Red Light

Ready

Yu Bin looked at himself in the mirror. Jeans, a green Beijing Guoan soccer t-shirt, blue jean jacket and sneakers. With the exception of the hair style Nie Huaisang insisted on fixing again, he looked like himself. It was strange considering it was an undercover op.

He looked at himself in the mirror. Locking eyes. Was he right? He thought he had seen it but he wasn't sure. It was so brief. Just a glance really.  Yu Bin sighed. He didn't like uncertainty.

As a police officer, he could accept it. There was no way to have all the answers.  Concerning himself however? He didn't like it at all.

Yu Bin knew himself well. He had known early he liked boys and girls. He thought everyone did. The innocence that was at the core of Yu Bin didn't realize until his teens that people could be mean about who you found attractive.

It never seemed like a big deal to him. Why did it matter?  This was about the individuals involved. No one else.

But, and this was a very big but, what if he was wrong? What if he hadn't really seen it? Hadn't seen what he was beginning to hope was in those eyes? He rubbed his forehead.

He was a police officer. He would just watch and wait until he was sure. Jiang Cheng always said, "If you aren't sure what to do, follow SOP** until you hear otherwise."

It was good advice.

A knock on the guest room door brought him out of his reverie.

"Everything okay in there? Can I come in?" Nie Huaisang asked.

Yu Bin grinned, "Come in."

As the inspector entered, he added, "I'm fine. Just seems odd going out undercover looking like myself." Another glance in the mirror.

Nie Huaisang looked over Yu Bin's outfit. He looked good. With a small smile he adjusted a lock of Yu Bin's hair to fall slightly on his forehead. "There you go. Perfect."

There it was again! Yu Bin saw another flash in the inspector's eyes. It was what he was looking for. He beamed at Nie Huaisang.

"I'm ready when you are."
-----

Lan Wangji was waiting for them in the living room. In khakis, a white polo shirt buttoned to the top and a beige zip up jacket, he screamed both mid level management and conservative. He was even wearing horn rimmed glasses.

Yu Bin was surprised. "You wear glasses?"

"Someone thought it was the perfect touch." The detective was looking steadily at Nie Huaisang.

"Am I wrong? You look splendid! It will be totally believable when you drag Zhang Zihao out of the clutches of the lustful temptresses who abound in the red light district." His voice had dropped as if he was revealing dark secrets.

At this point, Yu Bin was giggling. A sound Nie Huaisang oddly found he thoroughly enjoyed.

Lan Wangji rolled his eyes making them burst into laughter.

It was a good way to start the evening.
-----

"Here is tonight's plan." Nie Huaisang said as they drove toward the convention center. "I have the video cams hidden in your jackets again. Same location. No earbuds again so remember I can hear you but I won't contact you unless something is serious and then I'll call your cover phones. Got it?"

"Mn" and "Got it!" were heard in the car.

"I will drop you off on the side of the convention center. There's a blank spot in their CCTV coverage. No one will be able to see if you were dropped off."

"Walk to the front and hail a cab. You haven't eaten so ask the cabbie to take you to a good local place. Eat when you get there. Hungry bellies mean clouded minds." He glanced at Yu Bin in his rear view mirror. Something Yu Bin noted.

"From there, either call a DiDi or hail a cab to go to the red light district. Don't stay past midnight. Most of the convention guys are very aware they are ultimately here for work and won't risk losing their job for a night's fun. If there is a searing question feel free to call in the guise of contacting a wife or friend but be aware of location  and circumstance. Zhang Zihao can call his friends while standing in front of a window full of gyrating women. Lin Cheung can't call his wife in the same situation."

Yu Bin laughed. Lan Wangji was sporting a small smile as he answered, "Point taken."

"You know the area we're covering tonight. We'll take the other half tomorrow night." He paused. "Avoid Wen Chao if you can. That's part of why I gave you glasses, Lan Wangji. It doesn't take much to throw people off. A new hair style, glasses, different clothes can make a huge difference in blending with the crowd. Take advantage of it."

He stopped the car by the convention center. "I've got my secretary monitoring the visuals until I get to my office but I can hear you. Be careful and good luck."

He turned in his seat to smile at them, re-affirming his belief in their abilities. Lan Wangji nodded as he got out of the car. Yu Bin had looked him in the eye and gave Nie Huaisang a smile that had his heart skipping a beat. His eyes had widened slightly in surprise then Yu Bin had slid out of the car and was walking away with his partner.

Nie Huaisang let out the breath he didn't realize he was holding and started laughing.

'Damned if you didn't surprise me again, Yu Bin. You are a breath of fresh air. I never would have thought you could be so bold!"

The inspector smiled all the way back to the station.
-----

In the spirit of an adventurous evening, Zhang Zihao had talked Lin Cheung into trying a new cuisine.

It wasn't long before they were sitting in a small Korean restaurant enjoying japchae, pajeon and bulgogi. Lin Cheung had politely refused the spicy sauce, gochujang. Zhang Zihao had put a generous amount on a bite of bulgogi and had downed half a beer trying to put out the fire in his mouth.

They discussed the convention, how cute Mei-Mei was, how Nie An was up for a promotion and where Zhang Zihao wanted to go hiking next. Anyone listening at the next table would have never guessed who they actually were.

Lin Cheung settled the bill, carefully saving the receipt for his expense report, and looked at his friend.

"Are you sure you want to do this? We can just go back to the hotel and get a good night's sleep."

"Are you kidding? We are going to have such fun! And I promise, we'll leave no later than midnight. Okay?" Zhang Zihao was all smiles as he talked his co-worker into another adventure.

He sighed. "No later than midnight?"

"Absolutely not! Midnight it is!"

Lin Cheung gave in with a grumbled, "Okay."

Zhang Zihao's smile got broader. "You won't regret it, my friend!"

A grunt was the only response Lin Cheung gave as they got into the cab. Zhang Zihao laughed and told the cabby where they were going.

~♡~♡~♡~

SOP stands for Standard Operating Proceedure.

I think it'll be a couple of days between updates but it shouldn't be too long! ❤

HUGS, Smiles and Chocolate!

❤🍫🫖❤