After hearing this, everyone present was stunned. Could it be that the missing girl who had run away from home was near the headquarters?

Xia Mingxi leaned over to look at the screen and said, “At the entrance of the headquarters? This is too much of a coincidence, isn’t it? Could the data be wrong?”

Qiao Ze verified each digit one by one and said, “The number is correct, and she’s still moving nearby.”

Zheng Bai also walked over and said, “Damn, so close? Could her phone have been stolen or something happened?”

Lu Junchi said, “It’s so close, let’s go out and take a look.”

After hearing this, Aunt Liao finally snapped out of her daze and called out, “Yueyue!” before crying and running downstairs.

Lu Junchi said to Qiao Ze, “You go out and take a look, keep an eye on things, and don’t let anything happen.” Qiao Ze immediately reacted and ran downstairs with his mother.

After solving the problem on this end, Lu Junchi checked the time and found that it was just the end of work hours. He turned to Su Hui and said, “Let’s go.”

Su Hui nodded and followed him downstairs with her cane.

It might be his imagination, but Lu Junchi always felt that after seeing a psychologist, Su Hui seemed a bit absent-minded. He was afraid he would fall down the stairs, so he occasionally turned to look back at him.

As they slowly walked downstairs, they saw Aunt Zhan pulling a cold-faced girl standing in front of the reception desk at the entrance of the headquarters, and Qiao Ze’s mother and Qiao Ze were awkwardly standing to the side.

They had arrived just in time to witness this dramatic family reunion…

The girl had indeed come to the General Bureau, and Su Hui was a little curious and involuntarily stopped in his tracks. Lu Junchi saw that he didn’t move, so he stopped too.

The woman named Aunt Liao was holding the girl and crying with snot and tears, “Yueyue, Mom found you. If it was later, Mom would not have survived. Where did you spend last night?”

Fang Jiayue was in the third year of junior high school, with a beautiful and delicate appearance. The girl was wearing a school uniform. The school probably had regulations that didn’t allow long hair, so her hair only reached her ears. But even with this appearance, the girl’s beauty was hard to conceal, and it was clear that she was a budding beauty.

When Fang Jiayue saw her excited mother, her eyes flickered. From her expression to her gaze, it was as cold as ice water. “I’m fine.”

Qiao Ze’s mother mediated, “Yueyue, your mother was very worried about you. It’s good that she found you. You probably didn’t sleep well last night, so go home and rest. There is no overnight feud between parents and children…”

Aunt Liao wiped away her tears and said, “Yes, daughter, let’s go home. You really scared your mother.”

As soon as this was said, Fang Jiayue remained motionless, looking at her with a blank expression.

Finally realizing that something was wrong, Aunt Liao blinked and said, “Don’t you know that I came here to find you?”

Fang Jiayue looked up and said, “I came here to report a crime.”

Aunt Liao’s face changed, her eyes widened in disbelief. “Report… report a crime? What kind of crime do you want to report? Were you bullied yesterday?”

Fang Jiayue pursed her lips and said directly, “I want to report Zhang Fumin for *bullying underage girls.”

*The word “欺负” in Chinese means to bully or to mistreat someone, often in a physical or emotional way.

Aunt Liao gritted her teeth and lowered her voice, “What nonsense are you talking about? He is your father!”

Fang Jiayue’s voice suddenly became louder, “Stepfather!” Then she turned and walked a few steps to the police station, facing the operator and the old police officer sitting inside. “Don’t you have procedures for receiving reports? What needs to be registered?”

Aunt Liao was stunned for a moment, realizing that she was serious, and quickly walked over to hold her, saying, “I live with you every day, and I haven’t seen him do anything to you.”

Then she even reached out to stop the police officer who was registering in the notebook, “Comrade police officer, this is a false accusation! The little girl is talking nonsense, don’t take it seriously…”

Hearing this, everyone understood that this was not just a girl who had left home meeting her mother, but also a drama where the girl wanted to accuse her stepfather and her biological mother was trying to stop her.

For a while, even the receptionist at the front desk was confused, standing there not knowing what to ask or what not to ask.

Qiao Ze and his mother didn’t know how to persuade her and were completely stunned on the spot.

It was only Lu Junchi who couldn’t bear to watch any longer and said, “Go to the interrogation room to talk about the specific situation and follow the procedure.”

The old police officer on the side suddenly woke up and quickly led several people aside, saying, “Come here, come in, don’t interfere with our normal work…”

Aunt Liao pulled Fang Jiayue and said, “Daughter, there must be a misunderstanding in this, why don’t you come home with me first, we’ll talk it over, and then come back.”

But Fang Jiayue was hot-headed and shook off her arm, shouting in the hall, “I want to say it here, that Zhang Fumin has been entering my room and touching me since I was fourteen, and he wouldn’t let me tell anyone.”

Aunt Liao wished she could cover her mouth.

Fang Jiayue’s eyes were red, and she turned to question her, “Every time we argue, you always side with him! Am I really your biological daughter?”

Aunt Liao hurriedly waved her hand, “It’s not like that, it’s not like that. Don’t listen to the little girl’s lies, police officers. My new husband is very good to her, he even let her change her last name to ours, but she refused to sign and wouldn’t call him dad, so our relationship isn’t very good.”

“Dad?” Fang Jiayue gave a bitter smile. “That kind of perverted old man is worthy of being my father?”

“Fang Jiayue! Last time, didn’t you purposely fall down in school and tell me it was your dad who hit you? Luckily, the teacher called and cleared things up… You were slandering him with domestic violence and now this! Do you really hate him so much that you want to destroy him?” 

Even Aunt Liao was getting impatient, insisting on clarifying things in the lobby, her voice becoming piercing. “This is a police station, and you are making a false report, which could also implicate me!”

As soon as she said this, Fang Jiayue’s face changed slightly, and her lips trembled. “I lied, but it was because… because I was afraid to tell you…” 

Another plot twist, but at this moment, Fang Jiayue’s words were not so credible.

Upon seeing this, Su Hui shook his head gently and sighed. It seemed that nothing was surprising when it came to teenage girls’ rebellious behavior. Fang Jiayue’s accusation would now seem like the boy who cried wolf, making it hard for people to believe her.

The old police officer stopped them for the second time. “Let’s go inside and talk…whether it’s reporting a crime or reasoning things out, let’s make it clear.”

However, the mother and daughter were still arguing like fighting cocks in the lobby.

Aunt Liao asked, “You want to accuse your stepfather, but where’s your evidence?”

At this point, Fang Jiayue burst into tears, and tears streamed down her cheeks. “One night when I was sleeping, I suddenly woke up and saw light coming from the door. I looked over and saw that the door to my bedroom was slightly open, and Zhang Fumin was looking at me with that kind of expression… like he wanted to eat me. After that night, I couldn’t sleep well anymore…I don’t want to lie to you, but I have no evidence, and I don’t know how to tell you.”

Aunt Liao’s face also changed when she heard this. “My daughter, you are still young and don’t understand the ways of the world. If you cause trouble and come to the police station like this, it will not only ruin yourself but also ruin your dad, ruin me, and ruin our family! Tell me the truth, did he actually do anything to you? If it’s true, I will support you in reporting him now. I’ll divorce him when I get back and accompany you to sue that man. If not, then you go home and don’t embarrass yourself here!”

Fang Jiayue was holding her breath, tears streaming down her cheeks. It’s possible that it hadn’t actually reached that point, or maybe she couldn’t say it.

Upon reaching this point, Lu Junchi couldn’t bear to listen any longer. He walked over and pulled Aunt Liao aside, saying, “Auntie, I don’t think your daughter is lying about this.”

Aunt Liao wanted to say more, “No, Comrade Leader…”

“Auntie, you came here to find your daughter, and now that she’s been found, shouldn’t you be grateful that nothing terrible happened?” Lu Junchi continued sternly, “She came here and spoke up about this matter, which took a lot of courage. As a mother, you shouldn’t question her or provoke her. Instead, you should be with her and understand the situation thoroughly.”

Su Hui also looked at the mother and daughter in front of him, tilting his head. He didn’t know how to evaluate their relationship. If Aunt Liao didn’t love her daughter, she wouldn’t have searched everywhere for her when she ran away from home. However, if she did love her daughter, why would she doubt her and argue with her in the Bureau?

Even if she found her daughter this time, she would eventually lose all her trust.

The two mother and daughter in the hall suddenly quieted down.

The daughter was crying.

The mother looked at her daughter, covering her mouth and crying silently. Her whole body was shaking.

Finally, they were led into the interrogation room by the old police officer.

Lu Junchi gave some instructions to Qiao Ze, and before leaving, he handed a business card to Fang Jiayue, saying, “If you encounter any danger or feel scared in the future, you can call 110 or my phone number.”

The girl took the card and silently put it in her pocket.

On the way back, Su Hui remained silent, looking quietly out the window.

Lu Junchi asked him, “Are you thinking about what just happened?”

“Young girls are too hard to figure out. At first, I wasn’t even sure if she was telling the truth or lying,” Su Hui paused for a moment. “It wasn’t until I heard the girl describing her stepfather peeping at her through the door crack that I confirmed it was likely true.”

Lu Junchi said, “But I think that girl may not have any substantial evidence for these things.”

Although he supported them in reporting the incident and left his contact information, he knew that legally, it would be difficult to define the situation.

The outcome of this incident could be anticipated beforehand.

Fang Jiayue’s decision to report the incident was just an impulsive remark. She was underage and didn’t know what she would face or what the outcome would be.

By registering here, the most they could do was bring the man in for questioning, but they would still have to live under the same roof. The situation might get worse later on.

Even in cases with more conclusive evidence, the final results could still end up being inconclusive. It was rare for the other party to pay the price in court.

Even if the incident caused a big stir, there wasn’t a good solution at the moment. All they could do was hope that the mother would take it seriously and protect her daughter as much as possible. It would be best if Fang Jiayue could move out of this family and live in the school or elsewhere when she grew up, completely cutting ties with this family.

Otherwise, her life would be a nightmare.

As the conversation ended, the car entered the underground parking lot and stopped steadily. Lu Junchi suddenly remembered something and sent a voice message to Qiao Ze on his phone, “How’s the situation on your end?”

After a while, Qiao Ze sent a message: “They’ve registered the case and stopped causing a scene. They asked some questions and currently there’s no physical evidence, only Fang Jiayue’s statement. The officer asked if they wanted mediation or to file a case and bring Zhang Fumin in for questioning, but they refused. Aunt Liao said she’ll add a lock to her daughter’s room and spend more time with her when she gets home.”

The result was similar to what he had expected. “We still need to solve practical problems. I suggest that the mother take her daughter for psychological counseling. Also, encourage the girl not to be afraid and learn to protect herself in different ways.”

The world’s laws always have limitations, like there are corners that sunlight cannot reach. But Lu Junchi still wanted to do his best to help those in need.

Su Hui turned to look at him upon hearing his words. He liked the way Lu Junchi handled things. He was a gentle person who always silently did things.

Perhaps it was just a few words of encouragement or a simple action, but it could provide warmth and strength to someone.

TN:

The accuracy of this chapter hits a little too hard. The doubts and questioning victims of SA face when they try to stand up for themselves is why most choose to suffer in silence. And the justice system is so shitty when it comes to punishing the offenders. Like South Korea is one of the worst ones that I know of. The things people get away with because of the loopholes in the laws or just because no one cared enough are truly heartbreaking. And the fact that even after standing up and speaking out the situation is made to seem like the victim’s fault makes it worse. The ‘what were you wearing’, ‘why were you out at that time’, ‘who told you to walk alone’, ‘did you say no’, ‘did you try to get away/defend yourself’ and all that gaslighting makes SA victims feel disregarded and alone. It robs them of the courage to fight. And having those closest to you be the first ones to doubt you when they’re the ones who should be on your side destroys a person completely. 

There’s this episode of the kdrama “Tomorrow” that shows to what extent the ‘justice system’ is against the victims. I cried so hard watching it. I just hope the people going through such a situation know they’re not alone and that they find their own “Captain Lu” who’s willing to believe them when no one else will and stretch out that hand that pulls them out of the darkness and gives them the courage to fight for themselves.