Chapter 168: Hao Ren Speaks Out

2022-05-20

Just then, someone covered Wang An’s mouth. It wasn’t a stranger; it was his foster father, Hao Ren. Hao Ren had been missing for two months, and now he looked thinner than ever, dark circles heavy beneath his eyes, like he hadn’t slept well in ages.

Hao Ren stopped Wang An from speaking, then began slowly, “Maybe some of you know this, maybe you don’t. I’m the foster father of these four kids who’ve had such a hard life. I haven’t been home these past two months because I lost my job. And I lost my job because I arrested Zhang Bin.”

Hao Ren glanced around the room, then said, “It happened two months ago. That time, I caught three people stealing phones at an internet café. But after they got out, Zhang Bin took revenge on me. He used some dirty tricks and had me fired.”

He patted Wang An’s head, managing a little smile. “I learned martial arts from my master when I was a kid. Taking down a few thieves was nothing. But my master always taught me that before you learn to fight, you learn self-control. Our bodies might be stronger than most, but that never means we should use that to hurt people. We practice martial arts to uphold justice, not to kick people when they’re down.”

“I’m always telling Wang An, he’s got too much anger in him.” Hao Ren looked at Wang An. “I used to be angry all the time when I was young too. My master told me that we train not for ourselves, but so we can help those in trouble. So if my leaving can stop some of this turmoil, then so be it.”

He went on, “That’s why I left. I happened to know someone in Dongxing City who was hiring, asked me to come help out for two months. The pay was ten thousand yuan. I knew the New Year was coming, but ten thousand is a lot of money. I had to feed these four kids, and both Fang Xiaoqi and Wang An needed money for school.”

“I sent Wang An to stay with Ms. Zhao and let Fang Xiaoqi live with a classmate. Zhao Xiaoli and Du Zigui are adults now, they can take care of themselves. So I went to Dongxing—on one hand to make money for the family, and also to get away from the younger kids for a bit. Zhang Bin, let’s be honest, is eaten up by anger too.”

Hao Ren’s voice was heavy, tinged with helplessness. “But I never thought that after two months, I’d come back to this. These kids had such hard lives. When I adopted Du Zigui, it was winter, he was maybe four or five, crawling on the ground looking for trash to eat. Fang Xiaoqi was the second girl I took in. Her parents abandoned her when she was tiny. She barely speaks, but she’s always had a kind heart.”

Tears streamed down Hao Ren’s face like twin creeks. “None of this was easy for them. I raised them all this time, finally seeing a glimmer of hope—and just like that, it’s gone. I heard Zhang Bin was released because there wasn’t enough evidence. I’m just a rough guy who knows how to fight, I don’t really get all this legal stuff. But if that’s how it goes, I won’t chase things any further.”

“No way!” Wang An yelled, “He’s the one who killed my brother and sister!”

Hao Ren shook his head. “Wang An, I haven’t even scolded you yet, but how could you end up killing someone? Did you forget everything I taught you? When did I ever tell you to use a knife to kill?”

Wang An stayed silent, but stubbornness showed in his face.

Hao Ren sighed and continued, “I always had a dream—open a martial arts school, teach people to be healthy. With good health, you live long, right? But now I realize martial arts is just the beginning. If you want to destroy a person, it’s not just their body you have to break.”

“Du Zigui, Fang Xiaoqi.” Hao Ren suddenly broke down in sobs. “I’m sorry I failed you. I hope you can rest in peace. Zhao Xiaoli, Wang An, I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you both when things were hardest. I left you to bear all this alone.”

As he spoke, the three of them dissolved into tears, clinging to each other.

People all around started quietly sobbing too; the sight of this broken father with his children tugged at everyone’s hearts.

Ms. Zhao was trembling as she spoke. “If we can’t even keep those who do the right thing safe, how can we dare encourage it? This family’s been destroyed. Three lives lost, and the killer is still out there, free as ever.”

She pointed straight at me, passion in her voice. “I know you’re on this case. Tell me—what kind of proof do you people even want? Isn’t this testimony already enough? You’re saying all these photos are fake? Answer me!”

Ms. Zhao jabbed her finger at our group. Reporters swarmed in, everyone hungry for answers about the case.

I really hadn’t expected things to get so out of hand.

Someone shouted, “The truth! We want the truth!”

I knew there was no running away now. I stepped onto the stage, grabbed a mic. “Everyone, please calm down. We’re still investigating. With the evidence we’ve got, we can’t conclusively say Zhang Bin is the killer. Give us a little time to prove the facts. Otherwise, aren’t we just as guilty? How can we so casually decide to ruin someone’s life?”

But in a crowd already stirred up, my words vanished unnoticed. People only wanted to hear what matched their anger. Dissenting voices have always been ignored. Alone, everyone is weak, but together there’s strength you can’t imagine. Nobody wants to risk being on the wrong side of the public.

Ms. Zhao turned to me, “As far as I can see, all the evidence points to Zhang Bin. If those who claim to uphold justice don’t actually do it, then we’ll have to find our own justice.”

The scene slipped into chaos. Gu Chen tugged my arm, whispering, “It’s pointless to say anything now. Let’s leave before things explode, or we’ll lose control completely.”

I nodded, suddenly feeling utterly drained. As I walked out, all I could hear were people cursing us. They accused us of working with Zhang Bin, called us lackeys for the rich. Even though it’s not true, hearing it over and over eats away at your heart.

Long after we left the press conference, I could still hear the echoes of the crowd’s anger.

In the car, Guan Zengbin pulled out her phone.

She said, “Now it isn’t just about Zhang Bin anymore. You’re famous in Yumu City too.”

“Me?” I asked, surprised.

Guan Zengbin nodded. “You’re getting called a disgrace online—not helping the victims, defending the suspect. Some people even say if they ever run into you, they’ll beat you up.”

I shrugged with a wry smile.

She went on, “But you’re nothing compared to Zhang Bin. Someone’s dug up all his private info. At this point, the internet says he’s twenty-one, stands 1.75 meters tall, weighs 130 jin. He’s not even local, moved here from out of town, currently staying at Shunchang Daily Rentals, phone number 13…”

A frown creased my brow. The info in this post was all real, unlike the exaggerated rumors before. Zhang Bin had been detained many times. I’d seen these records myself—they matched the details online, down to his phone and address.

There might be plenty who know his phone number, but only us, plus Cheng Yimin and Zheng Shuai, knew about Shunchang Daily Rentals. So odds are, one of them leaked it. That’s just where Zhang Bin’s life had ended up.

Zhang Bin really had no one left to turn to.

Gu Chen said, “I still think Zhang Bin did it. He just covered his tracks well—there just isn’t enough evidence. But between his fingerprints and all those witnesses, how is he still not convicted? Unless he’s punished, folks in Yumu City will never let this go.”

I was quiet for a long time before replying, “We can’t. If we don’t have irrefutable proof, we can’t close the case. Eyewitnesses are always the weakest link—people see the same thing and interpret it differently. We can’t just go with whoever shouts the loudest.”

Gu Chen pressed, “It’s not even about numbers now, it’s just… no one but you thinks Zhang Bin is innocent.”

I shook my head. “I never said Zhang Bin was innocent. I just won’t make a biased conclusion before the case is clear. That’s too easy a way to lose yourself. Do that, and we’ll lose our sense of justice altogether.”

Guan Zengbin sighed. “The pressure’s killing us. If we don’t solve this soon, the angry mob will turn on us.”

I shut my eyes and pressed my fingers to my temples. My mind was still echoing with the madness from the press conference, the whole crowd shouting for blood.

Right then, my phone rang.

“Team Leader Shao? Do you have anything?” I asked.

Team Leader Shao replied, “We’ve got a lead from Dongxing City. I tracked down an IP address—it’s from a computer at an internet café. But the security cameras at that café were under repair, so we don’t know who sent the post. Cameras on the street do show Hao Ren going in, but we can’t tell if he’s the one who uploaded the video.”

He paused, then added, “Or put another way—there’s just no way to prove Hao Ren was the one who posted it.”