When she got home, Le Ning was still fuming.
She slammed the door shut with a loud bang, startling Le Luo.
“Sis, what’s wrong?”
“Nothing.” Le Ning huffed angrily. “Go do your homework.”
Le Luo tugged at the corner of his mouth, looking doubtful. “…Really nothing?”
It had been a long time since he’d seen his sister this mad.
“Really.” Le Ning threw herself onto the bed and kicked her legs wildly in the air a few times before finally feeling some of the anger drain away.
Damn it.
Dog of a man.
Totally on purpose.
Le Ning closed her eyes, and for some reason the scene from the bar replayed clearly in her mind.
After she’d blurted out that sentence, everyone turned to stare at her in unison.
Zhou Ran clearly hadn’t expected it either. After a brief moment of stunned surprise, he turned his head to look at her. In that instant, Le Ning almost felt like he was nervous too.
His voice was low and slightly hoarse: “I’ll buy you another one.”
Le Ning kept her face straight and didn’t respond.
Zhou Ran stood up and left. Not long after, he came back carrying a fresh drink and handed it to her.
Le Ning lifted her eyes to look at him. The man’s gaze was deep and intense, staring straight at her without blinking.
Her heart trembled for two seconds. She took the glass and set it aside.
But in the end, Le Ning didn’t drink it.
Whoever wants it can have it!
By the time everyone left, that untouched glass was still sitting on the table—no one had touched it.
Thinking back on it, Le Ning muttered to herself: “Serves him right.”
In the car, Zhou Ran had drunk a little alcohol, so Lu Jiaxiu’s driver came to take him home first.
As soon as they got in, Lu Jiaxiu turned to look at him.
At first, Zhou Ran had no intention of acknowledging him.
He closed his eyes and leaned against the window to rest, completely ignoring the stare from beside him.
But Lu Jiaxiu didn’t have Zhou Ran’s level of patience. He cleared his throat and asked with a barely suppressed laugh: “You did that on purpose, didn’t you?”
“What?”
Zhou Ran replied carelessly.
Lu Jiaxiu scoffed and raised an eyebrow. “You know exactly what I mean.”
Zhou Ran stayed silent.
Lu Jiaxiu laughed. “If you weren’t doing it on purpose tonight, I’ll twist my head off and let you use it as a soccer ball.”
Zhou Ran paused, then said slowly and deliberately: “I’m not short on balls.”
Lu Jiaxiu: “…”
After a moment of silence, the talkative Lu Jiaxiu had no choice but to keep prying.
“Did you know Le Ning was there from the beginning?”
Zhou Ran looked at him expressionlessly.
Lu Jiaxiu grinned. “I knew it. With your usual bad temper, you should’ve gone straight home to sleep. Why would you waste time coming to see some high school juniors with us?”
As he spoke, Lu Jiaxiu grew genuinely curious about one thing:
“But there’s something I find really strange—”
“How did you recognize her so quickly?”
……
Zhou Ran had already exhausted both his mental and physical energy to the limit today.
But when he got home, for some inexplicable reason, he suddenly wasn’t sleepy anymore.
Thinking back on the two questions Lu Jiaxiu had asked, he reached up and rubbed the space between his brows.
—It wasn’t “quickly.”
—It was one glance.
Le Ning’s appearance hadn’t changed much from high school to now; her features had simply matured a little.
Ever since she entered high school, she had been a standout among the girls.
Good grades, stunning looks. Sure, back then she was a little shorter than her classmates, but her presence was undeniable.
And she was one or two years younger than everyone else, so during flag-raising and morning exercises, she always stood in the very front row.
Zhou Ran’s first impression of her came from overhearing some guys nearby saying that the first-year (Class 1) had a beautiful genius girl—pale skin, soft features. If she weren’t so young, they’d all be making moves.
Later, Zhou Ran found out she was only fourteen. How was that “not young”?
Her round apricot eyes were big, black, and bright. When she looked at you, it was serious and focused—like a magnet, pulling you in without effort.
At first, when she started pursuing him, he was surprised and assumed she was just joking around with her friends. He wasn’t angry.
But after she kept delivering water again and again… Zhou Ran suddenly felt like the joke had gone a bit too far.
Honestly though, it wasn’t that he had zero feelings back then.
It was just that she was too young—half-grown, still clueless about everything. If he’d acted on any thoughts, he really would have been a beast.
……
Suddenly, his phone rang, snapping Zhou Ran out of his memories.
He opened his eyes abruptly and answered.
“What is it?”
Xu Zhi paused for a second, then quickly said: “Captain Zhou, the autopsy results are in.”
Zhou Ran stood up from the sofa. “I’m coming right now.”
The night was deep and still. The calm lake surface began to ripple again.
The next day, after a good sleep, Le Ning had completely forgotten about last night’s nonsense.
In the morning, she lazily put on a sheet mask. She’d been too lazy last night, and since she had to take Le Luo back to school this afternoon, she grabbed an Estée Lauder Iron Man emergency mask to save the day.
This mask was perfect for quick fixes. Whenever she had an urgent event or her skin wasn’t looking great, she used this one.
Every time she took it off, her skin felt incredibly smooth and supple—like a peeled hard-boiled egg white—super delicate with a beautiful glow.
After the mask, Le Ning did a full, pretty makeup look.
Since she was dropping Le Luo off at school, she went for a campus-style outfit: overalls, a little sweater, and a youthful, energetic bun on top of her head.
When she went downstairs, Le Luo was stunned for a second.
“Sis.”
“Hm?”
Le Ning patted her own face happily. “What’s up?”
Le Luo had always been prepared with rainbow compliments for his cousin: “Are you trying to be my little sister today?”
Le Ning burst out laughing and gave him a look. “Short on cash?”
Le Luo: “…No.”
Le Ning pretended not to hear and transferred him some money on her phone. “Buy whatever you want. If it’s not enough, come find me.”
“Okay.”
After enough sibling teasing, Le Ning took him back to school.
Le Luo had raved about a great pickled fish place near his school, so Le Ning decided to go eat there with him.
Once they arrived, Le Luo went to the dorm to drop off his things, while Le Ning walked a couple of laps around the sports field to wait.
She never expected… she’d actually get hit on.
Le Ning held back her laughter the whole time. After sending the guy away, she couldn’t resist and posted on her Moments (friends circle).
[Hahahahaha I actually got asked for WeChat at a high school! I’m still sixteen forever today!]
The moment she posted, tons of people liked and commented right away.
Ruan Qiu: Where’s the photo?!
Ji Chuchu: Our Lemon is eternally sixteen!
Even Lu Jiaxiu, who had just added her on WeChat last night, left a comment.
Lu Jiaxiu: Little junior was always pretty. Back at your alma mater today?
Le Ning stared at Lu Jiaxiu’s question for a long while before replying: Not my alma mater—it’s my little brother’s high school.
After seeing the reply, Lu Jiaxiu immediately screenshot it and sent it to Zhou Ran.
Zhou Ran, who had just finished up work, stared at the message in silence for a few seconds before asking: [When did you two add each other on WeChat?]
Lu Jiaxiu: [While you were getting the drink.]
Before Zhou Ran could reply,
Lu Jiaxiu added: [Want me to push her WeChat to you?]
Zhou Ran’s face darkened. He refused: [No need.]
After sending that, Zhou Ran turned to look at Xie Wei.
Xie Wei felt inexplicably uneasy under that stare. “Captain Zhou, what’s up?”
Zhou Ran thought for a moment, then shook his head. “Nothing.”
“Oh right, Captain Zhou.”
Xie Wei suddenly remembered the message he’d received from Le Ning: “Miss Le asked if her coat has been cleaned yet.”
Zhou Ran froze, his face darkening even more.
He looked at Xie Wei: “When did she message you?”
“Just now.”
Zhou Ran’s expression sank as he looked at the opened chat Xie Wei showed him.
Le Ning’s question was very polite—no pressure, just checking to get a rough timeline.
“Captain Zhou, how should I reply?”
“Tell her later.”
“Huh?”
In the afternoon, more students were returning to campus.
The pickled fish place was super popular and well-known far and wide—there was always a huge line. To save time, Le Ning and Le Luo had timed their arrival perfectly.
But… they were still too late.
Le Ning frowned and looked at him. “Is there enough time? Doesn’t evening self-study start at seven?”
“Yeah.”
It was almost six now.
Le Ning scanned around and said softly, “Then maybe we should just—”
Before she could finish, Le Luo suddenly grabbed her arm in excitement. “Sis, look! Aren’t those the two police officers from that night?”
Le Ning: “…”
She followed where Le Luo was pointing. By some ridiculous coincidence, it was Zhou Ran and Xie Wei.
Le Luo’s excitement was too obvious—it drew attention from inside.
Zhou Ran’s police-honed sharpness reacted instantly. He turned and looked their way.
Their eyes met through the glass wall and the crowd. Le Ning could’ve sworn she saw Zhou Ran raise an eyebrow slightly.
Suddenly, she jerked her gaze away.
“Yeah.”
“Then sis, should I go say hi? I actually wanted to ask them that night what academy they graduated from…”
Le Luo talked a lot, especially about things he was interested in.
Le Ning looked at him, pressed her lips together, and said, “Better not. We’re not that close. If you really want to know, I’ll ask for you later. No rush.”
“Really?”
Le Ning nodded. “Of course. Your big sis—”
Before she could finish, someone approached from the side.
Le Ning’s eyelid twitched. Before she could react, Le Luo was already beaming with excitement.
“Hello.”
Zhou Ran nodded and looked at the bright, energetic boy in front of him. “Hello. Zhou Ran.”
Le Luo’s eyes lit up. “I’m Le Luo. This is my sis. We met the night before last—”
“I remember.”
Zhou Ran looked at the two of them. “Here to eat?”
“Yeah.”
Le Luo said regretfully, “But there’s no space left.” Then his eyes brightened as he looked at Zhou Ran. “Captain Zhou… would you mind if we share a table?”
Before Le Ning could stop him, Zhou Ran had already agreed.
“Sure.”
Short and to the point—his usual style.
Even if Le Ning really didn’t want to go in, Le Luo had already asked. She couldn’t give Zhou Ran face, but she had to give her little brother’s.
In a daze, Le Ning followed them inside.
Xie Wei, sharp-eyed, noticed that his captain hadn’t even shifted his seat.
Le Luo, blissfully oblivious, was happily pulled to sit beside Xie Wei by him. Naturally, Le Ning ended up sitting right next to Zhou Ran again.
Xie Wei poured tea for both of them and smiled. “Miss Le, we meet again. This is your little brother, right?”
“Yeah.” Le Ning said, “Just call me Le Ning. My brother is Le Luo.”
Xie Wei nodded repeatedly. “No problem.”
He started chatting with Le Luo, and in no time the two of them were getting along like old friends.
The other side was full of laughter and chatter. Their side… silent as chickens.
Le Ning stared at her phone. Zhou Ran sipped tea.
She could feel the man’s presence right beside her, making the space feel inexplicably cramped.
How had she never noticed before how tight a four-person booth felt?
The pickled fish place used small sofas—one person per side felt spacious, but two people… it was relatively narrow.
Every time Le Ning shifted even a little, she brushed against the man next to her.
If she moved just a tiny bit closer… she could hear his breathing, their breaths seeming to intertwine. This proximity and distance made it far too easy for ambiguity to bloom.
She fiddled with her phone and vented in the group chat.
Le Ning Doesn’t Like Lemons: [What kind of cursed luck do I have!! Why do I run into Zhou Ran even when I’m just eating pickled fish?!]
Ruan Qiuqiu: [What?!]
Chuchu is Chuchu: [???]
Le Ning couldn’t hide anything—she directly spilled everything: coming to eat, running into them, and ending up sharing a table.
As soon as she finished, Ruan Qiu sent a string of “hahahaha.”
Ruan Qiuqiu: [Isn’t this perfect? It means you two are destined to rekindle your old flame.]
Le Ning Doesn’t Like Lemons: [? Who wants to rekindle anything with him? And anyway, did we even have an “old flame”?]
Chuchu is Chuchu: [How could we not? The “delivering water” old flame hahaha.]
Le Ning couldn’t be bothered arguing with them anymore. She had just put her phone away when she heard the person beside her ask: “You want to go to police academy?”
Le Ning froze and looked at Le Luo.
Le Luo nodded, eyes sparkling like stars. “Yeah! Brother Zhou, do you have any good advice?”
Le Ning: “…”
No way—she looked away for one second to check her phone, and now he’s already calling him “Brother Zhou”?!
Since when are you two this close?!
Zhou Ran didn’t talk much, but everything he said hit the point.
“It depends on whether you’ve really thought it through or if it’s just a whim.”
Xie Wei nodded in agreement. “Yeah, being a police officer isn’t easy. Exhausting work, constant danger, sometimes you don’t even make it home. No real days off.”
Le Luo gave a small smile and looked at them. “But you two still chose it.”
He paused, suddenly curious. “Brother Zhou, Brother Xie—what made you want to become police officers back then?”
Xie Wei laughed. “My grades were bad. I was just a bit quick on my feet.”
Hearing that, Le Luo turned to Zhou Ran.
Le Ning… while pretending to look at her phone, quietly perked up her ears. Honestly, she was a little curious too. Back when Zhou Ran chose police academy, the entire school—teachers and students—was shocked.
Zhou Ran glanced at the person beside him. From his angle, he could only see her trembling lashes—long and curled. When she smiled, her eyes curved like beautiful glass beads.
He looked away and said calmly, “Someone said police uniforms look handsome.”
Author’s Note:
After they get together, Captain Zhou always wears his uniform at home.
Le Ning: Why don’t you wear casual clothes?
Zhou Ran: …You don’t like it?
Le Ning: When have I ever liked it?
Zhou Ran: …
That night, Captain Zhou gave his girlfriend a very thorough reminder of exactly when she started liking it!!
Author: hahahahahahahahaha.