*Hazy, there seemed to be many flickering lights and shadows in front of Su Hui’s eyes. They were different from reality, and he could distinguish that it must be a dream.

朦朦胧胧(méng méng lóng lóng) – vague and unclear

In the dream, he sat in his office years ago, looking down at the case files in his hands.

The sun was setting, and the sunlight shone through the window, casting everything in orange-red. His office was completely different from a typical one, with only a desk and a few bookshelves filled with foreign language books, magazines, and journals in English, German, French, Japanese, and other languages.

This was called the Third Reading Room, which was a collection of original foreign language materials, including the latest international journals, all related to criminal investigation.

The General Bureau had specially set up this reading room for these materials and even hired a high-salary administrator whose job was to classify and store the newly acquired materials.

This library was too demanding for borrowers, and hardly anyone came to use the materials.

Of course, all of this was just a cover for Su Hui’s real identity as a profiling master.

Su Hui closed a thick file, rubbed his brow, and then began typing key information and results on the keyboard.

Suddenly, there was a beeping sound from the intercom next to him. Su Hui picked it up, and the other person urgently said, “Senior, I have a question…”

The voice was very familiar, but who was it?

In the dream, Su Hui searched his memories, looking for the logic within the scattered fragments.

Finally, a little bit of information fell out of the jumbled memories.

He remembered the scene when he first saw that person.

It was like a year-end award ceremony, and Su Hui hated these perfunctory occasions. He dawdled downstairs and waited until the ceremony started before entering, sitting in the back row of the auditorium. These kinds of award ceremonies were always beyond his reach. Because of anonymous protection measures, no matter what he did, he could only sit at the back. Even if he didn’t go, no one would notice.

Several rounds of awards had already been presented, and most of the speeches were thanking the people and the leaders.

Su Hui was a little sleepy, listening while folding stars absentmindedly.

Suddenly, he heard a young and pleasant voice, “In my year as a police officer, I have gained a lot of insights. For us, solving a case might seem like the end of everything, but for those involved, it’s not that simple… Later on, I realized that there are many things in this world that we can’t change or solve with our personal strength. Upholding justice is not an empty slogan, it requires costs, time, pain, and sacrifice…”

Upon hearing this, Su Hui couldn’t help but raise his head to take a look. On the stage was a very handsome and young police officer. Even from a distance of ten meters, his deep and sharp gaze, high nose bridge, slender figure, and youthful aura were clearly visible. The police uniform he wore emphasized his broad shoulders and straight back, exuding a heroic and gallant spirit of a young man.

“Also, I would like to thank several members of the Behavioral Analysis Unit, especially the poet, for their help in solving many cases. However, for some reasons, they are unable to come up on stage to receive the award. There are many unsung heroes among us who work hard together…”

There were many police officers who received awards, but this was the first time the Behavioral Analysis Unit was mentioned.

Su Hui stopped what he was doing and listened quietly, the speaker didn’t bring a script and spoke differently from other police officers.

“…I hope to stay on the front line, put myself in danger, and venture into the darkness. If there isn’t enough light, I can become a torch and be the light for others.”

The young man bowed deeply, ending his speech, and applause rang out in the auditorium. Su Hui also couldn’t help but put down the stars he was folding and applauded.

Two female police officers in the front row were discussing, “Who is this young police officer? He looks so handsome.”

“He’s the deputy captain of the Second Division, and he seems to have studied abroad… He’s an outstanding police officer of the year, and the leaders seem to have high hopes for him.”

It seemed that Su Hui had firmly remembered that person from that moment on.

He always felt that this young man was different from other experienced officers, and he treated him with more respect and patience during their conversations.

Every time he talked to him, Su Hui would imagine him in his handsome uniform.

Once, Su Hui had a conflict with the captain of another team and was complaining angrily when the young man came over and asked him.

Su Hui complained indignantly, “These old fossils are all relics, right? They keep repeating the same instructions over and over again, but there are still mistakes. Then they come to me and say they don’t have enough manpower. What are all those people in their team doing? They just don’t take it seriously!”

TN: I find it hard to associate the current Professor Su with this Su Hui. They’re just too different.

On the other end of the walkie-talkie, the person listened to him complaining for a long time. After a while, the person sent a message on the computer: “Senior, don’t be angry. I left something for you at the vending machine downstairs. Please go and get it.”

Su Hui went downstairs and saw a big bag of various cakes next to the vending machine… He carried the cakes upstairs and typed on the computer: “Do you think I’m a child?”

He actually thought of buying snacks to please him…

The other person seemed to be at a loss for words when asked, and only after a while did he say: “Senior, sweets can alleviate negative emotions, this is science…”

The bag contained cakes bought from the cake shop opposite the municipal bureau, including Su Hui’s favorite strawberry flavor. He picked up a piece of strawberry cake and took a bite.

Poet, “That strawberry cake is quite delicious.”

In their later communications, Su Hui felt strange every time he was called “Senior” by him. He didn’t know who he learned it from, but he sounded particularly formal when he called him that way. They were not that different in age, so why not try calling him casually.

During their conversation, Su Hui couldn’t help interrupting and said, “Don’t call me Senior, it sounds awkward. Let’s use a different word.”

The other person was puzzled, “Then what should I call you?”

Su Hui didn’t know what he was thinking, and hesitated for a few seconds before saying into the walkie-talkie, “I am older than you, but not by much. Let’s use ‘Brother’.”

The person on the other side seemed to pause their breath, and after a long time, they finally said hesitantly, “Brother?”

Su Hui’s moo greatly improved. He held back a laugh and said, “Okay, go ahead. What did you want to ask?”

The dream suddenly stopped at this point.

It seemed that a hand was placed on his forehead, and Su Hui was awakened by this touch. He was still a bit groggy, his head was still a little sore, and he probably still had a fever, but it wasn’t as serious as before.

As if afraid of disturbing his sleep, the person didn’t say anything, just gently covered him with the blanket.

Aristotle lay on his blanket, a furry ball that pressed against Su Hui’s feet and made them a little numb.

Su Hui lay there, not knowing why he had such a strange dream. It was just a few scattered fragments, like a jigsaw puzzle with no beginning or end. Imagination and memory mixed together, and he wasn’t even sure if he really knew that person in the dream.

It felt like his brain had crashed, and although he felt like the memory was right there, he couldn’t recall the details.

Everything was veiled, and he wanted to look closer, but he couldn’t see anything clearly.

He vaguely felt that the him in the dream was completely different from the him now.

In the dream, he could sense various emotions: joy, happiness, excitement, and sadness, but now those emotional fluctuations were far away from him.

He was now more composed and calm.

He no longer had the sharpness he once had, and his whole world had slowed down and relaxed.

The dream’s logic was a bit confusing, and he had tried to sort it out, but the dream had already dissipated, and the more he remembered the details, the more his head hurt. Su Hui’s temples began to throb, and he tried not to think about those things.

Forget it, if he forgot, then forget it. There probably wasn’t anything important.

Then he suddenly smelled a sweet aroma.

Su Hui lifted his eye mask and turned his head. It was now afternoon, and Lu Junchi should have already come back. On the bedside table, there was a strawberry cake…

For a moment, Su Hui couldn’t tell if it was a dream or reality.

He sat up, picked up the small fork next to the cake, and tasted it carefully. It was the strawberry cake from the shop near the bureau, no mistake about it.

Su Hui sat on the bed and ate the whole cake, one bite at a time, then got up and walked to the living room to watch Lu Junchi’s busy figure. 

Lu Junchi saw him get up and asked, “You’re awake? Did I wake you up?”

“No, I should have gotten up anyway,” Su Hui shook his head and licked the spoon, “The cake is pretty good.”

Lu Junchi had just checked his temperature. “Your fever seems to have gone down a bit.”

Just then, Lu Junchi’s phone suddenly vibrated. He picked up the phone and saw that it was Lu Haochu calling. Lu Junchi realized that his younger brother had just finished his final exam, and he didn’t know why he was calling him during work hours. Lu Haochu knew that he was busy at work and rarely called him during that time.

Lu Junchi was a little puzzled and answered the phone, “Hello.”

Lu Haochu lowered his voice and said through the receiver, “Brother! Are you with Professor Su?”

Lu Junchi didn’t expect him to be looking for Su Hui. “What’s wrong?” He looked up at Su Hui.

“Brother, today is the day for the Criminal Law College teachers’ performance evaluation,” Lu Haochu said.

Lu Junchi was a bit confused and turned to Su Hui, “Are you presenting today?”

Su Hui shook his head and said firmly, “No, I checked my schedule and it’s in three days.” He looked serious and confident, like he does when he is analyzing a case.

“Oh,” Lu Junchi relaxed and calmly told Lu Haochu on the phone, “Don’t worry, it should be in three days.”

“No, it’s been rescheduled. It was announced on the school’s internal website yesterday that the time was changed to accommodate a visiting expert,” Lu Haochu said.

Lu Junchi frowned at this and put the phone on speaker.

“…Brother, today is not April Fool’s Day. Can I fool you? The evaluation meeting starts at 2 pm this afternoon. The Student Union is here to help, several Institute leaders have arrived, and even the editor-in-chief of a core journal is here. They said they’ve called Professor Su over a dozen times, but no one answered…”

Author’s note: 

#My male god asked me to change his nickname, what should I do? Urgently waiting online#

Su Hui: Don’t call me “senior” anymore.

Lu Junchi: My male god(1), bǎobèi(2), wife, darling(3)?

Su Hui: Call me “brother.”

Lu Junchi: ……Brother.

TN: 

1.*#男神(nán shén) when combined it means Prince Charming, Mr. Perfect or Adonis but as separate characters it refers to male god: (nán-male) and (shén-god) which is often used to refer to a man who is considered extremely attractive, talented, successful, or charming by others, particularly by young women. It can also be used as a term of endearment or admiration for a celebrity, fictional character, or someone who is highly regarded by the speaker.

2.*bǎobèi – a term of endearment that can be translated to baby, treasure. It’s commonly used between couples or to refer to something that is cherished or beloved.

3. When translating this “心肝” it kept giving me heart and liver and I kept wondering why the f*ck anyone would refer to someone as their liver, well unless they have a few screws loose, but then I realized it was actually supposed to be translated as one word and not two. ‘心’ is heart and ‘肝’ is liver but ‘心肝’ is darling. In conclusion, Chinese is hard!