Unappreciative of Kindness

Kowloon Cafe was a cha chaan teng on Canton Road. It was unremarkable in appearance, but the food was good.

At dusk, when Zhou Quan and his team were patrolling nearby, he treated all the officers to a simple meal.

Zhou Quan, He Wenzhan, and Shao Meiqi sat together at a table. An empty chair stood beside them.

Zhou Quan had reserved it especially for Lam Tong.

As they ate Kowloon Cafe's signature wonton noodles and drank iced lemon tea, the three discussed what had happened during their patrol that day.

"When I was out patrolling with my people today, I saw Fat Tong skulking around and handing money to Chan Yiu Hung."

As the three were discussing the case of the missing proceeds from the Warehouse No. 3 gun battle, Shao Meiqi suddenly shared some news.

"Assistant Superintendent, Zhan, you both know this man. His nickname is Loan Shark Hung, and he lends money at high interest.

Fat Tong loves horse racing, and all of West Kowloon has heard that he's deep in debt. It wouldn't be surprising if he owed Chan Yiu Hung money."

Though Shao Meiqi hadn't said it outright, both of her tablemates knew she suspected Lam Tong had taken some of the stolen proceeds.

He Wenzhan's expression darkened. He didn't offer any defense of Lam Tong, because he harbored the same suspicion.

"Knock, knock, knock!"

Zhou Quan lightly tapped the tabletop and said evenly, "This has nothing to do with our team. Our colleagues in the Internal Investigations Branch will handle it."

He paused briefly, then continued with greater emphasis, "I invited Lam Tong for iced lemon tea. Stay sharp when he gets here. Eat more, talk less, and ask fewer questions."

Zhou Quan had barely finished cautioning He Wenzhan and Shao Meiqi when Lam Tong's bulky figure arrived on the second floor of Kowloon Cafe.

"Sergeant Zhou, sorry for the wait."

As Lam Tong repeatedly apologized, he called to one of the staff inside the restaurant, "One iced lemon tea for every colleague. It's on me..."

Before he could finish, Zhou Quan raised a hand and cut him off.

"We agreed I'd treat you to iced lemon tea, Sergeant Lam. How could I let you pay?"

Zhou Quan pointed to the chair opposite him and said with a smile, "Sit down. Order whatever else you want."

Lam Tong sat somewhat comically on the small-looking chair and smiled ingratiatingly.

"We're all on the same side, sir. You're too kind. Just call me Fat Tong."

Lam Tong still held the rank of sergeant, but since he was no longer a team leader, he didn't dare call himself a sergeant in charge.

He knew he didn't have much of a relationship with the promising young officer in front of him, a rising star in the entire West Kowloon District.

If the other man had invited him, he must need something from him.

"Sir, whatever it is, just tell me what you need."

Naturally, Lam Tong was more than happy to build a good relationship with this officer, who had a bright future ahead of him.

Zhou Quan smiled faintly, but didn't ask directly where Lam Tong was staying in the Black Hotel.

After all, Lam Tong was avoiding his debts, which was why he didn't dare go home.

If Zhou Quan asked him outright, how could he possibly answer?

"Fat Tong, I heard you're in a debt crisis. You and Zhan are brothers, so you're one of us too."

After considering his words for a moment, Zhou Quan said earnestly, "If you're willing, you can report your debts to your superiors.

The Police Force has procedures to deal with this. I'll help make the arrangements, and the Force can help you restructure your debts."

Before Zhou Quan had finished speaking, He Wenzhan was already visibly excited.

He repeatedly gestured at Lam Tong, urging him to accept the proposal from his Assistant Superintendent.

The Police Force's debt-restructuring program was a measure designed to help Police Officers in debt, preventing them from becoming trapped in a desperate situation or even colluding with criminals.

Under normal circumstances, Lam Tong's debts were the result of his gambling addiction, so he couldn't possibly pass the Force's debt-restructuring review.

However, Lam Tong belonged to the Tsim Sha Tsui Major Crimes Unit, and Tsim Sha Tsui Police Station was also the Yau Tsim District headquarters.

And Zhou Quan's uncle, Wong Bing Yiu, was the Big Sir in charge of the entire Yau Tsim District.

As long as Zhou Quan was willing to help and Lam Tong voluntarily reported his debts, the procedure would face no obstacles.

Lam Tong was also quite tempted by the offer.

But the program had a drawback: until Lam Tong had resolved his debts, he wouldn't have any chance of promotion.

Given the debts he was carrying, even with the Police Force's high-pay, clean-government policy, he couldn't pay them off with his salary in just five or six years.

As an officer who had been about to get promoted only a week ago, Lam Tong naturally didn't want to spend several more years languishing at the rank of sergeant.

More importantly, Lam Tong was a gambling addict. He was still planning to use a horse race to clear all his debts in one fell swoop.

What's more, Lam Tong had recently stolen the proceeds from the Warehouse No. 3 gun battle.

If he reported his debts now, wouldn't he become the prime suspect in the missing proceeds case?

So after thinking for only a few seconds, Lam Tong's eyes reddened, and he rejected Zhou Quan's kind offer without hesitation.

"Sergeant Zhou, you must be joking. What debt crisis? It's all just rumors."

Lam Tong, with a guilty conscience, stood up and immediately took his leave.

"Sergeant Zhou, please enjoy your meal. There's work to do back at the team, so I won't keep you any longer."

"Another day, then. I'll treat you and the brothers next time."

Still trying to ingratiate himself with them as he made small talk, Lam Tong stumbled down the stairs.

He knew his behavior might offend a promising new Assistant Superintendent.

But that was still better than having the missing proceeds case pinned on him.

Little did he know, the way he was acting now looked to everyone like the behavior of a guilty man.

"Ah Tong..."

He Wenzhan, who had always valued his friendship with Lam Tong, immediately rose to go after him, but Zhou Quan stopped him with a sharp word.

"Zhan, forget it. Everyone has their own path. You can't force outsiders."

At that moment, the smile had faded from Zhou Quan's face too.

He hadn't expected that he'd planned to help Lam Tong first, then ask about the whereabouts of the four armed robbers.

But before Zhou Quan had even brought up the real topic, Lam Tong had run off, completely unappreciative of his kindness.

That dashed his hopes of using Lam Tong as a lead to find the four armed robbers.

As for following Lam Tong to the Black Hotel, that wasn't practical either.

First, Zhou Quan still had his duties and couldn't leave his patrol post for too long.

Second, Lam Tong was now avoiding his debts and was as jumpy as a startled bird.

On top of that, he was an officer who had spent years working on the front lines, so he wouldn't be easy to tail.

Unless Zhou Quan was willing to share the credit for this operation and ask plainclothes officers from another department to help.

But that would raise another problem for Zhou Quan: he had no way to explain why he wanted to tail Lam Tong in the first place.