Chapter 3 The More Important Things

The first time he was taken onto a police car, the first time he was brought to a police station.

Upon arriving at a precinct, the interrogation began immediately.

"Confess for leniency; resist for severity," Yang Yi still saw an interrogation room for the first time, looking at the two lines of big characters on the wall, the two policemen in front of him spoke up.

"Let's hear it, what exactly happened?"

Yang Yi snapped back to reality, then helplessly said, "I'm still puzzled about what happened myself. I've got nothing to do with this matter. I'm just a rideshare driver. Someone asked me to drive for them and I absent-mindedly agreed. There's nothing much to say. My car has a dash cam, and there's evidence in there that can prove my innocence. Anyway, I'm just unlucky. Whatever punishment or fine I receive, I'll accept it."

"Let's not talk about whether you're involved with this car theft incident yet. Geez, you dared to drive up to 220 on the fifth ring road. You've got some nerve, and do you understand how bad that is? In broad daylight, you guys..."

The policemen interrogating Yang Yi were speaking when suddenly the door to the interrogation room was knocked on. Then, a high-ranking police officer pushed the door open, didn't enter, but simply said to the two interrogating policemen, "The two of you, leave. Leave the records."

The two policemen responsible for the interrogation appeared quite surprised, but they left the interrogation room as quickly as possible. Then, the door opened again, and this time, a middle-aged man in a suit entered.

The middle-aged man who came in looked to be in his fifties, with a very ordinary appearance, without any distinguishing features that could catch one's attention. Ordinary beyond words.

The man walked into the interrogation room, glanced at Yang Yi, then sat down in the interrogator's seat, picking up the record to look at it.

Noticing that the red light signifying the camera was off, Yang Yi didn't appear surprised or find it strange; he just felt that the moment he had been anticipating for a long time seemed to be approaching.

After carefully observing the man in the suit, Yang Yi suddenly laughed and said softly, "There's no need to look at the record, they haven't really started questioning me yet. Uncle Li, long time no see. I didn't expect to run into you here."

The middle-aged man called Uncle Li by Yang Yi looked up in shock, then whispered, "You can recognize me?"

Yang Yi nodded his head and said calmly, "That was eleven years ago, wasn't it? It was night, and it was raining. You went to our house with my father, and at that time he asked me to call you Uncle Li. Hmm, we seldom had visitors to our house, so I still have a deep impression of you."

Uncle Li put down the interrogation record, nodded, then said with a nostalgic expression, "Back then, you were just a little kid. I'm surprised you can still remember my face. You've got a really good memory."

"A lot of people say that. I have a photographic memory because there are many things I want to forget that I can't. So sometimes, this gift is quite a bother to me."

"It's genetic; your father had a photographic memory too. I've always admired that about him and envied him for the gift. It looks like you've inherited his talent."

The two fell into a brief silence before Yang Yi broke it, "How should I address you now?"

"You can call me Li Fan, or you can continue to call me Uncle Li, or you can drop the 'Li' and just call me 'Uncle' if you like."

"So, Li Fan is a pseudonym then."

After a moment of silence, Li Fan nodded his head, then said, "Don't take it so seriously. Just treat it as my real name."

Yang Yi raised his handcuffed hands, "Uncle, get these off me. It's really uncomfortable."

"I don't have the keys, so just bear with it for now. It's not good to keep bothering others. My being here already isn't proper."

Yang Yi sighed, then said very seriously, "If I were to compare the motherland to a mother, then I would definitely be very filial, because this country has treated me well. I've been doing quite well all these years after my parents died. Now, you suddenly show up here, and this confuses me but also suddenly makes me understand a lot of things."

After a brief pause, Yang Yi said calmly, "Let me guess. You're here to get me out, aren't you?"

"Not exactly, or not entirely."

"Then you're here to tell me about my parents?"

Li Fan sighed and said with a wry smile, "Don't rush to show off how clever you are. Being too conspicuous is not good, not good at all. But you're right, I indeed want to talk to you about your parents."

Yang Yi nodded his head, then stated very seriously, "When my father died, I was young and didn't understand much, nor did I give it much thought. But looking back on it now, I think he must have been a spy. Your behavior now confirms my idea, so you're also a spy. Then, my parents were dispatched by the country?"

Li Fan shook his head and said, "You're mistaken on that point. Your parents weren't exactly spies. Strictly speaking, your father was an intelligence broker and sometimes acted as a political intermediary. I can tell you responsibly that they weren't sent by the country. Your father didn't belong to the intelligence agency of any country; he worked only for money."

Yang Yi frowned and said, "Then that's not right. My father educated me from childhood to love my motherland. I don't understand. If he were a spy, with no ties to any country, then wouldn't his teachings to me be very ridiculous?"

Li Fan said with a serious face, "Some people, no matter their nationality, will never forget they are Huaxian, and your father was one of those people!"

Waving his hand, Li Fan continued solemnly, "There's no need to doubt or try to test me. I can tell you that the relationship and friendship between your father and me were based on commerce. Yes, I have bought information from your father, but the price was very low, so low that it could be considered virtually a gift, and it happened twice."

"What information?"

"That's not something you should ask, nor will I ever tell you."

"Fine, then which department are you with?"

"I've told you, don't ask what you shouldn't."

Yang Yi sighed and said, "Well, this is not very interesting. You're not satisfying my curiosity at all. Alright, I'll change to some questions you can answer. Was it you who sent someone to bring me back from the United Kingdom? Have you been looking after me all these years?"

Li Fan nodded, then said in a deep voice, "Yes, but I feel guilty because I can't really say I looked after you. I merely entrusted some people to take the necessary care of you. Your father had no direct relations with Huaxia, but just for the two pieces of information that were like gifts, all the care you received was deserved. And a large part of your current personal assets comes from the inheritance your parents left behind."

Yang Yi nodded and said, "So after my parents suddenly died, an inexplicably long-lost uncle came to take me back to the country, and then he disappeared, leaving me with a property in Jing City from my mother, and then a strange aunt came to take care of my life, but she disappeared all of a sudden when I was able to take care of myself. I attended the best primary school, the best middle school, the best university, and then, all of a sudden, two million two hundred thousand yuan appeared in my account after I graduated. Although I could've guessed how it all happened, now I finally have a precise answer. Can I ask one more question? How much did you pay for the information you bought from my father?"

"Two million British Pounds, one million British Pounds for each piece of information."

"That's quite expensive. You said it was practically a gift?"

"The information is priceless. If it were really to be sold, it would fetch hundreds of millions of British Pounds. You don't understand the value of that information."

Yang Yi chuckled and said, "In that case, my father's job was quite profitable, huh? I should be very wealthy, after all, he must've left quite a bit of money, right? Don't tell me I'm actually a rich second-generation?"

Li Fan shook his head and said in a low voice, "After your father died, all of his assets were transferred away. I only found two hundred thousand British Pounds in cash at your home, which your father had kept for emergencies. Other than that cash, I didn't take anything else, nor could I take anything else."

Yang Yi said with a wry smile, "Well, I thought I was going to get a lot more money..."

Li Fan sighed and said, "So, you bought a luxury car with the money that suddenly appeared in your account, and in less than half a year, you squandered all two million two hundred thousand."

Yang Yi said dejectedly, "I told you, I thought I would continue having money mysteriously appear in my account, okay? Who knew that was all the inheritance my parents left behind. If I knew, I wouldn't have spent it so wildly."

Li Fan sighed, and then said with a hint of helplessness, "I thought you would be eager to ask how exactly your parents died, but now it seems you are not particularly interested in the cause of their death?"

"I've been dreaming of figuring out how they died and why, but that's something you'll definitely talk about, so of course I have to take this opportunity to ask you things you might not talk about, in case I never get another chance. Like my uncle and aunt who suddenly disappeared. Frankly speaking, I find your style of doing things quite annoying—disappearing just like that, always forever."

Li Fan said helplessly, "Can't help it, occupational necessity. Alright, tell me what you want to know, and I will tell you anything I can."

Yang Yi moved his hands irritably and said with a disgruntled face, "First, get this off, it's so uncomfortable. Don't say you don't have the key, I don't believe you can't unlock a pair of handcuffs. Otherwise, that would be a poor showing for a spy, wouldn't it?"

Li Fan gave a wry smile, tore off a piece of paper from the interrogation book, rolled up the paper, and casually unlocked the handcuffs.

"There, speak your mind or ask whatever you want now."

Yang Yi rubbed his wrists and then sat up straight, saying very seriously, "Tell me why my parents had to die now."

Li Fan said with a serious expression, "At that time, I was in charge of the United Kingdom. One day your father suddenly called me, saying he had extremely important information and must meet with me in person. So I rushed to the arranged location, but I waited a long time without him showing up. When I finally saw him, he was already dead."

"So he didn't really die in a car accident."

"Of course not. The car accident scene was fabricated. The real cause of your father's death was poisoning. Almost at the same time, your mother died at home from a sudden heart attack, but she was also poisoned. Your house had been thoroughly searched by someone. Although it seemed normal, it had actually been turned upside down. Someone took what they wanted, and you were saved because you were still at school or perhaps because they thought you were not a threat since you were only eleven years old. It might be coincidental for two people, but having a family of three dying in different places at the same time would be too conspicuous."

Yang Yi said with some confusion, "You just mentioned finding two hundred thousand British Pounds at my place? Now you're saying my house was turned upside down? That's not right."

Li Fan said calmly, "Because money was not what the people who killed your parents were after. They were looking for something much more important, such as this address book, for example."