Chapter 462: Chapter 462: The Dilly-dallying Man and Woman

"I saw three people inside at the time: two were the thieves, and the third was Director Hao. They were talking. I’ll tell you what I heard, and you can judge for yourselves." Zhao Nuan Yang knew this was a serious matter that could implicate many people. But he also knew that with Director Hao’s personality, if he kept quiet, the director would investigate anyway. Once he discovered that Nuanyang had waited at the door for two minutes and likely overheard their conversation, he would probably retaliate. "...’We’ve worked together many times’...’Even if you won’t do it for my sake, you have to do it for his’..."

Zhao Nuan Yang repeated everything he had heard, then looked toward Pan Ling’er and Wu.

"This..." Pan Ling’er was shocked and uncertain. "My god, from that conversation, it’s obvious Director Hao knows those two. But when we took Director Hao’s statement just now, he said he was threatened. He also claimed he didn’t have the other key, so he couldn’t open the safe, thus indirectly protecting the national treasures."

"Heh, even if Director Hao really is involved, he’s not going to admit it," Zhao Nuan Yang said with a shrug. "I don’t have any personal grudges against Director Hao; everyone at the museum knows that. I’m just honestly reporting what I heard. As for whether he’s an accomplice, you’ll have to interrogate the two criminals."

Wu nodded. "This is indeed an important lead, and we believe you wouldn’t deliberately frame Director Hao. I just carefully surveyed the scene, and it’s just as you said. Without an inside man, there’s no way just three people could have caused such a commotion and escaped so quickly. If you hadn’t stepped in to help today... frankly, we were so focused on rescuing people and were so short-staffed, we might not have caught a single one!"

Hearing this, Pan Ling’er felt a pang of guilt. She was supposed to be on patrol, but she had been so full and sleepy after eating that she had fallen asleep.

"Regarding what I just said about Director Hao, please don’t let it get out before your investigation uncovers the truth," Zhao Nuan Yang specifically requested. "After all, until he’s convicted, he’ll still be working here, and I’d like to avoid any awkwardness. You... well, you get it!" He was reporting a lead to the police, but he also hoped it wouldn’t disrupt his normal life.

Pan Ling’er nodded. "Of course! We’ll keep it confidential. By the way, you should tell us how you rescued everyone!"

"There’s not much to tell, really. I just did what I could," Zhao Nuan Yang said with a wry smile. "It was an emergency, and with all the thick smoke, I can’t remember the exact locations. I just found people, tied them to the rope, and sent them down. It was that simple."

He made it sound simple, but Pan Ling’er didn’t see it that way.

’When everyone first discovered the fire, they went to fight it. Only Nuanyang charged into the thickest of the smoke and quickly rescued people. If they had waited for the water to quell the flames before going in, everyone—except for Director Yang, who had jumped from the building, and the suspect, Director Hao—would have likely suffocated.’

"Still, thank you for helping us rescue the staff and apprehend the criminals," Pan Ling’er said gratefully. As she looked at Zhao Nuan Yang, her eyes shone with even more admiration.

Zhao Nuan Yang looked back at Pan Ling’er and smiled. "Thank you, too, for rushing in to save me at such a dangerous moment!"

As soon as he mentioned this, Pan Ling’er’s face burned. Not only had she failed to save him, but he had ended up pulling her out instead. It had been a huge, embarrassing mistake, and she’d caused trouble for her colleagues. She felt deeply ashamed.

"It was... it was nothing, really. I... I was just worried about you," Pan Ling’er stammered. She didn’t dare to look up into Zhao Nuan Yang’s eyes, but she couldn’t bear to miss his gentle smile either. She couldn’t resist sneaking a peek, but the moment their eyes met, she looked away again like a startled rabbit.

Seeing Ling’er act like this, Wu, who was standing to the side, almost fainted from exasperation.

’My god, how can anyone be so dense?’

’Aren’t young people supposed to be direct these days? So why are these two beating around the bush so much?’

’If you like someone, just say it! If you get along, give it a shot. If not, say goodbye. What’s the big deal? Making things so complicated... a rough guy like me just doesn’t see the fun in any of it!’

"Heh, well, you really didn’t help much," Zhao Nuan Yang chuckled, finding Pan Ling’er’s ever-changing expressions quite amusing. "But your actions showed that you care a lot about me, so from now on, we’re good friends. To thank you, once you’re done with work, I’d like to invite you over to my house."

"Huh?" The first half of his sentence had almost brought Pan Ling’er to tears, but the second half made her spirits soar.

’We’ve gone from being friends to being *good* friends!’

Wu shot a subtle glance at Zhao Nuan Yang, complaining inwardly. He couldn’t tell if the kid was doing it on purpose or not, but with a single move, he could send Miss Ling’er’s hopes soaring one moment and crashing the next.

"Mm-hm, okay! When I’m done with work, I’ll definitely come visit Little Red Carp," Pan Ling’er said with a smile. She glanced outside and saw that the sky was already bright. "I’ve finished my statement, and you’re tired, so you should get some rest. I expect we’ll be called into a meeting soon."

Zhao Nuan Yang wanted to leave, but after such a major incident—especially since he’d stayed to work overtime and participated in the firefighting and rescue—he knew a supervisor would surely come looking for him after daybreak.

The only problem was that Nuanyang was a complete mess. He wanted to go home, take a shower, and change before coming back. However, the museum gates were sealed shut; people could enter, but no one could leave. This was to prevent anyone from taking advantage of the chaos to sneak things out.

’After all, the museum is full of priceless artifacts. And it was just robbed—who knows what else might go missing?’

Zhao Nuan Yang washed up. His outer clothes were covered in dust and scorch marks, so he took them off and tossed them aside. He would just have to wait until morning and have someone notify his sister to pack some clothes and bring them over.

He had worked a busy day yesterday, stayed up all night to finish a project, and then rushed off to fight a fire and rescue people at three in the morning. Now that Zhao Nuan Yang could finally relax, he was utterly exhausted.

’So tired and so sleepy!’

He wrapped a thin blanket around himself, lay down on a bench, closed his eyes, and went to sleep.

Within a few breaths, Zhao Nuan Yang was fast asleep.

When he woke up again, it was already broad daylight.

Meanwhile, Zhao Nuanyue had just woken up that morning when she overheard Zhang Hong making a report to Hua Yusen, who was in the middle of brushing his teeth as he listened.

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