Dark Light Chaser.

Chapter 100 Public Opinion Matters
It was obvious that this detective named Lao Tian knew Jin Ping'an very well; he was well aware of Jin Ping'an's observational skills.

Even though he brought it up, Ai Liang didn't admit it directly.

Instead, he dodged the question by saying, "If possible, let's just say that Jin Ping'an noticed these details."

"Oh why?"

Old Tian put down his notebook and looked at the expressionless boy with great interest.

"Anyway, all the police want are the details of the case. As for whether these details are obtained from victim A or victim B, it shouldn't make much difference."

"That won't do. Although our Qianhua Detachment doesn't have specific regulations on this matter, it's still considered a violation of discipline."

Old Tian smiled and declined Ai Liang's request.

Ai Liang drooped her eyelids, pretending to be half asleep: "Isn't Jin Ping'an the criminal consultant for your criminal investigation team? It'll be easier to find him to verify records in the future, right?"

"You seem to know a lot about our work. Do you have relatives or friends who are criminal investigators? ...Never mind, let me tell you about your parents' contact information first."

Lao Tian didn't say whether it was suitable or not, but turned to ask about Ai Liang's family situation.

Because Ai Liang is from Nevada City, his specific identity information needs to be checked across regions, which is not very convenient. So far, we only know some basic information.

However, Jin Ping'an couldn't stand it anymore.

"Hey Lao Tian, ​​are you here to comfort the victims or to interrogate the criminals? How can you talk like that?"

"Comfort and investigation are not mutually exclusive."

Old Tian quickly jotted down Jin Ping'an's analysis in his notebook: "You're a bachelor with no ties, while he has family. Shouldn't you have informed them of such a big event?"

"No need, they're busy."

Old Tian looked up, about to say something, when he met Ai Liang's extremely cold gaze.

"No need to contact them, they don't have time to come to Qianhua City."

Old Tian wanted to say something, but Ai Liang gave an explanation first: "More than a month ago, I was involved in a murder case. At most, they would just send a lawyer over."

Old Tian could tell that Ai Liang seemed quite uncomfortable discussing family matters, but he still offered a token word of comfort: "Well... try to look on the bright side, maybe they're just very busy..."

"Thank you for your concern. I'm still too shaken from the incident at noon to talk about the robbery right now. Please ask Jin Ping'an if you have any questions."

Excessive fright? That's utter nonsense about being excessively frightened.

Old Tian almost couldn't help but swear.

However, Ai Liang is, after all, a victim. Now that he's using the excuse of being too frightened, I can only change who I'm questioning.

Otherwise, he might go out and accuse the media of "inhumane" forced interrogation of the victims, which would be troublesome.

Although Lao Tian had only met Ai Liang for less than ten minutes, his intuition told him that it was best not to treat Ai Liang as an ordinary teenager.

Both Ai Liang's personality and temperament are completely out of character for students of this age.

He has the air of a seasoned veteran of society.

Old Tian reluctantly threw the notebook in front of Jin Ping'an and said, "Write down anything you want to add yourself."

After saying that, he took out his phone and checked the progress of the robbery investigation in the police discussion group, adopting an attitude of "I'm investigating a case, don't bother me".

Jin Ping'an pouted in dissatisfaction.

He picked up the notebook and looked at the previous records. He had said everything he needed to say, and there was nothing to add.

But Jin Ping'an, in order to save face, racked his brains and added a couple of pointless words.

"Hey, Lao Tian, ​​how's the investigation going with the thing I asked you to look into before?"

Jin Ping'an handed back the notebook and asked, "Now that your leave is over, could you please follow up for me?"

"Forget about it. With such a big incident as an armed bank robbery, almost all the police force has been deployed to this case, and other cases will have to be put on hold."

Old Tian closed his notebook, seemingly deliberately avoiding the topic.

"Didn't we agree before that you'd help me find out after my leave was over? Why did you..."

Jin Ping'an frowned as he looked at Lao Tian.

"The past is the past, and the present is the present. Do you know how big a commotion this robbery has caused?"

Without looking up, Lao Tian scrolled through his phone: "This is the first armed robbery in a public place in Qianhua City in ten years. All the major media outlets are vying to report on the progress of the case. The pressure from public opinion is almost the sum of all the previous cases!"

Jin Ping'an knew the seriousness of robbing a bank, but he still asked, "But weren't all the robbers dead...?"

When they entered, Lao Tian explained that all four robbers were dead without exception. Since the robbers were all dead, they should be able to give the media an explanation.

Jin Ping'an wanted to argue, but Lao Tian didn't want to listen to his nonsense: "It's precisely because the robbers are all dead that all sorts of conspiracy theories have come up. Finding out the cause of their deaths is exactly what we need to do now."

"If they had all died from gunshot wounds, that would have been easy to explain. We could have simply closed the case by saying it was due to a dispute over the loot and internal strife. But one of them was killed by a bomb after driving for several kilometers."

"Tell me, who would have the time to install a remote-controlled bomb in their own car?"

"This needs an explanation, otherwise in a few days, the robbers will be stealing more than just money."

All sorts of things will surface: confidential information, collusion between bank insiders and outsiders, even theories of cover-ups. Don't expect much integrity from those self-media outlets; they'll do anything for clicks.

Old Tian's lecture left Jin Ping'an speechless.

Seeing him clench his fists and remain silent, Old Tian sighed and said, "I can ignore those media outlets, but you yourself said that the robbers' target is very likely you."

Even if I disregard public opinion, I am responsible for your safety. Therefore, until the truth of this matter is revealed, I will focus my efforts on the robbery case. We can discuss anything else after the case is closed.

What will happen to those children whose whereabouts are unknown?!

Jin Ping'an roared angrily, "Just because of public pressure, we have to prioritize cases that are no longer harmful, and then we can ignore those who might be suffering!"

“Ping An, I hope you will think before you speak in the future. You can’t just say whatever comes to mind.”

With a serious expression, Lao Tian turned off the recorder and deleted the recording.

Old Tian looked at the angry young man with a headache. He just didn't want to face this situation, so he steered the conversation toward Ai Liang from the very beginning.

But who knew that Ai Liang, despite his young age, was so clever and managed to pass the buck back to him.

Old Tian glanced at Ai Liang, but he just sat there pretending to be deaf and dumb, playing on his phone, acting as if he didn't want to get involved with them. It felt like he was sitting in a circus, watching a boring monkey handshake performance.

“Ping An, you’re an adult now, not a child anymore. Some things can’t be explained in just a few words.”

Old Tian withdrew his gaze and earnestly advised Jin Ping'an, "Listen to me, prioritize your own safety recently, and don't get involved in the brigade's affairs anymore. Just take a break for yourself."

"A holiday? What a load of rubbish! You've made me just stand there..."

Buzz, buzz.

Just as Jin Ping'an transformed into a Zu'an man and prepared to launch an attack on Lao Tian, ​​his phone started buzzing.

Lao Tian swipes the screen upwards, making a gesture as if answering a call.

Jin Ping'an was forced to swallow back what he was about to say because of this phone call.

"Okay, I got it, I'll be right there."

Old Tian put down his phone and quickly packed his things: "Captain Liu called me over. We can talk about it another time."

He tucked all the items into his arms, and without waiting for Jin Ping'an to say anything next, he strode away.

The moment the door to the reception room closed, Lao Tian heard Jin Ping'an slam his fist heavily on the table inside.

At this moment, Jin Ping'an felt as if he was about to criticize his stupid teammate for feeding kills while playing a game, but was reminded that he had been banned for 24 hours for making inappropriate remarks. He felt extremely frustrated.

Outside the door, Lao Tian breathed a sigh of relief and turned off the temporarily set vibration alarm clock.

(End of this chapter)