As Song Yan uttered these words, the atmosphere suddenly turned awkward. Ye Zhiqiu stood there, stunned, not knowing what to say. Song Yan, on the other hand, felt so embarrassed about what he had just said that he didn't know how to respond.
"Forget it. Let's not talk about this. You said before that you were going to investigate the Intelligence Pavilion. How's it going?" Finally, Song Yan broke the awkward silence.
His words brought Ye Zhiqiu back to his senses. He folded his hands in his sleeves, still a bit bothered by what Song Yan had just said.
He tugged at his sleeves with his hands. After pausing for a moment when he heard Song Yan's obvious attempt to change the subject, he sorted out his complex emotions and then slowly began to answer the question.
"Although there are rumors that the Intelligence Pavilion is located within the Qin Tower, I wandered around there today, but no one seemed to have heard of such a place," Ye Zhiqiu said in a low voice. It was obvious that he was still a bit sad about this.
After all, besides the reappearance of the murderer's crimes, the Intelligence Pavilion was a major breakthrough in finding the culprit this time. But now, that thread of hope seemed to have snapped.
Song Yan knew that the other person really wanted to find clues about the culprit of this case. No matter how slim the chances were, Ye Zhiqiu would give it a try. Although Song Yan didn't know why Ye Zhiqiu was so determined and what he hoped to learn about the murderer,
he had been curious about it before. But thinking that Ye Zhiqiu had his own considerations for not saying anything, and that he had also promised not to pry into Ye Zhiqiu's affairs when they first started working together.
Most importantly, Song Yan had an inexplicable trust in Ye Zhiqiu. He believed that Ye Zhiqiu wouldn't do anything to harm others.
"How did you get into an argument with that Young Master Huang then?" Song Yan changed the topic and shifted the conversation to the farce that had just happened.
When Ye Zhiqiu heard the words "Young Master Huang", his brows immediately knitted together, like an unsolvable knot.
His tone also turned a bit sour. "That man was drunk. He called every woman he saw a beauty. I couldn't avoid him no matter how hard I tried, so I got cornered there."
Hearing Ye Zhiqiu's words, Song Yan burst into laughter. Seeing Song Yan's smiling face, Ye Zhiqiu thought that he was making fun of what had just happened to him, so he frowned even deeper.
"What are you laughing at?" Ye Zhiqiu felt annoyed at the sight of Song Yan's laughter, and his tone was a bit sharp.
Song Yan didn't mind the anger in Ye Zhiqiu's words. He coughed and then began to explain, "I just think that Teacher Ye like this has a bit of the flavor of the mundane world. You seem more approachable."
"What do you mean by that?" Ye Zhiqiu was a bit confused when he heard Song Yan's words. "Do you mean that I usually lack the flavor of the mundane world?"
"Not really. It's just that Teacher Ye always keeps a straight face and speaks without any emotion. You seem like a person without feelings, and it always feels like you're far away from everyone."
Song Yan's voice dropped as he said this. Thinking that his expression just now wasn't appropriate, he looked up at Ye Zhiqiu and smiled. "It's not like now. Your words are full of emotions. It's quite rare."
Seeing Song Yan's smiling face, Ye Zhiqiu was also amused. The corners of his mouth twitched slightly, and for the first time, he showed a smile in front of Song Yan.
It seemed as if a layer of snow was pressing on his long eyelashes, making his eyes look more charming. And those beautiful eyes seemed to contain a vast galaxy. One glance was enough to make people unable to look away.
This was the first time Song Yan had seen Ye Zhiqiu smile. He looked really good-looking when he smiled. Under his usually cold exterior, there was actually such a beautiful scenery like the melting of ice and snow.
"Truly a... beauty..." Song Yan was so mesmerized that he blurted out his innermost thoughts without even realizing it.
As soon as he said this, he immediately realized that it was inappropriate. He quickly covered his mouth and didn't dare to look at Ye Zhiqiu anymore.
He thought that Ye Zhiqiu must be angry. He knew that Ye Zhiqiu hated these two words the most, but he just couldn't control his mouth and blurted them out.
They had just managed to ease their relationship, and Ye Zhiqiu had finally agreed to smile in front of him. But now, it was all ruined because of his slip of the tongue.
"What are you still standing there for? Let's go back," Ye Zhiqiu said after a moment of silence. Song Yan looked up at his expression and saw that there was still a bit of a smile in his eyes. He thought that Ye Zhiqiu probably hadn't heard what he had just said.
Seeing this, the heart that had been hanging in his throat finally relaxed a bit.
But actually, Ye Zhiqiu had heard every word Song Yan had said clearly. But even he himself didn't understand why these two words, which usually made him explode with anger, didn't seem to bother him as much when they came from Song Yan's mouth.
Why was that...
Ye Zhiqiu couldn't figure it out, but he didn't have the time to think about these things now.
Song Yan returned to the Investigation Department in a great mood. He didn't know why he was so happy. He guessed that it must have something to do with Ye Zhiqiu.
The always cold and aloof person had finally showed a smile in front of him for the first time.
But his happiness didn't last long. Mo Xu rushed over and handed him a letter.
"Division Chief, Division Chief. N... No... It's not good..." Mo Xu rushed up to Song Yan and handed him the letter in his hand. Maybe he had run too fast, so he was still gasping for breath when he spoke.
Song Yan took the letter from his hand, poured a cup of tea from the table and handed it to him. He frowned slightly and asked, "What on earth could make you so anxious?"
As he said this, he also opened the letter. He didn't have the time to wait for Mo Xu to tell him what was going on. God knew how long it would take for him to catch his breath.
As soon as he opened the letter, a jade pendant fell out. It felt smooth and warm to the touch, and there was a character "Shen" carved on it.
Song Yan was all too familiar with this jade pendant. It was always carried by Shen Huaian. He loved this jade pendant very much and would play with it whenever he had the time. It was impossible for him to be separated from it.
But this time, it was sent to the Investigation Department together with the letter. It seemed that the situation was not optimistic.
Song Yan frowned and opened the letter. He found that there were only two words written on it.
"Qin Tower?"
Song Yan whispered the two words written on the letter. The more he thought about it, the tighter his brows knitted together. They had just been to this place not long ago. What was the purpose of kidnapping Shen Huaian now?
And why was the letter sent to the Investigation Department...
"Mo Xu, did the person who gave you the letter say anything to you?" Song Yan folded the letter and put it back into the envelope. Although he was extremely anxious inside, he didn't show it on his face.
Mo Xu had finally caught his breath. He swallowed a mouthful of tea and repeated what the person who had given him the letter had said word for word.
"She said that if you want Young Master Shen to be safe and sound, you must arrive at the Qin Tower before Shenshi. Remember, only the Division Chief Song is allowed to go. If there is one more person, Young Master Shen's hand will be in danger."
"Did you see what that person looked like clearly?" Song Yan's brows had been furrowed ever since he heard these words. He quickly asked this question.
As long as he could find out who the person was, he would be able to figure out what their purpose was.
"She was wearing a veil, so I couldn't see her very clearly. She seemed to be a woman, but her figure was different from that of an ordinary woman. Her bones were a bit thick. Her voice was quite distinctive, deep and hoarse. Her eyes were also very beautiful. It seemed that just a blink of an eye could suck people in."
As Mo Xu was talking, he suddenly realized that he had started to praise the person. Afraid that Song Yan would think that his attitude was not serious enough, he quickly added, "I didn't mean to praise her..."
"I know. I understand that you didn't mean it," Song Yan said as he rubbed his temples. He had already guessed who the person Mo Xu was talking about was.
He had just parted ways with her at the Qin Tower today. He didn't expect that she would send a letter so soon and kidnap Shen Huaian.
Although he had indeed been a bit suspicious of her actions today, he didn't expect that she would confirm his suspicions so quickly.
Kidnapping Shen Huaian was just like admitting that she was guilty, wasn't it?
"Division Chief, do you know who this person is? Do you need me to ask my friends in the intelligence business to help us find her?" Mo Xu saw Song Yan frowning and knew that it might not be appropriate for him to say this at this moment, but he still struggled to ask.
He had been working in the Investigation Department for almost three months, but he hadn't been able to help with anything. During the serial murder case before, he couldn't even keep an eye on the suspect properly.
His self-confidence had been a bit frustrated.
He remembered that he had once been ambitious to make a career in the Investigation Department. But now, not only had he not accomplished anything, but he couldn't even help with anything.
He, Mo Xu, was not a person who only took a salary without doing anything. He could also help!
Song Yan looked at Mo Xu standing straight in front of him. He was still young after all. You could tell what was on his mind just by looking at his eyes.
But there was something interesting about what he said. "Intelligence business? When did you get involved in this?"
"Before, I thought that I hadn't been able to help with anything. I couldn't just take a salary without doing anything, so I contacted some people on my own. Now, I can be considered to have my own source of information," Mo Xu said as he scratched his head. He looked a bit embarrassed when he said this.
"Who are these people in the intelligence business?" Song Yan was a bit curious when he heard Mo Xu's words. He had never known that Mo Xu had secretly done this.
"The beggars on the street corner, the girls in the brothel, and the old man who sells vegetables," Mo Xu's voice became softer and softer as he spoke.
Song Yan understood after hearing this. This little guy had thought things too simply. Although there might be some useful information in this, the information was too miscellaneous, and the credibility was not high enough.
But it was good that he had this kind of intention.
"Alright, go and rest first. I already know who this person is. If you really want to do something, then improve your martial arts first. After I've dealt with the things at hand, I'll take you to practice swordsmanship together," Song Yan stood up and looked at the sky outside. It wasn't long until Shenshi. He couldn't waste any more time, so he patted Mo Xu on the shoulder and said this.
Mo Xu was overjoyed when he heard this. He answered with an extremely serious attitude, "Okay, I'll wait for you to come back."
At this moment, Mo Xu was still naive. He hadn't experienced Song Yan's training yet. The more he looked forward to it now, the more miserable he would be in the future.
But these were all things for later.