Lan Yangyang raised his hand abruptly and said this. The boss nearby had been observing the situation all along, and understanding what Lan Yangyang meant, he immediately played along, pretending to pour out the freshly made luxury bowl of Chongqing noodles.
"Oh, what a pity! Customer, since you can't finish it, I've got no choice but to throw it away!"
The boss carried the Chongqing noodles and looked ready to dump them when the little lamb finally relented.
"That's more like it. Eating your meals properly makes you a good kid!"
Lan Yangyang smiled, took the little lamb's small hand, and led her back to her original spot to sit on a wooden stool.
At that moment, the boss brought over the bowl of extra-loaded Chongqing noodles. Lan Yangyang carefully tore open the disposable chopstick wrapper and handed the chopsticks to the little lamb in front of him.
"What's your name? Do you remember anything about your parents? Could you also tell me how you ended up abandoned?"
Starting from scratch to search for parents was no easy task, so Lan Yangyang decided to gather some useful information first.
Hearing Lan Yangyang's questions, the little lamb carefully took the chopsticks and replied with a smile.
"My name is Meng Xiaoyang!"
Meng Xiaoyang blew gently on the rising steam from the Chongqing noodles before speaking slowly.
Seeing the dust on Meng Xiaoyang's face, Lan Yangyang pulled a few tissues from the side and carefully wiped it off for her.
"I don't remember very clearly. It seems like when I was two years old, my parents threw me away, and a kind grandpa walked me home."
As Meng Xiaoyang spoke, memories began to surface. In truth, Meng Xiaoyang was only one year old back then when her parents heartlessly abandoned her.
At that time, the plump little Meng Xiaoyang had been left by the roadside, wailing and shedding tears that streamed continuously from the corners of her eyes.
Just then, an old man happened to pass by. He looked at the little Meng Xiaoyang before him, feeling she was so pitiful.
Yet the old man was just as pitiful himself. He had no children, his wife had passed away, and he had never had a single child in his entire life.
The old man worked two jobs—one as a street sweeper and one as a scavenger—and somehow managed to scrape by.
The old man's biggest dream had actually been to become an artist. When he was young, he wasn't afraid of failure, but by now, he showed every sign of age, and his former vigor had long since faded.
At this point, he was merely an old man with no children and a deceased wife, a street sweeper who picked up trash to survive.
The old man's life was already hard enough, but seeing the little Meng Xiaoyang, he simply could not bear to leave her.
In the end, he took Meng Xiaoyang back home and carefully adopted the little lamb, because she was so cute and still so young.
He added the character for "cute" (meng), the character for "small" (xiao), and "sheep" (yang) from her species as a little lamb—perhaps ethereal and illusory, or perhaps destined by fate—to form the name Meng Xiaoyang.
Time ticked away bit by bit until dusk arrived, and the orange-red sun cast its glow upon Meng Xiaoyang and Lan Yangyang.
Everything seemed so wonderful, yet so cruel. White clouds drifted across the sky while the orange-red sun hung high above.
Lan Yangyang was a wanted fugitive, and Meng Xiaoyang had been abandoned. Lan Yangyang looked at the little lamb before him, a fierce determination growing in his eyes: he had to help Meng Xiaoyang find her parents.
Before him, Meng Xiaoyang clumsily used her chopsticks, hugging the bowl with one hand while digging out the Chongqing noodles inside.
It was a luxury version of Chongqing noodles, topped with dried bean curd, pickled mustard greens, fish tofu, various seasonings, spinach, bean sprouts, radishes, cucumbers, onions...
Meng Xiaoyang ate anxiously, as if afraid that eating any slower meant she wouldn't get any more.
As she ate, Meng Xiaoyang's tears welled up like pearls in her eyes before rolling down her cheeks and dripping onto the ground.
Meng Xiaoyang gripped her chopsticks awkwardly as she sat on the wooden stool, one hand resting on the wooden table.
She thought of her grandpa. The life they shared had not been comfortable at all, and had even become extremely difficult at times because of her arrival.
Even so, Grandpa never complained and always saved the best things for Meng Xiaoyang, bearing everything in silence.
In a fairytale, perhaps Meng Xiaoyang would grow into a strong adult and provide Grandpa with a wealthy life.
But she wouldn't, because that was only a story; in reality, Grandpa was already very tired.
Grandpa was old, but despite that, he kept working to give Meng Xiaoyang the best life he possibly could.
Meng Xiaoyang spent three wonderful years like that, during which Grandpa taught her unceasingly every moment to be a kind person.
However, under the strain of prolonged labor, Grandpa collapsed. She still remembered the torrential downpour that fell on that day.
That day, Grandpa stayed home while Meng Xiaoyang went out. She went out to play and encountered a crying child.
Actually, Meng Xiaoyang should have gone back right then, but that child had gotten lost from his parents and could only cry endlessly in the same spot.
Though only four years old, Meng Xiaoyang was extremely kind. Seeing the crying child, she ultimately took him to find his parents.
Once they found his parents, they were overjoyed and gave Meng Xiaoyang fifty yuan.
At that instant, Meng Xiaoyang was thrilled because with this money she could buy lots and lots of delicious food for Grandpa.
On her way back, a torrential rain suddenly broke out in the sky. Meng Xiaoyang rushed home frantically, feeling as though something was wrong, but when she returned...
Grandpa had collapsed on the floor and could not get up no matter what. Innocent and naive at the time, Meng Xiaoyang had no idea what death meant.
She simply thought her grandpa was sleeping and that he would definitely wake up—her grandpa would definitely wake up. But he didn't.
Meng Xiaoyang waited for a long time, waiting a full two days. In the end, what greeted her was not Grandpa waking up, but Grandpa being taken away by a group of people who called themselves staff members.
At that moment, Meng Xiaoyang felt completely desperate. She walked aimlessly down the street, not knowing where she should go. Did she have parents? Yes, she did, but she didn't know where they were.
She desperately wanted to find her parents, though compared to finding them, Meng Xiaoyang actually wanted her grandpa to come back even more.
As Meng Xiaoyang walked down the street, a group of little boys suddenly bullied her. In that instant, she felt utter despair, but then a light illuminated her once again.
Looking at Lan Yangyang, Meng Xiaoyang thought this strange older brother was truly wonderful. Grandpa was right after all: the world is kind.
"Why... why are you crying? Does it not taste right? Or is it too spicy? I—I'll get you something else."
"B-Boss, bring a bottle of AD Calcium Milk."
Seeing Meng Xiaoyang burst into tears, Lan Yangyang panicked completely. Thinking she had been made to cry by the spice, he quickly raised his hand and asked the boss for a whole pack of AD Calcium Milk.
"Come on, is it too spicy? Drink some AD Calcium Milk to wash it down."
Lan Yangyang carefully tore open the packaging, pulled a bottle out of the four-pack of AD Calcium Milk, inserted a straw, and handed it to Meng Xiaoyang.
Meng Xiaoyang took the AD Calcium Milk and began to drink. Lan Yangyang watched from the side until Meng Xiaoyang finished the Chongqing noodles.
"Let's go. I'll take you to find your parents..."
Lan Yangyang stood up against the orange-red glow of dusk, the cool wind blowing past. He took Meng Xiaoyang's hand and walked away step by step, choosing to help Meng Xiaoyang find her parents despite being a wanted man himself.
Meanwhile, Hui Tailang could not find Lan Yangyang anywhere. Prompted by Boss Zhu, Hui Tailang decided to start investigating Lan Yangyang's other accomplice: Phantom Thief Shenhu.
Man Yangyang, Red Wolf, and the others had been arranged by Mumu to stay in a hotel, leaving only three people wandering outside at present:
Hui Tailang, who wanted to catch Phantom Thief Shenhu...
Xi Yangyang, who was searching for the truth to clear Lan Yangyang's name...
And Lan Yangyang, who was helping Meng Xiaoyang find her parents...
Detective Dog: The Capture of Phantom Thief Shenhu
"Thanks!"
With a word of thanks, Xi Yangyang took the documents from the administrator and began to flip through them.
The files were filled entirely with Boss Zhu's shady history. Boss Zhu was a stingy boss.
He had repeatedly delayed wage payments and even caused fatalities, yet he always managed to walk free. Xi Yangyang felt this alone was enough to serve as a motive for murder.
Ring, ring, ring...
Just as Xi Yangyang was gathering information, his cell phone rang. He picked it up and answered.
He was not surprised at all, because before coming here to look for information, he had posted notices all over the streets asking anyone with clues to call him.
"Hello, who is this?"
Xi Yangyang answered the phone, holding it against his ear. There was silence on the other end for a few seconds before a voice came through.
"Hello, is this the notice you posted?"
"That's right, it's me. Do you have any clues?"
"Um, when can you come over?"
"Alright, I'll come right now. Please send me your location!"
Hanging up the phone, Xi Yangyang took a deep breath. Soon, the location was sent over, and Xi Yangyang opened his phone to check.
A location popped up in the message column, pointing to the top of a nearby building.
Xi Yangyang stretched his body, returned the documents, and then stepped away to head toward that building.
"This must be it."
After walking for some time, Xi Yangyang looked up at the building before him. It was quite tall, with around 20 floors, and served as a hospital.
Taking a deep breath, Xi Yangyang stepped into the hospital, looked around to find the elevator, stepped inside, and pressed the button. The elevator slowly closed and ascended.
As the elevator slowly stopped, Xi Yangyang arrived at the top floor. However, the location indicated the roof, meaning Xi Yangyang had to take the stairs.
Stepping out of the elevator, Xi Yangyang walked over to the stairwell and began to climb.
Reaching the top, Xi Yangyang reached out and pushed open the door. In an instant, the high-rise wind ruffled his bangs.
Facing the breeze, Xi Yangyang walked forward slowly. Looking around, he finally spotted a figure.
Xi Yangyang strode over, stopped beside the figure, and asked a question. Only upon drawing closer did he realize the person before him was a fox.
"I have clues about the real culprit!"
Getting straight to the point, the fox showed no intention of wasting words. But Xi Yangyang had no time to deal with this; his time was running out, and today was already the second day.
"I want to know."
Xi Yangyang said, looking at the fox in front of him. For some reason, as he looked at the fox, a bad premonition arose in Xi Yangyang's heart.
The fox's expression slowly shifted from blank to a sneer, and then to a ferocious grin!
"I am Phantom Thief Shenhu!"
"What?!"
Before Xi Yangyang could react, the fox had already revealed his identity.
The very instant Phantom Thief Shenhu spoke, Xi Yangyang's brain froze for a single second.
That single second gave Phantom Thief Shenhu his chance. Without a moment's hesitation, he lunged forward and shoved Xi Yangyang right off the edge.
"No!"
Xi Yangyang screamed as he plummeted downward.
The fierce wind howled constantly, leaving Xi Yangyang's mind completely blank.
He struggled, but it was useless. Xi Yangyang fell directly from the rooftop of the 20-story building.
He cried out desperately, flailing his arms, but it made not the slightest difference as he plunged straight down from the 20th floor.
With a sudden thud—
Xi Yangyang bolted upright, gasping for breath, his head covered in sweat. At this moment, he was right back where he started.
Everything that just happened was merely the result of falling asleep unknowingly because he was too exhausted.
"How could this happen?"
Gritting his teeth, Xi Yangyang punched the ground. Dreaming of such a thing probably stemmed from his belief that Phantom Thief Shenhu was the real culprit.
Yet there was still zero progress. Damn it!
"Wait!"
"This is..."
At that moment, Xi Yangyang's phone chimed with a message notification. The message was a text stating that Hui Tailang had caught Phantom Thief Shenhu.
"What?!"
Shocked, Xi Yangyang realized that just while he was asleep, Hui Tailang's operation had unfolded.
How did Hui Tailang pull it off? It was simple—Hui Tailang's plan was exceptionally simple: arrest everyone who had ever received help from Phantom Thief Shenhu.
Force him to show himself directly!
Earlier that very morning, Hui Tailang used his authority to forcibly detain everyone who had been helped by Phantom Thief Shenhu, slapping them all with charges of being accomplices.
Hui Tailang sat on a rooftop, crossing his legs as he waited for Phantom Thief Shenhu to appear!
Having already ordered some subordinates to control the people helped by Phantom Thief Shenhu, he only needed to sit quietly and wait for the thief to show up.
As Hui Tailang looked at the blue sky and white clouds, footsteps sounded from behind. Someone walked over—or rather, a fox.
"Let them go."
"The real culprit has no right to negotiate with me! Call me the Great Detective!"
Hui Tailang turned his head, his eyes fixed on Phantom Thief Shenhu. The thief let out a scoff of contempt.
Seeing his defiant attitude, Hui Tailang smiled and tossed a dossier straight onto the ground.
"Great Detective Hui Tailang is now arresting you, Xiao Bu, for conspiring with Lan Yangyang in the theft case!"
Phantom Thief Shenhu hadn't taken Hui Tailang seriously at all, but upon hearing that final name, he froze.
That name was his real name. He was Xiao Bu, a high school student with a younger sister, a childhood sweetheart, and countless other details of his life recorded right there in the dossier on the ground.
His hands trembled continuously. Xiao Bu panicked. Was Hui Tailang's ability really just a sham?
Xiao Bu flipped to the second page, revealing a pair of silver handcuffs accompanied by numerous thank-you letters.
Those letters had all been written by people he had helped in the past. Seeing those letters made Xiao Bu understand that Hui Tailang had released fake news; he had never intended to harm those ordinary people at all.
In truth, Hui Tailang had tracked him down right from the very beginning, and it had only taken him a single night.
While his skills might pale compared to Xi Yangyang's if placed in someone else's hands, but... after all, he was Hui Tailang!
"Please help me check the surveillance footage around here."
Standing in front of the museum, Hui Tailang demanded all the surrounding surveillance footage from the security guards.
"Understood."
The guards nodded and left. At that moment, the moon hung high in the sky—not a crescent, but a full moon.
Hui Tailang was getting serious!
Taking a deep breath, Hui Tailang squatted down and inspected the bombed area at the front of the museum with his hands.
"This scent... it should be mixed with special materials that can shield it from scanner detection."
Hui Tailang sniffed around, then pulled out a transparent bag, put on white gloves, and swept some of the material into the bag.
"Next is the center of the museum."
Exhaling a long breath, Hui Tailang stood up, entered the museum, and walked straight into the main hall.
In fact, the moment he smelled that scent, Hui Tailang had sensed something was wrong.
Although Hui Tailang's sense of smell was roughly on par with Mumu's, Hui Tailang was an inventor.
There was no scent here, but the absence of it was far too bizarre; even the faint, peculiar scent inherent to gold was missing.
If that was the case, something was definitely wrong!
Hui Tailang sniffed carefully. The process was lengthy and required meticulous perception. He practically scoured the entire area as if renovating it from scratch.
"The lack of scent must be due to some kind of chemical agent, and these white powders are crushed painkillers."
Sensing it out, Hui Tailang knew this was definitely not natural; it was achieved using some blended chemical capable of eliminating odors.
Moreover, during his observation, Hui Tailang noticed something else amiss: tiny grains of white powder lingered in the corners.
One glance gave Hui Tailang his conclusion: painkillers ground into powder.
"Next, I'll need to run some chemical tests."
Taking a deep breath, Hui Tailang headed into the storage room and began testing the traces of explosive residue collected in the transparent bag using some makeshift equipment.
"Was this trace made using this material?"
Hui Tailang pondered. Within moments, he had deduced the entire manufacturing process of the explosives before him, along with their ingredient list.
With that thought, Hui Tailang waved a hand to summon a subordinate and immediately handed him the compiled list of materials.
"Go check the purchase records of these materials within Detective City."
"Yes."
Boss Zhu's subordinate nodded and hurried off with the material list. Just then, the security guards returned.
The guards had backed up the surveillance footage from all the surrounding streets and brought it over.
Carefully inserting the backup USB drive into the computer, the guard activated it, and instantly over 30 screens lit up simultaneously.
There were more than 30 surveillance cameras surrounding Erying Museum, and the time frame Hui Tailang requested covered the past 30 days.
Right now, Hui Tailang had to view over 30 video feeds in one go and pick out the details within them.
The screens played their footage, but Hui Tailang felt it was too slow—the playback speed was far too sluggish, so he sped it up.
Still too slow, so faster. Faster, and faster still.
"Speed it up."
"No, still too slow."
The 30-plus videos were fast-forwarded all the way to 100x speed. Hui Tailang breathed heavily, his eyes twitching as he took in all 30-plus feeds at a glance.
Every single frame he witnessed was deeply etched into Hui Tailang's mind.
"Stop, stop, stop..."
"On the 13th at 12:00:23, on the 20th at 7:06:27..."
Reciting rapidly, Hui Tailang instructed the guards, who paused the respective screens one by one according to the dates and times he called out.