Chapter 132 I feel like my soul has been healed

When An Ran saw Su Xiaonuan and Lu Zheng enter one after the other, especially with Lu Zheng carrying some things, a faint hint of mockery and understanding flashed across her eyes. Qin Haoran, on the other hand, raised an eyebrow and a playful smile appeared on his lips.

Even Qin Haochu, who was usually expressionless, paused for a moment between the two of them.

Su Xiaonuan felt a little uncomfortable under their gazes, her face slightly flushed, but she forced herself to remain calm, pretending not to see the teasing in An Ran's eyes. She walked straight to Qin Haoran's desk, put down the insulated box, took out her portion of curry rice, opened the lid, picked up a spoon, whispered "I'm starting to eat," and then lowered her head to start eating—she was really starving.

Seeing her like this, everyone tacitly stopped looking at her and took their own portions.

When the golden curry, mixed with soft and tender potatoes and carrots, is paired with crispy and fragrant pork chops and rice soaked in the sauce, the ultimate taste experience instantly soothes all fatigue and tension.

An Ran was almost moved to tears, praising the food between bites: "Mmm...it's so delicious...Xiao Nuan, I feel like my soul has been healed..."

Even Qin Haochu, who is usually picky about food and rarely expresses his feelings, couldn't help but glance at Su Xiaonuan after tasting her food. His eyes behind his glasses showed obvious surprise and admiration. Although he didn't say anything, his slight nod said it all.

Qin Haoran ate without any regard for his image, shoveling rice into his mouth and praising repeatedly, "Amazing! Absolutely amazing! Little Nuan, it's such a waste that you don't open a shop with your skills!"

Even Lu Zheng, who was sitting next to them and originally planned to just eat a few bites, slowed down his chewing after taking the first bite. His eyes flickered slightly, and then he silently scooped up a large spoonful, eating with unusual focus and quietness.

Su Xiaonuan herself remained calm, eating in small bites, as if this soul-stirring delicacy was just an ordinary thing for her.

When you're starving, everything tastes delicious, especially what you make yourself.

During the meal, the group inevitably started talking about today's case and why "A Zhe's Movie Commentary" framed Su Xiaonuan.

"It must have been orchestrated by someone, and at a hefty price. Otherwise, a somewhat famous internet celebrity wouldn't risk their health or even their life to put on this show," Qin Haoran analyzed.

"The person behind this has considerable power. They can mobilize the hospital to obstruct us and even ruthlessly silence their pawns," Qin Haochu added calmly.

As Su Xiaonuan listened, Han Ming's roguish smile involuntarily appeared in her mind.

Was it because of the hype he generated for himself that she was targeted by an opponent of this caliber?

Thinking of Han Ming, her expression darkened, and she felt a lump of cotton stuck in her throat, feeling suffocated and irritable.

Seriously... ever since she met Han Ming, her life has never been peaceful!

First, there was the murder case involving his mysterious organization "Crescent Moon," and now this commercial frame-up almost landed her in detention!

She absolutely regretted responding to his advances at the coffee shop!

Just as she was feeling frustrated, the screen of her phone on the table suddenly lit up and vibrated with a "buzz".

Su Xiaonuan picked up her phone to check; it was a new text message. The sender was none other than—Han Ming!

Her heart skipped a beat, and she opened the message.

[Han Ming: You should thank me today. If I hadn't stopped that woman from meeting up with that man, you would be in custody today.]

Su Xiaonuan stared in astonishment, her hand holding the spoon frozen in mid-air.

The woman? The man? Meeting up?

She suddenly recalled that during the day, Lu Zheng was taking notes at the intersection, Han Ming "acted bravely" to catch the motorcycle thief, and the woman whose bag was snatched was found to have heroin in her bag!

That road... does indeed lead to the Xinhua Street intersection where she set up her stall today!

Although it's not the only way, it's definitely the most convenient one!

Han Ming's point was that the woman whose bag was snatched was originally on her way to meet up with "A Zhe's Movie Commentary" or his accomplices?

Because Han Ming unintentionally interrupted a certain part of their plan, they were unable to receive or pass on the message in time, which prevented the subsequent detention plan against her from being carried out immediately.

A chill crept up my spine.

That means there really is a group of people, an organization, watching her! From Ji Xianjun's case to today's framing, or even earlier... when did they start watching her?

What was the purpose? Was it simply because her cooking skills were good, her business was booming, and she was blocking someone else's path to wealth? Or... was it a legacy of a past case?

After thinking it over, Su Xiaonuan looked at the text message that seemed like a reminder but was actually more like a provocation and boast. She felt angry, frustrated, and also had a deep sense of powerlessness.

All she wanted was to set up a stall peacefully, earn some merit points and living expenses, why is it so difficult!

Before she could recover from the shock of that message, her phone vibrated again; Han Ming's second text message arrived shortly after:

[Han Ming: Also, Ji Xianjun's shooting was due to internal problems. I'm very sorry. We originally wanted him to turn himself in and try to get a lenient sentence. However, some people didn't agree with our "rehabilitation" approach, so... we unilaterally delivered the death sentence.]

The words "death sentence" pierced Su Xiaonuan's eyes like icicles, instantly chilling her to the bone.

Is there an internal problem? Disagreement with the idea of ​​redress? Unilateral execution of the death sentence?

This means that the "Crescent Moon" organization is not a monolithic entity!

There are factions within it that are more radical, more indifferent to life, and may even abuse their "justice" to carry out vigilante justice!

Ji Xianjun became a victim of this internal struggle and ideological conflict!

Is Han Ming telling her all this to show his stance?

Or was it a warning to her that she was also being targeted by that radical faction?

Su Xiaonuan gripped her phone tightly, her knuckles turning slightly white from the force.

She looked up at the group of people in the office who were discussing the case and didn't seem to notice her phone vibrating. Her gaze finally settled on Lu Zheng, who was eating quietly across from her, occasionally glancing at her with a hint of questioning in his eyes.

The night was deep, and the road ahead seemed shrouded in even more mist and unknown dangers.

But for some reason, looking at the warm yellow light in front of her, listening to her companions talking in hushed tones, and smelling the lingering aroma of curry rice in the air, the chill in Su Xiaonuan's heart was strangely dispelled a little.

She took a deep breath, turned off her phone screen, and picked up the spoon again.