The witness Gu Liansheng and his colleagues were trying to crack was named Qi Conggui, a filial son, that made things easy.
Lin Wanying sent his sick mother to the hospital, and took his brother, who couldn’t afford to marry, to Pengcheng, setting up a stall outside her mentor’s workplace. She paid a restaurant chef to teach him, hands-on, how to make broth and noodles.
On the stall’s first day, her mentor came by and had a bowl, saying it was good, and that as long as the man was warm and generous toward people, the stall could keep running, with her mentor backing it, no local thugs would dare overturn it, so of course it could keep going.
A small stall, earning money, that would surely let him marry a wife eventually.
It didn’t even take that long. On the very first day, a woman with nowhere else to turn begged for a bowl of noodles, and ended up staying to help out, asking only for food and a place to stay. Lin Wanying could see this pair had a future together.
Handling all of this took a total of three days. Lin Wanying called the guesthouse where Gu Liansheng was staying and told them to bring Qi Conggui over.
…
Qi Conggui went to the hospital in Pengcheng, visited his mother who had just had surgery, ate a bowl of noodles at his brother’s stall, then told Gu Liansheng: “I’ll turn myself in. I want to earn leniency for cooperating, and I’ll tell you everything I know.”
With no more worries weighing on him, and full of gratitude besides, Qi Conggui finally chose to surrender willingly.
The goal had been achieved, but Gu Liansheng felt conflicted, all the talking he and Yan Qizong had done had gotten nowhere compared to Wanying’s method.
Ji Huaien, worried about his relationship with Lin Wanying, gave Gu Liansheng some careful guidance.
“You two are police, and you have rules and principles to follow. Ah Ying thinks like a businesswoman, as long as the goal is achieved, she doesn’t question the process. The hundred-some yuan she spent over these three days is nothing compared to the result, she really is my student. Don’t let yourself feel like you’ve been outdone by Ah Ying, or let it sour things between you in your marriage.”
Gu Liansheng said quickly: “Mentor, I’m not that petty a person. I’m nothing but grateful to her, I just feel like I’m not much use myself.”
Ji Huaien laughed heartily: “No need to put that unnecessary pressure on yourself. She has her way, you have yours, you’re both doing well.”
…
Lin Wanying and this man, Qi Conggui, both rode the police car back together.
Sometimes fate arranges things in strange ways, on the way back, the police car ran into a robbery. The roads really weren’t safe these days, but police out on official business carried firearms, were these bandits really that blind?
Lin Wanying suddenly recalled from her past life having heard news about bandits attacking police to steal their guns, then using them to rob credit unions, and warned alertly: “They’re setting up a roadblock knowing full well it’s a police car, watch out, they might be after your firearms.”
Gu Liansheng felt a chill run through him. It wasn’t impossible, how else to explain these depraved road bandits out there?
There was a roadblock ahead, they couldn’t get through without clearing it. Qi Conggui was a witness who had turned himself in and couldn’t be put at risk, so they told him to stay in the car. Gu Liansheng and Yan Qizong got out, standing guard front and back, and soon fired warning shots. Once their disguise as ordinary people was seen through, the bandits abandoned any pretense and rushed to seize the police car.
Lin Wanying was still in the car, shutting the door on the dog, so to speak. Several bandits realized whoever was in the car was even fiercer and scattered in retreat, right into the arms of Gu Liansheng and Yan Qizong, who surrounded and handcuffed them.
…
This gang had a criminal record, several lives on their hands, desperate enough to try seizing guns for a big score. These bandits had committed crimes across multiple areas, in jurisdictions with overlapping claims.
Gu Liansheng and Yan Qizong discussed it and called the bureau, which immediately sent backup. After the handover, the suspects were to be taken back for investigation and trial.
This trip out had brought back Qi Conggui, who’d turned himself in, and had also led to the successful capture of several gang suspects. Gu Liansheng and Yan Qizong both received commendations.
Yan Qizong, having seen firsthand how formidable Lin Wanying was, said to Gu Liansheng: “If your wife were willing to join the police force, all of us would be outdone by her.”
Gu Liansheng never thought his wife being more capable than him was something to be ashamed of, he was proud of it.
“My wife says people like us have noble ideals, and she admires that, but she couldn’t become someone like us, fighting crime and helping ordinary citizens doesn’t give her much sense of accomplishment. She still prefers earning money, to get her sense of happiness and security that way.”
Yan Qizong laughed. “That’s good too.”
…
With such a big case falling under this bureau’s jurisdiction for investigation, everyone got busy, and Lin Wanying quietly started to slip away again.
Gu Liansheng had learned his lesson this time and kept an eye on his wife’s movements, hurrying to catch her, and just then ran into his master’s wife bringing back her niece, Ji Pingxiang.
Gu Liansheng didn’t know Ji Pingxiang well. Before He Jinzhi entrusted him with Li Qiuzhen, his master’s wife had been choosing between him and Yan Qizong as a potential nephew-in-law. Yan Qizong had confessed to the girl he secretly liked at lightning speed and married her just as fast, leaving his master’s wife with only him as the remaining option, and then He Jinzhi got there first.
Word was that Ji Pingxiang’s husband’s family and the man himself looked good on the outside but were rotten to the core underneath. This time, his master’s wife had gone to stay there for a month before finally getting her niece divorced and bringing her back.
Just from that brief encounter passing each other, anyone could see Ji Pingxiang’s dazed, absent-minded expression, a sign of having suffered serious psychological torment.
Pity, yes, but it had nothing to do with him. He had a good wife, and needed to stay alert at all times not to give her any reason for misunderstanding, Gu Liansheng was already sidling along the wall to avoid attention.
…
That evasive gesture set something off in Ji Pingxiang, and she suddenly rushed straight up to Gu Liansheng and asked him:
“Why did you remarry the moment you got divorced? Didn’t you ever have a place for me in your heart at all? So back then, choosing Li Qiuzhen wasn’t to repay a debt of gratitude, it was to avoid me. What did I do to make you and Yan Qizong dislike me so much? Tell me.”
Gu Liansheng was scared out of his wits, his wife was right there. He absolutely couldn’t let this be misunderstood.
He hurried to explain: “We have no grudge between us, I have no reason to dislike you. It’s just that on the very day of my divorce, I happened to meet the woman who’s now my wife, and when fate calls, you marry, please calm down.”
His master’s wife rushed forward to apologize: “Liansheng, she’s suffered so much, her mental state isn’t good, please don’t be angry, I’ll take her away right now.”
None of the single or married men around dared step forward to intervene. Yan Qizong, afraid of getting an earful from his own wife at home, could only guiltily stand aside, not daring to speak up.
By the time the commotion died down, Gu Liansheng could no longer see his wife anywhere. She must be furious, this was probably going to mean a month-long cold war. Panicked, he rushed to ask his master for leave so he could go home and find her.
…
Gu Liansheng didn’t find his wife at home, instead, his niece had come, tears streaming down her face, saying her parents were getting divorced.
His elder brother and sister-in-law, divorcing? That was probably just some harebrained scheme to dodge the penalty for having too many children while also trying to protect his brother’s job.
Gu Liansheng had no mind to deal with that right now, his elder brother and sister-in-law were faking a divorce, while he himself faced the risk of a real one.
His wife wasn’t home, so she must be at the market. He ran into his two brothers there and asked anxiously: “Have you seen your sister?”
“She’s over by the management office building. The moment she got back, people with disputes, favors to ask, spots to swap, a whole crowd rushed to find her for justice. Brother-in-law, if you want to talk to my sister, it’ll probably take at least an hour.”
Gu Liansheng couldn’t wait that long, he needed to cut in line and talk to his wife first. He asked Lin Huinan for help: “I’ll buy up all your popsicles for the day, go tell your sister to give me five minutes. I have something really important I need to tell her right now.”
“All right, brother-in-law, wait here, I’ll go call her out right away.”
…
Gu Liansheng couldn’t wait to explain everything to his wife, packing his whole story into those five minutes, ready to accept being hit or scolded, just praying she wouldn’t go cold on him.
Lin Wanying couldn’t get a word in the whole time. When he finally finished, she laughed: “I’m not angry. It’s obvious her mind’s been through a breakdown, seeing you must have reminded her of the future she didn’t get to have, and that just made it worse for her. She’s actually quite pitiable. I left right away because I knew you two would feel awkward, I’m really not angry.”
Not angry? The reasoning sounded convincing enough, but somehow it still didn’t sit right, Gu Liansheng felt oddly deflated inside.
Back at the bureau, Yan Qizong hurried over with concern: “You’re back this fast, your wife must be angry. Just take leave and go home.”
“She’s not angry. She even said she left right away out of concern that it’d be awkward for me, my master, and his wife, and told me not to take it to heart.”
Yan Qizong was envious: “Your wife’s so understanding. You’re lucky, Gu Liansheng.”
His master came over with concern too, saying he didn’t expect his wife to bring their niece to the workplace, and asked if it had affected their marriage.
Gu Liansheng repeated the same thing, that his wife wasn’t angry, and added: “Wanying said she knew the stall spot your wife wanted was set aside for your niece, she said she’ll look after Ji Pingxiang, so you two don’t need to worry.”
Gu Liansheng’s master was stunned by Lin Wanying’s magnanimity, and what he’d been about to say turned into pure admiration: “You’ve got such a good wife, cherish her well. If you ever pull the kind of nonsense her ex-husband did, don’t think I won’t discipline you myself.”
Gu Liansheng would never be as spineless as Xu Youcheng. After mulling it over the whole afternoon, he finally figured out what had been bothering him, his wife’s reaction wasn’t what he’d expected, and that was what left him feeling deflated.
…
Lin Wanying quickly cleared up the disputes that had piled up over the past few days. One was particularly thorny, a troublemaking scoundrel wanted to sell fried noodles and fried rice at a stall next to a vendor whose business in the same items was already doing well.
Lin Wanying wouldn’t allow it, and instead gave a resolution: she’d have Lin Huinan take over the vendor’s stall. If, within ten days, Huinan’s noodle stall could match the neighboring one’s business, then the troublemaker would have to hand his stall over to Huinan. If Huinan couldn’t manage it, she’d give the original vendor an even better spot, and he could sell whatever he wanted there.
This time, everyone at the market watched to see how Lin Huinan would handle it.
Gu Shuisheng was anxious, saying: “What exactly are you planning to do? Don’t let sister-in-law lose face.”
Lin Huinan gave him a look. “Do you not trust my sister’s decision, or my ability to execute it? Nothing to worry about.”
Ten days was more than generous time, it only took Lin Huinan one week to bring the noodle stall back to life, already gaining repeat customers. At this rate, over a hundred yuan a month was well within reach, no worse than the fried noodle and rice stall next door.
His sister assumed everyone understood the business logic behind this, but without spelling it out clearly, her handling of the matter wouldn’t achieve its full shock value on everyone.
Lin Huinan showed off proudly, explaining: “My sister’s point is, no matter your situation, you have to try every possible way to change it first. If you haven’t even tried, wanting my sister to just give you a new spot or a new category to sell is pointless.”
“So how’d you turn it around so fast?”
“With my clever head, I hired a skilled cook to teach me how to make broth and braise beef offal, so the beef offal noodles came out tasting authentic and kept customers coming back. Then I hired a few students to hand-write a thousand flyers, which brought in customers willing to give it a try. Honest business, good taste, the odds of success are much better than throwing a tantrum and demanding things.”
“But would a cook agree to teach you, just like that?”
“Of course not. I asked several of them, offering half of my first year’s earnings to the master who taught me, finally one of them was moved by my sincerity, and that’s how it got done.”
Lin Huinan was only sixteen, and already this capable, no wonder his sister, who’d taught him, was even more admirable.
Everyone applauded, and no one in the market ever brought up trying to swap spots like that again.
Lin Huinan, feeling generous, then transferred the now-profitable stall to the original vendor for three hundred yuan.
He didn’t feel like he’d lost out getting only three hundred yuan for it, and even taught Gu Shuisheng the lesson: “This small kindness bought back gratitude, well worth it, and I even made three hundred yuan on top of that. Learn from me a bit more.”