The alley behind Golden Fingers was narrow and cluttered. Sunlight, sliced into fragments by the towering buildings, barely managed to illuminate the stacked crates and mottled walls.
A boxy van emblazoned with the Pegasus Express logo lay sprawled in the middle of the lane like an exhausted beast. Its rear doors hung wide open—like the gutted belly of a metallic monster—silently testifying to the chaos that had just unfolded.
Led by Tinman Master, the neighbors of Sixth Street were locked in a tense standoff with a young driver whose face was flushed bright red. Suspicion and unease hung thick in the air.
Then, from somewhere nearby, the quacking grew louder—mixed with a tangle of hurried footsteps—shattering the stalemate in the alley.
Everyone turned.
And what they saw made their jaws drop.
Qianye stumbled in at the front, looking thoroughly bedraggled. His signature silver cowlick had been claimed as prime real estate by a plump white duck sitting there as if it owned the place. Every so often, the duck even wiggled its rump smugly, perfectly at home.
Behind him came an entire "army" of white ducks—waddling in formation, grand and noisy—quacking in waves like they were marching in some bizarre parade.
Zhu Yuan and Qingyi flanked the procession on either side. Their brows were knit; they clearly wanted to stay close to Qianye, but they were also trying not to step on the overexcited, underfoot feathered lunatics. Their movements were cautious, awkward, and faintly exasperated.
"Oh—yes, yes, but Doctor Qianye! Please, hear me out! There's a reason for all of this!"
The young driver, Gale, spotted Qianye and reacted as if he'd just seen salvation itself. The anger on his face evaporated, replaced by a messy blend of relief and embarrassment.
He was ecstatic that the ducks were back—but the moment he remembered his earlier outburst, and the possibility that Doctor Qianye had witnessed every second of it, he let out a pained groan.
Desperate not to be misunderstood, Gale pointed emphatically toward a corner where a Bangboo trembled and let out faint, pitiful mm-ne noises.
It was Zhaoling.
"And you two officers as well—please let me explain! My name is Gale. I'm a Pegasus Express driver, and I'm also… also a former patient Doctor Qianye helped! I swear on my character I would never lie—"
"Mr. Gale," Zhu Yuan cut in calmly, stopping his frantic speech mid-stream.
She had already pulled out a portable electronic tablet and stylus. Her crimson eyes were sharp and focused—professional to the bone.
"Please don't derail the topic. Just provide an objective, clear description of what happened."
"A-ah… yes. Yes, ma'am."
Gale swallowed hard, forced himself to refocus, and began recounting the incident.
"Today I happened to be delivering nearby. After I finished the drop-off, I figured I'd rest by my van for a bit—and call my next client."
His speech sped up, trying to recreate the scene:
"Then—out of nowhere—my van made this thunk sound, a huge bang! Scared the life out of me! I ran to the back, and I saw… I saw ducks everywhere—some running, some flying—just pouring out! And right there by the open cargo, there was this one Bangboo freaking out—this one!"
He stabbed a finger toward Zhaoling again.
"Mm… mm-ne… mm-ne-ne… (N-no… not me… Zhaoling didn't do anything bad… really…)"
Zhaoling lowered its head, curling into itself. The light in its electronic eyes dimmed with misery.
Gale turned to Qianye, voice tight with fear and insistence.
"Doctor Qianye—and you two officers—I swear I'm telling the truth! When my van got hit, there was no one else around. Nobody. Only it was there. It must've somehow popped the lock on my cargo doors!"
He looked at Qianye with a mix of gratitude and shame.
"If you hadn't brought the ducks back, Doctor… I'd be paying this off for the rest of my life. These ducks are a new specialty breed from the farm—worth a fortune. If even one or two went missing, my entire month's salary wouldn't cover it!"
After Gale finished, Qianye carefully lifted the duck that had been perched on his cowlick—like it was a luxury seat—and cradled it in his hands.
He crouched down and stroked its feathers gently, his voice warm and coaxing.
"Okay. How about you go back into the van now? Otherwise Mr. Gale here is going to be so anxious he'll jump into a Hollow."
"Quack! Quack! Quack!"
("No! I won't! I'm staying right here—!")
Seeing the leader duck refuse outright, Qingyi sighed softly.
With a flick of her wrist, a strange three-section baton slid into her hand. A faint electric arc crawled along the metal.
She tapped the noisy duck—lightly—with the tip.
Bzzzt.
A brief crackle of current.
The duck's feathers puffed up in a shock-frizzed burst, and without even a protesting quack, it went limp—out cold.
"Officer—!" Gale's heart shot straight into his throat. "Be gentle! If you—"
"Relax." Qingyi's tone was perfectly even as she gave the baton a casual shake.
"That little bit of voltage wouldn't even be enough to give it a nightmare. If anything, it might loosen its muscles a bit—make the meat more tender."
Her gaze swept over the other ducks—who had been inching forward with renewed curiosity—and the baton emitted a quiet, ominous zzzz.
"Besides," she added mildly, "if we don't do it this way, how are the other little ones supposed to behave and go home?"
The effect was immediate.
The remaining ducks witnessed their "leader's" tragic fate—and felt Qingyi's icy look, as if she were appraising their future as roast duck—and their morale collapsed.
Quacking in panic, they forgot all about Qianye's enticing scent and flapped toward the open cargo bay in a frantic stampede. A few "loyal" ducks even grabbed their unconscious leader by the wing and hauled it back into the van with them.
While Gale rushed to count heads and slam the doors shut, Qianye walked over to the corner where Zhaoling still trembled.
He crouched down to meet it at eye level and rested a hand on its cold metal head—so gentle it was more like reassurance than touch.
"Zhaoling," he said softly, his voice carrying a calm that made the air feel safer.
"I've heard Mr. Gale's side."
"But there's a saying: when you listen to both sides, you see clearly; when you trust only one, you fall into darkness."
He smiled, quiet and steady.
"So I want to hear your explanation, too. You're also involved—your words matter just as much. If you're innocent, then believe me: Zhu Yuan and Qingyi will uncover the truth and clear your name."
"Mm-ne?"
("Really?")
Zhaoling's tiny eyes flickered. It looked up, as if Qianye's warmth had given it a sliver of courage.
"Really." Qianye's smile deepened, his gaze unwavering.
"Because they're extremely—extremely—reliable officers. Absolutely worthy of trust."
To the side, Zhu Yuan—tablet ready—felt her fingers suddenly go stiff.
Her grip on the stylus faltered.
Heat surged up her neck, flooding her cheeks and ears. Her heart skipped a beat.
Qianye's gentle certainty struck her like a deep ship's horn echoing across water—long, steady, resonant—rippling through the surface of her chest where everything looked calm but had always been full of hidden currents.
It wasn't as if she'd never been praised before.
At home, her mother—chatty, warm, and endlessly loving—never missed a chance to boast about her capable daughter.
In school, she'd topped the Hollow Studies exams three years running. The certificates were still lovingly framed and displayed in the most prominent spot in their living room.
After joining the bureau, she'd thrown herself into meeting after meeting, case after case—dangerous missions, hard operations—earning commendations, honors, applause… so many that she could no longer recall them all clearly.
But in her mind now, all those achievements felt strangely weightless—like drifting strands of cloud.
Whereas Qianye's simple, sincere words—
"Very reliable."
"Absolutely worthy of trust."
—were like warm sunlight piercing straight through those clouds and settling deep inside her chest.
Compared to that light, the clouds felt… trivial.
"Zhu Yuan," Qingyi's voice drifted over, gentle, with the faintest hint of a smile, "don't space out. There's still an important 'witness' waiting for you to record their statement."
"Ah—sorry!" Zhu Yuan snapped back to reality. Her face burned even hotter.
She took a sharp breath and forced herself to focus.
Yet oddly enough, Tinman Master—who had been sharp-tongued and severe earlier—now looked noticeably calmer.
He even gave Zhu Yuan and Qingyi a small shake of the head, his voice smoother than before.
"No harm done. At the very least… you don't appear to be like Bringer—someone who now drowns in flowers, applause, and hollow honors, while forgetting what real work is."
His gaze flicked toward Qianye, still patiently soothing Zhaoling, and his tone softened further.
"So for you two—whether it's me, or Zhaoling—we're willing to offer enough patience, and enough trust."
"Mm-ne! Mm-ne!"
("That's right! That's right!")
Zhaoling nodded vigorously, energized by the shift in atmosphere.
"Thank you for your trust," Zhu Yuan said solemnly, pushing down the storm of ill-timed, fluttering feelings inside her.
No.
Set all the messy thoughts aside.
Right now—wearing this uniform, standing here—she had to be worthy of its weight.
Worthy of this hard-won trust.
And above all—
Worthy of the way he had called her—
"worthy of trust."
Details.
Zhu Yuan tightened her fingers around the stylus. Her red eyes sharpened—focused, unwavering.
She crouched down, meeting Zhaoling eye to eye, and listened with full attention—ready to record every single word.
Beside her, Qingyi watched the younger officer slip cleanly into professional mode. The line of Zhu Yuan's profile looked almost severe in its seriousness.
A quiet glimmer of approval and satisfaction flashed through Qingyi's eyes.
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 178)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 139)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League ( 126 )
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter171)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter100)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter184)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 77
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 168
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 156
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass 105
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 185
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65
Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer 160
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 150
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player 76
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 97
Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 66
Uma Musume: From Beginner 116
Becoming a Horse Girl, I Will 75
Uma Musume: I Want All 93
I Can Copy Unique Skills 79
Summoning an Evil God, but the 55
Supernatural Multiverse 75
My Harem Is Indescribable 68
Jujutsu Kaisen: Heroic Spirit 70
"I'm just a Valkyrie passing through." 66
Uma Musume: Today Is Another Romantic Battlefield 69
Still playing traditional Honk 49
The Most Filial Son Under Heav 53
What Should I Do After Switchi 42
Reincarnated as a Demon, Skill 50
Hell-Difficulty Dungeon? 38
Transmigrated as Sukuna 35
Checking In in Demon Slayer 40
The Reincarnating Trainer of Tracen Academy 55
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