Chapter 119: Not Going, No Matter What

Jing Xi sat in her seat, casually observing everyone’s expressions.

What exactly were these people curious about?

Or rather, what did they want to know?

“A commendation ceremony? No thanks. I’m just an ordinary citizen. I don’t want to be in the spotlight, but I appreciate your kind offer.”

No one expected Jing Xi to reject the invitation outright, not even giving the city government any face.

“Comrade Xiao Jing, this commendation ceremony is very important! You can’t just refuse—it’s for you, one of the main figures!”

Zhang Sheng tried to persuade her again.

Jing Xi smiled. “I’m just one of the main figures, not the only one. How about this? Just tell them I’m busy farming at home and don’t have time to go. Help me take a leave of absence.”

Zhang Sheng: “…”

Wei Yun: “…”

The town officials: “…”

Jing Xi stood up. “If there’s nothing else, leaders, I’ll be on my way.”

Then, without hesitation, she pushed open the door and walked out without looking back.

Outside in the courtyard, Cao Xinyi and the others saw Jing Xi leaving in a hurry, looking puzzled.

“What happened?”

“Who knows?”

Inside the village office’s meeting room, the officials exchanged glances.

Wei Yun was baffled. “Did we say something wrong? This young lady sure has a strong personality. Hahaha.”

He forced a laugh.

Zhang Sheng, however, wasn’t as amused.

A young girl had just walked out on him.

Who in this room would dare do that?

Even the Song family had to give him some respect when they came to negotiate.

Losing control of his temper, he slammed the table in frustration.

The moment his palm hit the surface, he regretted it.

The town officials immediately stood up in alarm.

“Oh, Secretary Zhang, please don’t get angry! She’s just a young girl who doesn’t know how to talk properly. Don’t take it personally!”

“Yes, Secretary Zhang! We, as adults, shouldn’t hold grudges against youngsters!”

They surrounded Zhang Sheng like a group of caretakers pacifying an upset child, afraid he might get too worked up.

Wei Yun, on the other hand, had a feeling that something he said had upset Jing Xi.

But he had his own difficulties, too.

“Old Zhang, are you really mad?”

He walked over to Zhang Sheng, who had a long face.

Zhang Sheng glanced at him, shook his head, and refused to admit it. “I’m not angry. I’m just thinking—what do we do if the mayor specifically asked to see her and she refuses to go?”

Wei Yun had no answer to that.

Just then, a police officer standing nearby spoke up.

“Director Wei, I heard that the case of the kidnapped girl last time was also solved thanks to this young lady. The local police station chief seems to be quite familiar with her. Maybe we could go there and ask for help?”

Wei Yun raised an eyebrow, skeptical. “Are you sure? She helped with the human trafficking case too?”

Zhang Sheng also looked up at the young officer beside Wei Yun. “Really?”

“Yes, absolutely. I heard it from their village chief.”

“Alright then! Let’s do that!”

—

The next morning.

Li Tao and Zhou Jiwen received an assignment from their superiors first thing in the morning.

It wasn’t cracking down on illegal activities, gambling, or theft.

It was… persuading someone to attend a ceremony.

Looking at the familiar address and name on their mission orders, the two officers hesitated.

“Chief, are you really sending us to do persuasion work?”

“That’s right! Now go! And remember, no matter what, you must convince Comrade Jing Xi to attend this commendation ceremony!”

Before they could protest further, they were shoved out of the station and told to head to Fucha Village.

The chief even added, “If you can’t complete this mission, don’t bother coming back. We’ll all resign together.”

…Was it really that serious?

Zhou Jiwen thought about how long he had been on the force—not very long.

He had followed Li Tao through all sorts of tough assignments without complaining because he truly loved this job.

And yet, now they were being threatened over a talking assignment?

He didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

“Alright, let’s go! At least we might get a free lunch from Xiao Jing. She’s a great cook.”

Li Tao added, “Should we ride our bikes there?”

“Yeah, let’s cycle.”

“It’s a two-hour round trip. That’s exhausting. Let’s take the bus instead.”

Zhou Jiwen hesitated. “Do you think we can get reimbursed for the bus fare?”

“Would you dare ask the chief?”

“…No.”

“Then let’s just ride our bikes. Consider it exercise. At least we’re not on patrol duty today.”

And so, the two of them hopped on their bicycles and headed for Fucha Village.

Luckily, they had just eaten breakfast, so they rode fast and reached the village in forty minutes.

They first stopped by the village office, where Cao Xinyi led them to Jing Xi’s house.

Jing Xi happened to be stepping out, heading to her field, when they arrived.

As soon as she saw them, she raised an eyebrow.

“What’s going on? You two are here early—don’t tell me something happened again, and it just happens to involve me?”

She was practically a permanent guest at the police station at this point.

Li Tao quickly shook his head. “No, no! Nothing happened! We just need to ask you something!”

Zhou Jiwen nodded. “Yeah, just a question.”

“In that case, come inside and talk.” Jing Xi then turned to Cao Xinyi. “Miss Cao, want to come in for some tea?”

Cao Xinyi was just about to accept when she noticed Li Tao frantically winking at her from the side.

She paused, then quickly changed her mind.

“Actually, I’ll pass for now. I have something else to do. I’ll come by later to hang out.”

“Alright! See you later!”

Li Tao gave Cao Xinyi a grateful look.

Once inside the courtyard, Jing Xi had them sit down while she went inside to pour some water.

As she poured, she wondered why they had come.

When she turned back, she saw the two of them huddled together, whispering with their heads down. She listened closely and caught words like “commendation” and “ceremony,” and suddenly, she remembered the upcoming commendation event.

Could it be that they were sent to persuade her to attend?

Carrying a teapot, she walked out and filled their cups.

“So, what brings you here?”

Li Tao looked at Zhou Jiwen. Zhou Jiwen looked at Li Tao.

Zhou Jiwen said, “You’re older, you go first!”

Li Tao glared at him—he was just about to say, You’re younger, you go first!

Jing Xi crossed her arms. “What kind of shady business is this? Two police officers acting like thieves?”

Li Tao sighed. “Fine, I’ll get straight to the point! It’s about the city’s commendation event. The director of the Public Security Bureau contacted our chief and told us to come talk to you.”

Jing Xi raised an eyebrow. “Why you two?”

Li Tao shrugged. “We have no idea, but the order came down, so whether we like it or not, we have to do it!”

Jing Xi cut to the chase. “Are they putting pressure on you? Just tell me—what happens if I insist on not going?”

Zhou Jiwen chuckled. “Let’s not focus on the consequences just yet. Right now, what matters is understanding why you’re so against attending. Think about it—what if they give you a cash reward? Wouldn’t that be nice? There’s probably a banner too. You’ll be famous in all the surrounding villages! If you really want to open that bun shop, consider this free advertising.”

The mention of a bun shop was tempting.

But Jing Xi didn’t want any more attention. The more famous you got, the more trouble you attracted.

She sighed. “That’s exactly what I thought when they first came to see me in the village. But instead, they questioned me like I was a criminal. It made me uncomfortable, so I don’t want to go. Plus, I really do have things to take care of that day—I won’t be available.”

The two of them clearly didn’t believe her. “Questioned you like a criminal?”

“That doesn’t make sense! You did a good deed! Why would they treat you like that?”

Jing Xi glanced at them. “I don’t know either, but Director Wei’s attitude put me off, and now I have no interest in going. This whole thing is just for show. Instead of holding some pointless commendation ceremony, they should use that money to provide better support for the families affected by the mine accident. That would be money well spent!”

Li Tao and Zhou Jiwen finally understood why she was so resistant.

“So… do you genuinely not want to go at all, or are you just mad about how they treated you?”

“I really don’t want to go. So don’t waste your breath trying to convince me. I mean it. Threats, reverse psychology—none of that will work on me. If they ask, just tell them I’d rather die than go!”

It was normal for officials to have bad attitudes—if they didn’t, would they even be considered officials?

But that wasn’t how Jing Xi saw it. She hadn’t done anything to offend them.

She had put in the effort and saved lives, yet instead of showing gratitude, they had the audacity to ask her who would take responsibility if something had gone wrong. Wasn’t that ridiculous?

If this was the level of intelligence required to be a leader, then she could be one too.

Jing Xi didn’t hold anything back—she told the two officers exactly what she thought.

As noon approached, she didn’t invite them to stay for lunch. Instead, she used the excuse of having other matters to attend to and directly sent them on their way.

Li Tao and Zhou Jiwen rode their bicycles back to town, drenched in sweat from the effort.

Their stomachs grumbled with hunger.

The moment they stepped into the station, Qi Xiejun walked over.

With a cheerful smile, Chief Qi asked, “So? How did it go?”

Li Tao looked troubled. “…She said she’d rather die than go…”