Chapter 5: Confrontation, Good vs. Evil!

Sui Yi's mind raced, wondering whether she should lay everything out in the open. Wouldn't that scare people? Perhaps it would even cause Hei Pi to make an even bigger scene.

If she didn't speak up... how could she clear her name?

The mirror shard was right in the palm of her hand!

What made Sui Yi even more uneasy was... the shard seemed to be moving...

The atmosphere grew ominous, and Hei Pi, staring at Sui Yi, slid his right hand toward his waist, lifting his black short-sleeved shirt. Maybe, under his coat, near his belt, there was a knife or gun...

Even though this was a crowded restaurant, a person as ferocious and ruthless as him might not hesitate to harm her...

This was the most urgent situation Sui Yi had ever faced in her life!

Without parallel!

Snap!

Suddenly!

There was a knock on the door of the private room...

"Miss, could you open the door..."

The voice of the landlady was somewhat soft, after all, she was from the Jiangnan Water Town where most women were gentle. But right now, there was a tremble of fear mixed into that gentleness.

Sui Yi exchanged a glance with Hei Pi, his eyes revealing a fierce glare.

He swiftly lifted his shirt, revealing a small knife that glistened threateningly before Sui Yi's eyes.

Though it wasn't particularly long and its edge was exposed, Sui Yi really didn't want to test its sharpness.

Her heart tightened. Without saying anything, she pressed her hand against the window, quietly pushing it open slightly and silently pointed towards the river outside.

Her face betrayed no emotion.

Hei Pi hesitated for a moment, then without a word, he pulled and dragged two big bags of chains up to the window ledge, and they both, bags in tow, climbed out... Splash! The sound of the water sank into Sui Yi's ears.

They were fortunate to be by the Flowing River alleyway instead of a main street, as no one seemed to notice people jumping into the river from the window.

But just at that moment...

Snap!

The door had been violently kicked open!

"Police!"

The people bursting in still had fierceness on their faces, seeming quite displeased with the landlady's "abnormal" behavior a moment ago.

But when they saw that the private room was empty except for Sui Yi, the police cursed in unison.

"Where are they? Not here?"

"Damn, they've run away!"

"The noodles are still here!"

There was a bowl of noodles across from Sui Yi, eaten clean, now only a greasy red soup remained.

"The window!" Lin Quan, the captain of the Nanxun Ancient Town police brigade, glared fiercely, his long legs stepping forward to the window just in time to see ripples violently undulating on the surface of the Nanxun River...

His face darkened, Lin Quan said coldly, "They got away, jumped into the Nanxun River. Wang Leng, you and the others go after them, and inform the station to seal off this area..."

"Yes!"

Seven or eight officers quickly left the scene, causing the landlady to tremble with fear, while outside there were exclamations of shock.

Utter chaos...

But Lin Quan knew that for people like Hei Pi, who were adept at braving fire and water, holding their breath under water was no difficult feat. Capturing him wouldn't be easy, but according to the informer, he should still have the goods with him. Hence, after jumping into the river, he definitely wouldn't be able to swim fast and wouldn't get far...

It all depended on how heavy those goods were!

"Speak up, where is Hei Pi planning to run to!!"

The table was slammed down fiercely, snapping Lin Quan out of his reverie. He turned to see Sui Yi sitting calmly in her chair, while the newly arrived Little Zhang was shouting furiously, "You're so young and instead of good deeds, you're involved in illegal and criminal activities! Come clean, just tell us what you..."

Before she could finish, Lin Quan stepped in to stop her and gave her a glance, then looked at Sui Yi's calm and steady face.

"Captain Lin Quan, to slander a minor without concrete evidence, and before so many spectators, is enough to cause me psychological trauma, don't you think... Should I consider making a complaint at the police station?"

Sui Yi glanced at the young police officer whose complexion had drastically changed. The officer was seething with indignation, his fair, cultivated face turning red as if he wanted to rush up and scold Sui Yi. However, Lin Quan uttered a low command, "Zhang Xiao!"

Zhang Xiao, having just graduated and taken up his post, was inevitably a bit brash and arrogant. But precisely because of that, he feared Lin Quan, a man of authority with an icy demeanor, and his expression changed at once. He quieted down and said discontentedly, "Captain..."

Lin Quan ignored him and just stood firm in front of Sui Yi, his expression cold, "Having dinner?"

"Obviously."

"With Hei Pi?"

"Who?"

"The person you were dining with. He's the tomb robber we're after... a criminal. Do you realize you're engaging in illegal activities with a criminal?"

"That uncle? Hei Pi? Name sure fits the bill... But Officer Lin Quan, if a person inadvertently sits down to have dinner with a terrifying murderer, that's a crime now?" said Sui Yi with a light laugh, her eyebrows arching, her eyes rippling like the river water outside the window, smooth as silk.

Lin Quan frowned, "Of course that's not a crime, but are you certain it was inadvertent? I have solid evidence here that Yantang Studio was planning to conduct an illegal transaction today with the tomb trading criminal Hei Pi at Haowei Restaurant... and you've been helping Yantang Studio all along!"

A piece of paper escaped from the pocket of his garment.

It bore a line of characters.

Sui Yi took a casual glance, her expression unchanged, "Not bad handwriting..."

"Indeed, not bad, but you..."

"So what?" cut in Sui Yi, continuing softly on her own, "Are the police planning to explain this stewed pig's trotter recipe to my lawyer? Does it contain guidance that assisted you in capturing me and bringing me to justice?"

Lawyer?

In the verbal exchange that lasted no more than a minute, Zhang Xiao and the others saw the unsuspecting, gentle appearance of this seemingly weak girl who was imperturbable as a stubborn drop of water.

As well as the hidden sharpness in her last statement.

"True, this piece of paper proves nothing, but the police have ample reason to take you back to the station for criminal detention and questioning... I remember, you just started school, haven't you? If the news that you had been taken to the police station..."

For a minor girl, could there be anything more terrifying?

The landlady standing at the door had turned pale.

The onlookers outside were craning their necks with curiosity...

Sui Yi leaned back slightly in her chair, meeting the gaze of Lin Quan and his group of police officers.

Justice only combats evil.

So, does she represent evil?

In this solemn moment, Lin Quan saw Sui Yi casually spread her hands with a laugh, "Then take me away... I can save a few days' worth of meal money, right..."

How long could they detain her?

Twenty-four hours, a single day, that was the legal right they could apply. She was still a minor, a student in school. If they wanted to detain her further... it would depend on whether the police station was willing to break the law for her.

Most importantly, could you find evidence of her crime?

Was she a criminal?

The veteran police officers glared at Sui Yi with great annoyance... Lin Quan fell silent for a moment and in the quiet, broke the silence.

"Sui Yi, this is the thirty-fifth time we've caught you..."

Raising her eyes, Sui Yi glanced at him, a gentle smile forming on her face, which accentuated her youthful and delicate complexion, albeit somewhat pale and emaciated, invoking pity.

But Zhang Xiao and the others clearly hadn't overlooked Lin Quan's words—thirty-five times? Caught?

Meanwhile, Sui Yi was already speaking softly, "Yes... I've always been honored to provide effective information to the government thirty-five times."

Those words sounded pleasant.

But Lin Quan and the other seasoned police officers turned grim.

This was a disgrace!

Caught thirty-five times, but each time merely a record was made at the scene.

It wasn't that they didn't know this girl's background was unclean; it wasn't that they didn't want to catch her.

But... they couldn't.

—Insufficient evidence. (PS: I've always believed that right and wrong, as well as good and evil in this world, are not absolute. People who are not righteous are not necessarily bad, and those who are not evil are not necessarily good. Okay, this is just chit-chat. Speaking of which, my new book has already reached 10,000 words, made it onto the new books list, but hasn't been written for long, and doesn't have as many words, so it can't compare to the popularity of other authors' books. Again, I was planning on giving the wall a smear of manure, so I'm asking everyone to give a little more support, please—whatever is lacking, whatever we need... Also, I just found out today that 'collect' means adding to the bookshelf, not just the favorites page... So, if you haven't collected it yet, I would appreciate the effort, to give a little help to Sui Yi~~·)