Suspension

Sunlight streamed lazily through the blinds, casting dappled patterns. Qin Jin and Alessa, unusually, did not go out.

Qin Jin leisurely brewed a pot of tea, a routine he followed after drinking alcohol. Zombies' ability to detoxify was far inferior to that of humans, so tea was needed to speed things up. Alessa, meanwhile, was curled up on the sofa watching TV, with a milk-filled glutinous rice ball slurping in her arms.

A call suddenly came in to Qin Jin's phone:

"Hello, Detective Qin? This is Jim, Chief Edward's secretary! It's an emergency, and the chief is unavailable, so he asked me to call you."

"Hmm? Please speak, Jim."

Jim's voice was very low, as if he were in a toilet stall:

"Here's the thing, early this morning, the executive director of the Los Angeles Police Department Management Board came to the chief's office with a hearing officer and said... there's a case about Tong Jiye, yes, the one you took away, that needs to be verified. They've already summoned people from the Internal Affairs Department, and they'll be coming to the precinct to question you soon. The chief told you to be prepared."

The phone call ended, and the house returned to calm. Alessa looked up and saw the smile playing on Qin Jin's lips—

I was just trying to figure out how to get by for a month and erase the negative impact when this opportunity came knocking on my door. This is just too good to be true!

As for the so-called investigation into Tong Jiye, it would be a miracle if he could find out anything. Qin Jin didn't believe it. Who else could get the two corpses out of the Paper Bride's hands and identify him?

"Alright, I'll go to the police station now," Qin Jin poured himself a cup of tea, then went upstairs to change his clothes.

"I'll be there in a bit. I'll probably be suspended soon. Think of an excuse to ask for leave, and then we should think of somewhere to go!"

Alessa's porcelain-white face shone brightly as she nodded emphatically, "Yes!"

Qin Jin slowly changed his clothes, even taking the time to water the drought-resistant plants on the windowsill, before leisurely driving to the Canyon Branch.

Sure enough, the phone rang repeatedly shortly after the car started moving.

Catherine and Bruce both called, their messages being largely the same. Qin Jin responded to each one in a relaxed tone:

"Okay, don't worry, it's nothing."

When he stepped into the office of the Homicide and Major Crimes Unit 2, the atmosphere was as oppressive as the calm before a storm.

Supervisor Frank stood to one side, his face ashen, with three other people beside him.

The leader was a middle-aged white man wearing a sharp gray suit, with his hair neatly combed and his eyes as sharp as a hawk's. He wore a badge of the Police Management Committee on his chest and was the hearing officer of the Investigation Division. His name was Gleeson.

He was followed by a man and a woman, both wearing uniforms from the Los Angeles Police Department's Internal Affairs Division, and their expressions were serious.

"Qin! These people are here to ask you some questions. Please cooperate."

Gleason nodded slightly, his face expressionless, and extended his hand in a businesslike manner:

"Detective Qin, this is Gleason. We need to formally question you about your handling of the two suspects, Tong Jiye and Billy Ryan. Please come with us to the interrogation room."

"it is good."

Qin Jin nodded, his face even showing a hint of nonchalance.

The lights in the interrogation room were glaring.

Gleeson led the questioning, with the core issue directly addressing Operation San Simeon:

Why was the person taken away? Why wasn't they escorted back to the station? Where is the person now? Are there any witnesses or evidence to corroborate your statement?

Faced with a barrage of questions, Qin Jin leaned back slightly in his chair, placed his hands crossed on the table, and spoke in a relaxed tone:

"People? Oh, you mean Tong Jiye and Billy?"

He spoke as if he were talking about the hot dogs downstairs:

"We took them, that's right. Halfway there, almost into Los Angeles, the two boys said they couldn't hold it anymore and needed to pee. I figured we were in the middle of nowhere, we couldn't run much further, so I let them get out to relieve themselves. And then what happened?"

He shrugged, his face full of innocence: "Those two bastards pee and ran! They took off running and disappeared into the woods! I've looked all over but can't find them, what can I do?"

"Evidence?" Gleason stared intently at him, his eyes sharp as knives.

"Who can prove they escaped, and not that you killed them?"

"Where would I get evidence in the middle of nowhere?" Qin Jin shrugged. "As for your accusation that I killed someone to cover it up, then show me the evidence, America—" A beautiful smile curved his lips.

"But we need evidence!"

"Where's the body camera? Why isn't it turned on? Why isn't it being worn?"

"Our team doesn't use body cameras," Qin Jin said after staring blankly at the table in front of him for a while. "You can refer to the FBI's X Team for this."

At this moment, Detective Smith of the Los Angeles Police Department's Internal Affairs Division, who was sitting next to Gleason, spoke up. As someone within the Los Angeles Police Department, he naturally knew how to align himself with the authorities:

"Since Detective Qin said they fled and there's no evidence of murder, then this matter... can only be considered dereliction of duty. However, these two aren't suspects; they were just brought back for questioning, so it's not a big deal!"

Another female detective from the Internal Affairs Department, Rodriguez, nodded in agreement. She looked younger and her tone was also somewhat conciliatory.

"Inspector Smith is right. A prisoner escaping is dereliction of duty, but I've never heard of someone being questioned being considered dereliction of duty. As American citizens... if someone doesn't want to be detained, there's nothing we police can do. We can't just illegally imprison them, can we?"

Gleeson's face instantly darkened. He gave Smith and Rodriguez a cold look, clearly extremely dissatisfied with their attitude.

He slammed his hand on the table:

"Tong Jiye and Billy are serious offenders involved in murder and illegal possession of weapons. Although they are not criminals in Los Angeles, criminals in San Francisco are still criminals! Now, they have disappeared without a trace while under Detective Qin's escort, which is simply inexplicable. We have reason to suspect that there are more serious problems involved!"

His voice was firm and authoritative, completely overriding the opinions of Smith and Rodriguez.

The two exchanged a glance and could only remain silent.

Qin Jin really didn't have the patience to continue with him. He yawned and said lazily:

"Think whatever you want. I only have one thing to say: you can say I committed murder, or you can say I covered it up, but you have to provide evidence. As for the rest, whether you want to deduct my salary or suspend me, it's up to you."

The subsequent questioning ended hastily amidst Gleason's forceful questioning and Qin Jin's unyielding attitude.

Gleeson, exuding a chill, was the first to leave the interrogation room, followed by Smith and Rodriguez. Before leaving, Smith gave Qin Jin a complex look filled with apology.

As soon as Gleason and his group left, people from Groups One, Three, Four, and Five rushed over and started yelling at Gleason. Even the branch chief, Thomas, came over and patted Qin Jin on the shoulder.

"Qin, regarding this matter... let's wait and see. Director Edward just called me; he's very angry. This is all at the behest of Executive Director Simone. He's telling you to be patient, and he'll go talk to the mayor later."

Soon after, Logan called, his tone fiery:

"Qin! Don't worry, I'll have your Aunt Merris handle this. Trust me, she'll make sure that bastard Simone is half-dead. Don't worry!"

Faced with the concern and indignation of his superiors and colleagues, Qin Jin remained remarkably calm, even displaying a hint of a smile.

"Thank you, Director, thank you everyone. It's really nothing. I was just tired and wanted to rest. Everyone, please go about your business and don't let this bother you."

However, the turmoil did not subside. Later that afternoon, the official disciplinary notice was sent to Frank's supervisor via the internal system.

"Suspended from duty indefinitely, pending the final findings of the Police Management Committee and the Department of Internal Affairs regarding the disappearance of the suspects in Operation San Simeon."

Frank stared at the notification on the screen and slammed his fist on the table in anger!

The entire Homicide and Major Crimes Division, and even the entire Canyon Precinct, was filled with shouts and curses.

Qin Jin, however, acted as if nothing had happened; things were developing exactly as he had expected, as perfect as could be...

Just as Qin Jin was packing up to leave, Constantine, with a cigarette dangling from his lips, swaggered into Frank's office, followed by Catherine, who was holding two forms.

"Hey, supervisor," Constantine slammed two forms on Frank's desk:

"You know about the recent series of bombings, and the SWAT team asked me to go help... Here, this is my temporary transfer application, no fixed term. Please sign it!"

Catherine also took out her own form:

"Supervisor, my dad needs me seconded over. Could you please sign this document?" There was no need for formalities; he was being direct, since Frank already knew who his father was.

Frank understood perfectly well the reasons the two men gave them.

Clearly, the remaining two detectives in Team Two were dissatisfied with Qin Jin and simply dismantled the team. If any supernatural cases occur in the department recently, they'd better pray for themselves!

Without a word, Frank readily signed the document.

"Approved! To hell with the management committee, let them die if they want!"

In the blink of an eye, all three of the remaining members of the Homicide and Major Crimes Unit 2 left, leaving the entire unit empty.

Qin Jin looked at his two partners who had stood up for him and shook his head with a smile:

"Forget it, this whole thing... well, it's for the best! Los Angeles's not very peaceful right now, so you two should hide for a few days and not get yourselves into trouble. I'm going back to keep Alessa company. Don't worry, the sky's not falling!"

He picked up his coat, waved to his team members whose expressions varied, some worried and some reluctant, and left the police station with a light step under Frank's complex gaze.