Fifteen minutes later, Ji Xun received a video call from Tan Mingjiu, who had snuck out of the cafeteria.
When that shiny bald head popped up on the phone screen, Ji Xun let out a cold, mischievous chuckle at him.
Tan Mingjiu rubbed his own bald head. “So, uh…”
Ji Xun: “Hmm?”
“Old Ji, this is all just a misunderstanding. Nobody wanted this to happen…”
“Hmph.”
“Besides, I don’t think you can blame this entirely on me…”
“Heh.”
“This is all because of your…”
“This is all the result of your utter ignorance and stupidity,” Ji Xun cut in, ruthlessly finishing the sentence for him.
Facing Ji Xun’s dangerously sharp gaze, what else could Tan Mingjiu do? Making the wise choice to play along, he reflected with deep grief: “You’re absolutely right! It’s all my fault, all my fault. Blame me for personally carrying your luggage to help you two move in together, yet failing to grasp this grand, sunlit truth in a timely manner. Even for a dumb cop, this is a total disqualification of dumbness!”
“Since you’re aware…”
What do you want to do? Tan Mingjiu looked at Ji Xun defensively.
“Keep your mouth shut,” Ji Xun signaled clearly. This explicit warning was absolutely necessary—Tan Mingjiu was the biggest gossip addict in the entire police station, whereas Huo Ranyin was the kind of person who kept even his own desk so spotlessly clean that not a single trace of privacy was left for others to pry into.
He felt that Huo Ranyin likely didn’t want their private romantic affairs to become public knowledge.
“Is that all? How many years have we known each other, and you still don’t know me?” Tan Mingjiu said. “I might be a gossip, but I have ethics. For instance, that whole thing about you meeting Xia Youqing was a major deal, and I never let slip a single word about it.”
Ji Xun didn’t doubt that.
Tan Mingjiu was a police officer, after all; his basic professional standards were definitely intact. But Ji Xun hadn’t set up such a long prelude just to get Tan Mingjiu to keep a secret.
Ji Xun gave Tan Mingjiu a meaningful look: “Even if you want to play the dumb cop, the others are bound to play smart cops.”
“Then let them?” Tan Mingjiu instinctively blurted out, before his brain did a couple of laps and caught on. “Damn it! If the others figure out the truth about you two, what does that have to do with me?”
“Does it really have nothing to do with you?” Ji Xun sneered again.
“Okay, fine, it has a tiny little bit to do with me…” Tan Mingjiu pinched his thumb and index finger together to measure out a tiny sliver of a connection. “But nature takes its course, people get married, and you guys are dating. You’re not breaking the law or anything, so if the others find out, they find out. What’s the big deal?”
“Of course it’s a big deal,” Ji Xun revealed the truth. “I haven’t completely won him over yet. Don’t you guys go creating a fuss.”
“???” Tan Mingjiu’s entire face was practically mapped with lines that read: There’s only one idiot here, and it’s either you or me.
In the end, with a deadpan expression, he said, “Stop f***ing fooling around. I’m not actually stupid, you know…”
The two of you have teamed up to solve cases, faced life-and-death dangers together, lived in the same apartment, and when one fell into the sea, the other jumped right in to follow him to the death—and you’re telling me you’re still pursuing him? Pursuing what? Pursuing my run-away IQ?
“I’m serious,” Ji Xun said calmly.
“…” Tan Mingjiu became bewildered all over again. Ji Xun’s tone sounded genuinely serious. But that didn’t make any sense—the two of them were as real as it gets… Whatever, whether it made sense or not, the main point was: “Even if you really haven’t completely won Captain Huo over… shouldn’t you be letting us play wingmen so you can lock Captain Huo down as soon as possible?”
“I need help from others to chase someone?” Ji Xun raised an eyebrow.
“…” Tan Mingjiu.
“Don’t interrupt my immersive pursuit,” Ji Xun added.
“…” Tan Mingjiu.
Fine then!
“All in all,” Ji Xun delivered the final verdict, “I’m leaving this matter in your hands.”
“I am unworthy of such a heavy responsibility…” Tan Mingjiu was deeply moved, so moved that he just wanted to refuse.
“If you refuse, I’ll ambush you on your way off work and throw a sack over your head,” Ji Xun said.
“Look,” Tan Mingjiu couldn’t help but roast him, “three years ago, if you wanted to beat me up, I’d run without a word; three years later, under normal circumstances, we’d be evenly matched; as for right now…”
He looked at Ji Xun’s bandaged shoulder, hospital gown, and cast-bound arm, wanting nothing more than to ask: Brother, how many dishes did you have to get this drunk?
However, were Ji Xun’s tactics ever that simple?
Ji Xun said at total ease: “That’s right, I’ll ambush you with a sack, but unfortunately, I’ll get beaten up by you instead.”
I wouldn’t go that far… Just as Tan Mingjiu was about to say he wouldn’t take advantage of someone’s vulnerability, he heard Ji Xun continue.
“And then I’ll tell your Captain Huo that I was beaten up by you,” Ji Xun’s tone was dead calm.
“?”
“And do you think your Captain Huo will come find you to ‘spar’ a bit?” Ji Xun smiled politely.
“?”
“And how many rounds of ‘sparring’ do you think your Captain Huo will schedule for you because you picked on a weak, sick, and injured person?” Ji Xun offered one last friendly smile.
“???”
You dirty, scheming bastard!
Tan Mingjiu ended up throwing up a middle finger at Ji Xun and furiously hung up the video call.
That single video call had drained all of Tan Mingjiu’s energy for the entire day.
Treating his phone like a dangerous monster, he muted it, threw it straight into a drawer, and collapsed onto his desk to play dead.
By this time, everyone in the Second Detachment had finished lunch and was trickling back into the office.
Tan Mingjiu kept playing dead, but silently perked up one ear to listen to the casual chatter around the office.
Wen Yangyang was talking to Hu Yan about how domestic skincare products were getting better and better. Their relationship had been growing quite well recently, progressing to the point where they were planning to move out from their current roommates and find an apartment together… Wait, finding an apartment together? Could it be…?
No, don’t look at everyone through gay-tinted glasses.
How normal is it for close colleagues of the same gender to live together!
So it was completely understandable why he hadn’t noticed earlier.
Tan Mingjiu made excuses to console his own blind eyes.
Next, he listened in on Zhong Xiaojin. Zhong Xiaojin had been busy making video content for the police department’s social media account lately. Nowadays, everything demanded openness, transparency, and public oversight, so having an official external window was quite necessary for the department.
This meant Zhong Xiaojin was busy every single day, watching all kinds of videos and editing her own. Supposedly, she was doing pretty well, and had already gained a decent follower base.
As for the others, they were enjoying their post-lunch tea and chatting about grabbing street barbecue together after getting off work tonight.
Not a single person brought up that tiny bit of drama between Ji Xun and Captain Huo!
Hmph, did you think everyone was as sharp-eyed as me? Tan Mingjiu sneered in his heart. Look at that, nobody even cares about your little lunchtime episode. You’re the only one fretting over it…
“Oh right, do you guys think Ji Xun will come back as our Deputy Captain once he passes the civil service exam?” Someone in the office suddenly brought up Ji Xun’s name. “Aren’t we missing a Deputy Captain right now?”
Tan Mingjiu’s heart skipped a beat.
Actually, they used to have a Deputy Captain. It was just that before Huo Ranyin was transferred over, that person had been sent away for advanced training.
The training went so well that the provincial headquarters took a liking to him and borrowed him for work. Once he went, he never came back. Over the past couple of days, the provincial unit had hinted that they wanted to officially transfer him over permanently.
Thus, the Second Detachment was down a Deputy Captain.
Normally, someone from inside the Second Detachment would be promoted to fill the role.
But weren’t the current circumstances a bit unusual? Given Ji Xun’s level of involvement and work competence over the past few months, if he came back to serve as the Deputy Captain, everyone would be completely convinced.
“I don’t think so,” Wen Yangyang spoke up from the side. “Teacher Ji probably doesn’t really have any desire to come back. Otherwise, when Chief Zhou asked him like that at noon, he would’ve definitely agreed to something.”
“Then Teacher Ji is really going out of his way to help us solve cases,” Zhong Xiaojin joined the conversation. “External experts usually just get consulted whenever the department hits a wall. But now, Teacher Ji is directly searching for problems and solving them right alongside the department. Last time, I recommended his book to my followers, and some who finished reading are already rushing him for the next installment. Yet, just to solve cases with Captain Huo, he hasn’t even had time to write his next book.”
“Yes, yes, yes! Exactly that—’solving cases with Captain Huo’! I feel like Teacher Ji doesn’t care about being a police officer again, but he really wants to solve cases with Captain Huo. It’s like… that Sherlock Holmes and Watson vibe, or Hercule Poirot and Hastings!” Wen Yangyang had a stroke of inspiration.
The alarm bells in Tan Mingjiu’s heart were going off like crazy.
However, holding onto a sliver of hope, he prayed they would quickly change the topic.
Yet not only did they fail to change the subject, but they also started diving deeper into it.
“I don’t think those comparisons are quite right,” Zhong Xiaojin offered a dissenting opinion. “Those are detective-and-assistant pairings. But neither Teacher Ji nor Captain Huo is a mere assistant. Besides, whether it’s Watson or Hastings, both of them got married.”
Why do you have to emphasize that one of them got married? Is getting married such a strange thing? Tan Mingjiu was terrified.
“It’s like Castle,” Hu Yan spoke in a cool, calm voice. “Ji Xun is a novelist, and Captain Huo is a cop. Even their professions match up perfectly.”
“Right!” The others clapped in admiration.
Right, my foot! Comparing them to detectives and assistants earlier was one thing, Tan Mingjiu roasted hysterically in his head. That’s a TV show with a male and female lead! You guys just gender-bent Captain Huo!
Still, he warned himself not to look too anxious: “That’s not quite right either. How did Captain Huo become the female lead?”
“Mm,” Hu Yan gave a half-smile. “True. If we’re talking about female leads, Ji Xun might fit the female lead role a bit better.”
“Hey, gender-bending people we know isn’t very nice, guys,” Tan Mingjiu was practically wiping cold sweat off his forehead. He couldn’t tell if Hu Yan was doing this intentionally or not, but he definitely couldn’t let Hu Yan leak the truth… no, steer the narrative! “Change the subject, change the subject!”
Unluckily, nobody paid any attention to Tan Mingjiu.
Wen Yangyang continued happily: “Regardless of what it looks like, Teacher Ji and Captain Huo’s relationship is genuinely amazing. Leaving aside solving cases and moving in together, this time he even called Chief Zhou directly to request time off for Captain Huo… I wouldn’t even dare to speak to Chief Zhou like that.”
Tan Mingjiu hurriedly interjected: “That’s just because you’re scared! Chief Zhou is great, he cares so much about us—he’s the single best leader under the sun. I’d love nothing more than to drink tea, chat, and shoot the breeze with Chief Zhou every day.”
“How could their bond not be strong? In Qin City, Teacher Ji saved Captain Huo; on the ship, Captain Huo saved Teacher Ji. They literally owe their lives to each other,” Zhong Xiaojin laughed.
Tan Mingjiu put on a mournful face: “What’s with all this ‘owing lives’ stuff? So demoralizing. When we go out on missions together, isn’t my life yours, and yours mine? We’re brothers, back to back, don’t overthink it.”
“Be that as it may, their dynamic is still very different. You could tell right from the very beginning when they first met, couldn’t you? They were even photographed together by the vice squad next door… Oh right! Back when Teacher Ji was kidnapped, we checked Captain Huo’s WeChat—didn’t Teacher Ji send Captain Huo photos of himself taking a shower…?”
“Ha! What’s the big deal about that? I send Ji Xun photos of myself taking a shower every single day!” Tan Mingjiu went all out. “A man’s friendship grows in a healthy way through comparing chest muscles and abs!”
The person who had spoken was completely stunned by Tan Mingjiu.
Silence fell over the entire office.
Everyone stared at Tan Mingjiu, as if saying… You’re actually that kind of person?
However, as long as nobody was gossiping about Ji Xun, it was a victory—a fruit of success.
Just as Tan Mingjiu let out a heartfelt sigh of relief, Yuan Yue walked in holding his phone. He asked the members of the Second Detachment: “Is Captain Huo back yet?” He added, “Captain Zhao from Qin City called just now, saying Captain Huo has been working too hard lately. I asked around a bit more and only then realized Ji Xun was the one who spoke to him.” He reflected on himself, “It’s all my fault for being so busy with family stuff lately and dumping everything onto Captain Huo. Ji Xun clearly called me too, yet he didn’t mention a word about this to me. He’s really treating me like an outsider.”
Hearing Yuan Yue’s words, the people in the office suddenly had an epiphany.
“Huh,” Wen Yangyang said, “so Teacher Ji called everyone and asked them for favors just to lighten Captain Huo’s workload?”
A bolt out of the blue!
If Ji Xun were standing right in front of him, Tan Mingjiu’s finger would be poking right into his face.
Look at what you’ve done! You did so much—how the hell are we supposed to make anyone believe you two aren’t real?!
You two are real as hell, realer than real, alright?!
Tan Mingjiu was almost at a loss for words. He mustered his remaining strength and bellowed: “You’ve all got it wrong!”
Everyone turned to look at him.
“Given Ji Xun’s temperament, how could he possibly do so much for Captain Huo!” Tan Mingjiu spat out in one breath. “He was just bored out of his mind and feeling restless, so he found a random excuse to make small talk with everyone!”
However, how could such an excuse hold any water?
They looked at Tan Mingjiu in utter bewilderment, their faces practically writing out… What kind of joke are you telling? Do you take us for idiots?
Only under immense pressure can true motivation be sparked.
Feeling the crushing pressure under everyone’s watchful eyes, Tan Mingjiu had a sudden brainstorm and blurted out: “Fine, since things have come to this, I won’t hide it from you anymore… The truth is, Ji Xun did all of this because of me!”
Everyone was slightly startled.
“For so many days, I watched Captain Huo wake up earlier than a rooster and work harder than an ox just to solve this case, and I simply couldn’t bear it anymore,” Tan Mingjiu said solemnly. “There’s a reason Captain Huo climbed to his position at such a young age, but we can’t drain the pond to catch the fish. No matter how much we want to solve cases, we have to consider our health. But as his subordinate, it wasn’t appropriate for me to advise Captain Huo directly, so I talked things over with Ji Xun. As it happened, Ji Xun also felt Captain Huo was working too hard. Since he was lying in the hospital with nothing to do, he helped me call everyone, hoping to share Captain Huo’s burden so he could get some rest.”
Tan Mingjiu used up every bit of his lung capacity to spew out that long string of words in a single breath.
After finishing, he hid his nervousness behind a smile, thinking to himself: …How about that? This reason should work, right?
Everyone was indeed stunned by Tan Mingjiu.
Whether it was true or not, they couldn’t say.
They just felt: “Old Tan… did you really push yourself this hard just to avoid having to work overtime alongside Captain Huo…? That’s not good. As people’s police officers, we still need to have the dedication to work overtime and serve society in critical moments.”
Tan Mingjiu: “…”
I motherf*ing… although I really don’t want to work overtime… that’s really not why…
That wasn’t even the deadliest part.
The deadliest part was that he suddenly noticed, without him knowing when, Huo Ranyin had appeared among the crowd.
Quietly watching him.
Sneering.
There had indeed been a minor hiccup in today’s plan. But it didn’t matter; life moves forward through unexpected turns anyway.
Calculating that it was about time for Huo Ranyin to arrive at the hospital, Ji Xun ambled out of his ward and made his way to the hospital entrance to wait for him.
He had originally wanted to go wait outside the police station, but right before stepping out, Ji Xun saw his reflection in the mirror—adorned with a plaster cast and tight bandages, looking like a top-tier invalid. After turning it over in his mind, he decided that compared to giving Huo Ranyin a surprise…
It was probably more important to be obedient and behave.
The hospital was crowded.
Cars flooded in and out—some carrying patients, some carrying visitors, some picking patients up upon discharge… Vehicles of various colors and models passed by Ji Xun one after another.
Until he finally waited for the one that belonged to him.
Huo Ranyin’s car pulled up to a halt in front of Ji Xun.
The window rolled down, and Huo Ranyin’s brow creased slightly. He opened his mouth to say something, but before the dissatisfaction could voice itself, that tiny furrow had already dissolved under Ji Xun’s beaming smile and his waving left hand.
As a result, the words that followed shifted from a complaint into a low murmur:
“Instead of staying in the ward, what are you doing out here? It was only a difference of a few minutes… Whatever.”
The remaining words were swallowed back into Huo Ranyin’s throat.
Even if it’s just a few minutes.
I still want to see you sooner.
After driving the car inside, the two didn’t immediately head back to the ward. Instead, they took a walk in the hospital garden first.
They walked side by side along the blue cobblestone path. A strong wind had blown through last night, sending firmiana blossoms cascading down until the ground was covered in a blanket of powdery purple, forming a long, colorful path. At the far end of the path stood a dense firmiana tree.
Hidden among the flowering trees, fingers intertwined with fingers, they stole a kiss away from the crowd.
Once this stroll—much slower than usual—came to an end, the two returned to the ward.
Ji Xun took the initiative to report: “I drank the milk.”
“Mm.”
“Ate the fruit, too.”
“Mm.”
“Lunch and dinner were well-balanced; no picky eating.”
“Mm.”
“Strictly followed the doctor’s schedule for rehabilitation without secretly adding extra exercises.”
“Very good.”
Huo Ranyin praised Ji Xun, then turned to pour some water.
Ji Xun grabbed the hem of Huo Ranyin’s jacket, following him step for step right to the water dispenser.
Huo Ranyin took off his dirty outer jacket.
Ji Xun switched to grabbing the hem of Huo Ranyin’s T-shirt, following him step for step right to the bedside.
Huo Ranyin picked up a change of clean clothes and headed to the bathroom.
Ji Xun still held onto the hem of Huo Ranyin’s T-shirt, following him step for step right into the bathroom.
Inside the bathroom, Huo Ranyin turned around to look at Ji Xun: “What do you want to say?”
Ji Xun: “I don’t have anything to say.”
Huo Ranyin: “Following me wherever I go?”
Ji Xun: “That’s right—clinging, rubbing, sticking to you.”
Huo Ranyin: “…”
Ji Xun stated: “But you can take a shower first.”
He made a move to exit, but Huo Ranyin suddenly raised his arm, extending it across Ji Xun’s face to pin him between himself and the tiled wall—a textbook wall-slam.
Ji Xun grew alert: “…”
Huo Ranyin let out a quiet smile: “It really is time for a shower. However, it’s not for me—it’s for you.”
He waved the clothes in his hand toward Ji Xun.
Ji Xun took a closer look and suddenly realized… the clothes Huo Ranyin was holding were actually his!
“Actually, I think…” Ji Xun offered, “it’s been enough time. I can do it myself…”
Huo Ranyin turned on the showerhead, telling Ji Xun through action:
No, he couldn’t.
Ji Xun—could only be cleaned and taken care of by Huo Ranyin.
The showerhead sprayed Ji Xun wet. And not just him—the hospital bathroom wasn’t particularly spacious, so Huo Ranyin, standing within the spray radius, inevitably got soaked as well. Ji Xun let out a sigh: “I told you I could shower myself… Every time you wash me, you refuse to shower with me. Afterwards, once I’m done, you have to shower all over again. Isn’t that too much of a hassle?”
Huo Ranyin shot Ji Xun a sidelong glance: “I like it this way.”
“Well, I don’t.” Ji Xun leaned closer to Huo Ranyin and grumbled in a low voice, “I want to shower with you… Getting washed by you every time is pure torture…”
The steam from the hot water brought a soft flush to Huo Ranyin’s cool, white face.
Huo Ranyin hurriedly finished washing him, then pushed Ji Xun out of the bathroom.
With nothing to do, Ji Xun passed the time waiting.
After a short while, Huo Ranyin emerged wearing clean clothes and walked over to the water dispenser to gulp down large mouthfuls of water.
Ji Xun wrapped his arms around Huo Ranyin from behind.
Huo Ranyin’s skin was cool, cool as a piece of jade.
Yet it warmed up easily, as though flames were buried beneath the surface, ready to surge forth at any moment.
Ji Xun showered a string of kisses along the side of Huo Ranyin’s neck.
He felt the subtle trembling of the other man’s skin, as if answering the passion burning inside his own body.
Ji Xun let out a soft laugh, speaking in a muffled voice:
“I don’t just want to shower with you… I also want you to stop working such long hours, constantly hovering between life and death. I don’t want to work; I just want to go on a trip with you.”
“My dear Captain, make some time so we can go on a vacation together, okay?”
Two days later, following a follow-up consultation with the doctor, Ji Xun was officially discharged from the hospital.
To celebrate Ji Xun’s discharge, everyone decided to carve out time to gather at Ji Xun’s apartment for a party.
From the police station, several members from the Second Detachment, several from the First Detachment, along with Ji Xun’s editors Ein and Roth, as well as Jerry, all arrived at Ji Xun’s place.
Yuan Yue and Tan Mingjiu, being model modern men, headed straight into the kitchen upon arrival to start preparing the evening meal. Wen Yangyang and Hu Yan brought some decorations to help set up Ji Xun’s dining table.
Ein and Roth carried arms full of care packages. Looking at Ji Xun, they said from the bottom of their hearts: “Teacher, you’ve worked so hard! We heard all about it—to collect material for your novel, you infiltrated a criminal syndicate’s lair! And to personally experience the protagonist’s mindset and scientifically verify how he escaped, you didn’t hesitate to endure the exact same hardships, letting the villains hang you up and drop you into the sea!”
“Actually…”
“Still, as an author, safety comes above any novel! No matter how dedicated you are to your craft, Teacher, please never do something so dangerous ever again!”
“Never mind…”
Ji Xun gave up on explaining. He had no idea how facts, despite being what they were, could end up twisted into such a wildly divergent interpretation.
Leaving the two editors aside, he went to check on Jerry.
Jerry was far more in his element than Ji Xun was. This smooth-talking bartender mixed drinks while tossing out witty remarks, single-handedly turning Ji Xun’s plain living room into a lively dance party atmosphere.
When all the dishes were finally ready, everyone gathered around the table.
They raised their glasses high for a group toast.
Congratulations to Ji Xun on his discharge, wishing him health, peace, and safety in the days ahead!
Then, they raised their glasses once more for another toast.
This time, congratulations to Huo Ranyin for cracking a major case—a promotion and raise were surely not far off in the near future!
Glasses clinked, alcohol flowed, and the mood reached a high point halfway through the meal. They chatted about the lottery, TV shows, kids, and even brought up today’s date: May 20th (5/20).
“520—doesn’t that stand for ‘I love you’?” someone said. “There are more and more tricks nowadays—Valentine’s Day, White Day… Anyone with a partner better pay attention and remember these dates. Send a digital red envelope right away; you can’t neglect your significant other!”
Since partners were brought up, someone teased Huo Ranyin: “Captain Huo, do you have a girlfriend? If not, I might take advantage of our close working relationship to introduce a nice girl from my family to you.”
Before Ji Xun could turn his gaze over—
Huo Ranyin had already set down his chopsticks, speaking in a calm, neutral tone: “I’m in a relationship. It’s very stable.”
The person immediately offered congratulations: “Who is it? Have we met her?”
“You’ve met. As for who it is… I’ll introduce them next time.”
Huo Ranyin paused, then added:
“They’re shy.”
Across the table, Ji Xun noticed Tan Mingjiu glaring at him with fiery eyes.
That look was practically a tearful, bloody accusation:
You! Still! Claim! You! Haven’t! Won! Him! Over!
Ji Xun felt he ought to show some sympathy for Tan Mingjiu, but…
He raised his glass, hid the corners of his lips behind it, and smiled.
