Chapter 2 Second high latitude

Last night, Shao Changshui walked all night and arrived at this small border town in the early morning, but he stayed until now——about 5:40 in the afternoon before seeing this Lord Lao. After Shao Changshui arrived, according to Li Minfen's instructions, he didn't disturb anyone, and he didn't even do what he would do under normal circumstances. He first went to talk to the comrades in the Municipal Bureau, took out his ID card, and went straight to the Municipal Public Security Bureau. I found a clean small hotel to stay in; washed up a bit, went to find a small stall around the hotel, ate some breakfast casually, went back to the room and closed the curtains and fell asleep for a while; by nine o'clock in the morning, it is estimated that the It was time for my grandfather to go to work, so I dialed the old guy's cell phone.I thought that since the old man had "hotly recommended" me, he must still remember me.Unexpectedly, after reporting his name, the old man just gave a lukewarm "hmm", and then asked such a sentence: "Shao Changshui? Which Shao Changshui?" Choked and fainted.He hurriedly collected himself, and explained in detail "which" Shao Changshui he was.The old guy just hummed when he heard this, and replied, "Is there something wrong?" After Shao Changshui made a request to "meet and talk", he agreed after a little hesitation.The sound of flipping papers came from the earphones, probably looking at the schedule for the day, and then "preliminarily scheduled to see you at 11:30 noon", and also agreed to "have a meal together", the location is set at The "Dafang Hotel" run by the Municipal Labor Bureau.Shao Changshui breathed a sigh of relief at the time, thankfully the trip got off to a good start.Unexpectedly, just over an hour later, the old guy called and said that he might not be able to do it at noon.It will take a while to decide when we can see each other.After another forty minutes, he called again and said with certainty that we would not see each other at noon.Shao Changshui immediately suggested, let's have dinner together.He said that the matter of the evening is still uncertain.When the time can be fixed, I will call you again.You go to do other things first.Shao Changshui hurriedly said, I am here to see you, and I have nothing else to do.Just go about your business and I'll wait for your call in the hotel room.When do you have time, say hello, I will see you right away.On call.The old man hesitated for a moment, then answered, okay, wait for my call.Then hung up the phone.He didn't have a single polite word, and his tone was urgent, as if something unexpected had happened to him.In this way, at eleven o'clock ... twelve o'clock ... two o'clock in the afternoon ... three o'clock ... until after four o'clock in the afternoon, there was no call. Shao Changshui really lost his composure.I waited until before dinner, and finally called to say that we can't have dinner together.Up to this moment, Shao Changshui still held back, and hurriedly said, then find a time after dinner.Not even after dinner, he said.This time, Shao Changshui couldn't stand it any longer, he changed his tone and said, Captain Lao, can't you do this?You are my teacher, old man.Although we haven’t worked together much, and you’ve taken off your police uniform now, no matter what, we are comrades-in-arms who have fought on the same front and in the same trench with the same national emblem on our heads... I’ve made it clear to you , I didn't come through your back door for personal matters... What I want to tell you not only has nothing to do with me personally, but I really can't talk to you on the phone, I have to talk to you in person, otherwise I will ... After Shao Changshui reasoned in this way, the old man softened his mouth. After hesitating for a while, he replied, how about it, before dinner, between 5:30 and 6:30, I will give you an hour.okay?

Fuck, who owes whom? "Give you an hour"? ! But what else can you do with him?Who made him "Lord Lao"!Shao Changshui endured it.So be it. Just like that, he was late.When Lord Lao pushed open the glass door of the coffee bar, Shao Changshui looked at his watch, and the exact time was five forty-two.Twelve minutes late.Twelve minutes.If it wasn't this old guy who delayed the twelve minutes, but an investigator from Shao Changshui's criminal investigation brigade, he would definitely be able to peel off three layers of this kid's skin! Twelve minutes?How could a scout be allowed twelve minutes in the act?Not to mention twelve minutes, sometimes a few minutes or a few seconds of delay may cause the escape of the suspect, the loss of important evidence and traces, cause unnecessary casualties of the people or brothers, and cause irreparable losses to the entire case-solving work. .But it was this "Lord Lao" who was late in front of him.What do you think I can do to him?

"Sorry to keep you waiting all day." The old man finally apologized, then sat down, picked up the coffee cup, and took a small sip.He was not tall, or to be more precise, a little short.Broad forehead, pointed chin, thick lips.His eyes flickered.It seems that I have been very nervous and busy all day, and I am still "undecided" until now.An obvious evidence is that his well-maintained hands lay flat on Xiaoteng's table, trembling slightly involuntarily. Only forty-eight minutes remained until the allotted hour.How to talk about it?Shao Changshui looked at the old man silently, thinking to himself: At this moment, he can neither show anxiety, but also has to be anxious.If I can't seize this fleeting opportunity, will the old guy still give me time tomorrow?At this time, the old man took another sip of the black coffee in a hurry, put down his cup, stood up, and said to Shao Changshui, "Go. Follow me." Shao Changshui was taken aback.Walk?Where are you going! You're leaving before the official talk? ! Shao Changshui didn't understand what tricks the old guy was playing with him again.Besides, these two cups of coffee worth nearly 200 yuan have not been "consumed" much, so they gave up for nothing?Shao Changshui was hesitating, but the old guy over there had already thrown out two 100-yuan bills for the waiter to pay the bill. He picked up the high-end mobile phones, high-end cigarette cases and brand-name lighters that were placed on Xiaoteng's table after he was seated, and gestured to Shao Changshui After a while, he walked straight to the door.

Shao Changshui hesitated for a few seconds before following.When he walked outside the door, the old man had already boarded a car he drove by himself.It was a brand new Audi A6.The shiny black shell, like the skin of an African hunter and the tip of a spear that is often raw and bloody, glistens secretly with the master's white teeth in the twilight of the jungle.Shao Changshui hurriedly started his "Nautou Cruiser", which was about 70% to 80% new, and followed closely behind, quietly driving out of the city circle.First to the east, then to the north, and then through a large birch forest, driving into a newly developed villa area.

As mentioned earlier, Taurigan, a small border town, has become rich through the development of border trade dramas in recent years, and at the same time it has attracted many investors and speculators with or without strength.The urban area suddenly expanded several times.The entire urban administration construction has been completely reborn, and the old appearance has changed into a new one.In the past, there were only a few sales offices that could barely be called "shops" on the "street" in front of the county government.Now there are ten or twenty cross-streets, big and small, criss-crossing, businesses stand shoulder to shoulder, and neon lights complement each other.In the leisure center, the bathing room, hair washing room, foot washing room, karaoke room, etc., compete for another kind of "brilliance" in the quietness of the surface.In the suburbs (the so-called "suburbs", which are only two or three kilometers away from the city center), many commercial housing residential areas have been built.And the most "classic" work is the "villa area" that Shao Changshui is driving into at the moment.Most of the villas here are detached villas, and each family can enjoy a private garden of 300 square meters for free.There are also some townhouses with a brown-red attic spire on the third floor.That is imitating the style of classical English country houses.Large areas of grassland with undulating slopes and large tropical palm trees rising from the sky are completely cultivated by artificial paving.At each key fork, there are wooden arrow signs pointing to different divisions.However, judging from the popularity of the community, it can be judged that the developer's estimate of the development prospects of this border town was a bit too optimistic, and the sales and occupancy rates of villas were not high.The more the car goes in, the more windows and doors are opened.Scenes of vacant small buildings that have not been sold for a long time, peeling walls, and deserted small gardens follow one after another.After leaving the back door of the villa area, there is a non-artificial oak forest.At this time, the dusk was already deep, and the two cars walked a little deeper along the path in the oak forest for a while, and then they could faintly distinguish a high-headed red brick wall protruding from the forest path in the dark. left front.When the car drove up to the high wall and took a closer look, Shao Changshui discovered that there was a huge black iron gate embedded in the middle of the wall.Two young men wearing scarlet berets and standard security uniforms had already stepped forward to greet them. "A6" flashed its headlights and passed smoothly.Shao Changshui then flashed his headlights, but was stopped.The young man asked for a special pass, but was stopped by Mr. Lao who stopped not far ahead.The boys retreated obediently into the darkness.After the two cars entered, the big iron gate closed quietly again.In the middle of the huge courtyard stands a tall, flat, three-story building with a sloping roof.When Shao Changshui followed Mr. Lao into the compound, he thought it was the "clubhouse" of the community, that is, a leisure place that usually provides entertainment, fitness and dining for the owners.But after a few more steps inside, the feeling changed again.He believes that this is the kind of "elite club" built by big private entrepreneurs, or "private club".That is to say, these billionaires or multi-millionaires build, develop, and consolidate various business relationships and political relationships, and build places dedicated to receiving or entertaining distinguished guests and friends from all parties.To put it bluntly, it is to invite them to eat, drink and have fun.This kind of special place often has sauna, bowling, karaoke, dance hall and entertainment, including catering and accommodation.Also includes roulette slot machines, mahjong tables and more.When holding an event, they will definitely invite some "high-priced" girls from outside to accompany them, maybe they can also invite some female college students, well-known actresses and singers, it depends on the strength and means of the boss in all aspects How, it depends on whether he is generous in his shots, and to what extent he is generous.But it seems that there haven't been any events held here recently. The tall chandeliers and large pool table, the extended grand piano and the semicircular bar are all surrounded or covered with dustproof Soil white cloth.The large and small windows on the four walls were all closed tightly, and everything was shrouded in a claustrophobic and silent atmosphere.There was no one else in the building, only three or two waitresses who were not too young stayed in a few key positions.That expression seemed to be waiting for something, but also seemed to be bored waiting for nothing.

...But suddenly, for some reason, a female foreman who is also not young, but very upright and plump, appeared as a guide, led them upstairs slowly, turned on the lights and opened the door silently in front of them all the way, and finally separated them He was led into a small hall like a music teahouse, brewed some tea, adjusted the intensity of the background music, then bent down, and quietly clung to Mr. Lao's ear, asking something in a very low voice, while taking the rest of the corner of his eye. Guang, quickly glanced towards Shao Changshui.Shao Changshui immediately jumped up with enthusiasm.He guessed that the female foreman was asking Mr. Lao for instructions according to the usual practice, whether the guest you brought needs any other "services" in a while.The so-called "other services" refers to whether to find some girls to accompany.Lord Lao shook his head immediately, and waved her away vigorously.It was only later that Shao Changshui found out that this "elite club" was opened by the owner of the company where Mr. Lao worked, that is, the developer of this villa area, the well-known boss of Shengtang Group, Rao Shangdu, with a huge investment.According to Mr. Rao's regulations, all these non-foreign business departments and personnel are under the jurisdiction of the manager of the company's security department.Therefore, Master Lao can also be said to be the head of this "club" and these waiters and waiters.When the female foreman left obediently, according to the usual practice, she turned off the wall lamps that were turned on all the way just now, and closed each doorway she passed one by one, leaving behind her only the kind of darkness and harmony that the host and guests need. peaceful.As ever, these dignified guests here will indulge in a certain noise and relaxation that is offered to them for free in the strange darkness and tranquility.Of course she would not know that today these two are completely different, apart from this darkness and tranquility, all they need is this darkness and tranquility. ...

After Mr. Lao took his seat, he opened his mouth and took a deep breath—he did suffer from mild emphysema. Yi Chen placed it on the glass coffee table in front of him.Shao Changshui noticed that the cigarettes he smoked were soft packs of Zhonghua. (This is not particularly unusual. Because after he was transferred to the provincial department, he found that the cadres above the provincial department usually smoked the soft box Zhonghua. Some of them smoked "three to five". If it is purely about salary income, the provincial department Middle-level cadres should not be able to smoke "Zhonghua" and "35" cigarettes on weekdays.) The lighter is the popular brand "ZIPPO" in the United States.It is said that during the Vietnam War, American soldiers used this lighter to ignite gasoline poured on Vietnamese civilians.This is a well-known "anecdotal".Over the years, it has spread to China and has become a favorite collection of some people because of its durable leather and special historical experience.Shao Changshui saw it for the first time in the hands of the principal criminal when he cracked a major financial fraud case; later, he saw it many times in the hands of some young and old smokers; How rare.But later Master Lao took out another cigarette holder, which made Shao Changshui feel a little unusual.It was a special thing made of black crystal.Short and bright.One end is covered with a gold-plated mouth, which is very delicate, simple and smooth.It is housed in an equally subtle custom suede pocket.The small pocket was embroidered with a capital letter "L" in gold thread.Obviously, it was specially customized as a gift for Mr. Lao.Take a closer look at his outfit, a black-brown nubuck leather open-sleeved jacket, inside a camel-colored sweetheart-neck yak fleece sweater and a small blue and white checked cotton shirt.He was wearing a pair of deep navy blue straight-leg pure wool serge trousers. The style was a bit old-fashioned, but looking further down, his pair of leather shoes were definitely "fashionable": blunt and round big clumsy toe, with thick raw leather The rubber sole, exposed at the junction of the upper and the sole, makes people suspect that its owner is in a hurry to go out today, and put on the wrong son's shoes in a hurry.And it was the shoes of a young son under the age of twenty.From what Li Min said, Shao Changshui had already learned that the old man had always lived a delicate and refined life, but after resigning and going to sea, he had more money, so he became even more refined and refined.But no matter what, he couldn't imagine that he could dress so stylishly.Mr. Lao knows how to live, and has fun in his spare time, hunting, skiing, skating, billiards, mahjong, poker, bowling, repairing clocks and household appliances, reading and reading palmistry, he is proficient in all of them, and he is well-known in and out of the circle for this.Such a person is really rare in the criminal police team that is generally known for their rough life and rough temperament, but they are thick on the outside and thin on the inside, cold on the outside and hot on the inside, dull on the outside and restless on the inside.As we said earlier, he was married four times.This is also really rare in the criminal police team.You can see that he doesn't stay in the small crew cut that is especially popular in the criminal police team, but the bookish parted hair.The hair is slightly gray, but still thick.The only thing about him that feels a little out of place, out of tune with his attire, is the watch he's wearing.It was actually an old-fashioned mechanical watch made in Tianjin.The chrome plating layer on the crown and the case has peeled off mottled, and the substrate on the surface has also turned yellow. The strap is obviously not the original one.No matter how outdated and old it is, over the years, among colleagues and comrades-in-arms, no one has ever laughed at the "shyness" and "shabbyness" of this watch.Because everyone knows that this watch is a token of love left to him by his first-marriage wife, and it is also the most important thing among the few possessions that he believes cannot be given up at any time.His first wife was also a policeman.The wife's father is also a policeman, and he was the "instructor" when they were studying in the provincial police training class (the predecessor of the provincial police academy).His wife was later transferred to work in the Provincial Security Department. That year she was sent abroad to perform a mission and died in an inexplicable serious "car accident". The "car accident" was so serious that even the whole body was not found.Only a symbolic ashes of unknown authenticity and clothes brought back during the business trip were brought back.Later, he didn't dare to look for the policewoman again.In the first few years of his wife's death, whenever he approached a woman in police uniform, he could always seem to hear his wife's footsteps and coughing in a trance.Neither of the later two wives were policemen, and he couldn't get along with them.We barely live together for one, two, three years, but in the end, we still have to break up.The trigger for the breakup was always the question of his reluctance to have children with them. (It’s not that they don’t have a married life with them, but they do everything possible to prevent them or allow them to conceive his children again. This makes them feel that they have been greatly contemptuous and insulted.) The fourth wife is younger than him Ten years old, is a middle school teacher, capable, hearty, carefree, and very considerate.These aspects are very similar to his first wife.Of course, what reassured Lord Lao the most was that she never mentioned "pregnancy" or "childbirth" to him, as if she herself didn't want children.Every day at school she taught children "equality between men and women" and "boys should know how to respect and love girls", but in her own home, she "willingly" endured the extreme "male chauvinism" and typical behavior of this labor police officer every day. "Manly doctrine".This happened until she was thirty-seven years old.On weekdays, she must be the first to arrive home.That day, Mr. Lao had been home for a long time before she walked into the house slowly.Mr. Lao was very upset, not that she had to come back first to serve dinner or something.You can come back late, and there will always be some unexpected things to deal with at school, but you can always call and report, right?Don't say anything, come back several hours late.Mr. Lao called the school to find someone, and the school said that she asked for leave after three o'clock in the afternoon and left.Where to go, do not know.What are you doing?It's past three o'clock in the afternoon, it's almost nine o'clock now, six hours, what are you doing? ... Mr. Lao suppressed his anger, and vented it all, like firing a cannon.The other party didn't make a sound, just sat on the small stool by the door with a pale face, changed his shoes, waited for Mr. Lao to finish the first fire, managed to stand up, smiled apologetically and said, I'm going to cook right now.But when he staggered to the kitchen door, his legs softened, but he plopped and fell to his knees on the concrete floor of the kitchen.Mr. Lao hurriedly stepped forward to help her, only to realize that her hands were cold, her forehead was covered with fine beads of sweat, her body exuded a smell of disinfectant that is unique to hospitals, and her whole body was shaking non-stop.He hurriedly carried her to bed, and asked her what happened.She just doesn't say it.He went back to the outhouse and looked through her handbag. From the stack of bills issued by the hospital and the test and operation documents, he learned that she was undergoing an abortion operation.She was five months pregnant before this.And for an "advanced pregnant woman" like her, if she is five months pregnant and then induces labor, the risk itself is high.What's more, without the company of her husband, she struggled to go home alone after the operation. It seemed that she was trying to "sneak the truth" and had to go to work tomorrow.Mr. Lao remembered that a few months ago, when he was having a married life, he was a little impatient, so he didn't take any measures. Afterwards, he was very worried, and kept asking, how is it, are you okay?She always said lazily, who knows, just wait and see.That month, there was also a period.He breathed a sigh of relief.Later, he made do with it twice, thinking that nothing would happen, but it happened.After learning that she was pregnant, she was very excited, but she was also secretly worried.She knew she should tell him that she was pregnant.But she dared not.She knew that once he found out, he would definitely let her have an abortion.She didn't want to abort the fetus.She wants to keep her own blood.She wants to be a "mother" once.She longed for someone to call her "Mom".She is willing to pay any price for it.She even thought that even if Mr. Lao knew that he was going to divorce her in the future, she would keep the child.As time passed and the fetus grew in her womb, her resolve weakened day by day.After weighing and weighing, she still couldn't use "divorce" as a price to fight for the right to be a "mother" for herself.Yes, there are tens of thousands of men in this world, but like Mr. Lao, although he is a bit "unreasonable" to others at times, he always maintains a kind of vigor of life and pursuit of career in him. Spirit.Such a man, to be honest, is not easy to find.After all these years of marriage, Lord Lao rarely talked to her about his work.As soon as there is a case, people often lose their appearance. They often don't go home for dozens of days. Even when they come back, they just fall asleep, eat as soon as they open their eyes, change their clothes, and leave quickly.The case is about to have clues, so it's better to say something, but I'm afraid that if there are no clues, the whole person seems to have lost his soul. Even if he stays at home, he just stays there stupidly, looking at who doesn't like it, what to say Why are you angry.Now, "economic benefits" and "material benefits" are advocated from top to bottom, but these criminal policemen solve one case a year, and they solve a hundred cases, and there is almost no difference in personal "economic benefits" and "material benefits". (In the past two years, a few crime-solving awards have been issued, but the total amount is negligible.) Under such circumstances, why do these stupid buddies still insist on solving those cases?As an educator, she knows it's the "soul" that works, and that's the "spirit" that works.She values ​​these men who can also let the "soul" and "spirit" work on her.Seeing his misery when he couldn't solve the case and his unwillingness to die, she was really distressed, moved, and motivated.She walked to the school gate and stood before dozens of pure children, she was so proud.She is willing to serve such a man.You said, one person, with another person, lived a lifetime in the same bed and under the same roof, what is the plan?The picture will get tired in the end.Only with that bit of heartache, that point of emotion, that point of pride and that point that can keep you working hard together, will you always be fresh.Many people do not understand this truth.But she persisted.Until yesterday, the fetus was five months old.She knew that it would be too late if she didn't induce labor, and she had to make up her mind, or fight for a divorce, keep the fetus, or just... She finally made up her mind, determined to walk to the hospital alone...

While weeping peacefully, she told Lord Lao all this with a wry smile.Master Lao was deeply moved and shocked.In front of such a woman, he finally saw his "selfishness" and "paranoia".After she finished speaking, he didn't say anything, and continued to sit in silence for a while, and went to the street to buy a black-bone chicken, two catties of red dates, three catties of longan, four pig's trotters, five bottles of royal jelly, six boxes of black sesame paste, Wait, wait... Every time the stewed chicken soup was delivered to the bed, the wife always stood up in a panic, wanting to say: "Thank you." Hearing her heartfelt "thank you" again and again, he feel sad.An indescribable, unexplainable sadness.Sleeping until midnight, he always heard her secretly sobbing.He knew that she was still grieving for her child who "died early".But whenever he reached out to comfort her and put his arms around her, she immediately stopped the sobbing and lay motionless, as if nothing had happened.He stayed at home for three days.On the third night, he said to her, tomorrow I have to go to the detachment to see.She hurriedly said, it's okay, you should have gone to work normally long ago.He said, there is something I want to discuss with you.She looked up at him nervously, and asked hesitantly, what's the matter, it's so serious?He pondered for a while, and said, take good care of your body, and when you have almost recovered your body, we will take care of that matter.The wife was taken aback, and asked in a daze, what are you doing... What are you doing?He said, let's have a baby.Suddenly, the wife didn't understand, and asked again, what kind of child do you want... do you want?He said, want a child for both of us.The wife seemed to be hit by some giant object, her eyes widened and she asked, Us... ours?Our child?His face flushed slightly, and he replied in a low voice, yes.Don't you really want a baby of your own?Let's have one.You are not yet forty, and you can still catch the last train.When the wife heard this, she was completely stunned, her face turned red at first, then turned pale, tears rolled out of her eyes like a spring, she clenched her teeth, trembling and sobbing uncontrollably.First she sobbed softly, then fell down on the bed after a while, wailing loudly in despair.In the end, the wife told him that there was no hope. During the induced labor operation this time, in order to get rid of it once and never cause him any more troubles, she had asked the doctor to ligate all the fallopian tubes on both sides and completely sterilized her.