Chapter 142: Good Evening
You Ruxu cleaned the apartment as soon as she arrived in Jindu. After being empty for so long, the air was thick with dust. Although Jindu was cold, it wasn’t as humid as Yuhai. The sun shone brightly during the day. You Ruxu hadn’t done such strenuous physical activity in a while. After mopping the entire apartment, her back ached. She sat on the sofa and, seeing the bright sunlight streaming through the window, took a photo for Zhou Tianzui.
Zhou Tianzui had just come out of the lab, the director explaining the details of the equipment they had just used. While listening, she replied to You Ruxu’s message: [Why didn’t you wait for me to clean?]
You Ruxu: [Then where would I stay?]
Zhou Tianzui, picturing You Ruxu’s reaction, although not a clean freak, she was very tidy, even folding her underwear neatly before leaving.
She paused.
A cheesy pick-up line came to mind.
Live in my heart.
She decided against sending it, afraid of being too corny, the thought making her smile, her eyes crinkling at the corners as she walked, the colleague beside her, seeing her cheerful expression, knew who she was messaging.
He had heard from other doctors that Zhou Tianzui had a partner, but he hadn’t believed it.
It seemed it was true after all.
The colleague who had been interested in her felt a pang of regret, yet also couldn’t help his curiosity: “Dr. Zhou, is your boyfriend also in the medical field?”
Zhou Tianzui turned to him, the gentle smile vanishing, replaced by a cool indifference, the atmosphere instantly chilling. Her features were sharp and defined, her expression, when not smiling, stern and unapproachable, which was why, although many were interested, few dared to pursue her. This sudden change in demeanor made the doctor falter.
Zhou Tianzui looked at him, her voice low, “No, he’s not.”
She turned and walked away.
The doctor didn’t dare approach her again.
Zhou Tianzui barely spoke for the rest of the day, just messaging You Ruxu that she would call her after work. You Ruxu hadn’t had time to relax, after cleaning the apartment, she took a shower, and just as she came out, she received a call from Captain Yao, asking her to come to the station for a meeting.
You Ruxu’s car had been sold, so she was driving Zhou Tianzui’s. She paused briefly in front of Yu Qiao’s building, Zhou Tianzui had said Yu Qiao was on a trip, wasn’t home,
Even if she were home, You Ruxu wouldn’t just barge in.
You Ruxu composed herself and continued driving to the police station. Fu Guang was sitting beside Captain Zhou, seeing You Ruxu, she moved over, “Come sit here.”
You Ruxu walked over, greeted Captain Zhou, and sat down, her demeanor calm and collected.
Captain Zhou turned to her, “When did you get back?”
You Ruxu said, “I came back with Captain Yao.”
Captain Zhou nodded: “I heard from Reporter Fu that you’re transferring back to Jindu?”
You Ruxu said, “Yes.”
Captain Zhou asked, “Still a field reporter?”
You Ruxu said, “I’m not sure yet.”
After all, her old position was filled, she couldn’t just go back, it depended on the station’s arrangements, Captain Zhou nodded, they both avoided personal topics, a silent understanding. Captain Yao said, “Is everyone here? Let’s begin then.”
The troublemaker on Captain Zhou’s team stood up, walked to the front, and projected a photo onto the screen: “Zhang Ping, fifty-three years old…” You Ruxu looked at the screen, she already had this information, but she still listened attentively.
“We received intel last week that Zhang Ping was operating in the eastern district, then we lost track of him.” He looked at Captain Zhou, who stood up and continued, “Our informant said they’re planning a transaction soon, the location is still unknown, our goal is to rescue the hostages and apprehend Zhang Ping and his accomplices before the transaction takes place.” She projected a few photos of the accomplices, Sang Qi’s photo first, Zhang Ping’s right-hand man, cruel, ruthless, and easily angered, responsible for dealing with “traitors” within the organization. It was said that once you joined, there was no leaving, those who tried either ended up dead or crippled, he was Zhang Ping’s enforcer.
The second photo was of a clean-cut man, Li Ting, Zhang Ping’s strategist. Several times, Zhang Ping had escaped by the skin of his teeth thanks to Li Ting’s advice. Zhang Ping trusted him implicitly. Although he delegated most tasks to Sang Qi, who was ostensibly second-in-command, he always followed Li Ting’s advice. It was because of this, the tension between Sang Qi and Li Ting, that the informant was able to get information from Li Ting, who resented Sang Qi’s loyalty to Zhang Ping, his unwillingness to reveal any information. Captain Yao said, “We’ll use Sang Qi as a breakthrough point, to find Li Ting.”
And through Li Ting, they could find Zhang Ping.
You Ruxu took notes, looking at the three photos, She hadn’t met Zhang Ping before, Sang Qi was slightly familiar, but he had changed a lot in the past few years, his features harsher, a scar near his eye making him look even more menacing, his ruthlessness evident even through the photo.
She shifted slightly and heard Fu Guang say, “Come with me to the monitoring room later.”
You Ruxu nodded, closed her notebook. After the meeting, she followed Fu Guang to the monitoring room, “We last saw Zhang Ping near the eastern district, there’s an abandoned hospital there, we suspect that’s where the transaction might take place, but we can’t deploy officers there yet, it would alert them. Captain Zhou has already sent people to watch the area, you can monitor the surveillance footage whenever you’re free, and notify me immediately if you see anything.”
“Okay.” You Ruxu sat in front of the monitors, the white glow of the screens making her skin look even paler, Fu Guang sat beside her, looking sleepy, she leaned back and closed her eyes. You Ruxu said, “Reporter Fu, why don’t you rest for a bit?”
“We have another meeting soon.” Fu Guang rubbed her eyes, “Just a quick nap.”
You Ruxu was quiet, not wanting to disturb her, she turned off the sound on her phone and focused on the monitors, occasionally glancing at Fu Guang.
Fu Guang was wearing a checkered jacket, her hair long and wavy, her light makeup barely concealing her exhaustion, her long earrings clearly a matching set with the bracelet on her wrist, You Ruxu’s impression of her was, elegant.
Fu Guang had even joked before, “When I tell people I’m from the Criminal Investigation Department, they don’t believe me.”
People always assumed that reporters in their department were too busy to care about their appearance, but Fu Guang was different, her energy and vibrancy evident. After a five-minute nap, Fu Guang’s eyes suddenly opened, she sighed softly, seemingly startled awake, and You Ruxu asked, “Bad dream?”
Fu Guang said, “I dreamt about my first news story.”
She looked at You Ruxu, “Not a pleasant one.”
You Ruxu said, “The counterfeit money case?”
Fu Guang exclaimed, “You know about that?”
You Ruxu said, “I read your file.”
Fu Guang nodded, looking at You Ruxu, her quick thinking, her composure, her attention to detail, “How long have you been working here?”
You Ruxu said, “This is my fourth year.”
Fu Guang said, “You know Team Leader Ji has always wanted to recruit you for our department.”
You Ruxu chuckled, “I know.”
“If you were still in Yuhai, would you have joined?” Fu Guang asked, and You Ruxu, after a moment of thought, nodded, “I would have.”
“That’s a pity.” Fu Guang asked, “Why are you going back to Jindu?”
You Ruxu thought for a moment, “The person I love, is there.”
“Ah—” Fu Guang’s eyes widened slightly, “I understand.” They chatted for a bit, then Fu Guang left for the meeting, telling You Ruxu to go have lunch first, there were police officers monitoring the footage, You Ruxu watched her leave.
Shortly after Fu Guang left, You Ruxu, about to go buy some bread, received a call from Chen Xiang.
You Ruxu answered the call, and Chen Xiang immediately exclaimed, “Teacher You, you’re back?!”
You Ruxu replied, “Yes, I’m back.”
Chen Xiang said, “When did you get back? How did you get back? Are you coming back to the station?” A barrage of questions, and You Ruxu, after a pause, asked, “Have you had dinner?”
Half an hour later, Chen Xiang arrived.
You Ruxu said, “I just got back, there are some things I need to take care of, I can’t come back to the station yet.”
“I couldn’t believe it when the boss said you were back this afternoon!” After all, You Ruxu had explicitly told her she wasn’t coming back, and knowing her personality, she wouldn’t go back on her word, and even if she did, it wouldn’t be so soon.
You Ruxu said, “There were some things I had to deal with.”
“Everything settled now?” Chen Xiang said, “Good to have you back, I’m treating you to dinner tonight!”
You Ruxu chuckled, “You’ve become a reporter?”
Chen Xiang nodded, “I transferred at the end of last year, I’ve been running around non-stop, even got scolded by the boss yesterday.”
You Ruxu said, “It takes time to adjust.”
Chen Xiang said, “Only Teacher You would say that, you’re too kind.” She leaned closer to You Ruxu, wanting to hug her, then hesitated. You Ruxu put an arm around her shoulders. Chen Xiang sniffed the air, “You smell nice, Teacher You, what perfume are you using?”
You Ruxu hadn’t really been paying attention to it, she sniffed her own arm, “Send me the link, send me the link.”
“Just a moment.” You Ruxu found the perfume in her recent orders, a natural floral scent, light and elegant. She sent the link to Chen Xiang, who, delighted, immediately started browsing on her phone.
You Ruxu took a sip of warm water, “What are you working on lately?”
“It’s almost the end of March, the city’s organizing a tree-planting event.” She lowered her voice conspiratorially, “I also heard the police are working on a big case, but no insider information yet,” looking at You Ruxu, “Teacher You, did you just come from the police station?”
You Ruxu nodded.
Chen Xiang asked, “Is there really a big case?”
You Ruxu didn’t answer, just smiled faintly.
Chen Xiang, remembering You Ruxu’s words about not being able to return to the station yet, understood and didn’t pry further, changing the subject. They hadn’t been talking for long when You Ruxu’s phone lit up. It was a video call from Zhou Tianzui. You Ruxu looked down, Chen Xiang saying, “Oh, it’s Dr. Zhou, I haven’t seen her in ages.”
You Ruxu had intended to end the video call and call Zhou Tianzui back, but seeing Chen Xiang’s reaction, she figured Chen Xiang wanted to say hello.
After a few seconds, You Ruxu answered the call. They were sitting by the window, Chen Xiang beside her, wanting to ask about the perfume, The moment the video connected, she looked up, and Zhou Tianzui’s smile faltered slightly, “Chen Xiang?”
The phone was on the table, Chen Xiang visible on the screen.
Chen Xiang beamed, afraid Zhou Tianzui wouldn’t see her, leaning closer to You Ruxu, her hair falling over You Ruxu’s shoulder, waving enthusiastically, “Dr. Zhou, good evening!”
Zhou Tianzui gave a tight-lipped smile, her voice clipped, “Good evening.”
Chen Xiang: Dr. Zhou, can you see me?
Zhou Tianzui: Such a huge lightbulb, I could see you with my eyes closed.
Chen Xiang: …
