To Wenjie's surprise, Xu Zhengqing led him down to the garage, which could be entered directly from the house. Parked there was a black car with the rear windows blacked out. Uncle Xu opened one of the side doors and gestured for him to get in. 

There was a blindfold on the back seat. Wenjie put it on and closed his eyes. A moment later, he heard the garage door open. Two seconds later, Monsieur also got in and the engine started. 

The fact that Mr Xu drove himself surprised Wenjie and worried him in equal measure. For that could only mean that, apart from Xu Zhengqing, no one knew about his father's whereabouts. If by some twist of fate the police caught the criminal, Zhuang Yaobai might die of thirst in his prison. 

Despite the excitement that made it difficult for Wenjie to think clearly, the student concentrated on the road. He couldn't see anything, but he heard the sounds of the road and felt the movement of the car. In his childhood, his father had taught him to develop a photographic memory and memorize details. 

On the way, uncle Xu turned on the radio, probably to distract him. Wenjie tuned out the speaker's chatter and focused on the car. Now and then, however, fragments of the news filtered through to him, making it difficult for him to fully remember the way. 

At the latest when something was said about police investigations being discontinued, the announcer interfered with his concentration. Wenjie took three deep breaths in and out. He couldn't screw this up now, regardless of the messages that served the purpose of dashing his hopes. 

The ride lasted for what felt like an hour, maybe a little longer. Then the car stopped abruptly and the newscaster's voice trailed off. 

"We're here," he heard Unule Xu say. 

Carefully, he took off the blindfold. Xu Zhengqing had already gotten out when Wenjie opened the side door. They were in a hall that may have been part of a disused factory site. It reminded him a little of the place where Madame Hong's people had taken him. The only difference was that there weren't so many boxes around and there were far fewer stairs to be seen. 

Monsieur didn't lock the car and waved him over. "You won't find any clues to the exact location of this building here."

Wenjie said nothing in response, but still memorized every detail. Perhaps when Uncle Xu left him alone at his room later, he could draw it all and give the pictures to Ding Wei. At least he could help his father with it.

Xu Zhengqing took him to a door behind which a stone staircase descended into a cellar. Old lamps on the ceilings illuminated the staircase, which opened into an underground warehouse. There were clearly more crates here, some of them concealing iron doors. 

"Help me move that over there," nucle Xu said.

Together, they pushed aside a few crates to clear a path to one of the hidden doors. Then Monsieur took a bunch of keys out of his pocket and opened the door. Behind it was a hallway that ended at another door. 

"You went to quite an effort to hide it."

Uncle Xu smiled. "See the insulation on the walls? I also made sure everything here was as soundproof as possible." And, of course, he had replaced the door at the end of the hallway with a new one. It was secured by a multi-stage process. This included a combination lock, a smart card that had to be inserted into a designated slot, a hand scanner and a face scanner. 

Wenjie shook his head in disbelief. "You're acting like my father is a dangerous criminal right now."

Xu Zhengqing laughed. "Wenjie, you have a sense of humor. Your father is the smartest thief I know. With him, it already takes special security measures to prevent him from escaping." 

He unlocked the door and opened it. "You have a visitor Yaobai," he greeted the prisoner. 

Zhuang Yaobai, who was sitting on the mattress, looked up. For the first moment, surprise was reflected in his gaze. Then his features darkened abruptly. "Does your cruelty know no bounds, Zhengqing?"

Wenjie didn't know how to respond. All of a sudden, he felt like he was frozen in place. Seeing his father across the screen was one thing. But now he had certainty that the recording was real. His father was alive. He had lived all these years. Thoughts were racing through his head. 

As if through absorbent cotton, he heard uncle Xu talking to his father. 

"You brought it on yourself that he is in this position. Don't say I didn't give you enough opportunities."

His father stood up and walked toward them, but didn't make it to the door because the chain on his leg prevented him from doing so. "As if the coordinates of the lost relics were enough for you. You had it in for him all along."

Xu Zhengqing put a hand on Wenjie's shoulder, ignoring his former friend and colleague. "You have thirty minutes. Then I'll come back for you."

Stunned, Wenjie stepped into the room. His mind suddenly went blank. He had had so many questions, but now, there was nothing. For years he had hoped and searched for clues. His father's body had never been found. The accident itself had been strange. And now? Now he was facing him after all these years and didn't know what to say. 

The door behind him slammed shut. Cold crept across the floor into his legs. He looked at his father, whose eyes reflected concern and sadness. Wenjie's lips quivered. 

"Why?" he croaked. "Why did you let Mom die? Why did you just disappear?" Had uncle Xu been right, for instance? Had he been in the witness protection program? It didn't make sense. He knew from studying that families weren't just separated. What if his father had asked for it? What then? Wenjie felt sick at the thought.

"I underestimated him, Wenjie. I didn't think he would go that far when I refused to steal Luoshen for him. After your mother died, I tried to trap him without putting you in danger. But he got away."

Wenjie's hands were shaking. "Why didn't you just go to the police and turn yourself in?" After all, he had taught him, you should stand by your actions. If he had directly sold Xu Zhengqing out to the police, they certainly wouldn't be standing here now. His life would not be a pure disaster. 

"I didn't know how many more accomplices he had out there. If I had gone to the police, they would have convicted me and locked me up. I wouldn't have been able to protect you anymore." 

So he wasn't in witness protection and had just done his own thing? On the one hand, this relieved him, but on the other hand, it showed very clearly where his own high-handed investigating had come from. Maybe that was why the confession triggered anger in him. "Protect? You think the police couldn't have done the same?" 

He sighed deeply, knowing that he had acted similarly, which didn't necessarily make the situation any better. At least he had realized in time that he should trust Captain Luo. Only then he had made a mistake by continuing to believe uncle Xu. 

"You were hoping you could trap him at some point?"

His father nodded. 

"So did I," he confessed, "but I realized too late that uncle Xu was the man responsible for everything."

Zhuang Yaobai looked at him in shock. "Does he make you call him that?"

Wenjie lowered his gaze. "He decides how I live."

to be continued...