There was a very beautiful woman.

She was a dancer at the Feilengcui dance hall, her name was Ya Qi.

Yue Dingtang remembered her.

Last time Ling Shu went to dance, it was with this dancer.

He stood in the shadows and could see everything clearly, even though the lighting was dim, he remembered the dancer's appearance.

Ya Qi was also surprised.

She quickly lifted her chin.

"Are you Mr. Yue? Young Master Ling asked me to come, he said he couldn't make it today."

She thought Yue Dingtang would be angry.

But he wasn't.

"What else did he say?"

Ya Qi deliberately said, "Nothing!"

Yue Dingtang didn't rush her or ask her to leave, he just nodded and continued to work with his head down, as if he didn't care.

In the end, Ya Qi couldn't hold back.

"Don't you want to ask? What if Young Master Ling is in trouble?"

Yue Dingtang remained calm and collected, "If you don't say anything, then he must be fine for the time being."

Ya Qi was at a loss for what to do.

"Young Master Ling said that after nightfall, he went with Shen Renjie to investigate Mrs. Sun's residence and couldn't make it to the appointment. He also said that Lu Zude is Jiang He's godson and asked you, Mr. Yue, to go ask Jiang He to find out more."

She didn't recognize most of the names mentioned, but she had repeated them over and over again to remember.

Finally, Yue Dingtang stopped what he was doing and looked up, clearly shaken by this unexpected news.

"I understand, thank you."

Ya Qi let out a small hum and saw him getting ready to leave. She didn't want to stay any longer, but also didn't want to leave things unresolved. So, she blurted out one last sentence.

"Mr. Yue, Young Master Ling is fine."

Yue Dingtang locked his notebook back in the drawer and responded, "I know."

Ya Qi choked up and didn't know what to say for a moment.

Yue Dingtang had a slight smile on his face, no longer as businesslike as before.

"If he wants to do something, I can't stop him. He'll charge ahead, but I'll follow behind him."

Ya Qi was stunned.

With Yue Dingtang's status and ability, he could naturally follow behind, even if Ling Shu did something earth-shattering, he would help clean up.

But what about her?

She was just a dancer in a ballroom, unable to save enough money to repay her family's debts for many years.

Ling Shu had to turn around and help her. She owes everything she has today to Ling Shu.

Because of this, her heart was both sweet and sour, with a deep sigh of regret and resentment.

"You, treat Young Master Ling well!" She grew sadder the more she thought about it, and with a final remark, she turned and ran away.

Yue Dingtang was a bit confused, but he didn't have time to dwell on it.

Ling Shu hadn't given Ya Qi much information to pass on, but a few brief sentences were enough to convey the general situation.

Ling Shu and Shen Renjie were probably already preparing to infiltrate the Sun residence.

There was no time for Yue Dingtang to rush over and stop them, so he might as well think about how to get more information from Jiang He.

...

Shen Renjie felt like crying.

He felt like he was eating his last meal before being executed.

It was incredibly sumptuous.

But the more sumptuous it was, the more terrified he felt.

Wasn't this meal his last before the execution?

"Eat more, Old Shen, don't be polite with me!" Ling Shu was quite enthusiastic about serving him food.

Shen Renjie was unable to swallow the food, pondering on how to dissuade Ling Shu from his plan to sneak into the Sun family's residence at night.

"You don't have to resort to thievery to learn about the Sun family's situation. You can ask around their neighbors," suggested Shen Renjie.

Ling Shu shrugged it off. "Do you think I haven't tried that? The left side of the Sun family's residence is empty since the foreign family living there returned to their home country last year. The right side was bought by a wealthy businessman from Shanxi who uses it as a vacation home for him and his wife. The only people living there now are an elderly couple who clean and run errands. They know nothing."

Shen Renjie weakly replied, "What about the tailor shop and the pastry shop?"

Ling Shu asked, "Did you find out anything useful?"

Shen Renjie had no answer. Ling Shu put down his chopsticks and rubbed his belly.

"We're about done. Most families go to bed early at this time of night. It's already eleven o'clock, so it's our turn now."

Shen Renjie suggested, "Should I go find two face towels? We can cover our faces before we go!"

"No need, I've already prepared everything," Ling Shu replied.

Ling Shu pulled out two black cloths from somewhere, leaving Shen Renjie speechless.

"But we should bring some weapons just in case. What if something happens? I'm going incognito, so I don't have a gun on me. I'll have to go back to the patrol station to get one," Shen Renjie persisted.

Ling Shu handed him a dagger and said, "There's only one gun, and your aim isn't as good as mine. I'll take it, and you can have this dagger. It's enough to protect yourself."

Shen Renjie was at a loss for words.

The food stall was about two streets away from Mrs. Sun's house. As Ling Shu and Shen Renjie walked there, most of the lights had already been turned off. The only faint yellow light came from the street lamps in front of the western-style houses.

All was quiet, except for the summer insects chirping on the branches at night.

Mrs. Sun's house was naturally dark and silent.

Shen Renjie held a handkerchief, wanting to cover his face.

But seeing Ling Shu walking boldly as if strolling in a garden, he thought, 'What's the point of covering my face if he gets caught?'

So he put the handkerchief back in his pocket.

Shen Renjie felt bitter inside. He silently followed Ling Shu, watching him stand outside the locked iron gate of the backyard, grabbing the railing and climbing over it in just a few moves.

Then he walked towards the back door. The back door was locked, and no matter how strong Ling Shu was, he couldn't break the chain with his bare hands.

Shen Renjie was waiting for him to return empty-handed so they could both call it a day. But to his surprise, Ling Shu pulled out a piece of wire and poked around in the lock for a while, and actually managed to open the chain.

Shen Renjie was left speechless, but Ling Shu beckoned him to follow.

They entered the kitchen one after the other, and then slipped into the living room on the first floor. It was very quiet, as if no one was there. This was just an ordinary house where women and children lived, and even if they were discovered, it wouldn't be too dangerous. At least it was safer than when they went to explore the Yuan Manor.

Shen Renjie felt guilty and nervous, tiptoeing around. For some reason, his heart was beating faster than usual. It was like he always felt that something would suddenly jump out at him.

Ling Shu had already gone up to the second floor ahead of him.

Shen Renjie snapped out of his thoughts and hurriedly followed behind.

He saw Ling Shu crouching outside the master bedroom door, motionless, as if listening at the wall.

Shen Renjie was speechless. What kind of weird fetish was this, listening to a widow sleep?

But Ling Shu seemed to be completely absorbed in listening, with his ear pressed against the door, not moving a muscle.

After a while, he even reached out to turn the doorknob.

Shen Renjie was startled. Wasn't this like stirring up trouble for no reason?

What if the widow wasn't sleeping so soundly and caught them?

Wouldn't that be a big problem?

His heart was pounding in his throat as he watched Ling Shu quietly open the door and slip inside, his whole body disappearing.

Did he really want to watch the widow sleep?

Should he stop him or not?

After struggling for a few seconds, Shen Renjie also slipped inside.

His gaze naturally fell upon the only large bed in the room.

Shen Renjie was stunned for three seconds.

There was no one on the bed at all!