Chapter 7 Is Representative Jiang Free Every Day

Chapter 7: Is Councilor Jiang That Free Every Day?

"That's quite a coincidence," Zhu Shinian replied calmly, as if long accustomed to being recognized, showing no excessive reaction. "Get in the car."

The student gave a strange smile. His friend, who had just helped him up, quickly shot him a warning glance and even reached out to stop him.

"You're my senior, the first person from the 26th District to get into the Imperial Capital University, a golden phoenix rising from a chicken coop."

"Your photo is still posted at the entrance of the middle school. When they praise me, they say I'll become the second Zhu Shinian. We all thought you would do more things beneficial to the 26th District."

The student paused here, his gaze suddenly turning cold.

"But what are you doing now? Acting as the empire's lackey to arrest us? How can you face the 26th District?"

"Xiao Zhao..."

"Why are you stopping me! Anyway, the teacher will come to bail us out. We're students—what can he do to us?"

"How dare you speak to our Colonel Zhu like that?" Fu Cheng stepped forward angrily. "Do you really think that student ID is a talisman? Think I can't deal with you?"

Catching the look Zhu Shinian gave him, Fu Cheng instantly lost his nerve. "Colonel, I didn't mean that, I just..."

"Tell the police to drive off," Zhu Shinian said calmly.

The van holding the students didn't start moving immediately. Instead, a uniformed officer got out of the driver's seat, looking troubled, and walked over to Zhu Shinian.

"Colonel, the teacher from the school who came to bail them out is already on the way and will arrive soon. He said we shouldn't take them to the police station."

"Then do as they say. Imperial Capital University doesn't allow them to have criminal records anyway. What difference does it make whether they spend half a day in the police station's detention room? Going there won't teach them a lesson."

The officer sighed reluctantly. Zhu Shinian smiled. "Officer, have you had breakfast? You came with a squad, right? I know a steamed bun shop around the corner that's quite good. Wait a moment—I'll go buy some for you to try."

Zhu Shinian was gentle and easygoing, willing to take responsibility and make decisions. Although it was the first time the officer had dealt with this colonel, he understood at once why nearly all his colleagues spoke highly of him, even though he came from the slums.

Though still troubled, he followed Zhu Shinian's advice and didn't immediately drive the students to the police station.

Zhu Shinian then went to find Gu Zhen, who was calming down the surrounding shopkeepers, and asked him what kind of steamed bun filling he wanted.

Gu Zhen had a stomach condition and couldn't skip breakfast. But in the morning he had little appetite and was very picky—he wouldn't eat even a bite if it wasn't what he wanted.

"One tofu bun, one flower roll, and sweet soy milk. Are you treating your colleagues? Remember to use my supplementary card."

Zhu Shinian agreed and turned to go buy the buns at the corner. Because of the recent protest, the steamed bun shop owner, who had been staring gloomily at his steam baskets, immediately brightened up upon hearing Zhu Shinian's large order and cheerfully stood up to pack the breakfast.

A black commercial van stopped on the empty street after the protest. The door opened, and a tall alpha stepped out.

Jiang Huaiyan wasn't wearing formal attire, just a dark overcoat, as if he had come straight from finishing a lecture. Seeing his students under control, he sighed helplessly.

"Not too scared, everyone?"

The students looked up, and upon recognizing him, they sighed with relief as if they had seen a savior.

"Teacher! You're finally here! Those military and police people were so fierce! They said they would lock us up and no one could bail us out."

"Teacher—I was just thinking, since I'm so dumb, if I go to prison and I'm not fast enough on the sewing machine, will I get whipped?"

The students started complaining all at once. Jiang Huaiyan smiled and comforted them one by one.

"Politicians," Jiang Huaiyan said half-jokingly, "should constantly go in and out of prison. Getting used to it early isn't a bad thing."

When speaking to students, his tone was very gentle, far less sharp and sarcastic than usual.

Someone couldn't help but laugh, and the tense atmosphere quickly became lighter.

Zhu Shinian happened to return after buying breakfast. He first ran to give some to Gu Zhen, then came back to the protest street to distribute the buns to his subordinates and the police officers one by one.

When he saw Jiang Huaiyan's car, he was clearly taken aback. He hadn't expected Jiang Huaiyan to be the one coming.

Jiang Huaiyan's eyes met Zhu Shinian's across the crowd. He paused slightly, then smiled warmly at him and nodded in greeting.

"Professor Jiang, have you had breakfast?" Zhu Shinian walked over to him. "There are fried dough sticks, flower rolls, and buns with red bean paste, tofu, and meat fillings."

"I'm fine with anything. Whatever you like, just leave two for me."

"I've already eaten. You choose." Zhu Shinian wasn't lying. Since he didn't know what the professor coming to pick up the students liked, he bought one of each for him.

Jiang Huaiyan took the breakfast from Zhu Shinian and distributed the remaining portions to a few students who looked thinner and less able to withstand hunger.

The student who had fainted from low blood sugar earlier didn't take the red bean paste bun Jiang Huaiyan handed him. Frowning, he looked at Jiang Huaiyan with great bewilderment.

"Teacher, how do you know him?"

"You mean Colonel Zhu? He's a friend of mine." Jiang Huaiyan frowned almost imperceptibly, not making his displeasure too obvious. "Colonel Zhu bought you these buns. Go ahead and eat."

The student gritted his teeth, still not taking the bun from Jiang Huaiyan. He glanced at Zhu Shinian again. "How can you have such a friend... someone from a commoner background who betrays his own class to be a lackey of the nobility..."

Jiang Huaiyan raised his hand and gave the student a sharp slap across the face.

He slapped him with force. The student staggered backward and would have fallen if not for his companion who reached out to steady him.

He looked up at Jiang Huaiyan, dazed.

The surrounding students, though they knew Jiang Huaiyan would likely reprimand the student for his rudeness, never expected the usually gentle and kind Professor Jiang to resort to physical violence. Almost all of them were stunned, and even Zhu Shinian stood frozen, unsure how to react.

"Everyone, let's head back to school," Jiang Huaiyan said, as if he had no intention of explaining why he hit the student. Smiling warmly as usual, he calmly took out his phone to call cars for the students and organize their return. "I'll call cars for you. According to the groups you assigned before coming here, one car per group."

It was as if his students suddenly realized in that moment that no matter how democratic, egalitarian, and pro-commoner Jiang Huaiyan's usual political stance was, he was still an aristocrat who could kill someone on the street and not go to jail.

"Zhao Ping," his companion whispered to him, "the professor said Colonel Zhu is his friend. Besides, Colonel Zhu was very kind to us just now. You really shouldn't have said that about him..."

The student named Zhao Ping seemed to have been stunned into a daze by the slap from the teacher he admired. He murmured "I'm sorry" several times in a low voice, almost inaudible to others.

Seeing him standing there as if dumbfounded, his companion, afraid that staying longer would anger Jiang Huaiyan again, quickly pulled him into the first rideshare car Jiang Huaiyan had called.

This was the first time Zhu Shinian had seen Jiang Huaiyan like this. More than gratitude for having stood up for him, what he felt was unfamiliarity.

It was as if... he didn't know this Jiang Huaiyan at all.

"What's wrong? Scared? I'm not going to hit you." After the students got into the cars, only Jiang Huaiyan and Zhu Shinian remained. Jiang Huaiyan glanced at Zhu Shinian and said flatly, "See me hit someone and think you misjudged me?"

"Don't think that of me," Zhu Shinian said quickly. "You stood up for me. No matter how muddle-headed I am, I won't dislike you."

"So, you still think I shouldn't have hit him?"

"I... I just think he wasn't wrong. I didn't feel wronged. I chose my own path, and I don't regret it. But I will always remember your kindness to me."

"Didn't he deserve it?" Jiang Huaiyan countered.

"When he accused you, he was so righteous, but why is it you?"

"Among the many nobles who were born into privilege, has he ever confronted and cursed them to their faces like that?"

"He curses the oppressive nobles, and he also curses you. Then he is indeed an upright rebel. But just now, I slapped him for no reason, did he jump up and curse me like he cursed you?"

Zhu Shinian had never thought about these things. In fact, it was just a job to him.

He wasn't smart, couldn't think as deeply as Jiang Huaiyan. The closest he ever got to profound issues like politics and human nature was in his general ed college courses.

All he could do was do his job well, save a lot of money, and then...

"Let's not talk about this anymore," Jiang Huaiyan abruptly ended the topic. He felt the breakfast in his hand through the plastic bag and complained with some irritation, "It's freezing. The breakfast you bought me is already cold."

"Then I'll go buy you another one... Or would you like to go eat together? It might taste better freshly made. This shop is just around the corner; shall I take you there? They also have steamed dumplings, pan-fried buns, and soup dumplings. They're pretty good too, but not very convenient to take away."

"Colonel Zhu, are you done with your work? I don't want someone to walk by and say I'm interfering with your work."

"It's fine," Zhu Shinian said. "You've taken the students away; we just need to wrap things up and write a report. Let me take you to breakfast. I see you're very busy with work and often skip breakfast—you'll end up with stomach issues."

Zhu Shinian was eager to take Jiang Huaiyan to breakfast, completely forgetting for a moment what Jiang Huaiyan had said when they first met yesterday—that Gu Zhen didn't like him getting too close to his subordinates.

Just then, his communicator rang. Zhu Shinian gave Jiang Huaiyan an apologetic smile and asked him to wait a moment.

But just as he was about to answer, before he could see who was calling, the other party had already hung up.

"Major General Gu," Jiang Huaiyan looked at the person not far behind Zhu Shinian and greeted with a smile. "It's just a student protest, and even you showed up."

"Representative Jiang, are you that free every day?" Gu Zhen walked over, stopped beside Zhu Shinian, and asked, his tone somewhat unfriendly.

Author's note: