Impossible, Absolutely Impossible 02

"Still, I really admire you..."

"Admire me?"

Guo Yi and Young Master Cao exchanged glances before Guo Yi shook his head. "I'm just a high school teacher, while you're the wealthiest man in the city—and over a decade younger than me. Why would you admire me?"

"Everyone has their own strengths."

Cao Cheng smiled faintly as they smoked and chatted, his tone casual. "I happened to glance at your records earlier."

"You failed your college entrance exams at eighteen, underwent psychological treatment, then retook them a year later and scored nearly seven hundred..."

Guo Yi corrected him meticulously, "697, not quite seven hundred."

Though he said it modestly,

the fleeting pride in his eyes was unmistakable.

Young Master Cao nodded knowingly. "Do you know what I scored?"

"How much?"

"Just over five hundred. That’s why I say everyone excels in different areas."

He then shifted the topic. "Of course, grades are just one thing. Business acumen is another. Emotional and intellectual intelligence aren’t the same. What I admire about you is your resilience—that ability to rise from the ashes. Few people have that."

Guo Yi sensed the sincerity and offered a rare smile. "Thank you."

...

Their conversation drifted.

Nearby, a young girl watching whispered, "Master, is Junior Uncle deliberately buttering up the suspect to lower his guard?"

Second Sister nodded. "I’ve taught you some basic interrogation techniques before. Controlling the rhythm is key—start with harmless topics to relax the suspect, then gradually steer toward the crux. Adjust the pacing based on their reactions. Watch closely and learn. Ask me later if anything’s unclear."

"Understood, Master."

Second Sister seemed invested in mentoring the girl, explaining with patience.

However...

She wasn’t entirely convinced by Young Master Cao’s approach.

While the pacing was right, and the fifth brother clearly had some skill, effectiveness varied by person.

This suspect, Guo Yi, was the unyielding type—neither soft nor hard tactics had worked so far.

If they had, they’d have cracked him already.

For defiant suspects, interrogation required sternness, resolve, silence, psychological pressure, and occasional evidence drops to break their composure.

For those remorseful or cooperative, gentler methods—persuasion, empathy—were better.

These were the fundamentals.

There were deeper techniques too.

Yet...

Second Sister’s team had tried them all, professionally.

Guo Yi clearly knew psychology—maybe even hypnosis, or at least its basics.

His resistance to interrogation was formidable.

So, Young Master Cao’s approach likely wouldn’t work on him.

It might’ve fared better with an average suspect.

Still,

though skeptical, Second Sister recognized that the fifth brother had his own rhythm—likely setting the stage for hypnosis.

Unfamiliar with such tactics, she stayed quiet, observing.

...

Meanwhile, Young Master Cao had steered the talk toward family.

Single-parent households, specifically.

Coincidentally, both men were raised by their fathers, motherless since childhood.

This common ground eased the conversation.

After a few minutes, Cao Cheng lit another cigarette.

Click.

He offered one to Guo Yi.

Then he set the pack aside, idly flicking his lighter.

Guo Yi opened up slightly, speaking of his father.

Though brief, it was clear his father had been a volatile, flawed man.

Gambling, drinking, womanizing—he indulged in it all.

Guo Yi harbored some resentment, yet this was his only family.

His father had raised him alone; indifference was impossible.

Minutes later,

as Guo Yi finished,

Young Master Cao suddenly stopped playing with the lighter and asked casually,

"So, after your father passed, your already fragile emotions spiraled out of control... and you started killing?"

"..."

"..."

Second Sister’s expression tightened.

Too rash, fifth brother.

This wasn’t how you asked.

They’d made progress—the suspect was opening up about family.

Then you blurt out murder?

This could slam his walls shut tighter than before.

The young apprentice lacked experience but sensed the misstep.

Yet...

"The killings weren’t my doing," Guo Yi said firmly, voice edged with anger.

Second Sister sighed. Just as I feared.

But the next words nearly made her leap to her feet.

Guo Yi added, "It was my brother."

"..." Second Sister stiffened.

The girl’s gaze snapped to Guo Yi.

Young Master Cao, however, seemed prepared.

With mild curiosity, he asked, "Oh? What’s his name?"

"Guo Yu. Yu as in 'universe.'"

Second Sister immediately pulled out her phone, texting the team:

Investigate Guo Yi’s brother—Guo Yu.

Previously, no records or interviews had mentioned him.

Everyone assumed Guo Yi was an only child.

Young Master Cao nodded. "Seems your brother’s a genius—pulling off such meticulous crimes without leaving a trace."

"Of course," Guo Yi said proudly. "He’s a quick learner, masters everything effortlessly."

"But you struggled academically," Cao Cheng remarked. "So your father often beat you over grades, right?"

A flicker of hatred crossed Guo Yi’s eyes before fading.

"You’re right. I wasn’t cut out for studying. Bad scores meant beatings. But I understand—every father wants his son to succeed."

Second Sister clenched her fists.

Stop dawdling—ask where the brother is!

Yet she dared not interrupt, lest she disrupt the momentum.

Frustration simmered.

Still, Young Master Cao delayed.

After a few more exchanges about Guo Yi’s childhood, he finally grasped the full picture.

"Your brother must be in Zhonghai too," Cao Cheng mused. "But how did he leave to kill? Can’t wrap my head around it. Can geniuses fly? Evade all checkpoints and cameras?"

Guo Yi smirked, smug. "Most wouldn’t guess. Our home’s in the villages near Zhonghai. I know the area inside out—so does he."

"He has a rental place in X Village with a scrapped car inside. Of course, it’s only marked as scrapped in the database—the car still runs. Who would’ve thought?"

Cao Cheng suddenly understood. "No wonder."

Second Sister started texting again.

Guo Yi chuckled. "My younger brother is far, far smarter than me."

Cao Cheng nodded. "So where is he now?"

A flicker of confusion crossed Guo Yi’s face before he shook his head. "I don’t know."

"Isn’t he your brother?"

"But he’s smarter than me. If he wants to hide, there’s no way I can find him. He’s the one who contacts me," Guo Yi said.

Cao Cheng pressed on. "There’s something I’m curious about. Gusu isn’t too far from Zhonghai, but it’s not exactly close either. If your brother is in Zhonghai, how did he know there was someone there who liked red chickens? And how did he track them down so precisely to kill them?"

Guo Yi explained, "He saw them while traveling. Later, he added them as a friend and figured out their schedule from their posts or social media updates."

Cao Cheng shook his head. "Wouldn’t that sometimes lead to mistakes? Posts and updates aren’t always real-time."

"Of course," Guo Yi agreed. "Sometimes he’d make a wasted trip. But all it takes is one opportunity, and the target doesn’t get away."

"So a lot of what you know comes from your brother?"

"Some of it he told me. Some I guessed. And some I pieced together from clues he left behind," Guo Yi clarified.

"Don’t you think what your brother is doing is wrong?"

"It is wrong. I tried to talk him out of it, but he wouldn’t listen. Eventually, I realized—those people don’t matter. They’re just societal parasites, shameless women. What does it matter if a few of them die? I can’t exactly go to the police and turn my brother in, can I?"

"Makes sense," Cao Cheng said with a smile.

Guo Yi smiled back.

Then Cao Cheng abruptly asked, "So where does your brother hide the murder weapons and bodies? Someone as smart as him must’ve picked a place you don’t know about, right?"

Guo Yi shook his head. "My brother trusts me. I know where he hides them."

"Where?"

"In the air-raid shelter behind X Village."

Cao Cheng shifted gears. "So when you scored 697 on the college entrance exam, your brother took it for you, didn’t he?"

"..."

Guo Yi’s expression darkened, his face twisting with discomfort.

He had answered questions about murder without hesitation.

But when it came to his exam score, his demeanor changed—growing visibly agitated.

Cao Cheng stared at him unblinking.

With a flick, he lit another cigarette and blew the smoke directly into Guo Yi’s face.

Guo Yi snapped back to awareness, disoriented.

He glanced around, then locked eyes with Young Master Cao again.

Beyond him, he spotted Ren Fanxing and the young policewoman at a nearby table.

Guo Yi’s face filled with disbelief. "You... you... I—I was hypnotized?"

Cao Cheng shrugged. "Obviously!"

"Don’t worry, though. You didn’t say much. Just confessed to the murders, where you hid the bodies, and the weapons..." Cao Cheng grinned.

"No. Impossible. Absolutely impossible!"

Guo Yi jerked forward, trying to stand—but the restraint chair held him firmly in place.

Second Sister rose and stepped beside Young Master Cao.