When Yin Feng said this, You Mingxu and Xu Mengshan both fell silent. Previously, You Yingjun had indeed been one of the team members. Chen Feng had even completed the procedural formalities for him, making him a consulting advisor. But who would have thought he would return now?

Jing Ping glanced at You Mingxu and Xu Mengshan’s expressions, sensing there was something deeper at play, and smiled, “I haven’t heard anyone mention it.”

Xu Mengshan lowered his head with a smile, while You Mingxu stared at Yin Feng. However, he continued to avoid her gaze, maintaining his gentle smile as he addressed Jing Ping: “I’ve always kept a low profile. Ding Xiongwei should be calling you shortly.”

As if on cue, Jing Ping’s phone rang. He smiled and stepped aside to answer it.

Xu Mengshan glanced at the two beside him and said, “I’ll walk ahead.”

Yin Feng’s lips twitched slightly.

You Mingxu followed Xu Mengshan, turning to leave immediately. Yin Feng followed her, and after a few steps, she asked, “Why are you here?”

“To solve the case,” Yin Feng replied.

“Aren’t you overstepping?” You Mingxu challenged.

Yin Feng lowered his voice: “This case has three layers. The first is investigating the disappearance of a rape and murder suspect; the second is investigating the drug trafficking network; and the third… is investigating our old adversaries—that criminal organization and its connection to the Kaiyang Group.”

You Mingxu continued walking without pause: “How do you know all this?”

Yin Feng answered with a smile: “Given that Jing fellow’s background, Guo Xing’s identity, and the fact that they brought in a homicide detective like you who has nothing to do with drug trafficking—I could naturally deduce Old Duan’s thoughts. He’s always liked to use one force against another, like an old fox, hiding his true intentions. After chatting with him, I figured it out.”

It took You Mingxu several seconds to realize who he was referring to so familiarly as “Old Duan.” She asked, “He agreed to let you come?”

Yin Feng replied lazily: “Since I’d figured it out anyway, he was happy to have my help. Why wouldn’t he agree to having one more person who’s not afraid to die?”

You Mingxu pressed: “But you still haven’t answered my question—why did you want to come?”

Yin Feng paused for a few seconds, his gaze briefly sweeping across her silhouette. Even while walking briskly, her neck remained rigidly straight, revealing her unsettled emotions.

Yin Feng suddenly felt an inexplicable satisfaction. Since remembering those events this morning, his heart had been restless, and heavy, even experiencing waves of pain and an urge to destroy something. But now, seeing her, seeing that she wasn’t doing well either, his oppressive feelings had lightened. He didn’t want to deeply examine why—if emotions drove him here, so be it. Why should he deny himself?

However, facing her questioning, he answered coolly: “Since it’s related to that organization, of course I had to come.”

You Mingxu stopped acknowledging him and walked ahead with Xu Mengshan. Yin Feng didn’t mind, looking up at the scenery—green mountains and clear waters, lush vegetation, desolate and uninhabited, with a biting chill in the air—somehow finding it all rather vivid and charming.

After finishing his phone call, Jing Ping naturally had a better understanding of Yin Feng’s background. However, he remained skeptical about how a criminal psychologist who was also a writer could be useful in investigating this kind of drug trafficking case.

He quickly caught up, glancing at You Mingxu’s expression before smiling at Yin Feng, “Looking forward to working together.”

Yin Feng gave him a look: “Mm, likewise.”

Xu Mengshan asked, “Teacher Yin, how did you find this place?”

Yin Feng replied, “After getting the materials, I first went to Guo Xing’s home, looked around, and was about to talk to the fish restaurant owner when your colleagues gave me the exact location.”

Xu Mengshan glanced at You Mingxu and smiled, “Teacher Yin is as capable as ever.”

Jing Ping also gave Yin Feng a longer look and said, “Pretty impressive. Little You just came to the same conclusion as you did.”

Only then did Yin Feng find the newcomer slightly more agreeable. He smiled and said, “Is that so, Little You?” His voice was low and slow, with a distinctly mature male tone. The words “Little You” coming from his mouth felt somewhat strange.

You Mingxu said flatly, “Have you checked the footprints by the fish pond?”

“Yes,” Yin Feng replied.

“Then stop wasting time and let’s search.”

Although the path was hard-packed earth with dense vegetation, three people carrying someone would still leave traces. The four followed the mountain path, tracking sparse footprints and vegetation marks. They encountered forks in the road, but they all led out of the mountains, making direction easy to determine. Before they knew it, two hours had passed.

You Mingxu consistently led the way, followed closely by Xu Mengshan, then Yin Feng, with Jing Ping bringing up the rear. As they walked, a voice from behind asked, “Are you tired? Do you need to rest?”

You Mingxu hadn’t noticed when Yin Feng had squeezed past Xu Mengshan to get ahead. She replied, “If you need to rest, go ahead. No one’s stopping you.”

“Did you eat gunpowder?” he asked.

“No,” You Mingxu answered, “I just find you annoying.”

Yin Feng smiled instead. For some reason, seeing her subtly bristling demeanor made him feel more at ease, even experiencing a strange excitement. However, this wasn’t a good sign—he should control it, he thought.

“I’m different,” he said quietly. “I admire your talent.”

You Mingxu remained silent.

If Chen Feng were here, he would probably be surprised, his thin lips slightly parted—You Yingjun chasing women was common, but when had Yin Feng ever been so shameless? Such a heaven’s pride, a heartthrob among women, usually just stood in place with an ambiguous smile, beckoning with a finger, letting willing prey come to him.

But You Mingxu found herself missing You Yingjun. Throughout this journey, although Yin Feng spoke to her occasionally, they had absolutely nothing in common to discuss.

But You Yingjun was different—with him around, everything was warm and lively. He would always lean in close, worried about her getting tired or hurt, or playfully flirt with her while taking advantage. Although You Mingxu found it annoying sometimes, she realized now that they had shared many laughs.

At the time, it had seemed so ordinary.

Thinking of this, You Mingxu turned back and gave Yin Feng a cold glare. He raised an eyebrow, but she had already withdrawn her knife-like gaze.

Yin Feng had to admit that when she cut him with that look, his heart skipped a beat, followed by an unprecedented sweetness he’d never experienced before. He ran his tongue along the roof of his mouth, his gaze unconsciously falling on her slender white neck, his eyes growing dark.

Ahead, they had entered deep into the mountains. The mountain was humid, the soil soft, and rarely visited by people. Although the path had disappeared, the three sets of footprints reappeared. This was enough to excite them.

Despite three days having passed, they proceeded cautiously. However, except for Yin Feng, the other three were top experts—with such combat prowess, they could take down a whole platoon in minutes.

You Mingxu and Xu Mengshan, long accustomed to working together, exchanged a glance and split left and right to flank. Yin Feng immediately followed You Mingxu, while Jing Ping followed Xu Mengshan. A stream appeared ahead, with footprints becoming clearer along its banks. They tracked forward for several dozen meters until the stream gathered into a pool, its surface appearing deep and wide. This was an undeveloped area—if they hadn’t walked here, they would never have known such a deep pool existed.