Xu Mu hesitated a moment, then stood up.
By the original "plot," Cleaners did have this kind of authority. With just one word from her, a warrant would definitely be delivered.
"Relax. I won't leak any company secrets—if I do, I'll pay tenfold in compensation."
Jiang Huihui began opening his desk drawers one by one, only giving each a cursory glance before closing it.
When her hand rested on the second drawer from the top on the left, Xu Mu's expression clearly changed.
Noticing this, she smiled faintly and pulled it fully open.
There weren't even any documents inside—just a phone.
She picked it up, found it locked, then handed it to Xu Mu. "Unlock it."
"A phone is my private property," Xu Mu refused.
"I suspect you're tied to a homicide case. There may be evidence on this phone."
Propping her feet on the desk, she spoke in a tone that allowed no refusal: "I'll say it again—open it. Otherwise you're a suspect, and I have the authority to take you in."
Xu Mu drew a deep breath and finally used his fingerprint, then passed the phone to her.
Jiang Huihui shot him a cold look and began checking the device. In Settings she saw over a dozen gigabytes of videos.
She tapped one at random—and audio similar to what had been on Nine Fingers' phone blasted out.
Confident a moment ago, she flushed in an instant the moment the video appeared on screen, the color spreading to the tips of her ears.
She immediately shut the phone off, and black text floated over her head:
[Favorability −20]
So that was why Xu Mu had looked nervous just now.
Still, he felt wronged; those files were left by the former "villain" Xu Mu, not him.
At most, he'd occasionally cast a critical eye over them.
"Shameless!"
She glared at him icily.
"You haven't watched any? Then how did you know what that was?"
Hands in his pockets, Xu Mu's face didn't change. "I haven't distributed anything. That's not against the law."
"You—!"
She tossed the phone back into the drawer, then came over and patted him down from head to toe.
"Shameless! How dare you take advantage of me?"
Xu Mu immediately hugged himself and backed up several steps. "I'm calling the police!"
"Go ahead. It'll still be me who shows up," she said coolly.
By now Xu Mu had basically figured out why she was here.
She'd mentioned a homicide, and she was a Cleaner—so chances were good they'd discovered Nine Fingers' body.
Nine Fingers died of a gunshot wound, and Xu Mu was the one who'd reported the incident.
Her suspecting him was understandable.
The searching and the frisking were to find the Desert Eagle.
Unfortunately for her, even if Xu Mu stood there without a stitch, she wouldn't find it—the item was stored in his inventory.
Jiang Huihui took out her own phone and opened a photo. "Do you recognize this person?"
Xu Mu glanced at it—it was indeed Nine Fingers.
But the body had been turned, hiding the two holes in his skull.
He thought for a moment, then said, "I do. I've seen him."
"So you have seen him. What happened between you two?"
"He was a killer Lin Yang hired to murder me. I promised him that if he told me where Feng Yue and Mu Qingying were being held, I'd pay him five times whatever Lin Yang offered."
Xu Mu explained, "The location where they were rescued—he gave me that."
"Why didn't you say so yesterday?"
She fixed her sharp gaze on him.
"I didn't dare. After I finished giving my statement yesterday, I went to the factory to find him and transfer the money—found him dead, and ran."
Xu Mu deliberately feigned nerves. "I didn't kill him. Even if I wanted to, I don't have that kind of ability."
Her keen eyes narrowed, then she blew a bubble.
"Don't be nervous. The man's a wanted criminal. Whoever took him down would be commended. I originally thought it was you."
"Definitely not. You must have looked into me. I'm just a small-time troublemaker at best. Killing someone? No way."
He had guessed she'd run a background check before coming—otherwise her Favorability wouldn't have been so negative.
"If it wasn't you, then I misjudged."
One hand in her pocket, she waved him off and turned to leave.
"Miss Jiang, I'll see you out."
It was a polite formula—any normal person would say there was no need.
But Jiang Huihui wasn't "normal." She nodded lightly. "Sure."
Xu Mu had been about to sit back down; her reply caught him off guard. Since he'd already offered, he could only follow her out.
They took the elevator down together.
On the way, she glanced at him. "The dead man was a contract killer—heinous crimes. If you have any more intel, let me know."
"Miss Jiang, there's something I'm not sure I should say."
"Say it."
"You're focused on the wrong thing. That killer told me personally Lin Yang sent him. Shouldn't your top priority be arresting Lin Yang?"
He looked at her. "Or is Lin Yang's identity… special, and you don't dare touch him?"
Xu Mu didn't know the subsequent "plot," but through the system he knew Lin Yang's background.
After making a name abroad, Lin Yang had been invited by the state to serve as an instructor, training new recruits.
Clearly the higher-ups had wanted to recruit him, but Lin Yang was used to acting alone. After a little over half a year, he resigned.
Now that everything had merged into one world, the Cleaners' side would certainly have a file on him.
"What nonsense are you spouting? Things have to be handled step by step."
Her gaze flickered; she blew another bubble.
"True—but you still need priorities. The key figure this time is Lin Yang. He stole our Xu family's drug, then flew into a rage and hired a killer to murder me."
Xu Mu stepped closer and looked down into her eyes. "He could come after me again at any time, and yet you're more concerned about a wanted man's death? Doesn't that defy logic?"
Jiang Huihui's fists clenched. Xu Mu wasn't a good man—but his words hit home.
In a case like this, she had investigated Lin Yang and found that the higher-ups had once even invited him to become a Cleaner.
This incident had stirred those same higher-ups.
Because a certain senior Cleaner had once said Lin Yang's talent was exceptional—his future limitless.
So they were looking for ways to give him a pass.
As long as he admitted his mistakes, his crimes would be waived.
They had ordered Jiang Huihui not to touch Lin Yang's case and to focus solely on who killed Nine Fingers.
And that made her very unhappy.
Wrong is wrong. They talked about equality for all.
But because he was talented, he could get special treatment?
Ding.
The elevator reached the first floor. Hands still in her pockets, she strode out.
As if making up her mind, she said, "Xu Mu, let's exchange contact info. Don't worry about Lin Yang—if he dares target you again, I'll make sure he's brought to justice!"
"Great—big-sis energy."
Xu Mu gave her a thumbs-up. This woman was a Cleaner, after all.
No matter how strong Lin Yang was, he couldn't take on the Cleaners.
They exchanged numbers—and WeChat as well.
After saying goodbye, she headed off into the distance.
On the ride back up, Xu Mu opened her Moments.
He was a little stunned to find she posted almost every single day.