Plague Doctor

Guang Ting City had always been a locale of focus for Phecda because in this big and busy city, there were many things happening on the surface and even more underneath it. But Duck Pond Street at the fringe of the city was not a particularly busy commerce street. In fact, one could say it was quite abandoned. The businesses on this street were either shops that specialized in smuggled goods or ancient stores that did not have the revenue to move and were waiting for closure.

One of them was a small shop called Ol’ Tong’s Convenience Store. Its merchandise ranged from female garments to children toys, from cigarettes and alcohol to over the counter medicine. These items were placed haphazardly in the store that was less than thirty cubic meters in size, and most of them were covered in a layer of dust. Who knew how long they had been sitting there already? Just like the name of the street it was situated on, the whole shop had the feeling of abandonment and banality to it.

“This dress costs one hundred RMB? Damn, Ol’ Tong, you might as well go and rob the bank!” A middle-aged woman was grousing at the shop owner while holding a dress with flowery prints. “My best offer is thirty RMB. Take it or leave it!”

The shop owner, Ol’ Tong, sat behind the cashier at the door. He was a man over fifty. Even though the weather was getting cold, he was only dressed in a white sleeveless tank tap. His legs were crossed, and the flip flops dangling off his feet moved evenly as the man shook his leg. He was studying a newspaper that contained the lotto number for that day. Occasionally, he would pick up the nearby ballpoint pen to circle some numbers on it.

“I will be losing money if I sell you that dress for thirty RMB, Auntie Xia. How about this? Considering how beautiful you are, I’ll give you a twenty percent discount, eighty RMB,” Ol’ Tong said as he reached over to grab a stainless steel bottle on the counter to take a sip. His rather drunken eyes were fixed on the lotto numbers, grumbling, “The next season looks like it will go for the higher numbers… but I’ve always bet on the lower ones…”

“Have you lost your mind? I can buy three of the same dress on the internet with eighty RMB!” The lady dropped the dress back on the messy rack. “Your loss!”

She turned around with a huff but made sure her eyes were on Ol’ Tong to see if the man had any intention of stopping her from leaving. But Ol’ Tong’s interest was firmly fixed on the lotto numbers. It did not seem like he was in any way interested in making a sale.

Seeing this, the lady whipped her head around and almost ran into a customer who was standing outside the shop. It was a tall and muscular man, with an expression that seemed to glower at her. Her heart skipped a beat and hurried to leave. When she exited the shop, she realized there were a few black cars parked down the road, and there were more men and women standing there staking out Ol’ Tong’s Convenience Store.

Right then, a middle-aged man dressed in a western suit emerged from one of the cars. He was almost the same age as she was, but his physique was well kept, and his eyes were sharp. It seemed like time had left no traces on him. With the protection of the group of people who appeared to be his bodyguards, the middle-aged man headed toward the convenient store.

‘My god, Ol’ Tong has lost so much money in his gambling that he had to borrow from the mafia?’ the middle-aged lady thought to herself. She walked even faster because she did not want to get involved should there be a fight. Everyone at Duck Pond Street knew that Ol’ Tong had a proclivity for gambling and drinking. The man had a mouth that carried no praise as well. He owed so many people money and was truly a horrible man. Otherwise, how would he end up with no wife and children at his age? Staying alone in that old shop of his, if he had died inside, no one would know for months.

The lady turned back to look, and she chanced to see the middle-aged man walk into Ol’ Tong’s shop alone. The bodyguards had all stayed to guard outside the shop. ‘I wonder who those people are…’

If the middle-aged woman had looked closer, she would have noticed that the expressions of these people were lined not with malice but reverence. The gaze of the middle-aged man carried not ferocity but a suppressed awe. The middle-aged man was Lee Mingfan, the leader of Phecda in Guang Ting City. He had held his post for five years already, but he only had respect for those who paved the road for him.

Lee Mingfan gazed at the old man behind the counter and bowed slightly. He greeted him, “Elder Tong.”

“Hmm?” Ol’ Tong had noticed these people a long time ago. He appeared to be even drunker than usual.

“Elder Tong, many things have happened around the country lately.” Lee Mingfan placed a large stack of documents on the counter. “Here is some information.”

Recently, abnormal activity had become active especially the incident with the Malformed Banyan Disease, and now the Eastern State had that big incident with the abnormal space.

“What do the top brass think?” Ol’ Tong did not reach for the document but continued to study his lotto numbers. “Aren’t they afraid that I might go crazy reading these things?”

“Elder Tong, please don’t toy with me.” Lee Mingfan sighed with a bitter chuckle. “It was the higher ups who sent me here. There have been new changes to the situation. Your decision and suggestion for Phecda regarding that case… have all been brought out to be reviewed again.”

By the end of the sentence, he could not stop his tone from getting animated. Elder Tong was a legendary character; his character profile was only fully accessible to B grade members. Even as the section leader, Lee Mingfan still had no idea about his true identity.

Back then, Elder Tong managed to solve multiple impossible cases at a very young age. He made his way up to become the leader of a now-abolished Special Mobile Force team in record time; rising to an important seat at the headquarters was only a matter of time. At the time, Lee Mingfan was only a normal G grade member at the Investigation Department. Elder Tong was an idol for him and his peers. But later, due to a mysterious case that remained unsolved to this day… Elder Tong ‘lost his mind’. His S value dropped to below thirty, and he was branded as an extremely dangerous character. He was forced into retirement, and it had been thirty years since then. But now… Elder Tong’s once ‘words of incoherence’ appeared to have all come true.

The higher ups at the headquarters understood that to deal with the situation they were facing, they needed Elder Tong back. Thirty years was enough to dull a sharp blade into rust, but the headquarters still had faith in Elder Tong and were willing to give him a chance.

“Have there been new developments… in that case?” Ol’ Tong asked. Some seriousness finally entered his voice, and he even put down the lotto numbers.

“There have, but you will have to return to the headquarters to find out more.” Lee Mingfan nodded seriously. “The higher ups know you are not satisfied with how they handled things back then, and thirty years of exile is an unfair punishment for you, but with the state of things now, we hope that whether it is for the sake of that case or the safety of the public, you will agree to return.”

“To return?” Ol’ Tong picked up the alcohol to drink and chuckled with almost a sneer. “Finally, people believe the nonsense about spells and cults that I spoke of?”

Lee Mingfan was not surprised by Elder Tong’s sarcastic jab. He was familiar with Elder Tong’s personality.

“Elder Tong, you must know that I have always got your back. The higher ups now know that you were right, so they are planning to set up a new department to deal with this whole thing.” Lee Mingfan tried his best to persuade him. “For now, you will lead an experimental Special Mobile Force team, and it will be affiliated directly under the headquarters. You will support all the events happening across the country. Among the information here, there are talents for you to pick from. Why don’t you see if there’s anyone that catches your eye? Elder Tong, please. If you refuse, how do you expect me to go back and answer to the higher up?”

The people outside the door very cleverly shut off their eyes and ears. The normally respected Leader Lee was now begging like a child.

“Fine, let me take a look at these talents you speak of.” Ol’ Tong picked up the document. He flipped through the pages after giving them a quick scan. “Hmm, oh…”

Lee Mingfan knew that Elder Tong was not pulling his leg. Elder Tong had a photographic memory. He could remember what he saw with one glance.

“This one has too high an S value, a greenhouse baby, won’t do.” Ol’ Tong tossed the personnel file out like trash. Then he threw away another while shaking his head. “This one is too commonplace, nope. Why is he glaring? Did his parents just die? Nope. This one… is quite interesting…”

Ol’ Tong pulled one out and put it aside before moving onto the next one. “Wait… this…”

His eyes were shining as they slowed down to scan the information carefully.

Lee Mingfan leaned forward to look. It was Gu Jun’s file sent from the Eastern State.

“Haha.” Ol’ Tong’s ruddy face from the alcohol was painted with joy that had eclipsed him for a very long. “Well done, that was one hell of a good explosion!” Ol Tang slapped the document in his hand and guffawed happily. “This is a good kid!” He waved at Lee Mingfan and shouted. “Hand me the mic.”

“Okay…” Lee Mingfan nodded. Elder Tong already knew that the man was mic-ed; the people from headquarters were always listening in on other people’s business. No matter where, the headquarters knew everything that happened within Phecda.

Lee Mingfan was told that he was to follow Elder Tong’s every order. Even though he knew the headquarters would be against this particular wish, he still handed the bug in his pocket over to Elder Tong.

Ol’ Tong grabbed the bug and shouted into it, “Motive awaiting more discussion? Mental state unstable? Low S value? You people are the ones that needed to be checked! If he did not blow that place up, the world would be doomed until the time you people decided to act. He’s performed perfectly!

“Do you know how precious this kid is? You should be thankful that he is willing to stay with Phecda.

“You want me to get out of retirement, yes? Two conditions.”

Ol’ Tong looked at Lee Mingfan but spoke into the bug.

“One, reopen that old case; two, give me this Gu Jun.”