A new dawn, a new day. Gu Fan, having stayed up till the wee hours chatting with Lin Xi last night, was still deeply asleep. However, a series of harsh and rapid knocks on his door startled him awake.
"My god, why so early?" Gu Fan recognised who was at the door from the rhythm of his knocks. Looking miserable, he unwillingly got out of bed and rushed downstairs to open the door with a serious face.
"Miss me, buddy?" Lu Yi barged in without hesitation, not feeling at all out of place. His eyes sparkled with excitement.
Gu Fan responded lazily, "We saw each other the day before yesterday and yesterday, so I don't miss you today. Besides, what's the point of missing another guy?"
Lu Yi ignored him and began to speak, "I had a dream yesterday, I dreamt of the policewoman, do you know what this means?"
"It means that she's your new dream lover." Gu Fan looked helpless and silently thought to himself, isn't he being too wishful?
Yet Lu Yi nodded in agreement, "Yeah, we've only seen each other once, and she's already appeared in my dream. Isn't this a sign from the heavens? I feel like I should do something."
"Yeah, we really should do something." At that point, Gu Fan's face fell, then he added, "Lin Xi texted me yesterday saying that Zhao Rui's parents have been notified of their son's disappearance. You can't imagine how shattered they are right now. They don't know how to console Zhao Rui's parents, who have already rushed to the nearby police station."
Aware of the seriousness of the situation, Lu Yi curbed his enthusiasm. Gu Fan continued, "Although we don't know Zhao Rui well and his disappearance has nothing to do with us, we should still sympathize with the suffering of their parents."
Lu Yi asked, "Yeah, it's pitiful for parents to lose a child they've worked so hard to raise. Do we know the current situation? Have they found any leads?"
Gu Fan shook his head, "We have no idea what's going on there. But that's not what I'm most worried about at the moment."
"What else are you worried about?" Lu Yi asked with a puzzled face, sensing something bad was about to happen.
Gu Fan came over, patted Lu Yi's shoulder, and said, "Come have breakfast with me, and I'll tell you as we walk."
"Wow, sounds mysterious. Can't you make your own breakfast?" Lu Yi responded nonchalantly, making Gu Fan laugh and shake his head. The two then left the house to have breakfast together.
Since they were in the city area, locating a roadside stall wasn't an easy task. Gu Fan and Lu Yi crossed several streets before reaching a diner that Gu Fan frequently visited. They ordered soy milk, youtiao, pancake, and started to talk as they ate.
Lu Yi asked again, "Honestly, Gu Fan, what are you still worried about? We're back home, and the police are handling the case. What's still bothering you?"
"Remember the old man we met at the bottom of the mountain the night Zhao Rui disappeared?" As Gu Fan spoke, Lu Yi nodded, "Yeah, the one sweeping the floor late at night, speaking nonsense and loud, right?"
Gu Fan continued, "Before leaving the ancient town, I met that old man again. He said something I couldn't quite understand…"
"What did he say? Spit it out!" Lu Yi urged, but he saw Gu Fan staring intently into the distance. Lu Yi turned and looked back, then his eyes widened. Across the street, three men were lurking next to parked electric scooters.
From their constant cautious glances, it was clear what they were up to. Gu Fan and Lu Yi, both college students, didn't know what to do. The thought of intervening crossed their minds, but the suspects were tall and intimidating, equipped with tools, they were scared to take action. But there was a sense of moral responsibility in their hearts, urging them to overcome their fear.
The thieves acted skillfully, quickly unlocking a scooter and somehow setting it in motion, ready to take off on the stolen ride.
Then, a woman in simple T-shirt and capri pants appeared in their line of sight. She moved gracefully, giving off an aura of charisma with her short hair. She walked towards the thieves like a common passerby, not giving them even a glance.
"That profile, that figure, it's unmistakable!" Gu Fan and Lu Yi looked at the woman and each other, both astonished by the coincidence.
Perhaps the woman was too attractive, the thieves couldn't help but observe her. Still, she never paid them any attention, treating them like thin air.
In a split second, as the woman was about ten steps from the thieves, she rushed forward and kicked two of the thieves off the scooter.
Not just the thieves, even Gu Fan and Lu Yi were shocked by her swift, fierce move.
The thief, dazed from the fall, looked around to see several people surrounding him. It dawned on him that he had walked into an ambush, so he quickly got up and ran, dispersing in different directions to flee.
However, the experienced and agile police officers had already sealed off all potential escape routes in record time. With a numerical advantage, they quickly captured two of the culprits.
Meanwhile, the third culprit attempted to escape by running towards Gu Fan and Lu Yi. But the female police officer was relentless and chased after him.
At this point, Gu Fan and Lu Yi, while pretending to enjoy their breakfast, whistled harmoniously and extended their legs out, tripping the fleeing thief and causing him to fall in an extremely ungraceful manner.
The female officer quickly closed in. Seeing her approach, Gu Fan quickly retracted his leg. But Lu Yi, entranced by the officer's stunning figure, forgot to do the same.
Despite this, the female officer – vigilant and alert – leaped forward, pressing her knee against the struggling culprit and successfully handcuffed him.
"Good job, a true public servant! Well done." Lu Yi was the first to clap, his eyes filled with admiration for the graceful figure of the lady constable.
Sure enough, this policewoman was the same one they'd met at the station yesterday. Contrary to her delicate appearance, she was impressively skilled. It was evident, judging from the scene, that the three thieves stood no chance against her.
Hancuffing the culprit, the police officer handed him to her colleagues and turned towards Gu Fan. She found him somewhat familiar, and then she remembered—he was the handsome young man she had met yesterday.
"Thank you for your help." Upon hearing these words, Lu Yi immediately replied, "Oh, not at all, it's our duty as good citizens to help the police enforce the law. I believe if we, the police and civilians, work together, our society will only get better. Only then our... "
Gu Fan, finding this too much to handle –especially the part about the next generation– quickly intervened, "That's enough. We only did what was right, expecting neither fame nor profit. If the beautiful policewoman truly wants to thank us, how about a commendation banner?"
Lu Yi immediately agreed, "Yeah, a banner would be great. Despite helping many elderly cross the streets, I never received such an honor before. It has been a childhood dream of mine. Could the beautiful policewoman help fulfill this small wish of mine?" His face was all aglow with anticipation after completing his speech.
The policewoman was both taken aback and a little embarrassed. She could sense these two weren't after a banner but they were rather amusing, so she didn't seem to mind.
After a moment's thought, she said, "Or maybe I could ask my superiors if we could write a letter of commendation to your school on your behalf?"
Lu Yi immediately nodded, "Yes please. I've quite a list to tell you: my name, our school, my hobbies, my excellent grades that got me admitted to our school…"
Listening to Lu Yi, Gu Fan couldn't help but sigh, wondering what on earth was going on.
Despite their tenacity, Lu Yi and Gu Fan could not obtain any contact information from the policewoman. Although, she did reveal that her name was Su Hui.
Watching the policewoman stride away, Lu Yi was completely mesmerized, "She's so beautiful, simply stunning. Lin Xi will have to grow up a lot more before she can compare to her."
Gu Fan secretly agreed with this, thinking about how much more mature the working environment seemed in comparison to their university life.
Suddenly, his phone rang. It was a message from Lin Xi. It seemed Du Jun was organizing a clubbing night, saying it was their last chance to have fun before the new academic term began.
Upon learning this, Gu Fan was troubled and Lu Yi looked disgusted, "You've got to be kidding, Zhao Rui has only been missing a few days and they're already thinking about partying? Didn't Du Jun forget that if he hadn't organized that mountain climbing event, Zhao Rui wouldn't have gone missing in the first place?"
Gu Fan sighed, "Zhao Rui being missing is something none of us wanted. But since he was not a close friend or a family member, it's somewhat understandable that everyone isn't very upset about it. However, to be excited about partying just a few days after... "
"So, what do we do? Are you going to go?" Lu Yi asked.
Gu Fan replied, "Lin Xi does not want to go, but her close friends have responded positively to Du Jun's invitation. Therefore, to keep the peace, and since she wants me to accompany her, I'll be going. But remember, we aren't going to enjoy ourselves. We are just accompanying them."
(Dear readers, may I please ask for your support by voting for this chapter, if you enjoyed it? Regardless of whether you are soft-spoken or a strong-willed individual, it would mean the world to me if you could cast your valuable vote for this chapter. I would be eternally grateful.)