Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Many in the police force share similar habits.

They wolf down meals, their sleep schedules are erratic from overnight stakeouts, and they rely heavily on cigarettes and tea.

In the meeting room, half the officers clutched thermoses while the other half smoked, filling the air with a hazy fog—like a scene from a TV drama where the Queen Mother hosts her Peach Banquet, truly "heavenly fumes."

Ma Rui, weary from an all-nighter, stumbled in, placing a thick stack of documents on the table with a weak, "Captain..."

"You know, Xiao Fang," Li Wenbin said, pushing the documents aside without a glance, "your unit has advanced technology—multi-camera linked tracking... what else was it?"

Fang Bingxue set down his cup. "Infrared fill light."

Surveillance was a persistent problem in investigations. Currently, most areas relied on single-lens devices with limited basic recording functions. However, last year saw the national deployment of the "Sky Eye Surveillance System," which used a network of multiple cameras for comprehensive area coverage. Fang Bingxue’s region was among the first to explore its capabilities.

Li Wenbin slammed the table. "Right!"

Some of the detectives hadn't heard these terms before and curiously sized up the young man across from them. He wasn’t in uniform, dressed instead in a grayish-blue loose hoodie and jeans, looking no different from a college student. On his first day, some had privately grumbled, "No beard, no experience."

Fang Bingxue offered no explanation. His slender, pale fingers rested on the rim of his cup as he listened quietly.

He understood the department's stance.

The train station had few surveillance cameras, outdated equipment, and grainy night footage. Lichuan County police still relied on traditional investigative methods—canvassing, stakeouts, and largely manual monitoring.

With Qingming Festival approaching, many young migrant workers were returning home to visit family graves, inevitably stopping at the train station. Theft cases had surged dramatically, reaching the threshold of organized, high-value pattern crimes.

This meeting was convened to address precisely that.

"We still need to stake out," an officer named Lao Yan began. "Let’s rotate shifts, especially during peak hours. More people, more eyes on deck."

Next to Lao Yan, his apprentice nodded in agreement. "Yes, even with surveillance, the night footage of suspects is too blurry—just outlines. We can’t secure crucial evidence."

Especially in high-traffic areas like station entrances and exits, cunning theft rings often exploited the chaos to cut bags or pick pockets, then quickly melted into the crowd and vanished.

Li Wenbin scrubbed his face vigorously. "Alright, let’s go with that for now."

Fang Bingxue had arrived in Lichuan County in early spring, and now, over half a month later, the work remained stalled. He had proposed creating a localized database to log information on individuals with prior theft convictions for quick screening. After he explained, everyone exchanged glances. Ma Rui was the first to raise his hand. "We have records—they’re just on paper."

Fang Bingxue was genuinely pleased. "Great, let me see."

But upon entering the archives, faced with mountains of folders piled in metal cabinets, Fang Bingxue looked at the swirling dust and fell silent.

"Even a basic spreadsheet would help," he insisted. "It might not be systematic, but at least it’ll raise awareness."

Precisely because he understood the hardships of grassroots police work, he didn’t want to see everyone repeatedly sifting through handwritten records. Fang Bingxue believed that one day, whether in surveillance or databases, there would be groundbreaking professional advancements.

He was looking forward to it.

It was well past quitting time. The meeting hadn't been long, and some were already packing up to leave. When the door opened, the acrid smoke finally began to dissipate.

In the end, only the desk at the far east side remained occupied.

Because the cigarette in Li Wenbin’s hand hadn’t burned out yet. Dangling it between his fingers, he looked at Fang Bingxue. "Go on."

"We can stitch multiple feeds together to create a basic surveillance wall, with overlapping coverage in key areas like the waiting hall, and manually mark routes."

Fang Bingxue hadn’t left either. Chin propped in his palm, he spoke calmly, as if he’d rehearsed this long ago. But he hadn’t spoken earlier, and now his slightly overgrown bangs fell over his brows, obscuring his eyes.

"But the cost is too high," he added with a quiet laugh. "A single tape only stores three hours of footage. We can’t dynamically adjust layouts—it requires manual monitoring, procurement expenses, and..."

For now, traditional investigative methods were indeed the most suitable.

Li Wenbin coughed for a moment. "How many surveillance cameras does Lichuan Train Station have?"

Fang Bingxue held up two fingers.

"Guess you’ve scoured the whole county," Li Wenbin said, stubbing out his cigarette. "No matter. Human effort first, technology second!"

He stood up, the scrape of his chair dragging behind him, and gave Fang Bingxue a shoulder clap with a laugh. "Let’s go?"

Fang Bingxue looked up and smiled back. "Let’s go."

-

Li Wenbin had guessed right—Fang Bingxue had pretty much canvassed the entire county. Though the population was small, the county was vast, with endless rolling mountains stretching as far as the eye could see.

On his way home from work, he often made small talk with folks. Within days, he’d grown accustomed to the local dialect—after all, younger folks like Ma Rui spoke Mandarin, while the older generation preferred their hometown dialect.

Once, he even overheard a grandmother scolding her grandson for not doing his homework properly: "Gallivanting all day, then cramming by candlelight." Fang Bingxue understood every word and laughed about it for ages.

After getting familiar with the environment, he found the Northwest absolutely fascinating.

Fang Bingxue loved it.

On weekends when he had nothing to do, he’d tag along for pickpocket prevention outreach. Ma Rui once again found himself mobbed by the crowd, his face flushed from the squeezing, while an old-timer up front bellowed:

"Officer, do we get eggs after the talk?"

Fang Bingxue was securing a banner to a tree and, under Ma Rui’s pleading gaze, decided to let him sink or swim. The kid was too shy—fresh out of school, lively around familiar faces, but once out in public, he’d blink like a nervous rabbit.

He needed more practice.

Ma Rui clutched his chest to protect the megaphone hanging there, desperately mouthing 'help me' to Fang Bingxue between gaps in the crowd, looking utterly hopeless.

A colleague laughed and elbowed Fang Bingxue. "Hey, Little Mary’s calling you!"

Fang Bingxue pretended not to hear. "Don’t know him."

Over half an hour later, after finishing the anti-theft talk for local businesses, Ma Rui finally squeezed out of the crowd, whining at Fang Bingxue: "I called you earlier, and you ignored me!"

Fang Bingxue didn’t even pause as he drank his water. "Dealing with crowds comes with the job."

Ma Rui plopped onto a stool, dripping with sweat. "But the moment I talk to them, I get nervous and start tripping over my words."

He grew more aggrieved as he spoke. "And when I stutter, they laugh at me!"

Fang Bingxue screwed the cap back on his water bottle, set it down, and glanced at the flustered rookie. Deciding to play the supportive mentor, he said:

"You’re already doing great," he sat across from Ma Rui. "When I first started, forget about suspects—I was even scared of big dogs on the street."

Ma Rui blinked. "Really?"

"Really," Fang Bingxue said mildly. "My supervisor back then yelled at me daily. Old-school detectives, you know—total hardasses, no-nonsense, chewing you out to your face."

He casually shared a few more embarrassing stories, and as he listened, Ma Rui perked up noticeably. "But you’re amazing now!"

Fang Bingxue took the compliment in stride. "Thank you."

His resume was impeccable—top-tier education, excellent image, involvement in several provincial special operations, awards, merits—his career was on the fast track.

It was almost lunchtime. Taking advantage of the break among his colleagues, Ma Rui leaned in closer and stammered, "S-so, did you come here just for grassroots experience, like some kind of gold-plating?"

He quickly added, "Not that I think that way about you!"

"It's fine," Fang Bingxue chuckled. "You can think that if you want."

After all, judge by deeds, not thoughts. Fang Bingxue didn’t care how others saw him, nor was he here to chase after anything. He felt completely at ease—downright comfortable.

But moments later, Fang Bingxue was no longer comfortable.

Because a small black dog was baring its teeth at him from a distance, eyes glaring fiercely.

"Xuebing, you run first," Ma Rui joked, grinning and winking playfully. "Aren’t you scared of dogs? I’ll protect you!"

Fang Bingxue: "..."

To be honest, he’d never had much luck with animals. Whether it was common cats and dogs or even zoo animals like camels and elephants, they all gave him the cold shoulder.

For example, back in elementary school, there was a beautiful calico cat at the school’s back gate. It would belly-up for anyone—except Fang Bingxue. The moment it saw him, it would spring up gracefully from the ground, tail held high, and walk away with an air of aloof dignity.

Fang Bingxue nursed a grudge.

After that, every time school let out, he made sure to act first—turning away before the cat could react, as if to say, *I don’t even want to pet you anyway.*

The other kids just thought he was being fussy.

Only when the calico was out cold—back when they’d built a little cat shelter under the eaves of the school security booth, lined with Fang Bingxue’s favorite little blanket—did he dare to sneak a touch.

He’d given it to the cat, saying, "*This is soft. The warmest.*"

So, when no one was around and the calico was fast asleep, Fang Bingxue would sneak a hand out like a thief, carefully brushing the tip of its tail.

So fluffy.

It wasn’t that he was afraid of dogs—he’d only said that to comfort Ma Rui. After all, nothing cheers up a mopey friend faster than sharing something even more unfortunate about yourself.

Fang Bingxue had only mentioned being scared of big street dogs.

He hadn’t mentioned that those were a pack of rabid pit bulls—muscular, quick to attack, and already having attacked someone.

Luckily, this was just a small dog, probably not even fully grown. Its snarling was almost cute. Fang Bingxue turned away, silently protesting with his back.

At the same time, a loud voice called out from behind the banner: "Bro Xu, what're you doing here?"

The man’s tone was as lazy and irreverent as ever. "Heard there were free eggs."

"Haha, you and your jokes!"

Fang Bingxue whipped back around in an instant.

His movement was so swift that Ma Rui didn’t even notice, still shaking his fist in frustration. "Damn, how do these rumors even start... Huh? Xuebing, where’d you go?"

He’d been sitting right there a second ago!

The officers on duty today were split into three teams, with only about seven or eight in their group. Ma Rui searched in confusion for a while before finally spotting Fang Bingxue.

On the street behind the crowd.

This street had no traffic lights and few pedestrians, barely noticeable among the vendors and shops. Crossing it was nothing noteworthy.

Nothing special.

Yet Ma Rui’s eyes widened.

There was Fang Bingxue, helping an old lady as they slowly made their way across the street. If not for his police uniform, anyone would’ve thought they were family—their body language was so natural, lit by the noon sun, looking downright heartwarming.

Ma Rui was stunned.

Fang Bingxue was so thoughtful for the people that even while chatting, he hadn’t forgotten to help an old woman cross the street!

The rookie cop was touched, his gaze turning determined.

He regarded Fang Bingxue with a whole new respect.

Author’s Note:

A passerby gave Zhou Xu a nudge. "Bro Xu, turn around and look!"

Zhou Xu didn’t even twitch. "Pfft. What’s so interesting about a bunch of cops?"