Captured By The Cold Detective (BL)-Chapter 185: Memorial Tablet

As soon as Tak Jung-Hwa stepped in, his keen nose picked up the distinct scent of incense in the air. It was sandalwood, medium to high quality for sure. Though the temple looked tiny from outside, it was actually quite spacious and cozy inside. A towering tree was planted in the yard, its leaves green and lush as they rustled gently against the breeze, providing enough protection from the glaring sun. Most likely, it had been there before the house changed owners.

After the group of five tall officers strolled in, the yard became cramped in a blink of an eye.

As it turned out, Tak Jung-Hwa was not the only person who was curious about the youth. After all, his delicate appearance did not suit this small temple at all. Tak Jung-Hwa perked his ears up to eavesdrop as he surreptitiously scanned his surroundings.

"What is your name, xiao didi?"

"People call me Little Guo."

"Your master is not in?"

"En, he said that he won’t be returning soon. Do you want to put your number directly or do you want to light an incense first?"

The officers looked at each other with an awkward look. Wasn’t this just a more subtle way of telling them to scram as soon as possible if they no longer had any business here?

The young man in front of them was too peculiar. His exquisite appearance notwithstanding, he also had a cold and taciturn temperament, and he exuded an unapproachable aura that kept strangers miles away. Somehow, he really reminded them of a certain colleague that was nicknamed ’walking ice cube’. Alas, when all was said and done, this group of men had gotten used to interrogating criminals. Their conversational skill and shamelessness had been honed through years and became top-notch, second to none.

As such, they thickened their skin and continued to badger the youth with more questions.

"How long have you been staying with Master Cui?"

"How old are you? You look no more than twenty..."

"Where is your family? They don’t mind that you’re staying here all day long?"

Little Guo’s answer was curt and concise. "Not very long." "Eighteen." "I am an orphan."

Tak Jung-Hwa cleared his throat to remind the men not to take things too far. These men... though he knew that they did not mean it, their tone really sounded interrogative. He did not wish to arouse suspicion when they still lacked a lot of information regarding their target.

Receiving the signal, the officers showed a sheepish look and stopped their barrage of questions. "Ah, sorry, sorry. It’s our fault to make you uncomfortable. Don’t be offended, okay? Just take it as us being a blabbermouth hehe..."

Finally, Tak Jung-Hwa tore his gaze off the path leading toward the back of the temple and turned to Little Guo with a warm smile, "It’s such a pity that we can’t meet Master Gui today. But we can still go in and pray, right?"

Little Guo stared at him for one long moment, his expression incomprehensible. Then without a word, he turned away and gestured for the others to follow him.

Tak Jung-Hwa finally saw what lay behind the closed door. It was a giant golden statue of Buddha sitting cross-legged on top of a giant lotus, its height almost reaching the ceiling. A round copper censer was placed in the middle of the table with a few burning incense sticks in it, and that’s where the pervading scent of sandalwood came from.

Tak Jung-Hwa seldom went to temples nor was he a very religious person, but he still could not help clasping his hands together and bowing to the statue of Buddha in a solemn manner. Behind him, the four men followed suit.

Little Guo prepared three incense sticks for each of them. "Here," he said with an indifferent look. "If you don’t know what to do, then just light the incense, kneel down and make a wish inside your heart."

Tak Jung-Hwa couldn’t resist a chuckle when he heard it. He accepted the incense sticks from Little Guo and teased him, "You’re so casual about this. Is that really how a disciple should act? Shouldn’t you... I don’t know, preach to us about the benevolence of Buddha, perhaps?"

Little Guo did not roll his eyes, yet somehow Tak Jung-Hwa had a hunch that he was doing it inwardly. "But you’re not a Buddhist, are you?"

Tak Jung-Hwa was taken aback by that blunt answer, and he burst out in soft laughter. "Well, you’re right about that."

After saying that, he took the lead to light the incense sticks and kneeled down in front of the statue of Buddha. He closed his eyes and went through the clues he had gathered all this while.

Mixed-race, but his Putonghua was very good without any accent at all. It seemed like he had been staying in China for a long time, or he might even be born here. Eighteen years old, an orphan, had a cold temperament. The length of time when he became a disciple was still unknown to date. On the other hand, he was extremely wary toward strangers and his posture, albeit relaxed, looked like he would attack at once if the situation called for it. He had a steel fork placed behind the gate and had always been standing within the range to reach it when he was talking to them. His footsteps were light and almost inaudible, his spine ramrod straight and his hands... 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

The youth had thick calluses that were similar to his own – it was a pair of hands that had gotten used to holding a gun.

The corner of Tak Jung-Hwa’s lips tilted in a subtle arc. Interesting... very interesting...

A few seconds later, Tak Jung-Hwa opened his eyes in time to see Little Guo looked away from his peripheral vision. He kept his expression carefully neutral and went to place the incense sticks into the censer. As he did that, he inadvertently caught sight of a memorial tablet that was placed under the statue’s feet. Tak Jung-Hwa’s eyesight was excellent, his vision 20/20 and could easily adjust to the dark. Even though it was only a split second, he managed to see the English letters engraved into the wooden tablet.

[In Loving Memory of Marius Morningstar. 1988 – 2016]

— 2016. Seven years ago.

What a coincidence. That was the same year when XIU vanished from the surface of Earth, which was swiftly followed by the destruction of Xuanlong a few days later.

Tak Jung-Hwa patted the incense ash from his hands and turned to ask Little Guo with a tight and embarrassed smile. His acting was comparable to the first rate actors who had acted in countless blockbuster movies, not even a slightest crack could be detected. "Do you have a bathroom here? My stomach hurts a little bit after eating noodles next door..."

Little Guo’s blue eyes were fixed on him, unblinking.

There were only two options he could take. First, he could refuse and say that the temple had no bathroom or it was currently under repair, but it was equivalent to admitting that he had something to hide. Second, he could lead Tak Jung-Hwa to the bathroom at the back of the temple. After that, if he chose to guard outside the bathroom door, it would give the other officers a chance to snoop around. Similarly, if he went back to the front, then he was letting Tak Jung-Hwa loose. No matter what, he was stuck between a rock and a hard place.

Now little guy... which option will you choose?