93: Chapter 93 Qin Yi's Backup Plan

Immediately after, Director Han quickly closed the office door and locked it behind him. He then strode over to Shen Jianan, lowered his voice, and said with a hint of helplessness in his tone, "Shen Jianan, my dear auntie, can you please keep your voice down! I've already told you before that the criminal investigation department has been secretly investigating Brother Dao's gang. The reason we haven't made a move on him yet is to play the long game! Your impulsiveness could very well alert the enemy and cause the criminal investigation department's long-term deployment to go down the drain!"

Upon hearing this, Shen Jianan knitted her brows, a flash of suspicion crossing her eyes. She looked straight into the director's eyes, her hands unconsciously clenching into fists. After a moment of silence, she questioned, "Director Han! I've seen Brother Dao's file. He's a former convict who's only been out of prison for a few short years, yet he's thriving in Shanghai, practically acting like a local emperor of the Shanghai underworld. If someone from our police force wasn't backing him, I wouldn't believe he could develop so quickly!"

Director Han shook his head helplessly and sighed, "Jianan, I understand you have a sense of justice, but Brother Dao's faction is not within our jurisdiction. I don't know if he has a protective umbrella behind him, but I'm certainly not it. Furthermore, you are just the captain of the Public Security Brigade. You just need to manage the area you are responsible for; why must you interfere in the affairs of the criminal investigation department? If you want to work in criminal investigation that much, you can just tell Director Shen and have him transfer you there! My temple is too small to keep a big Buddha like you!"

By the end, the director's tone revealed a hint of exhaustion and helplessness. He sat back in his office chair, raising a hand to rub his temples, appearing somewhat overwhelmed.

Hearing Director Han bring up her father, Shen Jianan had no intention of continuing the argument. She took a deep breath, turned, and walked toward the door, but at the same time, she said in a firm, low voice, "Director Han! I will give you the case closing report before I get off work. But I will continue to investigate this case! Even if we don't move against Brother Dao, I'm going to keep investigating that guy named Wang Hao!"

"You..." Before the director could finish speaking, Shen Jianan had already twisted the office door handle and stepped out.

Watching Shen Jianan's retreating figure, Director Han sighed helplessly. He leaned back in his office chair, tilted his head back, and murmured to himself, "Sigh, truly, newborn calves are not afraid of tigers..."

After leaving the director's office, Shen Jianan returned to the Public Security Brigade office with a gloomy expression.

The people in the office sensed that their captain was in a bad mood and lowered their voices to whisper to each other about what had happened...

At this moment, the male officer who had accompanied Shen Jianan to investigate Wang Hao coughed lightly. He walked up to Shen Jianan with an awkward expression, swallowed hard, and said apologetically, "Captain Shen, I'm sorry. The director asked me, and I couldn't hold out..." As he spoke, he scratched his head in embarrassment.

Shen Jianan's gaze remained fixed on the computer screen. She took a deep breath and let out a long sigh.

She didn't look at the male officer, just waved her hand and said, "It has nothing to do with you; you don't need to apologize. Go back to your work." As she spoke, she began clattering away on her keyboard.

The male officer wanted to say something more, but seeing that Shen Jianan was already focused on her work, he said nothing more and walked away sheepishly.

Just like that, another half hour passed. Shen Jianan printed out the case closing report and handed it to the male officer, telling him to deliver it to Director Han.

He knocked on the door of the director's office, and after receiving permission, he pushed the door open and walked in.

"Director, this is the case closing report for the violent conflict at the Armani store in the International Finance Center this Friday night." The male officer handed the report to Director Han's desk, his tone filled with a hint of respect.

Director Han picked up the case closing report and frowned as he flipped through it.

A moment later, his brows relaxed, and he nodded with a hint of satisfaction in his tone, saying, "Hmm, not bad." Immediately after, he looked at the officer and asked, "You went on field duty with Captain Shen today, right? How is the investigation into the suspect Wang Hao going? Any new discoveries?"

The male officer shook his head and reported truthfully, "Wang Hao only admitted to knowing the victim, Qin Yi, and refused to admit to knowing Qiangzai or Brother Dao."

"Alright, I understand. What is your Captain Shen doing? Why didn't she bring it over herself?" Director Han asked with a hint of confusion in his tone.

"Captain Shen clocked out right on time. She said she had something to take care of at home, so she asked me to bring it to you." The male officer stood to the side, responding with a hint of trepidation in his voice.

"Heh, something to take care of at home?" Director Han's tone carried a hint of mockery, as if he were joking. He continued, "She isn't going home to report me, is she?" But immediately after, a flash of worry crossed his eyes, and he tapped the desk lightly, seemingly deep in thought.

The male officer smiled awkwardly and didn't respond. Shen Jianan's background was known to everyone in the precinct; if she really were to report him, Director Han would truly be in big trouble. After waiting for another moment, seeing that the director had no further instructions, he cleared his throat and responded, "Director, if there's nothing else, I'll be going."

"Oh, right. Go ahead." Director Han finally snapped out of it, gave an awkward smile, and replied.

At 7:00 PM, as the sky was just turning dark, Qin Jianye slowly opened his eyes and sat up from the bed. A faint scent of rice quietly drifted into his nostrils, causing him to feel a bit more energetic involuntarily.

Then, he got up, left the east room, and came into the courtyard.

At this moment, Wu Xiuhua was carrying a freshly cooked pot of millet porridge and two plates of delicate side dishes as she walked toward the main room, a gentle smile hanging on her face.

"Hey, did you wake up by smelling the food?" Seeing Qin Jianye awake, Wu Xiuhua teased, her eyes flashing with a mix of tenderness and banter.

Qin Jianye smiled, rubbed his neck, which was a bit stiff from sleeping, and followed her into the main room. However, not seeing the figure of his son, Qin Yi, he frowned slightly and asked, "Where is Xiao Yi?"

"Oh, Xiao Yi went out to get gas for the car. He said there's no 98-octane gasoline around here, so he has to go to the city to get it." As Wu Xiuhua spoke, she gently placed the bowls and chopsticks in front of Qin Jianye, her movements full of care and thoughtfulness. "Drink some millet porridge; it's good for your stomach. We had too much greasy meat and fish at noon, so let's have something light tonight to soothe your stomach."

Qin Jianye sat at the table, his eyes revealing a hint of confusion. "It's already past seven; he could just get it tomorrow. Why is he running out so late?"

"Sigh, our son said he wants to return to Shanghai early tomorrow morning and wants us to go with him." Wu Xiuhua sat opposite Qin Jianye, her tone carrying a hint of helplessness.

"Leaving tomorrow? Why the rush? I was still thinking of saying goodbye to my old friends before we left..." Qin Jianye asked curiously, his eyes flickering with confusion.

"Sigh," Wu Xiuhua sighed, her eyes revealing a mix of helplessness and worry. She shook her head gently and revealed to Qin Jianye what she had heard regarding their son's phone call that afternoon.

Upon hearing this, Qin Jianye's originally relaxed brows immediately knit together. He looked at Wu Xiuhua nervously, his voice filled with urgency. "Did you ask our son what Su Mo was begging him for?"

Wu Xiuhua shook her head and made a "shh" gesture, reminding him, "You didn't see how our son looked when he was on the phone. That Su Mo really hurt our son deeply. I originally thought our son wouldn't agree to help her, but I didn't expect that he would decide to return to Shanghai tomorrow. It seems he still has lingering feelings for that Su Mo. It's not appropriate for me to ask too much about such things. Let's just pretend we don't know and go to Shanghai with our son. That way, we'll have a chance to comfort him and keep him from being hurt by that Su Mo again."

"Yes, yes, you're right. Sigh, our son is just too soft-hearted. If you ask me, he shouldn't have anything to do with that Su Mo. They've already broken up, so why is she still contacting our son!" Qin Jianye said, patting the table with his hand, appearing somewhat agitated.

"Alright, from now on, as long as our son doesn't bring up Su Mo, we shouldn't mention her in front of him either. As for those old friends of yours, you tell me—after our family had that incident, how many of them truly helped you? In my opinion, it doesn't matter whether you say goodbye or not." Wu Xiuhua consoled him, her eyes revealing a hint of disappointment.

"Mm, mm, our son's matters are the most important!" Qin Jianye nodded, then added, "Then after we finish eating, let's pack our things so we don't have to be in a rush tomorrow..."

"Do you really need to remind me?" Wu Xiuhua looked at Qin Jianye with a smile. "Don't worry, I've already packed everything. Tomorrow morning, we just need to cover the bedsheets and we're done."

"Is that so? It seems you two got quite a lot done while I was sleeping... It looks like I'll have to drink less in the future." Qin Jianye shook his head and smiled.

"Alright, hurry up and eat. After you finish, you still need to help me tidy up those pots of gardenias in the courtyard..."

"Got it."

Meanwhile, Qin Yi was driving through the night in Jingnan City. The cullinan, bearing the license plate Mo D 99999, attracted quite a few gazes along the way. Fortunately, it was already dark, and only under the flickering streetlights outside the car windows and the advertising lights of the high-rise buildings could Qin Yi's handsome face be illuminated.

Half an hour later, following the location recorded by the Miniature Bionic Tracker, Qin Yi finally stopped in front of a remote village on the outskirts of Jingnan City.

This was the border area between two cities; going any further would mean stepping outside the boundaries of Jingnan.

There were no streetlights around the village, only the headlights of the occasional cargo truck speeding by. The roaring of engines and the sound of tires friction against the ground tore through the silence of the night, leaving behind a series of echoing rumbles.

He vigilantly scanned his surroundings. After confirming that no one was paying attention to his side, he found a hidden corner, turned off the engine, and got out of the car.

After getting out, Qin Yi moved lightly. Utilizing the cover of night, he carefully and cautiously hugged the wall, silently making his way to the house where Chen Hu had hidden the ledger.

At this moment, the courtyard gate of the house was locked tight, the walls were mottled, and the surroundings were overgrown with weeds, clearly indicating that no one had lived there for a long time.

But Qin Yi did not act rashly. He circled around the house once, quickly analyzing the surrounding environment.

The perimeter wall was about two people high, and it was covered with simple protective measures made of broken glass, which shimmered with a cold light under the moonlight.

However, these protective measures were only effective against ordinary petty thieves; for someone like Qin Yi, whose strength had already reached the Middle Stage of Ming Jin, they were of no use at all.

He found a spot that was easy to climb, then stepped back a few paces, and with a short, quick run, he charged toward the wall.

Immediately after, at a distance of about two meters from the wall, he kicked off hard with his feet, his hands shooting out like a spirit snake emerging from its hole, easily grabbing the top of the wall.

The next moment, his arms gave a slight vibration, and his body flipped over the wall silently like a falling leaf, landing steadily in the courtyard.

After entering the courtyard, Qin Yi did not act immediately. He quickly stood against the edge of the wall, listening quietly to the sounds around him. After confirming there was nothing unusual, he snuck into the room where the ledger was hidden like a ghost.

Upon entering the room, Qin Yi didn't hesitate for a moment and headed straight for the location where the ledger was hidden. A flash of excitement and expectation crossed his eyes. He skillfully moved aside a few bluestone bricks on the wall, and a hidden compartment was revealed.

Inside that hidden compartment, the ledger was carefully wrapped in a plastic seal by Chen Hu, lying quietly within. Next to it, there was a pile of at least a hundred shimmering gold bars.

Seeing this scene, Qin Yi raised his brows slightly, a wave of emotion surging in his heart.

He quickly moved all the items out of the hidden compartment, took the ledger out of the plastic seal, turned on his phone's flashlight with one hand, and flipped through the ledger with the other.

He flipped through several pages in a hurry, but didn't find any special information. Qin Yi couldn't help but frown and ponder. A moment later, he thought to himself, 'Since Chen Hu was so careful about keeping the ledger, there must be information related to that "Boss" inside. I'll take a closer look after I go back.'

Immediately after, with a thought, he casually stored the ledger into the System Space.

Subsequently, he picked up a gold bar and weighed it. Feeling the heft of the gold bar, the corners of his mouth couldn't help but curl up into an arc.

This gold bar was about 100 grams. Chen Hu had hidden at least a hundred gold bars. Calculating this way, that would be over ten thousand grams. According to the current gold price, the value of these gold bars was at least five or six million.

After estimating the value of these gold bars, a smug arc quietly crept onto Qin Yi's mouth. He muttered to himself, "Chen Hu, oh Chen Hu, let's just consider this as collecting some interest from you in advance!"

After saying that, he had already stored all the gold bars into the System Space.

After doing all this, Qin Yi moved the bluestone bricks back to their original place. Then, he carefully searched inside and outside the house twice more. After confirming that nothing of value had been missed, he nimbly climbed back over the courtyard wall along the same route he came from, carefully sat back into his vehicle, started the car, and drove toward the Jingnan urban area, as if none of this had ever happened.

By the time he returned to the Jingnan urban area, it was already a quarter past eight in the evening.

In order to have a good explanation for why he had been out for so long, Qin Yi found a supermarket to buy some things and also filled up on gas at a gas station.

On the way back to Qinjiawan Village, Qin Yi received another call from Xu Qian. He hadn't had time to contact Xu Qian all day. Upon seeing her caller ID again, a small wave of emotion surged in Qin Yi's heart.

He took a deep breath, answered the phone, and said softly, "Hello, Qianqian..."