Ruan Xingyao looked at Lin Ye, leaving the decision in his hands.
Lin Ye was still in a state of anger, but his emotions were gradually calming down.
He fixed his gaze on Ruan Xingyao for a long while before finally saying,
“If you’re making up baseless rumors to insult my family, I will make sure to punish you!”
Ruan Xingyao, fearless and unflinching, lifted her chin and said firmly,
“I won’t be wrong about this!”
Lin Ye was once again infuriated by Ruan Xingyao’s arrogant attitude, his gaze turning even more fierce.
At this moment, Shen Jiming spoke up:
“Xiao Ruan, why don’t you first tell us your method.”
He was truly worried that if he didn’t interrupt now, Lin Ye might say something even more excessive in a fit of anger.
Ruan Xingyao said,
“Just go to his house to verify it, wouldn’t that solve it?”
Her tone was casual, as if it were the easiest thing in the world.
But the moment these words left her mouth, the expressions of those around them turned speechless.
“You really think the police bureau is run by your family?”
Someone said discontentedly.
Ruan Xingyao cast a sideways glance at that person, not bothering to respond.
She turned to Shen Jiming and said,
“Just treat this matter as a case. You wouldn’t want your subordinates to be held back by such issues in the future, right?”
She could tell that Shen Jiming valued Lin Ye highly, which meant that although Lin Ye had a short temper, his work ability was exceptional.
If matters at home started affecting him in the future, it would be a serious loss.
Besides, she had already exposed this matter—whether Lin Ye believed it or not, the thorn was already planted in his heart.
Whether he accepted it or not, it had already become an established fact.
So, the best way was to resolve it immediately.
Of course, Ruan Xingyao wasn’t doing this out of consideration for Lin Ye — she simply wanted to coax Shen Jiming into treating it as a case, so she could happily wait to collect her reward.
Just the thought of it filled her beautiful eyes with anticipation.
Shen Jiming instantly saw through Ruan Xingyao’s little scheme.
Feeling helpless, he had already foreseen the days ahead when this girl would keep finding ways to take advantage of him.
However, compared to the help she could bring to the police station in the future, such petty tricks were harmless for now.
After a moment’s thought, Shen Jiming said, “In that case, we’ll make an exception. This matter must be resolved by the end of today.”
He turned to Xie Lin and said, “Xiao Xie, go with them.”
Xie Lin nodded and accepted the task.
The three of them left the police station together.
Just as they reached the parking lot, a fat cat came over and rubbed itself against Ruan Xingyao’s feet.
“Human! You’re so nice! Old Cat here finally got to eat meat again. Thank you, human!”
Ruan Xingyao crouched down and patted the fat cat on the head.
Silently, she infused some spiritual energy into it.
She couldn’t change its fate, but at least, during its final days, it wouldn’t have to suffer so much.
It would leave this world in a sweet dream.
After doing this, Ruan Xingyao got into the car.
Xie Lin drove, Lin Ye sat in the passenger seat, and Ruan Xingyao sat alone in the back.
The three of them stayed silent the entire way, until they arrived near Lin Ye’s home.
From a distance, Lin Ye spotted a patch of black–colored fur in the roadside grass.
He almost immediately sat up straight, and just as Xie Lin was about to drive the car forward, he shouted, “Stop!”
He couldn’t be mistaken—there was only one golden retriever with a black-colored coat in his neighborhood, and it belonged to him.
That lump of fur in the grass… was his dog!
Before the car had even come to a complete stop, Lin Ye had already opened the door and stumbled out, rushing toward it.
Sure enough—it was his Cola!
“Cola!” Lin Ye shouted.
However, the Cola who normally got excited the instant it heard his voice showed no reaction this time.
It wasn’t until Lin Ye scooped it up into his arms that it finally opened its eyes and looked at him.
When it realized it was Lin Ye, it let out a pitiful whimper.
That broke Lin Ye’s heart.
Since raising Cola, he had never once seen it look so weak.
He quickly examined Cola from head to toe but couldn’t find any visible injuries.
“Cola! What happened to you? Tell Daddy! Cola! Don’t scare Daddy like this!”
Lin Ye held Cola tightly, pained, his mind echoing with Ruan Xingyao’s earlier words—was it his own family that hurt Cola?
Was that it?
He didn’t dare think any further!
He looked up at Ruan Xingyao, pleading, “Can’t you understand what it says? Then say something!”
Ruan Xingyao pressed her lips together, suddenly not knowing what to do.
She did know what had happened, but the truth was perhaps too cruel for this man to bear.
“Tell me!” Lin Ye shouted at Ruan Xingyao.
Yuan Xingyao took a deep breath and said, “Say your goodbyes properly. There’s not much time left.”
“What do you mean?!” Lin Ye’s anger instantly surged to the top of his head.
If he hadn’t been holding Cola in his arms, he would’ve charged at Ruan Xingyao and punched her.
Ruan Xingyao explained, “He was injected with medication and has been holding on only through sheer willpower to see you one last time. If you waste any more time, you won’t get a proper farewell.”
After saying this, Ruan Xingyao turned away, unwilling to watch any longer.
She lifted her head, the soreness in her eyes making her uncomfortable.
She blinked hard and looked up at the blue sky, forcing down the surge of emotion rising in her chest.
Yet the tightly bitten lips and clenched fists at her sides still gave her away.
At this moment, her heart ached no less than Lin Ye’s.
Lin Ye stared at Ruan Xingyao in disbelief, his mind blank.
Several seconds passed before he slowly lowered his head and looked back at Cola.
Feeling his owner’s gaze, Cola weakly rubbed its big head against Lin Ye’s arm.
At that moment, Lin Ye seemed to understand what Cola was telling him.
It was saying, “Goodbye, my dearest owner.”
Finally, Lin Ye let go of everything, gently stroking Cola’s head.
His throat tightened as he struggled to speak, “Thank you, Cola. Thank you for coming into my life.”
He lowered his head and kissed Cola’s head.
When he looked up again, Cola had already stopped breathing.
But it was still smiling.
“Cola!”
Lin Ye roared, using all his strength to hold Cola close.
Ruan Xingyao lifted her head to the sky, tears blurring her vision.
Xie Lin hadn’t expected things to turn out this way.
He glanced at Ruan Xingyao, then at Lin Ye, and silently sighed.
After a moment, Xie Lin lowered his voice and asked Ruan Xingyao, “What exactly happened?”
Ruan Xingyao took a deep breath, turned to face Xie Lin, and said, “We arrived too late — just minutes too late. Cola was given a lethal injection. If we had come earlier…”
— The end of the Chapter–
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