This squad of police had more than a dozen officers, and the one leading them looked like he held a pretty high rank.
That made Ruan Xingyao glance over at Chen Yu.
She didn’t know how he had managed to make contact earlier, but clearly, with such a big lineup showing up, Chen Yu was the main reason behind it.
The middle-aged officer in front had already walked up to Ruan Xingyao.
He didn’t look like a superior putting on airs — rather, he looked more like someone in a lower position who needed something from her.
With a very kind attitude, he said to her:
“Expert Ruan, hello, I’m Wan Laiming, the deputy director of the Changcheng Police Department.”
Ruan Xingyao felt rather awkward at his tone.
She gave an embarrassed laugh and said:
“Hello, I’m Ruan Xingyao, you can just call me Xiao Ruan.”
Back in Ningcheng, she had been smug and enjoyed hearing Shen Jiming and the others call her “Expert Ruan,” but now that she was outside her home turf, she couldn’t help but feel a little out of place.
Especially since she still hadn’t figured out exactly how Chen Yu had contacted the Changcheng police — naturally, she needed to keep a lower profile.
Luckily, Wan Laiming didn’t pile on endless flattery like typical officials did, or she really would have wanted to curl her toes into the floor.
Just then, the people who had been scolded by Ruan Xingzhuo and You Huan started acting up again.
They began shouting at the police:
“Officer, I want to file a report! These people beat us up for no reason and cursed at us! Hurry up and arrest them!”
“That’s right! We want to press charges! Officer, you have to stand up for us!”
“They even said they were police officers themselves! Police beating up ordinary citizens! You can’t just let them off easy!”
At those words, not only were Ruan Xingzhuo and You Huan completely speechless, but even the officers looked at them like they were idiots.
Were these people cooked by the heat, or were their brains really not working?
Any normal person, seeing the situation right now, how could they still suspect that Ruan Xingyao was impersonating the police?
Some sharp-eyed officers had already restrained them.
“Provoking trouble! You’re coming with us!”
The few loudmouths were cuffed and taken toward the police car.
The man Ruan Xingzhuo had kicked was also escorted away with them.
The crowd watching didn’t dare say a word now — instead, they all took another step back in unison.
Still, gossip runs in people’s veins; leaving a show half-watched only makes folks feel unbearably restless inside.
So, even though some people had already been taken away, there were still others who kept watching from the sidelines with the mindset of “As long as I don’t stir up trouble, trouble won’t come to me.”
The police only gave these onlookers a verbal warning, without actually driving them off.
Wan Laiming glanced at the man Chen Yu had restrained and asked,
“Xiao Ruan, what’s the story with this guy?”
On their way here, the preliminary information they had gathered was that, at most, this man had been abusing a dog.
When Chen Yu contacted them, he hadn’t been specific — he’d only asked them to bring more people along.
But now, seeing the situation, if it wasn’t some major case, it would be hard to wrap things up neatly.
Ruan Xingyao didn’t hold anything back and said directly:
“From the information I got from Buguo, this man took Buguo’s owner on a trip, and after that, the owner never came back. So, my initial suspicion is human trafficking.”
The moment those four words — human trafficking — came out, Wan Laiming’s expression immediately changed.
He fixed his eyes on Ruan Xingyao, trying to judge from her face whether she was being serious or just joking.
Because if human trafficking was involved, this case was extremely serious.
Even the surrounding crowd erupted the moment they heard Ruan Xingyao’s words.
Some who had seen her livestream couldn’t help but whisper to those next to them:
“As expected of Starry streamer — the moment she makes a move, it’s a major case.”
Even online, where people had tuned in to other livestreams of the scene, the moment they heard Ruan Xingyao’s words, the chat boiled over.
【Holy crap! What kind of magnet is our Starry streamer? How does she keep running into huge cases no matter where she goes?!】
【A crime reaper! Truly living up to the title!】
【I thought Starry streamer wouldn’t be able to stream for a few days, but turns out I still get to catch some scraps! Even if it’s not her own stream, I’ll throw in a tip anyway!】
In just a short while, those streaming the scene had already received quite a few donations — a windfall dropping from the sky.
Of course, there were skeptics too.
Wan Laiming was one of them.
He stared hard at Ruan Xingyao and said,
“Xiao Ruan, words like that can’t be thrown around lightly. We police have to work with evidence.”
Ruan Xingyao nodded in agreement and said,
“The evidence will come, don’t worry.”
She picked up Buguo, patted its head, and added:
“But first, it needs to be taken to the pet hospital for an examination. Once it’s recovered, I’ll question it again.”
Wan Laiming, for a moment, didn’t know how to respond to Ruan Xingyao.
He had long heard rumors about her abilities, but since he had never witnessed them himself, he still half-doubted.
Now she was seriously telling him that evidence could come from a dog — how could he calmly accept that?
Still, since Ruan Xingyao brought it up, Wan Laiming immediately called over an officer and told him to take Buguo to the nearest pet hospital.
Ruan Xingyao was very satisfied with this arrangement.
After all, she was still thinking about beef meatballs.
Ruan Xingyao said:
“I’m going to eat first. When it’s better, let me know, and I’ll come find you again.”
This was the first time Wan Laiming had encountered such a situation.
For them policemen, whenever a case came up, who didn’t throw themselves into it day and night?
But here was Ruan Xingyao, so willful that she could still think about going to eat.
But since she wasn’t under his command, there was nothing he could do.
Since becoming deputy chief, Wan Laiming hadn’t felt this stifled before.
After several seconds of silence, he finally asked:
“Xiao Ruan, can you first answer me one question?”
Ruan Xingyao readily agreed.
“Go ahead.”
Wan Laiming asked:
“How did you determine this was human trafficking and not a case of murder and cover-up?”
Ruan Xingyao replied:
“Buguo told me. It only said its mom was taken on a trip, but it didn’t say this man had any foul smell on him. That means, at the very least, he hasn’t committed murder.”
Wan Laiming still found it hard to believe.
Was it really that magical, to draw such a conclusion from a dog’s information?
Ruan Xingyao saw his distrust.
She didn’t rush to explain, but instead said:
“Anyway, just take him back first. Look into his information, see where he took people traveling — won’t you find out then?”
Something like that was something the police could easily handle.
What else could Wan Laiming say? He could only reply:
“Alright, we’ll take him back first. Xiao Ruan, come find us after you finish eating.”
Ruan Xingyao agreed without hesitation.
— The end of the Chapter–
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