The moment Ji An released Liu Jiayi, Liu Jiayi's expression immediately changed, and she once again became the confused little girl who had lost her father.
She seemed reluctant to part from Ji An's warm embrace. She gently lifted her arms as if to hug Ji An again, but she soon realized it was inappropriate. Thus, she quickly and nervously let them fall.
Liu Jiayi lowered her hands and shyly smoothed her clothes. Tears still clung to her trembling eyelashes.
These small movements made Liu Jiayi look exactly like a little girl devastated after losing a close relative. Ji An's expression softened even more.
Mu Sicheng, who witnessed all of this, wore an even more complicated and strange expression. "..."
He wasn't surprised that Liu Huai had been completely manipulated by Liu Jiayi.
Liu Jiayi's acting deserved an Oscar. The child could go from brewing emotions to crying in less than a second.
Mu Sicheng wanted to wake Ji An up. The little girl, whom she thought was pitiful and lovely, had jumped down from the sixth floor without blinking just three minutes ago. Did she really think this little girl would go all the way to a policeman's house to find his wife simply because she didn't have a father?
In addition, this little girl's original plan had been to kidnap Ji An and threaten her husband into revealing Bai Liu's whereabouts.
Now, seeing Ji An trying to comfort Liu Jiayi, a chill ran down Mu Sicheng's back, and he couldn't help rubbing his arms.
This was terrible! What type of people had Bai Liu gathered for this team?!
"I rarely get involved in Su Yang's work. His work is highly confidential, and I don't know what he does." Ji An had been coaxed by Liu Jiayi. She was still wary, but her tone had begun to relax. "However, I can ask for you. If he is willing to speak, I can help give you the address. As relatives of the detained person, you should be able to visit him."
"If it is your father who was arrested, then who is this man who came with you?" Ji An looked at Mu Sicheng suspiciously.
Before Mu Sicheng could open his mouth, Liu Jiayi quickly answered, "He is my father's friend."
Ji An was about to ask a few more questions when there was another knock at the door.
Mu Sicheng quickly grabbed Liu Jiayi's hand. Before Ji An could react, the two of them rushed into the baby's room and locked the door.
Ji An anxiously knocked twice and twisted the handle. It wouldn't open. The key to the baby's room was still in Mu Sicheng's hand. She couldn't get in from the outside unless he unlocked it.
Liu Jiayi's weak voice came from inside, timid and trembling. "Big Sister, as long as you help ask about my father, Bai Liu, we won't hurt your child. I swear."
Ji An's panic lessened slightly when she thought about how Liu Jiayi had saved her child and Mu Sicheng had saved her. She stood in front of the baby's room for a long time before finally steadying herself and going to open the front door.
This time, it wasn't Su Yang.
The person standing outside was a young man dressed very simply.
Ji An recognized the watch on his wrist. She had seen it on a television program; it was said to cost millions. The young man's features were delicate, his clothes meticulously maintained, and a pair of finely crafted glasses rested on the bridge of his nose. He wasn't very tall, but at first glance, he exuded an imposing presence.
The man was almost her height and didn't seem particularly aggressive. Having already experienced a nighttime intrusion, Ji An was much calmer. Besides, an adult man was hiding in the baby's room who didn't appear weak.
Ji An steadied herself and looked at the man outside. "May I ask who you are?"
"My name is Mu Ke." Mu Ke bowed politely to Ji An. Then he straightened and asked, equally politely, "This is Su Yang's home. Are you Su Yang's partner?"
Mu Ke was wearing black leather gloves and carrying two black briefcases secured with combination locks.
"I am." Ji An nodded hesitantly, her eyes drifting to the briefcases. "What do you want with him?"
Mu Ke lifted one briefcase and turned the password lock several times. Then he opened it slightly for Ji An to see. It was filled with gold bars.
Ji An stared at Mu Ke in astonishment. "This is?!"
"May I come in and speak with you?" Mu Ke shook the briefcases lightly and smiled politely. "After all, these two briefcases that your husband wants aren't light. It isn't very safe for me to stand outside holding them."
Ji An stepped aside. "Please come in."
The bright golden gleam she had just seen lingered in her mind. Ji An still felt dizzy when she sat down. She had never dreamed that someone would come to her door in the middle of the night with two briefcases full of gold bars.
"What do you mean by saying these briefcases are what my husband wants?" Ji An asked sharply.
"You should ask your husband." Mu Ke sat on the sofa, hands resting on his knees, smiling at Ji An across from him. "Ask him why he allowed his team members to arrest an ordinary person who hasn't committed any crime, and then came to me—the ordinary man's wealthy friend—to demand an astronomical bail."
"No way." Ji An denied it immediately. "Su Yang wouldn't do such a thing!"
Even if Su Yang hadn't done such a thing, that didn't prevent Mu Ke from presuming he had and using the assumption to manipulate Ji An.
"Did he really not do it?" Mu Ke's eyes were calm, his smile unchanged. "Then why was my friend arrested? Around ten o'clock tonight, Su Yang's team members came to my villa and warned me to pay the bail quickly, or they would arrest me as an accomplice."
Ji An clenched her hands and bit her lower lip.
At ten o'clock tonight, Su Yang had called her to say the team was heading to a wealthy district for a special task assigned at the last minute.
His tone had been frustrated when he said he couldn't return home. He mentioned that his captain had ordered arrests despite the lack of clear evidence in the case.
Why arrest people before the case was clarified?
Su Yang had also said their captain hadn't been himself recently. They had detained many people who hadn't done anything…
Her gaze fell on the two briefcases of gold bars. Mu Ke opened them fully, and golden light flooded her vision.
Ji An quickly looked away as if burned. Her fists clenched as she stood and began pacing nervously.
"Impossible!" Her chest rose and fell as she squeezed her eyes shut, refusing to look at the gold bars or Mu Ke. "Su Yang isn't that kind of person! Take the gold bars away!"
"What is your recent financial situation?" Mu Ke's voice was clear even through her closed eyes. "This second-hand apartment isn't very safe. You've long planned to move to a new house, but your finances can't keep up. After all, a newborn requires a great deal of money."
"The birth of a child changes your thoughts and values. Haven't you changed since becoming a mother? For your child's sake, you're willing to do many things you wouldn't have done before, aren't you?"
Ji An's breathing quickened, her nails digging into her palms.
"How can you be certain your husband hasn't changed?" Mu Ke's tone grew persuasive. "Even if he hasn't, what if his superior has? What if the people around him have? Maybe he didn't act willingly, but everyone else did, and he had to cooperate. Isn't that common?"
"However, I don't blame him for it. He didn't do it intentionally." Mu Ke pushed the two briefcases toward Ji An. "I believe your partner is a man of integrity, so I won't expose this as long as you accept the gold bars and give me some information about my friend's location. I will never mention it again. You will be helping Su Yang correct a mistake. You will be saving an innocent person."
Mu Ke adjusted his glasses and smiled. "I think it's a worthwhile sum. It's a good deal for me, and I'm sure Su Yang would think the same."
Ji An's breathing grew uneven. Her hands at her sides trembled as she clenched them tightly, her closed eyelids quivering.
"You only need to ask Su Yang and give me Bai Liu's information," Mu Ke whispered. "I can continue raising the price until you're satisfied. I've brought an entire car of gold bars. We can talk all night."
Ji An's eyes snapped open. "Who did you just say you wanted to save?"
Before Mu Ke could repeat the name Bai Liu, the baby's room door opened. Liu Jiayi stepped out, and Mu Sicheng leaned against the wall with his arms folded. They raised their eyebrows at Mu Ke.
"You came quite quickly."
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At one o'clock in the morning, a weary Su Yang returned home.
The moment he opened the door, he sagged against Ji An and buried his face in her shoulder. "Wife, I'm home."
But the relaxation lasted less than a second. Su Yang quickly straightened and scanned the room. "Has someone been here today?"
The house felt off. Some items had been moved.
Ji An forced a smile. "…The air conditioner outside the baby's room broke and almost fell. I asked someone to repair it."
"That's all…" Su Yang relaxed again and kissed her hair apologetically. "Sorry for making you live in this second-hand place. Once I finish this task, we'll have enough money to move."
Where would he get such a large sum of money?
Ji An wanted to ask, but in the end, she only lowered her head and leaned against his shoulder. "There's nothing to apologize for."
Su Yang didn't notice anything unusual. He unbuttoned his coat and went straight to the baby's room. He bent over the crib and made silly sounds at his daughter.
Seeing his foolish expression, Ji An couldn't stop herself from crying after the turbulent night she had endured.
Su Yang turned and saw her secretly wiping her tears. He walked over helplessly and kissed her forehead. "I made you worry. This is the nature of my work. You shouldn't wait up. Your body can't handle it. You should sleep."
Ji An shook her head. She pressed down on his shoulders and placed her fingers at his temples, gently massaging him. "I can't handle it—but can you?"
Su Yang relaxed completely under her touch. He lay back in the chair, eyes closed, his breathing gradually evening out.
Ji An knew he wasn't fully asleep yet—just drifting in a half-conscious state. His guard would be lowest then.
Lowering her voice, she asked casually, "Who were you arresting tonight? Why was it so sudden? You were supposed to come home for dinner, but ended up working until one in the morning."
Su Yang frowned but didn't open his eyes. "Honestly, I don't think he should've been arrested. But Captain Tang used his authority to detain him. I don't understand why—there's no core evidence. He might be involved, but not to the extent of being detained."
"Recently, Captain Tang has been ordering arrests without core evidence and without follow-up crimes," Su Yang sighed. "He's in bad shape. He drinks a lot. We argued tonight. The team also thinks he's gone too far."
"He wasn't like this before…" His voice slurred as sleep overtook him. "But I still trust Captain Tang. He's doing it for our good. If the person is as he says, then once he's arrested, we won't have to work so hard in the future…"
Ji An slowly exhaled, her suspicions confirmed. Her eyes hardened as she withdrew her hands.
After Su Yang fell asleep, Ji An quietly rose from the bed. She took his work permit and keys from his jacket hanging behind her, opened the baby's room window, and threw them downstairs.
Then she closed the window calmly, kissed the baby, and left the room as if nothing had happened.
Two black leather briefcases were hidden at the side of the crib.
Mu Sicheng, who had been waiting downstairs, picked up the fallen work permit and keys. He sniffed them and wrinkled his nose in disgust before wiping it. Then he grinned. "I don't know what's on this thing, but the smell is strong enough. Let's go. I remember his scent."
Mu Ke had already dialed a number. He looked at Mu Sicheng and Liu Jiayi, holding up his phone. "I contacted the hacker. He's tapped into the GPS. He can track where this person has been."
"Let's go find the car."
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The author has something to say:
Bai Liu: I heard that someone used two briefcases of gold bars to rescue me?
Mu Ke (proudly standing tall): It's me!"
Bai Liu (squinting): Who told you that I am worth two briefcases of gold bars? You can only spend 100 yuan at most on saving me.
Mu Ke: ....
Mu Sicheng: ...
Liu Jiayi: Bai Liu, you can be less ridiculous. That isn't even enough for the damn taxi fare to and from the base!
Mu Ke (panicked and blaming himself): I drove a car of gold bars. Did I do something wrong?
Liu Jiayi (snarling at Mu Ke): Don't just follow Bai Liu's words and start blaming yourself! Be more assertive, Mu Ke! You are an adult!