Chew Slowly Chapter 14

Chapter 14

The Beiguan Town Police Station normally closes at five in the evening, and Chen Zongqian arrived exactly when people were having late-night snacks. By all accounts, it was bad timing, but Chen Zongqian was lucky enough to catch his old classmate who was on the night shift.

Kang Heying was dripping eye drops when he glimpsed a tall figure through the watery blur. He recognized who it was just by the man’s imposing presence.

Kang Heying had known since the morning that Chen Zongqian was coming. For such a big shot to come personally, it had to be trouble, so he initially claimed he wasn’t there. But Senior Lawyer Chen was too astute; he had checked his location early on and even had a complete copy of the duty roster.

The appointment was made early, but Chen Zongqian arrived very late. Kang Heying waited until he was sleepy and dry-eyed, barely keeping his spirits up with eye drops and Pu-erh tea.

“You came empty-handed, huh?” Kang Heying raised an eyebrow, implying he had been waiting for some grilled chives for a long time. The young police officer next to him looked at his mentor in alarm; that comment sounded clearly against regulations.

Chen Zongqian had a bottle of convenience store coffee in his hand, half-finished, which naturally didn’t satisfy Kang Heying. He rummaged in his pocket and pulled out a few pieces of candy, offering mint and lemon flavors—he knew Kang Heying was never picky.

“Oh, wow.” The non-picky Kang Heying tore open the wrapper and popped the candy into his mouth, mumbling through the sweetness, “You don’t like candy, do you? Why do you have these little things?”

Chen Zongqian sat across from him, unbuttoning his shirt cuffs. “To coax a child.”

Kang Heying crunched the candy instantly, then froze, his eyes drifting. Who was he calling a child?

“He’s this tall.” Chen Zongqian gestured with his hand, and couldn’t help but smile when he thought of Xu Qiaochuan. “He seems capable of coaxing himself.”

He received a roll of the eyes from Kang Heying, followed by the man’s grumpy question: “What business does Lawyer Chen have here?”

The Beiguan Town Police Station manages household registration, resident ID cards, and population movement in this area. Xu Qiaochuan’s hometown, Guantang Village, is also within its jurisdiction. Chen Zongqian came here to investigate matters related to the Xu family. Although they were old classmates with a good relationship, household information is a citizen’s privacy, and Kang Heying couldn’t violate regulations by letting him check it freely.

Chen Zongqian was already prepared. He took several documents from his bag and spread them on the desk for Kang Heying to review. Inside were the identity documents for Xu Jian and Lu Xiaoyun, a letter of introduction and business license from Shengda Law Firm, and Chen Zongqian’s professional license.

Finally, there was the client’s power of attorney. Kang Heying glanced at the client’s signature, which indeed matched the name on the ID card photocopy.

“Xu Jian…” The name tasted slightly painful in Kang Heying’s mouth. In the villages and teams under their jurisdiction, Xu was a major surname, and there were at least ten people named “Xu Jian.” Squinting to examine the portrait on the ID photocopy, Kang Heying’s mind suddenly cleared. He slapped his thigh and exclaimed, “Ah, it’s this one, the local celebrity!”

Kang Heying gave a thumbs-up and then sighed, waving his apprentice over to explain to Chen Zongqian. He had a sickly sweet mint taste in his mouth, which he tried to suppress by drinking cold tea, resulting in an even stranger sweet-and-bitter flavor.

His apprentice was clearly also deeply impressed by Xu Jian, and the events were still vivid in his memory.

In his early years, Xu Jian was led astray into gambling. When he lost money, he would fight, making him a frequent visitor to the town Police Station. The absurdities didn’t stop there; he continued to gamble even after his wife and child left, and when he lost all his savings, he started taking money from home.

“How could his two elderly parents earn money? First, he cheated them out of their minimum living allowance and pensions. When those were gone, he stole the family’s rice to sell. He literally angered one parent to death, and the other was angered into a stroke and paralysis, and they died a few years ago too.”

The Xu family’s old house was in the countryside, in a poor, remote area where it couldn’t be sold. Without money, he went to ask his wife for it.

Not long ago, Xu Qiaochuan brought the cremation certificate to cancel Lu Xiaoyun’s household registration, but her records while alive were still kept in the public security archives. The system showed that after marriage, Lu Xiaoyun had followed Xu Jian to work outside, traveling from Pingzhou Port to other counties and cities, and then returning shortly after—which was around the time Xu Qiaochuan was born.

The child was raised in the old home, and Lu Xiaoyun continued to work outside with Xu Jian… these were all normal records. Chen Zongqian recalled that the first few pages of the photo album were also completely normal.

Seeing nothing unusual, Chen Zongqian stated a year, and the young police officer slid the file down accordingly.

When Xu Qiaochuan was four years old, Lu Xiaoyun returned. The file showed that she had reported a case at the Beiguan Town Police Station: her child, Xu Qiaochuan, was missing.

“Ah, this incident…” Kang Heying couldn’t help but gasp when he saw the word “missing,” but instantly fell silent when he glanced at Chen Zongqian’s profile.

However, the case was closed quickly. The person was found on the third day. The so-called disappearance was actually a misunderstanding; it was said that Xu Qiaochuan had argued with his grandparents, ran away from home, and went to his maternal grandmother’s house.

After that, Lu Xiaoyun never returned to work outside. Her husband, Xu Jian, also quit his job and returned to his hometown shortly after, which was also when he developed his addiction to alcohol and gambling.

“Was the case closure fine?” Chen Zongqian stared intently at the closing date, his eyes and tone slightly cold.

Kang Heying knew Chen Zongqian had something weighing heavily on his mind, but he truly couldn’t provide an answer. He found it strange that Chen Zongqian accepted Xu Jian’s commission and then chased the investigation to the Police Station late at night; Kang Heying felt something was off about him.

This was an old matter from over a decade ago. Since it wasn’t a major or complex case and was resolved quickly, the police officer who handled it back then had no memory of it. Kang Heying hung up the phone and briefly summarized what he had learned. Chen Zongqian said nothing, only asking for a cigarette.

Lu Xiaoyun later worked several odd jobs, the longest being at the Garment Factory. After separating from Xu Jian, she lived at the Garment Factory. The information was similar to what Chen Zongqian had seen from Lawyer Yao. After a quick look, he turned and walked out to get some air.

“Not looking anymore?” Kang Heying called out to his back.

The reply came: “No.”

Kang Heying was a police officer at a grassroots Police Station, and his salary was relatively average. In recent years, as the economy of Pingzhou Port improved, the prices also rose, making him afraid to indulge his nicotine addiction; a ten-yuan pack of Hongtashan cigarettes had to last him several days. The bitter smell of unlit tobacco strangely calmed Chen Zongqian down.

He called Xu Jian. Xu Jian perhaps thought it was a debt collector and rejected the call many times.

Chen Zongqian smelled nicotine and looked back to see Kang Heying leaning against the doorway, watching him. He had a cigarette dangling from his lips and a plastic lighter in his hand, asking directly, “Want one?”

“No, I quit.” Chen Zongqian was somewhat agitated, shown by his lowered brows, slightly pursed lips, and cold eyes. Kang Heying understood that this was how he looked when he was in a bad mood, but he was surprised that Chen Zongqian had actually quit smoking.

Kang Heying didn’t believe it, and Chen Zongqian was told that cigarettes weren’t good for him anyway. The words went in one ear and out the other. Kang Heying gave several perfunctory acknowledgments and then sighed, “Ah, I wish I had followed you back then.”

When no response came after a long pause, Kang Heying saw him looking down, tapping away at his screen, chatting with someone on WeChat. He scolded him, bringing Chen Zongqian back to attention.

“How would I have gotten a government job if I left?” Chen Zongqian had just finished speaking when he couldn’t chat on WeChat anymore; Xu Jian was calling him back.

“Busy man,” Kang Heying laughed and cursed him, finishing his cigarette before turning back inside.

Xu Jian on the other end of the phone was doing something; the sound through the receiver was chaotic. Chen Zongqian frowned and waited for a while before hearing a faint voice. Xu Jian was heavily drunk, and his first question was: “When can I get the money?”

“We need to prove that he is not Lu Xiaoyun’s legal heir…” Chen Zongqian crushed the cigarette he was holding in his palm, thoroughly mutilating it.

Xu Jian felt incredibly annoyed thinking about that bastard child, and his volume rose a few notches: “How else can I prove it? He’s not my seed to begin with.”

“Paternity test.” After saying this, the other side fell silent. Chen Zongqian waited for a long time, then proactively hung up the phone. He tossed the crumpled cigarette into the trash can.