Chapter Seventy-Five: It Turned Out to Be a Fish

No sooner had she returned to the supermarket and barely settled into her chair than the security office phone rang.

Duan Peng said, “There’s been a suspected non-human violent incident at the Qingyu Pavilion Teahouse on Dongfeng Street. Sorry to trouble you again, but could you go take a look?”

Wang Zixuan replied, “Cut the chatter. Just keep an eye on Hao Yingjun for me, that’s more important than anything. Has he gotten into any trouble lately?”

Duan Peng reassured her, “Don’t worry, with me around, nothing unexpected will happen.”

Wang Zixuan said, “Good. That’s all, I’m hanging up.”

After ending the call, she repeated the assignment on the public channel, instructing any available agents to head over. She herself grabbed her keys and sped off in her car. Upon entering the teahouse, she found the chairs in disarray, as though the place had just been ransacked. After quickly scanning her surroundings, she saw Hao Yingjun trotting in like an eager puppy.

Wang Zixuan smacked her forehead. “Why is it you again?”

Hao Yingjun replied, “The Chief asked me to learn more from you. I have to follow in your footsteps, don’t I?”

Wang Zixuan waved him off, not bothering to respond. She waited for a bit but saw no one, so she raised her voice and called out, “Anyone here? Is there anyone?”

Just then, a head peeked out from behind the counter, cautiously observing the room. Wang Zixuan spotted him immediately.

“You’re the owner here, right?” she asked.

Seeing that there was no danger, the owner slowly stood up. He was a middle-aged man. Wang Zixuan flashed her badge for him to see.

“You were the one who called this in, weren’t you?” she asked.

The owner hurried out from behind the counter. “Yes, yes, that’s right. My name is Zhang Yiwen. I was the one who called.”

Hao Yingjun was fiddling with his badge, then pulled out a loudspeaker and aimed it at Zhang Yiwen.

Zhang Yiwen frantically waved his hands. “No, no, don’t turn that on. We’re on the same side—I’m one of you. I’m a turtle spirit. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have gone to the 444 Supermarket to report a case, right?”

Hao Yingjun shrugged awkwardly. Wang Zixuan didn’t even look at him.

“So, what exactly happened? Tell us,” Wang Zixuan prompted.

“There was a non-human trying to kill someone,” Zhang Yiwen replied.

The words startled Hao Yingjun, who froze—what, was this for real?

“About an hour ago, an odd old man came in,” Zhang Yiwen continued.

The old man had said, “A glass of ’82 Lafite, please.”

Zhang Yiwen replied, “Are you sure you’re in the right place? This is a teahouse, not a bar. We don’t serve wine.”

The old man said, “Then give me a cup of ’82 Longjing tea.”

“He kept muttering under his breath, and I couldn’t make out what he was saying. Then he walked over to a customer, smashed a teacup, and pulled out a gun, pointing it right at the man. The whole shop erupted into chaos.”

The old man had demanded, “Mr. Yuan, what did he say to you?”

At that moment, someone shoved the old man away, and a scuffle broke out. Because they feared the gun, the old man managed to pin someone against the table. But when he became agitated and tried to fire, the gun didn’t work.

The man on the table pushed the old man away and shouted, “Everyone, get him! The gun’s fake!”

Someone muttered, “The gun’s fake? Is he crazy?”

Another chimed in, “Who pulls a stunt like that with a fake gun? That’s insane! I was scared to death. We can’t just let him go.”

“When the old man was surrounded, his eyes went blank and he started sweating profusely. Then, to everyone’s shock, he turned into a fish,” Zhang Yiwen said.

Wang Zixuan asked, “Have you gotten into any trouble lately? Made any enemies?”

Zhang Yiwen replied, “Who would I dare cross? If people just leave me alone, I’d count myself lucky.”

Hao Yingjun then asked, “Have you eaten any fish recently?”