Chapter Forty-Five

After returning home, Liu Mumu was still thinking about what had just happened.

Lü Yao's experience was indeed pitiable, but that wasn't what bothered her. What bothered her was the other party's attitude.

When ordinary people encounter such a situation, their first thought is to call the police. Even if they believe the police have no evidence and cannot solve the case, they would still consider divorce for self-preservation.

Yet, Lü Yao chose to find a fortune teller.

While it's true that skilled fortune tellers can resolve many issues, in the eyes of ordinary people, fortune-telling is usually the last resort. Unless there's absolutely no other way, who would immediately think of using fortune-telling to solve a problem?

Also, why did she come to her?

Jiang Li introduced her to Zhang Xueqi, but Zhang Xueqi didn't choose her. Firstly, her appearance didn't look like a master, and she couldn't fool Old Mrs. Zhang. Secondly, it was bound to mean a lack of trust in her abilities.

Without witnessing her fortune-telling skills, and without her revealing her Diviner's License, it was normal for others not to trust her.

But Lü Yao seemed to be placing all her hopes on her. Where did her trust come from?

Liu Mumu didn't object to fortune-telling, but Lü Yao gave her a strange feeling, so she chose to refuse.

Before going to sleep that night, Liu Mumu "harassed" Yan Xiu as usual.

Liu Mumu: You there? Peeking.jpg

Liu Mumu: Extending a paw.jpg

Liu Mumu: Your little treasure is here. jpg

At this moment, Yan Xiu was at the dinner table. After the news of Xu Yongshuang's capture was reported to headquarters, headquarters likely had a discussion and finally sent two Gu Masters. Yan Ling, who had originally taken over the case, and a general supervisor, Gu Lan.

This supervisor had a distant relative connection to Yan Xiu's mother, making her a sort of elder to him. Although they didn't have much of a relationship, he couldn't pretend not to know her. So, he decided to treat everyone to a meal and get acquainted with Fang Chuan, to avoid any friction during the subsequent investigation.

At the dinner table, they were relatively friendly when not discussing the case. However, once the case was brought up, neither side yielded an inch.

Yan Xiu and Yan Ling mediated, and the meal was barely concluded.

When elders dine with juniors, if not discussing official matters, they can only talk about personal matters. Gu Lan and Yan Xiu's mother had a good relationship, so it was inevitable that she would ask about girlfriends.

"Not yet," Yan Xiu replied.

"I have a nice girl here, why don't I introduce you? She's my niece, twenty-six years old. She..." Before Gu Lan came, she had just spoken with Yan Xiu's mother. Her saying this was, of course, with Yan Xiu's mother's consent.

Yan Xiu's mother had even pre-screened the potential match for Yan Xiu.

Yan Ling shook her head nearby. Even for a "top-quality" catch like her cousin, her aunt had to go to great lengths to introduce him to girlfriends. It seemed single people truly had no human rights in this world.

Before Gu Lan could finish speaking, Yan Xiu's phone rang with a series of message notifications.

She wanted to continue, but Yan Xiu uncharacteristically picked up his phone and apologized, "Sorry, I need to take a call."

"Go ahead." Gu Lan helplessly shook her head, knowing Yan Xiu was using this method to refuse her.

What a shame. Watching the outstanding young man leave the private room, she sighed inwardly with some disappointment. The eldest son of the Yan family, if a successful marriage alliance could be formed, it would bring countless benefits to her family.

She thought tonight would at most end with a simple goodnight, but unexpectedly, Yan Xiu sent a video call.

The sudden surprise left Liu Mumu a bit dazed.

Her hands moved faster than her brain, and she directly accepted the call. The phone screen then showed her, lying on the bed in a dinosaur-themed onesie, and Yan Xiu, impeccably dressed in a suit, seemingly in a hotel corridor.

The two were separated not by time or space, but by dimensions.

Yan Xiu admired the little dinosaur pajamas, a slight smile curving his lips. "Nice pajamas."

Liu Mumu buried her face in the covers, suddenly feeling a little embarrassed. He had clearly refused to video call her before. Why did he ambush her today when she wasn't prepared? It was totally against Martial virtue!

After three seconds of awkwardness, Liu Mumu's face reappeared on the screen, and she quickly changed the subject. "Aren't you home? What is this place?"

"A hotel, for guests."

Liu Mumu's antenna immediately perked up. "Are there any pretty young ladies?"

"There's a pretty auntie."

"Oh... then don't you need to chat with the pretty auntie?" she asked hypocritically.

Yan Xiu raised an eyebrow. "Should I go back now?"

"No need. I think the auntie probably doesn't want you to come back." Liu Mumu quickly stopped him, realizing this topic was also unsafe. She changed the subject again.

Recalling her experiences from the past few days, Liu Mumu's momentum surged. She got out of bed and said aggressively, "Next time, don't stick talisman paper on my face. And that Little Brother Wu who sent me home, did you ask him to drive a police car right to my doorstep? Everyone thought I'd gotten into trouble again."

"Were they wrong to think that?"

"Of course! I'm just a warm-hearted citizen. Although my warmth is a bit more than others, can you deny I helped? If you didn't give me a banner of honor, you even stuck talisman paper on me. You bad guy!"

Yan Xiu thought for a moment and said, "Okay, I'll have Fang Chuan send you ten banners of honor later."

Liu Mumu's cheeks puffed out in anger. Was it about the banners of honor? She was talking about the talisman paper! He was clearly changing the subject on purpose.

Seeing that she was about to explode with anger, Yan Xiu asked, "Have there been any strange people around you recently?"

"Strange people? Did something else happen?"

"It's related to the case. I can't tell you yet."

Actually, it was because after Fang Chuan captured Xu Yongshuang, he found a message on his phone that he hadn't managed to delete.

Only a few minutes apart. If the other party had been a little earlier, they might have been able to help Xu Yongshuang escape.

They showed the information to Xu Yonglin. He didn't know if Xu Yongshuang had any accomplices in Qing City. For the past few years, it had just been the two brothers refining Gu together, with no one else.

However, Xu Yongshuang often contacted outsiders. When the numbers of those people were called, they turned out to be invalid numbers, and their origins could no longer be traced.

He and Fang Chuan discussed it for a while. Initially, they suspected there was a mole in the police station.

The Xu brothers' case had never been brought into the open. Even before Xu Yongshuang surrendered, the case was under the jurisdiction of headquarters. Even the case files related to Zhuo Ran were submitted together.

Apart from the internal personnel of the Special Case Investigation Section, it was almost impossible for outsiders to know about this matter.

But this didn't make sense. If an insider had leaked the information, why did it happen precisely during the arrest of Xu Yongshuang? The timing was so tight. Was it because they didn't sincerely want to help him, or did they just receive the news?

If the problem wasn't with the police station, then it was likely with Liu Mumu.

Perhaps someone had heard something from her? Yan Xiu didn't think she would casually tell others about the case, not even her father.

Another possibility was that someone saw her interacting with Xu Yonglin, recognized Xu Yonglin, and then saw her being sent home by the police, making some connections.

Coincidentally, the time Liu Mumu was sent home was exactly when they began their arrest operation, which matched the timing of that piece of information.

But this possibility was also very small.

The probability of coincidence in this matter was too high.

Someone familiar with Xu Yongshuang happened to appear near Liu Mumu, and coincidentally witnessed all of this?

Of course, these were all just speculations, with no evidence. There was no time to investigate the source of that information now. It was just a casual question that came up.

Liu Mumu thought for a moment and couldn't help but think of Lü Yao again. After hesitating, she still said, "I happened to encounter a strange person today, but it's probably different from what you're thinking."

"Tell me about it," Yan Xiu said patiently.

Liu Mumu told him what happened that day and then added, "Do you think I'm being too sensitive? Maybe she was really desperate and wanted my help?"

"When desperate, one should seek help from the police, not you."

"Maybe she was soft-hearted and wanted to confirm first. It doesn't seem wrong," Liu Mumu said after thinking.

"Confirm with a neighbor who looks unreliable? She wouldn't tell others such secrets but would tell you? Are you very close?"

Liu Mumu shook her head. "It's precisely because we're not close that I find it strange."

"So, your choice was correct."

Even Yan Xiu felt he had done the right thing, and Liu Mumu finally felt at ease.

With her mood relaxed, she yawned, perfectly embodying the phrase "used and discarded." She settled herself into the soft, warm duvet and waved her paw at her phone, "I'm going to sleep, bye bye."

"Good night," Yan Xiu's voice lowered.

Liu Mumu blew him a loud kiss and hung up the video call.

Behind Yan Xiu, Yan Ling, who had come out looking for him, looked embarrassed. Before she could hide, Yan Xiu caught her red-handed.

Yan Ling shrank back and whispered, "I didn't mean to eavesdrop."

Yan Xiu ignored her, put away his phone, and said calmly, "Let's go."

His tone was completely different from the gentle one he used when saying good night.

When Yan Xiu returned, it was quite late, and everyone had mostly finished eating. They sent the guests to the hotel, leaving only Fang Chuan.

Sitting in Yan Xiu's car, watching the scenery quickly pass by the window, Fang Chuan rubbed his temples with a headache. "That leader doesn't seem easy to deal with. When you were away before, she kept hinting that I should hand the incense burner over to headquarters for research."

"Since they want to research it, let them research it for a few days. As long as they can't take the item away, satisfy all their requests."

"What, you're sure they won't be able to research anything?" Fang Chuan asked with interest.

Yan Xiu didn't answer directly, only saying, "The Xu brothers were quite talented among Gu Masters."

"Whatever, I just need to cooperate anyway."

"By the way, help me investigate someone when you have time."

"Huh? Who?" Fang Chuan asked curiously.

"A neighbor of the Dong family, a woman named Lü Yao. Investigate her thoroughly."

"Wait, the Dong family? Liu Mumu's neighbor? You're not asking me to help her check, are you?"

Yan Xiu glanced at him. "Do I look that bored?"

"Can't say for sure," Fang Chuan clicked his tongue. "You've only met a few times, and I know everything you've said. I've never heard of any issues with her neighbor. You two still keep in touch privately, right?"

"Occasionally."

Fang Chuan looked a little sad. "...Brother, do you remember what you said on your first day reporting for duty? Outside of work hours, no chatting."