Desperate people, accept the seed of my soul!

Just as he turned the corner of the corridor, a figure caught Wang Gang's attention.

The man leaned against the wall, his head bowed, his whole being resembling a bow that had been stretched to its limit and then suddenly snapped.

Although he was dressed in civilian clothes, the sharp and capable demeanor that emanated from his very bones made Wang Gang recognize him at a glance—criminal police officer Li Rui.

The deputy captain of the First Brigade of the Criminal Investigation Department of Chenxi City Public Security Bureau is only 28 years old this year. He is ruthless in solving cases and hates evil. He is the most promising new talent in the bureau in recent years.

But at this moment, Li Rui's condition was very strange.

He pressed one hand firmly against the wall, even scratching several marks on the plaster.

In his other hand, he tightly gripped a file, the paper soaked with sweat and crumpled.

Even from several meters away, Wang Gang could feel the oppressive atmosphere emanating from the young man—anger, extreme anger.

"Li Rui?"

Wang Gang stopped and called out.

Li Rui suddenly raised his head.

Those once sharp eyes were now bloodshot, and there was even a hint of murderous intent in them that they hadn't had time to retract.

Only after recognizing Wang Gang did the murderous aura barely dissipate, replaced by a deep weariness and dejection.

"Captain Wang." Li Rui's voice was hoarse.

"What's wrong with you looking like this?" Wang Gang walked over, his gaze falling on the crumpled file in his hand. "Just got back from a field mission? Did you... not handle this case well?"

"It's beautifully done. Absolutely gorgeous."

Li Rui suddenly gave a bitter laugh. "The man's been arrested, the chain of evidence is complete, the murder weapon has been found, and even two damn eyewitnesses have been found. According to procedure, this should be an ironclad case."

"Then what are you angry about?" Wang Gang frowned.

Li Rui took a deep breath, as if trying to suppress the volcano about to explode in his chest. He suddenly raised the file in front of Wang Gang, his finger trembling as he pointed to the name on the cover.

"Zhang Ziqian. The illegitimate son of the chairman of Huiguang Pharmaceuticals."

Li Rui gritted his teeth and spoke rapidly: "This beast followed and broke into the home of a recent female college graduate... and tortured her for three whole hours! That girl... when she was found, there wasn't a single patch of good flesh on her body, and she was bleeding internally... she died in excruciating pain!"

Wang Gang's eyes turned cold.

Even seasoned detectives are infuriated by such cases.

"It took us three days and three nights to drag him out of his father's villa," Li Rui continued, veins bulging on his neck. "We thought we could at least give him some peanuts to appease the girl's parents. And what happened?"

Li Rui slammed his fist against the wall with a loud thud.

"Just now, the court ruling came down. Zhang Ziqian suffers from severe 'intermittent violent disorder' and was in an 'emergency phase' at the time of the incident, therefore he has no criminal responsibility. He will not be held criminally liable and will be subject to compulsory medical treatment."

"Mental illness?" Wang Gang frowned.

"What a load of rubbish, a mental illness!"

Li Rui finally couldn't hold back any longer and growled, "I confronted him in the interrogation room for six hours! His logic was clearer than anyone else's; he even remembered how he used several different tools during the crime and how he avoided the corridor's surveillance cameras!"

"As a result, Huiguang Pharmaceuticals applied for a psychiatric evaluation for him, and the entire evaluation process was overseen by officials from the court and the prosecutor's office. Huiguang Pharmaceuticals... I don't know what methods they used to get him to pass the test in front of everyone!"

"Based on these few reports alone, he won't go to jail or pay with his life! He just needs to stay at that 'Chenxi City Anning Mental Health Prevention and Treatment Center' for a while. Is that jail? That's a sanatorium!"

Wang Gang fell silent.

He reached out to pat Li Rui on the shoulder, only to find that the young man's shoulder was as hard as a rock.

This scene is all too familiar.

Wei Donghai was the same way. Even though so many people died, even though the evidence was conclusive, he could absolve himself of all responsibility with a "meritorious service" or a "lack of knowledge".

The law is just, but those who apply it are sometimes not.

Those who possess enormous resources can always find loopholes in the legal system and slip through them like eels.

"Captain Wang, do you know what disgusts me the most?"

Li Rui lowered his head, his voice suddenly becoming very soft, yet sending chills down one's spine.

"Just now, as he was being put into the ambulance to be taken to a mental hospital, he glanced at me through the car window."

Li Rui raised his head and looked directly into Wang Gang's eyes: "He smiled at me."

"That wasn't the laugh of a madman. It was a triumphant laugh, a mocking laugh. He was telling me—look, you cops work yourselves to death, what can you do to me? I have money, I'm sick, I can kill without paying for it."

"At that moment, I really wanted to pull out my gun and shoot him."

Li Rui's hand unconsciously reached for his waist, even though it was currently empty.

Wang Gang was startled, and the ominous premonition grew stronger.

He grabbed Li Rui's shoulder and pressed down hard with his palm, as if he were transmitting some kind of power or suppressing him.

"Li Rui!" Wang Gang shouted in a deep voice, "Keep those words to yourself! You're a policeman!"

"But the girl's parents were kneeling in front of the police station! They asked me why a murderer had become mentally ill! How was I supposed to answer?! How the hell was I supposed to answer?!"

"Then shut up!"

Wang Gang's gaze hardened. "The forensic report was accepted by the court, and the procedure was legal. Any questions you raise now will be seen as a challenge to judicial authority. What do you want? Do you want to lose this police uniform? Do you want to resort to vigilante justice?"

Li Rui froze.

He looked at Wang Gang, and the light in his eyes gradually dimmed.

"That's reality." Wang Gang loosened his grip, his tone softening. "Some cases can't be won just by revealing the truth. Whether it's Huiguang Pharmaceuticals or the Wei Group, the waters here are too deep. You're still young, don't get yourself involved."

"Go back, wash your face, and get some sleep. This case is closed; don't delve into it further, and don't talk nonsense outside."

Li Rui did not answer.

He simply straightened up slowly, straightened his disheveled collar, gave Wang Gang a perfunctory salute, and turned to leave.

Watching the young man's back disappear at the end of the corridor, Wang Gang felt that the back was even more hunched than before, as if something had broken off in the young man's spine.

……

Half an hour later, at the underground training ground.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The dull thud echoed through the space.

Wang Gang wasn't wearing boxing gloves; his bare fists pounded heavily against the heavy sandbags time and time again.

His knuckles were worn raw and bleeding, but he seemed to feel no pain.