I didn't leave right after the Dog Trainer. Instead, I photographed his footprints with my cell phone, took a sample of the sand left by his sole with my rubber gloves, removed the gloves and wrapped them up.

At the entrance of the neighborhood, we came across a Mercedes parked by the side of the road. The driver was as motionless and unresponsive as a puppet–another one of the ‘dogs’ domesticated by the Dog Trainer without a doubt!

I was about to get into the car when Song Xingchen held my shoulder and warned, "Think twice."

"Don't worry,” I sighed. “I will never betray my principles!"

I knew exactly why the Dog Trainer wanted me to handle such dirty work. He was a master at brainwashing which began with action. If I accepted such moralless tasks one task at a time, my...