You Have the Right to Keep a Secret Love

Chapter 36: Gu Yan is a Bit... Well... Too Quick...

Since they had decided to accept Wu Jianqiang's case, Qi Xi and Gu Yan wasted no time. After obtaining approval from Gu Xuehan, they started collecting any possible overlooked evidence the next day.

However, their outlook wasn't optimistic.

It had already been over half a year since the work-related injury occurred, and most of the evidence had been destroyed. Additionally, Wu Jianqiang's workplace was just a small workshop with no proper personnel system or attendance records. There were no pay slips or signed documents. To avoid the cost of social insurance and housing fund contributions, the workshop paid its employees in cash, without any transfer records. There were no employee emails or manuals either.

Gu Yan attempted to communicate with Wu Jianqiang's former colleagues, hoping they would come forward as witnesses. However, his efforts ended in failure. Firstly, there was a high turnover rate in the small workshop, and within six months, most of the employees had been replaced with new faces. Many of the current employees didn't even know Wu Jianqiang. Secondly, even the few old colleagues who were aware of Wu Jianqiang's work-related injury were unwilling to testify.

Qi Xi understood their reluctance. "These old colleagues have been working in this small workshop for many years, relying on this income to support their families. With the current economic downturn, they have grown accustomed to their work in the workshop. They don't want to relocate, and they fear that providing evidence might cost them their livelihoods."

Gu Yan naturally understood their concerns, but this situation left them stuck in a dead end when it came to gathering evidence.

In the afternoon, Qi Xi and Gu Yan received assignments for other cases from Gu Xuehan, so they couldn't afford to be distracted by Wu Jianqiang's case. After work, Qi Xi had more important matters to attend to.

Zhao Yiran had found a new place to live, and it was ready for occupancy. She had already moved in ahead of time, and tonight was Qi Xi's turn to move.

Although Gu Xuehan didn't know why, she had been staying at her place all day and was often away on business trips or working overnight. As a result, Qi Xi had been staying at her house for quite some time without seeing her return even once. With such a spacious and beautiful house, it felt like Qi Xi had the place all to herself.

The location of the house was great, very close to Gu Yan. Therefore, besides spending their days together at work, they often saw each other in the evenings. Sometimes Gu Yan confidently showed up for dinner, and other times he brought takeout, allowing them to eat and discuss the case together.

Qi Xi didn't feel tired or bored because she spent so much time with Gu Yan each day. On the contrary, it seemed that the longer she spent with Gu Yan, the less she wanted to be apart from him.

However, recently it seemed that Gu Yan and Bai Yuanguang had become a couple. When Gu Yan occasionally came over for dinner, he would often receive calls from his girlfriend. And when Qi Xi stayed up late reading case files, she frequently noticed Gu Yan going downstairs in the middle of the night. Most of the time, she could see them from the window—Gu Yan would meet his girlfriend at the entrance of the apartment complex and escort her home.

During those moments, Qi Xi's mood would become quite gloomy.

She kept staring at the time, calculating how long Gu Yan stayed at the neighbor's house each time. Based on Qixi's speculation, almost... it didn't take long for Gu Yan to return home after dropping off the person.

Considering that he had already stayed in a hotel with Bai Yuanguang, Qixi thought he wasn't a conservative person. According to what Zhao Yiran had said before, once a man started being intimate, he couldn't control himself and still acted like a gentleman towards his girlfriend. Moreover, as far as Qixi knew, the female neighbor lived alone. Gu Yan had secretly admired her for so long, and now they were in the early stages of a passionate relationship, so...