The worst thing was the sudden silence in the air.
Wen Xin’s face was flushed red, and she refused to back down.
Although she knew that wasn’t what Shen Yan had meant, the urge to tease him was completely beyond her control.
Shen Yan’s jaw tightened, his gaze fixed only on her clean face as he changed the subject. “Go pack your things. Move out tonight.”
Wen Xin deflated like a punctured balloon and replied, “Alright.”
After returning to her room, she tossed out one last line: “The mung bean cakes Xie Aixian gave me are in the fridge.”
Shen Yan opened the refrigerator door. The plate was old-fashioned Chinese style—aged but well-maintained and spotless, clearly worth a fortune. The mung bean cakes were small square pieces, each engraved with delicate patterns.
Just then, Jiang Shisan returned to 1005 with the surveillance footage and took away the mung bean cakes and the plate.
Shen Yan’s gaze fell on 1003, and with just one look, Jiang Shisan understood his intention.
Half an hour later.
Wen Xin finished packing her daily clothes and the essentials for her livestreams—two large suitcases standing by her side. She looked up at Shen Yan and said, “I’m all packed.”
He naturally took both suitcases from her hands and followed behind Wen Xin.
Along the way.
Wen Xin was still processing the fact that they had reunited. The thought of moving into the home of the man she liked—wasn’t that just a little too wonderful?
She couldn’t resist sharing the good news in her college roommate group chat. The responses she got were:
Shu Shuangyue: “Girl, an iron rod can be ground into a needle, and ice can melt into water. Keep going! If 92 octane isn’t enough, go for 95!”
Yun Jin: “Xinxin, go for it! Use your legs to seduce him. You’re the photo-killer every female celebrity in the entertainment industry fears.”
Shu Shuangyue: “I was just wondering why Officer Jiang was trying to shoo me away earlier. So he’s the ‘military campus heartthrob’ you’ve had a crush on all these years…”
Yun Jin: “Did I miss some major gossip?”
…
There were four people in the group, but the other one, Ling Xuan, had rarely sent messages since starting her internship. Even when tagged, she wouldn’t reply—as if she were hiding something on purpose.
Wen Xin sent a “goofy grin” emoji, then quickened her pace to catch up with Shen Yan, the curve of her smile never fading.
Outside the residential complex, a low-key Volkswagen was parked in the dead of night. Wen Xin didn’t hesitate at all and sat directly in the passenger seat.
As she buckled her seatbelt, she felt a bit nervous. What if Shen Yan said he already had a girlfriend?
The two had never been alone in such a confined space before.
Wen Xin rolled down the window and watched the towering buildings flash by outside.
Kyoto had changed so much over the years. When she left the compound, she was only eighteen. Now she was twenty-two, and she still wasn’t with Shen Yan. The wish she’d once had—to marry him and have children by the time she turned twenty—had ultimately come to nothing.
She turned her head and looked at Shen Yan’s profile, which seemed drawn with charcoal lines. His cool, composed eyes stared ahead, his shirt sleeves rolled up to his wrists, revealing firm forearms. His pale, well-defined fingers gripped the steering wheel, faint veins rising on the back of his hand, his knuckles flawless.
So sexy!
Sure enough, the older a man gets, the more intriguing he becomes.
At a red light, Shen Yan met her burning gaze, staring at her until she felt flustered. Wen Xin hastily averted her eyes elsewhere.
But in her mind, she was already imagining what Shen Yan looked like without his clothes on.
A faint blush spread across her cheeks as she stammered, “Um, if I stay at your place, will your girlfriend be upset?”
Shen Yan curved his lips slightly and said casually, “I don’t have a girlfriend. What about you?”
“Me neither. They’re either too short, too skinny, wear glasses, or too fat or too dark. I have high standards, you know.”
Wen Xin secretly stole another glance at him. Following the normal flow of conversation, Shen Yan should now ask, “So what kind do you like?”
She let out a soft breath, already preparing her mental script, ready to go straight for the kill at any moment.
In the dim light inside the car, Wen Xin couldn’t make out Shen Yan’s expression clearly. She only vaguely saw his arm tighten slightly, and then he said, “Mm, if you ever meet a guy you like in the future, bring him to us first for a look.”
Wen Xin’s eyes went wide!
“I won’t like anyone else! You know… I like men in uniform!” Wen Xin just couldn’t bring herself to say those words out loud.
“You’re still young. You need to think things through carefully. Stay in this place for now.” He kept his eyes on the road ahead, his tone completely flat.
The topic ended there. Since she couldn’t gain the upper hand in words, she’d have to win elsewhere.
A waterfront pavilion gets the moonlight first. She swore she would sink her teeth into this tough bone called Shen Yan.
The car soon arrived at Yuehu Jing residential complex. Shen Yan’s floor wasn’t high—the 12th floor, with two units per floor.
The apartment was finely decorated, two and a half bedrooms, ready to move in with just a suitcase.
Shen Yan set the luggage down in the living room and spoke first. “Feel free to stay here. I’ll be at the officers’ quarters during this period. Don’t go out unless necessary. Get settled in first, and I’ll head back to the bureau. Call me if anything comes up.”
Wen Xin pondered for a moment, her clear, water-like eyes gazing intently at him. “Wait, it’s 3 a.m. now. If you go back to the bureau, you won’t get any rest at all. Sleep in the master bedroom first. You’re only human—even for work, you need to take care of yourself.”
“No, you rest first.”
She blinked, stepped closer, her moon-like eyes shimmering under the light, the tear mole beneath them utterly captivating. “I know you’re thinking about the difference between men and women, but don’t worry—I absolutely won’t lay a hand on you.”
Shen Yan lowered his gaze with a smile. “Alright.”
Wen Xin finally understood—he really was afraid she’d force herself on him!
Police officers really do have sharp instincts.
But of course, not right now.
That night, Wen Xin employed a roundabout strategy.
Everything went peacefully.
The next day.
Shen Yan was at the bureau early, reviewing the surveillance footage from Xizi Bay the night before. Sure enough, the part Wen Xin mentioned about someone knocking on the door had been erased.
He leaned back in his chair, legs crossed, right hand holding a pen propped under his chin, eyes closed in deep thought.
The events of last night replayed in his mind like a movie.
After Xie Aixian’s death, Qin Lang’s reaction—sobbing uncontrollably, yet it felt like everything had finally settled.
“Boss, morning!” Meng Xinya walked in cheerfully, carrying breakfast toward Shen Yan.
He didn’t even lift his eyelids, lazily replying, “Morning.”
Seeing him like this, Meng Xinya knew he was thinking about the case. The breakfast in her hands was still warm.
For a moment, she didn’t know whether to approach.
Nami and Chen Chuan, watching from outside the door, both felt a pang of regret.
Why fall for anyone else when you could fall for a thousand-year block of ice?
“Xinya, what did you buy this morning? I rushed out without eating—could you be generous and share your breakfast with me?” Nami said pitifully.
Chen Chuan broke the awkward silence. “I heard the boss and Thirteen went to Xizi Bay again last night. Someone knocked on the door next to the victim’s. The boss probably didn’t sleep a wink all night—he’s got a lot on his mind.”
Her expression softened. She no longer blamed Shen Yan for ignoring her.
After all, the criminal investigation unit had plenty of cases to handle. She should understand Shen Yan.
Meng Xinya frowned slightly. “The door next to the victim’s—was that Wen Xin?”
Chen Chuan slapped his forehead. “Yeah, that’s right, Little June. She’s just a young girl—how terrified must she have been at that moment!”
Meng Xinya shot him a sharp glare and said irritably, “She’s a grown woman. What’s there to be afraid of?”
Not far away, Shen Yan, resting with his eyes closed, furrowed his brow slightly, his eyelids twitching.