Reborn Cat Sheriff

Chapter 427 Specialties
‘Stab it! ’

The old leather, which had reached its limit of age, was easily scratched with a long crack by Lingo's claws.

Lin Ge looked up, his eyes full of innocence, and raised his sharp fingernails as if to continue painting. Zheng Mingxing's lips twitched and he quickly stopped him.

With a wry smile, Zheng Mingxing grabbed Lin Ge by the neck and gently pressed him onto the seat. He quickly explained, "Just kidding! Mimi, don't mess around! Actually, the people from the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection are here, and the county's cars need to be kept in reserve to assist them. This car is Secretary Kong Zhongpei's private car; I borrowed it temporarily. Mimi, don't mess it up anymore. If you damage it, you'll have to pay compensation. This car is Old Kong's only luxury in his life; if you break it, he'll really have nothing left."

"Is this nearly twenty-year-old antique considered a luxury item?"

Lin Ge gave Zheng Mingxing a disdainful look before pulling away from his grasp. As for the car, he certainly wouldn't bother with it anymore; Lin Ge couldn't possibly mess with a penniless old man's personal junk.

"Secretary Kong, isn't that a bit of an exaggeration? With his salary, how difficult could it be for him to buy a car?"

Li Yiduo was skeptical, mainly because he understood a fundamental principle: even if a county was poor, it wouldn't affect the finance bureau's ability to pay civil servants' salaries. At most, their bonuses and other benefits might be lower than in other counties and cities, but their basic salaries as stipulated by the state would remain unaffected. To say that a county official couldn't even afford a car was a gross exaggeration. No matter how much emphasis was placed on the government and the people being together, it shouldn't have come to this.

"Secretary Kong's salary was basically used to help a few poor students in the county complete their studies. Even if tuition and miscellaneous fees are waived for nine years of compulsory education, living expenses are still needed. But there are many girls in the county whose families are unwilling to even pay for their living expenses."

Zheng Mingxing shook his head and revealed the truth, saying softly, "The poorer the place, the more obvious the preference for sons over daughters. After Fang Yun came, she also sponsored several young girls. Even though the previous mayor had already stepped down, his sponsorship funds still came every month. So! Why do you think Fang Yun was able to get things done so decisively in Jixi County? Because long before she came, Jixi County was already working together to do everything in its power to lift the entire county out of poverty."

Li Yiduo and Li Siyu exchanged a glance, unsure of what to say.

It seems that life is not easy for anyone.

As the Santana creaked and rattled back to Jixi County, Zheng Mingxing didn't take them back to the county government. Instead, he parked the car in front of a guesthouse not far away.

Seeing the puzzled expressions on the faces of the two people and the cat, he smiled and said, "The comrades from the Discipline Inspection Commission are still working, so we outsiders have to avoid suspicion. However, the basic information has been collected almost completely, and it should be finished in the next couple of days. Oh, by the way, Shu Cheng's wife and daughter took a plane back to China the night before last. One planned to go to Xizhong City, and the other planned to sneak back to Jixi County. They were caught red-handed by the comrades from the county who were staking out the airport. They found the keys to the two rooms in the State Grid residential area on Shu Cheng's wife, confirming that the valuables in the secret room belonged to the accounts. Shu Cheng's daughter was also arrested because she went there secretly to mourn her father."

"Well done! The families of corrupt officials should pay the price along with them!"

Li Siyu couldn't help but clench her fist and shout.

“It will be difficult for them to leave the county police station until they have clearly confessed all the facts of Shu Chengcai’s embezzlement and the whereabouts of all the stolen money.”

Zheng Mingxing nodded, then changed the subject, saying, "In short, this case in Jixi County has officially come to an end. All the criminals have been brought to justice, and we can go back in a couple of days. Hehe... Old Nie has called me quite a few times these past few days. The police station is really struggling without the two of you. Especially Li Siyu, Yan Ziming misses you terribly; she's been so busy these past few days she's almost cried."

"Hehe... I'll get to work as soon as I get back."

Li Siyu smiled awkwardly, knowing that leaving everything to Yan Ziming these past few days had indeed caused the girl a lot of trouble.

The main issue is that Yan Ziming's original partner had been reassigned due to Li Siyu's arrival. That middle-aged woman went to the logistics department, and getting her back to do hard work wouldn't be easy.

"Are you leaving the day after tomorrow?"

Lin Ge looked up at the gradually darkening sky. Did that mean there was only one day left before he had to leave? He had finally managed to go on this business trip, and he hadn't even prepared any gifts for everyone yet!

Last time he returned from the southern province, the gifts he prepared were praised and appreciated by all his colleagues. Although he'll be staying in Sichuan province for a shorter time this time, he still needs to prepare the same things, right? Everyone at the police station treats him well; he can't be ungrateful.

"You're going to go out by yourself?"

The next morning, Lin Ge refused Li Siyu's offer to come along, saying he wanted to take a cat out for a stroll instead. The purpose of the stroll was definitely to buy a gift, which needed to be kept secret since Li Siyu would also receive one; the only problem was how to bring it back.

However, there's always a way out, and Lin Ge didn't think he was truly helpless.

Then...Ling Ge discovered something: it seemed a bit difficult to buy a suitable gift in Jixi County.

This location is too poor, and the commercial atmosphere is also barren. Although it hasn't reached the point of bartering, the goods sold on the street are still quite unremarkable. Even apart from daily necessities, most of the snacks sold here are exactly the same as those in ordinary supermarkets, completely worthless if you go through the trouble of bringing them back to Zhangzhou.

As for those rare items that can only be found locally, Lin Ge didn't find much after wandering around.

I originally wanted to buy some local specialties, but I found that there were no specialty stores for them here. Perhaps it's because the local specialties others are talking about are just things that people in Jixi County are used to, and they don't have the ideas or channels to sell them.

Lin Ge had been wandering around from early morning until afternoon, and he was exhausted but hadn't found anything.

Along the way, besides suppressing two dogs that were unleashed and whose owners were unknown, he also tamed a little country cat. However, this little cat was also heartless; after following behind Lin Ge for a while, it got tired and disappeared without a trace.

Lin Ge ignored it and continued to wander around lazily. This time, he finally found a shop selling smoked rabbit meat near the national highway.

The rabbits, stripped naked, were hung on poles to be baked by the exhaust fumes of passing trucks. Surprisingly, the smoked rabbits at this shop made Lin Ge's mouth water. Perhaps because he hadn't eaten during the day, he felt the hand-smoked rabbits looked remarkably good.

"Where did this stray cat come from? Go away! Go away!"

The shop owner was a boy of only thirteen or fourteen, his nose snotty and disheveled, hunched over a stool doing his homework. Seeing Lin Ge approach, he quickly put down his pen, stood up, and tried to shoo him away. When Lin Ge didn't leave, he looked around and picked up a stick from the side.

"Damn, bringing weapons is a foul!"

Lingo quickly backed away; a smart cat wouldn't be foolish enough to try and gauge the hardness of the stick.

"If you don't leave now, I'll let you experience the power of my Monkey King!"

The little brat picked up the stick and completely forgot his homework, waving it around playfully while glaring menacingly at Lin Ge. Unfortunately, the Suppressor also heard the commotion and came out. Seeing the scene outside the door, he grabbed Monkey King's ear without saying a word.

"I told you to do your homework, what are you playing for! Still playing! Still playing! If you get another five points on your math test this time, I'll break both your legs!"

The burly middle-aged woman, with an aura comparable to Erlang Shen (a Chinese deity), instantly subdued the Monkey King. The Monkey King covered his ears and screamed, but his mother forcefully grabbed him by the ears, dragged him to the stool, and threw him down. She also snatched his stick and kicked it away.

"My golden cudgel!"

Monkey King let out a miserable cry as he watched helplessly as the cat grabbed his precious pet, rolled it on the ground a couple of times with its paws, and then kicked it away with its hind legs, looking rather bored.

"Where did the cat come from?"

After dealing with the monkey, the old woman turned to look at the cat demon. The cat demon's eyes were quite intelligent, and its appearance was clean, unlike a wild cat, except that its body was covered in bald patches, which looked a bit strange.

After thinking for a moment, she went back inside and quickly took out a piece of dried and shrunken rabbit entrails, which she then tossed toward Lin Ge.

"Eat up! But don't ruin my food! If you really want to stay, catch all the rats in the house! If you're useless, get out of here. I can't afford to keep another piece of trash!"

As she spoke, she gave her silly son, who was scratching his head and looking at her, a fierce look.

The poor little monkey could only obediently lower its head in front of the Buddha and continue to grit its teeth and do its homework.

Lin Ge looked at the already filthy thing, which had become even dirtier after rolling on the ground. He couldn't tell if it was rabbit liver or rabbit heart. He grimaced in disgust and didn't dare to take a bite.

"Oh, so you're a picky eater!"

The old woman raised an eyebrow, and seeing Lin Ge still staring at the rabbit meat she was selling, she sneered, "If you want to eat this stuff, you have to pay! If you don't have money or skills, don't hang around here, or I'll roast you like a rabbit and sell you!"

Lin Ge's body suddenly stiffened.

He looked up and carefully examined the smoked rabbit hanging on the pole, and after a while, he was certain that there was no unscrupulous cat disguised as a rabbit. Knowing that the old lady was making fun of him, he grinned and mustered his courage to walk to the shop entrance.

"ah!"

Seeing the cat dare to approach, the little boy was eager to pounce. Unfortunately, his mother turned around and glared at him, and he immediately chickened out and buried his head in his homework.

"Monkey King, Monkey King, you're amazing!"

The little boy mumbled very softly, but Lin Ge heard him clearly. Oh dear! Another inattentive kid! He even talks about cartoons while studying; no wonder he only got five points last semester.

"Kitty, what are you doing?"

The older woman, still worried about her goods, quickly stepped in front of Lin Ge. "Ouch!"

Lin Ge looked up and let out a strange cry, startling the woman and her son. Then they saw Lin Ge stretch out his right hand and point at the rabbit meat on the pole, as if he were selecting goods.

"You...you really want to buy it?"

The woman softened her tone, mainly because the cat's strange behavior made her feel guilty. To be honest, if it weren't for its size and appearance, this cat's demeanor would be no different from that of a large truck passing by, generously taking several cats at a time.

Lin Ge nodded.

"You really want to buy it?"

The woman didn't want to believe in superstitions, but doing business these days isn't easy.

Selling smoked meat by the roadside seems simple, but it's common to go a day or two without making a single sale. Besides, smoked meat can't be eaten raw, so unless a truck driver sees it and is planning to give it as a gift, they might not necessarily stop to buy it.

"Ow~"

Lin Ge stared at the woman and called out again, signaling her to hurry up and pack the rabbit without arguing. Seeing that the woman was still hesitating, he pointed at the rabbit she had chosen with his paw one more time.

It was called a selection, but it was practically a take-all. There were over twenty people in the police station, so one for each person meant about twenty. Adding in the acquaintances from the city bureau, Baimiao, and Longquan, even thirty wouldn't be enough to go around!
"Pay first!"

Seeing that his silly mother had actually let a stinky cat pretend to be a rabbit, the little brat immediately stood up and reached out his hand to Lin Ge.

The older woman also stopped in her tracks.

My son is smarter; he just wants the money first. What if that silly cat was just messing around? Wouldn't I be laughed at by the neighbors for the rest of my life for pretending like that?

The woman glanced at the car wash next door, and sure enough, that annoying jinx was staring at her with a sneer. She had already decided to spread the news throughout Jixi County about her selling the rabbit to a cat.

"Ouch!"

Lin Ge glared impatiently at the little brat. Who would be short of your money?
“WeChat or Alipay?”

The little boy pulled out a piece of paper from under his textbook; it contained two QR codes for receiving payments. However, perhaps too lazy to go inside and get some scrap paper, he had drawn a monkey head on the back of each QR code, in a very abstract way, which was now exposed to his mother.

"I told you to do your homework, and you draw for me? You're even spending my money on things I earn, do you want to die?!"

The old lady started yelling again.

"Can you finish what I need to do first? Okay!"

Lin Ge sighed helplessly and let out another howl to attract their attention. Seeing the older woman looking at him expectantly, Lin Ge squatted down and used his two paws to turn the collar around, revealing the QR code hidden behind it.

"Hey! Hurry up and scan it! This thing can't scan yours, so grab your phone now if you want to pay whatever amount!"

Lin Ge called out impatiently again.

"This is... the payment code!"

Now it was the old lady's turn to be surprised. This cat could actually be bought? Although it's just a QR code, a cat carrying a QR code these days... wait, could it be a monster from the mountains?

The older woman hesitated for a moment, but Monkey reacted the fastest. He immediately got up and ran into the house, quickly bringing back an old phone. He skillfully unlocked it, brought up WeChat, scanned a QR code, and after a "ding," looked up at his mother.

"Mom, how much are you charging?"

The little boy looked up at his mother, then blinked frantically, trying to signal her. It was a cat! And who knew where it came from! How could he not give his mother a good stab?
"I'll hate you my ass!"

The older woman immediately understood the little boy's idea. She first glared at him fiercely, then cautiously looked at the cat beside her, whose eyes were fixed on her, and said, "Little cat, you want them all? If you want them all, I'll charge you eighty yuan each, okay? I sell these rabbits to drivers outside for one hundred and twenty yuan each. I'll give you a discount if you buy a lot, but let's make it clear first, at eighty yuan you can't choose, you have to take them all."

"I remember that these smoked rabbits sell for 130 or 140 yuan each in Xizhong City. But their rabbits are bigger and look better than the ones here, since they've had things added to them. The rabbits here are all different sizes, and they're just smoked without too many spices, so 80 yuan each is reasonable."

After thinking for a moment, Lin Ge nodded seriously and decided to take over all the poles.

"That's thirty-four, two thousand..."

The woman couldn't solve it and turned to look at her son. "Such a simple problem, you should..."

The little boy tilted his head and thought for a moment, but couldn't figure it out. However, he had a solution: he quickly exited the QR code scanning page on his phone, found the calculator tool, and started typing away.

"Mom, it's two thousand seven hundred and twenty, let's make it two thousand eight!"

Under the speechless, even seemingly ready-to-beat gaze of the older woman, the little boy raised his head and reported the answer.

"Damn, it even has carry-over?"

Lin Ge's lips twitched. This little brat is a shrewd businessman!

"Two thousand and five!"

The woman glared at her son fiercely. "How could you be so stupid in front of such a magical cat? Aren't you afraid it will come back to haunt you at night and steal your soul?"

"Tch, two thousand seven hundred!"

The young boy refused to compromise and once again pulled up the QR code to scan the motionless Lin Ge. After scanning, he slowly entered the numbers, his eyes flashing as 2700 became 3700. But just as he triumphantly clicked "confirm," he suddenly froze for a second.

Holding the phone, he didn't dare touch it, rubbing his eyes hard before looking again. He blinked in disbelief, sniffled, and looked again; the little boy's voice quickly turned tearful.

"Mom! Look..."

"What are you looking at? I still need to pack it up. There's so much, I need to help you find something to put it in..."

Before she could finish speaking, the woman saw the spot on her son's old phone where he was pointing with his finger—the location of the payer's name.

"Zhanghe... Police Station..."

"The police station?"

The two people, one big and one small, shuddered simultaneously, and when they turned to look at Lin Ge, their eyes instantly filled with fear.

Good heavens, it's the police!
"Mom, what if they take me back and lock me up?"

The little boy's voice trembled with the thought that he had actually dared to blackmail a policeman's cat. The 3,700 yuan had already been deposited into his account, clearly and unmistakably displayed on his phone! The evidence of this blackmail was undeniably real! And it was blackmail against the police.

"I'll beat you to death, you little brat!"

The woman rolled her eyes and slapped him hard across the face.

Lin Ge, who was standing next to him, was also startled by the merciless slap. When he looked up, he saw that blood was gushing from the little boy's nostrils.

"So... that's your reason for beating your son and then dragging him to kneel down in front of my police station?"

Lu Dingping, who was just about to leave work, stared speechlessly at the helpless old woman and the little brat kneeling on the ground next to her, wiping his nose and silently shedding tears.

Looking to the side, a cat was lazily yawning while perched on a tricycle. The tricycle was loaded to the brim with smoked rabbits—far more than thirty; a rough estimate would put it at least forty!

"What a sin!"

Lu Dingping sighed. What kind of situation is this?
(End of this chapter)