"What are you looking at?" Ling Shu's voice came from beside him.

Yue Dingtang was looking at the window on the second floor.

The window was polished brightly, with carved patterns on the edges, exuding a Western style typical of the concession area.

Behind the window was Mrs. Sun's bedroom, and the curtains were tightly drawn, blocking out all light, presumably because the owner was sleeping.

Yue Dingtang had a feeling that the inside and outside of the house were like two different worlds, one dark and one bright.

The window was like a boundary, separating the underworld from the mortal world. Beyond the window was an unfathomable other side, inhabited by all sorts of demons and ghosts.

Curiosity may not always lead to the ultimate answer, but sometimes it can drag you into an abyss.

Yue Dingtang withdrew his gaze.

The sunlight shone on him, bringing him warmth once again. It was as if Ling Shu's presence had frozen in time, like all the most beautiful moments in the world, even his hair seemed to sparkle and shine.

Yue Dingtang couldn't help but hold his hand and give it a squeeze.

Ling Shu was caught off guard by the sudden touch, and instinctively wanted to pull away, but he saw that Yue Dingtang was lost in thought.

"Who do you think is lying?" Yue Dingtang asked.

"I don't know," Ling Shu replied, rubbing his chin. He didn't feel as strongly about the strange situation as Yue Dingtang did, but he also felt that there were many doubts.

Two heads are better than one when it comes to figuring things out.

"If Mrs. Sun is trying to deceive us, there would be no need for her to cause such a commotion and actively seek us out. If her plea for help is genuine, even if that maid is a spy for the Lu family, trying to take her son away from her or even poison her, Mrs. Sun could simply dismiss the maid and move away with her son. There would be no need to seek help. The elders of the Lu family are powerless to do anything to her. So why would Mrs. Sun seek help?"

It was true that Mrs. Sun was genuinely seeking help. The conflicts within the Lu family's household, as confirmed by Lu Zude himself, were also true.

But the two were completely unrelated. This was what they found strange.

"Could it be that Mrs. Sun has another reason for seeking help? Or perhaps..."

Ling Shu's face suddenly showed a hint of strangeness. He instinctively looked towards Yue Dingtang.

Their eyes met.

Yue Dingtang clearly had some thoughts on his mind, as his brow furrowed slightly.

Ling Shu wasn't sure if he was thinking the same thing as him.

"What if Lu Zude is lying?" Yue Dingtang said, and Ling Shu knew immediately that they were on the same page.

But the possibility seemed absurd.

A child of that age, so well-behaved, at most a little mischievous.

Perhaps he might tell a small lie for candy or to avoid doing something, but to fabricate a whole story?

That was just too far-fetched.

Ling Shu reined in his wild thoughts.

"Maybe we'll only get the answer when Mrs. Sun wakes up. The maid wouldn't have the nerve to harm someone, would she?"

Yue Dingtang said, "Before, I couldn't be sure, but before we left, we agreed to come back and visit in a few days. She wouldn't dare to do anything. I already told someone to have Smith send a person to keep watch outside. Even if she wants to run away, she won't be able to."

"Where did you find someone to keep watch?" Ling Shu didn't expect him to have this kind of preparation.

After all, the Yue family's driver was just a driver and had to help Yue Dingtang drive. He couldn't do this kind of thing professionally. Tracking and following also required the police station's people to do it, but those people were not easy to handle. They often demanded money and couldn't be easily persuaded without some ability.

But with Yue Dingtang's relationship with Smith, it was a small matter to ask someone to do it.

Yue Dingtang smirked.

Ling Shu followed his hint and looked in the direction he indicated. Across the street, there was a Western-style pastry shop where a tall woman with a wig and a Western dress was posing behind the counter, greeting customers.

Ling Shu carefully observed and realized that it was not a woman, but a man.

A man dressed as a woman.

It was quite painful on the eyes.

Even the customers knew that it was a man, but his outfit was attention-grabbing, and many people bought two more cakes because of him.

Originally, there were many small Western-style houses here, and there were many foreigners nearby, so there were also many generous customers.

The more Ling Shu looked at the person, the more familiar he felt.

He suddenly exclaimed, "Shen Renjie?!"

It really was him.

This was an old acquaintance.

When Ling Shu was arrested as a suspect for killing Du Yunning and taken to the police station, the person who interrogated him was Shen Renjie. Later, in order to uncover the secret of the Yuan family's underground cellar, he went through another hardship with Old Shen.

Unexpectedly, fate brings people together in unexpected ways.

"Why is he dressed like that? Is this also your request?" Ling Shu looked strange, thinking of his own experience wearing a qipao.

He didn't say anything, but couldn't help feeling that Yue Dingtang had some kind of special and twisted preference.

Yue Dingtang could tell from his tone what he was thinking.

"...Of course not, I just asked him to keep watch outside."

Meanwhile, Shen Renjie was enthusiastically greeting passersby to buy cakes.

Suddenly, a figure appeared in front of them.

"Which cake is the best?" Shen Renjie didn't see clearly and instinctively put on a smiley face, speaking in a sweet and charming voice.

"The Napoleon cake is the best seller. Sir, would you like a piece? It just came out of the oven, still hot and fluffy, and smells amazing!"

"I want a cake without sugar, salt, flour, or eggs, and with fresh cherries instead of canned ones. Do you have that?"

Shen Renjie: ... Is this person here to cause trouble? They probably don't know who I am.

He smirked, his expression turning into a grin, and he stopped holding back his voice.

"We don't have that kind of cake. But if you're feeling itchy, I can- Hm? Ling? Ling Shu?"

Ling Shu teased, "Oh, old Shen, long time no see. Why did you become so pretty? Come give me a kiss."

He reached out to hook Shen Renjie's chin.

Shen Renjie quickly leaned back and almost strained his waist.

"Go away, don't tease me. I'm working here!"

He lowered his voice.

Ling Shu looked left and right, feeling that this scene was too funny.

Unfortunately, he didn't have a camera on hand, or he would have definitely taken a picture.

"You're really dedicated, following someone and still having to dress up as a Western woman to sell cakes?"

Shen Renjie also saw Yue Dingtang at this time and knew how they would end up here, so he remained calm.

"You don't understand anything. This is killing two birds with one stone. I can earn extra money while following someone."

Ling Shu asked, "What about after dark? The cake shop can't be open all day, can it?"

Shen Renjie smirked, "After dark, a noodle soup stall will be set up at the street corner. I collect the protection fee, ahem, I mean the environmental management fee from the stall owner on a regular basis. I'll take a break there, have a bowl of soup, and chat with people."

Three birds with one stone.

Ling Shu gave him a thumbs up. Shen Renjie was indeed the same person in his memory, always taking advantage of every situation.

"This household is a bit strange. You really need to be careful." Shen Renjie didn't take Ling Shu's words seriously.

He rolled his eyes and thought to himself, 'You haven't even paid me yet. Do you think it's easy for me to stare at this place for twelve hours a day? What's so interesting about a household with women and a child? As soon as my shift is over, I'm out of here.'

Yue Dingtang said, "Shen Renjie."

Shen Renjie straightened his back and replied, "Hello, Captain Yue!"

Yue Dingtang said, "You need to keep a close eye on the Sun residence. Don't make any mistakes. If you see anything suspicious, let me know. I'll give you the phone number for the Yue Manor."

Shen Renjie said, "No problem. I'll make sure to complete the task."

Yue Dingtang nodded and casually added, "You're so diligent. You deserve a promotion. I'll talk to Smith about it."

Shen Renjie suddenly felt energized and his smile almost blinded Ling Shu.

If Shen Renjie was an old donkey, then Yue Dingtang was undoubtedly the carrot hanging in front of old Shen's head.

For two consecutive days, Shen Renjie had not reported any abnormalities.

On the other hand, Ling Shu had gone outside the Sun residence for a stroll, but there was no movement. The maid went out to buy groceries as usual, and Lu Zude occasionally played in the yard.

Ling Shu did not disturb them, only observing from the shadows.

He also saw the maid bringing a doctor into the house, and soon after, sending the person away. It seemed that they had indeed invited the doctor to see the lady of the house.

Based on his observations, this was a very ordinary household.

Except for how the curtains in the second-floor bedroom that were always closed, even during the day.

Even if Mrs. Sun's condition was unstable, it was impossible for her to not want to see any sunlight.

He asked Shen Renjie about it, but Shen Renjie also said that he had not seen anyone open the curtains during the day.

The next day, Ling Shu prepared to visit the Sun family again under the guise of a visit. He spent some time with Shen Renjie before realizing that it was almost time to meet with Yue Dingtang. Before leaving, he made a detour to the back door of the Sun family's small house, hoping to catch a glimpse of any clues.

As luck would have it, he saw a person hurriedly leaving through the back door. The person wore a hat and walked with a low profile, clearly not wanting to be noticed.

Ling Shu also felt like he had seen this person somewhere before. Without hesitation, he immediately followed the person. From a distance, the person walked through the streets, turning left and right, and eventually entered a Chinese medicine shop.

Ling Shu waited for a while until the person came out carrying a bag of medicine.

In the moment he looked up to check the road, Ling Shu finally remembered where he had seen this person before.

The yellow cart driver.

That night, when Mrs. Sun came to their door crying and begging for help to find her missing child, the one who took her to the police station was this yellow cart driver!

Now he was dressed in a long robe, obviously not in the attire of a cart driver anymore, no wonder Ling Shu didn't recognize him at first.

Could it be that the source of Mrs. Sun's plea for help came from this person?

Ling Shu was full of suspicion as he followed the man, watching him return to Mrs. Sun's small western-style house through the back door just like before. He then turned back and went to the pharmacy, taking out some money to bribe the young man behind the counter who was preparing medicine, asking him for the prescription that the man had just picked up.

"Polygonum multiflorum vine, sour jujube kernel... What are the benefits of these?"

Ling Shu didn't know anything about Chinese medicine and couldn't understand the prescription.

The assistant at the pharmacy said, "This is a recipe for aiding sleep and calming the mind, but the dosage is too high. I originally refused to give it to that customer. Too much of a good thing can be bad, and using it on a person would definitely not be good. However, that customer said they wanted to feed it to their chickens and ducks to prevent them from constantly making noise and disturbing people's sleep."

Mrs. Sun lived in a small house, so where would she keep chickens, ducks, and geese? It was obvious that this was meant for human consumption!