Chapter 16: Wanna Bet on That? (2/2)

“Desecrating the dead body?” I asked. “Is that what your slow brain thought I was doing? I should tell you that I was examining the dead body!”

I restrained my manners earlier, thinking that he was after all much older and more experienced than me, so it wouldn’t hurt to show him some respect. But now that he’d shown his rotten stripes, it was clear that he deserved none of my respect anyway.

“Ha! Examining the body!” he derided. “And what qualifications do you have to do that? I think it was just dumb luck that helped you find out the things you did!”

“And what if dumb luck helped me solve this case before you do?” I asked. “What would that say about you? Wouldn’t it prove that you’re useless after all?”

“Nonsense!” he spat. He then walked up to me and sneered. “Do you really think that your bizarre techniques are better than a professional team of coroner and police officers? Then maybe you should visit my house sometime. My grandson loves watching that childish cartoon called Detective Conan. Both of you will get along so well with each other!”

“Dr. Qin,” I said calmly, unperturbed by his provocations, “is Huang Xiaotao officially out of the investigation team?”

“Yes!” answered Dr. Qin. “And she has you to thank for that!”

“Does that mean that she can investigate independently now?” I asked.

Dr. Qin laughed.

“You brat,” he scoffed. “You’re not thinking about investigating the case on your own, are you? Let’s ignore the fact that it’s utterly pointless, disobeying commands and acting arbitrarily is a serious misconduct!”

“Cut the drivel, will you?” I interjected. “Let’s make a bet: what will happen if I solve the case?”

“If you manage to solve the case…” Dr. Qin hesitated. He had seen what I was capable of earlier, so he was cautious against being too bold this time.

“What’s wrong, Dr. Qin?” I asked, trying to provoke him. “Are you afraid of losing the bet? Are you scared of losing a bet against a nave bastard like me? I thought I heard you said that if I could solve the case, you would resign without questions, isn’t that right?”

“You insolent brat!” yelled Dr. Qin. “I’m giving you my word right now – if you solve the case, I will hand in my resignation immediately! But what about you? What happens to you if you failed?”

“What’s the punishment for corpse desecration?” I asked Huang Xiaotao.

“Less than three years of imprisonment.”

“Okay,” I said. “if you solve the case before I do, then arrest me and I’ll serve the terms according to the law. I promise you I will not hire a lawyer to defend myself.”

“Song Yang!” said Huang Xiaotao. “Don’t be stupid! Corpse desecration is a serious offence, you know! It’s fine, I’ll just step down from the case, it’s no big deal at all!”

“It’s a deal, then!” interrupted Dr. Qin. “I give you my word, I accept all the terms just as you said.”

“Good!” I said, smiling. “Then we’ll see what happens!”

“Humph! We’ll see all right!”

The whole time this exchange happened, I kept my hand hidden in my pocket. In truth, I was recording the whole conversation with Dr. Qin using my mobile phone. That way he wouldn’t be able to deny his own words when the time came.

I’m not one to be so boastful and conceited, but I hated how Dr. Qin used his own position to step over our heads. I could’ve ignored his conduct if it affected me alone, but now that Huang Xiaotao was affected too, I felt like I needed to teach this guy a lesson.

“Let’s go Huang Xiaotao,” I said. “We’ll go talk to those two witnesses now!”

I walked out of the room. Huang Xiaotao glared at Dr. Qin, then followed me.

1. An ancient .

2. An ancient Chinese from more than two thousand years ago of which Chinese medicine is based on.

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