Shen Zhiyi never expected that in less than a day actually, less than half a day Lu Yusheng, that scumbag, would get exactly what he deserved.
At noon, exactly twelve o’clock, Zhou Muchuan finished his patrol rounds. Having just received some pocket money from his parents, he was feeling generous. He rounded up all the brothers from the station and made quite a show of arriving at the restaurant to support Shen Zhiyi and boost her morale.
After ordering their food, Zhou Muchuan excused himself to go to the restroom, but instead slipped into the kitchen just to say a few words to Shen Zhiyi.
The two chefs recognized Captain Zhou immediately, but noticing his uniform was dusty, they advised him, “Captain Zhou, please be patient. Go wait outside.”
“No, I just need to say a couple of words to Shen Zhiyi. I’ll be right out.”
“…”
Seeing that the two clearly needed a moment alone, Master Zhao, being quick-witted, suddenly clutched his lower back. “Old Qiu! Quick, help me upstairs, I think I threw out my back. I need to put some ointment on.”
After twelve noon, new customers usually stopped coming in. The restaurant was still crowded, but those were mostly guests who had arrived around eleven, ordered, and were still finishing their meals.
Shen Zhiyi could easily handle things alone for a short while.
“Captain Zhou, we’ll only be five minutes! Hurry up!” Master Qiu reminded him as they left.
“Thank you, both.” How could Zhou Muchuan not realize they were deliberately making space for him?
“Officer Zhou, what are you doing causing trouble back here?” Shen Zhiyi complained, annoyed. He had chased away her helpers. “What is wrong with you?”
“Shen Zhiyi, did you hear? Lu Yusheng has been reported. And word is, he’s been suspended from duty effective today.”
“…”
That fast?
Shen Zhiyi was briefly stunned, but then she went right back to stirring her rock sugar syrup. She intentionally let it caramelize a little more; the darker the color, the better the presentation.
His superiors sure worked fast.
Hmm, she liked that.
Seeing her seemingly indifferent reaction, Zhou Muchuan couldn’t help but reach out and pat her shoulder. “Shen Zhiyi, I’m telling you, Lu Yusheng is suspended! Did you hear me?”
“Loud and clear, Officer Zhou. A gentleman uses his words, not his hands. If I’d been adding salt just now and you startled me, I might have poured the whole spoon in. If it turns out too salty, don’t go complaining about my cooking.”
“…”
To be honest, even if she poured an entire jar of salt on purpose, he would never complain. Why did she always think the worst of him?
“I only told you yesterday that he accused us of having an improper relationship. Today, he gets reported and suspended. Did you do this to him?” Zhou Muchuan analyzed casually, asking for confirmation.
“As soon as I got back from the station yesterday, I was busy cooking. I finished work late, and I’ve been thinking about new dishes for next month. When would I have the time to ‘do’ anything to him?” Shen Zhiyi denied it flatly.
Actually, she had already decided on next month’s specialty: beef. She was choosing between Cilantro Beef or Toothpick Beef. She just hadn’t made the final call yet.
Cilantro Beef is a cold dish. In the whole town, the best cold dishes were made by Boss Jia at Lao Jia’s Restaurant, famous for his pig ears. If she launched cilantro beef, it might not be as universally popular as her Cola Chicken Wings.
To guarantee sales, playing it safe was better. She’d go with Toothpick Beef.
Alright, she’d make a plate later for Zhou Muchuan and his group to try.
The five minutes flew by. Masters Zhao and Qiu came back downstairs. Since Shen Zhiyi denied it and her explanation made perfect sense, Zhou Muchuan dropped the suspicion.
Maybe it was just a medical dispute? Their station had handled cases like that before.
Not only did Zhou Muchuan fail to suspect her, but Lu Yusheng initially had no clue either.
He had gone to work as usual that morning, but not long after, he was called into the director’s office. They told him someone had filed a serious report regarding his professional conduct. He was suspended pending investigation. Since the board needed to meet, they told him to go home and wait for news. They even took his office keys.
Lu Yusheng was completely confused. What did “serious conduct issues” even mean?
He pressed for details, but his superiors refused to elaborate, only saying they would discuss it and inform him of the outcome later.
And just like that, in broad daylight, Lu Yusheng was sent home.
News traveled fast, and it soon reached Jiang Ruochu’s ears. She immediately asked for leave from school and rushed straight to the Lu family residence.
As soon as she entered, she ran over breathlessly, “Brother Yusheng! I heard you’ve been suspended? What on earth is the reason?”
“They say our Fifth Son has serious moral issues!” Lu Yusheng’s mother fumed, distraught. “Apparently someone reported him last night. Who is this bastard? How can they be so wicked?”
Lu Yusheng let out a cold laugh. “Who else could it be? Zhou Muchuan came back from Nancheng yesterday afternoon. Today, I get accused of ‘moral issues’. Aside from him, there isn’t anyone else.”
“He’s doing this to get back at me.”
Lu Yusheng was consumed by rage. His anger reached a breaking point, and he violently smashed the teacup in his hand onto the floor.
Everyone was terrified. None of them had ever seen the usually gentle and refined Lu Yusheng lose his temper like this.
“Officer Zhou? But why would he do such a thing?”
“Because I reported him first! I told them he and Shen Zhiyi have an improper relationship! It’s the truth! If their relationship was so pure and innocent, why did he personally escort her to our house that night?”
“He acts like her personal bodyguard, ruined Qiangqiang’s first birthday party… All I did was report the truth! And yet, he has such powerful backing, he just got transferred to Nancheng to enjoy an easy life!”
“I never realized what a petty, small-minded man he is.”
“How dare he! Fifth Son, wait right here! I’ll go get Fourth Brother and we’ll go down to the station and confront him face to face!” Mother Lu was determined to defend her son. She turned to go fetch her other son from the fields.
“Mom, stop. Without proof, he’ll never admit it. Just like when he asked me, I denied everything too. What’s annoying is the timing.”
“This was supposed to be the year I get nominated for the ‘Advanced Professional’ award. If I get that, next year when the hospital allocates new apartments, I get priority selection.”
Thinking about the opportunity slipping away, Lu Yusheng burned with anger. Yet he knew that losing his temper now wouldn’t help; provoking Zhou Muchuan further would only make things worse.
The smartest move was to stay home and wait. If things didn’t blow over, he would have to go to Nancheng himself.
He would go ask Zhou Muchuan’s father directly: Is this how the Zhou family repays favors?
“We must get to the bottom of this,” Jiang Ruochu said, clenching her fists. She was dying to know what exactly the accusation was. What kind of “serious moral issue” could be so bad?
“Ruochu, you should go back to school now. Also… for the time being, try not to come here too often. If an official investigation team comes to the village, they might find out that Shen Zhiyi and I are still legally married. We can’t let that secret get out.”
Jiang Ruochu: “…”