40: Tell me! Is Lin Pei in cahoots with you?

“I've checked. If an outsider were to open those door locks, it would be extremely difficult.”

“At least, it shouldn't be as easy as you made it look.”

“And you were the one who provided the key in the first place.”

Lin Pei sighed.

“Officer Chen, although your analysis is good, you've analyzed incorrectly.”

“If this were my house, I certainly wouldn't bring you guys along to steal from my own home, right?”

“After all, those things are quite valuable—enough for me to live off of for many lifetimes.”

“Furthermore, you accuse me of stealing the painting. If there's no evidence, won't you have to release me sooner or later?”

“There's really no need for this.”

Officer Chen was slightly surprised.

“Oh, so you know that without evidence, people will be released eventually.”

“Since you didn't steal it, there naturally won't be any evidence.”

“Then why were you in such a rush when you were at the police station? It wasn't because you felt guilty.”

Lin Pei felt that Officer Chen was better at interrogation than Captain Xu.

Captain Xu wasn't nearly as infuriating.

“Officer Chen, I purely didn't want to stay at the police station.”

“What good person likes staying at a police station? I still want to go out and film.”

Officer Chen sneered.

“According to you, since we police officers stay in the station every day, none of us are good people, right?”

Lin Pei choked, nearly swearing out loud.

What kind of bizarre thought process does this officer have?

Could he really be considered a good person?

What good person could possess such strange logic?

He couldn't take it anymore. If he continued talking to this person, he was worried he might openly assault an officer.

Before Lin Pei could finish his sigh, he saw Xu Feng searching for something in the car nearby.

“Where is my Head-Tightening Sutra?”

“...”

“...”

The arrest scene.

Just as Lin Pei was opening the main gate lock with his bare hands, the Female Reporter started broadcasting live.

To share the scene of the International Master Thief's arrest with everyone immediately.

At this moment, the scene of the several people being arrested had been synchronized online.

The mood among the people in the livestream room was unprecedentedly high.

“@Hengcheng Police, officers are mighty! They finally caught this theft syndicate.”

“They stole 'water lily,' right? How awful.”

“Exactly. They can do whatever they want abroad, but stealing domestically is just wrong.”

“These people look like ordinary folks. Are they really that skilled?”

“The Young Man opened that lock so handsomely! That physique, those hands...”

“Above, is your internet lagging? The people in the live broadcast have already been arrested now.”

“...”

At this moment, Bu Shan, who was restrained by the police, suddenly struggled.

“You are not police! The police couldn't open my door!”

“Nor could they open my locks!”

“Tell me, who are you? Why are you stealing my things?”

“Wait, no one should be able to open these locks without leaving any trace!”

The sudden roar startled the Netizens in the livestream room.

“Holy cow, is this person crazy?”

“Did getting arrested shock him?”

“Mainly because all those priceless antiques were seized by the police. He probably couldn't handle it immediately.”

“Am I the only one who thinks his words make sense? Look at that combination lock upfront—someone who doesn't know the password really couldn't open it, right?”

“I agree. The main point is that there was absolutely no damage, and after opening it, they locked it back up.”

“Exactly! I'm starting to get curious. How exactly did they do it? The Streamer only said they took the items out, but the filming was confidential at the time, so we didn't see it.”

“...”

Facing Bu Shan's loss of control, Xu Feng smiled faintly.

“There is always someone better. Just because you can't do it doesn't mean others can't open it.”

“Lin Pei, give us a demonstration.”

“We want you to be convinced. Even if you're arrested, you should understand clearly, right?”

The livestream room was flooded with question marks.

“??? What? That lock was opened by Teacher Lin Pei?”

“Holy moly, is that true? I might believe he could open the outer door, but the inner one is clearly much more difficult.”

“And the safe! I heard he opened it without any tools. Is that something a human can even do?”

“Lin Pei? Isn't that the guy who was throwing Flying Knives in the police station's backyard a while ago? He knows how to pick locks too?”

“Throwing Flying Knives? Wasn't this guy executed and cremated days ago? How is he alive again?”

“Above, you must have been disconnected. He was clearly throwing Flying Knives in the police station's backyard that day.”

“Is there anything Brother Lin doesn't know how to do? Waiting for the demonstration.”

“...”

Watching Lin Pei walk out from among the Criminal Police Officers.

The people in the livestream room felt a shock.

“I admit he's handsome, but his demeanor is so out of place among those Criminal Police Officers, isn't it?”

“Trust me, Teacher Lin Pei's demeanor is always closely related to the role he is currently playing.”

“Uh, maybe he's playing a thief? Like an International Master Thief kind of thief?”

Before Lin Pei could reach the security door to demonstrate the lock-picking, Officer Chen spoke.

“Lin Pei, hold on a moment.”

He turned his head to look at the three thieves who were being restrained.

“Gentlemen, do you recognize him?”

For a moment, the Netizens also grew suspicious.

“That's right, why didn't we think of that before? Opening the lock so smoothly—it's highly likely he was returning to his own home!”

“Exactly, that makes sense now. Opening the security door and the safe without damage could simply be because he knows the password.”

“It looks like Lin Pei might have sold out his own brothers, right?”

“I don't know.”

“...”

Lin Pei was speechless.

This Officer Chen was still suspicious of him, playing this on-site identification game.

But if they wanted an identification, he wasn't afraid.

Because he didn't know any of these people at all.

He confidently looked into the distance, only to see the Trio of Thieves nodding in unison.

“We know him...”

Lin Pei's whole body went numb.

At that moment, he suspected he might have eaten mushrooms for lunch, too.

What the heck.

Did these brothers really have to answer in such perfect unison?

He had no idea when he got to know these guys.

Aren't they just talking nonsense?

Officer Chen wore an expression that said 'I knew it' and continued questioning.

“Is he working with you?”

The three men opposite showed a bit of confusion.

Little Fatty frowned, “We haven't had the chance yet, have we?”

“...”

Lin Pei panicked.

“Brother, could you please clarify what you mean?”

“When did I almost join your group?”

“I'm seeing you guys for the first time today...”

“Oh,” Little Fatty explained.

“We saw you in the Film Crew's livestream room, and we really wanted to recruit you then.”

Lin Pei finally let out a breath.

Luckily, this person was honest and didn't tell a huge lie.

Otherwise, he really wouldn't be able to explain himself.

Officer Chen asked the other two, “Is what he said the truth?”

Bu Shan and Not True nodded.

Officer Chen's expression was quite serious.

“You must understand the consequences of lying to the police, right?”

“Leniency for those who confess, severity for those who resist!”

“Speak! Did you have any contact with Lin Pei before this?”

Lin Pei was already numb with habit.

He felt that Officer Chen trusted those three more than he trusted him.

He was even resorting to forced confessions just to convict him.

Not True said, “Officer, we truly didn't know him before.”

“Everything we stole has a timeline. You can just check if it matches his, and that settles it.”

“Also, you can check the surveillance at the house. Besides the three of us, no fourth person ever appeared.”