Police officer Chen Shu

Chapter 304 What Does a Policeman Need?
On the eighth day of the Lunar New Year, at Chanyun Shopping Mall on Jiefang Street.

The sun was shining brightly, and a few rays of warm sunlight gently streamed into the room.

Chen Shu sat back on the big bed in his bedroom, munching on a peeled apple while watching the local news from Dongzhou, hosted by Zhang Yang, on TV.

Beside the large bed was a chair, where a simply dressed woman of about fifty years old sat, with a peeler and a small plate containing several rolls of fruit peels on the bedside table next to her.

She stared at the TV and casually commented like an ordinary housewife, "This girl is really pleasing to the eye."

Zhang Yang remained as shrewd and capable as ever on the show. Her exquisite makeup and appropriate attire made her feel completely at ease during the interview. The girl being interviewed, although much younger, was undeniably outshone in comparison.

I can't let her know I jumped off the building. Chen Shu picked up the remote and changed the channel, pretending to be casual, "Mom, let's watch a different movie."

Chen Ma raised an eyebrow and scolded, "Look at that news report! Don't think I'm ignorant just because I'm old! It's about your injury case!"

What mother in this world doesn't care about her own child? As the saying goes, a child is a piece of flesh that fell from her mother's body. No matter how grown up or how old the child is, even the slightest injury to the child will break a mother's heart, making her wish she could take the injury herself.

Feeling guilty, Chen Shu switched the channel back.

"Xiaoli, how were you feeling at that time?"

Zhang Yang handed the microphone to the girl, Xiaoli.

Xiaoli closed her eyes and recalled for a moment, then let out a long breath: "Because someone was grabbing my hair from behind, I felt a chill on the back of my neck, as if a knife would stab me in the next second."

Zhang Yang exclaimed in surprise, then patted his chest: "So, how did you feel after the police rescued you?"

Xiaoli opened her eyes and smiled at the camera: "I thought I was going to die, but then the policeman suddenly appeared out of nowhere and knocked the bad guy down. I was completely dazed. Later, the policemen helped me outside, and I felt that the sunshine outside was very bright and warm."

On the television screen, a distant view of the first floor of the waiting hall in the train station case cuts in from the side.

In the photo, a man covered in blood and gore slumps motionless against a wall. In front of him, a man wearing a red helmet and a black jacket is limping on his right leg, bending down and placing his left hand on the head of a girl sitting in front of him who is covering her face and crying.

Zhang Yang's teasing voice rang out, "Xiao Li, are you sure this guy is a policeman? He doesn't look like one. Could he be a plumber from the station?"

Xiaoli smiled sweetly and said, "I'm sure! He's a very handsome police officer!"

"How handsome are you? Can you describe it?"

Xiaoli pressed her index finger to her pouty lips and thought for a moment: "Now that I think about it, if I had to describe him in one word, it would be light. His face was shining!"

Xiaoli chuckled to herself, "I was completely stunned at the time, and I can't actually remember what that guy looked like now. But I'm pretty sure he was a really kind guy!"

"Oh?" Zhang Yang's lips curled up, his interest piqued. "Xiao Li, why did you say he's so warm?"

Recalling how the police gently stopped her from looking back at the terrifying scene and the devilish man, Xiaoli felt a surge of warmth in her heart: "Hehe, it's a secret."

Zhang Yang pursed his lips and paused for a moment. Even through the TV screen, Chen Shu could feel the chilling sensation.

Immediately, Zhang Yang flashed his signature smile: "Xiao Li, do you think this experience will have any impact on your mental health in the future?"

As soon as she finished speaking, Xiaoli shook her head, then playfully saluted the camera: "Yes! I think I will definitely find a policeman as my boyfriend in the future, someone who makes me feel very safe!"

"Okay. It's commercial break now. Host," Zhang Yang said calmly.

Seeing that an advertisement had been inserted in the middle of the news, Chen's mother sighed softly, stood up, took the fruit pits that Chen Shu had left over, put them in a small plate on the bedside table, and carried them out.

"Work is a real headache, not to mention I'm already 27 or 28 and I still don't have a girlfriend. Sigh!"

Chen Shu glanced at his right foot, which was propped up high with a pillow and had an ice pack on it, and turned to comfort him with a smile, "Mom, it's not a big problem. Look, the swelling has gone down a lot. You don't need to worry. The doctor said yesterday that I can get out of bed in about ten days. And about my girlfriend... um... Mom!"

Chen's mother didn't listen to Chen Shu's explanation and went straight to the kitchen outside.

Chen Shu picked up the remote and switched channels, but got bored after flipping through them, so he tossed the remote aside, grabbed his phone from the bedside table, and opened WeChat to browse.

The first unread message was from my former superior, Zeng Hong, last night, saying that he would bring someone over to visit this morning.

The second unread message was from Li Da, the new superior, who also said that he would come over this morning with Xie Chi, the deputy instructor of the brigade.

The third person is Chen Chuan from the Municipal Bureau's Technical Investigation Department, who also said he would come to visit in the afternoon.

The fourth item is a congratulatory message to forensic pathologist Julie for receiving a second-class merit award.

The second-class merit award has been approved?
Seeing that the sun was already high in the sky, Chen Shu didn't have time to look closely. He quickly grabbed the cane that was placed to the side and hopped over to the toilet.

After taking a shower and changing into freshly washed clothes that still smelled of freshness, Chen Ma knocked on the bathroom door and told him that a guest had arrived and that he should come out to greet him.

His tone was surprisingly joyful.

He had assumed that his mother, who had always been strong-willed and protective of her own, would definitely give the leader a stern look and a few words of reprimand this time. But to his surprise, it seemed that things were not as he had imagined.
Chen Shu tidied up quickly, opened the door, and hopped along with his mother to the living room, leaning on his cane.

As soon as the two turned the corner, they saw Zeng Hong and Zhang Yang sitting next to him.

Today's Zhang Yang is different from the professional look on TV. She's dressed simply in sneakers, jeans, and a plain cotton coat. Her hair is tied in a single ponytail, and she's without makeup, her naturally fair skin highlighting her bright, clear eyes.

After helping Chen Shu sit down, Chen Ma said happily, "You two chat first, I'll go get you some fruit and tea."

Some people are beautiful, but stiff and distant. But a flamboyant kind of beauty is gentle and delicate, making people feel close to her.

Her voice was as gentle and soothing as a spring breeze: "Auntie, please sit down. There's no need to be so busy. We're all Chen Shu's friends. We'll just sit for a bit and then leave."

She exudes a warm and approachable aura, clearly someone who has been through a lot, and her high emotional intelligence makes people feel completely comfortable.

"Not busy! Definitely not busy! Please sit a while longer, you must sit a while longer!"

Chen Ma waved her hand and ran towards the kitchen, Zhang Yang couldn't stop her at all.

Zhang Yang turned around, looked at Chen Shu, snorted, threw his pen and notebook on the coffee table, and didn't say anything more. His attitude was completely different from when he spoke to Chen's mother earlier.

Zeng Hong coughed a few times and said, "Xiao Shu, Reporter Zhang is here today for your own good. He's planning to do an exclusive interview with you, and he's even come up with a title for you: 'Hero of Dongzhou'."

Chen Shu glanced at the kitchen where his mother was and cautiously agreed, "I will definitely cooperate fully with this interview, but I can't let my mother know that I jumped off the building yesterday."

Zeng Hong nodded, empathizing with the sentiment.

As a frontline police officer, I would rather suffer more myself than let my family live in fear every day.

"Besides the interview in a bit, I have some good news for you. The second-class merit award, which normally takes two months to process, has been approved ahead of schedule. I was originally going to go to the bureau to pick it up for you, but..." *Knock knock knock!*

Before Zeng Hong could finish speaking, there was a knock at the door. Chen Ma, who was in the kitchen, quickly ran over and opened the door.

"Hello, Auntie! We are Chen Shu's colleagues, and we came here today specifically to visit him!"

A crisp sound came from the doorway.

Then, Li Da, dressed in a special police training uniform, entered the living room with a man and a woman in the same uniform.

The man should be Xie Chi, the deputy instructor that Li Da mentioned in WeChat. The girl in her early twenties should be the team's internal affairs officer; she was the one who greeted Chen Ma at the door just now.

As the three entered the room, before Li Da and Xie Chi, the leaders, could even speak, the girl with short hair ran up to Chen Shu, wrinkled her cute and delicate little upturned nose, and snapped to attention with a salute.

"Chen Da, Zou Qing reporting for duty at the Zhengming District Special Police Brigade!"

A room full of police leaders, plus a prominent reporter, all stared intently at Chen Shu. Most people would stammer, but who was Chen Shu?

Having worked at a local police station for seven or eight years, I was the kind of person who would take a bite of the manure whenever a manure truck passed by.

With composure, Chen Shu picked up his cane from the side and used it to stand up. He returned the gesture with a standard greeting to his first meeting with Zou Qing.

"Hello, Zou Qing. Please have a seat, everyone. My house is a mess, please excuse the mess."

After everyone was seated, Chen Ma hurried out of the kitchen carrying a tray of teacups, serving tea to each person one by one.

Especially in front of Zou Qing and Zhang Yang, the smile in his eyes was almost overflowing.

"You guys chat, I'm going to get busy!"

Chen Ma put down her teacup, smiled as she looked around at everyone, and then went back to the kitchen.

Li Da laughed and first remarked, "Aren't the women in our team quite unique?" Then, after coughing twice, he formally introduced, "This is Xie Chi, our brigade's deputy instructor, responsible for personnel, finances, and duty arrangements."

Xie Chi smiled and nodded to everyone as a greeting.

Li Da pointed: "This is our brigade's internal affairs officer, Zou Qing. Ahem, everyone already knows her."

Zou Qing, with her striking phoenix eyes, stared directly at Chen Shu, somewhat overstepping her bounds: "Brother Chen, I also graduated from the Provincial Police Academy. Can I call you senior brother from now on?"

Generally speaking, how one addresses another is very important and reflects the level of intimacy between them. Logically, since they both came from the same school, it wouldn't be a problem for Zou Qing to call Chen Shu "Senior Brother." However, this was their first meeting, and Zou Qing's presumptuous behavior was somewhat awkward.

Chen Shu could only treat her like a child and nodded in agreement.

But Zhang Yang, sitting opposite her, didn't think so. What she saw was clearly an enemy with extremely strong combat power.

Wearing a dashing SWAT uniform, her makeup was light, but her large almond-shaped eyes sparkled, and her features were naturally beautiful. The little skin she showed was a youthful, vibrant wheat color, giving her a toned, athletic beauty.

"How rude." Zhang Yang snorted coldly, making his presence known.

Having discerned the underlying meaning in the two girls' words, Zeng Hong and Xie Chi quickly lowered their heads to drink their tea, using this as a way to conceal the smiles in their eyes.

The roughneck Li Da was still yelling, "Chen Shu, you really know how to stir up trouble! But we SWAT officers love to stir things up! By the way, this is a unit consolation payment, not much, just two thousand, but you have to accept it. Otherwise, we won't be able to receive it from other injured comrades later!"

While everyone was chatting, Chen's mother rushed to open the door and welcomed in several of Chen Shu's classmates.

As soon as Chen Chuan, the son of the technical investigation officer from the Municipal Public Security Bureau, entered the house, he greeted her warmly with "Hello, Auntie!" as if he didn't consider Chen Shu's home to be anyone else's. He casually ran to the kitchen, grabbed a few cans of iced cola, and sat down next to Chen Shu in the living room, jokingly asking, "Shu, did you miss me?"

He glanced around, paying no attention to Li Da, Zeng Hong, and the other branch office staff, but when he saw Zhang Yang, his gaze was fixed on him.

Cheng Mian from the Municipal Bureau of Legal Affairs appeared more composed, carrying several large bags of fruit and chatting with Chen Ma at the door.

Traffic policeman Zhang Wei picked up a chair, placed it in the empty space next to the coffee table, sat down, ate sunflower seeds, and listened to everyone bragging.

The house wasn't big, but there were quite a lot of people.

Chen Shu took a moment to open her phone and looked at the string of unread messages, feeling a warm glow in her heart.

In the evening, the legal program team of Dongzhou TV station...
In the brightly lit office, several men and women wearing work badges around their necks sat at their desks, happily eating a late-night snack, preparing to go home after finishing their meal.

With a "bang," the door to the innermost office was opened, and Zhang Yang stood at the door and called photographer Xiao Zhao inside.

Zhang Yang, who always prioritizes work, sat in his office chair, resting his chin on his hands, and asked hesitantly, "Xiao Zhao, what kind of girls do you men like?"

Xiao Zhao, who was holding a plastic bowl and putting noodles into his mouth, suddenly choked and took a while to catch his breath.

Looking at the efficient and capable leader of the program team who was just as capable as any man during the day, he exclaimed in surprise, "Sister Yang, could it be that you..."

Zhang Yang frowned and waved his hand: "Stop asking those abstract questions, just tell me your thoughts?"

Xiao Zhao placed the plastic bowl aside and organized his thoughts: "It seems like this society expects men to be strong and upright, unable to show any weakness, unable to cry, and unable to complain of pain. This kind of stereotype is extremely narrow-minded. Even Andy Lau couldn't stand it and wrote a song called 'Men Can Cry, It's Not a Crime.'"

Zhang Yang looked bewildered and suspicious, only to hear the other party continue:

"Ultimately, it comes down to finding something a man needs. I think it's gentle love. Men need a haven where they can rest, a place where they can talk to someone and vent their frustrations when they feel wronged or misunderstood, or when they're working hard all day."

As she spoke, Xiao Zhao squatted down slightly, placed her fists under her face, and suddenly became coquettish, her lips curving into a shy smile: "Go for it, brother! Please do your best!"

Zhang Yang shuddered, his whole body covered in goosebumps from Xiao Zhao's antics.

She pointed to herself and asked in surprise, "Do you think it looks like me?"

Xiao Zhao deflated like a punctured balloon, picked up the half-eaten plastic bowl, and slunk away.

With a clear purpose, Zhang Yang stood up and walked to the window, thinking to himself that Xiao Zhao, who was spouting nonsense, did make one right point.

I need to find something a man needs.

What does a police officer need?

She took a deep breath and slammed her fist into her palm.

"It's a case!"

(End of this chapter)