me."
"Evelyn? What is she even? Besides, I'm not threatening you, Beiyue; I'm threatening Cui Ming. What's the matter? Are we still in a slave society where you have to look at the master before striking?" Zhao Wei stood up and walked over, throwing an arm around Cui Ming's shoulders. "Come on, let's go talk outside. Your master won't be happy."
Cui Ming waved his hand dismissively, signaling that it was fine. Beiyue watched the two leave and close the door. Li Qing asked, "Why didn't you stop him?"
Beiyue turned and headed upstairs. "With Cui Ming's personality, if he gets into trouble, he'll definitely shout for help."
That made sense to Li Qing, who was somewhat surprised that Beiyue understood Cui Ming better than he did. With that thought, Li Qing also returned.
Outside, a police car had a bottle of liquor resting on its hood. Zhao Wei poured a glass for Cui Ming and helped him sit on the car hood before taking a big swig from the bottle himself. Cui Ming asked, "What's bothering you?"
"Nothing, just feeling bored. Dawn City is too quiet. Being a criminal here is unchallenging; there's no thrill in it. Being a cop is no better since there are no rivals—it's the worst city on the planet." Zhao Wei took another sip. "I don't even have friends; you're just an acquaintance."
"Heh." Cui Ming took a sip of the liquor, grimacing at how awful it tasted. He couldn't understand how something so terrible could sell for hundreds. Looking at the bottle, it had a soy sauce-like aroma; he might as well drink soy sauce directly. Cui Ming said, "Now that the world of cultivators has been revealed, you'll definitely have more work to do; catching wildlings will keep you busy enough."
Zhao Wei nodded in agreement. "Someone's been stirring things up behind the scenes; there are already Psychic Ability cultivation guides being circulated covertly. Dawn City is relatively safe because City Hall has considerable credibility; people believe that ordinary folks trying to force themselves into becoming Psychic Ability users would be very dangerous. The Eternity Alliance is holding an emergency meeting; I suspect they will soon announce Force to the public. It's so boring—life was much simpler before."
"You don't need to think too much. Evelyn is like that; regardless of political factors, whoever breaks the law gets caught. If you overthink it, you'll only make your life harder," Cui Ming said. "I'm still curious why you chose to be a police officer."
"This question is just like what my former gang leader asked me," Zhao Wei replied. "We were robbing a mine when an explosion happened. The mountain blocked our exit. I faced two choices: one was to loot and leave, and the other was to abandon the robbery and save the miners."
"I know you chose to save people, but it seems different."
"The essence is the same. I had my principles in the gang; I could rob, but I wouldn't kill. Why didn't I want to be the boss? Because the gang has completely changed. Back then, we valued loyalty and principles; now it's all about money. I didn't want to do this anymore, so I became a police officer."
Cui Ming still didn't understand; it seemed different to him. He wondered why Zhao Wei thought it was the same.
Zhao Wei looked at Cui Ming as if he were an idiot and said while drinking, "What's the difference between a gang and the police? One operates without a license, and the other has one. Is there any other difference? The gang used to have its own rules, but now it's gone; it's become a chaotic mess. On the contrary, the police still have rules and principles. Since the gang has no principles left, I can only become a police officer."
"You could choose not to be a police officer or a gang leader," Cui Ming suggested.
"Then what would I do? Like you guys? Just think about how to join the Force Alliance? Fine, then what? You all serve the alliance; what's the difference from being a police officer? If you're not helping the alliance, why join it? If I became a gang leader, do you think having power means no responsibilities? A bunch of underlings to manage their lives and deaths, their food and drink—damn it, I'd even have to manage their burials."
Wow, who would have thought that Zhao Wei's simple and crude thoughts contained such truth?
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