Watching Xie Tangmao being led out of the interrogation room, You Mingxu leaned back in her chair, arms crossed, tilting her head up with her eyes closed.
"He seems submissive, timid, and eager to distance himself," she murmured. "In any case, he claims to know nothing."
"That might just be the facade he's accustomed to presenting," Yin Feng said. "Look at how much he spoke—every sentence was grandiose but empty, carefully avoiding any substance. He might actually be quite clever, believing this kind of attitude allows him to manipulate everyone."
You Mingxu glanced at him, then at the clock on the wall. Fan Jia had been missing for three hours.
She clenched her fists.
Among the Gold Splitting Treasure Company management personnel brought in for questioning, the financial director Zhang Wei stood out as particularly distinctive. She was exceptionally beautiful and carried herself with an alluring charm. Yet, when faced with police questioning, she was also the most unyielding.
No matter what the police asked, whether using soft or hard tactics, she remained silent. Occasionally, she would take a sip of water, smooth her hair, and gaze indifferently to the side.
Only when the police were at a loss did she smile, her voice gentle and refined: "Has our company's lawyer arrived yet? The police engaged in entrapment, bringing us here without cause, and it's the Criminal Investigation Division at that. Even if our company has done something improper, it should fall under Economic Crime Investigation's jurisdiction, shouldn't it? Is what you're doing compliant with regulations? Do citizens still have human rights? When will you release us? Otherwise, we'll have no choice but to post online to file a complaint."
...
The others brought in were either company employees or hired thugs and ruffians. Some claimed to know nothing, while others only knew they were supposed to capture a girl but were unaware of the details.
Not long after, the analysis results from the computer You Mingxu had seized from Zhou Rongfeng's office came back from the technical team. The hard drive had been destroyed, thoroughly wiped by a virus program, with no current technology capable of recovering it in the short term.
Meanwhile, the police temporarily reassigned a large number of officers from the serial murder task force to search for Fan Jia near the Gold Splitting Treasure Company. However, the area was extremely densely populated with chaotic housing arrangements, and no trace of her had been found yet.
Dawn gradually broke.
Lao Tan ordered: "Push them! Keep pushing! Make sure the Provincial Department speeds up the fingerprint results! We must get them before we have to release anyone! Damn it, if you don't pressure them and make a fuss, with all the cases they have, how will they prioritize this? You Mingxu, call Lao Ding—isn't he your master? Troops are maintained for a thousand days to be used for one hour—go cry to him now!"
As time passed, those from the Gold Splitting Treasure Company detained at the police station yielded no further information. You Mingxu, Xu Mengshan, and others had joined the larger team, conducting a carpet search for Fan Jia.
The sun slanted westward.
The deadline for releasing the detainees was approaching.
Xu Mengshan had long disappeared, having vanished into some street corner searching. You Mingxu, accompanied by Yin Feng, emerged from a shop empty-handed.
Anxious, overwhelmed, and utterly frantic—this described their state perfectly.
By now, the two hadn't eaten for a full day and night. You Mingxu had passed the point of hunger, now only feeling acid reflux in her stomach, no longer sensing hunger. Just as she was about to charge forward again, Yin Feng grabbed her hand.
Beside the road was a snack shop with a couple of tables occupied, fragrant smells wafting from it. Yin Feng said: "A Xu, I'm really hungry."
Only then did You Mingxu notice that You Yingjun, who was always clear-eyed and impeccably neat, now had dark circles under his eyes and looked somewhat haggard."Eat." She followed him as they sat down. They casually ordered some food, and when the dishes were served, You Mingxu realized just how famished she was, immediately burying her head in the meal.
Soon after, a bottle of water was placed in front of her—brought by Yin Feng. She said, "Thank you." Only then did she feel parched, unscrewing the cap and taking a large gulp.
Yin Feng watched her cold, stubborn expression, tinged with exhaustion and a hint of numbness, and felt as though his heart had been struck by a dull, painful blow.
You Mingxu finished eating quickly. Yin Feng, after all, was a man who had trained alongside her for so long, had picked up speed too, swiftly polishing off his meal and downing half a bottle of water in one go. Seeing his demeanor, You Mingxu actually laughed.
Noticing this, Yin Feng asked, "What are you laughing at?"
You Mingxu replied, "At how rough and resilient you've become, just like us detectives."
He lowered his head with a faint smile, reverting somewhat to his innocent, delicate appearance, and asked her, "Is that better, then?"
She paused for a moment before responding, "Mm."
He lifted his head, gazing into her eyes in the twilight. You Mingxu abruptly recalled the previous kiss—how, in his uncontrolled state, he had charged at her like a young leopard, forcefully kissing her. It had hurt her heart and jolted her back to rationality. After a moment of silence, she stood up and said, "Let's go."
He rose with her, and after they had walked a few steps, he suddenly reached out, placing his hand lightly on her shoulder and leaning in close to ask softly, "Are you tired, A Xu?"
You Mingxu felt a slight tremble run through her entire back, especially the shoulder under his hand, which suddenly felt much heavier. Staring straight ahead, she said, "I'm not tired."
He replied, "That's good." His masculine presence lingered near her cheek. They walked on like this for a while before his hand quietly dropped away.
Night had finally fallen.
This also meant that the police station had released its personnel.
You Mingxu and Yin Feng still had nothing to show for their efforts. No good news had come from the other teams either.
Standing in the silent, dark alley, with pedestrians and vehicles passing not far away, You Mingxu's heart sank into an even deeper darkness. At the same time, she realized she was increasingly feeling the urge to discuss the case with the person beside her, to seek his opinion.
So she said, "Who do you think it is? She disappeared from their company, within just over half an hour. It must be connected to that group of people."
Whenever she called on him, Yin Feng naturally gave it his all, replying, "Zhou Rongfeng is still in the hospital, but he insisted right in the office that Fan Jia was the one who injured him and then ran off. One is ruthless and decisive, one is meticulous and cunning, one feigns weakness, and the other two are impenetrable. Theoretically, any of them could have hidden or taken Fan Jia after she was separated. That even includes the injured Zhou Rongfeng."
"Then do you think the others were aware of what Zhou Rongfeng intended to do to Fan Jia at the time?" You Mingxu pressed.
Yin Feng's eyes gleamed clearly: "I think... they all knew."
"But Fan Jia's disappearance wasn't a conspiracy. Because when we burst in, they were still making a big show of searching for her. Which means one person, hiding it from the others..."
Yin Feng continued, "...took Fan Jia for themselves."
A chill ran through You Mingxu's heart. Reluctant as she was, she consulted the criminal psychology expert: "Do you think... will Fan Jia be okay?"Yin Feng looked into her eyes, and the blunt phrase "more likely dead than alive" that had been on the tip of his tongue suddenly became unspeakable.
Almost instinctively, he reached out and pressed the back of her head. This way, half of her was practically cradled in his arm. It was the first time he had ever made such a gesture toward her. You Mingxu didn't move, and he said earnestly, "Among the pack of wolves hides a venomous snake. But the two eagles soaring in the sky will surely hunt them down, relentlessly and without rest."
You Mingxu remained silent for a moment, then chuckled softly. Seeing her laugh, he smiled too. Yet his fingers, as if guided by instinct, gently kneaded through her long hair. You Mingxu only felt the faint pressure of his fingers, a subtle tingling sensation that made her tremble slightly from her head down to her neck. She thought to herself, he truly could—a man with a boyish demeanor—really treat her like a genuine man would.
In this moment of silence, neither of them felt able to end or disrupt it. Until You Mingxu's phone rang, she tilted her head away from his hand and answered.
Han Feng's grave voice came through the other end, "Xiao You, the first batch of fingerprint comparison results are out."
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