Back at home, he threw the smelly uniform into the washing machine, pouring in three times his usual amount of detergent.
Then he moved into the bathroom, turned on the heater, and drew a hot bath.
Before long, steam filled the entire bathroom.
Before this, Song Lan was never a fan of taking baths. He was a staunch showerer who prided himself on quick washes that never exceeded ten minutes a day.
But today, he had suddenly discovered the unique appeal of taking a bath.
Immersed in the warm flow of water, the misty fog obscuring his vision, he leaned back against the edge of the bath and stared at the white ceiling. His anxiety had slightly eased.
But the stability of his routine had been thrown into disarray.
An unknown assassin had cornered him in his home, and a mysterious and powerful force was brewing a plot against his girlfriend.
Song Lan couldn't help but lament; others took advantage of their girlfriend's absence to have some fun, yet he was forced to kill a professional assassin.
With his emotions under control and his chaotic thoughts organized, he needed to plan for his future.
It wasn't easy to find someone else to take the fall. Although Mr. Killer hadn't had time to introduce himself before his death, the fact that the mysterious organization had left the aftermath to him indicated that he was not someone to be underestimated.
Such a cold-hearted character wouldn't have been randomly killed by some small-time thug from the Mohicans while strolling at night.
So, the first step to finding a scapegoat was to determine how powerful Mr. Killer really was.
Only after figuring that out could he arrange a formidable opponent for him, making his unfortunate death in a fierce battle plausible.
However, this first step had already stumped Song Lan.
Because the situation in the living room was complicated at the time, and in order to avoid disturbing the neighbors, he had no choice but to kill the opponent, not giving Mr. Killer a chance to show his abilities and keeping his combat strength a perpetual mystery.
He could only vaguely guess that Mr. Killer was somewhat more powerful than Chai Ke.
Chai Ke died instantly, while Mr. Killer remained conscious even four minutes after being fatally wounded, indicating that his bounty, if calculated, would at least be somewhat higher than 620,000 watt - but exactly how much more was an unknown.
Which meant, this scapegoat for him, his "bro", would need a bounty higher than Chai Ke's.
So the question was, how much would it be worth in bounty terms if he persisted for four minutes after being fatally wounded?
After some pondering, Song Lan decided that this question wasn't something he could ask online.
Luckily, he worked in the Law Enforcement Manor, where many of his colleagues should know about such a thing.
He could have asked Lu Xiang directly, but given that his girlfriend was not only knowledgeable but also very intelligent with top-notch deduction skills among the officers, an unusual bombardment of questions might get him caught by Lu Xiang before finding a scapegoat for the murder.
Having thought it through, Song Lan felt ready to proceed.
He drained the tub, got out, put on a robe, and blow-dried his hair.
With no signs of sleepiness, he could make use of the entire night.
He moved to the kitchen, filled a pot with water, and turned on the heat. He dropped the spice bag in the water, opened the refrigerator, and took out the beef shank he had bought a few days ago.
The beef shank took quite some time to prepare. His original plan was to treat Lu Xiang to it over the weekend, but now the beef had to take on the important task of being a gift for the following day.
After all, it was improper to ask someone for a favor without bringing a gift.
Song Lan couldn't help admiring his parents' foresight once again. It turned out that in the year 2166, cooking could not only help you find a girlfriend but also solve the problem of gift-giving in the workplace.
If it had been the year 2020, gifting stewed beef when asking a favor would probably have been laughed at, but in 2166, especially in Sector 17 where no restaurant stayed open for more than a month, snacks had become a rare gift. His home-made dried fruit had been highly praised by his department colleagues.
His target this time was the Statistics Department.
The Statistics Department had a broad scope of work. Nearly all paper and electronic files in the Law Enforcement Department had to go through them, including the issuance of bounties. Many local criminals' bounties were set by the Statistics Department.
After a full night's work, he not only stewed the beef shank but also packaged the sliced parts into a delicate gift bag.
When daybreak came, Song Lan was already out of the building carrying a gift bag.
Before long, he rode into the Manor and greeted the security guards.
Today the Law Enforcement Manor was quite desolate. To prevent any attempts on the life of the sole survivor of the Chai Ke case, all active duty departments, including the special operations department, had gone to the hospital, leaving only the clerical staff in the manor.
With half an hour left until work starts, Song Lan stepped into the Statistics Department holding his gift bag.
With barely a few souls in the large office area, those who had arrived early were already starting their work. Every time Song Lan came here, he couldn't help feeling self-conscious about the lax work style of his own department.
Afterward, he would be back to study the spirit of rescue.
Their director often said that work was important, but enriching oneself through theoretical study was equally important. Delving into the spirit of rescue could help establish the correct value system and rise above petty interests.
It's hard to imagine how he managed to convince the department to raise their salaries by 500 watts with this eloquent speech.
As Song Lan stood by the office entrance, a sharp gaze landed on him.
It belonged to a girl with long, smooth black hair. When she saw Song Lan, her tired eyes suddenly turned incredibly sharp and a tuft of hair on her head stood up like an antenna.
She didn't call out Song Lan's name right away. Instead, she put down her glasses, closed all the files on her desk, and quietly walked towards Song Lan.
Her high heels produced almost no sound as she moved briskly along.
She gave a casual glance at the gift bag Song Lan was carrying and headed straight for the corridor. As she passed him by, she said in a whisper only audible to the two of them, "Shh, keep it quiet. Follow me."
Then, without giving Song Lan any chance to reply, she disappeared behind a door.
…
What?
Song Lan was somewhat panicky.
What was going on?
He was just here to ask about something, so why did it feel like he was in some illicit drug deal?