"Song Guanchao, you can go now."
Officer Liu pushed open the door and said.
Miss Liang hurried over, her face beaming with joy, "Song Guanchao, you're free to go now!"
"Um, Officer Liu already told me."
Song Guanchao stretched lazily, stood up to loosen his muscles, and winked at Liang Jiajia, "Officer Liang, you have impressive skills — truly worthy of being a goddess detective. You cleared my name in just one night."
Liang Jiajia's young face turned red, somewhat embarrassed, "It wasn't me… I only knew you were released after receiving notice from higher-ups."
"It wasn't you?"
Of course, Song Guanchao knew why he was released; he was purposely giving credit to Liang Jiajia.
"Um, no."
Liang Jiajia shook her head and said, "Let's not talk about that. Please, come out."
When he left the interrogation room, Fu Cheng was staring at him with a grim expression.
Song Guanchao said, "Isn't that Officer Fu, huh, you hit me during last night's interrogation. How come you haven't been suspended yet?"
The surrounding police officers immediately looked over, while Fu Cheng's eyes nearly burst with fire, his fists clenched tight, visibly agitated.
Liang Jiajia said, "Mr. Song, don't worry, I will speak to the station chief about this."
Song Guanchao nodded, "I trust Officer Liang's words!"
Liang Jiajia was deeply touched by Song Guanchao's unconditional trust in her.
Meanwhile, the rage burning in Fu Cheng's heart grew fiercer.
Stepping out of the police station, Liang Jiajia said, "Mr. Song, where do you live? I'll take you back."
"No need," Song Guanchao replied. "You haven't slept much all night, I can see the dark circles. With your beauty, don't turn into a yellow-faced woman."
"You're the yellow-faced one!" Liang Jiajia rolled her eyes.
"Alright, go back now."
Indeed, Liang Jiajia was extremely tired, but the thought that Song Guanchao had been wronged kept her awake.
Now that the mist had cleared, revealing the moon, and everything had settled, her anxious heart calmed down.
Once relaxed, drowsiness swept over her like a tidal wave.
She yawned and said, "Then I'll head back first."
After Liang Jiajia left, Song Guanchao stood by the roadside hailing a taxi.
Suddenly.
Footsteps approached from behind.
As a former soldier, Song Guanchao quickly turned around, on high alert.
It was Fu Cheng!
Fu Cheng came over with a sullen expression, saying, "Song Guanchao, be careful walking the streets at night!"
Song Guanchao, smiling, touched his stomach, "Officer Fu can really take a hit."
"You're asking for it!" Fu Cheng immediately became emotional.
Last night he intended to give Song Guanchao a lesson but ended up being the one punched instead.
The power of that punch had caused his stomach to cramp.
The physical pain was bearable, but being punched by a suspect on his own turf was utterly humiliating.
Song Guanchao grinned and pointed to his face, "Come on, hit me."
Fu Cheng's nostrils flared, and his forehead veins pulsed.
He knew Song Guanchao was goading him.
If he really took a swing, he'd be looking at more than just a suspension—he'd be behind bars!
Seeing Fu Cheng enraged but hesitating, Song Guanchao taunted, "Coward."
Fu Cheng took a deep breath and pointed at him with a feigned touch, "We've got plenty of time. If you want to play games, I'll play with you slowly."
Song Guanchao sneered, "In the military, if you dared talk to me like that, you'd already be lying on the ground."
Fu Cheng scoffed, "Too bad you're no longer in service."
Song Guanchao said, "Retired or not, dealing with you would be a piece of cake."
"Screech!"
A black Porsche Cayenne suddenly stopped at the curb.
The passenger side window rolled down, and a young woman wearing sunglasses said, "Brother Song, get in."
Liang Hui?
Song Guanchao was a bit surprised. What was she doing here?
He concealed his emotion with a grunt and raised his hand to push past Fu Cheng, "A good dog doesn't block the path."
Fu Cheng struggled to hold back the urge to lash out, turning his head to look, and when he saw the woman driving the car, a touch of astonishment flashed in his eyes.
Watching Guan Chao slide into the luxury car, a strong wave of jealousy surged within Fu Cheng.
Luxury cars, beautiful women!
These were things he did not have.
But Guan Chao did!
The car left a trail of exhaust and swiftly drove off, leaving Fu Cheng to curse under his breath, "Dammit!"
...
Half an hour later, Liang Hui brought Guan Chao into a restaurant.
After having lunch, Liang Hui said, "Li Fuhai was put under disciplinary investigation at the municipal government cafeteria today at noon."
Guan Chao simply hummed in response, lighting a cigarette.
Liang Hui asked, "With Li Fuhai being investigated, what does Brother Song plan to do next?"
Guan Chao said, "I'll follow the organization's arrangements."
Liang Hui covered her mouth and giggled lightly, "And what job might the organization arrange for Brother Song?"
"I'm not sure about that."
He knew Liang Hui was probing him, trying to find out who was really backing him.
However, there was no one behind him.
When his cigarette was finished, Guan Chao stood up and said, "I'm leaving now."
"Brother Song, let me give you a ride."
On the way home, Liang Hui casually bombarded him with questions, but no matter what she asked, Guan Chao refused to answer directly.
Twenty minutes later, the car stopped below Guan Chao's apartment building.
It was a very ordinary and old residential complex, with no elevator, no property management, spotty exterior walls, and exposed rebar where the concrete on the stairwells had crumbled.
"Thanks."
Guan Chao got out of the car and had just entered his home when Liang Hui, not knowing when, followed him in.
Taking advantage of his moment of distraction as he opened the door, she threw herself into his arms and swiftly closed the door behind them.
"Brother Song," she lifted her chin, her lightly made-up face as delicate as a porcelain doll.
Her beautiful eyes shimmered like autumn water, a hint of shyness within them.
Her curvaceous body writhed restlessly in his arms, and her soft hand slipped into his trousers, grasping Guan Chao's vital part.
It only took a moment for Guan Chao to respond.
However, he immediately pushed Liang Hui away, straightening his clothes, and said, "Miss Liang, please have some self-respect."
He didn't mind a friendly exchange with a beautiful woman, but now was not the time.
This woman had impure motives!
Seeing that normal questioning did not yield answers, she thought of offering herself.
To a woman like Liang Hui, her body was the least valuable thing.
If she could exchange it for some useful information, she wouldn't hesitate.
But he didn't know enough about Liang Hui and Liang Hao yet.
And he hadn't yet firmly established himself in the Lingjiang City official circles. Getting romantically involved everywhere at this point would be like setting up a series of time bombs, not a prudent move.
Besides, the Liang siblings belonged to Li Fuhai.
Although Li Fuhai had fallen from grace, the faction he belonged to was still in place.
It was still unknown which faction Guan Chao would join in the future.
Binding himself to the Liang siblings now would be a foolish decision.
Liang Hui didn't anticipate that Guan Chao would actually push her away.
She believed that, given her looks and figure, no man could resist her, especially when she was being so forward.
And Guan Chao had clearly just reacted.
This man's resolve was terrifyingly strong.
With a look of deep sadness, she said, "Brother Song, don't you like me?"
Guan Chao smiled and said, "To talk about liking someone after meeting only twice, don't you think that's nonsensical, Miss Liang?"
Liang Hui bit her lip lightly, "We're already in the same boat. I want to take things further with Brother Song. Won't you give me a chance?"
"Heh," Guan Chao said, "I've spent a night at the police station and am quite tired. Please go home, Miss Liang."
Liang Hui bit her lip and suddenly pulled down the straps of her slip dress.
The silky dress slid down from her shoulders, and her tender, pale body forcibly invaded Guan Chao's line of sight.