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The self-criticism paper was destroyed by An Ruo at the very first moment.
The little girl, without hesitation, lit Anjie’s lighter and burned the papers in front of Su Jiang.
In the hot pot restaurant, Su Jiang sat at the table, recalling the scene where An Ruo burned the self-criticism papers with her back turned to him.
He seemed to see that behind An Ruo, there was a long black tail and two black ears growing on her ears.
She looked like a little demon.
“Why are you staring at me like that?”
An Ruo, eating tripe, asked in confusion.
She felt that Su Jiang’s gaze just now seemed a bit off.
“It’s nothing.”
Su Jiang chuckled, he dared not say that he thought she looked like a little demon.
At a loss for how to appease An Ruo after inadvertently upsetting her, Su Jiang had to think of a way to placate her.
Since the self-criticism papers had already been burned, Su Jiang dared not provoke An Ruo now.
“Hmph!”
An Ruo let out a light snort, ignoring Su Jiang, and continued to eat her meal with her head down.
Driven by a mix of anger and appetite, she ate particularly much today.
…
Meanwhile, at the police station, in the chief’s office.
“Chief, we finally managed to get a psychologist to come, why did we still drive the person away?”
Yang Jie sat opposite Director Zheng, looking helpless.
Director Zheng didn’t say a word but instead threw a stack of documents to Yang Jie.
Upon closer inspection, the documents turned out to be about Su Jiang, just like that. If Su Jiang were to look through this information, he would realize that Director Zheng had only read one part of it at the time.
Within this thick stack of documents, there was a complete record of all of Su Jiang’s activities from the beginning until now.
Even his class attendance, sleeping habits, daily diet, and more were all detailed extensively.
This… This is Su Jiang?”
Yang Jie looked at the information with a puzzled and alarmed expression. He couldn’t imagine that the determined and like-minded individual he met in the morning was actually connected to the An family.
Director Zheng spoke solemnly, “Take a closer look at his activities in the past half month.”
Upon hearing this, Yang Jie continued to examine the information, becoming more shocked as he read.
“Did he blow up the Feng family’s factory last night?”
“Is he really just a university student?”
Yang Jie also discovered that all of Su Jiang’s abnormal behaviors had only started within the past half month. Before that, he was indeed just an ordinary student.
Immediately, Yang Jie considered a possibility and asked Director Zheng, “Could it be that he is from the capital city?”
Director Zheng shook his head, smoking silently, without responding to Yang Jie.
After a long pause, in a low voice, he asked, “Yang Jie, do you remember the question I asked you when we first met?”
“I remember, you asked me what I would do if I had the ability to stop conflicts.”
“Do you remember how you answered?”
“Of course, I said that if there ever came a day when I could prevent those wars and conflicts without hesitation, to truly bring peace to the world, that would be why I follow you.”
Director Zheng nodded lightly at the words and let out a long sigh.
“Yes, real world peace.”
His tone was filled with countless sorrows.
“However, today that young man told me that as long as human greed and selfishness exist, the world can never truly be at peace.”
“When no one tills the barren field, once tilled, there will be disputes…”
“Today, I was taught a lesson by that young man.”
Director Zheng chuckled self-deprecatingly. He had spent over a decade striving for the ideal world in his mind.
In the end, covered in chicken feathers, he was even demoted to the small Jiangdu City, serving as the chief of a broken bureau.
“I can tell, he knew what answer I wanted to hear.”
“But he still spoke his own answer because deep down, he does not approve of my ideals.”
“He’s not the first, and he definitely won’t be the last.”
“Yang Jie, do you think my persistence is still necessary?”
Director Zheng asked Yang Jie, seemingly shaken in his beliefs.
Yang Jie fell silent. The main reason he followed Director Zheng was that the world Director Zheng envisioned had touched him deeply.
A golden age without conflict, a world of peace.
But now, Director Zheng seemed to be wavering.
No, it should be said that Director Zheng had already started to waver from the moment he was sent to Jiangdu City and began neglecting the situation at the police station.
After a long pause, Yang Jie raised his head, his eyes filled with determination, and said:
“Director Zheng, perhaps what Su Jiang said is true, but even so, does our effort hold no value?”
“There must always be a group of people who strive to do something, right?”
“Perhaps our efforts will be in vain, perhaps the world we aspire to is nothing but an illusionary utopia.”
“But I believe that as long as we act, it holds meaning!”
“If one day I die on the path pursuing that illusory world, that will be my Yang Jie’s end point, and I will feel content and proud of it.”
As Director Zheng listened to these words, his expression remained unchanged. He silently lit a cigarette and continued to smoke without a word.
“You can go back now.”
Yang Jie nodded, knowing that Director Zheng needed some time alone to think.
Closing the door gently behind him, Yang Jie took a moment to readjust his mindset before diving back into his work.
In the room, Director Zheng sat alone in silence, as if there were two conflicting voices in his mind.
On one side was Su Jiang, and on the other was Yang Jie.
One pursuing an illusory utopian world, the other facing the harsh reality.
The words of the two individuals echoed continuously in Director Zheng’s mind.
He sat there, his gaze deep as he watched the sunset outside, ushering in the night.
The ashtray on the table filled up continuously, and Director Zheng lost track of how many cigarettes he had smoked or how long he had been sitting there.
Suddenly, he chuckled softly, his hoarse voice breaking the silence of the room.
“Really, I’ve been taught two lessons in a row today.”
“These young people nowadays are getting more and more extraordinary…”
Then, he picked up his phone, dialed Su Jiang’s number listed on the information, and the call connected swiftly.
Director Zheng spoke first, “It’s me.”
Su Jiang was taking a stroll by the river with An Ruo when he received the call. Upon hearing the voice, he immediately recognized who it was.
“What’s wrong?”
“Your plan, I agree. Come over later, and let’s discuss.”
“Really? Aren’t you afraid that if we go through with this, all your people at the police station will be gone?”
“If they’re gone, so be it. They’re all a bunch of useless people anyway.”
“Fine, I’ll be there in a bit.”
Su Jiang hung up the phone. Although he was a bit puzzled and didn’t understand why Director Zheng had changed his mind, this was undoubtedly a good thing for him.
“Who was that?”
“The one we talked about this afternoon, Director Zheng.”
Su Jiang finished speaking and crouched down in front of An Ruo.
“Why are you crouching down?”
“There’s an urgent matter. We need to hurry back. We’ll walk faster if I carry you.”
An Ruo blushed, suspecting that Su Jiang was trying to take advantage of her.
“Hmph, if you’re lying to me, you’re dead.”
An Ruo lightly climbed onto his back and menacingly threatened him in his ear.
Su Jiang steadied An Ruo’s knees with his hands and gently lifted her onto his back.
Her hair lightly brushed against Su Jiang’s cheek, carrying a faint fragrance that made Su Jiang’s heart beat faster involuntarily.
However, he remained composed and continued walking. After a while, An Ruo sensed something was off. Her gaze turned cold in an instant, and she spoke calmly.
“Su Jiang.”
“Huh? What’s up?”
“Aren’t you in a hurry?”
“Yes, I am.”
“Then why are you walking slower than the elderly people taking a leisurely stroll?”
“Um…”
An Ruo realized she had been tricked and angrily grabbed Su Jiang’s ear, demanding, “Put me down!”
“No, no, no, I’ll really walk faster this time, I promise!”
Su Jiang, feeling helpless, picked up the pace and soon arrived at the An family’s residence.
An Mingjie locked himself in the study, so Su Jiang informed An Ruo and immediately called for him to join him.
“Old Li, let’s go, big things are happening!”
“What are you up to again?”
“There’s something going on at the Inspectorate, let’s go there.”
“Fine, I’ll drive you there. I’m practically your chauffeur now.”
Su Jiang grinned, then had a sudden thought, “Oh, Old Li, let’s bring some dynamite with us, just in case.”
Li Cai froze in place, turning his body mechanically to look at Su Jiang with disbelief.
“Bring what?”
“Dynamite.”
“Where to?”
“The Inspectorate.”
“You’re kidding me!”
Li Cai jumped up, pointing at Su Jiang, too furious to find words.
“You! You’re really planning to blow up the Inspectorate?”