05 | The Crime Scene - Part 2

Seeing a dead body for the first time was never the same experience for anyone. Sometimes, it had the same effect be it, be it new young or old experience police. Due to his job, Huijing had developed emotional resistance to it. Zhixian told him that he became a vegetarian for a year and couldn’t drink red wine for the rest of his life after his first day as a detective because he got mutilated bodies that were stored inside a wine cask for his first case.

However, the insensitive detective had forgotten his own experience and brought two new detectives in their department to a Chicken Rice restaurant where they hang boiled and roasted chicken on the display window after their first experience seeing a dead body, resulting in one passed out and another vomited. The body they just discovered wasn’t in a bad state at all compared to terrible cases in the past but the two didn’t seem to take it easy at all.

‘I could handle it better than you two,’ said the man who still couldn’t handle red wine until today.

Huijing dismissed the two detectives since their faces were growing paler the more they saw meats in Shilin night market area and ended up having dinner only with Zhixian in Herbal Pork Ribs Soup Palace. The smell of herbs was very prominent that one would be able to distinguish it ten meters away from the eatery.

The moment they arrived, the queue had gone because it was midnight. It was normal for detectives like them to have dinner around that time. Usually, the five-decades old restaurant was packed with locals and tourists alike.

‘Hey, Arsehole.’

‘What is it, Bastard?’ Huijing glared at Zhixian, scrunched his nose upon seeing the mess Zhixian made on the table. The rib’s bones and the soy sauce drops sprawled everywhere like a cannibalistic ritual just occurred.

‘I’ve been wondering about your sudden move and want to ask if—hey, why are you moving away?!’ Huijing immediately took his meal and moved to a vacant table beside them.

‘You’ve made me lost my appetite.’

‘What did you say?! There’s nothing wrong with the way I eat, okay? I think you’re the only person in the entire world that eating ribs like it’s some sort of French cuisine! Knife and fork? Seriously?!’

‘I don’t eat like an animal,’ Huijing calmly replied before biting the pork rib he had previously sliced into bite sizes.‘I thought you’re educated to not act like one.’ But the truth was that he didn’t like touching anything bare-handed. He could eat the meat by holding it with the chopsticks but he didn’t like having the broth around his mouth.

‘Educated, my arse! It’s called food enjoyment!’

‘Please calm down! You’re scaring the other customers!’ the restaurant owner stepped in between their tables. Zhixian grinned while muttering sorry to the owner then bowed to the other customers. Sighing, Huijing shook his head at Zhixian’s ridiculousness. There were a lot of times when the man forgot that he was a police officer.

‘Oi, Arsehole. I’m not done yet.’

‘What else?’ Huijing curtly replied.

‘Just wondering why are you suddenly being moved into my department, of all places. Isn’t it better to just stick with the army than doing my boring job? I heard that you’re voluntarily asked to be stationed here.’

‘No reason,’ Huijing simply replied before sipping his soup. He rolled his eyes to his side to see Zhixian looking directly towards him with a meaningful look.

‘Huijing, you . . .’ Zhixian looked down for a moment, scratching his head before staring back at Huijing. ‘Is there . . . something going on that bothers you lately?’

‘Yes. The case.’

‘Oh, come on!’ Zhixian collapsed in a stupor on his seat and slapped both of his hands on his laps.’ You know that I didn’t mean that!’ Zhixian’s voice came out a whisper on the last sentence.

Huijing closed his unrelenting eyes for a moment, then slowly opened it to reveal the light of determination pooling in his black eyes. He had thought about it for years and he had made up his mind. The upcoming Qingming Festival would be right on her brother’s death anniversary, and he would do it on that day.

‘I knew you for fourteen years! You wouldn’t leave your post in TAF for anything! And I know from your expression that —’ Zhixian expelled his breath in a whose,’— you’re about to do something.’ Zhixian barely looked serious most of the time but he did at that moment.‘Is this . . . related to your brother’s death?’

After cleaning his pork rib, Huijing rose from his seat and headed straight to the owner. ‘One for take-away, please,’ he said.

‘Wang Huijing! Why didn’t you say anything?!’ Zhixian grabbed him by his shoulder. ‘Look . . .’ Zhixian took a deep breath then continued, ‘You’re a detective, for God sake! You should never take this kind of path! I don’t want anything to happen to you!’

‘Then rest assured I won’t,’ Huijing coldly replied while passing a plastic bag with rice and pork ribs soup in it. ‘For Yushan.’ Huijing shoved his hands into his coat and walked towards the parking lot.

‘Wait! Are you paying for my dinner too?!Thank you, thank you! You should do that every day — blah!’ Zhixian went from grinning to shaking his head. ‘No, no! I shouldn’t be distracted! Oi, Arsehole! Wait for me!’

‘Zhixian.’ The said man stopped two steps away from Huijing, who stopped right before his car. ‘It has nothing to do with you so stay away from this.’

‘But —’

‘I can assure you that there won’t be any blood to shed.’ This time, Huijing turned around to look Zhixian directly into his eyes. ‘I promise you this.’

His answer didn’t seem to satisfy Zhixian and only made him had even more questions in his head. Huijing walked towards the driver’s seat and silently drove towards their office. He could sense Zhixian’s eyes on him but he focused on the path instead.

Just like how he would focus on his goal . . .

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author's note

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Pork Rib Soup [排骨湯] also known as Bak Kut Teh [肉骨茶], read as rou guo cha in Mandarin, is a pork rib dish cooked in a complex broth of herbs and spices. The name literally translates as meat bone tea but despite its name, the dish doesn’t have any tea in it. The name refers to a strong oolong Chinese tea which is usually served alongside the soup in belief that it dissolves the amount of fat consumed in this pork-laden dish.

TAF is the abbreviation of Taiwan Armed Forces. It’s also known as Republic of China Forces that encompassing Army, Navy, Air Force, and Military Police Force.

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