Captured By The Cold Detective (BL)-Chapter 670: Not An Earthquake
The rain hammered down relentlessly, transforming into a dense downpour as night settled in. Each raindrop was particularly huge, making it seem as if frozen tears were cascading from the sky. Threads of silver lightning streaked across the brooding clouds, as though heaven itself was grieving along with the mortal plight.
It was the perfect night to tuck in the bed, perhaps with a good book or a movie accompanied by a cup of hot chocolate. Alas, such a luxury seemed like a mere pipe dream for the officers of the Violent Crime Unit.
It had been more than 56 hours since the police thoroughly combed through Ku Jin’s room in the old apartment building. Yet even after processing the DNA left behind and issuing an arrest warrant, they still couldn’t find a clue about that bastard’s whereabouts. It was as if he had vanished into thin air. Even the roadblocks and tight inspection across the whole city bore no results whatsoever!
Therefore, the entire office was shrouded in a gloom, and the tension was so thick it was as if the slightest spark would be able to blow the fuse.
And the spark came in the form of the ringing of Kang Guanyu’s phone. "Daddy Shark, doo-doo, doo-doo, doo-doo..."
Kang Guanyu’s eyes widened in shock, and the drowsiness in his system evaporated at once. This... this was the special ringtone he had set only for his idol – XIU! To what did he owe the honor?!
Amidst his colleagues’ boos and stinky glares, Kang Guanyu lunged for his phone and scrambled to hit the green button, almost dislocating his wrist in the process.
"H–Hello?!" He subconsciously straightened his back as he answered the call, pressing the electronic gadget to his ear with both hands as if afraid that he would miss even one word. "Yes, yes, you’re not bothering me at all. Mu Yuze? He has clocked off work— what?!" he cried out in shock, his face paling.
His last exclamation was so loud that it attracted everyone’s attention. Then they saw Kang Guanyu’s expression turning somber unlike anything they had ever seen on his silly and goofy self before. "I understand. Yes, don’t worry. I know."
Hanging up on the call, he practically flew toward Li Zhi’s office, not giving a chance for the other officers to ask what it was all about.
"Captain!" Kang Guanyu slammed open the door, startling the man inside who was perusing the documents seriously.
Li Zhi shot him a deathly glare. "How many times do I have to tell you to knock—"
"Captain, it’s bad, it’s bad! Mu Yuze— he went missing!" Kang Guanyu yanked on his hair out of stress and trepidation. Pacing back and forth in the office, he fumbled to recount everything He Juan had told him, ending it with, "I’m not playing around. I heard it from XIU himself, and you know that man is not the type to joke around about something like this! Our comrade... he’s been kidnapped!"
Li Zhi’s expression morphed from annoyance to shock and then to solemnity. "Calm down," he tried to reassure the panicking man, though upon closer inspection, there was an undeniable edge in his tone. "Something is off. Why were they at the Heping Nursing Home? What was XIU doing when Mu Yuze was taken away? Mu Yuze wouldn’t have gone down without a fight, so how could he not notice anything? How long has it been?"
Taking a deep breath, Kang Guanyu tried to collect his thoughts. "Okay, okay let me think. XIU didn’t mention anything about their purpose there. He told me he was waiting in the car when he realized that Mu Yuze had been gone for a while. He went inside to check, but all he could find was Mu Yuze’s phone. Oh right, he also said that he would send me footage of the person suspected to be the culprit..." Just as his last word settled in the air, Kang Guanyu’s phone buzzed with a new incoming message.
He quickly clicked it open and ran his mouth at the same time, "Speak of the devil. The footage is here, Captain! Is it the Manipulator? It should be him, right?!"
Li Zhi rose from his seat and walked toward him. Together, they peered at the screen, which displayed an empty hallway and a tightly shut door.
"Oh, I know this!" Kang Guanyu exclaimed, "This camera faces the administrator offi—" he abruptly choked on his saliva when Mu Yuze appeared on the corner of the screen, but he was not alone because someone extremely familiar to them also stepped out of the office at the same time!
Kang Guanyu’s hand shook and the phone slipped out of his grasp. Fortunately, Li Zhi was quick to catch it before it could crash to the ground. The footage continued on, showing how Mu Yuze and the other person walked off together.
A pop-up notification appeared on the top, indicating a new message.
[I’ve checked. That’s the last person Mu Yuze saw. She’s the culprit.]
Kang Guanyu’s pupils trembled as he muttered in disbelief, "C–Chen Lian? The one who kidnapped Mu Yuze is... A–Chen? How could it be..."
Li Zhi was in a similar state of shock. However, he soon recovered his senses and swiftly dialed the number that had just sent the message. There wasn’t even a chance to question Kang Guanyu about how he had He Juan’s number saved in his phone, or how long the man had been concealing this for.
He Juan’s low voice sounded in the next second, "Hello?"
For some reason, Li Zhi felt shivers running down his spine when he heard that frosty tone, or it could also be the chilling gust of wind that blew through the office.
Shaking his head, Li Zhi told himself to focus and spoke to the phone, "This is Li Zhi speaking. Where are you now? Do you know where they’re heading?" He asked, because he could hear the sharp screech of tires against asphalt from the other end.
"Yes," He Juan replied from where he skillfully maneuvered the wheel, driving the car through the thick curtain of rain. Seated beside him was Zhong Yun whose complexion was ghastly as he bit on his nails anxiously, and following close behind was another car with Chen Youzhi and Ye Qiu inside, having caught up as soon as they heard the news. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞
He Juan added, "Mu Yuze has a tracker on him. I have to close the distance as much as possible before they notice and get rid of it."
Hearing those words, it was as if a huge stone hanging over Li Zhi’s heart was lifted, allowing him to heave a sigh of relief. The ’why’s or ’how’s of Mu Yuze carrying a tracker was the least important detail in his mind right now.
"Alright," he quickly said. "Send me the location. I will dispatch reinforcements there and..." he was suddenly reminded of Chen Lian, which caused him a great headache. However, everything else could wait – their current priority was to save Mu Yuze before any harm could befall him!
Alas, before Captain Li could continue to speak, thunder boomed across the sky with such a deafening force that it rattled the window frame. Even the ground beneath his feet seemed to tremble and quiver along.
"Ah!" Kang Guanyu grabbed onto the edge of the table out of surprise. "C–Captain, is it an earthquake?!"
"No..." Li Zhi instinctively replied as an ominous premonition coursed through him, making his chest feel heavy. "This is not an earthquake."
He rushed to the window, but it was raining so hard that the scenery outside was blurred, rendering him unable to discern anything. He couldn’t pinpoint the source of his unease; he only knew that this night would not end so peacefully.
Just then, his office phone rang, and he picked it up with lightning speed. "This is Li Zhi from the Violent Crime Unit speaking."
His hunch was proven right when he heard the anxious voice from the other side.
"Captain Li, we’ve just received an emergency report. There was an explosion at the Yuyang Hospital Center, and the building is on fire!"
Li Zhi’s heart thudded hard in his chest. He made eye contact with Kang Guanyu, who attempted to listen in on the conversation. Eventually, he murmured a name,
"Luo Xuan..."
