Chapter 29: Justifiable Defense

Right now, in Lü Chunqiu’s eyes, Mo Fei looked just like a husky who had made a mess but stubbornly refused to admit it. He had practically torn the house apart, yet when confronted, he could still act dumb and feign innocence.

Lü Chunqiu pulled the car over to the side of the road, lifted her hand, and smacked him: “I’ll give you self-defense! I’ll give you being a hero! I’ll give you the truth or lies!”

“Is fighting criminals something you, a pretty face for sale, should be doing? All you need to do is pay your taxes, sleep when you should, stay within the law, pay for your meals, cross the street at the lights, and don’t spit on the ground. That’s civilized enough, do you understand?”

Mo Fei, stunned by her outburst, nodded incessantly. “Yes, yes, I understand!”

“You understand nothing!” Lü Chunqiu still wasn’t satisfied.

If it weren’t for the fact that they were in the car, she would have kicked him.

Mo Fei paused, then replied, “Then… I don’t understand?”

“You dare say you don’t understand?!” Lü Chunqiu was about to strike again.

Mo Fei, strapped by the seatbelt, hugged his head and howled, “I was wrong, I was wrong! It’s my fault!”

“Oh, really?” Lü Chunqiu sneered. “Then tell me, what exactly did you do wrong?”

“Um, I…” Mo Fei was at a loss.

He genuinely didn’t know what he’d done wrong.

Was saving someone a mistake? No.

Was stopping a criminal a mistake? Also no.

So where exactly was his fault?

Mo Fei answered cautiously, “I… didn’t stab him fatally?”

Lü Chunqiu pinched the bridge of her nose and drew a sharp breath.

Was that even something a person should say?

Was that even human language!

Seeing her expression, Mo Fei realized he’d probably given the wrong answer.

But honestly, he didn’t know what else he could have done wrong.

Lü Chunqiu took a moment, raised her hand, and wanted to slap some sense into this disobedient child.

Mo Fei, a grown man, cowered in the passenger seat, his eyes wide and glistening as he looked at Lü Chunqiu.

“Ugh.” Lü Chunqiu’s raised hand pressed against her chest.

Acting cute was shameless, but it worked.

If Mo Fei’s face didn’t have such power over Lü Chunqiu, she wouldn’t have thrown caution to the wind and signed him back then.

She closed her eyes and silently recited the core socialist values over and over. Only after her blood pressure had settled did she quietly start the car.

Once the car was moving, Mo Fei knew he was probably in the clear. He expertly found some snacks in the car and began munching away.

Lü Chunqiu felt another headache coming.

This guy never learned his lesson—he’d probably dare do the same thing again if it happened. But then, there weren’t that many murderers running around these days, were there? Hopefully things would be more peaceful in the future.

“Captain Li, the examination results for the axe are in.” The technician placed the file in front of Li Cangyu. “The markings match the remains found earlier, and we detected the DNA of at least five people on the axe. Once we compare them, the case will be closed.”

Li Cangyu glanced through the file and nodded. “Good. How’s the suspect?”

“He was taken to the hospital in time, no major issues,” Officer Tang walked in from outside, still holding the medical report. “After the surgery at the Second Hospital, I transferred him to Ankang Hospital.”

He handed the medical report to Li Cangyu, his expression far from relaxed. “Take a look.”

Officer Tang’s expression alone told Li Cangyu that something was off in the report.

The technician also leaned in, unable to help but marvel, “Interesting. Normally, anything between the second and fifth ribs is dangerous, since the heart and lungs are right there. This stab landed between the fourth and fifth ribs, brushed the heart sac, and missed the right lung entirely—remarkable precision.”

“Remarkable indeed,” Officer Tang sighed. “The doctor who extracted the knife said if this wasn’t sheer luck, then the person who wielded it must have studied human anatomy, and probably even performed dissections themselves.”

Li Cangyu realized something was wrong. “That actor who injured the suspect?”

“I checked,” Officer Tang’s expression was helpless. “Mo Fei is an orphan, grew up in a welfare home, studied computer science in university, and after graduating, signed on with his current agent. All these years, he’s had no fame to speak of.”

“I’ve checked his agent too—clean record.”

“So it’s just a coincidence?” Li Cangyu set the report down, rubbing his fingers together as he looked at Officer Tang. “What do you think?”

“We have no evidence. If in doubt, presume innocence,” Officer Tang met Li Cangyu’s gaze without flinching. “But I’ll keep an eye on him. If there’s anything wrong, I’ll make sure he’s brought to justice.”

Li Cangyu smiled with satisfaction.

Grassroots work could wear down a person’s enthusiasm, but it seemed that even though Officer Tang was no longer in criminal investigation, he still maintained his vigilance.

With him watching, Li Cangyu could rest a bit easier.

“This time he was acting in self-defense, and he even helped the police with the case. We might have to give him a Good Citizen award,” Li Cangyu recalled speaking with Mo Fei earlier and laughed again. “He even wanted a reward.”

“No bounty, but we’ll apply for a bonus for him once the case is closed.”

The axe man was a carpenter who, after accidentally killing someone in his hometown, had gone on the run. He wasn’t well-educated, but he knew enough not to take a train while fleeing, so he followed the highway on foot.

Along the way, he preyed on solitary women, robbing, assaulting, and murdering them. The first two times, he was nervous, but as the crimes accumulated, he grew bolder—even going so far as to dismember and dispose of the bodies.

Because these were crimes of opportunity and there was no connection between the perpetrator and the victims, plus the crimes took place on desolate stretches of road with few cameras, the investigation was especially difficult.

Had the film crew not been shooting on the highway that day, and had Mo Fei not noticed something amiss in the tall grass and gone to check, Ji Xingyu might have become the latest victim.

Without any evidence to suggest that Mo Fei had orchestrated the whole thing, it could only be chalked up to the inescapable net of fate, which eventually catches all wrongdoers.

Criminals always meet their reckoning.

Before the investigation was fully concluded, Director Wang temporarily blacklisted Mo Fei.

Well, not exactly blacklisted.

Mo Fei’s scenes in the previous film had mostly been reshot, except for one. The remaining sequence involved his character appearing to kill the heroine, only to be killed by the male lead—then the film would be wrapped.

That was the last scene.

Director Wang rehearsed it several times with Wu Miao and the female lead to ensure nothing would go wrong, then called Mo Fei over. The scene was shot in less than half a day, after which Mo Fei was promptly sent on his way.

What bad luck!

Mo Fei, however, was delighted to be sent off.

He received a wrap-up bonus, enough for several days’ worth of meals.

Not only did work come to a conclusion, but by his calculations, it was time to change his card.

A one-in-four chance—as long as it wasn’t the “Outlaw” card, the other three would be fine!

Ever since he’d drawn “Outlaw,” even the lunch man wouldn’t give him an extra serving. It was such a loss!

Mo Fei timed it perfectly, bathed and changed clothes, even borrowed a stick of incense from Granny Zhang downstairs, lit it, and made a sincere prayer to the crack in the door.

“Please, God, grant me wealth—just wealth, and more wealth!”

As the clock struck twelve, the “Ripper” card slowly faded away.