Red Light

The Whisper of a Flute

Nie Huaisang joined Yu Bin at the table. "Give some thought to what I've said. You would be a valuable asset to my department." He paused and smiled. "I'm not nearly as scary as rumor makes me."

Yu Bin looked at Nie Huaisang and answered with the first thought that popped into his head.

"I think you're scarier." Eyes wide, he gulped surprised at his own statement.

Nie Huaisang threw his head back and laughed so hard he had tears in his eyes.

This was the scene Lan Wangji returned to. He looked askance at both men. Yu Bin wasn't about to say anything. Giggling, Nie Huaisang wiped at the tears and said, "Yu Bin is an absolute treasure!" before he dissolved into laughter again.

Lan Wangji lifted a single eyebrow and looked at Yu Bin, who was trying to look anywhere but at the two other men in the room.

It took the inspector a while to stop laughing every time he got a glimpse of Yu Bin but, finally, he could focus on the task at hand again. He cleared his throat.

"Shall we?" He lifted Yu Bin's jacket. "See this button?" Both men nodded. He picked up his phone and opened an app. There, on his screen, was Lan Wangji.

"The resolution is much better in my office but you get the idea. The camera and microphone are always on. It only transmits. Recording takes place in my systems at the station."

He pointed out which button was the camera on Lan Wangji's jacket. "I chose the top button on both because you have a better chance of getting a face shot. Remember not to stand too close otherwise we're going to have great pictures of their chests."

Next, he held up two small ear buds. "Try them on." Neither man had an issue getting the bud properly settled into their ear. "Double tap to turn it on then I suggest one of you retreat to another room or the far end of the garden.

Glad for a chance to get away from the still grinning inspector, Yu Bin headed outside.

Nie Huaisang fit his own ear piece and double tapped it.

He gestured to Lan Wangji.

"Can you hear me, Yu Bin?"

"Loud and clear, sir!"

"These aren't sub vocal but they are top of the line. They'll pick up whispers. And there is a bonus prize! Both the earbud and the video feed can be traced. Can you rejoin us, Yu Bin?"

When Yu Bin had come inside, he looked at the two men. "If you get caught with them, stall for as long as you can. I'll be on the way with the troops."

He passed out the last items. Two burner phones. They didn't match. Both were beat up. One had a tooth mark on it. Nie Huaisang looked at them fondly. He passed the most dilapidated one to Yu Bin. "It fits the Chen Li persona the best. The phone itself works just fine so don't be worried about it's exterior."

He handed the other to Lan Wangji then gave them the numbers for each phone. There were no numbers saved.

"Okay, you need a code word in case everything goes to hell in a hand basket. My favorite is Chanel but I don't think it would work in this situation." The fan was once again in motion.

Yu Bin knew what he wanted right off. "Mine is corn."

Nie Huaisang looked at him slightly puzzled. "Why corn?"

"Well, who walks up to a beggar and talks to them about corn? Shouldn't be any cross contamination by exterior conversations. Besides, if I need help I can act a little crazy and say I like corn. Easy."

'Cross contamination by exterior conversation? There is more to Yu Bin than meets the eye... I do adore a good puzzle!' Nie Huaisang smiled. "I can't deny your logic."

"And you, detective?"

Lan Wangji nodded. "General. It fits with the ex-military and I can always tell someone 'Yes, General' with a sloppy salute. Acceptable?"

"Acceptable." A grin. "How do you gentlemen feel about a test run?"

"Tonight?" Lan Wangji was obviously considering the idea.

"I don't see why not. Your gear is ready. We dirty you up a bit and there's no reason not to go out for an hour or so."

Yu Bin nodded. "I agree. It will help us identify any problems and we can fix them before we're out for most of the night."

"Let's get ready." Lan Wangji was oddly excited. This was completely different than anything he had ever attempted. He always did like a challenge.

"Wonderful! Where is your cooking oil?" Nie Huaisang was already on his feet headed toward the kitchen leaving Yu Bin and Lan Wangji blinking at each other.

In no time, Ni Huaisang had the two seated on stools in the kitchen. He dipped his finger tips in the small bowl of oil. He delicately began to massage it into Lan Wangji's scalp. "This will make it look like you haven't washed your hair in a bit. If necessary consider it a hair mask. Once you wash it out, your hair will be so soft." Lan Wangji had no idea what to think of having his head massaged and especially by Nie Huaisang.

Yu Bin didn't know what to think either. The inspector was a little more liberal on his head. "Your chances of renting a hotel room and taking a shower are low so you're hair would be lank and hanging in clumps." Using a paper towel, he scruffed their hair to remove any extra oil. "Can't have drips!"

Nie Huaisang stood before them with a critical eye. "I'll be right back." then disappeared into the garden.

In no time he was back with dirt spread across his hands. He sprinkled a bit in their hair after cautioning them not to move and then rubbed it in on various parts of their faces. When he decided he was satisfied with the results, he began to work the small amount of dirt into their hair. "This will make it fall in clumps which is closer to what unwashed hair actually looks like. Oh, and stop shaving."

He fastidiously washed his hands and turned. Yu Bin and Lan Wangji were still seated on the stools like school children waiting to be dismissed.

"Let's go, gentlemen! We have work to do!" Nie Huaisang clapped his hands at them like he was shooing chickens. They hastily fled the kitchen to don their disguises.
~~~

Yiling was setting up the scene for the evening. Inspired by his dream, he decided to play his dizi. A loose white tank top with the front tucked into another pair of tight jeans. A high ponytail with no ribbon and bare feet finished tonight's illusion.

A deep breath and he opened the curtain. He flipped on the red light and began to play a haunting tune. It spoke of longing and loss, love and loneliness.

He fell into his song unaware of the small crowd gathering to listen. It wasn't long before the door to his room opened with the first customer of the evening. He let the song trail away to a whisper. Slowly, the curtain was drawn and the red light extinguished.
~~~

Lan Wangji was ambling unsteadily down the street. 'No, Huang Feng is walking down the street.' he told himself.

He and Yu- Chen Li had been dropped off at two different locations outside of the red light district. They would converge at the designated block, spend an hour and then walk back out to their separate pick up points.

Huang Feng realized he could hear music. A flute? Half a block ahead, several people were clustered around one of the display windows used to show available prostitutes. As he neared, the music faded and the people began to disperse.

Continuing down the street, he walked past the closed curtain.
~♡~♡~♡~

Please remember:

Huang Feng = Lan Wangji
Chen Li = Yu Bin

Smiles everyone!

❤🍫🫖❤