Sun Fatty paused to catch his breath. Taking the opportunity, I asked, "Be straightforward — what signs have you noticed?"
Sun Fatty didn't answer directly. He pulled out a cigarette, lit it without asking me, took a drag, then said, "La Zi, after some time, I might be temporarily suspended from the Bureau over some matter. If that day really comes, I'm counting on you for the things I mentioned earlier."
Before I could ask more, Sun Fatty gave a faint smile and said, "Don't bother thinking too hard. My mind's a mess right now. Most of what I told you is just guesswork. I haven't even figured it out myself, so how could I explain it to you clearly? La Zi, believe me, once I understand it myself, you'll be the first to know."
Maybe wanting to change the odd mood, he went on quickly, "Besides this, whatever else you want to know, just ask. If I know, I'll tell you everything — no secrets, nothing held back. La Zi, this is a rare moment of generosity from me." He ended with his trademark grin.
Looks like there's no way to get anything concrete about Gao Liang. But since I had this chance, I wanted to clear up some mysteries that had been bugging me for a while. After a brief hesitation, I said, "You said you won't hold back — then explain two things first: why did Director Gao pick you for deputy director? And who was the person who called you after the 'Ghost Train' incident? I asked you before and you brushed it off — isn't it time for an explanation? No more hiding behind your dad this time."
"Not to be rude, but if it weren't important, you wouldn't be asking." Sun Fatty finished his cigarette, walked to the window, flicked the ash away, then turned back to me. "La Zi, actually what you're talking about is all one thing. After boarding the train, Director Gao confided in me somewhat — he didn't say clearly, but back then I thought I'd be deputy director of Office One. Who knew in the end they announced me deputy director of the whole Bureau… When it was announced, you think I looked calm? Actually, I was scared out of my wits. If it weren't for the quick recovery, I probably would've slipped off my chair."
Seeing Sun Fatty getting more excited as he talked, I sighed and said, "Dàshèng, aren't you going off-topic? I'm not asking for your acceptance speech — I want to know how you got the position." Sun Fatty grinned and said, "La Zi, you should ask the person who gave me the title. Honestly, Director Gao still hasn't explained it to me. I asked him several times, and you know what he said? 'I just like you!'"
Sun Fatty's answer left me speechless — sounded like a joke, not the truth. Just as I was about to reply, he added, "Later I thought about it. Gao's decision to promote me probably happened after the 'Wolf Plague' and before the 'Ghost Train.' La Zi, I suspect it has something to do with Yinbai's incident."
But Sun Fatty's words still felt like half-truths. As for Yinbai… no matter how I thought about it, I couldn't imagine Sun Fatty doing anything impressive in the Tomb of the Arcanobeast — mostly playing dead or retreating at the front line. If that was enough to become deputy director, then besides Gao Liang, everyone in the Bureau would be deputy director. No matter how I pressed, Sun Fatty couldn't say more and would try to drag me to ask Gao Liang directly.
I knew it was bluffing, but from Gao Liang's attitude just now, going to ask him would get us nowhere but a scolding. After calming Sun Fatty down, I said, "What about that phone call on the train? Who called you? And who kicked Lin Feng off the train?"
Sun Fatty blinked several times, hesitated, then said, "That call was from Director Gao — he knew right away about the sabotaged tracks."
Seeing my puzzled look, Sun Fatty smiled and continued, "Honestly, to prevent incidents like that, about a month before, he had people install hidden cameras along the tracks. As soon as someone touched the rails with a pickaxe, he was alerted. At first, he suspected someone was trying to stop the train to ambush us. So he didn't act rashly. Once he realized it wasn't that, he informed me. La Zi, don't look at me like I never tell the truth. I know what you're thinking — Gao called me instead of Old Xiao to see how I'd react to such a sudden event."
Though I was still half doubtful, I believed Sun Fatty about ninety percent. But one question remained: "What about Lin Feng? What happened with him?"
"It was Lin himself who brought that on. He realized Gao Liang was starting to suspect him, so he pulled a self-inflicted stunt to win sympathy. The Nyeh in the train car—that was his doing too. But I'll give it to him, Lin Feng really went all in. I asked Ouyang Pianzou about it—Lin had calibrated the attack just right. Any heavier, and he could've joined the dead on their way to reincarnation."
Just as Sun Fatty finished saying that, my phone suddenly rang. The screen showed an unfamiliar number. I hesitated, wondering whether to decline the call and keep listening to Sun Fatty's gossip, but he glanced sideways at the caller ID and said, "Pick it up. That's Old Xiao's new number. He changes phones as soon as he leaves the Bureau."
Only then did I remember that I'd completely forgotten to reach out to Xiao Heshang after waking up. Given his relationship with my grandfather, that really wasn't right. I answered the call and said, "Who's this?" and heard Xiao Heshang's voice reply, "Lazi? You're really awake? And you didn't even think to contact me? If I hadn't stopped by the hospital and the nurse told me you were discharged days ago, I still wouldn't know!"
By the end of that sentence, he sounded like he was on the verge of tears. But after a few more lines and listening to me recount a bit of my recovery, his tone returned to normal. "Alright, I know you're busy. Let's talk tonight. Seven o'clock at the Wangfu Hotel. Don't flake on me—I'll wait all night if I have to. And bring that chubby Sun guy with you. Both of you."
Then he hung up without waiting for a response.
While I was on the phone, Sun Fatty had been standing right next to me, ears perked, catching every word. After I hung up, I turned to him and said, "Seven tonight. Old Xiao's waiting for us at Wangfu Hotel. Dàshèng, since when did he get so generous? Back in the day, a meal at Shaguoju was already pushing it. Now he's going high-end? His film company must be doing gangbusters."
"He'd be bankrupt if he actually ran a film company," Sun Fatty muttered. Then he lowered his voice and continued, "Lazi, now that you've agreed to join us, I guess it's time you heard some of the real stuff. Old Xiao's so-called film company is just a front. He's basically our external affairs guy. He finds the jobs, then Yang the Second takes care of the cleanup. Old Xiao just talks and takes a 20% cut. Old Wu takes 40%, and the last 40% gets split between me and Yang. Not gonna lie, the guy's got more money than me now."
That jogged another thought. I followed up: "So he's really not coming back to the Bureau? What exactly happened between him and Director Gao?"
Sun Fatty shrugged. "I honestly don't know. When Old Xiao stormed out, I was away from the Bureau. But according to Old Mo and the others, he left cursing up a storm. They said Gao's face went purple with rage—they'd never seen him that furious. Later, when things cooled down, I tried to talk to Old Xiao about it. But forget getting him to mention Gao—he wouldn't even tolerate hearing the words 'Bureau of Paranormal Investigation.' Say 'Bureau' and he'd start cursing like we're all bastards. After that, I gave up trying."
I asked, "You never tried to sound out Director Gao? Maybe you could've gotten lucky and fished something out."
"I never even considered it. Not gonna get anything real out of him anyway. Not to mention, from the way Old Xiao was grinding his teeth, it's clear Gao did something to wrong him. Why would I stir that pot?"
We kept chatting in the Office One conference room, though Xiao Heshang's call had thrown us off rhythm. I didn't manage to squeeze any more useful info out of Sun Fatty. Before we knew it, it was time to clock out. Sun Fatty didn't bother returning to his own office—he left the Bureau with me, and we drove straight to the Wangfu Hotel.
At the front desk, we found out Xiao Heshang had reserved a VIP suite. Sun Fatty smacked his lips at that—by his estimate, this meal was going to cost at least RMB 10,000–20,000 (≈ USD 1,400–2,800). But when we walked into the private room, we realized Old Xiao wasn't alone. As soon as we stepped inside, a familiar face we hadn't seen in two years stood up and rushed over.
"Mr. Sun, Mr. Shen—long time no see!"
Ma Xiaolin. That old frenemy again. This guy somehow popped up every now and then—and it was never a good omen. I had no idea how he ended up tagging along with Xiao Heshang.
Xiao Heshang was standing right behind him. Before Ma could finish his greeting, Old Xiao shoved him aside and strode over to me. Before I could even say anything, he threw his arms around me and burst into tears.
"Little Lazi, you scared me half to death… Two years! I thought you'd never wake up. Your grandfather asked me to look after you, and look what I did… If something had really happened to you, how would I face him?"
Seeing him like that, even I felt a bit emotional. "I'm fine, aren't I? Just a two-year nap—nothing to fuss about…" Before I could finish, Sun Fatty pulled Xiao Heshang away, saying, "Alright, enough. Lazi's fine. Big disasters mean big blessings, right? Seriously though, this melodramatic stuff is so out of fashion."
Then he paused, glanced at Ma Xiaolin, and said to Old Xiao, "Not to be rude, but what's he doing here?"
Old Xiao, being the emotionally flexible guy he was, wiped his tears and switched to a grin. "Ran into him on the way. When he heard tonight's dinner was to celebrate Lazi's recovery, he insisted on picking up the tab. That's class."
Ma Xiaolin finally got his cue to speak. Flashing a grin, he said, "No big deal! As long as everyone's happy, a bit of money's nothing." In just two years, his Mandarin had improved a lot—he didn't even have to consciously roll his tongue anymore. So that's how Xiao Heshang got so generous—he'd roped in a big sucker.
Ma Xiaolin added, "Since tonight's for Mr. Shen, I even brought two fine bottles of wine. Shall we eat and chat?""Exactly! Why are we still standing here?" Old Xiao clapped his hands and led us to the table. "Come on, we're not the kind to just talk. Eating, drinking, and chatting is how it's done."
He had me and Sun Fatty seated at the main table and sat beside us, while Ma Xiaolin, despite footing the bill, played the role of the humble sidekick—buzzing around arranging the dishes. Everything had already been ordered, clearly under Old Xiao's instruction: high-end seafood and delicacies like abalone, shark fin, and sea cucumber. The dishes were exquisitely plated, and I could barely name most of them. One glance at the spread told me that Xiao Heshang's knife had cut deep—Ma Xiaolin must've been holding something heavy over his head.