Chapter 54 - The cat is belled.

The next morning Liu Taio, true to his commitment called up Mr. Brown and discussed his intention to invest in his venture. They decided to meet around at one in the afternoon.

Li Enlai was having a crucial discussion about Gao Shing's presence in Zermatt without a passport being issued to him. As they were discussing, they received a call from the Australian police and were informed, "The owner of Chinese Corner had died in an accident yesterday; his car had been probably sabotaged."

Li Enlai replied, "But Mr. Brown is in Zhuhai with us. Can you do me a favor? Kindly check on the employees of Chinese Corner to see if someone by the name of Gao Shing has been employed with them."

The police official replied, "We'll do that."

"We need to speak to the Browns again and provide them with security as well."

Li Enlai then sent some of his security officers and they joined with the Brown family in the conference room.

Liqin walked into the conference, looked around, and asked, "Where is Mr. Brown?"

"Mr. Brown has gone out for some personal work."

"Mrs. Brown, we are sorry to disturb you, but your lives could be at risk. We just received the news of the death of the owner of Chinese Corner and his spouse, and it seems, that their car was sabotaged."

Mrs. Brown stood up, held the table, shook her head, looked up, and replied, "I have never seen him working in my hotel till date. I have never been in touch with him after my marriage."

Liqin pulled a chair, seated himself, and replied, "It could be, that you might not be able to recognize him due to the damages, that occurred to his face after the accident."

He picked up a glass of water, offered it to her, and said, "Kindly have a seat. You need to relax and think with a calm mind as to whether we are missing any crucial point here."

Mrs. Brown took the glass of water, sipped it in a hurry, and replied, "Trust me, we do a background screening of all our employees as we are immigrants ourselves and would not want to get into any sort of trouble with the officials. We personally look into the matter as it is very critical for our survival and growth."

Liqin pointed his finger and asked, "Has there been a time when you have doubted the identity of someone who is working with you. Have anyone's actions ever reminded you of Gao Shing's character? Who was dealing with Chinese Corner? Or who introduced you to Chinese Corner?"

Mrs. Brown held her head as her hands rested on the table, shook her head, and said, "Chinese corner was chosen by Mr. Brown after our daughter was born, and I was not able to concentrate on business then. At that time, we had few Chinese immigrants as employees, and they were with us since the beginning, even before Mrs. Shing died."

Liqin bent forward and said, "Like Mr. Brown whose left face, had been disfigured in the accident, Gao Shings' right side of the face had been scarred beyond measure."

Mr. Brown looked up and asked, "How do you know these details?"

Liqin tilted his head and replied, "That's because the one who took care of Mr. Brown when he had met with an accident is the father-in-law of Liu Taio. It is he who shared the information with Mr. Li Enlai yesterday."

Mrs. Brown bent forward resting her arms on the table and replied, "Can I speak to him?"

Liqin picked up his phone and replied, "I'll call him over. He is available in the hotel."

Liqin walked out and dialed the number of Enlai who said, "I heard it. I'll send him across right away."

Li Enlai who had been watching the conversation from the security office called up Zhao Fai, and said, "I have a request to make. Can you join Liqin for a discussion with Mrs. Brown? We need to ensure, that she trusts us."

"I'll go right away. Send me an officer to direct me."

Li Enlai then directed one of the officers to join them who directed Zhao Fai to the conference room.

As Zhao Fai walked in, Liqin pointed his hand to him and said, "Mrs. Brown, this is the person who was with Xu Huan that year when he met with an accident."

Mrs. Brown had tears in her eyes when she greeted him and said, "It's you, Sir."

Zhao Fai shook his head and replied, "How are you doing Zhu Hee? I am glad you got over Gao Shing and married Xu Huan."

Mrs. Brown replied with tears swelled up in her eyes, "I was too ignorant and naïve then, to have trusted him blindly. Liqin told me, that you were the one who helped him in the hospital."

Zhao Fai shook his head, paused, looked up, and replied, "Didn't Xu Huan tell you about it? He was supposed to meet me before he left for the treatment, but he never turned up. I was the one who had bandaged his face till it healed. His left side had been scarred badly."

Mrs. Brown murmured, "Left side?"

Zhao Fai nodded and replied, "Yes. I remember it clearly, because I am left-handed, and we used to discuss, that in this context while I changed the bandages using my left hand."

Liqin interrupted the conversation, "Mrs. Brown, it is my sincere advice to you guys to arrange for security for yourself, as the danger is closer than it seems to you."

Mrs. Brown who was into deep thoughts murmured, "Yes, it might be closer than I thought it to be."

As they were talking Mr. Brown walked in, looked around, and asked, "Are you guys done with your investigation?"

Liqin stood up, turned to him, and replied, "Mr. Brown we are not investigating you and your family, but are thinking of plans to provide security for your family."

Mr. Brown walked up to Mrs. Brown, held her hand, pulled her up, and replied angrily, "My family doesn't need your security, we need peace, Mr. Chang. We are done with our interest in doing a business deal with you guys. We are planning to leave for Australia tomorrow."

As the melodrama unfolded in the conference room, Mr. Chen walked into the security office, and said, "We have news."

He then handed over a report to Mr. Li Enlai, who was shocked beyond comprehension. He said, "We need to make a quick move." As he handed over the report to police officials who were present, they said, "Let us go."

In the conference room, Mrs. Brown pulled off her hands, turned to Mr. Brown, and said, "They are here to help us out, not to convict us as the owners of Chinese corner passed away in an accident due to a sabotage of their car."

"Did they pass away in the accident?"

Mrs. Brown looked up to him and asked, "Did you already hear about the accident?"

Mr. Brown nodded and replied, "I received a call from one of our business associates."

Mrs. Brown pointed her finger in the direction of Liqin and replied, "Mr. Chang and team are under the impression, that our lives are at risk and we should be having a strong security cover."

Mr. Brown held her shoulders, shook his head, and replied, "I think we are over imagining things. Why would we be hurt?"

Mrs. Brown sighed and replied, "They are not over imagining things. I am pretty sure the death of the owners of Chinese Corner, had something to do with Gao Shing."

Meanwhile, in the police department, a warrant was issued, and the sirens of a dozen police cars echoed through the roads that led to the resort as they zeroed in and positioned themselves at the hotel.

Mr. Brown got agitated and said, "Kylie, did you guys lack anything in life? Did I not over these years, sincerely take care of you and your daughter? Why do you have to dig up the past? I do not like the mention of Gao Shing in our lives. I think, our business meeting in Zhuhai is through, and we need to return home. I have already booked the flight tickets back, and we are leaving tomorrow morning."

Mrs. Brown asked in tears, "Since when did 'our' turn into 'yours' in our lives."

Mr. Brown held her by her arms and said, "I do not want the tranquility of our lives being disturbed by someone else's dirty past."

The police officials got down from their vehicle and positioned themselves at the hotel. It was surrounded by police officers on all sides. A few of them walked into the hotel and barged into the conference room. One of them immediately secured Zhao Fai, Mrs. Brown, and Ms. Brown to safety, while another pointed the gun towards Mr. Brown and said, "You are under arrest, Mr. Gao Shing."

Mr. Brown struggled and replied, "There seems to be a misunderstanding, I am Xu Huan."

The police officer handcuffed him and replied, "We will discuss this behind bars. Mr. Gao."

As they arrested him, Mrs. Brown hustled with them with her daughter and said, "What's going on? Xu Huan has nothing to do with Gao Shing."

Li Enlai walked in, turned to her, held her, and said, "I think you are going to be shocked, Mrs. Xu. Ms. Brown is the daughter of Xu Huan, and you were carrying her when Xu Huan met with an accident. Isn't it?"

Mrs. Brown replied with her eyes still fixed on Mr. Brown, "Yes. What does that have to do with your misunderstanding?"

"You both are lucky to be alive till now. Probably, that was a part of his plan too."

She turned to Li Enlai and asked, "What does that mean? What plan are you discussing?"

Li Enlai sighed and replied, "We had secretly run a DNA test on Mr. Brown the day before yesterday, while Liqin was discussing business with you. He is indeed Mr. Gao Shing."

Mrs. Brown looked straight into the eyes of Li Enlai and asked, "How is this possible?"

Li Enlai looked down, breathed out, and said, "His paternity test with Liu Taio, as well as the DNA test from the sample collected from the victim of the Cervinia assault have come out positive."

Mrs. Brown pointed to Mr. Brown and asked, "If he is Gao Shing, then what about Xu Huan? Where is he?"

"As to how Mr. Gao Shing became Xu Huan is something, that we need to ascertain."

Mrs. Brown sat down in shock, shook her head, looked to Gao Shing who was struggling, and asked in tears, "Where is my Huan? What did you do to him to take his place?"

Enlai sat opposite her and said, "If my calculations are correct, Mr. Xu has been dead for the last twenty-nine years now, and he was probably murdered by Gao Shing to replace himself with him."

Mr. Brown struggled and said, "No, he is lying. Don't pay heed to him. This is a trap."

Mrs. Brown covered her face with her palms, wept aloud as Zhao Fail walked up to her, sat beside her, and gave her a handkerchief. She looked up, pointed to Gao Shing, and said, "Take him away. I don't want to see his face again."

Li Enlai then accompanied them to the police department, where Mr. Brown was being investigated. Mrs. Brown sat down in the room across and heard his confession with tears beside Liqin, Liu Taio, and Ms. Brown.

In the police department, two officers sat opposite to him who was now handcuffed and showed the DNA report to him as evidence. Mr. Brown pushed it down the table, held his forehead with his hands, and said, "It's over."

"What's over?"

Gao Shing shook his head and said, "Everything is over."

"Why did you plan an assault continuously on the Li family?"

Gao Shing sighed and replied, "I had been angry with Li Enlai for helping the Liu family in preventing any claim of mine from succeeding, and had sworn to wipe him out along with his family, like what had happened to my own."

The officer shrugged, narrowed his eyes, and asked, "Did you care about your family? The evidence produced during the court proceedings and the divorce petition submitted by Liu Lee does not prove so."

Gao Shing hit the table, looked away, and shouted, "Yes, I did not care for her. I wanted to climb up the ladder using her connections. But the Liu family had other plans. The divorce proceedings started because Enlai complained to Liu Ru."

"That's your point of view, not the truth. Let's put that aside. That case has already been closed long ago in the favor of the Liu household."

March 1980

The officer put forth the police record of his accident with Han Ru and Cao Shan as a witness and asked, "How did you get acquainted with Cao and Han? The police records show that Han Ru and Cao Shan were witnesses to your accident in March nineteen hundred and eighty."

"I would have died in that road accident, had it not been for Han Ru and Cao Shan. They pulled me out in time before the car was engulfed in blaze. Han Ru's truck and was then, saved by Cao Shan and Han Ru. Han Ru was in debt then and Cao Shan needed to start his own business to support his family better."

"How did you win their trust and convince them to join you?"

"The Liu household had taken pity on me, and paid for my medical expenses through their hospital; however, I found myself, disfigured completely. That made Han Ru and Cao Shan realize, that I was a member of their family and they held me with respect and awe. I also played the part well, to gain their trust and confidence. I helped Han Ru with some money; however, he was still in huge debt."

January 1981

How did you take the place of Xu Huan?

"In the January of nineteen hundred and eighty-one, after my accident, I met Xu Huan, and learned, that he had married Zhu Hee. I discussed the probability of the plastic surgery with the doctors, but the cost was beyond my means and would exhaust a major portion of the money, that I had accumulated from the Liu household over the years."

"Did you murder him then?"

"No."

"Then when did you murder him and where did you dispose of his body?"

"Coincidently, when I had been to the hospital to meet the doctor at a later date, to discuss the cost of plastic surgery, I came across Xu Huan; he had met with an accident and was being wheeled on the stretcher into the operation theatre. Zhao Fai was there at the hospital along with him that day."

April 1981

"When did you meet him after that?"

"In the coming days, I learned, that Xu Huan had recovered. I also found out that he had found an elderly couple in Australia, who had adopted both him and Zhu Hee. It took him months to recover completely. After that, I learned, that he was on his way to the US to get plastic surgery done."

"Did you plan it after this knowledge?"

"Yes, I went to visit him at his temporary residence and gained his confidence. In the next few days, I gained complete knowledge of his history of stay in Australia, his adoption, his marriage to Zhu Hee, and their names being changed to that of the Browns post-adoption. I kept a track of his whereabouts completely, and a day before he left, I put him to death and buried him with the help of Han Ru. I kept Han Ru in the dark, about my future plans and intentions. However, I was always apprehensive of him, speaking out to others."

"Where did you dispose of his body?"

"I buried him in the backyard of that residence, deep enough not to be dug up by anyone."

"I then, took over the identity of Xu Han, as it was easy for me, as our blood groups were the same. I went to the US for treatment in his place. Though I was healed of the disfiguration, I kept Han Ru and Cao Shan in the dark about it."

"Then I returned to Australia and took the place of Xu Huan. I accepted his newborn child as my own and continued staying in Australia with his identity."

"What happened next?"

"When I returned to China, I was seen by Cao Shan, who informed Han Ru, that he had met the friend of Gao Shing, 'Xu Huan.' That call made Han Ru's imagination run wild, as he was a part of the murder of Xu Han. I informed Cao Shan, that I am leaving for the airport and changed my hotel. Then I purchased a mask, and with my skills created a huge scar on it and met up with Han Ru. He kept telling me that Xu Huan was alive. I told him that there was no way, that he would be alive, and that Cao Shan must have seen someone else."

December 1981

"Why did you attack Mrs. Li during her labor?"

"On that trip, I found, that Li Enlai, was expecting his first child. I planned to turn his joy into sorrow. I found out, that the business of Han Ru, was running into loss and his debts had mounted. I took advantage of this situation and used him to my advantage.

My first attempt had succeeded in Li Enlai, losing his child, but his wife survived. I informed him, I would clear his debts completely, if he chose to keep myself, out of the plan. I informed him, that I would pay him if the case does not involve me. Han Ru's mother's intervention saved him. I paid him an amount to clear some installments and asked him to wait for five months for the rest to be cleared, to avoid any form of attention, from the investigating officers. I then returned to Australia."

"Five months down the lane on my next trip, I cleared his debts completely. He then was curious about my business matters and kept talking about Xu Huan. On my trips, I always ensured, that I wore the scarred mask, to avoid being recognized as Xu Huan. I also informed him, that I would help him with his business, as long as he kept mum about the past. I then returned to Australia"

September 1985

"What about the death of Mr. & Mrs. Chang?"

"I never intended to murder them."

"I had a settled life, but it was all in control of the Browns and I regretted the life of Xu Huan that I led. I returned in the year nineteen hundred and eighty-five, to wipe the Li family of Enlai and his family. I met up with Cao Shan in the café. As he was cribbing about his problems in the café. I lured Cao Shan with money to set up his garage, to sabotage the car of the Li family; he was working in the garage, where the vehicles of the Li family went for repairs in Zhuhai. My second attempt failed and ended with the death of the Chang family."

"To avoid any form of attention, I kept away from China after that. I informed Han Ru, that I had a friend who would buy spices, on my instruction from him at a better price if the quality was the best. Thus, in the year nineteen hundred and eighty-eight, Han Ru set up the export business of Chinese spices. I coaxed a friend of mine to set up an import business of spices in Australia and convinced him to buy from Han Ru without him knowing, that the end consumer was my company. My affiliation to Han Ru and Cao Shan had cost me a lot of money over the years."

May 2010

"It was only when, the photos were flashed across the newspapers of the wedding anniversary celebrations of Li Enlai, that I realized, that I had lost my life and my identity, while he was enjoying his life to the full. I began to plan my revenge after that."

"On the pretext of business, I got associated with Li Bao and found out about his trip to Zermatt."

December 2010

"First, I first used my employees on the pretext of a team-building exercise to gather information on him. Next, without the knowledge of Cao Shan and Han Ru, I invited them to Cervinia after transferring money for their travel, as I had always done in the past. I used them with a threat as a part of my plan and then sent them off in a car after sabotaging the breaks of it. I also put on my coat on a stranger as a cover-up."

"Like always, I used my mask, that day to avoid my identity being disclosed. Even, after being hand-cuffed, I have no regrets for what I have done. He deserved losing his son and daughter-in-law."

"My plan only failed, because of that girl with coffee-brown color, who scraped through me, resulting in you guys being able to trace me through the DNA."

Mrs. Brown with tears thought, "I have all these years been living with the murderer of my husband."

Li Enlai, able to see through her thoughts, gestured to Liu Taio, who walked up to her and said, "Aunt, you are just like my mom. I thoroughly understand your pain. I assure you, that you will lack nothing in the future. As for the business deal with the Li household, I will co-operate with you guys and see the expansion through. From today onwards, Olivia is going to be my sister, and I will be responsible for her future till she is settled properly."