LUO WENZHOU ALWAYS SAUNTERED into work exactly on time and not a moment earlier. As long as he hadn’t been given a different shift, his working hours began at 8:30, so he’d never have been caught there at 8:29. His car wasn’t allowed on the road today due to the license plate restrictions in effect, and he didn’t want to squeeze onto public transport, so Luo Wenzhou had dug out a museum-worthy twenty-eight-inch-wheel bicycle from the basement, fixed it up himself, and then biked down the road, wobbling all the way.
He had a very handsome face—so handsome it almost made him look youthful. Still, his expression and demeanor betrayed his maturity. He wore earphones, and his button-down shirt—rolled up at the sleeves—faintly outlined the muscles beneath. Even on the large frame of the vintage twenty-eight-inch-wheel bike, his long legs easily reached the ground. Bags dangled from the handlebars, the left holding a dozen jianbing and the right six or seven cups of soy milk. Both his hands just barely resting on the dangerously overloaded handlebars, Luo Wenzhou steered his way through the bureau’s front gates exactly on time.
As he entered, Luo Wenzhou noticed the security guard stopping a flower delivery girl from entering.
“No, you can’t go in. Why? This is a police station, miss, not Flower Fruit Mountain,3 understand? All deliveries must be left in the mailroom to be inspected and registered.”
“How can I leave fresh flowers in the mailroom? What if they wilt from poor handling?” The girl turned as she spoke; spotting Luo Wenzhou on his bike, she pointed at him indignantly. “If I can’t go in, how come that delivery guy can?”
The security guard paused. Luo Wenzhou grinned flirtatiously at the girl, his white teeth gleaming. “Because this delivery guy is tall and handsome.”
“…Good morning, Sergeant Luo,” said the security guard, inwardly weeping for the bureau’s image.
“Morning. Had breakfast? If you haven’t, grab some.” Luo Wenzhou remained on the bike, one foot planted on the ground. “Who are the flowers for, miss? I can take them in for you.”
Only then did the girl realize her mistake. Feeling awkward, she searched anxiously for the little card. “Oh,” she said in a low voice. “They’re for a-a Mr. Tao Ran from the criminal investigation team.”
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AT 8:30 SHARP, Luo Wenzhou punctually entered the office and tossed the flowers onto Tao Ran’s desk. “Your—” he began.
✦ ✦ ✦
But the livid Director General Zhang had sent someone down to fetch Luo Wenzhou, and that individual’s arrival forced Luo Wenzhou to swallow the rest of his words. Instead, he simply pressed a heavy hand onto Tao Ran’s desk and said, “We’ll discuss the way you handle your personal affairs later.”
The entire criminal investigation team was stunned. They stared in shock at the bouquet of clean, fresh flowers in front of Officer Tao Ran, looking as if they believed that a time bomb was buried somewhere under the stems.
Officer Lang Qiao pulled a magnifying glass and a pair of disposable gloves from her drawer. She leaned over to the neighboring desk cautiously and examined the bouquet, extracting a perfumed card made of brown cardstock. The crowd watched as the brave girl solemnly opened the card. Inside she found the following words, written in the most standard and regular script: The wind is furious, but while my hands and feet are frozen stiff, my heart is warm. It always feels so soft and tender, though I don’t know why. I want to be close to you, yet not so much that I suffer for it.4
“It’s signed ‘Fei,’” said Lang Qiao. “Who’s that?”
Tao Ran snatched the card back from her. “Stop messing around. Give it to me.”
“After all that, it was just a gift from your girlfriend.” Lang Qiao patted her chest, then added, brashly mischievous, “What a fright! I thought our boss Sergeant Luo was confessing his love for you in front of everyone. That would’ve been worth a headline in the society column.”
All around them, their coworkers calmed down as well. Everyone in the group was single, and they swiftly recovered enough of their wits to split up the breakfast Luo Wenzhou had delivered as they dutifully castigated the “heretic” Tao Ran.
“When did you split off from us, Deputy Tao? Did you notify anyone? Did the organization approve it?”
“Taotao, where’s your sense of team spirit? How disappointing.”
“Deputy Tao, I only have thirty-seven sixty left of this month’s salary. I don’t have enough left to pay for admission to some romantic flower show, so proceed accordingly.”
“Go! Get lost!” Tao Ran tucked the card away, then found an inconspicuous corner to hide the flowers in. “What girlfriend? Stop this nonsense.”
As his colleagues heard his attempts to fool them while the evidence stared everyone in the face, they erupted into jeers, advancing as one to corner their deputy sergeant.
Just as things were really heating up, though, Luo Wenzhou returned from his hurried retreat. He pushed the door open and walked in, slapping the doorframe. “Homicide case in Huashi. I need two of you to come with me pronto.”