Chapter 106

Chapter 106

The little girl exclaimed excitedly, "I heard big brother wants this! Coco will give you all her money! I want to fly way up high! Just like before—whooshing through the air from up there!!"

Shen Geng and Bai Xingshu: "..."

Shen Geng shot Bai Xingshu a glare.

Without a doubt, the "whooshing through the air" the little girl mentioned referred to Bai Xingshu leaping off the high platform and kicking the fraudster away.

Bai Xingshu rubbed his nose, keeping quiet.

He really hadn’t expected there to be kids around here!

In the end, terrified that Wu Jigao might overhear, Bai Xingshu frantically located the girl’s father and tried to make a quick escape after shoving the little firecracker into her parent’s arms.

But the child wouldn’t have it.

"Waaaah!!!" The little girl wailed loudly. "Big brother doesn’t like Coco anymore!!"

Bai Xingshu gave a nervous laugh and hurriedly tried to console her. "Who said I don’t like Coco? Didn’t I carry you and run really fast just now?"

The logic made sense, but kids always have their own logic.

The little girl spread her hands, and another crumpled 5-coin bill appeared in her palm. "Then why won’t big brother take Coco’s money?"

Bai Xingshu didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

He had thought she would bring up the "fly way up high" thing again—turned out to be much ado about nothing.

"This is Coco’s money for buying candy. Big brother wants Coco to have lots of candy and treats. That’s what makes big brother happy." Whether soothing adults or kids, Bai Xingshu was expert at it.

Hearing this, the little girl immediately stopped crying, but she still insisted on giving the money to Bai Xingshu.

"Coco has lots of treats at home, and lots of coins too!" The little girl puffed up like a little rich girl. "I even have 10-star and 15-star bills!"

"Coco doesn’t need coins, but big brother does! So this money is for big brother!"

With that, she grabbed and forced open Bai Xingshu’s hand and stuffed the money into it.

Then, under Bai Xingshu’s bemused expression, she grinned triumphantly at Shen Geng, as if to say, "I did what you couldn’t!"

Everyone present was equal parts amused and exasperated.

The girl’s father also wordlessly urged Bai Xingshu to just take the money, his face full of pleading.

Once the little firecracker started having a meltdown, she was hard to calm down!

Kids didn’t have to be reasonable, and 5 coins wasn't much anyway, so Bai Xingshu didn’t insist too much.

After all, he knew where they lived from last time he saw the child home. He could just bring a gift next time to make it up to them.

No problem.

Just as Bai Xingshu was about to wave goodbye to the father and daughter, the man hesitantly asked, "Officer Bai, are you short on money?"

Hearing this, Bai Xingshu hastily explained, "No, no! I just want to buy something expensive—something fancy. I’m not short on money, I have plenty!"

He added, to prove his point, Bai Xingshu showed off his bank balance with pride.

The gleaming number 54872.12 shone on the communicator.

Seeing this string of digits, the father's expression relaxed.

He was just from an ordinary family in the Upper Qing District, and though he had considerably more money than Bai Xingshu—after all, no matter how ordinary, this was still the capital planet—he also knew that Bai Xingshu, as a newly appointed auxiliary police officer, having over fifty thousand star coins in his account wasn’t exactly poor.

With the atmosphere now lightened, both parties said their goodbyes warmly.

However, after taking only a few steps back, Bai Xingshu heard Shen Geng burst out laughing.

When the father had asked if Bai Xingshu was short on money, it was the first time Shen Geng had seen him so flustered—as if afraid the man would donate money to him the next second.

He’s so damn cute!

Bai Xingshu: "..."

Seriously, whose fault was this?!

Bai Xingshu kicked at Shen Geng, the very person whose actions had somehow turned him into a deadbeat in others' eyes.

The two wrestled playfully their way back to reunite with Wu Jigao.

In their minds, this was just another instance of helping a lost child find their parent. That very evening, Bai Xingshu even followed the joking advice of some fellow officers and gave the little girl a kids’ workbook in return.

What no one expected, however, was that the father, while casually chatting in his neighborhood group, shared the story of his daughter crying to make Bai Xingshu accept her money and the subsequent return gift—along with a photo of the child now tearfully doing her homework.

The group of mischievous adults in the neighborhood chat busted out laughing before the conversation gradually veered off course.

—Wait? Is Officer Bai broke?

—Well, I remember Officer Bai only joined last month. He’s still an auxiliary police officer, must be straight out of college. It’s normal for him to be broke.

—Aren’t the police department’s benefits supposed to be good? Free room and board?

—Yeah, and the food’s actually good too. My kid was taken out for a meal by those two young officers once and refused to eat my cooking afterward (cue the waterworks).

—I think I’ve also heard that when Bai Xingshu arrests suspects, he reads out their bounty right then and there. Apparently, they totally lose it upon hearing it.

—Same here! That murderer from XX neighborhood once roared, "I’m only worth 250?!"

Realizing his cute kid story backfired, the father quickly relayed Bai Xingshu’s original explanation to the group.

Ohhh, that explains it.

The lively discussion shifted direction.

—Go figure, Officer Bai worries about these things too, huh?

—Officer Bai wanting to buy luxury goods is really something. He’s got zero bling on him.

—Officer Bai doesn’t even recognize a racehorse on the street. Does he even know what luxury goods are?

—Good point, LOL.

—Oho, Officer Bai, who can’t tell luxury from laundry, suddenly wants to buy one—bet it’s for a sweetheart, right?

—What are you, Sherlock’s cousin?

The discussion in the neighborhood quickly spread to other group chats.

After all, Officers Bai Xingshu and Shen Geng were quite well-known.

Not only were they exceptionally good-looking, but they were also sharp-tongued and quick to lend a hand—whether it was righting a toppled bike, carrying groceries, or tidying up clutter, a dozen times a day, easy, and they did it all with a grin plastered on their faces.

Enthusiasm’s catching.

That zest for life was something no one who met Bai Xingshu could easily forget.

Not to mention…

They often saw Bai Xingshu leaping across rooftops to apprehend criminals.

No IMAX could top the thrill of watching live-action fight scenes firsthand.

Simply put, Bai Xingshu was a local legend throughout the entire Shangqing District.

So, as the topic spread across various group chats, a counter-narrative took shape.

—What’s the harm in the guy treating himself?

—I’d be worm food if it weren’t for Officer Bai!

—Pfft, if he’s broke—well, we’ve got plenty!

As for the fact that police officers technically shouldn’t accept gifts… rules were made to bend!

Before long, the police station was swamped with ‘misplaced’ goodie bags—each containing varying amounts of cash.

Even more bizarrely, every single package came with a note:

*If lost, please contact the owner: XXX, comms ID: XXXXX.*

The owners listed were invariably police officers in the station, and the comms IDs matched them perfectly.

But…

Did they even lose any money in the first place?!

The baffled staff quickly conducted checks and, with the help of surveillance footage, tracked down the ‘donors.’

Yet… when contacted, every single one played dumb to the end, insisting they hadn’t lost any money and that it was a case of mistaken identity.

Had the whole station stumped, so they compiled a list of the “lost” funds…

Nearly every officer who had worked field assignments was included, and many recognized that the ‘donors’ were people they had helped before—some had even dipped into their own wallets to buy them clothes, shoes, medicine, and the like.

And among them, the top ‘beneficiary’…

Bai Xingshu stared at the fortune in small bills heaped on his desk.

Cue crickets.

[How many Star Coins are here?] Bai Xingshu asked the system.

The system replied quickly: [531,505 Star Coins.]

Bai Xingshu, who had just been criticized for being broke a few days ago: […]

He facepalmed.

He seemed to have figured out what was going on.

Bai Xingshu hurriedly confessed and quickly traced the source of the initial message. Upon learning it originated from group chats, the police station promptly launched damage control to shut this down.

While everyone meant well, this kind of thing was a slippery slope.

If someone donates, others might feel pressured to. What if some officers get gifts while others don’t? That’d breed resentment fast.

Anything involving money tests people’s integrity, so all Star Coins received by the police station would be refunded.

They had to draw the line—maintaining good order was everyone’s responsibility.

Seeing the situation calm down and no more "donations" showing up, Bai Xingshu sighed in relief. He apologized for the trouble he’d caused and quickly set out to return the piles of Star Coins, making the rounds.

However…

Bai Xingshu got the door slammed in his face.

"Hey! Officer Bai, that’s libel!"

"Get out, get out! How dare you accuse me of disrupting order!"

"I never left any money at the station! I’m a model citizen—I’d never do such a thing!"

Bai Xingshu: *sniffle*