Chapter 141
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Chapter 141: Delays
Returning to the present, Zhuang Mian still found it hard to believe that a kitten was assigning her tasks.
However, knowing this was the directive of the divine envoy, she listened with respect and attentiveness.
The core of the plan was delay.
Zhuang Mian had a vague idea of what the divine envoy intended to do.
After a rather superficial collaboration with the research institutes, she had pieced together the origins of the 【Believers】 members.
To put it simply, it boiled down to one word—pickup.
She had been picked up from a gunfight scene, and the orphans from the lower city were likely no different. As for how the researchers and military personnel had been recruited, Zhuang Mian wasn’t sure yet.
But it was clear that this little kitten still carried a hint of a stray’s aura; it didn’t look like an ordinary house cat. Perhaps it had been plucked from some garbage heap…
Zhuang Mian shook her head abruptly, cutting off this rather impolite train of thought.
No matter what, they were companions now, and considering that the kitten knew her while she didn’t know it, it was possible that this kitten had quite the seniority.
Heavens, could she be the newest member of the 【Believers】?
But thinking of Miss Shi Jin, Zhuang Mian concluded internally:
The leader is about to pick up another companion…
Zhuang Mian’s mind wandered as she multitasked, and across from her, Fulan finished explaining Lin Qingliu’s arrangements for Zhuang Mian.
As Fulan was about to leave, something tender stirred within Zhuang Mian’s heart.
“Miss Fulan, please wait a moment.”
Her tone softened unexpectedly, a stark contrast to the fierce Clean-up Team Captain skilled in the Great Memory Restoration Technique.
Fulan had already poked half her head out the window, but upon hearing this, she pulled back:
“What is it?”
Zhuang Mian opened the small cabinet in her dorm room and retrieved a vacuum-sealed package.
This action startled Fulan; the last time she had seen something like this was when a monitor had spoken to her.
But obviously, Zhuang Mian didn’t possess any production talents; she had simply taken out some high-quality food she had purchased from the inner city.
It was a small bag of processed meat.
In the densely populated inner city, livestock farming had been confined to underground ranch areas, and humanity, having suffered devastating blows, had lost many privileges, including the regular consumption of meat.
What had once been a staple in most households during the Old Era had now become exclusive to a select few in the inner city, and for the majority, it had become a luxury.
Zhuang Mian carefully took out a piece and offered it to Fulan.
In her mind, this kitten, with its lingering stray aura, would surely accept her kindness, allowing her to build a good rapport with this colleague from the 【Believers】 organization.
Compared to interacting with humans, Zhuang Mian actually preferred this kind of relationship.
After all, it was just a cat.
But events often unfold in ways that catch the parties involved off guard.
Fulan leaned in to sniff the meat product, then gave it a rather indifferent glance.
That expression seemed to say, "It’s just average," and also, "It’s a bit lacking."
So, under Zhuang Mian’s hopeful gaze, Fulan spoke up:
“Are you using this to test the officer?”
“……”
Zhuang Mian froze in place, unsure whether to pull her hand back or leave it out.
“Hehe, I learned this from Dr. Lin.”
Fulan’s features suddenly became lively again,
“Your expression is really amusing; observing humans is indeed fascinating.”
After saying that, Fulan didn’t care how Zhuang Mian’s face changed and took a bite of the processed meat, swallowing it down in just a few bites.
“Thank you, Miss 【Butterfly】~”
Smacking her lips a couple of times, the kitten politely said goodbye and quickly slipped out of the window.
Zhuang Mian stood alone in the room, contemplating for a long time. It felt like she had reconnected after losing the signal; she closed the window and lay on her bed to start pondering.
The next day, an early-rising Luke was about to read the “Master Hand” Shi Jin’s interrogation records from yesterday.
He seemed a bit anxious; after confirming that the other party was not a member of the 【Believers】, he didn’t want to deal with it anymore. He was eager to find clues about the “Heart Snatcher.”
But in the place where there should have been records, Luke couldn’t find the files that needed his review.
“What’s going on?”
He asked a member of the 【Butterfly】 squad.
“The Captain said there are still some questions and needs to interrogate again.”
The team member replied honestly.
Luke frowned,
“Didn’t we say everything had been asked yesterday? What other questions are there?”
At this, the team member suddenly laughed, as if they had just thought of something amusing.
In the past couple of days, Luke’s impression had been quite mild, so it was no wonder this carefree team member would respond this way.
“This morning, the Captain took yesterday’s interrogation files to compare them with the prison records because… um, quite a few people previously attended by the Master Hand had some shady records, so a few got arrested.
“After comparing the testimonies from both sides, they found some discrepancies.”
“What discrepancies?”
“Uh, the amounts don’t match.
“Those people didn’t expect the Master Hand to be caught so quickly, and the amounts they confessed were less than what we seized. The Captain reported it, so both sides need to re-interrogate…”
Luke was stunned.
After thinking for a long time, he finally understood the key point.
For a young man in his early twenties who had little prior experience with such matters, encountering this situation for the first time left him unsure of how to intervene.
“So, where is Captain Zhuang now?”
“In the interrogation room, continuing to verify each confession with the ‘Master Hand.’”
Luke slapped his forehead,
“Alright, take me to meet your Captain; I need to speak with her.”
Outside the interrogation room, in a single-pane glass compartment, Zhuang Mian saw Luke wearing a look of helplessness.
She had already guessed what had happened, but still feigned surprise as she asked why he was wearing a painful mask.
Luke was open about it and briefly explained his thoughts to Zhuang Mian, and in the end, the two reached an agreement:
The “Master Hand” case would be comprehensively taken over by Zhuang Mian and the Clean-up Team, while Luke and his subordinates would withdraw and return to the database to continue investigating the “Heart Snatcher” incident.
Zhuang Mian forcibly suppressed the urge to grin and pondered whether to find a chance to inform El about this matter.
That reckless young man had recently been causing trouble in the outer city, and many members of the Public Security Team discovered randomly refreshing wanted criminals in front of units in the morning…
This kid resembled another “Master Hand” too much; she needed to warn him not to stretch his hands into the inner city, or else he might end up like Shi Jin and fall into the net.
