Chapter 155 Seeing Through

After dinner, Ritsy went back upstairs to check on April. By then, it was already late, and Ritsy clearly had no intention of leaving. Natasha had no choice but to instruct her strictly not to step outside and to wait until tomorrow when she returned. Natasha still had to make phone calls and handle the aftermath of Ritsy's escape.

With Natasha gone from April's house, only Qiu Fengyu's group of four and Ritsy remained. Out of the five, only Ritsy was in a position to take care of April. Fortunately, the environment here was quiet, and no one currently knew that Ritsy was hiding here, making it relatively ideal for recovery.

After dinner, Qiu Fengyu assigned Davies to wash the dishes, Ryoko Yonekura to pour coffee, while Tim and Qiu Fengyu sat on the sofa to watch television. It was merely a rebroadcast of the daytime news, followed by various panels of experts discussing the event. In any case, all other news had to make way for this terrorist attack.

This time, the Los Angeles FBI received high praise. They had apprehended the perpetrators attempting a suicide bombing mission, prevented casualties, and uncovered several useful clues for the police. However, they were merely clues, as the investigation came to a dead end right along with those leads. The suspects were dead, and the clues were gone.

The television stations were broadcasting non-stop praises. Then an FBI director appeared to speak at length about counter-terrorism, heavily commending Scott Ford and the beautiful female agent Monica Roy, who had both stolen the spotlight. There was also talk of upcoming medals; news reports claimed they would soon be decorated with honors.

It was expected that news of their official commendation would be broadcast shortly. Qiu Fengyu cared nothing for these things. He was merely looking for a way to pass the time while contemplating how to extricate himself from this whirlpool. The larger the entanglement, the worse the ultimate outcome tended to be.

His name had not appeared in the news yet. Because he had extracted himself quickly, Scott presumably wanted to keep him out of the frame. Protecting Qiu Fengyu was part of it, but more importantly, the FBI's own reputation was at stake, forcing them to tread carefully. Qiu Fengyu understood their approach.

Sure enough, before the news broadcast finished, Qiu Fengyu's phone rang. Seeing an unfamiliar number, he answered anyway, and Scott's voice came through from the other end.

"Hi. Hello, Qiu. I trust you've rescued Miss April Savannah. You did a very good job." Scott tried to sound as sincere as possible. "If you've watched the news, you should know that this time... you weren't on camera..."

"I don't mind, Mr. Scott Ford. I would much prefer that you forget me entirely, because that way I can go back to living my life in peace. I trust you won't leak my affairs, right?" Qiu Fengyu said to him. "You have your benefits, and I have mine. This serves our mutual interests."

"Alright, I suppose I owe you a favor this time. But... won't you reconsider joining the FBI? Frankly, you were the pivotal figure in this incident. Don't you think selling a few dozen bowls of ramen every day is a waste of your talents?" Scott genuinely sounded regretful as he said this, feeling a sense of waste regarding Qiu Fengyu. The way he handled this sudden crisis had left many professional agents far behind in the dust.

"No. Mr. Scott Ford, my greatest strength lies in my culinary skills," Qiu Fengyu chuckled. "Allowing more people to taste my cooking—that is making the utmost use of my abilities. Joining the FBI would be the true waste of my talent. If there's nothing else, I'm hanging up."

"Very well, we'll chat when we have time. For now... goodbye, and good luck!" With that, Scott hung up the phone. He then frowned, looked at Monica sitting nearby in the office, and said, "If... and I mean if we were to spend some government resources on this individual, would it be a worthwhile endeavor?"

Monica smiled. "He is indeed a rare talent, but making a special exception for him doesn't strike me as a good idea. Still... a man like him, even if he wants to keep a low profile and live a normal life, you know how it is—trouble always finds a way into everyday life. And a man with such capabilities is bound to refuse swallowing his pride forever. Don't you think that when that time comes... he will need our help?"

Scott shook his head with a chuckle. "No, I think precisely because he is who he is, he won't easily ask us for help. Forget it. Let's drop this. Have the identities of those people been confirmed?"

"Confirmed. Aside from the driver, everyone else has a criminal record." Monica stood up and handed over a folder. "Thieves, rapists, street racers, mobsters... you name it, it's just a grand gathering of scum."

"To be able to gather this group of people and have them willingly risk their lives for him—this person is no simple character. Or rather, it points to an organization rather than a single individual," Scott nodded. "An organization is far more likely."

"It seems our trail has gone cold again, except that we've added a new hypothesis to our original ones: someone deliberately manufactured the illusion that this bombing was carried out by Middle Eastern terrorists. After all, the suicide bomber was from the Middle East, yet the masterminds behind the scenes are entirely white."

"Alright. Following this lead, I need a list of everyone who has been in contact with these individuals recently. Have all agents mobilize their informants. We have work to do. I can't bear to think about what would happen if the next one actually detonated—it wouldn't just be innocent lives lost, but the FBI as well. The backlash we'd face would keep us from ever holding our heads high again for a long time."

Scott flipped through the documents of those individuals, his brows furrowed tightly. Qiu Fengyu had left him no living captives, cutting off every single lead he had. He honestly didn't know whether to thank him or curse him.

At ten o'clock in the evening, April woke up. Ritsy had been staying upstairs to look after her, so when she opened her eyes, she let out a cry of pleasant surprise.

Hearing the sound, Qiu Fengyu came upstairs as well. As for Ryoko Yonekura and the other two, they acted as though none of this concerned them, going about their own business. Ritsy had assigned rooms to them, and there was plenty of space for everyone to sleep.

"Hey, Qiu... thank you!" After waking up, although her energy was low, April's mind was clear. She knew what she had gone through and remembered seeing Qiu Fengyu force his way in and rescue her. That was enough; as for what happened to those men, she didn't care in the least.

"You don't need to thank me. I bear some responsibility for this," Qiu Fengyu said, shaking his head as he stood by the bed, looking down at April. "You were lucky. They were preparing to behead you and broadcast it live on the internet—meaning the whole world might have seen it. But all of that is in the past now."

"I knew you'd come to save me. I just knew it!" April wanted to give Qiu Fengyu a smile, but her face was still somewhat swollen, making her expression look rather comical, which brought tears straight to Ritsy's eyes where she stood off to the side.

"Such a silly girl, what are you crying for? I wasn't actually beheaded," April couldn't help muttering. "Don't worry, with Qiu here, I'll be fine."

Qiu Fengyu couldn't help shaking his head with a smile. "I'll go downstairs and make you a bowl of broth. Drink some soup first, and don't touch any other food for now. I'll be leaving here tomorrow. You'd better hire a nutritionist. If you manage your recovery well, you won't need to go to the hospital. Remember to take your anti-inflammatories every day."

This last part was directed at Ritsy, who nodded repeatedly. Without wasting words, Qiu Fengyu turned and headed straight downstairs. April's eyes followed him until he vanished through the doorway, after which she turned her gaze back to Ritsy, who was smiling at her.

"What?" She noticed Ritsy's rather peculiar expression.

"Nothing..." Ritsy always had an indescribable feeling. April and Qiu Fengyu seemed like ordinary acquaintances, yet whenever April faced extreme danger, Qiu Fengyu would step forward. It was truly strange. Ritsy had never experienced the chaotic crossfire of a shootout and couldn't imagine the sensation of killing and being killed. Even so, she knew the situation back then must have been unimaginably perilous.

"How are things progressing between the two of you?" Ritsy asked April, watching as Qiu Fengyu disappeared down the stairs.

April smiled faintly. "Me and him? Nothing happened, and nothing was ever made explicit. I can guess that he doesn't want the baggage of a family; he wants to live an ordinary life, yet he's constantly afraid that this ordinary life could be shattered at any second." April shook her head with a wry smile. "I'm not sure if I have the stamina to wait until he can look at life with a sense of normalcy. He can't do that right now—there's always a lingering sense of crisis, probably tied to his past experiences living in Ukraine. But... we can talk about that later!"

Qiu Fengyu likely wouldn't have guessed that April could see right through him so easily. In truth, as a moderately successful Hollywood screenwriter, April was the type of person who enjoyed analyzing people and dissecting life. It was a trait dictated by her profession.

Ritsy let out a sigh. "I genuinely don't understand how he can remain so remarkably calm. When I first laid eyes on you, I was terrified out of my wits by your condition—God, it was harrowing. Yet he was so calm, calm to the point where he seemed almost devoid of emotion, and yet he stood guard right by your side..."

"It's a contradiction, one that exists in everyone. He's no different... By the way, how is your movie doing? Was the premiere a success?" April smiled, though the motion tugged at her facial muscles, causing a twinge of pain. "I didn't ruin your good mood, did I? I was half-conscious when I was being held captive, and while I was being tortured, I thought I saw Qiu rush in to save me. I don't know any of the details in between."

Ritsy shook her head with a sigh. "The premiere ended up becoming the focal point of global attention. There was a suicide bomber inside the theater!"