Qin Shiyao looked down at her slightly bulging stomach. After finishing the interrogation, she had promised her colleagues she'd take them out to eat.
She didn't break her word; after they got off work, she treated two colleagues and the two squads involved in today's incident to a meal. Now, she wasn't particularly hungry.
Qin Shiyao was about to decline when she noticed an extra steak on the dining table. Without thinking, she knew it had been prepared for her in advance.
At that moment, Lan Wanting pulled out the chair next to her and said with a light smile, "Shiyao, Miss Su prepared this herself. Come over and try some!"
The refusal got stuck in her throat. Qin Shiyao couldn't tell if Lan Wanting's words were a threat or a reminder.
If she refused, it would make her look socially inept, as if she weren't giving Su Ci any face.
After all, she had just made a vow that morning never to be enemies, and she would have to stay by Su Ci's side for a while in the future.
Especially with that faint smile on Lan Wanting's lips.
It was like those 'bad friends' guys talk about, who encounter something disgusting to eat but say it's delicious just to drag their companions down with them.
After a brief internal struggle, Qin Shiyao walked toward the dining table with an air of tragic resolve. "Then I'll gladly accept."
After sitting down directly opposite Su Ci, Qin Shiyao looked at the beautifully presented food. She began to wonder if her suspicions were wrong; based on their appearance, these dishes looked delicious.
Who could know if a glamorous exterior hid a rotten interior?
Qin Shiyao pursed her lips and thought for a moment. "Can I have a little something to drink?"
Su Ci did not refuse. "Of course."
Jiang Su set the luggage aside and asked, "Red or white?"
"Whichever. As long as it gets me drunk."
Jiang Su rummaged through a corner of the kitchen and brought out a bottle of whisky. To improve the taste, she also brought some ice cubes, placed them on the table, and then sat down beside Su Ci.
There were empty glasses on the table. Qin Shiyao first put ice in a glass, then poured herself a drink. As she was about to set the bottle down, she looked at the three people at the table. "Would you like a glass?"
Lan Wanting was the first to decline, pointing to the milk already poured in front of her. "No, I'll just have this."
She still had things to do tonight; it wouldn't be good if she got drunk.
Just as Su Ci was about to speak, Jiang Su took the bottle from Qin Shiyao's hand, poured herself a glass, and added ice. "The Young Lady doesn't have a habit of drinking. I'll have a drink with Miss Qin today instead."
Su Ci indeed did not have a habit of drinking. She hadn't in her past life, and neither did her current body; she never drank unless absolutely necessary.
Alcohol numbs the body, allowing one to cast aside troubles and briefly escape reality for a short time.
But after waking up, one is met with the harsh blow of reality again, and hangovers really feel awful—sometimes even requiring someone to look after you.
Drinking ruins things, and 'truth comes out after drinking'—these were major taboos in certain professions.
In commercial activities, drinking was indispensable when negotiating with clients.
Both sides would try every means to get the other drunk to secure more profit for themselves. At those times, it came down to who had the better tolerance. Because of this, many people in business easily developed stomach problems.
As for the profession of an Inspector, few people drank even during off-hours. There was no guarantee that a sudden emergency mission or temporary overtime wouldn't crop up while they were dead drunk; in such a case, drinking could mean the difference between life and death.
Thinking of this, Su Ci asked, "Did you run into some troubling matters?"
Qin Shiyao raised her glass, her brow filled with a sense of loss and an inseparable sorrow.
The brown liquid was crystal clear under the white lights. The regular outlines of the ice cubes were visible, with most of them hidden beneath the surface of the alcohol.
She let out a helpless, light laugh, trying to use a relaxed tone to voice the frustration in her heart. "What else could it be! It's the case regarding Cheng Mingliang, of course. Even using force and his life as a threat, he still refuses to talk."
Then she took a large gulp of the drink. The strong, mellow flavor of the alcohol exploded in the air. She swallowed it without savoring it, which caused her to choke.
She let out a few dry coughs. "Cough, cough, cough!"
Lan Wanting gently patted Qin Shiyao's back to help her recover.
She received a word of thanks from Qin Shiyao: "Thank you."
"You're welcome."
Su Ci and the other two had also heard Qin Shiyao talk about Cheng Mingliang's crimes.
However, 'one who is not a fish cannot know the joy of a fish.' She was not Qin Shiyao, and saying she could fully empathize would be a bit pretentious.
In matters like this, she usually focused on providing guidance, so she analyzed: "If even threatening his life yields no results, then there's only one possibility. He knows that if he confesses his crimes, death is his only path. Those people might have already..."
She left it at that. Su Ci didn't say what the outcome for those people was, but they all knew in their hearts.
What Su Ci could think of, Qin Shiyao had naturally thought of as well. "I know that, of course. I just find it hard to accept. Those people who hoped justice would judge the one who committed such evils... yet they died before their justice could arrive."
As she spoke, her voice grew smaller and smaller, nearly choking up. Tears welled in her eyes but refused to fall. She took another sip of alcohol. "Tell me, is delayed justice still justice?"
She was beginning to waver in her profession and her beliefs.
This question caused the three people at the table to fall into a collective silence.
Before they could think of an answer, Qin Shiyao continued, "The Qin Family is a prominent name in Sea City. If I can still stumble on a case like this, then what about others? What about other places?"
Su Ci picked up the milk in front of her and took a sip. "Justice comes in many forms. There is the kind that descends from the heavens to save others from fire and water; there is also the kind that rights wrongs after someone has been harmed. Justice may be late, but..."
A cold glint flashed in her eyes. "There is more than one way to seek justice in this world. If Miss Qin needs it, I will take action."
As for building favorability, she wasn't above using the lives of Cheng Mingliang's family to do it. Since they deserved it anyway, she wouldn't feel any guilt.
The alcohol was taking effect, and Qin Shiyao's vision blurred slightly. However, the person in front of her seemed like a guiding beacon, helping her find the right direction while she was lost.
She felt her whole body burning hot, but the heat on her face was more obvious than elsewhere, a flush of pink crawling up. She didn't know if it was the accelerated blood flow caused by the alcohol or something else.
That heart named justice throbbed wildly in her chest. Propping her head with one hand, she looked at Su Ci with a genuine smile and raised her glass. "Thank you. I will bring him to justice in my own way. If I still can't, then I'll have to trouble Miss Su."
Su Ci, Jiang Su, and Lan Wanting also raised their drinks. Their glasses collided in mid-air with a crisp 'Clink!'
Setting her glass down, Qin Shiyao reached for the honey-glazed roast chicken and tore off a leg. She now felt that no matter what the food tasted like, it would be a rare delicacy of the world.
She brought the chicken leg to her mouth and took a bite. The skin was crispy, and the meat was tender and delicious with the sweetness of honey.
The taste was unexpectedly good.