Chapter 23: Arrival (Part One)

On Monday, as usual, Zhang Wenhao went to school for classes. After the morning reading session, all the teachers and students gathered on the sports field for a flag-raising ceremony, during which a student representative would give a brief speech beneath the national flag.

Standing with his classmates from Class 21, Zhang Wenhao watched as a wooden-faced student struggled through his speech at the podium. Just as the student finished reading, two police officers in uniform suddenly stepped up onto the platform.

The director of academic affairs personally handed the microphone to one of the young officers. Taking it, the officer began, “Students, we apologize for interrupting your solemn flag-raising ceremony. We’re here today because we have a case to handle.”

A commotion erupted among the crowd. Police officers at the school to handle a case? It was a high school—could it be that one of the students had broken the law?

A deep sense of foreboding rose in Zhang Wenhao’s heart. At that moment, the officer spoke again: “Is Zhang Wenhao from Class 21, Grade 12 present? If so, please come up to the stage.”

In an instant, thousands of students broke into a frenzy. All eyes turned toward Zhang Wenhao, while the classmates around him were stunned. Li Nan couldn’t help but ask, “Wenhao, what’s going on? Are those two officers here for you?”

Zhang Wenhao nodded, the bad feeling growing stronger. He quickly took out his phone, slipped it into Li Nan’s hand, and said in a low voice, “Li Nan, there’s a recording on this phone. Keep it safe. If necessary, use it to prove my innocence.” Without waiting for Li Nan to recover from his shock, Zhang Wenhao strode out of the class lineup and made his way toward the flag platform.

He had only just reached the front of the group when Song Yanni grabbed his arm, asking anxiously, “Zhang Wenhao, what’s going on? Have you gotten yourself into trouble?”

“No,” Zhang Wenhao replied softly, shaking his head. “Don’t worry, Ms. Song. I haven’t done anything wrong.”

With that, Zhang Wenhao slipped past Song Yanni and walked onto the platform.

“Zhang Wenhao!”

Suddenly, someone called his name from behind. He turned to see Su Ruoran stepping out from the class lineup, her face filled with concern. “What happened to you?” she asked anxiously.

Zhang Wenhao didn’t know what to say to her. Touched by her concern, he gave her a grateful look and a slight smile before heading up onto the stage.

The young officer looked at the frail-looking boy before him. “You are Zhang Wenhao?”

Wenhao nodded.

The officer continued, “You are suspected of intentional assault. Please come with us to the station to assist with the investigation.”

With that, the officer pulled a pair of shiny handcuffs from his belt. The other officer stepped forward to help cuff Zhang Wenhao’s hands. Under the gaze of the entire school, Zhang Wenhao was led away and shoved into a police car, which sped off with sirens blaring.

On the way to the police substation, the two officers didn’t say a word. For them, there were only two tasks today: first, to bring Zhang Wenhao back to the station; second, to ensure that news of his arrest would spread throughout No. 1 High School. That’s why they chose the flag-raising ceremony as the moment to make the arrest. Their mission accomplished, all that remained was to deliver Zhang Wenhao to others for interrogation.

The police car came to a halt in the substation’s yard. Each officer grabbed one of Zhang Wenhao’s arms, escorting him directly into the interrogation room. Once inside, they drew the blackout curtains tightly and cuffed Zhang Wenhao to the interrogation chair before striding out.

After about five minutes, three male officers entered in succession. They ranged from their twenties to their thirties. Sitting down across from Zhang Wenhao, one produced pen and paper and a form. The man in the middle barked, “Name!”

“Zhang Wenhao.”

“Age!”

“Eighteen.”

“Home address!”

“Parents’ names, occupations, and workplaces!”

Once Zhang Wenhao’s personal and family details were recorded, the officer in the middle asked coldly, “Do you know why you’ve been brought here?”

“I don’t know,” Zhang Wenhao replied calmly.

“Still trying to hide your crime?” the man snapped, snatching a document from the officer beside him. “This is the statement given by the victim, Chen Chong, at the hospital on Saturday. According to this, you assaulted him on our school’s sports field last Friday night after nine, leaving him seriously injured. He’s now in the ICU at Jiangxin Hospital. The medical report is here—moderate concussion, fractured nasal bridge, broken ribs and wrist bones, multiple contusions over fifteen percent of his body. Was this your doing?”

Zhang Wenhao answered without fear, “But I acted in self-defense. He brought four thugs to attack me, and those thugs had knives—one of which they used.”

“Nonsense!” the man roared. “There were only you and Chen Chong at the scene—where did these thugs come from? Clearly, you assaulted Chen Chong intentionally and now you’re crying wolf, talking about self-defense! If it was self-defense, why are you unscathed?”

A chill ran through Zhang Wenhao’s heart. He grasped the general situation at once—the officer was lying through his teeth. Clearly, Chen Chong’s family had interfered behind the scenes. He had thought he had reason and evidence on his side, never expecting them to turn the facts upside down.

Composed, Zhang Wenhao said, “Chen Chong did bring four thugs that night, and they were injured as well. One of them is called Rat—you can investigate. Previously, Chen Chong secretly instructed someone called Fat Dragon from No. 6 High School to gather some thugs to ambush me on my way home from school. Friday was his second attempt to attack me with a group.”

“Do you have any witnesses?” the officer asked coldly. “You have no witnesses or evidence. After beating someone, you want to escape justice?”

“Of course I have evidence,” Zhang Wenhao replied. “The witnesses are the four thugs I injured. Find them and you’ll know the truth. Also, I recorded the entire incident that night. The recording can be made public at any time. If you intentionally distort the facts and pin the crime of intentional assault on me, I will never admit it!”

He continued, “I’m not yet eighteen. By law, you should notify my guardians. I demand a phone call to my family!”

“In your dreams!” the officer sneered. “This is an ongoing investigation. You’re not allowed to contact anyone!”

Remembering that Zhang Wenhao had mentioned a recording, the officer pressed, “Tell me, what did you use to record it? Where is the original file? Are there any copies?”

“I won’t tell you,” Zhang Wenhao replied icily. “If you continue to frame me, I believe it won’t be long before you hear the recording for yourselves!”

The officer snorted. “Let me tell you the truth: you’ve just admitted in your statement that you injured Chen Chong on Friday. Now you’re a criminal suspect. From this moment, you are officially detained and will be prosecuted for intentional assault. During detention, you have no right to see anyone.” He changed his tone, scoffing, “As for your so-called recording—even if it exists, the court may not accept it! Do you really think a recording will solve everything?”

“You are distorting the truth and twisting the facts!” Zhang Wenhao retorted angrily. “Everything I did was in self-defense. I broke no law. The one who committed a crime is Chen Chong, not me!”

“Save it,” the officer said with a smile. He took a form from the officer beside him, stood up, and walked over to Zhang Wenhao. “This is your statement. Here, you’ve confessed that last Friday night, out of jealousy over Chen Chong’s closeness with a female classmate, you deliberately retaliated and assaulted him. If you have no objections, put your fingerprint here.”

“I refuse!” Zhang Wenhao shouted. “I never said any of that! You’re framing me!”

The officer ignored him, signaling to the other two. Understanding immediately, they approached Zhang Wenhao, one holding a stamp pad. They seized his right hand. Though Zhang Wenhao clenched his fist, he couldn’t resist their strength. His fingers were pried open, his right index finger pressed into the ink, and then onto the fabricated statement.

“All done,” the officer said, holding up the statement bearing Zhang Wenhao’s fingerprint. “Now you’ve confessed to your crime. There’s no turning back, even if you recant. Wait in the detention center for your trial!”

With that, the two officers hauled Zhang Wenhao from the interrogation chair, recuffed his hands without a word, and led him out, straight into a police car bound for Jiangcheng City’s Third Detention Center on the outskirts.

The entire process was so swift that it probably set a new record at the substation.