Chapter 40 40 I haven’t fallen in love with it yet, but I always feel that I should…
After Lu Tingfeng finished speaking, they both fell silent. Lu Tingfeng was the first to recover, smiling as he lay back down. He asked Xu Nian, "I've told you what I've done over the years. Why don't you tell me about your experiences?"
Xu Nian also lay down with an expressionless face. "It's just solving a case. It's no different from before you left. Let's talk about you."
Lu Tingfeng turned over, lying on his side and looking at Xu Nian. "Ask whatever you want to know."
Xu Nian thought for a moment and asked, "Did you provide the important clues to the local police that led to the resolution of the 319 case in Qiuning City, Ningyun Province?"
Lu Tingfeng's smile widened. "I knew you were still as tough on the outside as ever. You appear to be completely indifferent to me, but you've actually been keeping an eye on me."
Xu Nian was too lazy to pay attention to Lu Tingfeng's playful smile and didn't move at all.
Seeing Xu Nian didn't react, Lu Tingfeng replied dully, "It was me. It wasn't just me, but there were two friends too. We'd figured out where the murderer buried the body, but we weren't entirely sure, so we decided to go check it out. But then we were so unlucky. Just after dark, as we were searching, we ran into two men carrying a body and preparing to dig a grave. Our first instinct was to pin them down. After all, one of us was a former police officer, and one was a veteran. With one of us pinning down a person, we couldn't miss. But before we could even lunge, one of them suddenly pulled out a gun. Luckily, we reacted quickly, or we might have been left there."
Lu Tingfeng curled his lips. "But fortunately, although the process was a bit thrilling, it was not in vain. I successfully got the local police to reopen the backlog case and sent one person to jail. I also sent two more people to jail while I was hunting for rabbits. There is a complete set of witnesses and evidence."
Xu Nian wanted to sneer again, "You still want to drag Guan Xia into such a dangerous matter?"
Afraid of being kicked, Lu Tingfeng quickly moved back twice. "Didn't I just promise and swear to you? Why are you bringing up the past again? Don't worry, I decided to do this because I knew the skills of my friends who worked with me. I was a little careless, but I'm not a fool. I can't just run into the murderer's knife. This was an accident, an accident. I know myself well. I have left the police force and am just a member of the public. I won't lead people to arrest suspects. We are just looking for new investigative directions. Once we find a new breakthrough that can reopen the backlog case, we will immediately contact the local police."
Xu Nian looked carefully at Lu Tingfeng's expression. Seeing that although his expression was not serious, his eyes were serious, he reluctantly believed it.
But Xu Nian repeated, "I believe you, so I hinted to Guan Xia that you're a good person. I don't know if it worked, but it should help her feel less bad about you. But I still say that before she's willing, you can't force her by any means."
Lu Tingfeng looked at Xu Nian, observing his expression very carefully. He knew that he was trying to persuade her while also giving her a warning. Finally, he said helplessly, "Alright, we're friends after all. I've listened to you since we met, so I'll be willing to listen to you again this time. I promise you, I won't force her by any means unless she agrees."
After chatting all night, Xu Nian finally revealed a relaxed smile, but then he heard Lu Tingfeng say something rudely, "Can I just use my face instead of any other methods? Doesn't that count as a breach of agreement?"
Xu Nian tried to hold back, but in the end he couldn't help it and turned over and sat up and punched Lu Tingfeng's irritating face.
…
After a brief communication with Xu Nian, Guan Xia stayed at home for several days and hardly went out. Apart from watching TV series and reading books, he studied the system in his mind.
The reaction of the sketching system that night gave her inspiration. She had been constantly recalling the memories related to the three previous cases over the past few days, and she had indeed discovered a pattern. As long as the video was triggered by the system and played on the interface, it would reappear as long as she recalled it again.
Guan Xia felt that this system was like turning the memory of the murderer in her brain into a hard drive. The police's questions were the search box, and some things related to the murderer were the search conditions. As long as they were met, the system would be triggered and would be played repeatedly without restriction.
But I roughly understood this, but I still have no idea about the halo.
Guan Xia called up the system interface through memory and tried to call Guan Huan during this time period, but the system did not respond at all. It just replayed the video on its own and then disappeared again.
Guan Xia also tried to repeatedly call up the system interface to see if the color and gloss of the interface had changed, but in the end it was unsuccessful.
After studying it for a few days, the system interface remained the same, but Guan Xia was going crazy. He grabbed a pillow and punched it like he was beating that stupid broken system that he wished had never existed.
Just as she was venting her anger, the doorbell suddenly rang. Guan Xia was stunned for a moment before she reacted. Before she could get up from the sofa, she heard Pang Le's loud voice, "Guan Xia, open the door."
Guan Xia was a little surprised that Pang Le came to her without saying hello.
After opening the door and letting the person in, Pang Le closed the door casually and handed Guan Xia something.
Guan Xia took it subconsciously, and when she looked down, she realized that it was the picture album she had lent to Dong Yuncheng before.
Guan Xia was a little surprised, "Didn't I lend this to Dong Lu? Why are you returning it to me?"
Pang Le kicked off his high heels and changed into slippers. He walked a few steps and collapsed on the sofa. He then said casually, "I came to talk to you about Lu Tingfeng. The matter is a bit complicated. I can't explain it clearly over the phone for a while, so I just came here. Before I came, I remembered what you said last time about not being interested in Dong Lu, so I just asked him for the album to avoid him using this as an excuse to bother you later."
Guan Xia put the album on the coffee table and sat down next to Pang Le. "Just because you want him to give it to you like this?"
Such a good excuse for contact was given away so easily. Guan Xia suspected that Pang Le's previous statement that Dong Lu was interested in her was an illusion.
Pang Le laughed. "Of course it's not that easy, but I'm a thick-skinned person. He told me he should return the loan, so I told him he was busy and I wouldn't know how long to wait for him. This album is one of a series, and every time I come to your house and see an empty space, I feel uncomfortable. He didn't know how to refute me, so he finally gave it to me."
Guan Xia also laughed out loud and gave Pang Le a thumbs up.
Pang Le sighed, "Look, this is what men are like. They say they're interested in you, but when they're busy, they're unwilling to spend a little time to get to know you. For them, career is always the most important thing, and women are always just a diversion in their free time."
Guan Xia looked at Pang Le with a mocking expression and found it strange. "You are so experienced, so why do you spend so much time on dating?"
Pang Le said confidently, "I like all beautiful things. I'm attracted by their beauty, just like I go shopping for beautiful dresses. Isn't it normal to spend some time on them?"
Guan Xia couldn't understand, nor did she want to try to understand, so she quickly changed the subject, "When you came in, you said you had someone investigate Lu Tingfeng and got any results?"
Pang Le sat up a little straighter, hummed, took out his phone, fiddled with it for a while, and handed it to Guan Xia, "Take a look at this photo first."
Guan Xia took it and found a daily photo of a little girl who looked about seven or eight years old. She had short hair that reached her ears and a dark complexion that showed she was often exposed to the sun. Her big eyes were smiling into crescent shapes and she looked back at the camera while running, appearing lively and full of energy.
Although Pang Le hadn't said anything yet, Guan Xia realized something just by looking at the photo. "This is Lu Tingfeng's..."
Pang Le nodded. "His sister was born in 2007 and died in 2014."
Guan Xia subconsciously clenched her fingers around the phone.
Pang Le said: "There is another photo at the back, take a look."
Guan Xia swiped her finger and the second photo came into view.
The photo shows an abandoned pond with only a shallow pool of water at the bottom. Most of the water is black mud and is surrounded by withered weeds. There is a thick mosaic, but you can vaguely see a small figure lying by the pond. It is not clear because of the mosaic, and you can only vaguely see patches of blood and large bruises on the exposed skin.
Having just finished looking at the little girl's vibrant photos, Guan Xia suddenly saw her body lying in such a desolate and dirty place. Even though she was mentally prepared, she felt something blocking her heart for a moment.
After trying hard to calm down, Guan Xia put down her phone and tried to regain her composure. "Is this why Lu Tingfeng came to me?"
"It's obvious," Pang Le said. "His sister was one of the victims in a serial murder case at the time. The specific circumstances of the case are unknown, that's all we can find out. Lu Tingfeng was 19 years old when his sister was killed. After graduating from the Public Security University, he worked as a criminal police officer for more than four years because of his excellent grades. Later, because of his overly irritable temper when dealing with criminal suspects, especially those with female victims, he was repeatedly complained about and disciplined. He was eventually transferred from the front line to internal affairs, but Lu Tingfeng refused to accept the transfer and resigned."
Guan Xia listened quietly and asked, "What happened next?"
Pang Le spread his hands and said, "I don't know what happened after that. Anyway, he left Yongquan City. The people I asked to help find out information about him only found out that he seemed to be traveling everywhere and didn't stay in one city. Because he was so unfixed, the news we could find out after that was very limited."
Although we cannot find out what Lu Tingfeng has been doing since he resigned from the police force, just looking at his state in the past few years after his sister's death, we can tell that his sister's murder had a profound impact on him, and he is most likely running around for his sister's case.
After learning about this past, Guan Xia's dislike for Lu Tingfeng decreased a little. Although his rash behavior of contacting her and testing her was annoying, he was indeed not a bad person as Xu Nian hinted.
There was just one thing that Guan Xia couldn't understand. Since Lu Tingfeng had already resigned from the police force, why could his inquiry still trigger the system? Didn't this seem a bit too outrageous? Or did it mean that the system could be triggered not only by active police officers, but also by those who had already resigned?
Guan Xia thought about it and felt that she could try to find another policeman who had already resigned. However, the moment this idea came to her mind, she felt a headache. Her social circle was too small, and except for Xu Nian and the others, Pang Le's circle had no overlap with the police. She could only wait for an opportunity in the future.
After being distracted for a while, Guan Xia regained her focus and looked at Pang Le, "Has Lu Tingfeng been to your gym again recently?"
Pang Le changed into a comfortable posture and said, "Come, come every day, just like a normal customer. I have an annual membership card. When you come, you get on the treadmill, and after warming up, you go to the exercise equipment. We even had a fight."
Guan Xia was a little curious, "Who won between you two?"
Pang Le raised his chin proudly, "Of course I won. Although his skills are okay, he relies on grappling and subduing. I'm different. Not only do I have competition experience, I also know a lot of routines. He took advantage of me at the beginning, but I was almost dominating him afterwards."
Guan Xia gave him another thumbs up in admiration, "You are indeed worthy of being the world champion. You are really amazing."
"Of course." Pang Le raised his chin even higher.
After these two jokes, the atmosphere became more relaxed. Guan Xia took a pillow and lay down. Suddenly, Pang Le said, "Has Lu Tingfeng contacted you since that night?"
Guan Xia shook her head, "No, not even a friend request."
"That's strange," Pang Le frowned. "From his last actions, it's obvious that he heard about your specialness and tried to recruit you to help him investigate his sister's case. Why did he give up after taking action? Is he playing hard to get?"
Hearing the word "join a gang," Guan Xia frowned, "Can you change the word? It makes me feel like he's trying to drag me into committing a crime."
Pang Le patted Guan Xia lightly and said, "Don't interrupt me. I'm analyzing this seriously. I've finally managed to get my brain working. If I continue for a while, it won't work anymore."
Guan Xia had no choice but to ignore those two words and analyze the situation. "Although he didn't contact me, he appeared in front of you normally. Does this mean... he hasn't really given up?"
Pang Le thought about it and shook his head. "But he didn't ask me anything when he came back, and he didn't even talk to me. It was like he was just here to work out. I even asked the gym staff, but they didn't specifically talk to him or ask anything. He just came to work out every day and left. There were two times when I was playing on my phone in the rest area, and he left without even saying hello to me."
"That's a bit strange," Guan Xia thought about it, but still couldn't come up with anything, so she said, "Since he didn't contact me first, then just ignore him."
Pang Le said, "That's all I can do. But I'm more concerned about what you think. Also, did you tell Xu Nian about the things you remembered from his photo that night?"
Guan Xia nodded and said, "Yes, I told Xu Nian when I got back that night, and I also asked him about Lu Tingfeng."
Pang Le was a little surprised. "You really believe in Xu Nian. It's true that he looks very reliable. But what I don't understand is how you knew that Xu Nian knew Lu Tingfeng."
Guan Xia stated his speculation, "I've only provided clues to the police three or four times, all within a month. Even if it's a little unusual, it's certain that only Xu Nian's Second Squadron, who I've been in contact with, knows me. Even if it's exaggerated, it can only be the Pingjiang District Branch. And then there's you, but given our relationship, you can't possibly reveal it to anyone, so who else could it be?"
Pang Le suddenly realized it later, "No wonder you asked Xu Nian, what did Xu Nian say?"
Guan Xia said, "The information Xu Nian revealed is not as much as you found out, but I understand because of the confidentiality regulations. He also hinted to me that Lu Tingfeng is not a bad person."
Pang Le sneered, "Lu Tingfeng is his friend and a former colleague. Of course he will speak up for him. It's not that I'm not kind. I sympathize with Lu Tingfeng's situation and even feel sorry for him. But he has been away from the police force for several years and is so obsessed with his sister's case. Who knows what his character has become now? From the way he approached you through me, you can tell that he has gone beyond the police framework and has become a little unscrupulous. I'm really afraid that he will go crazy for his sister's case and use any means to force you to help him."
Pang Le shuddered, not knowing what he was thinking about. He grabbed Guan Xia's arm and said, "Promise me, Guan Xia, don't let his beauty get to your head. Feeling sorry for a man will bring you bad luck for the rest of your life."
Guan Xia was speechless. "I'm not like you who likes collecting beautiful things. If I were carried away, I wouldn't have remembered anything and fooled him."
Pang Le finally realized, "That's right, but I still want to remind you, when you look at beauties, just look at their pretty appearance. Don't try to understand their heart or their soul, and don't even think about redemption. You've seen it in so many TV dramas, where they end up sacrificing their lives while trying to redeem themselves."
Seeing Pang Le's earnest words, Guan Xia couldn't help but laugh. "I'm not stupid. How could I possibly think about saving anyone when I'm living a good life? It's just that with my special talent and physique, I'm bound to have to deal with the police in the future. I'm a little unsure what to do now."
Pang Le paused, looked at Guan Xia and asked seriously, "Have you thought it through? Do you also love helping the police solve cases?"
Guan Xia was silent, his mind flashing back to the victims of several cases that had triggered the system before. After a moment, he slowly spoke, "I'm not particularly passionate about it yet, but I always feel like I should do something."
I don’t know if it’s because this is a world that integrates criminal investigation and literature, or because Guan Xia has come into contact with too few cases, she always feels that the proportion of female victims is a bit too high. She doesn’t want to disrupt her peaceful life, but whenever she accidentally hears about those unsolved cold cases, she will always be emotionally affected. There is also that low sense of presence aura that she can never figure out the rules of. She can’t always be so passive. Just like she said to Pang Le, no matter how many, she should do something.
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