NOVEL WEB Chapter 187 - 187: There's a Listening Device?
Chapter 187: There’s a Listening Device?
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
Inside the private dining room, glasses clinked as the group enjoyed their meal. Since they had been invited, it was clear they were in for a substantial feast. Even though there were only three of them, the table was filled with a variety of dishes.
Zhou Qiang kept saying, “That’s enough, that’s enough,” but it had no effect whatsoever.
“It’s no problem!” Ma Zhiyuan insisted. “You’ve come all the way here, and if we don’t treat you to a good meal, it would make our Haicheng police force lose face.”
“Officer Zhou, Officer Su, eat to your heart’s content. We may not have much else, but we have plenty of alcohol,” he added.
Su Xuan had been looking at the menu but raised his head when he heard that last remark. He gave Ma Zhiyuan a skeptical look. He had noticed the high-proof liquor indicated on the bottle, and given the circumstances earlier and their current behavior, he couldn’t help but suspect that they were planning to get them drunk.
His suspicion was quickly confirmed when several more people arrived at the table, all of them Ma Zhiyuan’s colleagues. They wore smiles on their faces and spoke with an air of officialdom, but their words were filled with traps and hidden intentions.
If Zhou Qiang hadn’t been in the police circle for so many years, he might have easily fallen into their trap. As for Su Xuan, who had been deliberately marginalized, these people didn’t spare him either. Some even approached him while he was lowering his head, trying to engage him in conversation and offering drinks.
They kept drinking and talking, trying to extract information. Su Xuan appeared extremely reserved, feigning ignorance and deflecting all inquiries to Zhou Qiang.
At the dining table, the others shifted their focus entirely to Zhou Qiang. By this time, Zhou Qiang had consumed nearly three jin of white liquor, his face flushed, and he had started to slur his words. He blurted out whatever came to mind.
Seeing Zhou Qiang’s deteriorating condition, Su Xuan immediately tried to approach him, but he was blocked by two individuals by his side.
“Oh my, why are you in such a hurry, Officer Su?” one of them said. “You’ve come all this way, you should enjoy the food and drinks.”
“Come on, let’s have a drink! Don’t mind them,” another chimed in. “We should try our local specialties.”
Su Xuan looked anxious, but he was immobilized, nervously watching Zhou Qiang, hoping he wouldn’t reveal too much. The other police officers surrounding them wore smiles on their faces.
This was what they wanted, after all. Since they couldn’t get anything from Su Xuan, they had to see what Zhou Qiang might spill.
Fortunately, Su Xuan, though seemingly clueless and just tagging along, didn’t know much. On the other hand, Zhou Qiang was asking questions that could potentially yield valuable information.
Considering Zhou Qiang’s current state, already quite intoxicated, they could easily get information out of him with casual questions. In this situation, they couldn’t let Su Xuan brush off the matter.
Two of them kept Su Xuan cornered, while the rest focused on interrogating Zhou Qiang. Su Xuan’s expression grew increasingly serious.
Several times, he tried to break free from their encirclement but was blocked each time. However, he couldn’t lose his temper since they weren’t asking anything too serious. He nervously watched them, particularly the now-flushed Zhou Qiang.
Seeing Su Xuan’s reaction, they believed they were doing the right thing. Their conversations were filled with probing questions. Su Xuan had been prevented from escaping several times, and as Zhou Qiang spoke more, his face changed dramatically. He eventually sat down and began to drink heavily.
The surrounding officers became more excited, pushing more drinks toward Zhou Qiang and continuing to probe. However, they failed to notice the mockery in Su Xuan’s eyes as he pretended to drink heavily.
From the beginning, this group of people had targeted the wrong person.
If they had all ganged up on Su Xuan, there was a chance they could have truly intoxicated him, leading to incoherent rambling. But they had chosen the wrong person in Zhou Qiang.
You see, Zhou Qiang was known for his legendary alcohol tolerance. Back in the day, during a police department New Year’s dinner, he downed a staggering ten jugs of white wine, some red wine, and even half a crate of beer. It was a spectacle!
He had no issues at all, and during the dinner, he was lively and spirited. He didn’t get drunk; instead, he left everyone else bewildered. Now, despite the redness on Zhou Qiang’s face, he was merely easy to redden, but his wits remained sharp.
Trying to get him drunk and extract information from him? It was an impossible task! Unfortunately, these people were unaware of this fact. They believed they had unraveled the true purpose of Su Xuan and Zhou Qiang’s trip.
They watched as Zhou Qiang seemed to pass out from the alcohol, and Su Xuan drank himself into a stupor, realizing that the promised massage was slipping away.
Fortunately, despite their attempts to deceive, these officers were still legitimate police officers. Coming here on a business trip, they wouldn’t have missed the signs.
Now that they had discovered and brought them here, and the dinner had turned into such a state… It was simply impossible to get anything out of them.
As the dinner concluded, the group of officers dusted off their clothes and left. Only two officers remained to escort Su Xuan and the others to the hotel.
One of the departing officers glanced at Su Xuan and Zhou Qiang and shook his head disapprovingly. “Thought these cops coming all the way from Hong Kong were something special?”
“Yeah, but they turned out to be naive!” another officer chimed in. “A little bit of alcohol and some sweet talk and they’re as lost as can be… Pathetic!”
With those words, they left, and one of the officers tossed Su Xuan onto a bed before departing. Simultaneously, he looked at his partner.
“Enough talking,” he said. “Let’s go back and discuss what to do next! These two may not be the brightest, but they are still police officers. Even though this guy named Zhou Qiang claims they’re here to investigate a theft case, what thief’s mother would run all the way here? Besides, having them here is a problem for us…”
As they spoke, the two officers exited the room, their voices gradually fading away.
As they left the room, just above the doorway, Su Xuan, who had been lying on the bed like a dead pig, suddenly opened his eyes. His eyes met with the gaze of Zhou Qiang, who was on the opposite bed.
Su Xuan quickly brought a finger to his lips, signaling for silence. He swiftly got up from the bed and began searching the room.. Sure enough, he found several listening devices!