Li Xingyuan - 2

The call ceased, the elderly man chuckled at the end after Xi Chen had retrieved his phone, and supposedly – the matter was over. Yet, the policewoman seemed utterly reluctant, and continued to stare at him with narrowed eyes and an infuriated expression.

"I have no idea how you convinced Elder Liu into providing you with a specialized firearm license typically reserved for law enforcement," Li Xingyuan clicked her tongue and tapped her fingers along her arms.

"You despicable lot who circumvent the law – I've had enough of you! Say it – what does a young man who had yet to graduate from university need a firearm for? Don't tell me you're trying to impress a girlfriend, or kill another human because of some petty grudge!"

"Why do I need to inform you of my activities?"

Xi Chen slipped the phone into his pocket, and shrugged at the glowering policewoman. The youth inspected the immaculate decoration of the office as he ignored Li Xingyuan's increasingly bitter and angered expression, and awaited for the adjutant to arrive with the equipment. He took three breaths and monitored the hundreds of starry stones swirling within the depths of the heavenly bowl, and nearly lapsed into a tender memory.

Of course, he didn't require the firearm to commit a violent crime, but there was indeed a grudge. A grudge several years in the future, and one that could not be addressed by modern law.

Intentional homicide was a severe breach of civil law in any modern society. And yet, there were numerous methods in which one could directly and intentionally kill another and their family, descendants, and partners without breaking any laws. If he could enact a ploy on the scale of that man, then certainly – once the conditions have been fulfilled, even after killing someone before the public, he would only be able to receive praise.

That man's ploy… perhaps he could borrow and replicate it with the ability of the heavenly bowl…?

"Officer Li, the materials have been prepared."

A soft click of polished heels graced Li Xingyuan's festering ears, and she turned to witness the adjutant present a quick salute and walk into the room with a small aluminum suitcase grasped in his hand. The metal container was set on an unoccupied section of the table, and the young police intern pretended not to witness the ghastly expression on the latter's countenance as he quickly fled out of the office and resumed his duties. The policewoman recalled the private message from Elder Liu, and her hatred for the young man heightened a notch higher, just below a certain figure.

"Young man, here's your firearm. The licensing and general safety requirements are included in the first pocket inside the case," Li Xingyuan gnashed her teeth.

"However, you don't just get to walk out of the station with it yet. You're going to have to assist me, Li Xingyuan, with one matter."

"…ah? Assist you with a matter - do I look like a police officer or brawny thug to you?"

Xi Chen's eyebrows shot towards to the skies as he threw a questioning glance at the hint of a sneer flickering on the policewoman's countenance. The young man frowned and attempted to recall whether his ears had any history of encountering such a condition, and Li Xingyuan crossed her arms in triumph.

"Elder Liu and I have discussed this matter in detail, and this is my condition for granting a civilian as young as you, unrestricted usage of a Class 3 firearm. If you don't want to deal with it, then forget about touching this case ever again in your life."

It was a blatant lie aware by both parties, yet Xi Chen quickly realized that the policewoman was hell-bent to never compromise. The youth retrieved a Xuan Yuan Sword from his pocket and played with its cool, smooth surface with his fingers, allowing the chilly and calming sensation to retrieve his mind from a brief trip down memory lane.

"So? What do you want me to do – hunt a gang down or something? If I somehow get injured, then Elder Liu wouldn't be so pleased…"

…or rather, that elderly man would desperately want him injured, in order to extract as many benefits as possible.

Had he overplayed his hand by presenting a Heavenly Animal Collection of Imperial quality? When thinking back, perhaps it wasn't as profitable as he envisioned, perhaps not while he was in Suzhou…

"Simple. Someone's running a gambling studio in the city, and you're coming along with me to crack down on its operations and force it to close," Li Xingyuan smiled, and narrowed her eyes.

"Surely you, a healthy male student, wouldn't cower down in encountering a few local thugs – even when a tender, weak woman like me who can be so easily bullied by political pressure, regularly accomplishes such tasks daily? What is your answer, Student Xi Chen from Jiangbei? If you don't agree, this weak woman might slip a few side words…"

Xi Chen grimaced, but could only fold his hand and accept defeat with a gracious smile. As the beaming policewoman ferreted him into the passenger's seat of her vehicle, the youth suppressed curse after curse in his mind. The Xuan Yuan Sword pledged a wonderous combination of the flashing lights within Suzhou's nightlife as Li Xingyuan abused the pedal with a begrudging foot.

The symphony of terrified taxi drivers and pedestrians of an angered policewoman's unrelenting fury on the police siren and sudden accelerations and the rise and fall of a certain river pebble was rather perplexing and enjoyable to the senses. However…

"So – can't you bear to share any information with this civilian on what exactly we're heading out to do?"

"Sorry, dear student. Official operations, can't disclose confidential details without suffering a tribunal."

"…it is your responsibility if I get harmed by some danger that I should have known in advance, no?"

"When did I state that I would protect and fawn over your safety like some mother hen? Grow up – you're a twenty-year old, healthy male brimming with Yang energy – you don't need some weak woman to shield and protect you, ah?"

As the police car inched towards the upper-residential zones, Li Xingyuan increasingly deflected Xi Chen's questions to the sides. The barrage of high-end, luxurious mansions dripping and oozing with liquid RMB flashing by either side of his vision prompted the youth's suspicions to rise dramatically, and the Xuan Yuan Sword settled fiercely in his palm.

"This doesn't seem to be the usual sting on a local gang."

"Well, they operate in Suzhou, and they act like thugs before us police officers, so it fits the description, no? Did I state that they were poor?"

The eyebrows and lips began twitching, and Xi Chen earnestly considered adding any lethal attributes to the river stone that was currently a decoration. Alas, before he could settle on an affliction that was neither lethal nor petty, Li Xingyuan had parked the vehicle before a particular mansion built to resemble a noble's residence from the Victorian-era.

"Alright, get out already, stop being lazy for someone so young!"

Rectangular windowpanes made of luxurious, dense shards of stained glass glared outside with a brutish combination of alluring color yet lacking in substance. The entire mansion seemed to be built almost entirely out of marble, with dark clay tiles forming numerous sloped, triangular roofs upon which an even more bizarre combination of protruding attics nestled atop. Xi Chen followed the policewoman as she marched along the concrete walkway and rapped her fist onto the fragile, wooden door.

"Open up! Police!"

She was greeted by a flustered young porter dressed in a standard butler's attire of suit and pants, who proceeded to be utterly intimidated by Li Xingyuan waving a stack of papers citing a search warrant and numerous civil conduct and criminal clauses. The policewoman chased away the young porter with a thumb and proudly gestured towards the bemused Xi Chen.

"You're going to stand in front," she shooed with her hands, and hauled the latter towards the doorway.

"Don't linger behind me! What kind of man cowers behind a woman?"

"What kind of law enforcement officer cowers behind a civilian?"

Xi Chen retorted, yet eventually was prodded into resigning himself as the specialized meat shield. The youth stepped past the European-styled exterior and gawked at the unusual atmosphere. He had to admit, the combination was a bit… startling and heavy on the taste.

The exterior was a Victorian fortress of marble, but the interior resembled traditional Japanese architecture, with a modern flourish. The dim lighting perforated with decorations and walls of mahogany, bamboo, and sandalwood, countless drapes and curtains of satin and silk ribbons, and the melancholy atmosphere… was indeed a marvel. And when the youth navigated beyond the initial complex maze-like hallway structure of what appeared to be the ground floor and passed by the door –

"Hah… no, no, no ��� that's too much! Too much – I can't bear that much – aaaaahh!!!"

The scream of female ecstasy brought a stiffening halt to both Xi Chen and Li Xingyuan's footsteps. The pair knocked at their ears to confirm that the disorienting indoor décor wasn't messing with their minds, and when a swooning cycle of accumulating lustful moans leaked through the oiled paper doors and registered in the policewoman's mind, the latter's countenance distorted with rage. Li Xingyuan cracked her knuckles as she retrieved her firearm from its holster, and shortly exhaled before forcing the door open with great force.

"Police! Halt, and place both hands where I can see them!"

The thin door constructed of a simple frame of bamboo and three layers of specially manufactured, oiled paper was no match for an angered female's brute force. The thin barrier was slaughtered and splintered into numerous fragments as Li Xingyuan charged through, and the abnormal scene was revealed in full to their eyes.

A massive circular table whose diameter seemed to span an entire three meters, and numerous men and women sat on their respective chairs as they admired a young, writhing figure moan and scream as she reached the pinnacle of ecstasy over and over again, her arms and legs thrashing yet unable to find purchase against the smooth surface. Li Xingyuan's abrupt entry brought a halt to the feast of lust, and the numerous men and women hastened to their feet in great shock.

From the throng of people whose closet hobby had been suddenly invaded, one bravely stepped forth. When his eyes lingered on Li Xingyuan's exquisite frame and recognized her features, the man's lips broke into a smile.

"Oh? Isn't this Officer Li?" the elegant, spectacled man blinked and clapped his hands in amazement.

"Why is Officer Li here for the third time? Have you found a good excuse now?"