The Prosecutor Is Accustomed To Waiting For A Rabbit To Hit A Stump - Chapter 19

Chapter 19

“The skillful masters of the Way in ancient times were subtle, mysterious, profound, and penetrating; so deep that they were hard to comprehend. It is only because they were hard to comprehend that I can only reluctantly describe them:

Cautious, like fording a river in winter;

Hesitant, like fearing the neighbors;

Solemn, like a guest;

Yielding, like ice about to melt;

Substantial, like uncarved wood;

Spacious, like a valley;

Turbid, like muddy water.

Who can, by being still, gradually make the muddy clear?

Who can, by remaining at rest, gradually give rise to life?

He who preserves this Way desires not to be full. It is only because he is never full that he can be worn out and yet newly made.”

“Good heavens, a whole pile of characters.”

Lin Fan quickly slid the screen, scrolling down for the analysis.

“Good heavens,” these analyses were also vague, going back and forth, circling around.

However, she vaguely figured out the general meaning of the passage: a skillful person possesses the following characteristics: extremely cautious and meticulous, like stepping on ice to cross a river in winter; reverent of everything around them; humble and polite; detached from worldly desires, seeking neither fame, profit, nor money.

“Does ‘Substantial like uncarved wood’ mean something like ’embracing simplicity’?” Lin Fan touched her chin.

Next were the lines, “Spacious, like a valley; Turbid, like muddy water.” This roughly meant having great tolerance, being able to accommodate and accept everything, appearing muddy but actually being very clear.

This made Lin Fan’s mind pop up with a text she had learned in Chinese class before, the content of which seemed to be about a person washing his headband by the river and then washing his feet in the same river.

What was that line again?

Lin Fan racked her brain but couldn’t recall it.

Just then, the office phone rang. Lin Fan, feeling a sense of relief, immediately tucked the sticky note into her notebook.

“Hello. Good day.”

“Hello! Judge! When can I get my money!”

This was an applicant for enforcement from one of her cases. Hearing the applicant’s straightforward language, Lin Fan felt a sense of familiarity. She felt she was truly better suited for this.

Still, who wrote that sticky note for her?

During lunch in the staff canteen, many colleagues who were close to Lin Fan came over, nudged her, and expressed that they had seen her “heroic posture” of hugging the pig.

Lin Fan felt like she wanted to cover her face and weep. She cared about her reputation too!

With Vice President Dong’s words from the morning still weighing on her heart, the food was somewhat tasteless and hard to swallow.

During her lunch break, lying on her simple cot, her thoughts inevitably began to drift.

She had read reports before saying that some foreign media liked to specifically choose bad weather to film public security forces/police.

She never thought her incident might also be treated this way.

Sighing at the thought, she didn’t dare to search for the news about her pig-hugging. Half-closing her eyes, she was alert and worried one moment, then confused and choked up the next.

She suddenly recalled the convoluted phrase, whether in a dream or reality.

Cautious, like fording a river in winter; Hesitant, like fearing the neighbors; Solemn, like a guest; Yielding, like ice about to melt; Substantial, like uncarved wood; Spacious, like a valley; Turbid, like muddy water.

Fording a river in winter—wasn’t that what Vice President Dong meant by “treading on thin ice”?

Spacious, like a valley; Spacious, like a valley…

When work resumed in the afternoon, Ying Chaoyang pushed the door open and saw Lin Fan looking energetic and full of drive.

Seeing him, she smiled. “Get ready, we’re heading out.”

“Sister Fan?” Ying Chaoyang was confused. “Where to?”

“A pile of things. Not only do we need to go to the bank, but also to the Vehicle Administration Office. The investigation team reported this morning that the factory and the investor in the migrant workers’ case have no executable assets under their names. We’re going to conduct an offline investigation.”

“Yes…” A mountain of tasks came crashing down. Ying Chaoyang steadied himself, but his voice was weak.

Lin Fan was printing materials. Seeing Ying Chaoyang’s state, she smiled brightly and was full of energy. “Cheer up, young man!”

“Sister Fan, I truly admire you,” Ying Chaoyang said with an exhausted look. The brief lunch break felt both precious and pitiful compared to the huge workload. “How do you stay so motivated every day? Are you an Iron Man? Or a robot?”

Lin Fan raised an eyebrow.

With the materials ready, Lin Fan checked her credentials.

It was noon, and the early summer sun was blinding.

She put on her sunglasses, looking exceptionally sharp. “Let’s go, young man! Time for battle.”

She had figured it out. Just like the sentence that someone left on her desk, she would be this contradictory person: constantly cautious yet not timid. She could wash her headband by the river and also wash her feet in the same river.

Wait, what was that sentence exactly?

On the way to the bank, Lin Fan asked Ying Chaoyang if he knew the phrase.

Ying Chaoyang burst into laughter when he heard her. “Sister Fan, you must be referring to: ‘If the water of the Canglang is clear, I can wash my headband in it; if the water of the Canglang is muddy, I can wash my feet in it.

“Yes! That’s the one.”

“Hahahaha,” Ying Chaoyang laughed. “A true depiction of ‘I’m uncultured, so all I can say is ‘WTF’,’ hahahaha.”

Lin Fan shrugged, remarkably good-naturedly, even self-deprecatingly. “It’s true. We all came out of compulsory education, so why am I such a poor student?”

Ying Chaoyang stopped laughing and offered a small compliment. “It’s all the same, all the same. We’re not in the office to write articles; as long as we get the job done, that’s what matters.”

Support The Prosecutor Is Accustomed To Waiting For A Rabbit To Hit A Stump