Chapter Twenty-Eight: The First Surveillance

Rain began to fall, droplets splattering against the car window, blurring Yin Nian’s view.

“You’ve got to be kidding me…” Yin Nian muttered under her breath. “My first surveillance, and it’s raining?”

She couldn’t use the windshield wipers for fear of being discovered. If the rain grew heavier, she’d have no choice but to leave the car and find a new vantage point. It seemed this vehicle was suitable for mobile surveillance only if she could secure a fixed spot; otherwise, the environment would prove too disruptive.

She opened the map, searching the area for a suitable remote observation point. She spotted a hotel named Lantian, about two hundred meters diagonally across from Crescent Community. Though a commercial street separated the two, and they weren’t immediately adjacent, the hotel was taller than the residential buildings. If she could secure a high-floor room with a good angle, the view should be more than adequate. Yin Nian made a note to check out the hotel later for an on-site inspection.

It was nearly nine o’clock, and Yang Yongli’s car still hadn’t appeared. Inside her car, Yin Nian applied a makeup designed to make her look ashen and nondescript—arched brows, sallow skin, and a bedraggled look. She’d also changed her hairstyle and clothes. In the dim light, she was almost unrecognizable.

As she finished her makeup, a sudden bang on the window startled her.

Bang, bang, bang! A black bird repeatedly struck the glass, wings beating frantically as though desperate to get inside.

Squinting, Yin Nian realized it was a crow—glossy black feathers, eyes tinted with a wine-red hue. The crow struck the window several more times, slid down, then beat its wings and vanished into the night.

The incident left Yin Nian rattled for several minutes. She tried to convince herself it was just a coincidence. Perhaps the crow’s vision differed from humans—it must have seen something inside the car that attracted it, nothing more.

Steeling herself, Yin Nian put on a black sports jacket and stepped out of the car.

No sooner had she done so when something fluttered down from above, landing right by her feet. She bent to pick it up—a pale blue oval card, with a red-inked, slanting number: 1.

The card felt oddly familiar, as though she’d seen it before. She tried to recall but couldn’t place it. She considered tossing it aside, but something made her hesitate, so she slipped it into her pocket.

She donned her headphones, pretending to listen to music, and jogged into the community. The security guard was engrossed in his phone and didn’t spare her a glance.

Light rain misted the air and a cool breeze drifted through. With her hood up, Yin Nian jogged slowly around the complex.

The neighborhood had few streetlights, casting a dim glow, and there were even fewer people about.

As she ran, she kept a careful eye on her surroundings.

Crescent Community consisted of twenty buildings, each twelve stories high. Yin Nian quickly located Building 5. She circled it once to get a feel for the area before going inside. For caution’s sake, she took the stairs instead of the elevator, climbing to the eighth floor, where she paused at the fire exit to survey the hallway.

Each floor contained four apartments.

Yang Yongli lived in unit 802, on the eastern side—a two-bedroom suite.

Yin Nian had studied the model units for Crescent Community online. She knew the master bedroom and balcony were separated in this layout: the master had a bay window, the balcony was attached to the living room, and the apartment’s light came mainly from these two places.

To surveil Yang Yongli’s home, the best vantage points were from the direction of the bedroom and balcony, which offered the widest field of view.

She recalled that the hotel she’d spotted was to the northeast, which seemed promising, though the distance approached three hundred meters. With a 15x zoom binoculars, seeing minute details would be tough, but she could manage a general observation.

Having confirmed the location, Yin Nian left the building.

She made her way to the underground parking lot, searching for Yang Yongli’s car near Building 5, but it was nowhere in sight.

After making a sweep of the lot, she exited Crescent Community.

A fine drizzle persisted. The sky was heavy, winds cold, with no stars or moon.

Back in her car, Yin Nian resumed surveillance of the community entrance through her binoculars.

At half past nine, Liang Zhicheng called. Yin Nian didn’t answer—she replied by text: Everything’s fine, don’t worry, I won’t be home tonight.

Liang Zhicheng quickly replied: Stay safe, everything’s fine at home.

Yin Nian exhaled softly, pulled out the safety charm Liang Zhicheng had given her earlier, breathed in its scent, then hung it inside the car.

At nine fifty, a white Buick drove up to Crescent Community. Yin Nian noted the license plate ending in Q785 and let out a long breath. At last, Yang Yongli had returned.

Once the Buick entered the complex, Yin Nian waited ten more minutes before getting out. She walked back into the community, quickly found the Buick in the parking lot, and, after confirming Yang Yongli had gone upstairs, attached a tracking device to the underside of the car’s rear bumper.

Once she was sure the tracker worked, she hurried away.

Step one, complete.

Leaving the community, Yin Nian drove to Lantian Hotel. After checking the site in person, she booked a room on the twelfth floor. From its window, she had a clear view of the back of Building 5.

Upon checking in, Yin Nian instructed the hotel staff not to clean the room during her stay and to let no one else in.

By eleven thirty, everything was set. Yin Nian stretched out on the bed, facing the floor-to-ceiling windows. She switched off all the lights, raised her high-powered binoculars, and focused on apartment 802 in Crescent Community.

With the binoculars at maximum zoom, she could just make out the general situation inside Yang Yongli’s home.

The apartment was brightly lit. The bedroom had a large bay window with no curtains drawn. Through it, Yin Nian saw someone lying on the bed—only a pair of fair legs were visible from her angle, likely a woman.

Soon, a man entered the bedroom and paused by the window. Though she couldn’t see his features, the prominent scar on his face stood out, twisting across his cheek like a centipede. There was no mistaking it—that was Yang Yongli.

Yin Nian sat up straighter, focusing intently.

Suddenly, Yang Yongli spun around, abruptly saying something to the woman on the bed. The woman sat up, pointing at him. She had long hair and pale skin, but her features were indistinct.

Yang Yongli climbed onto the bed, seized the woman’s hair, and shoved her head down forcefully.

The situation shifted rapidly and unexpectedly. Yin Nian, both alarmed and perplexed, hurried from the bed to the window for a better look.

The woman struggled but couldn’t break free. Yang Yongli quickly released her and strode out of the bedroom.

Moments later, he appeared on the balcony, leaning against the railing to smoke.

He hadn’t finished his cigarette when the woman came out—short and curvy, in a camisole nightdress, hair loose and tousled. She spoke to Yang Yongli, who gestured sharply at her before she turned and left the balcony.

Seconds later, Yin Nian saw something fly from the living room onto the balcony, narrowly missing Yang Yongli—a cup or plate, perhaps, shattering on the ground.

Yang Yongli stormed into the living room.

Due to her angle, Yin Nian couldn’t see what happened next.

“What on earth is going on?” Yin Nian murmured. “Did a fight break out? Does Yang Yongli have a history of domestic violence?”

Puzzled and uneasy, she hadn’t expected such a dramatic scene on her very first stakeout.

Several minutes passed without any sign of either Yang Yongli or the woman.

Just as Yin Nian was about to rest her eyes, the woman reappeared in the bedroom, her nightdress half slipped off, exposing a pale shoulder and the edge of her underwear, hair wild, her steps hurried and anxious.

Yang Yongli followed, bare-chested.

Once inside, he pushed the woman onto the bed and drew the curtains. But since the window was still open, the wind swept the curtains aside, giving Yin Nian a clear view of what happened next inside the bedroom.