Qin Xiao's words were like a scalding probe, mercilessly piercing Shen Xingling's eardrums and reaching her most chaotic nerve center.

"You say no, but your body language tells you you've already chosen to completely trust me, hasn't it?"

Shen Xingling's breathing stopped completely in that instant.

Her body, tense with anger, now seemed to have all its strength drained away. Shame, anger, fear, and a hint of panic—a fear of being seen through—that she herself couldn't quite discern, surged violently in her chest, ultimately coalescing into an impulse that nearly made her explode.

She suddenly raised her hand, and the dark muzzle of the gun was once again pointed at Qin Xiao's face.

"Shut up!"

Her voice trembled, not from fear, but from extreme shame and anger. However, her hand holding the gun was no longer as steady as before.

Qin Xiao didn't even blink. He even took a step forward, bringing the gun almost to his forehead.

"Look, you're pointing a gun at me again," he said, his tone as calm as if he were discussing the weather. "But your safety isn't on."

Shen Xingling's body stiffened abruptly.

She glanced at it subconsciously and saw that the safety on the gun was still in place.

This man… he even noticed that?!

Just as her mind went blank and she was at a loss for how to end the situation, a series of chaotic and hurried footsteps approached from the direction they had come from, accompanied by several blinding beams of flashlight light that instantly pierced the darkness of the area.

"Don't move! Police!"

A loud, powerful shout rang out; it was Li Wei, the captain of the Major Crimes Unit.

He stormed in with seven or eight officers, and when they saw the scene, they were all stunned.

A body with its throat slit, two criminals lying on the ground, seemingly lifeless, and bullet casings and bloodstains scattered everywhere.

Li Wei's gaze swept back and forth between Qin Xiao and Shen Xingling several times, his expression quickly shifting from shock to gloom and anger.

"Shen Xingling! What are you doing?!" He rushed over and shouted angrily in a low voice, "Who gave you permission to act on your own?! Why is this man with you?!"

Shen Xingling suddenly realized what was happening. She tried to put down her gun in a panic, but Qin Xiao moved first.

He extended two fingers, gently pinched Shen Xingling's gun barrel, and moved it away from his forehead, the movement as natural as brushing away a fallen leaf.

Then, he turned to Li Wei with a smile that infuriated Li Wei.

"Captain Li, you've arrived just in time." Qin Xiao clapped his hands. "A few minutes later, your case report might have read, 'Three bodies were found at the scene, and the suspect fled with important stolen goods.'"

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the officers standing guard behind Li Wei, and slowly added a sentence.

"Oh, no. Maybe it's five bodies, if you include me and Officer Shen."

Li Wei's face instantly turned a deep liver color.

The sarcasm in those words was obvious to anyone! It was a blatant accusation that he was too slow to respond and was incompetent!

"What are you still doing here?!" Li Wei shouted sternly, while gesturing to his subordinates behind him, "Get him under control!"

Two police officers immediately stepped forward, one on each side, and tried to grab Qin Xiao's arms.

“I advise you not to touch me.” Qin Xiao didn’t even look at the two police officers; his gaze remained fixed on Li Wei’s face. “First, I’m not a criminal. Second, you can’t afford to touch me.”

"What arrogance!" Li Wei laughed angrily. "You dare threaten the police on my turf? Shen Xingling, explain yourself! What exactly is going on?!"

Shen Xingling was torn between her inner thoughts and her external circumstances.

Reason told her that she should immediately distance herself from this dangerous man and cooperate with Li Wei's investigation.

But in her mind, the image of Qin Xiao shielding her from bullets with his back flashed uncontrollably, as did the weight of him knocking her to the ground, and his words, "My life is tied to yours."

She opened her mouth, but found that she couldn't utter a single word.

Seeing Shen Xingling's reaction, Li Wei's suspicions deepened. He waved his hand and gave the order directly.

"Cuff him! He's suspected of murder and obstructing official business! Take him back for further questioning!"

The two officers reached out and grabbed again.

This time, Qin Xiao didn't speak. He slightly turned his body to the side, easily dodging the two grabbing hands at an extremely simple yet unbelievable angle.

"Captain Li, are you truly stupid, or are you just trying to steal the credit?" Qin Xiao's voice turned cold. "When your men came in, all they did was shine flashlights on people, but no one checked the evidence on the ground, and no one sealed off the only escape route. Aren't you curious why there are three groups of people here, but only two groups' bullet casings?"

Li Wei's movements faltered.

"What do you mean?"

"What I mean is, besides the two parties you, the police, identified as having made the transaction, there was also a third party, namely the woman who just escaped through that ventilation duct." Qin Xiao pointed to the dark opening.

"She is the true killer, and the ultimate winner. The two survivors on the ground, and this corpse, are just part of her plan."

Now, your most important task is not to show off to me, but to immediately request technical support to collect all traces left by that woman.

Of course, if you destroyed them all when you rushed in, then disregard what I said.

Every word Qin Xiao said was like a slap in the face to Li Wei.

The surrounding police officers exchanged glances, their gazes towards Li Wei becoming somewhat ambiguous.

Li Wei's face turned pale and then red; he was speechless, completely stumped by Qin Xiao's words. He knew that Qin Xiao was likely right. In his haste to rush in and establish his authority, he had indeed overlooked many details regarding the security of the scene.

Enraged, he completely exploded.

"I don't care who you are! I don't care what you said! Here, I am the commander! What I say goes!"

He pointed at Qin Xiao and roared at his two subordinates, "I told you to handcuff him! Are you deaf?!"

This time, the two officers pulled out handcuffs and approached with an unyielding stance.

Shen Xingling's heart leaped into her throat.

She knew she had to make a choice.

Just as the handcuffs were about to touch Qin Xiao's wrist.

"stop!"

Shen Xingling suddenly took a step forward, spread her arms, and stood in front of Qin Xiao.

The entire scene fell into a deathly silence.

All eyes, including Li Wei and Qin Xiao's, were focused on her.

Li Wei's eyes widened like saucers: "Shen Xingling, are you crazy?! You're going to disobey my orders for a man who has absolutely nothing to do with the case?!"

Shen Xingling didn't turn around to look at Qin Xiao. She just stared intently at Li Wei, her chest heaving violently, and spoke slowly and deliberately. Her voice wasn't loud, but it clearly reached everyone's ears.

"He is the police's most important witness and also my special consultant for this operation."