On the afternoon of New Year's Eve, some of the personnel at the Public Security Bureau were already on holiday, and the Criminal Police Team office was much quieter than usual. Rui Xiaodan finished organizing the files for the "12.7 Major (Prohibited) Murder Case" and hurried to the Pretrial Division to hand over the files to the head of the division.
While signing the transfer forms, the head of the Pretrial Division said, "You guys have it easy this Spring Festival, no urgent cases to handle, so you can relax for a few days."
Rui Xiaodan replied, "I wouldn't be so sure."
The head laughed, "You just jinxed it with that one sentence."
Rui Xiaodan said, "I dread the New Year because it means I'm getting another year older. I'd rather stay busy and not think about it."
Just as she finished speaking, her phone rang. It was Captain Lei calling. The duty office had received a tip-off about a drug deal happening in a rented house on the outskirts of the city. The details were unclear, but the duty officers and the narcotics team were already en route, and everyone else needed to provide immediate support.
Rui Xiaodan joked, "It's all because of what I said. My big mouth really jinxed it this time."
She immediately drove the police car to the scene.
When Rui Xiaodan arrived, she saw Captain Lei, Zhou Wei, Zhao Guoqiang, and the narcotics team had already gathered. The target was a two-story farmhouse, which had been secured.
Captain Lei gave quick instructions, "I'll go in with Zhou Wei and the narcotics team. Fatty, guard the front door. Futian and Ma Lin, cover the east and west walls. Xiaodan, guard the back window. Move out."
Captain Lei and his team stormed the house, and it erupted into chaos with shouts, running, and fighting, accompanied by a woman's screams. Rui Xiaodan, experienced with such scenes, stood with her gun ready, pressed against the wall, watching the second-floor window for any sudden movements.
Sure enough, a burly man in just a sweater jumped out from the second floor. With a dull thud, he landed heavily on the ground. As he tried to stand, Rui Xiaodan's gun was already pointed at his head. Seeing it was a female officer, he thought he had a chance and lunged at her, trying to grab her gun. Rui Xiaodan didn't flinch. She stepped forward, and before the man could fully stand, she smashed the butt of her gun into his head. Instinctively, he bent over from the blow, and she kneed him in the jaw. He fell back, screaming, with a lump on his head and blood in his mouth. In less than a minute, she had him handcuffed.
Zhao Guoqiang arrived and, seeing the scene, holstered his gun and said to the man, "Why did you think she'd be easy to handle?"
The man cursed, "You vicious woman! You'll never have a good life, no man can handle you!"
Rui Xiaodan replied, "Just stay within the law, and don't worry about anything else."
A few minutes later, five men and three women, all suspects, were loaded into the police vehicles.
Captain Lei said, "The narcotics team's holiday is canceled. Return to the bureau with me. Everyone else, follow the usual schedule. Xiaodan, you're on night duty. Take these 'taxi' guys home, then get some rest. Dismissed."
Captain Lei and the narcotics team took the suspects back, while Rui Xiaodan drove Zhao Guoqiang and the others home.
On the way, Wang Futian said, "This case is nothing special, just a bunch of small-time crooks."
Zhao Guoqiang added, "Exactly, third-rate stuff, not worth our time."
Zhou Wei said, "At least we don't have to work tonight. If I can have dinner at my girlfriend's place, it'll be a great encouragement to her parents. They might just get so excited that they'll hand their daughter over to me."
Zhao Guoqiang quipped, "Who knows where they'll hand her over, but it won't be the kitchen."
Everyone laughed.
While the others joked, Rui Xiaodan's mind wandered to Ding Yuanying. A few days ago, his question on the phone, "Do you need anything?" had made her uncomfortable at the time. But thinking it over calmly later, she realized it wasn't a simple question. It revealed a mindset of not thinking about asking for help but rather about what he could do for others, showing an unconscious, superior awareness.
She thought, as the host and entrusted with this task, she should visit him during the Spring Festival regardless of her feelings.
After dropping off her teammates, she drove to the southern village community.
She went up to the fifth floor and knocked on the door, but there was no response. She called him from her phone, still no answer. She went back downstairs, wondering where he could have gone on New Year's Eve with no relatives or friends in the ancient city.
Just as she reached the bottom of the stairs, she saw Ding Yuanying walking toward her with two boxes of instant noodles.
Ding Yuanying saw her too and greeted, "Hello, Miss Rui."
Rui Xiaodan asked, "Why did you buy so many instant noodles?"
Ding Yuanying put the boxes down and said, "It's the New Year. Street vendors won't be out until the fifteenth, so I stocked up on food from the small shop."
Rui Xiaodan, tired of instant noodles from her work, had a conditioned aversion to them. She couldn't imagine eating them for two weeks. She said, "Can you really manage with just instant noodles?"
Ding Yuanying corrected, "I don't just soak them, I cook them. I bought a small rice cooker specifically for this."
Rui Xiaodan said, "Why are you so single-minded? You can buy frozen foods like buns, dumplings, and wontons to vary your meals a bit."
Ding Yuanying said, "No need, this is fine."
Rui Xiaodan thought, he doesn't have a fridge, maybe he's worried the food will spoil in a heated room. In this cold weather, he could just hang a bag outside the window. She checked her watch; it was past five. On New Year's Eve, few places would still be selling goods as families had long finished their holiday preparations.
Rui Xiaodan said, "I don't have anything else. Just came by to wish you a Happy New Year in advance."
Ding Yuanying quickly said, "Same to you, thank you."
Rui Xiaodan said, "If there's nothing else, I'll be going."
Ding Yuanying said, "Everything's fine, thanks."
Rui Xiaodan drove off.
The Venus Hotel was decorated with lanterns and festive red paper couplets on the front door, with upside-down "Fu" characters on the windows. Though the parking spots were still empty, the restaurant was already setting up tables for the booked New Year's Eve dinners. Waitresses in red floral jackets bustled about, busy preparing.
Seeing the hotel's red Santana parked outside, Rui Xiaodan knew Ouyang Xue was inside. She stopped the car and went in, asking a waitress to call Ouyang Xue.
Ouyang Xue soon came down, smiling as she saw Rui Xiaodan. She approached and whispered, "We're fully booked! Over two hundred tables, booked solid until the sixth. We're making a fortune this year."
Rui Xiaodan, equally delighted, whispered back, "That's great!"
Ouyang Xue asked, "What brings you here?"
Rui Xiaodan said, "Remember Mr. Ding? I visited him for the New Year."
Ouyang Xue said, "I had almost forgotten about him. Didn't he go home for the holiday?"
Rui Xiaodan said, "No, he bought a lot of instant noodles. I think we should bring him some food. Street vendors won't be out until the fifteenth, and it wouldn't be right to let him eat instant noodles for two weeks. I can't face Yawen otherwise. Have the young man who's watching his place bring him some things to cook with noodles, like fried tofu, meatballs, and crispy pork. Send plenty."
Ouyang Xue said, "Got it, I'll have them handle it."
Rui Xiaodan said, "He doesn't have a fridge, so make sure to tell him to hang it outside the window."
Ouyang Xue laughed, "Is he that clueless?"
Rui Xiaodan said, "Maybe he's just pretending to be simple."
Ouyang Xue said, "You don't seem to dislike him as much anymore."
Rui Xiaodan said, "He hasn't called once. I asked the security guard; he goes downstairs for every meal, every day, without seeing anyone or going out much."
Ouyang Xue asked, "What does he do cooped up in there all day?"
Rui Xiaodan shook her head, unable to answer, "Every citizen has the right to choose their lifestyle as long as it's legal. Everyone lives their own way."
But she remembered something Xiao Yawen had said to her at Frankfurt Airport: "With my intelligence, I can't understand someone like him."
She thought to herself, Xiao Yawen is such a smart person.