Chapter 14

Chapter 14: Chapter 14 — You Come Drive Me.

When He Linfeng arrived, the suspect was sitting obediently by the roadside, drenched in cold sweat.

As for the attacked victim, he was standing nearby completely unharmed, expressionless, holding a knife wrapped in a handkerchief—like a practiced executioner, ready at any moment to chop off the suspect’s head.

Wang Lai hurriedly went up: “Whoa, whoa, whoa, that’s dangerous, put it down… what happened?”

—He was asking about the suspect.

His arm hung limp and powerless, tied together with a pure black tie. To someone unaware, it looked like there were noodles stuffed inside his sleeve.

“Dislocated. He tried to run, so I had to act in legitimate self-defense,” Jing Qing said as he pinched the knife tip through the handkerchief and handed over the weapon. “There should be fingerprints on it.”

Wang Lai: Legitimate self-defense.

What a legitimate self-defense.

They really should’ve called an ambulance earlier.

“You weren’t injured, were you?” He Linfeng looked him over and said, “What a coincidence, I’m on duty today.”

This was their first meeting since their “parting on bad terms” at the Jing Corporation headquarters.

Once momentum is lost, it weakens; when it weakens again, it’s gone completely. Jing Qing originally thought his repeated cold attitude would be enough to scare the other party off—but now it seemed he had underestimated things.

Hearing police sirens in the distance, most guests in the small courtyard scattered like birds and beasts. A few ran off in disheveled clothes, hats covering their faces, moving quickly. The elegant instrumental music also stopped, and the whole place instantly became quiet.

Wang Lai clicked his tongue: “Tch, anyone would think we’re here for a vice crackdown.”

But he didn’t get a response from his good brother.

Looking closer, the other man was crouching down, busy untying the suspect’s tie.

Probably due to struggling too much in the middle, the already professional knot had tightened into something extremely secure—it looked even more reliable than handcuffs and would probably need scissors to cut open.

Wang Lai immediately leaned in nervously: “What’s wrong? Internal bleeding? Should we pop his shoulder back in first? I’ve called 120, the ambulance is coming.”

The suspect’s face turned deathly pale in an instant.

Only then did He Linfeng reply slowly: “No.”

Wang Lai: “Then you…” why are you going through all this trouble?

Halfway through the sentence, a ridiculous guess suddenly formed in his mind. Then he heard He Linfeng answer:

“…Jing Qing’s tie.”

Of course.

Wang Lai thought, both speechless and amused—this was exactly the kind of thing He Linfeng would do.

At nearly 1.9 meters tall, he somehow looked a little pitiful at that moment. But Wang Lai still couldn’t bring himself to cheer him on; he could only silently light a candle for him in his heart.

Go, President Jing! Well done! Hopefully he makes that guy hit a wall a few more times.

However, if Wang Lai had observed He Linfeng’s expression more carefully, he would have noticed there was no frustration or disappointment at all—only an increasingly eager sense of appreciation.

He liked challenges.

Because the suspect had been beaten by Jing Qing and had physical conflict with Jing Qing, such suspects were more prone to “accidents,” Wang Lai was already very familiar with the follow-up procedure: before sending him back to the interrogation room, a basic medical check was unavoidable—to prevent him from collapsing at the bureau later and to ensure Jing Qing bore no responsibility.

But the moment Jing Qing followed them into the ambulance, Wang Lai’s brain still briefly short-circuited.

“You can go back with the other colleagues,” Wang Lai explained, worried he hadn’t made himself clear enough. “Finish the statement early and head off. Get a good night’s sleep and calm down.”

The black-haired young man gave a low cough and said calmly, “My chest feels tight.”

His skin was pale and his lips were light in color, which made his words sound especially convincing. The ambulance nurse was experienced; seeing that he didn’t have any obvious serious symptoms, she immediately handed him an oxygen bag.

Jing Qing cooperatively held it.

Wang Lai secretly bumped He Linfeng with his elbow, sending him a puzzled look: ?? Why isn’t your crush reacting at all when he’s clearly unwell?

But He Linfeng remained unfazed.

Given the scale and standards of Lanjiang Elegant Residence, it was impossible that there weren’t private doctors available. If the young man was truly unwell, why go out of his way? Staying would have been the most reasonable option.

Most likely, he was lying.

But He Linfeng couldn’t figure out the motive.

There was only one ambulance, and space inside was limited. Normally only two “family members” could accompany the patient, but considering the special nature of the police profession—at least two officers were required for law enforcement duties—the nurse ultimately didn’t kick off Wang Lai, who had an almost childlike face.

After closing the door, Jing Qing sat down next to He Linfeng.

The space was a bit cramped, their knees touching.

Even through several layers of fabric, He Linfeng could feel the tension in the young man’s muscles.

He reached a conclusion:

Not “most likely”—but 100% a lie.

If Jing Qing could hear He Linfeng’s thoughts and realize he had been exposed because of this, he would definitely comment that the man had something wrong with his brain.

After all, by normal human—or transmigrator—logic, if the target of his favor took the initiative to get physically close, it could only mean his efforts were paying off.

Unfortunately, He Linfeng was a native of this world, and Jing Qing didn’t have the energy to care about any of that.

After simple bandaging, the suspect on the stretcher finally regained some strength. Wang Lai quickly took out his little notebook and asked, “Name?”

The suspect, who had failed an armed sneak attack and been beaten into the ground, seemed to have questioned his entire life. Staring blankly, lips trembling, it took him a long while before he finally answered:

“Chen Yang.”

The breath Jing Qing had been holding tightly finally dispersed.

Chen Yang.

The true culprit of the second case in Beijiang Criminal Investigation Notes. In the original storyline, although he still failed to kill him, he had slashed Jing Qing’s face and successfully escaped.

That failed attempt not only awakened Chen Yang’s brutality, but also made him more cautious in his actions. In later plotlines, he carefully planned and committed three more murders before being arrested by the police.

But at this moment, everything in that tragedy had been cut off at its very beginning.

The “original storyline” could be changed.

For the first time in a long while, Jing Qing’s tense nerves relaxed. When Yu Xiumei had complained earlier that he “didn’t go to Mingxin Lake to commemorate his parents,” he had already had a suspicion—now he was even more certain.

He Linfeng keenly noticed the change in the atmosphere beside him.

He turned his head slightly. The young man’s features were relaxed; his expression was almost soft. Even when being stared at for a couple of seconds, he didn’t get annoyed, idly poking at the oxygen bag with his fingers.

Lowering his voice so as not to disturb Wang Lai, He Linfeng spoke up:

“Mr. Jing has good skills.”

“Mm,” he received the expected answer. “I do boxing occasionally.”

Chen Yang, whose bones felt like they were about to fall apart, instinctively shrank back.

Wang Lai looked at his miserable, quail-like appearance and couldn’t help but take the opportunity to lecture him: “Scared? You should be. Do you really think breaking the law is that easy? Still dare to do it again in the future?”

Chen Yang coughed twice and didn’t respond.

Wang Lai smacked his lips. “Alright, let’s talk. Why did you attack Jing Qing?”

At the mention of this, Chen Yang’s gaze suddenly darkened. The suppressed resentment overpowered his fear, and he glared hatefully at Jing Qing, finally showing the shadow of the serial killer from the original storyline.

“Because he looks good.”

Wang Lai, who had been waiting for some dramatic love-hate entanglement: …

What the hell, is this guy sick?

Yet Chen Yang’s attitude was extremely serious, with no flaws of pretending madness or evasion to be found. Only belatedly did Wang Lai, who usually dealt with fugitives and desperadoes, realize that if Jing Qing had truly just been an ordinary office-bound CEO, he would most likely already be a disfigured corpse lying in a pool of blood.

So he immediately grew serious.

Only Jing Qing, as the person involved, reacted rather flatly.

For twenty-eight years, the malice he had heard and seen was countless. One more Chen Yang or one less Chen Yang didn’t actually make much difference.

At least this time, his ears were finally clean—no longer forced to receive the darkness in the other person’s heart.

Never intending to truly waste medical resources, once he got off the ambulance, he casually sat for a while in a chair at the deepest end of the corridor, pretending he had completed an examination, and then calculated the time before standing up.

—The case was already clear. Wang Lai had finished taking the statement on the ambulance and even had him sign it.

The clock on his wrist crossed midnight. Jing Qing stood at the bottom step outside the hospital, opened his phone navigation, skipped the system’s recommended route, and directly selected walking.

One hour and fifty minutes.

Jing Qing pressed his lips slightly together.

“Beep.”

Someone lightly honked a horn. A familiar car stopped by the roadside, revealing an even more familiar face.

“Mr. Jing.”

“I’ll take you home.”

Jing Qing: …

Exactly the same line—and, moreover, shouldn’t this guy be guarding Chen Yang?

“Old Zhou drove it over. He’s covering my shift,” the other party explained matter-of-factly, as if reading his confusion. “Let’s go, head back. Captain Yan ordered it. Don’t believe me, ask her.”

Jing Qing refused politely: “I don’t ride in other people’s cars.” Unless circumstances force it.

He Linfeng complied smoothly: “Easy.”

“You drive me.”

Jing Qing: …

He should have turned and left, just like last time.

But perhaps because Chen Yang’s arrest had put him in a rare good mood, Jing Qing stepped forward, bent his fingers, and tapped on the car door.

“Get out.”

The positions were exchanged.

Jian Qing gripped the steering wheel, quickly getting a feel for it.

He Linfeng sat properly in the passenger seat, saying nothing strange and doing nothing strange, as if he were simply there to give him a ride.

The midnight roads were very empty, yet Jian Qing never sped up, maintaining a steady speed the entire time.

After his parents passed away, Jian Qing moved out. Before middle school he lived with his aunt, then in dorms. After graduating university, he naturally bought a place closest to the company.

For him, the true meaning of “home” was a distant and blurry word.

Having never invited anyone upstairs for a visit, Jian Qing turned off the engine and politely thanked He Linfeng.

What he received in return was a softly smiling “good night.”

Guessing the other party was going back to the bureau to work overtime again, Jian Qing paused and reminded him, “He Linfeng.”

“I think Chen Yang’s condition doesn’t look like his first offense.”

Beep—

The door unlocked. The living room was pitch black. Jian Qing, used to it, changed into slippers, skillfully avoided every piece of furniture that might bump into him, and drew open the curtains, letting in a soft moonlight.

Casually, he glanced downward.

The man’s car was still parked in the same spot.

When he bought the apartment, he had specifically chosen the farthest, most remote building with the fewest residents. In the deep night, the entire building was dark. Jian Qing frowned slightly, hesitating for two seconds between ignoring it and going downstairs to chase him away, then reached up and switched on the floor lamp beside the sofa.

Click.

In response, the warm yellow car lights blinked twice.

Only then did the car turn around and drive away at speed.

His long, straight eyelashes flickered. Jian Qing came back to his senses, realizing he had been staring for quite a while.