Taking the Fall

Dawn broke under a dim sky.

Too much had happened overnight, but Lan Mu had made it through safely. He was now walking around in human form, and no one knew he was the culprit who had made the Kuala Lumpur police lose all face the night before.

Lan Mu was speaking English with a passerby when the man's broken English gave him a splitting headache.

Malaysia had its own language, but English had once been an official language there, so many people still spoke Malaysian English—a colloquial form of English heavily influenced by Malay, Chinese dialects, and Tamil.

Though it was nominally English, perhaps only locals could understand it. Lan Mu trying to communicate with the man in Chinglish was practically like a chicken talking to a duck.

Moreover, the man seemed to realize he was Chinese and had grown impatient with his repeated requests for directions. He simply raised a hand, pointed at a bus stop sign, indicated a stop name, and said something in English.

Lan Mu understood. The man was telling him to go there.

After pointing at the sign, the man hurried away. Lan Mu did not mind. It was seven in the morning, so he assumed the man was rushing to work.

He rummaged through his pockets. He had no money. Forget money—aside from his bow and arrows, he had nothing. Everything else was with Du Yu.

Lan Mu was utterly down and out. He thought, Du Yu has my things. According to my agreement with Fang Moqi, he would definitely give my wallet and passport to Fang Moqi. If Fang Moqi was in a hurry to leave, he would surely leave my things at the agreed location for me to collect.

According to their agreement, if Lan Mu failed to show up, he would still be able to retrieve his belongings from the agreed location afterward.

Once he had money and a passport, getting back home would be easy enough.

"But the agreed location is called Huaxin Hotel. Where the hell is that? I don't know the way!"

Lan Mu was dumbfounded. His original plan had been to call Fang Moqi after arriving in Kuala Lumpur and have him pick him up. But Fang Moqi had clearly left now, and Lan Mu did not have a cent to his name. He could not even take a taxi, leaving him in an extremely awkward situation.

Just then, a bus arrived. Lan Mu raised his eyes and memorized the stop name the passerby had pointed out. Under it was an English label: Chinatown.

"So it's Chinatown. Maybe Huaxin Hotel is there. Even if it isn't, there are plenty of Chinese people there, so asking for directions should be easy."

Having decided where to go, he turned into an alley and instantly transformed into a Hunter. He then slipped out while invisible, leaped onto the roof of the bus, and lay flat on it for a free ride.

Along the way, he carefully watched every stop and counted in his head. He estimated he would need to get off at around the sixth stop.

But after only two stops, he discovered with tearless despair that these buses seemed to be free...

No one dropped in coins or tapped a card. They simply got on, took a seat, and got off when they reached their stop.

"Damn... free buses! And I went invisible and lay on the roof..."

After six stops, Lan Mu jumped down and checked the sign. It was indeed the stop the passerby had pointed out to him.

A conspicuous red archway stood at the intersection, with the three traditional characters for Jalan Petaling written across it.

This was Kuala Lumpur's Chinatown. Chinese people were scattered across the world, and every place called its Chinatown something different, but there was usually an archway like this one.

Chinatown was not lively during the day. Only a few shops sold snacks and iced drinks, while the streets were mostly empty.

Chinese writing was everywhere in Chinatown. A small portion was in traditional characters, but much of it was surprisingly in simplified Chinese. It felt familiar, as though he had finally found his people.

Kuala Lumpur was sweltering in midsummer. Though it was only around eight in the morning, the sun was already blazing.

A middle-aged drink vendor noticed Lan Mu and smiled. "Chinese?"

Lan Mu was taken aback. Seizing the chance, he stepped closer and nodded. "Yes! I'm from Shanghai."

"Ho, nice place! Hot, huh? Have a cup of monk fruit, longan, rock sugar, and stewed winter melon tea first, yeah?"

Lan Mu stared blankly. Monk fruit? Longan? Rock sugar? Stewed winter melon? Tea? What kind of bizarre drink was that?

The middle-aged uncle was slightly balding, genial-looking, yet carried the shrewdness unique to a merchant. His accent was clearly Cantonese. Once he learned Lan Mu was from Shanghai, he immediately switched to Mandarin—though it was Cantonese-accented Mandarin.

Lan Mu was broke and too embarrassed to say so, so he could only refuse the uncle's offered cup of whatever winter melon tea it was.

The middle-aged uncle had already noticed that Lan Mu looked destitute. He had come from China without any luggage and might have encountered some misfortune.

Seeing him drenched in sweat but unwilling to buy a drink, the uncle smiled. "It's on me. Drink up."

Embarrassed, Lan Mu quickly waved his hands. "No need. I'm not thirsty."

"Hey, it's only a little over two yuan in RMB. Hurry up and drink!"

The uncle stuffed the secret-recipe tea into Lan Mu's hands. Lan Mu smiled and tipped back his head, drinking it all.

To his surprise, despite all the ingredients mixed into it, it tasted pretty good. It was cool, refreshing, and had a pleasant flavor.

After drinking the tea, Lan Mu took the opportunity to ask, "Uncle, could I ask for directions? Do you know Huaxin Hotel?"

"If not, could you at least tell me how to get to the airport?"

The uncle thought for a moment. "Huaxin? I know it. Go to the end of the street, turn, and it's beside Zhenhua School."

Lan Mu understood. After thanking him, he headed down the street.

When he reached the end of the street and turned right, a crowd of students suddenly surged toward him. They were chattering noisily, holding slogans and conducting some sort of ceremony or event. They were all speaking Chinese, gathered together and shouting slogans about revitalizing the Chinese language. They appeared to be local ethnic Chinese.

The people in the street-side shops merely smiled when they saw them. The students also looked relaxed, and after shouting for a while, they began playing and fooling around.

It seemed they were students from nearby, regularly holding this sort of activity—probably part of the learning environment cultivated by Zhenhua School.

"Looks like it's up ahead."

After walking for a little over five minutes, Lan Mu saw a school. Not far beside it stood a seven-story hotel building: Huaxin Hotel.

"Finally found it."

Lan Mu entered the hotel. Seeing only a young woman at the front desk, he asked, "Hello, a friend of mine was staying in room 0501. Has he already checked out?"

The young woman froze, then replied in clumsy Mandarin, "Please wait a moment..."

Her Mandarin was far worse than the uncle's, and it carried a strong Minnan accent.

The young woman searched through the front desk records for a moment before saying, "Yes, room 0501 checked out on the third. Is there anything else, sir?"

Lan Mu gave a startled sound. "He checked out on the third? Didn't he say he would wait for me until the fourth?"

"Um, did he leave anything behind? I'm his friend. He must have told you that someone would come looking for it, right?"

The young woman blinked and struggled to understand Lan Mu's words. "No. I don't know."

Lan Mu gave a helpless laugh. What the hell was Fang Moqi doing? Do I really have to stow away on a plane?

Shaking his head with a bitter smile, Lan Mu left Huaxin Hotel and wandered aimlessly around Chinatown.

His wallet, passport, and other luggage were all with Fang Moqi. It was impossible for him to return home through normal means now. He would be lucky enough if the local authorities did not discover he was undocumented.

As for being deported, Lan Mu dismissed that option immediately. Rather than be deported as an illegal immigrant, he might as well sneak back himself. It would be better to do so quietly.

Without realizing it, Lan Mu wandered back to the entrance of Chinatown.

The students were also gathered at the street entrance. They were no longer chanting the slogans taught by their school, but huddled together and discussing something.

The tea vendor uncle was nearby as well, talking to a worried-looking man.

Lan Mu walked over just in time to hear, "I can only ask Boss Yang now. Our Circus Troupe really has no other way."

The uncle replied to the man, "How did things end up like this? Li Wei is such an honest guy. How did he get caught up in something so serious?"

"He really didn't do it! How could Li Wei possibly be capable of something that huge? Last night, the entire city's police force was mobilized. I heard quite a few officers died too. Li Wei was watching television with us at the troupe when the police suddenly stormed in and arrested him. It makes no sense!" The man's face was full of worry, and his tone was filled with grievance.

The uncle sighed. "This matter is too big. The whole city was in turmoil last night, and things are at their peak right now. Even Boss Yang can't do anything."

The students, however, angrily said, "We all know there was a major case last night, but it happened at Great Han Mountain! That's more than a hundred li away. Why would they come into the city to arrest someone?"

"Look! Look! This is the news that was just released!" one student shouted, holding up his phone.

Everyone's attention was immediately drawn over, and they all looked at the news report.

"Suspect in the Great Han Mountain murder of police officers arrested. Sixteen officers died in the line of duty... Suspect Li Wei, male, twenty-six, is a Malaysian Chinese and an animal handler for Longyue Circus. He is highly skilled in hypnosis and possessed special hallucinogenic drugs. He used the Asian red fox raised in the circus as cover to commit crimes, fabricating the scene to make it appear as though ghosts and monsters had killed people... After a night of effort, police finally arrested him... A heinous criminal, he will be referred to the court for prosecution tomorrow..."

Lan Mu also stood outside the crowd and watched the report. This was information released by the local police, and every media outlet had begun reporting it early that morning.

The report even included photos of the captured suspect and fox. Li Wei had a square face and looked utterly bewildered. The fox made Lan Mu feel even more speechless—it was clearly a red-furred fox, small in build, only about 1.4 meters long including its tail.

Lan Mu's first reaction was that the police had arrested someone to take the blame. Moreover, he had killed over forty people the night before, yet only sixteen were reported here. Apparently, the police could not withstand the pressure.

One student said blankly, "Li Wei is skilled in hypnosis too?"

Another student angrily retorted, "Are you stupid? Even if he knew hypnosis, could he kill sixteen police officers? And the fox reported by the media last night was clearly white! Bringing out a red fox today—do they think we're idiots?"

After that was pointed out, who could fail to see whether the police report was true or false? It was clearly complete nonsense!

Longyue Circus was well known in Chinatown. Every year, Boss Yang, the leader of Chinatown's Chinese community, spent money to invite them to perform there several times. The circus members were all familiar to Chinatown residents. Li Wei was merely an ordinary animal handler there. He raised not only foxes, but also pigeons, cats, dogs, monkeys, bear cubs, and even giant pythons.

He was normally an honest man. The idea that Li Wei had somehow gone to the Great Han Mountain tropical rainforest in the outskirts the night before and killed sixteen officers was something they would never believe, even if beaten to death.

"Uncle Yang is here! Uncle Yang is here!" The students were angrily discussing the matter when someone suddenly shouted.

Lan Mu turned around. A black sedan drove over and stopped by the roadside. An elderly man with graying temples got out. He looked exceptionally energetic, probably only in his fifties.

A young man in a suit and tie followed behind him. When those present saw the elderly man, they all sincerely called out, "Boss Yang."

That elderly man was Boss Yang. With a stern expression, he walked up to the students and said, "What are you all yelling about? Stop shouting and go back to class! Aren't you attending first period?"

After being scolded by Boss Yang, the students remained unconvinced and shouted, "Li Wei was arrested! He must have been framed!"

Boss Yang said solemnly, "That still has nothing to do with you. Go back to class! Xiao Zu! Especially you! I'll call your father right now and have him drag you home!"

One student whom Boss Yang had singled out immediately ducked his head and hid among the crowd.

The other students no longer dared make a fuss either, and could only obediently return to school.

After finally dealing with the noisy students, only the circus man, the tea vendor uncle, and Lan Mu remained.

Boss Yang sized Lan Mu up and asked, "Who are you? I haven't seen you before..."

Lan Mu smiled. "Hello, my name is Lan Mu. I'm from Shanghai..."

Boss Yang gave a surprised sound. "You? Lan Mu?"

"Huh?" Lan Mu was startled. "You know me?"

Boss Yang smiled. "You're Xiao Fang's friend, aren't you?"

Lan Mu suddenly understood and smiled. "Fang Moqi is my friend... Did he leave something behind..."

Boss Yang patted Lan Mu on the shoulder. "Before he left, he asked me to find you. I didn't expect you to find your way here yourself. That's right, I have all your things. I'll help settle your return to China as well."

"Thank you so much!" Lan Mu hurriedly thanked him. Fang Moqi really has broad connections. Boss Yang is obviously a local power in Chinatown and carries considerable prestige. If Fang Moqi needed to do anything in Malaysia, he would probably have to ask him for help.

Boss Yang smiled dismissively. "What are you thanking me for? You're Xiao Fang's friend, which makes you my friend, Yang Xiong's friend!"

Just then, the man from the Circus Troupe could no longer hold back and interrupted with a worried face.

"Boss Yang, Li Wei's matter can only be entrusted to you! If you don't save him, he's doomed!"