Crazy Detective

The next morning, it had finally stopped drizzling. The rising sun bathed the Qing Imperial Palace in a warm and pleasant glow. The red walls and the green tiles formed a pleasing juxtaposition.

Pong…

Miao Ying was roused from her slumber by the sound of a door slamming.

"Ah, oh…"

Miao Ying cracked open her eyes and yawned, the sunlight reflected by the walls falling softly on her beautiful countenance.

"Ooh…"

She exhaled, only realizing now that dawn had broken.

Raising her head, she finally sensed some activity from the command vehicle. Although she could make out their silhouettes, the door of the command vehicle was facing the opposite direction. Because of this, she was unable to determine what was going on.

What she could see, though, was the Rolls Royce being quietly driven over. It was then driven away after having picked up a couple of people at the entrance of the command vehicle.

"Eh?" Fearing that she had missed something, Miao Ying frowned and got ready to get out of the car.

Cui Lizhu remained sound asleep on her lap.

"Xiao Cui… Lizhu… hey…" Miao Ying tapped Lizhu lightly on her face, trying to wake her up.

"What's wrong?" Cui Lizhu opened her eyes, then exclaimed in surprise, "Wow! It's already daybreak!"

"C'mon… get up…" Miao Ying pushed Cui Lizhu aside and scrambled out of the car, walking briskly toward the command vehicle.

At the same time, after a flurry of door slamming, quick footsteps were coming from another direction. Li Jing, Xiao Hang, and their team of operatives were all walking quickly toward the command vehicle.

At that moment, the Rolls Royce headed toward the main entrance of the attraction. The passengers did not stop to talk to anyone, and nobody knew who was inside the Rolls Royce.

"What the heck is this?" Li Jing was even more taken aback than Miao Ying was. She hadn't expected the chiefs to be so discreet. They were so secretive that even she had not been informed of their departure.

"D*mn…" Xiao Hang frowned, mumbling, "They… didn't take Zhao Yu with them, did they? Is it that serious?"

"Hahaha…."

Amid the apprehension that everyone was feeling, a sudden burst of laughter came from behind the command vehicle.

However, it sounded nothing like Zhao Yu's maniacal laughter. This laughter was deep and hearty, maybe even charming.

The next moment, everyone saw a handsome middle-aged man walk out from behind the command vehicle with his arm around Zhao Yu.

Although Zhao Yu was also grinning, it was evident from his stiff smile that he was exhausted.

"Dad!?" Miao Ying recognized him right away. The man with his arm around Zhao Yu's shoulder was none other than her father, Miao Kun!

"Miao… erm…" Li Jing stopped short of greeting him, as if she had just realized something.

"Boss! Boss!" Seeing that Zhao Yu was thankfully intact, Cui Lizhu bounded over happily and grabbed his arm. "How was it? How was it? Are you alright? Why did it take so long?"

"Hahaha…" Miao Kun suddenly chuckled. "You must be kidding, girlie! What could possibly happen to your team leader? He earned great merit this time around. If anything, we ought to be commending him instead…"

"Daddy… erm…" Miao Ying furrowed her brows. "What are you doing here? Weren't you supposed to be overseas? How did you get here so quickly?"

"Hahaha…" Miao Kun laughed heartily, slapping Zhao Yu's shoulder. "This time around, my daughter-in-law… no… my son-in-law did well by me, how could I not come over to show face? Ying Ying ah…" Giving a thumbs up to Miao Ying, he continued. "You have great foresight! How did you manage to snag someone with both dash and skill like this?"

"Did you know?" Although they had been up all night, Miao Kun showed no sign of weariness. He spoke enthusiastically, saying, "Zhao Yu did a great job this time around, whether in terms of importance, significance, or influence.

"Mm… let me tell you… he's almost caught up to me! And he will surpass me in no time! This boy has a bright future ahead of him... Hahaha…"

Ptooey…

Xiao Hang spat out again, despite not having drunk any water this time …

Li Jing wiped away the cold sweat on her forehead, musing to herself, "These two are indeed thick-skinned! No wonder they're about to become family!"

"I'm flattered, my dear father-in-law!" Zhao Yu made a show of being courteous. "I'm far from surpassing you! How about this – shall we go for some chicken hotpot?"

"Gulu…" At the mention of chicken hotpot, Miao Kun's smile froze. Swallowing his saliva, he said, "My son-in-law, you have no idea, there's no chicken hotpot in Feng Ping! Hehe…"

Both Miao Ying and Cui Lizhu guffawed in response. Not getting the joke, Li Jing and Xiao Hang remained serious with straight faces.

"Xiao Cui!" cackled Zhao Yu, before saying solemnly to Cui Lizhu, "Lunch is gonna be your treat!"

"Hmm?" Cui Lizhu was baffled. "Why?"

"Because…" Zhao Yu broke into a wide grin. "We managed to save your mansion! The higher-ups have decided not to pursue the matter of your mansion because of your contributions toward the case of the hidden treasure!"

"Wah!"

Upon hearing this news, Cui Lizhu was so happy that she leaped into the air! In her excitement, she even hugged Zhao Yu and kissed him on the cheek.

Erm…

Erm…

The atmosphere had become somewhat awkward.

Miao Ying didn't have an issue with it, but Miao Kun shot a look at his daughter, as if asking: My dear, is it not inappropriate for another woman to kiss your fiancé right under your nose?

"Erm…" Zhao Yu was quick to respond. Pointing toward Miao Kun, he told Cui Lizhu, "Don't thank me, thank Uncle Miao instead. If he had not helped you out with the higher-ups, there's no way you would have gotten your mansion back…"

"Wah!" Cui Lizhu, too, realized that her behavior had been slightly inappropriate. So, when Zhao Yu said that to her, she understood right away what needed to be done. She leaped in front of Miao Kun, held his face in her hands, kissed him on his cheeks, then said sweetly, "Thank you, Uncle Miao…"

"Mm… mm…" Satisfied, Miao Kun nodded and said, "That's more like it… that's more like it…"

To say that Xiao Hang was bewildered at what he had just witnessed was an understatement. He was feeling so uncomfortable at the awkward situation in front of him that he was almost cringing.

Li Jing, on the other hand, remained calm and composed. After Cui Lizhu had gone over to Miao Kun, she asked solemnly, "Miao… Captain Miao… Regarding Zhao Yu and the treasure, what are the instructions from the higher-ups? Why did they leave so quickly? This matter is of utmost importance. We need to handle it with caution…"

Upon hearing what Li Jing had just said, Miao Kun and Zhao Yu looked at each other and roared with laughter.

"Captain Li…" Miao Kun stared into Li Jing's eyes and sounding somewhat contemplative, said, "Chill! It's already daybreak, and we rarely get together! Why don't we go get some breakfast? I'll buy!"

"But…" Li Jing pointed at the cabin with the hidden chamber, implying that they shouldn't be leaving when things were just getting started.

"No worries!" Miao Kun understood her concerns. "We've been discussing the situation the entire night. Even if I were to tell you about the higher-up's decision now, it would take more than just a few words."

"Let's go…" He grabbed Zhao Yu with one hand, and Miao Ying with the other. "I know a great noodle place in Feng Ping. Come on, let's go check it out…"