Wen Xin turned around and saw that everyone had their heads down, eating—a stark contrast to how they’d been when she first walked in.
She tilted her head up and smiled, the corners of her lips curving. “Officer Shen, are they all afraid of you?”
No kidding, who wasn’t?
The fire brigade feared Captain Lu Wenjing of the fire department.
The criminal investigation team had Captain Shen, who struck fear into everyone’s hearts.
Neither of them was someone to mess with.
Shen Yan pressed his lips together and said nothing.
Wen Xin didn’t push further. She found an empty seat and sat down.
There were very few women in the criminal investigation team, and most of them were logistics clerks.
When they saw Wen Xin, they discreetly pulled out their phones to compare her with the photos on Weibo.
She really was prettier in person than in pictures.
People online always said:
The scariest thing is when internet celebrities take photos with female movie stars, because most internet celebrities have had plastic surgery.
But Wen Xin was different—she was the one person female celebrities in the entertainment industry dreaded taking photos with. On top of that, her makeup skills were nothing short of extraordinary.
Because of this, many stars fought over the chance to collaborate with her. But Wen Xin was too beautiful—standing next to her, anyone would be completely overshadowed. Her beauty wasn’t aggressive, but when she smiled, it could make “all the beauties of the six palaces lose their color.” She made people believe that the ancient poet’s line about “a single backward glance that births a hundred charms” described a real person.
A few female officers were itching to strike up a conversation with Wen Xin.
Who wouldn’t want hands like hers? Who didn’t want to become a fairy?
Shen Yan sat across from her.
The two ate in silence.
“Officer Shen, what’s your favorite color?” Wen Xin set down her chopsticks and met his gaze.
“Blue, I suppose.” Shen Yan ate quickly, yet with an air of refined elegance—the kind of upbringing etched into his bones that was pleasant to behold.
“Is it because of the color of the police uniform?”
Shen Yan nodded.
She rested her chin on her interlaced fingers, a playful glint in her eyes. “I like pink. Pink and blue have always been the perfect couple.” Wen Xin lowered her gaze with a smile, then added, “Wouldn’t you say we’re a good match?”
Shen Yan finished the last few bites of rice in his bowl, then leaned back in his chair. “The colors do match well.”
Meaning they didn’t match!
Wen Xin conceded defeat.
Meng Xinya, standing behind them, overheard the conversation and let out a complete sigh of relief. At least Shen Yan’s decision to remove her from the criminal investigation team wasn’t because of Wen Xin.
She composed herself and stepped forward, greeting them warmly. “Captain Shen, I hope I’m not interrupting?”
Wen Xin smiled, her eyes curving into crescent moons. “Not at all. You all must have been working hard on cases lately, right?”
She knew who Meng Xinya was—she should be the “Queen of Thorns” who’d ordered the barbecue that night. But seeing her now, the title didn’t quite seem to fit.
Still, going by a woman’s sixth sense, she probably had feelings for Shen Yan.
In short, she was her love rival.
Meng Xinya felt a twinge of discomfort at Wen Xin’s words.
Director Meng had told her to leave the Quanxiu criminal investigation team, but Meng Xinya refused no matter what. She was his only precious daughter, so he could only indulge her. But he also couldn’t go against Shen Yan’s wishes, so he had Meng Xinya stay in the logistics department instead.
She tried to avoid crossing paths with Shen Yan as much as possible.
But the detachment was only so big—at large events or during meal times, they were bound to run into each other.
Meng Xinya pondered for a moment, then decided to be honest. “I’ve stepped down from the investigation unit. I’m in logistics now.”
Wen Xin nodded in understanding, then glanced at Shen Yan. He hadn’t said a single word.
Meng Xinya actually cared a great deal about Shen Yan’s feelings. He had always been a man of his word—of course, that was in his work.
“The logistics team is fine too. It’s not as tiring, and girls’ skin will get worse if they’re too tired.” Wen Xin changed the subject.
Just then.
A few female police officers behind them stood up and walked over to Wen Xin, cautiously greeting Shen Yan first. “Captain Shen, mind if we borrow your girlfriend for a moment?”
Before Meng Xinya could even get the words out to explain, Wen Xin was quite direct. “Why so formal? What’s up?”
The two female officers stepped past Shen Yan and held up their phones to show Wen Xin. “Little June, we still haven’t mastered the techniques you mentioned in your livestream—the ones about using contouring to make your face look smaller and your forehead narrower.”
“If you’ve been watching my streams, you can tune in tonight. I’ll go over those two techniques in more detail during the broadcast.”
“Then… what if we still can’t get it after that?”
Another female officer had a flash of inspiration. “Then have your boyfriend Captain Shen bring you to the criminal investigation unit. We happen to be hosting an exchange session next month.”
Wen Xin stared at Shen Yan thoughtfully for a moment.
Then blurted out, “Sure.”
Throughout the entire exchange, Shen Yan hadn’t said a single word.
Meng Xinya was already like an ant on a hot pan, and asked casually, “Wen Xin, why did I just hear Captain Shen say you two aren’t boyfriend and girlfriend?”
In an instant.
All the smile on Wen Xin’s face froze.
And Shen Yan, sitting across from her, said nothing at all, looking completely like, “It’s your stage—you perform.”
It infuriated Wen Xin so much that her long legs under the table gave his hard, muscular thigh a sudden kick.
The two female officers were taken aback.
What was going on here? Shen Yan was such a cunning, scheming person—would he get angry? Could he take back what he’d just said?
Wen Xin tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and said matter-of-factly, “Not yet. But definitely will be in the future.”
The female officers glanced at Shen Yan again, not daring to say a word.
Why? Because they’d just felt a wave of indulgent affection—like “you’re making a fuss, and he’s letting you.”
Shen Yan slightly raised his eyes, his brow twitching. Clearly, he hadn’t expected Wen Xin’s direct approach to be so hard to defend against.
He lifted his wrist, glanced at the time on his watch, and asked flatly, “Are we leaving or not?”
Wen Xin replied with eager servility, “Leaving, leaving.”
The two walked out one after the other, leaving Meng Xinya alone at the table to finish her meal.
The two female officers were still shipping the couple.
“Little June is really perfect for Captain Shen. Didn’t you see? When he heard what Wen Xin said just now, he actually smiled.”
“Really? I always thought Captain Shen was this cold, serious type. Hahaha, the iron tree is finally about to bloom.”
“Ah, so we never stood a chance…”
Hearing their words, Meng Xinya felt deeply unsettled. She stabbed at the food on her plate, huffing through her nose.
The two female officers suddenly realized someone was still behind them and hurriedly left the cafeteria.
At the entrance of the criminal investigation unit.
It was still that low-key Volkswagen.
Shen Yan walked around to the driver’s side and was about to open the door when Wen Xin quickly shut it. She pressed him against the car door. The two stood very, very close, their breaths intertwining.
Wen Xin looked up, a different light flickering in her eyes, as if she wanted to see something different in Shen Yan’s.
Shen Yan looked like a wronged little wife, his back ramrod straight, fingers unconsciously curling slightly, his gaze passing over the top of her head to rest somewhere in the distance. His voice carried the hoarseness of the dark night. “Nonsense. What are you trying to do?”
“I just want to ask—back in the cafeteria, why didn’t you call me out?” Wen Xin stepped forward, the tips of their shoes brushing against each other. Her slender arms braced against the car door as she tilted her delicate face up, her eyes fixed unwaveringly on Shen Yan.
Mini Scene: The guard on duty at the sentry post stared at Captain Shen’s car parked at the entrance, then did a double take—Captain Shen seemed to be getting pinned against the car by someone. A once-in-a-lifetime spectacle!