The Prosecutor Is Accustomed To Waiting For A Rabbit To Hit A Stump - Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Lin Fan had set out in the afternoon full of vigor and determination, but on the way back, she was frowning and somewhat worried.

Ying Chaoyang asked, “It’s exactly as the investigation team said, completely destitute, with absolutely nothing. What should we do, Sister Fan? I see that this investor genuinely has no executable assets left. What about that group of applicants for enforcement?”

Lin Fan looked out the car window without saying a word.

Outside the police car, the clean road was busy with traffic. The sunset filled half the sky, like a piece of jade.

Every day seemed to be like this: the city wakes up when the sun rises, and people return home when the sky darkens.

Day after day, the cycle repeats, like the hands of a clock, turning round and round, yet stirring up ripples.

This city, with its steel and concrete bones, contains too many people and too much joy and sorrow. Most of these emotions are endured individually, unable to be fully shared.

When they returned to the unit, it was already past closing time. Only a few scattered people were still in the offices.

As Lin Fan and Ying Chaoyang walked toward their office, Lin Fan generously offered, “It’s past dinner time. I’ll treat you to a meal outside.”

Ying Chaoyang’s face suddenly flushed. “N-No need.”

Lin Fan’s eyes lit up. “Oh, a date, huh? Good job, Chaoyang. Do I know her?”

Ying Chaoyang stammered, unable to speak, his ears also turning red.

“Sister Fan!~” Chen Qian’s office door was still open, and Zhou Ning skipped out. In the warm, late-spring evening, she wore a light, flowered dress, and a flower-like smile bloomed on her young, serene face.

“It’s so long after work, aren’t you going home? Did you eat yet?” Lin Fan asked with a smile.

Zhou Ning glanced at the tall Ying Chaoyang, lowered her head, smiled faintly, and then looked up, shaking her head at Lin Fan. “Not yet…”

At this point, Lin Fan understood everything. She glanced at Zhou Ning, then at the red-eared Ying Chaoyang. “Oh~”

She suppressed a laugh, opening her office door as she said, “You know, some people are sitting in the office all day, and food just falls from the sky.”

She opened the door and walked in, seeing the straight-laced Ying Chaoyang still following her, looking awkward. She quickly gave him a meaningful look. “What are you doing? Go on your date!”

“Ah? But there are still some materi—”

“Materials? What materials? I have hands; I can handle it. Go quickly.”

“Okay.”

Ying Chaoyang put down his belongings and turned to leave.

The next second, Zhou Ning also closed the office door.

Joyfully, like a nightingale, she said, “Sister Fan, I’m off!”

“Bye-bye. Have a good meal, and Chaoyang, take good care of Xiao Ning.”

With the ambiguous couple gone, Lin Fan laughed and began to organize the materials for archiving.

Halfway through, she couldn’t help but mutter, “That slow-witted Ying Chaoyang really has simple good fortune. Xiao Ning is such a great girl; he lucked out. Look at that girl’s shyness, sigh… When will true love ever descend upon me!”

In the empty Enforcement Bureau floor, no one answered her question.

By the time she finished archiving the materials, darkness had fallen. Lunch had long been digested, and after an afternoon of running around, she felt what it meant to have her front and back sides pressed together (extreme hunger).

Her phone screen lit up with a new message.

The owner of the beef noodle shop, whom she had happily chatted with before and added on WeChat, had sent a new message.

Beauty, it’s our anniversary tomorrow. Buy a bowl of beef noodles and get a free side dish. Remember to come.

Lin Fan’s finger paused on the screen. She remembered the cold demeanor of the ‘high mountain flower’ and felt a sense of disappointment. Not even beef noodles could cheer her up.

She replied with a smiling emoji, put her phone aside, and began gathering her things to leave.

She turned off the light, closed the door, and stood by the elevator, holding her phone.

A slight feather-like tickle persisted in her heart. Unable to resist, she quickly opened the chat with the beef noodle shop owner.

Boss, did that celebrity-like beauty come to eat noodles?

The short sentence was quickly typed and sent immediately.

After sending it, Lin Fan felt a little regretful. What the heck! Why am I so creepy!

Just as she was about to recall the message, the owner had already replied.

—She came, she came. She’s still eating now. You should come over too. I just finished making some tripe; you should definitely try it.

Lin Fan glanced at the message and, in a fit of pique, let out a ‘Hmph’ from her nose, with a hint of wild cuteness.

Hmph! I’m not going! That high mountain flower is so cold. Should I go and breathe in her cold air? No point. I, Lin Fan, never put a warm face to a cold butt.

Half an hour later.

Lin Fan appeared in front of the small beef noodle shop.

The owner was preparing noodles. “Beauty, you’re here. What are you having today?”

“Two ounces of beef noodles, with both scallions and cilantro.”

“Got it! Find a seat yourself. Do you want some tripe? I’ll give you a small complimentary portion to try.”

Lin Fan glanced into the shop but didn’t see the ‘high mountain flower.’ “Where is she?”

“Who?” The owner was slicing the tripe, her small eyes wide with confusion.

“Just…” Lin Fan opened her mouth, too embarrassed to say it, and sighed. “Never mind.”

The owner finished slicing the tripe, put a small portion on a plate for Lin Fan to try, and as she handed it to her, she said, “Were you asking about Miss Gu, the one who looks like a celebrity?”

Lin Fan nodded, her deer-like eyes fixed on the owner.

The owner rubbed her hands together and laughed heartily. “She left early, said she had something to do, and didn’t eat many bites.”

Lin Fan’s deer-like eyes dimmed.

When the owner brought Lin Fan her beef noodles, she comforted her, “Don’t be discouraged. I’ll let you know the next time Miss Gu comes. I’m telling you, you’re not the only one who wants to see her. Several male customers are absolutely smitten with her. I think she’s more attractive than my family-recipe beef noodles! But I didn’t pay any mind to those men. I see you’re a young girl; you don’t happen to like Miss Gu, do you?”

Lin Fan stirred her noodles, taking a moment to process the question. “She’s so good-looking, who wouldn’t like her? It’s just that she’s so cold, she looks unapproachable.”

The owner smiled, understanding immediately. “Alright, you eat. Even though the anniversary is tomorrow, I’ll still give you a discount today.”

After finishing her beef noodles, Lin Fan was about to head home when she received a call from Director Wang.

Director Wang was the same as always, no small talk, just a single instruction. “Everything’s fine. Work hard in the future, and don’t be afraid.”

The short sentence, however, was like that bowl of beef noodles, soothing her entire stomach and spirit.

Lin Fan was instantly injected with energy and drove back to the unit to work overtime!

The feeling of being protected was simply wonderful.

Lin Fan spent the evening finishing up all the procedural and administrative work for the cases she had filed for closing, partly to lighten Ying Chaoyang’s load, as the big, clumsy guy needed time for his dating life.

After completing everything, Lin Fan decided she was too tired to go back to her parents’ place and went to her apartment in Anding District instead.

The apartment in Anding District was not far from her unit. She parked her car and took the elevator directly to the 11th floor. There were three units per floor and two elevators.

The large apartment was on the east side, and the small and medium apartments were on the west side. The large unit was separated from the small and medium units by a two-to-three-meter corridor, while the doors of the small and medium units were right next to each other.

Lin Fan’s parents had bought their daughter the medium-sized unit, over 120 square meters, which was more than enough for just her.

As the elevator door opened, the first thing Lin Fan saw was a photo lying on the ground in front of the small unit, apartment 1102.

The photo was of a family of three: the father in a military uniform, the mother in a black business suit, and the little girl in the middle with two pigtails, looking incredibly cute, but with a very grumpy expression, pouting without much of a smile.

How could such a meaningful old photo be dropped on the floor?

Lin Fan picked it up, knocked on the door of 1102, the small unit, but no one was home.

Lin Fan thought for a moment, went home to grab some tape, and taped the photo to the door, leaving a small note.

After completing her good deed, Lin Fan was in a cheerful mood and bounced home!

Today, despite some setbacks, was still a beautiful day.

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