Who pulled the trigger 8 Pei Qingyu's brow twitched, before he could...

"It really is so cold."

Chapter 8: Who pulled the trigger 8 Pei Qingyu's brow twitched, before he could...

The sound of the elevator slowly came to a stop on the thirteenth floor.

Xun Yin led Pei Qingyu slowly to the opposite side of the curtains. Pei Qingyu suddenly picked up the thin cord from the floor. Xun Yin immediately understood and tied its other end beneath the air conditioner.

A jumble of footsteps gradually approached, and two dark figures slowly crept onto the thirteenth floor. Xun Yin and Pei Qingyu hid to one side and watched the two head straight for the curtains, feeling around for something on the floor.

"A-Xun, set the air conditioner to its lowest temperature."

Pei Qingyu suddenly leaned toward Xun Yin's ear and spoke softly. To keep his voice down, he had to lean extremely close. His warm breath brushed Xun Yin's ear, making even his earlobe grow hot despite himself. Xun Yin nodded silently and quickly switched on the air conditioner.

A sudden beep rang through the silent floor, startling the two dark figures. One of them instantly bellowed, "Who's there?"

"Bro, it's the air conditioner. Do air conditioners at big companies like this switch themselves on at set times?" The other looked around and, finding nothing unusual, spoke dubiously.

"Murder scenes are bad luck." The man spat. "That kid at the police station said he secretly hid the thing during the last search of the scene and didn't dare take it away. Who knows where he tossed it? Now we're fumbling around in the dark."

Company C's air conditioner cooled the room very effectively. Even Xun Yin could feel a faint chill on his arms now. Pei Qingyu had remained silent beside him, but their fingertips had accidentally brushed just now, and Xun Yin could feel that his captain's fingertips were icy, as though they held no warmth at all.

Half an hour passed, and the two men searching in the dark began to grow impatient. Xun Yin suddenly felt the person beside him sway, then immediately straighten again. Alarmed, he hurriedly steadied him. By the light from outside the building, he could see Pei Qingyu's faintly knitted brows and pale face.

"I'm fine. I just felt dizzy for a moment." Pei Qingyu shook his head. They had made rather a lot of noise just now, and he wasn't sure whether the two men had heard. He was about to look more closely when he lost sight of them.

Pei Qingyu's heart tightened. At that same instant, a rush of air swept past his ear. Xun Yin immediately turned sideways and caught the incoming punch, while Pei Qingyu swept out a leg, instantly forcing their attacker two steps back. The two exchanged a glance in the darkness and understood at once. Pei Qingyu turned and ran toward the air conditioner a short distance away. Xun Yin stepped forward and flung up the curtain beside him, forcing the man another step back, gradually driving him closer to the air conditioner.

Only one man was fighting Xun Yin; the other remained hidden in the darkness. As Pei Qingyu moved swiftly toward his destination, he kept part of his attention on his surroundings. A faint swish suddenly came from ahead to his left. Pei Qingyu quickly ducked, but a sudden pain struck his heart. His body stiffened, and he gasped for breath. By the time he tried to dodge again, it was too late. Something slammed hard into his shoulder.

Pei Qingyu gave a muffled grunt, but immediately pinpointed the man's position. He rolled aside with the momentum of his fall, seized the man's collar, and forced his head up, asking with a soft laugh, "What are you looking for?"

The man struggled without speaking. Pei Qingyu tied him to a nearby chair, then hid in the shadows and slowly steadied his breathing. "Don't rush... we'll give it to you in a moment."

Meanwhile, Xun Yin kept drawing the other man closer. Hidden in the darkness, Pei Qingyu seized his chance and called out in a low voice, "A-Xun!" Xun Yin understood and immediately ducked and slid beneath the thin cord. The man behind him failed to dodge in time, running straight into the cord neck-first. His breathing cut off, and he fainted on the spot.

"Looks like the murderer didn't tell you how to use the thing when they sent you to find it." Xun Yin tied the two men together. Pei Qingyu sat leaning against a desk and pressed his chest, panting softly as he said, "With the air conditioner set to its lowest temperature, a thin layer of ice formed on the wet cord, pulling it tighter and making it strong enough to choke someone unconscious."

"And it was snowing that day, so the temperature was even lower. The thin cord lay flush against the glass, making it hard to spot and more likely to freeze, so the murderer soaked it in salt water-to slow the freezing process and create an alibi. This kind of cord is extremely tough, and even slight thermal expansion and contraction was enough to make the taut cord pull a lightweight trigger." Pei Qingyu bent halfway forward, his cool, clear voice sinking lower little by little. "At first, we were still wondering how the □□ and the thin cord disappeared, but the traitor you just mentioned answered that question for us..."

Bending over for too long was a little more than Pei Qingyu's heart could take. He straightened and glanced at Xun Yin beside him. Xun Yin naturally crouched down and picked up where Pei Qingyu had left off, holding out a hand. "Hand it over."

"...What?" The conscious man fell silent. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Give me the gun that killed Lin Zhou," Xun Yin said coldly. "Then you can explain how the bullet disappeared."

Xun Yin ignored him, pushed him down, and began searching him. The man snickered and continued, "We don't have the gun. We don't have it..."

He suddenly raised his head and viciously fixed his gaze on the frowning Pei Qingyu. "Or rather, it's still here, but we don't have it."

A crisp click suddenly sounded in the darkness. Pei Qingyu's brow twitched. Before he could say anything, his body had already lunged forward, instantly tackling Xun Yin to the floor.

Bang-

Chapter 9: Who pulled the trigger 9 They were right in the middle of the shipping container...

"Captain!"

Xun Yin reacted the instant Pei Qingyu lunged toward him, but it was too late to turn. All he could do was drag him a little to one side.

"Captain, are you hurt?"

Even Xun Yin's breathing was tense. He wanted to prop himself up slightly to check Pei Qingyu's condition, but as soon as he began to rise, he heard a muffled grunt from the man lying on top of him.

-Xun Yin instantly stopped moving.

"Captain, were you shot?" Xun Yin asked anxiously, holding his half-raised position.

With his vision diminished in the darkness, his other senses were magnified without limit. Xun Yin could feel Pei Qingyu trembling uncontrollably before he finally let out a slow breath. "No," Pei Qingyu said hoarsely. "It tore a gash, but the bullet didn't go in."