Chapter 533: Side Story: Que Feiling Is the Best Fortune Slip (2)

As he was being held down, the young man’s longish black hair fell across his face, hiding most of it.

When his eyes met Jiang Qingli’s, his gem-like pupils trembled violently. He quickly looked down, and the slender knuckles she held captive tried to reach up toward her fingers.

Jiang Qingli didn’t move, just letting him touch her hand.

Her tacit approval held a hint of indulgence.

He glanced up at her, and growing bolder, tried to grasp her fingers.

Before he could, Jiang Qingli sighed and seemed to remind him in a low voice, “Sir, it’s not right to get so handsy with an officer.”

An embarrassed look crossed the young man’s face. “It’s not…”

Tang Ran grabbed the unconscious man on the stage, shook him a few times, and after confirming he wasn’t dead, tossed him to a subordinate.

She turned just in time to see this.

‘This shady suspect isn’t just resisting, he’s putting his hands on our Jiang Hui!’

‘Unbelievable!’

‘He dared to try and seduce her right in front of me, the sheriff!’

Tang Ran’s anger flared. “What? You say it’s not, and we’re just supposed to believe you?”

She strode forward, racked her gun, and pressed it to the back of his head. “Get over here,” she ordered a nearby subordinate coldly. “Take this suspect back to the station. He dares to put on an act in front of me? If I can’t sweat something out of him, I’ve lost my touch!”

The subordinate was about to move in, but then they saw Jiang Qingli release her grip on the young man. He immediately pressed his face to the table, as if terrified of anyone seeing him.

Jiang Qingli shot Tang Ran a look.

Tang Ran slapped her forehead. “Right, we should all be listening to Jiang Hui! Come on, get that other guy and drag him in front of District Chief Jiang for me!”

The subordinate quickly complied, dragging the other man away.

Once the others had gone, Jiang Qingli finally explained, “I was just trying to say… I don’t think he’s the suspect.”

A strange expression crossed Tang Ran’s face.

She hesitated for a moment, then lowered her voice. “Sis, this guy’s got a nice build, I’ll give him that, but… with his background, who knows if he’s clean… Maybe you should just let it go?”

Jiang Qingli: “…Just what kind of scenario are you imagining in that head of yours?”

She glanced down at the young man she had pinned. The visible tips of his ears were bright red.

A barely perceptible smile touched Jiang Qingli’s lips. She tightened her grip on his wrist, pressing him down onto the table. “Actually,” she said seriously, “he’s my informant. The one who passed out on the stage is likely the mastermind.”

Tang Ran was skeptical. “Your informant? And you treat him like this?”

“His identity is sensitive. I didn’t want the other officers to see him. And could you please do me the favor of keeping this confidential?” Jiang Qingli paused. “It’s an unfortunate necessity… I have to settle his payment.”

Jiang Qingli’s gentle tone carried a sincerity that made it impossible to doubt her.

Tang Ran thought for a moment. “All right, then. I’ll just tell everyone you’re interrogating him privately.”

Jiang Qingli nodded with a smile. “Sounds good.”

Just then, Tang Ran’s terminal chimed. The call was to report that several accomplices had been found and secured on the first floor.

Eager to get back to the interrogation, Tang Ran said, “I’m heading out, then. A team will be here to seal the area soon, so you two should finish up quickly.”

Jiang Qingli smiled and nodded, and released her hold on the dark-haired young man.

The young man remained motionless, face-down on the table, as if he’d already passed out some time ago.

‘So mysterious?’

As Tang Ran reached the doorway, she glanced back inside.

Jiang Qingli was sitting at the divination table, and the dark-haired young man was facing her. Like a child who’d done something wrong, he quietly shuffled to her side, glanced up at her, and then silently rested his forehead on her shoulder.

‘It looked… like a big, clingy bird? What a strange image.’

The thought struck Tang Ran as rather bizarre.

But with the case on her mind, Tang Ran didn’t linger and left.

The sounds of footsteps and sirens faded into the distance.

Jiang Qingli looked down at the young man now nestled against her. Her fingers toyed with a lock of his hair. “So, is this the ‘work’ you told me you had?”

“Mr. Que?”

As she spoke, her fingers found his ear and gave it a little tug. He shivered, nearly losing his balance and toppling her to the floor.

“Let me explain, it’s a long story,” Que Feiling said, collecting himself. “My sister’s boyfriend is the president of XQ Jewelry. A few days ago, he mentioned that the quality of their recent gemstone shipments was poor. My sister saw I had time on my hands, so she asked me to look into it.”

“I did some digging and found an organization operating under the guise of Beast God divination. They were colluding with a supplier to switch out the gems, so I came to check it out.”

Jiang Qingli nodded, picking up the thread. “—and after you knocked the guy out, you decided to do a little reading for yourself.”

Que Feiling’s already flushed face turned an even deeper shade of red.

He’d hidden his face for two reasons: one, he didn’t want to be recognized by the police and implicate the Que family, and two, he was afraid Jiang Qingli would laugh at him for being so childish.

He ran a hand through his hair, stammering for a moment as he tried to defend himself. “I was pretending to be a client. He said this stuff was super accurate, so I… I just feigned interest to deceive him. It was all part of the strategy.”

By the end of his explanation, he even managed to sound righteously confident.

Jiang Qingli wasn’t buying it. “So, what did you ask it?”

“Nothing… just some things I’ve been worried about lately.” Que Feiling clearly didn’t want to elaborate. He leaned in, nuzzling her shoulder. “Do you have to go to the station after this?”

Jiang Qingli shook her head.

Que Feiling’s eyes lit up. “Then—a date?”

He’d finally made it back to the First District for a vacation, and he wished he could just attach himself to Jiang Qingli like a charm.

“What hot new date spot did you find online this time?” Jiang Qingli asked, then added a warning, “But let me be clear: if it involves waiting in line for hours again, I’m not doing it.”

“That was because I forgot to make a reservation… It won’t happen again, I promise!”

They headed for the exit as they talked.

Before they left, Jiang Qingli glanced at the table. It was a mess.

‘No wonder he didn’t run when we first arrived,’ Jiang Qingli thought. ‘He was fiddling with things on the table. He must have known it was me and was trying to destroy the evidence before I could see it and laugh at him.’

Her terminal vibrated. It was a call from Tang Ran.

“I woke up the guy from the stage in the car, and he sang like a canary. Said he was just about to bolt when your guy nabbed him. We really owe you for this one!” Tang Ran sounded smug. There was a pause as someone spoke on her end. “Oh, right. This case isn’t closed yet. Your guy doesn’t have to make a formal appearance, but he’ll need to write a statement. I’ll send you the details.”

Jiang Qingli idly twirled a strand of Que Feiling’s dark hair. “All right,” she answered. “I’ll tell him.”

On the way back, Que Feiling leaned against his seat, writing the statement.

He could feel Jiang Qingli watching him from the corner of his eye. Que Feiling fought the urge to look up, finished writing quickly, checked his statement twice, and submitted it.

He turned his head, and sure enough, his eyes met Jiang Qingli’s.

Her eyes curved into a smile.

Que Feiling’s gaze slid from her eyes to her lips. He could only stare for a few seconds before it became too much. He lowered his head and buried his face against her.

His ear feathers popped out, and the faint breeze from their fluttering stirred the hair framing her cheeks, a soft, ticklish sensation.

Jiang Qingli’s eyes narrowed slightly.

Outside the car, the setting sun was slowly sinking below the river’s horizon.

After mumbling like a mosquito for what felt like an eternity, Que Feiling finally voiced the thought that had been on his mind since he first saw her. “I want to kiss…”