Chu Jiang tried to calm Wang Shiqi down. He didn’t want to stand by helplessly and watch her jump again.
“I won’t!”
Wang Shiqi grew agitated again, tears streaming down her cheeks like beads from a broken string.
“Unless you agree, I’m jumping right now!”
As she spoke, she pretended to move toward the edge of the rooftop.
“Don’t—don’t!”
Chu Jiang jumped in alarm and hurried forward, trying to grab her.
“Don’t come any closer!”
Like a startled deer, Wang Shiqi suddenly backed up a step. Half her foot was already hanging over the edge.
“Y-you should come down first. We can talk this through!”
Fine beads of sweat had formed on Chu Jiang’s forehead.
“No!”
Wang Shiqi was terribly agitated, her body trembling slightly.
“Agree first! Otherwise, I’ll jump!”
As she spoke, she edged backward another half-step. Her foot slipped off the edge, and she lurched violently.
“Careful!”
Chu Jiang’s heart leaped into his throat. Instinctively, he stepped forward to grab her.
“Don’t come any closer!”
Wang Shiqi screamed, her voice full of fear and despair.
“Come any closer and I’ll jump!”
Chu Jiang stopped dead and raised both hands to show he meant no harm.
“All right, all right. I won’t come closer. Just come down, and we’ll talk it through.”
He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down.
“You’ll be my boyfriend?”
Tears welled up in Wang Shiqi’s eyes again. She stared hard into Chu Jiang’s, as if trying to find the answer there.
“I…”
Chu Jiang hesitated.
Should he really agree to such an absurd demand?
But if he didn’t, this girl might really jump!
He couldn’t stand by and watch a young life disappear like that.
“I’ll do it!”
Chu Jiang gritted his teeth and finally made up his mind.
“Just come down, and I’ll be your boyfriend!”
“Really?”
“Really!”
Chu Jiang nodded, his voice firm.
“But you have to promise me you won’t do anything foolish again.”
“Mm…”
Wang Shiqi nodded through her sobs.
“I promise…”
“And you have to tell me who’s been bullying you.”
Chu Jiang pressed his advantage. He had to get to the truth as soon as possible.
Wang Shiqi’s eyes dimmed. She lowered her head, not daring to meet Chu Jiang’s gaze.
“They… there are a lot of them…”
“You might not believe me even if I told you…”
“That’s okay. Tell me. I’ll believe you.”
“And trust me: since I’ve promised you, I’ll make sure we sort this out!”
“I’ll get the bullying dealt with within the next few days!”
Wang Shiqi raised her head and looked into Chu Jiang’s sincere eyes.
Slowly, she nodded.
“Okay… I believe you…”
At last, she stepped away from the edge of the rooftop. Her legs buckled, and she nearly fell.
Chu Jiang was quick to catch her.
“Careful.”
Wang Shiqi leaned against Chu Jiang, feeling the warmth and security he radiated. At last, the tension that had kept her rigid began to ease.
She gradually calmed down.
“Then… should we exchange contact information?”
Chu Jiang asked cautiously, afraid of upsetting her again.
Wang Shiqi nodded gently and took her phone from her pocket.
They added each other as contacts.
“I’ve got something else to do, so I have to go. Later, send me a private message explaining what happened from beginning to end.”
“For now, go home and get some rest. Don’t let your thoughts run away with you.”
“I promise I’ll sort this out for you within the next few days!”
Wang Shiqi looked at Chu Jiang and nodded earnestly.
“Mm. I believe you.”
“Be careful on your way.”
Relieved, Chu Jiang turned and ran toward Zhangshantou Police Station.
………
Zhangshantou Police Station.
In the office, Wang Zhenkang and Xiong He sat facing each other.
Wang Zhenkang, the station’s veteran chief, had a deep furrow between his brows.
“Old Xiong, what do you think of the new recruit assigned to us this time?”
Xiong He, a burly man with an honest face, scratched his head.
“You mean Chu Jiang, Chief?”
“The young fellow looks pretty sharp in his photo.”
Wang Zhenkang nodded.
“That’s right. He’s young and eager, but I don’t know if he’ll be able to adapt to the conditions here.”
Zhangshantou Police Station’s jurisdiction was complicated, and they were always short on manpower.
Young people had come here over the years.
But in the end, they’d all left for one reason or another.
Xiong He sighed and continued:
“Conditions here are tough. The workload is heavy, and there’s a lot of pressure.”
“How many young people can put up with that?”
Wang Zhenkang fell silent for a moment, then said:
“Here’s what we’ll do. I’ll train this new recruit myself!”
“You’ll train him personally?”
Xiong He looked surprised.
It had been a long time since Wang Zhenkang had personally trained a new recruit.
“That’s right. I’ll do it myself!”
“I want to see whether this young fellow named Chu Jiang can really put down roots here in Zhangshantou!”
“Chief, that’s great. With you personally guiding him, Chu Jiang will improve by leaps and bounds.”
Xiong He grinned, showing a full set of white teeth.
“But, Chief, take it easy on him. Don’t scare him off.”
“Haha! You little rascal, now you’re worried about me?”
Wang Zhenkang laughed heartily.
“Don’t worry. I know what I’m doing.”
“Then I’ll help you out. Together, we’ll turn Chu Jiang, this uncut gem, into something fine!”
Xiong He declared, thumping his chest.
“Good. Let’s do our best!”
Minute by minute, time passed.
The hands on the wall clock had already reached eleven.
Wang Zhenkang’s frown deepened, and his expression grew darker and darker.
From time to time, he raised his wrist to check his watch, then looked toward the door.
“What time is it already? Where is he?”
Xiong He was starting to get restless too.
He stood up and paced back and forth around the office.
“Yeah, it’s almost eleven. Why hasn’t he shown up?”
“Could something have happened to him on the way?”
Though Xiong He said it, he didn’t really believe it.
What could have happened?
Most likely the young man had slept in and gotten up late.
“This is outrageous! Absolutely outrageous!”
Wang Zhenkang slammed his hand on the desk, his voice suddenly rising.
“Late on his very first day—what’s he going to be like later?”
Seeing this, Xiong He hurried to calm him down.
“Chief, take it easy.”
“Young people have their faults.”
“When he gets here, we can give him a proper talking-to.”
“A talking-to? He needs a proper dressing-down!”
Wang Zhenkang was still fuming.
“He hasn’t even arrived and he’s already giving me a slap in the face. Does he think Zhangshantou Police Station is a retirement home?”
“Come and go whenever he pleases?”
“Chief, don’t get angry just yet. Maybe he really has some special circumstances.”
Xiong He continued trying to soothe him.
“Special circumstances? What kind of special circumstances could there be?”
Wang Zhenkang snorted.
“I think he simply doesn’t take us seriously!”
“He has no sense of discipline whatsoever!”
“If this had happened back in the day, he’d have been fired already!”
“Chief, don’t say that. Times have changed.”
Xiong He said with a wry smile.
“You have to give young people a chance.”
“A chance? I think he’s looking for trouble!”
Wang Zhenkang grew angrier with every word.
“When he gets here, I’ll show him!”
“Please don’t act rashly. You’ll scare him off.”
Xiong He hurried to say.
“If we lose another one, we’ll be even more short-staffed.”
“Hmph. Good riddance if he leaves!”
Wang Zhenkang said angrily.
“A person like that would only be a liability around here!”
“Don’t say things you don’t mean in anger.”
Xiong He shook his head helplessly.
“Let’s find out what’s going on when he gets here.”
“What’s there to find out?”
Wang Zhenkang waved a hand.
“Late is late. What excuse could there be?”
As Wang Zhenkang spoke, the landline on the desk suddenly rang…