America: John Wick 1924

Chapter 22 Zhenbang Martial Arts School
After the old man and the young girl moved to a deserted corner of the corridor, Chief Logan skipped all pleasantries and gave Una a direct order:
"Officer Campbell, release that Chinese man."

Una was stunned.

Then, pretending not to have heard clearly, she cautiously asked in return:
"Director, no, excuse me, may I ask..."

Before Una could finish speaking, Chief Logan, in a clear and even louder voice, said sternly, word by word:
"I said, release that Chinese man, acquit him, set him free immediately, do you understand?"

In an instant, Una's beautiful face turned from white to red:
"Chief! Why? Give me a reason! We haven't even investigated this case thoroughly, we haven't even figured out if that Chinese man is innocent, how can we just release him like that?"

Faced with Una's reasoned arguments, Director Logan remained remarkably calm—or rather, completely ignored her.

"Officer Campbell, don't worry about all that, just follow orders."

His calm tone conveyed an undeniable firmness.

Una clenched her teeth, her eyes burning with resentment that nearly turned into flames.

Suddenly, as if she had thought of something, her expression changed slightly:

"...Is that Chinese man from Zhenbang Martial Arts School?"

Despite Una's questioning, Chief Logan remained unmoved, his indifferent expression unchanged.
"Don't ask what you shouldn't ask, and don't know what you shouldn't know. Officer Campbell, carry out the orders as soon as possible, and don't make me repeat myself."

After speaking, he said no more, walked past Una, and left.

However, after taking only a few steps, he stopped and turned back halfway, remembering something.

"Oh, I almost forgot to mention, two guests want to see that Chinese man. After releasing him, take him to the meeting room."

This was truly his last sentence—after saying this, Director Logan strode away, leaving Una alone on the spot.

She had her head down, and the light from the nearby light bulb stretched her shadow long.

The shadows on her face cleverly concealed her features, making it impossible to discern her etched expression.

In a short while—

Thump—she swung her right fist hard and slammed it against the concrete wall next to her.

A loud noise echoed throughout the corridor.

……

……

San Francisco Police Department, interrogation room—

With his face etched with boredom, Li Yu tilted his head back and counted the patterns on the ceiling again... He had memorized the patterns and grime on the ceiling and floor of this interrogation room.

In the midst of this deathly silence, finally—tap, tap, tap, tap—footsteps sounded again from outside the door.

The sound of firm, powerful footsteps... seemed familiar.

Creak—the door opened. Una, whom Li Yu had only recently parted ways with, reappeared before him.

He immediately perked up and said quickly:
"Officer Campbell, you're back just in time. I forgot to ask earlier, does your police station not provide meals? I'm so hungry I'm hallucinating. Even if you don't provide meals, can't you at least give me a glass of water and a cigarette?"

"..."

Una pursed her lips, remaining silent, her expression complex as she stared intently at Li Yu.

Li Yu keenly detected a variety of negative emotions in his eyes, such as irritability and resentment.

—I just want to eat, why are you looking at me like that?

Li Yu, not understanding why, asked in return:

"Officer Campbell, what's wrong?"

"..."

Una remained silent.

After a long silence, she suddenly leaned forward, rushed to Li Yu, took out a bunch of keys from her pocket, and took off the "silver bracelet" on Li Yu's wrist.

Looking at his freed hands, Li Yu blinked, a puzzled expression on his face.

He had just spent a long time making his statement, repeatedly emphasizing his innocence, only to be told by the other party, "If you have anything to say, go talk to the judge."

What's going on here?
“You’re free now, come with me.” As Una spoke, she turned around, her small ponytail swaying behind her head, swinging in a beautiful arc in mid-air, almost brushing against Li Yu’s nose.

Still confused, Li Yu stood up with a bewildered look, took a few quick steps, and caught up with Wu Na.

"Officer Campbell, what's going on? Has my innocence been completely cleared?"

As far as Li Yu knew, the United States at that time did not have high-tech investigative methods such as surveillance equipment and biometric evidence collection.

To thoroughly investigate a case, one can only resort to a "human wave tactic," going door-to-door to investigate.

And even then, there's no guarantee of finding the truth. After all, this investigative method is far too inefficient; whether a case is solved or not depends entirely on luck.

Una said coldly without turning her head:

"Don't try to act innocent. You know better than I why you regained your freedom, don't you?"

Suddenly, she stopped in her tracks, turned around, raised her eyes, and cast a sharp glance at Li Yu.

"I'm asking you, are you from Zhenbang Martial Arts School?"

Li Yu blinked a few times and asked without hesitation:

What is Zhenbang Martial Arts School?

"..."

Una stared intently into Li Yu's eyes, as if trying to find evidence that he was lying.

Li Yu stared back fearlessly, their eyes meeting.

He hadn't done anything wrong, so naturally he wasn't afraid to look her in the eye.

Furthermore, he genuinely had no idea what Zhenbang Martial Arts School was.

After a short while, seeing that Li Yu's expression was open and honest and he didn't seem to be lying, Una's tightly stern face relaxed a little, and her eyes were no longer as sharp as before.

"Someone got you out of there, so you can go home tonight."

"……Aha?"

Li Yu's facial expression was dominated by intense confusion.

He had set foot on San Francisco soil for the first time just about three hours earlier.

He was a newcomer to the city and knew no one. The only person he knew in San Francisco was Janet.

But no matter how you look at her, she doesn't seem like the kind of big shot who could persuade the police to release someone.

While Li Yu was still troubled by his doubts, Una straightened her police cap, took a deep breath, and resumed her serious and earnest demeanor:

"Alright, enough talk, come with me, someone wants to see you."

"Are they the ones who got me out of here?"

"You'll know if you go there."

Una rolled her eyes at Li Yu, then strode off toward the other end of the corridor.

Seeing that Una was unwilling to say more, Li Yu had no choice but to keep quiet and follow her silently.

He unconsciously glanced at Una's back a few more times.

Based on the conversation, he roughly understood the whole story.

An unknown powerful figure used his privileges to get him out of the police station, allowing this suspect, who was responsible for a murder, to escape justice.

Such actions naturally aroused great dissatisfaction from Una, who possessed the "Chosen Disciplinary Committee Holy Body".

Therefore, it's not hard to understand why she gave Li Yu the cold shoulder.

Upon realizing this, Li Yu couldn't help but cast a helpless glance at Una in front of him.

—Small in stature, with a strong personality and bright red hair… If this world were an anime, then Rie Kugimiya would definitely be the voice of you.

(End of this chapter)