Eating Melons in the Police Station

Chapter 5

Tong Tong was watching a couple arguing nearby. Although she didn’t understand what they were fighting about, she stood on her tiptoes, craning her neck, watching with great interest. The innate love for gossip, deeply embedded in her genes, had awakened.

Little Wang found her in the chaotic crowd, grabbed her, and carried her out.

Tong Tong kicked her short legs, yelling, “Put me down!”

Little Wang continued walking while holding her, saying, “I need to talk to you.”

He carried the child to a middle-aged man and pointed at Zhong Yuntong, asking, “Is this your child?”

The man, looking honest and simple, shook his head. “No.”

“Then why did you make that random call? Do you know that what you did is considered obstructing police work? If it causes any negative consequences, you could face administrative detention. Do you understand?”

The man hung his head, his attitude genuinely apologetic. “I’m sorry, Officer. I just thought the child looked cute. I thought, if no one wanted her, I’d take her.”

Little Wang was speechless. He politely asked, “Do you have any history of mental illness?”

“No, Officer. Why do you ask?”

Little Wang sighed, “Sometimes even I feel like calling the police on you, you know?”

The live-streamed legal education broadcast happened to capture this scene, and the live stream chat was filled with laughter. ?Hahahaha, I’ll never joke around again. Honest people really take things literally!?

?Bro, when the government says to have kids, they don’t mean it like this.?

?Hey, how *should* you do it? Care to elaborate??

?Let’s be serious, this is supposed to be about legal education. What are you all doing??

The camera panned around the bustling police station, capturing all sorts of bizarre cases. There was a man demanding compensation because his neighbor’s male dog had mounted his female dog. Another claimed there was a ghost in his house and insisted the police catch it. The officer shouted back, “I’m not a Taoist priest!” Then there was the person who wanted the police to investigate who had defecated in front of their house.

The daily life of a grassroots police station was pure chaos. Netizens were in stitches, flooding the screen with comments like, ?What the heck!? ?Hahahaha!? ?This is beyond absurd.? Many even suggested starting a dedicated live stream series, as it could easily pass for a comedy show.

*

Around 7 p.m., the legal education live stream ended, and the day-shift officers finally got off work.

Rao Shishi changed into casual clothes in the locker room, slung a large black bag over her shoulder, and sent a message on her phone. She then fake-coughed twice in Little Wang’s direction, signaling him to check his phone.

Little Wang picked up his phone, glanced at the message, and typed a quick reply.

Soon after, Rao Shishi and Little Wang walked out of the police station together. It was already dark outside, and the parking lot was mostly empty. The shadows of the trees swayed gently, creating a somewhat lonely atmosphere. They stopped in the shadows of the parking lot.

Standing under a large tree, Little Wang said, “You didn’t tell me it was your birthday earlier. I didn’t prepare any gifts.”

Rao Shishi gave him a friendly pat on the shoulder. “That’s exactly why I didn’t say anything. I don’t know many people here, so just having you all join me for a meal to celebrate is enough.”

As they were talking, Mao Feixue approached, her high heels clicking sharply on the asphalt. She walked straight up to them and said, almost echoing Little Wang’s words,

“Why didn’t you tell us it was your birthday earlier? I know a really good hotpot place. I wonder if we can still get a table. Dinner’s on me tonight, no arguments.”

Mao Feixue took out her phone, about to call the restaurant, but then hesitated. “Shishi, did you invite Chief Zhong?”

Rao Shishi shook her head. “I wasn’t sure if I should. He always seems so cold and hard to approach. I’m a little scared of him. Besides, even if he came, we’d all feel awkward. Maybe it’s better not to.”

“Alright, it’s your call,” Mao Feixue said, then dialed the restaurant.

At that moment, a small, clear voice piped up behind them, “Where are you going? I want to come too!”

They turned around to see little Tong Tong standing behind them. She had been running around the police station all day, and now half her hair had come loose. Her sandals were too big, causing her toes to poke out, and her little bag hung crookedly on her shoulder.

She looked like a little ragamuffin, but her big eyes sparkled with excitement.

“I want to come too,” Zhong Yuntong repeated.

Mao Feixue covered the phone’s microphone and nodded at her. “Sure, you can come.”

Rao Shishi pulled Tong Tong over and stood her in front of her. She bent down to gather the child’s messy hair and tied it back up.

“Look at you, living like a little vagabond. When are your parents coming to pick you up?”

Zhong Yuntong immediately replied loudly, “I have a dad. My dad is Zhong Jin.”

“Stop making things up. The DNA test results will be out tomorrow. I’ll see whose unlucky child you really are.”

After fixing her hair, Rao Shishi crouched down to adjust Tong Tong’s sandals. They were still too big, so she tightened the straps as much as she could.

Meanwhile, Zhong Jin was still in his office, reviewing some documents sent over by the municipal bureau. He received a message from Mao Feixue: ?Chief Zhong, I’ve taken Tong Tong with me. She’ll stay at my place tonight, so you don’t need to worry about her.?

Zhong Jin replied, ?Got it. Thanks for your help.? After sending the message, he felt a strange sense of relief.

Mao Feixue drove everyone to the hotpot restaurant. The city was lit up at night, and Tong Tong sat in her car seat, pressing her face against the window, her big eyes wide as she took in the bustling lights.

It was dinnertime, and the hotpot restaurant was packed. The floor-to-ceiling windows were filled with people, and even the plastic chairs outside were occupied by those waiting for a table. Fortunately, Mao Feixue had reserved a spot earlier, and the server led them to a table by the window.

Seeing a child, the server quickly brought over a high chair.

Little Wang naturally picked up Tong Tong and placed her in the high chair. In just one day, he had fully embraced his role as the designated child-carer, handling the task with ease.

Mao Feixue and the others were spice enthusiasts, always ordering the extra-spicy red oil broth. But with a child joining them today, they opted for a split pot, adding the restaurant’s new mushroom broth.

Tong Tong sat in the high chair, unable to reach the food on the table. Little Wang took on the role of her personal server, picking out items from the mushroom broth for her.

He offered her a piece of white mushroom, but Tong Tong shook her head. “No.”

Next, he picked up a crisp piece of bamboo shoot, but she shook her head again. “No.”

When he held up a slice of beef, Tong Tong immediately held out her bowl. “Put it here.”

After a few rounds, Little Wang started to catch on. He turned to Mao Feixue and complained, “This kid is so picky. She only eats meat.”

Tong Tong was happily munching on a chicken claw, her mouth shiny with grease, her eyes half-closed in contentment. Hearing Little Wang’s complaint, she opened her eyes briefly, then went back to her chicken claw, unbothered.

Mao Feixue, perhaps annoyed by how much Tong Tong was enjoying herself, scooped up a piece of beef with a spoon and held it out to the child. “Here, Tong Tong, open wide. It’s meat!”

Tong Tong didn’t even need to look. She could smell the meat and opened her mouth wide, ready to be fed. But in a swift move, Mao Feixue placed a piece of cooled green vegetable on the spoon and shoved it into the child’s mouth.

Zhong Yuntong opened her eyes, realizing she’d been tricked. But her father had taught her that if she didn’t like something, she didn’t have to eat it—but once it was in her mouth, she couldn’t spit it out. So she chewed hard and swallowed the vegetable.

Rao Shishi gave Mao Feixue a thumbs-up. “You’re good.”

Mao Feixue shrugged. “She’s only about three or four years old. I’ve been a mom for five years. I’ve got more experience.”

But the trick only worked once. After that, Zhong Yuntong became wise to their tactics and refused to be fed. From then on, food had to be placed in her bowl and inspected by her before she would eat it.

Mao Feixue chuckled and shook her head. “This kid’s harder to fool than my son.”

Halfway through the hotpot meal, a plate of brown sugar glutinous rice cakes was served. The cakes were crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, drizzled with brown sugar syrup and sprinkled with a layer of soybean powder. It was Tong Tong's first time trying brown sugar glutinous rice cakes, and as she took a bite, her eyes lit up. She shook her head enthusiastically in approval, exclaiming, "Delicious!"

Seeing how much she enjoyed it, Little Wang picked up another piece and placed it in her bowl.

Mao Feixue noticed and immediately intervened, "Only two pieces, okay? Too much sticky food is hard to digest."

While the adults were busy chatting and eating, Tong Tong took advantage of the moment when no one was paying attention. She picked up the brown sugar glutinous rice cake with her hand and quietly tucked it into her small handbag.

Dinner had been Mao Feixue's treat, and Little Wang had originally wanted to order a cake, but time was too tight. After secretly contacting several bakeries on his phone and finding none could fulfill the order in time, he suggested, "How about we go play an escape room? My treat."

In Haishan, there was a large-scale escape room club with high-quality props and highly engaging storylines. Several colleagues from their workplace were regulars there, and Little Wang and Rao Shishi had visited twice before. Neither of them had fully enjoyed themselves on those occasions, so when Little Wang proposed the idea, Rao Shishi immediately agreed.

Although Mao Feixue was a few years older than them, she wasn’t the type to spoil the fun. She quickly agreed, "Let’s go."

The three of them headed toward the parking lot, with Mao Feixue going ahead to get the car. Little Wang and Rao Shishi took out their phones to browse through the available escape room scenarios, booking one in advance so they could start playing as soon as they arrived.

When Mao Feixue pulled the car out, she noticed Little Wang and Rao Shishi standing by the roadside, but there was no sign of the child. "Where’s Tong Tong?" she asked.

Little Wang and Rao Shishi were equally confused. "Wasn’t she with you?"

Mao Feixue's heart sank. She turned on the hazard lights and pulled over to the side of the road. "Quick, let’s look for her."

Meanwhile, Zhong Yuntong had already reached the corner of the street. Her small handbag was filled with delicious pastries, and she was happily skipping along in her sandals, which revealed half her toes. She was on her way to find her dad, confident that he would praise her for being such a good girl when he saw the treats she had brought home.