"Yao Can, do you trust me?"
He asked with a solemn expression.
"What happened? Your face tells me there is something wrong with this bag of mushrooms."
Xu Wuyan nodded. Whether Yao Can knew it or not, she was already entangled in this mess. He hesitated.
"Just say it. I'm not even afraid of death, so what else could I be afraid of?"
Yao Can scoffed, walked straight out, and plopped down onto the sofa in the living room.
Seeing this, Xu Wuyan followed and sat down beside her.
"On the way to buy groceries, I collided with a woman. My shopping bag spilled, and this bag of mushrooms must have been scooped up from her bag by mistake."
"Don't tell me this bag of mushrooms is what I think it is," Yao Can frowned.
Xu Wuyan nodded.
"It's more than likely."
Both fell into silence. The drama of life and death continued to play on the television, but the two were immersed in their own thoughts.
"Let's call the police," Yao Can spoke first.
"You are at a critical moment in reclaiming your shares. If this kind of negative news gets out, it will be detrimental to you," Xu Wuyan replied. This was precisely why he had been hesitant. "But this thing is a hot potato. If we aren't careful, we could both..."
"You’re right. So, I need to come up with another way. At the very least, I must keep you out of it. You cannot have any issues during next week’s Board of Directors meeting."
Xu Wuyan's words surprised Yao Can. She hadn't expected him to be thinking of her even at a time like this, which warmed her heart.
"I have friends at the police station who can help. Let me think. Let me think."
Xu Wuyan closed his eyes and leaned back against the sofa. He had to treat this matter with the utmost seriousness; there was no room for error. Contraband—this was a major issue in Lucheng. If word leaked out, it would likely shake many people to their core.
Because there was this one bag, there would undoubtedly be more. He clearly remembered that the girl in the duck-billed cap had many such vacuum-sealed mushroom bags in her shopping bag. This was a major case.
The catalyst for this major case was now in his hands. To call this bag of mushrooms a "hot potato" was an understatement; it was more like a ticking bomb.
Calling the police was the best choice. If the girl in the duck-billed cap realized she had lost a bag, she and her associates would surely come looking for him to prevent the news from spreading. When that happened, not only would his life be in danger, but it would also implicate Yao Can. The worst-case scenario was that they would both be silenced.
Yao Can watched quietly as Xu Wuyan meditated. They had only known each other for half a day, yet she felt a sense of security from him. This was the fundamental reason she had chosen Xu Wuyan. Beneath his seemingly frivolous exterior lay a deep heart, and behind his devil-may-care smile was a reliable and steadfast spirit.
Moreover, his background check had only confirmed that this man was truly special. She did not blame Xu Wuyan for getting them into such a huge mess; she was also weighing their options.
"Yao Can, I must leave your place and keep my distance from you," Xu Wuyan said after some deliberation.
"You don't have to worry about dragging me down... I’m a person who’s already half-dead," Yao Can replied, knowing that Xu Wuyan was prepared to shoulder the burden alone.
"It’s not like that. We’ve only known each other for half a day. Even if those people investigate, they won't suspect any connection between us. This eliminates the risk to you; it’s the best choice for now. Facing a crisis together is irrational."
"I went to the market today; the surveillance cameras must have captured my full image. Once the incident erupts, my identity will be traced and perhaps even leaked. At that point, many uncontrollable things might happen. If you stay in the shadows, you might become a trump card that could save my life at a critical moment."
After much thought, this was the most rational plan Xu Wuyan could devise. This major case involving contraband was bound to break, and when it did, it would be a tidal wave. They were only eighteen; it would be easy for them to drown in it. This was not something they were equipped to handle.
The only way forward was to voluntarily surrender the evidence to the police and then isolate himself from Yao Can, letting her remain in the background. If something were to happen to him, she might be his last lifeline. At the same time, he couldn't help but curse; to get into such a huge mess just from buying groceries—the heavens must be doing this on purpose.
"Mhm, you're right. So, what do you plan to do next?"
Yao Can did not persist with useless sentimentality. This decisiveness earned Xu Wuyan's admiration.
"I will turn myself in. It’s the only way. But before I do, we need to prepare a few things."
"What do you need me to do?"
"Like this..."
Because of the mushrooms, neither of them had any appetite to eat. Although finding the mushrooms was an accident and reporting them would clarify the sequence of events and clear his name, in the future case files, his name would only be mentioned in passing as "a certain Mr. Xu."
However, his identity was tied to that "important person," so he had to be flawless; he couldn't afford a single loose end. Drug-related charges—if those two simple words were exploited by someone with an agenda, it could lead to the downfall of that important figure, and everyone connected to him would be purged. That would trigger a massive shock, perhaps even on the scale of a national crisis.
He could ignore his personal relationship with that important figure, but he could not ignore a national crisis.
Thus, for the entire afternoon, he mapped out a series of contingency plans, many of which required Yao Can’s cooperation.
Xu Wuyan had no idea at the time that, due to his own self-assurance, he was about to be dragged into a maelstrom. The ordinary life he craved was destined to be shattered by this very action. He had overestimated himself and underestimated that important figure.
By evening, under the cover of the night, he walked into the Lucheng Municipal Bureau.
At the Lucheng Municipal Bureau, as night fell, the lights were still blazing.
Shen Yue rubbed her forehead, feeling a headache coming on. In front of her lay a photo of a man, with his detailed background written on the back.
This was for a blind date arranged specifically for her. Every time she saw these, she felt an unbearable headache.
As the youngest Criminal Investigation Captain in the Lucheng Municipal Bureau, she was almost thirty and still single. It wasn't because her conditions weren't good enough; it was because they were too good. Her naturally refined appearance, bolstered by her police uniform, made every man who saw her lose his composure. The idea of conquering a woman like her held a fatal temptation for men.
But as a captain in charge of criminal investigations, "conquering" her?
Many men had already become casualties of her career. Had anyone ever heard of someone arresting their blind date? She had actually done it. During a blind date last month, she noticed the man had financial irregularities and transferred him directly to the Economic Crimes Division. One thing led to another, and they ended up uncovering a hornet's nest, leading to a series of arrests.
Since then, this "rose of the police force" had become a rose with thorns. Anyone who heard her name would run the other way, let alone go on a blind date—that would be walking straight into a trap.
The photos in her hand were those her dear mother had painstakingly selected for her. She had to go at eight o'clock. She had already come up with many excuses to dodge this date: work was busy, there was a case, but her father’s one phone call had seen through her lies. She was very distressed now; if only a case would pop up right now, she would have a reason to refuse the meeting. It was precisely at that moment that a phone ringtone snapped her out of her thoughts.
"Hello?"
"Captain Shen, something’s happened. Come over quickly."