Futile Devices Scans

Zhou Ruo An did not, as Lin Yi had predicted, kick off the blanket right at midnight and curl himself into a peaceful sleeping posture.

He was half-reclining against the mottled headboard, a cigarette held between his fingers. The faint glow spreading from the cigarette tip was only enough to pierce a small hole through the darkness. Each time that point of light drew near his lips, it cast trembling light and shadow over his lowered lashes.

Time at night was a strange thing. As long as you were still awake, it seemed to change shape, stretched until it became long and distorted. Certain old fragments would stitch themselves together with the tracks of the present moment, making it very easy for a person to think of the past.

Zhou Ruo An stared at the only speck of light in the darkness and suddenly remembered that torrential rainstorm from many years ago. The sudden downpour had washed down the self-built wall of Old Ding’s recycling station, and it was Lin Yi who had braved the rain to dig him out from the pile of rubble, then carried him on his back through filthy water that reached their knees and out of that low-lying area. Even now, Zhou Ruo An still remembered how Lin Yi’s protruding shoulder blades had dug painfully into his chest.

Many of the houses in the village had been flooded, including Lin Yi’s. They could only squeeze into that leaking rental room in the urban village. On summer nights when rain poured down, the water pooled on the roof would seep inside and drip into a tin washbasin with clear, ringing plinks. On nights when Lin Yi could not sleep, he would pull out a crumpled cigarette pack and light a cigarette. The bed in the rental room was narrow, only wide enough for two people to lie side by side. Whenever Zhou Ruo An rolled over in Lin Yi’s direction and lay on his side, Lin Yi would, with perfect accuracy in the darkness, bring the cigarette to his lips. Zhou Ruo An would take a shallow drag from his hand, and once the nicotine spread through his mouth, life no longer felt quite so bitter.

The sound of rain in his memory gradually faded. Zhou Ruo An raised his hand and lightly tapped the ash into the ashtray. Sparks scattered, illuminating for an instant the solitary photo frame on the bedside table.

It was the only decoration in Lin Yi’s home, standing abruptly in this room that was still cold and hard despite the large floral bedsheets, like a gentle flaw.

Zhou Ruo An paused, then, as though compelled by some unseen force, brought the cigarette closer to the photo frame. The orange-red firelight flowed across the surface of the glass, first illuminating the sharp line of the man’s jaw in the photograph, then moving upward to the straight bridge of his nose, and finally, the light climbed into Lin Yi’s eyes.

Those eyes were usually cold, and his gaze was often indifferent, but in the photograph, the corners of his eyes were slightly curved. His gaze passed through the lens and looked straight at Zhou Ruo An.

Zhou Ruo An suddenly remembered the instant he had pressed the shutter. One evening two years ago, Lin Yi had been standing in the sunset at the mouth of an alley. When Zhou Ruo An suddenly called out to him and he turned back, there was still lingering hostility at his brow, but the moment he saw clearly that it was him, his gaze softened at once.

“Smile.” Zhou Ruo An remembered himself saying this as he held up his phone.

Lin Yi frowned. “What’s wrong with you?”

Yet when the shutter clicked, a trace of a smile still escaped into his eyes…

Zhou Ruo An’s fingers unconsciously tightened. It turned out that all those moments of tenderness he had dismissed as coincidence had already been hidden within Lin Yi’s gaze for so many years.

His thumb lightly brushed against the cold photo frame. It seemed as though he had touched that gentle gaze. His hand trembled, and ash fluttered down from the cigarette, burning his fingertip.

The sudden sting brought Zhou Ruo An back to his senses, making him realize what he had just done. Irritated with himself, he withdrew his hand and shoved the cigarette back between his lips.

The bitter taste of tobacco spread through his mouth, yet it could not suppress the inexplicable restlessness in his heart. Just then, a shrill ringtone suddenly exploded through the darkness.

Zhou Ruo An shuddered violently, nearly dropping the cigarette from his lips. He stared fixedly at the glowing phone screen on the bedside table. The unfamiliar number looked especially glaring in the darkness.

His right hand hovered in midair, his fingertips trembling slightly. He thought of the prophecy that had followed Lin Yi since childhood, as well as that farewell-like kiss before they had parted.

Mechanically crushing out the cigarette in his hand, Zhou Ruo An suddenly snatched up the phone just as the ringing was about to end. His thumb paused above the answer button for a second before finally swiping down hard.

“Hello?” His voice sounded somewhat hoarse after not speaking for so long.

From the other end came Bai Ban’s hurried panting, accompanied by crackling static that stabbed into his ears. “Z-Zhou Ruo An, my brother’s been taken away by the police! You’re the Zhou family’s young master—please save him!”

Zhou Ruo An’s fingers clenched the bedsheet tightly, wrinkling the gaudy peony pattern into a crumpled ball in his palm. In the darkness, his voice carried a cold edge. “Explain it clearly.”

…

By the time Yancheng’s most renowned criminal defense lawyer stepped out of the detention center, the sky had already darkened. He adjusted his suit cuffs and walked toward the black sedan parked by the roadside. The window slowly lowered, revealing Zhou Ruo An’s tense profile.

“Lawyer Cheng.” Zhou Ruo An’s voice was lower than usual.

The lawyer got into the car and placed his briefcase on his lap. “The situation is more complicated than we anticipated, but there is also more room for hope.” He pulled out a photocopied document. “Mr. Lin Yi did indeed participate in the raid on Bai Jiu’s villa that night, but the key point is that he submitted this to the police.”

Zhou Ruo An took the documents, his fingertips trembling slightly as he turned the pages. It was the ledger from Bai Jiu’s safe, detailing his illegal transactions over the past several years.

“There’s more than just this.” The lawyer adjusted his glasses. “The evidence Mr. Lin Yi has secretly collected over the past two years far exceeds our expectations. Bank transaction records, recordings of violent debt collection activities, and even evidence identifying the true culprit behind the Chen Village arson case three years ago.”

Zhou Ruo An suddenly looked up, shock flashing through his eyes. The lawyer continued, “Most importantly, the recording of the emergency call that night has been recovered. After voiceprint analysis, it was confirmed that the caller was Mr. Lin Yi himself.”

“He… called the police himself?” Zhou Ruo An’s voice tightened.

“Yes.” The lawyer nodded. “In the recording, he reported that ‘an armed fight is taking place at Bai Jiu’s villa.’ This provided legal grounds for police intervention. Combined with the evidence he voluntarily submitted, the prosecutor’s office is considering classifying his actions as…”

“Undercover evidence gathering,” Zhou Ruo An suddenly finished, already crumpling the documents in his hand.

The lawyer revealed his first smile of the evening. “Exactly. However…”

“However what? Is there a chance he’ll be released without charges?” Zhou Ruo An pressed urgently.

The lawyer removed his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose tiredly. “That’s possible, but only possible. Regardless of whether he was Bai Jiu’s puppet, Mr. Lin Yi was still the legal representative of those companies, and all the illegal dealings bear his signature.” Seeing Zhou Ruo An’s expression darken instantly, he added, “But don’t worry. I’ll do everything I can.”

After a pause, he continued, “Mr. Lin Yi also asked me to pass along a message. No matter the outcome, he asks that you not visit him at the detention center.”

“Why?”

“Bai Jiu’s influence runs deep. There’s no way it can all be eradicated at once. Mr. Lin Yi is worried that if others learn of your relationship with him…” The lawyer lowered his voice. “Someone may try to harm you.”

After considering this for a moment, Zhou Ruo An nodded. “Is there any other information of value?”

The lawyer seemed to remember something. “Oh, right. Based on the evidence, the police have arrested more than twenty people, including Wang Zhi An.” He flipped through the documents. “Ironically enough, among the evidence Lin Yi gathered, Wang Zhi An’s crimes are scarcely fewer than Bai Jiu’s.”

Zhou Ruo An froze. His memory suddenly flashed back to a late night when Lin Yi had been leaning against the headboard, his gaze obscure in the dim light. “The position Bai Jiu occupies doesn’t necessarily have to go to Wang Zhi An.”

Looking out at the flashing neon lights beyond the car window, Zhou Ruo An gritted his teeth and muttered under his breath, “He won’t let me keep anything from him, yet he hid all these plans from me completely.”

…

After seeing the lawyer off, Zhou Ruo An did not leave immediately. His black sedan remained parked beneath a pagoda tree outside the detention center. The engine had long since been turned off, and the temperature inside the car continued to fall along with the evening light.

The afterglow of the setting sun resembled molten gold leaf, slowly flowing across the detention center’s gray-white walls. The dense network of electric fencing atop the walls cast fine shadows in the fading light, like countless boundaries that could never be crossed. Zhou Ruo An rolled down the window and lit a cigarette, watching the national emblem hanging high above shine brilliantly in the last rays of sunlight, so red it hurt his eyes.

The phone resting on the center console suddenly vibrated, its screen lighting up harshly inside the dim cabin. When Zhou Ruo An saw the name “Zhou Ran Ming,” a trace of disgust flashed through his eyes, yet the moment he answered, his voice turned obedient. “Uncle, you were looking for me?”

Zhou Ran Ming’s slightly hoarse voice came through the receiver. “The group’s new project is about to be formally launched. Whether it receives the board’s support depends heavily on the vote you cast on Jin Hui’s behalf.” After a pause, he added meaningfully, “Over the next few days, I want you to contact some of Jin Hui’s old friends as his representative and see if you can persuade a few of them to stand with us.”

Staring at the warning lights flashing atop the detention center wall, Zhou Ruo An replied steadily, “Understood. I’ll handle it tomorrow.”

Just as the call was about to end, Zhou Ran Ming seemed to remember something. “Oh, right. Your engagement ceremony has been scheduled for three months from now. I’ve already made arrangements with the Xu family. You just need to show up when the time comes.”

“The engagement?” Zhou Ruo An’s grip on the steering wheel tightened abruptly. “You mean… Xu Yi Han? Didn’t she refuse the engagement?”

Zhou Ran Ming let out a cold laugh. “Since when does a matter like this depend on what she wants? A woman with a criminal record should consider it her good fortune to marry into the Zhou family.”

The sound of papers rustling came from the other end. “It’s settled, then. Her family is keeping a close watch on her lately, so don’t go stirring up trouble. Focus on handling the board of directors.”

Looking at his own gloomy reflection in the rearview mirror, Zhou Ruo An replied softly, “Alright. I’ll do exactly as you say, Uncle.”

Author’s Note:

Don’t worry, everyone. Lin Yi will be coming out very soon. He still has to become the bride. Yes, the bride. Hahaha.

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