Chapter Fifty-One: Holding the Troops in Check

"Blind date? Who's going on a blind date?" Mo Dou returned from outside just in time to catch a snippet of conversation as he stepped through the door.

Tian Yang grinned and pointed at An Changpu.

"What? You're the one going on a blind date? I thought it was Brother Tian!" Mo Dou said, quickly dodging Tian Yang's incoming swat. "Are you really in such a hurry to sort out your personal life?"

"What, so you're saying I’m the emotional disaster here—at my age, still single and helpless?" Tian Yang shook his fist in mock outrage, unable to keep a straight face.

Mo Dou, having accidentally spoken his mind, laughed sheepishly. "I just mean, you know, there’s an order to these things. Compared to you, An Changpu is still young."

"Actually, I’m not that young," An Changpu said with a wry smile. "Some of my college classmates are so efficient—just last month I was at a full-month party for their baby!"

"What does she look like? Is she pretty?" Mo Dou had little interest in the one-month-old baby but, as a proper, eligible bachelor, was much more curious about An Changpu’s blind date.

With that question, Tian Yang’s curiosity was also piqued. As the most well-informed man in the Major Crimes Unit, he was eager to know if his buddy was heading into a trial or about to have a romantic encounter.

Pressed by the two gossip hounds, An Changpu had no choice but to answer honestly, "I haven’t met her yet. I saw her photo once when I got back from the peacekeeping mission—she’s all right, quite delicate. Mainly, our parents know each other and are eager to set us up. It’s hard for me to refuse outright."

"What does she do for a living?"

"I heard she’s a kindergarten teacher."

"A kindergarten teacher! That's great! So gentle, always speaking softly—must be the epitome of femininity!" Mo Dou smacked his lips, already lost in his own daydreams. "What a perfect match—a detective and a kindergarten teacher, strength and softness combined! If you ask me, when I find a girlfriend, I’ll look for a nurse. So noble and gentle!"

"Go on, keep dreaming! With your luck, you’ll probably end up with a fierce nurse—broad-shouldered, red-faced, and tough as nails!" Tian Yang teased, only half-joking. Then, catching sight of Qin Ruonan, who had quietly returned to her seat and listened in silence, he changed the subject, "Ruonan, what does your boyfriend do?"

"I’m single," Qin Ruonan replied.

"Oh, then you’d better hurry up!" Mo Dou blurted out, thinking they were about the same age since she’d graduated the same year as An Changpu. No sooner were the words out than Tian Yang smacked him on the back of the head. Mo Dou froze, realizing how tactless he’d sounded and how it might hurt Ruonan’s pride. He quickly shut his mouth.

Qin Ruonan showed no special reaction to Mo Dou’s words. Her eyes swept over the three men and, when they landed on An Changpu, she looked away, her tone cold. "I have no interest in blind dates. The purpose of my life isn’t to find a man to drag me down."

Mo Dou glanced silently at Tian Yang, who pointed at him, blaming him for stirring things up. An Changpu frowned as well.

He wasn’t sure if it was just his imagination, but he’d thought he and Qin Ruonan had been getting along better lately, that subtle barrier between them gradually dissolving. Yet with just a few words, a fresh wall of ice seemed to rise up again.

That sense of distance—bordering on rejection—had returned.

Why was it like this? An Changpu couldn’t say. Deep down, he felt there must be some connection between himself and Qin Ruonan he hadn’t yet grasped. But with a case to investigate and his parents pressing him to go on a blind date, his energy was stretched too thin to dwell on it.

Thinking of the case, An Changpu took the initiative to steer the conversation back to work, sparing the four of them an awkward silence.

Though Tian Yang and Mo Dou weren’t the primary leads on the Lu Min case, they’d assisted in various ways and were up to speed. They’d helped with the search for Lu Min’s head, but their efforts had been fruitless. So, when the case came up, it inevitably led to some sighs.

"Given our current search radius, the odds of not finding it are minuscule! The only real possibility is that the murderer never dumped the head at all, but hid it somewhere," Tian Yang said with conviction, his confidence built on days of searching.

"Could the killer have smashed the skull and scattered the remains?" Mo Dou ventured.

"Unlikely," An Changpu replied before Tian Yang could, dismissing the idea. "You can ask Forensic Zhao—he’ll tell you just how difficult it is to dismember a human head."

"Then our only option is to deduce from possible hiding places or preservation methods," Tian Yang agreed, sighing. "What’s your plan regarding Lu Min’s eldest son-in-law?"

"We hold steady," An Changpu answered readily. "Keep him under surveillance but don’t alert him. Right now, all we know is that Lu Min was murdered. We still don’t know where he was last seen alive. Tipping off Lu Ji too soon would do us no favors."

"What do you think?" Tian Yang turned to Qin Ruonan.

"I have no objections," Qin Ruonan replied. "Besides the time and place of Lu Min’s last appearance, the origin of his injuries might also be crucial to the case."

"Speaking of those injuries, I wonder if Liu Yuxiang had a hand in them," An Changpu said, clearly mistrusting Liu Yuxiang.

"You don’t need to worry. I’ve already arranged for an investigation into his alibi. We should have results soon," Qin Ruonan assured them, having just stepped aside to handle this matter.

"So, what’s your next step?" Tian Yang asked.

"Go to T County. We need to find out why Lu Min kept going there," Qin Ruonan answered first.

An Changpu had the same idea and nodded in agreement.

"T County’s in the neighboring province. Be sure to notify the local police before you go," Tian Yang reminded them, then called Mo Dou away to work on their own tasks.

"So, when do you want to leave?" An Changpu glanced at his watch. It was getting late, but knowing Qin Ruonan’s personality, he couldn’t be sure if she’d insist on leaving at once.

She didn’t reply. After a while, seeing she was still lost in thought, he had to ask again before realizing she’d drifted off.

"Tomorrow morning," Qin Ruonan finally said, rubbing her temples as she came back to herself. "I’m tired. I want to go home and rest early tonight."