Mu Yu carefully inspected the scene. Although all the furniture inside was destroyed by the fire, she found no traces of anyone living there. There were no cotton fibers on the bed boards, only a single gas stove in the kitchen, and the bathroom lacked toiletries, containing only a simple sink.

“Yu, have we been misled by this criminal gang? But why did they lead us here? Just to discover this charred body today?” Yan Yang was somewhat annoyed, feeling like they had been led in circles by these people.

“Let’s take another look. I feel like things aren’t as simple as they seem.” Mu Yu suddenly felt suspicious. Did the surveillance officers really see Zhao, or was it deliberately falsified?

Unsettled, Mu Yu entered the kitchen again, carefully examining the floor.

“Bai, take a look at this.” Mu Yu noticed a piece of red crystalline substance and picked it up from the floor with tweezers. It had fallen into the corner of the kitchen, barely noticeable unless you looked closely.

“This is...” Bai Xiang was momentarily at a loss for words.

“It looks like a burnt diamond. The gang used to steal from jewelry stores. Could this place be where they stash their loot? And this diamond, was it left behind when they were transferring their loot?” Mu Yu put the diamond into an evidence bag. She would have to have it examined again by colleagues in the forensic department.

“Don’t worry, Yu. Finding out who that body is might be a breakthrough,” Bai Xiang reassured, seeing Mu Yu was in low mood.

“Yan, you go back first. Bai and I will go downstairs and ask the residents about the issue.” Mu Yu gestured for Yan Yang to take the other colleagues back.

“I’ll go with you.” Yan Yang wouldn’t miss any opportunity to be alone with Mu Yu.

“You go back. Yu and I can handle this,” Bai Xiang quickly stopped things from becoming more embarrassing.

“Oh, by the way, go to the hospital and check on the new colleague,” Mu Yu suddenly remembered the new guy seemed to have been taken to the hospital.

“So I HAVE TO go see him?” Yan Yang’s heart sank. The new guy had been looking at Mu Yu with some kind of gaze. Now he had to go visit him?

At that moment, Mu Yu’s phone rang.

“How’s it going over there?” came the voice of Chief Wen through the receiver.

“We’ve finished the investigation here and are preparing to visit the residents. It was my fault for missing the opportunity,” Mu Yu thought it was all her fault.

“It’s not your fault. The other teams didn’t have any luck either. I don’t know why, but this operation feels like it was leaked,” Wen’s last sentence startled even himself.

“How could that be? The colleagues participating in this operation have been working together for so many years. Everyone knows each other well. The only unknown factor...” Mu Yu’s thoughts somehow flashed to the young man who had just arrived today.

“It couldn’t be Qiu Feng. It’s his first day here, and he was only temporarily assigned to you. He’s been with you the whole time, right?” Wen chuckled, surprised that the newly arrived recruit had become a suspect.

“No, I base my actions on evidence. Without evidence, I won’t casually suspect others. Chief, I’ll get back to work.” Mu Yu thought for a moment, feeling she was too tense. She remembered how Qiu Feng had bravely rushed to save the trapped elderly person, and she sensed that he was still unfamiliar with the situation when they arrived at the scene.

“Okay, you go ahead. There’s something very important waiting for you when you come back.”

“You’re all clear to leave the hospital now, but if you want to stay a bit longer and receive some more oxygen, you can.” The young nurse blushed as she smiled at Qiu Feng, her eyes fixed on his face. It was rare to have such a handsome patient in the hospital, especially one who was a policeman and had been injured on duty. Several unmarried young nurses were eager to find excuses to talk to Qiu Feng.

“I can leave the hospital now? Then I’ll go right away.” Qiu Feng felt very uncomfortable under the nurses’ gazes. He had spent most of the past few years at the police academy, where eighty percent of the students were male, and the remaining twenty percent females were not of this type either. He had hardly interacted with so many girls before.

“You’re in such a hurry to leave? How about I call the doctor to come and check on you again?” The young nurse regretted not keeping him there longer to receive more oxygen.

“No, no need. I have things to do when I get back.” Qiu Feng quickly removed the nasal tube and put on his shoes, just as he saw Yan Yang walking in from outside.

“Are you here to pick me up? Great, let’s hurry back and deal with the case we were working on earlier,” Qiu Feng said, pushing Yan Yang out of the ward without waiting for his response.

“You’re all better now? Mu Yu was worried about you and asked me to come check on you,” Yan Yang’s tone was noticeably annoyed. How could this guy make Mu Yu worry so much?

“Really? Yu asked you to come see me?” Qiu Feng’s spirits visibly lifted.

“Yeah, she did. Wait. Are you already infatuated with Yu?” Yan Yang couldn’t help but feel that this guy and Yu must have known each other for a long time.

“I remember her, but she must have forgotten about me a long time ago,” Qiu Feng said as he settled into the passenger seat. Considering Mu Yu’s attitude towards him earlier, she either didn’t remember him or never knew he existed.

“As expected, you’ve had your eye on my Yu for a long time,” Yan Yang said, getting more and more angry. This kid really dared to admit it!

“I’m not that shameless. I just admire her. Yu saved my life back then. Even if it’s just repaying the favor, I still have to remember it,” Qiu Feng said, feeling offended when he heard Yan Yang refer to Mu Yu as “my Yu”.

The two of them sat with furrowed brows, ignoring each other, and then drove back to the police station.

“Wen, we’ve questioned some neighbors nearby, and they all say they haven’t known anyone living in 304. The lights in that room are off at night. Some people asked the landlord if they could rent it if it’s still vacant, but the landlord said the house had been rented out long ago,” Wen sat in the large office while Mu stood beside him, reporting on the work.

“Did you show the neighbors his photo?” Captain Wen asked, jotting down notes in his notebook.

“We did, but most of the tenants here work nearby and are rarely at home during the day. The rest are mostly elderly or people who work night shifts, so not many people have seen Zhao Pengcheng,” Mu Yu continued her report.

“Report!”

Qiu Feng, fresh out of the police academy, stood at the door and called out as he thought there was a meeting going on in the office.

“Come in,” Wen gestured for Qiu Feng to enter.

“Why are you shouting ‘Report’? We’re not in a meeting,” Yan Yang found it really hard to stand any of this guy’s behaviors.

“Are you feeling better? Wen Fei saw that Qiu Feng looked energetic, so he assumed nothing serious had happened.

“Reporting to the chief, I’m fine now,” Qiu Feng reported again, standing at attention.

“Who’s this?”

“He’s so attractive.”

A few female officers whispered to each other.

“Alright, let me introduce him. This is our new colleague, Qiu Feng. He’s the fresh blood in our team now. Welcome!”

There was sparse applause in the office, and Mu Yu politely clapped her hands. The female officers who were whispering earlier seemed very excited now.

“What should we do next?” Mu Yu’s mind was still on the case.

“We’ll wait for the forensic autopsy report first, confirm the identity and cause of death of the deceased, and then decide what to do next. Yu, you’re one of the experienced members in our team now. Qiu Feng will be under your guidance from now on, how about that?”

Qiu Feng was so overjoyed to hear that he had a chance to be Mu Yu’s apprentice. He quickly walked over to Mu Yu, stood in front of her with his feet together, raised his right hand, and saluted her with a standard gesture.

“What? Let Yu train this brat? Chief, that’s not acceptable,” Yan Yang couldn’t believe it. He hurried to check Mu Yu’s reaction, but she just stared at Wen expressionlessly.

“Mentor, greetings.”

What Qiu didn’t expect was that Mu Yu’s face showed not joy but an unusual look of fear.

“Chief, as I’ve told you before, I can’t ‘train’ anyone. I’m not qualified, and I wouldn’t be able to train an apprentice properly,” Mu Yu said firmly before packing up her report and leaving the office.

“Yu,” Wen shook his head. “Hmm...”

“Chief, what’s wrong with my mentor?” Qiu Feng looked puzzled. He couldn’t understand why Mu Yu didn’t want to train him, and her reaction seemed excessive.

“Yu is good in every aspect, except for this one thing. There has been a heavy burden weighing on her heart, but nobody can help her with it. It’s been three years, and she’s still like this,” Captain Wen sighed with resignation.

Ever since Tang Jiaxing’s sacrifice, Mu Yu, who used to be cheerful and lively, seemed like a different person. She poured all her energy into work every day, and in her free time, she would go to the boxing gym to vent her emotions.

“Don’t worry, Chief. Whatever she has been through, I can help her get through it,” Qiu Feng assured Captain Wen confidently.

“Alright, alright. You’re not the first apprentice she’s rejected. If it wasn’t for you saying that you’re here because she saved your life, I wouldn’t have designated you to be her apprentice. If you want to try, go ahead.”

In the gym, Mu Yu in boxing gear was punching the sandbag. Her hair was already soaked with sweat, hanging in front of her forehead. She didn’t mind the sweat dripping into her eyes and just wiped it away with her arm.

“Mentor, I finally found you,” Qiu Feng burst into the room holding a folder.

“I’ve already told you, I won’t take you as an apprentice. Don’t call me mentor,” Mu Yu didn’t pay attention to him.

“Then, mentor, are you not even going to look at the forensic autopsy report?” Qiu Feng raised the folder in his hand.

“The autopsy report is out?” Mu Yu turned around to look at him, noticing the folder he held.

She bit open the strap of the boxing glove with teeth and took a towel from the side to wipe off the sweat.

“Give me the report, but remember, don’t call me mentor anymore.”