Chapter 82
Without the elder’s presence, Zhuo Zhi and Li Qinyue completely let loose.
During the New Year holidays, they should have been visiting relatives or gathering with friends, but one of them was estranged from her family, and the other didn’t have many friends or relatives, so they spent the entire time together, free as birds.
They stayed home when they didn’t feel like going out, and in addition to their usual activities, they added some “daily” activities…
Zhuo Zhi was always a quick learner, especially when it came to certain things.
She was energetic and attentive, and Li Qinyue felt refreshed and invigorated, her mood better than ever.
But such carefree days were always short-lived. Zhuo Zhi was supposed to return to work on the fifth day of the New Year, but the temperature had plummeted in the past few days, with occasional snow, severely affecting traffic. On the afternoon of the fourth day, she received a call from the station, asking her to come in for overtime duty.
Li Qinyue, looking at the snow-covered world outside, held her thermos and wondered, “Do criminals even work in this weather?”
“We don’t just deal with criminals,” Zhuo Zhi, already in her uniform, came over and kissed Li Qinyue’s cheek, “We also ensure the safety and happiness of the people.”
“How noble,” Li Qinyue pulled her closer and kissed her lips, “I’m also one of the people, Officer Xiao Zhuo.”
Zhuo Zhi asked with a smile, “Are you happy then?”
“Happy Qinyue,” Li Qinyue replied.
Zhuo Zhi giggled, “Happy Zhi.”
After seeing Zhuo Zhi off downstairs, Zhuo Zhi refused to let Li Qinyue follow her.
“It’s freezing,” Zhuo Zhi pushed Li Qinyue back, “Go back to bed, play some games, read a book, I’ll be back soon.”
“You might not be back soon at this hour,” Li Qinyue looked at her, “Remember, if you’re just on duty at the station, call me, I’ll bring you some snacks.”
“Okay, okay,” Zhuo Zhi nodded repeatedly.
“If you’re on patrol, let me know if you’re cold, hungry, or thirsty,” Li Qinyue zipped up Zhuo Zhi’s coat all the way to the top, “I have nothing to do anyway, going out for a walk would be nice.”
“Okay,” Zhuo Zhi said sweetly, her eyes crinkling into crescents.
Li Qinyue felt like a mother sending her child off to school, it didn’t suit her Miss Li persona at all. She finally patted Zhuo Zhi’s shoulder, “Go, go, get back early.”
“Okay,” Zhuo Zhi hugged her again, “You go back inside too.”
“Hmm,” Li Qinyue resisted the urge to watch her leave and turned to go upstairs.
Zhuo Zhi skipped out of the building, her footsteps crunching on the snow.
There were two door gods pasted on the entrance of the police station, looking majestic.
Zhuo Zhi saluted the door gods before entering.
There weren’t many people in the office. As she walked inside, she bumped into Officer Sun, who was rushing out.
Zhuo Zhi raised her hand to greet him, but Officer Sun, looking at her as if she were a lifesaver, rushed over and grabbed her hand, “Happy New Year, Xiao Zhuo.”
“Happy New Year, Xiao Sun,” they were close enough now for Zhuo Zhi to joke with him.
Officer Sun didn’t mind, he was just relieved to see her, “What’s our motto as people’s police officers?”
“Serve the people!” Zhuo Zhi answered immediately.
“Good!” Officer Sun pulled her wrist and turned her in the opposite direction, “Let’s go serve the people.”
“What’s going on?” Zhuo Zhi asked, trying to peek at the documents in his hand.
“Nothing special, just short-staffed,” Officer Sun said, “Heavy snow, we can’t clear the roads fast enough, there’s a huge traffic jam on the ring road, we need to go help.”
“Oh, okay,” So they were going to do traffic control. Zhuo Zhi felt a little excited.
The section of road they were assigned to wasn’t far. They parked the police car some distance away, and Officer Sun, wrapping his coat tightly around himself, said to Zhuo Zhi, “The car can’t go any further, we have to walk.”
“No problem,” Zhuo Zhi followed him, “Walking will keep us warm.”
Officer Sun looked at her with a smile, “Did you have a good New Year?”
“Yes!” Zhuo Zhi said immediately, skipping over a puddle of water.
Seeing her action, Officer Sun also skipped over the puddle, “Me too.”
“What are you happy about, Brother Sun?” Zhuo Zhi asked.
“My girlfriend got transferred back to Nanhai this year, we’re finally not in a long-distance relationship anymore,” Officer Sun, probably having waited a long time to share this news, couldn’t help but smile.
“Wow, congratulations!” Zhuo Zhi could relate to his happiness, it was wonderful for two people in love to be together.
“We’re getting engaged in the second half of this year!” Officer Sun said.
“That’s great!!!”
“We’ll get married this time next year!”
“Wonderful!!!”
“And maybe this time next year, I’ll have a daughter, hahaha…” Officer Sun couldn’t contain his excitement.
“Hahaha, or maybe a son,” Zhuo Zhi said.
“I want a daughter, hahaha.”
Zhuo Zhi, looking at the long line of cars stuck in traffic, wiped her face and stopped laughing, “We’re probably the only two people who are happy in this situation.”
Officer Sun followed her gaze, also wiping his face, his expression turning serious, “That’s why we can’t forget about everyone else even when we’re happy.”
Zhuo Zhi chuckled, looking down at the ground.
When they arrived at the scene, a salt truck was diligently working.
Compared to the congested highway, this area was relatively clear.
Officer Sun spoke to the traffic police on duty, then took a roll of barrier tape and led Zhuo Zhi forward.
“There’s a section of road that’s completely iced over, we need to block it off and redirect traffic.”
“They still need to redirect traffic in this condition? No wonder they’re short-staffed,” Zhuo Zhi made a few hand gestures, “Are my signals correct, Brother Sun?”
“They are,” Officer Sun said with a smile, “You’re so pretty, you look good doing anything.”
Zhuo Zhi blinked, “I’m pretty?”
“You and your sister are both pretty,” Officer Sun said, “Very beautiful.”
“Tsk, compared to your girlfriend?”
Officer Sun raised his chin proudly, “My girlfriend is still the prettiest.”
They hadn’t been partners for long, but they got along well, mainly because they were on the same wavelength.
No matter how difficult or tiring the work was, Officer Sun was always cheerful and optimistic. Zhuo Zhi felt like they were kindred spirits.
They understood each other, worked well together, and helped people returning from the holidays get back to work smoothly, starting a new chapter of the year. Zhuo Zhi felt that even overtime duty was enjoyable and meaningful.
As the sky gradually darkened, they moved the barrier tape several times, the flow of traffic endless.
Officer Sun looked at his watch and typed quickly on his phone, “Half an hour more, then you can go home and rest.”
“What about you?” Zhuo Zhi asked.
“I’ll stay a little longer,” Officer Sun stamped his feet, “It gets cold quickly after dark, girls get cold easily, you can’t stay out here for too long.”
“I don’t get cold easily, I have a fiery constitution,” Zhuo Zhi rubbed her hands together and showed them to him, “See? They’re red, I have fire in my blood.”
Officer Sun chuckled, “Young people are always full of fire.”
“Of course,” Zhuo Zhi joked, “You can’t compare to me.”
Officer Sun laughed for a moment, then said, “I’ve already talked to Zhang Xiang, he’ll come and relieve you later.”
Just as Zhuo Zhi was about to speak, Officer Sun added, “If you stay any longer, your sister will probably come and join you.”
Zhuo Zhi’s words died in her throat.
Li Qinyue would always keep track of her work schedule. Although she wouldn’t disturb her, there was a high chance she would come and wait for her.
She didn’t get cold easily, but Li Qinyue did. When they slept together, Zhuo Zhi would always have to warm up Li Qinyue’s feet with hers.
She couldn’t let her wait in the cold.
Zhuo Zhi nodded, “Okay, I’ll go back when Brother Zhang arrives.”
“Good girl,” Officer Sun patted her shoulder.
Zhuo Zhi mechanically directed the traffic, “Your girlfriend will be waiting for you too, Brother Sun.”
Officer Sun, struggling with a patch of ice with his shovel, said, “She went to a hot spring with her mother, she won’t be waiting for me.”
But he was smiling as he said it.
Zhuo Zhi said, “Did you just…”
She stopped mid-sentence. A truck, which had been driving normally, suddenly swerved, squeezing between two cars, and heading straight for the barrier tape.
The two cars were pushed aside, the sound of metal scraping against metal echoing through the air. The truck continued unimpeded, heading straight for Officer Sun.
“Sun Qi!!!” Zhuo Zhi’s voice cracked as she shouted his name.
She only had time to shout his name, even if she had said more, no ordinary person would have been able to react in time.
Zhuo Zhi’s heart pounded in her chest, her ears ringing. She didn’t think, she just ran, her mind focused on finding a way to survive.
She pushed Sun Qi to the ground, and they both slid for a short distance. Zhuo Zhi raised her arm to protect Sun Qi’s head, then everything went black, a sudden darkness, and the screeching sound of metal.
As the pain hit her, Zhuo Zhi finally had time to think, Sister is waiting for me at home, Officer Sun’s girlfriend is at a hot spring…
This time next year, they’ll be married.
And a year after that, they’ll have a lovely daughter.
Zhuo Zhi’s lips curved into a smile. If they both survived, during the media interview, she, Officer Xiao Zhuo, would definitely say:
“I saved him.”
“I wasn’t afraid.”
“I’m not even afraid now, thinking back.”
“I would do it again.”
“Because I’m Zhuo Zhi, and Sun Qi is a good person.”
Leave a Reply