WHOOSH—

The moment Qian Yu finished speaking, Li Hongqi, Captain Jiang, the bearded officer, and several other nearby cops who had been eavesdropping all whipped their heads around in unison, their gazes zeroing in on her.

A dozen gazes filled with shock, doubt, and scrutiny instantly doubled the pressure on Qian Yu.

"Hey, you. What did you just say?" the bearded officer asked, his eyes wide.

"Qian Yu! Don’t talk nonsense if you don’t know what you’re talking about!"

Beside Qian Yu, a slightly older, capable-looking female officer’s expression tightened. She quickly hissed, cutting her off.

Then, putting on an apologetic smile, the policewoman looked toward Li Hongqi and Captain Jiang and explained, "Captain Li, Captain Jiang, my apologies. She has only been with our branch for a short time—just half a year. She isn’t familiar with certain things. Young people are eager to prove themselves and can misspeak. I hope you two can forgive her."

Her words seemed like a reprimand for Qian Yu, but they were actually a defense, born from a fear that she might, in her ignorance, annoy a major figure like Li Hongqi, the captain of the criminal investigation division.

The policewoman had always looked out for the hardworking and earnest Qian Yu.

"..."

Qian Yu opened her mouth, wanting to clarify, but seeing her senior’s stern glare and the doubtful looks from those around her, she swallowed the words on the tip of her tongue and lowered her head slightly.

Seeing this, Captain Jiang gave an understanding nod. Without a word, he turned back to studying the structural diagram on the tablet, clearly not taking her suggestion seriously.

But Li Hongqi, as a seasoned veteran detective, sharply picked up on Qian Yu’s hesitation.

He immediately took a step forward, walked up to Qian Yu, and spoke in a gentle tone.

"It’s alright. We were all young once; I get it. You’re Comrade Qian Yu, right?"

"If you have an idea, just say it. Wang Delong and his crew are vicious. They already have two lives on their hands. Right now, as long as it helps crack the case and catch these bastards, we’re willing to try anything."

"It doesn’t matter if you’re wrong. We’re brainstorming here."

Feeling the encouragement in Li Hongqi’s voice, Qian Yu lifted her head and glanced at the female officer who had defended her.

Seeing this, the policewoman knew she couldn’t forcefully stop her anymore. She gave a slight nod and said in a low voice, "Since Captain Li has given the word, go ahead and speak. Just be careful what you say."

With tacit approval, Qian Yu took a deep breath, gathered her courage, and spoke slowly but clearly. "Captain Li, it’s like this. I have a college classmate who’s a zookeeper at Donghua Wildlife Park. He’s an expert with animals, almost like he was born with the ability to communicate with them. Captain Sun and his team from the Economic Crimes Division ran into trouble before, and he was the one who helped them..."

"Yang Qi?"

Behind Li Hongqi, a male officer who looked to be under thirty couldn’t help but cut in with surprise. "Qian Yu, are you talking about Yang Qi? He’s your classmate?"

"Zheng Xiao, you know him?" Li Hongqi asked, turning to the officer who had interjected.

"I know of him, but he doesn’t know me."

The officer named Zheng Xiao quickly explained, his face full of admiration, "Captain Li, that Yang Qi is seriously incredible! A good buddy of mine from the Economic Crimes Division was on a mission with them and personally saw him single-handedly subdue a clouded leopard that went berserk. He saved Captain Sun and several others! The way they tell it, the scene was legendary!"

As he spoke, several other officers nearby who had clearly also heard the rumors chimed in.

"Now I remember. Isn’t he the young man the bureau specifically applied to grant the ’Hero for a Just Cause’ honorary title to a while back?"

"Yes, yes, that’s him! The Economic Crimes Division had that incident last month. I heard they were almost wiped out. It was all thanks to this Yang Qi."

"Oh, so it was him. I heard about that too. They said the guy who saved Captain Sun’s team was unbelievable, that his bond with animals is off the charts."

"..."

As they were all part of the Hongshu Branch, Li Hongqi had naturally heard about the dangerous clouded leopard attack involving Sun Zhenghong’s Economic Crimes team. However, he had been preoccupied with the serial kidnapping case on his plate and hadn’t paid much attention to the details.

Now, listening to his subordinates’ chatter, he began to get a much clearer picture and found himself starting to believe Qian Yu.

He immediately raised his hand and his voice. "Alright, quiet down! Let Xiaoyuan continue."

Zheng Xiao and the others immediately stopped their discussion and turned their gazes back to Qian Yu. This time, however, there was less doubt in their eyes and more curiosity and anticipation.

Listening to the discussion around her, Qian Yu felt a surge of confidence. The nervousness she’d felt earlier mostly vanished, and she became much calmer.

She continued, "Yang Qi has a cat, a black cat named Xiaojiu. That cat is incredibly smart; it can actually understand human speech and is very good at following instructions. I saw it with my own eyes. Yang Qi just gave a verbal command, and the cat picked up a small, individually wrapped pack of cookies and delivered it precisely to the designated person."

"So I was thinking... if we could get Xiaojiu to come here, maybe it could actually understand our instructions, get into the warehouse through the ventilation ducts, and help us scout out the situation inside."

"Excellent!"

The moment Qian Yu finished speaking, Li Hongqi, without a shred of hesitation, gave a decisive order. "Comrade Qian Yu, I need you to call this Yang Qi right now. Ask him to bring his cat and come help us. Whatever he needs, we’ll give him our full support!"

"Huh?"

Qian Yu was taken aback by Li Hongqi’s swift and decisive manner for a moment, but she quickly recovered and nodded. "Yes, Captain Li. I’ll call him right away."

As she spoke, she took her phone out of her pocket. With slightly trembling fingers, she found Yang Qi’s number and pressed the call button.

...

Donghua Wildlife Park, mountain-side dormitory.

The living room was bathed in warm light.

"Meow, meow~"

Ta Xue rubbed its furry head against Yang Qi’s leg nonstop, its round eyes staring pitifully at the remote control and phone in his hands as it let out a soft cry.

’Want to watch.’

’It’s good.’

Xiaojiu was perched on the arm of a nearby sofa, flicking the tip of its tail and casting a disdainful glance at the shamelessly fawning Ta Xue.

"Almost done, be patient."

Yang Qi was continuously pressing the remote to switch screens while using his phone to complete a monthly subscription payment for a video platform.

Ever since he had accidentally put on a cartoon for the two little ones, the little cub Ta Xue had become completely obsessed, especially with *Tom and Jerry*.

And the amazing thing was, it actually identified with Jerry Mouse, the one who spent all day getting chased around and beaten senseless!

This made Yang Qi marvel at the clouded leopard cub’s unique taste.

And so, after the free trial episodes were over, the little one was still hungry for more, pestering him to watch the paid content.

DING-DONG~

The notification sound for a successful payment rang out.

Soon, the cheerful opening music of a new episode of *Tom and Jerry* began to play on the TV screen.

Ta Xue immediately abandoned Yang Qi with a SWOOSH, leaped nimbly onto the sofa, found the most comfortable spot to sit, and stared at the screen with unblinking amber eyes, the tip of its tail wagging happily.

Yang Qi smiled and sat down on the other end of the sofa, preparing to relive a childhood classic with the little cub.

He had just casually placed his phone on the coffee table when the screen lit up, accompanied by a pleasant ringtone.

’Who could be calling this late?’

He muttered, picking up his phone. The contact displayed on the screen was "Class President."

Yang Qi casually answered the call and said out of habit, "Chief Officer Qian, what are your orders..."

However, the voice that came from the other end of the line was a steady, unfamiliar, middle-aged man’s.

"Comrade Yang Qi, hello. This is Li Hongqi from the Hongshu Branch Criminal Investigation Division."