Dawn broke, and the Earth continued to rotate – whether people worried or not, everyone’s lives went on as usual.
“Blue Phoenix” hadn’t given advance notice when it closed for half a day, leaving some customers disappointed. Ma Wei had cleaned up the storage room thoroughly, unable to guess what had happened yesterday. She didn’t want to guess either – this job was hard to come by, with even better benefits after becoming permanent. Working for a private employer wasn’t like having an iron rice bowl at a state unit. What if being nosy got her fired?
Li Fengmei didn’t arrive until 11 o’clock today, having spent the morning running to and from the bank making deposits and withdrawals.
“Where’s Xiaolan, at the library again?”
Liu Fen nodded.
Li Fengmei didn’t know what to say. How could her niece be so composed? Yesterday she had terrified the Liang family into wetting themselves, took their ten thousand yuan, and today she still had the peace of mind to study at the library. Liu Fen felt both joy and worry – joy that regardless of what happened, nothing affected Xia Xiaolan’s study plans. With such dedication, wouldn’t getting into university this year be inevitable? She worried that until Fan Zhenchuan’s forced marriage attempt was resolved, it remained a heavy stone hanging over their heads.
Though Xia Xiaolan told Liu Fen not to worry, how could she truly not worry?
Just from what Liu Fang and the others had said, Liu Fen knew that Fan Zhenchuan’s word was law in Hedong County – no one dared oppose him there.
Liu Fen was so worried she couldn’t sleep. Before opening the shop this morning, Xia Xiaolan had told Liu Fen to operate as usual, but Liu Fen had hesitated, wondering if the Liang family would come cause trouble. She knew her younger sister’s personality too well – after such a huge setback last night, Liu Fang might send people to make a scene at the shop today.
“Let her come make trouble – I’m hoping she does.”
‘Blue Phoenix’ carried more weight than Xia Xiaolan’s reputation. While people in Shangdu didn’t know who Xia Xiaolan was, they knew that officials had attended ‘Blue Phoenix’s’ opening ceremony. While not many people knew Secretary Hou, Director Yang had considerable influence. At least in Shangdu, with Director Yang’s backing, the local police station would keep an extra eye on ‘Blue Phoenix’… Xia Xiaolan wasn’t afraid of trouble because she had a clear conscience – they were running an honest business with transparent pricing.
To be safe, before heading to Shangdu University, Xia Xiaolan went to the police station to find Zhuo Weiping.
“Sister Zhuo, I seem to have gotten into trouble again.”
Xia Xiaolan wasn’t expecting Zhuo Weiping, a junior police officer, to deal with Fan Zhenchuan. She just wanted Zhuo Weiping to have people keep an eye on ‘Blue Phoenix’s’ situation. She wasn’t afraid of thugs coming to wreck the shop again, but they needed to ensure the safety of the three people working there.
Zhuo Weiping listened in shock.
“Marriage is free now – no one can arrange marriages by force, not even your parents, let alone relatives! If they can’t get their way and dare to cause trouble at the shop, I’ll lock them all up at the police station!”
“The man they want me to marry is Fan Zhenchuan from Hedong County.”
Hearing Fan Zhenchuan’s name, Zhuo Weiping’s expression changed. She wasn’t just an ordinary citizen – she had worked at the Anqing County Police Station for two years. Anqing and Hedong were neighboring counties, and she occasionally heard rumors. Fan Zhenchuan’s reputation was terrible; Zhuo Weiping despised such people – his behavior was practically that of a bandit!
If his reputation had reached Anqing County, Zhuo Weiping couldn’t underestimate him.
“You’d better not stay at home. Pack some things and squeeze into Zhuo Na’s dormitory. No matter how powerful Fan Zhenchuan is, he wouldn’t dare cause trouble at Shangdu University.”
Fan Zhenchuan might act recklessly in forcing young women to marry him in Hedong County.
But in Shangdu City, he wouldn’t dare act so brazenly.
If Xia Xiaolan stayed in the university dormitory, no one would dare take her from there. University students were privileged, and schools like Shangdu University were true ivory towers. Causing trouble there – even a small-town thug couldn’t withstand the negative consequences.
Xia Xiaolan had only wanted Zhuo Weiping to help keep an eye on ‘Blue Phoenix,’ but unexpectedly, Zhuo Weiping had offered a rather feasible suggestion. Stay at Shangdu University? Xia Xiaolan was as perceptive as Zhuo Weiping – if she stayed within the university grounds, Fan Zhenchuan would be powerless against her.
If Xia Xiaolan were already a university student, Fan Zhenchuan wouldn’t dare force a female college student to marry him.
Harassing enrolled university students was unwise.
Graduate students might just have better career starting points, but currently enrolled students – if trouble arose, it couldn’t be covered up.
Xia Xiaolan shook her head, “If I hide and don’t show up, they’ll cause trouble for my family. Sister Zhuo, thank you for caring so much about me.”
Zhuo Weiping was just a junior police officer. Her natural sense of justice made her a blessing to the public while working in the police system. But Zhuo Weiping was too young – mere righteous passion wasn’t enough to handle someone like Fan Zhenchuan.
Zhuo Weiping had many words stuck in her throat.
Like last time at the police station, one bad apple had spoiled the whole system’s reputation. Zhuo Weiping stood firm:
“Comrade Xia Xiaolan, there is justice in this world. I’ll stay by your side – let’s see who dares to take you away by force!”
Xia Xiaolan didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
While touched, she wondered if Comrade Zhuo could say something more practical. What status did she have to warrant police protection? While Zhuo Weiping might be willing personally, would the police station approve?
Zhuo Weiping was just a cog in the police system, her duties determined by her unit.
After being moved for a while, Xia Xiaolan finally told Officer Zhuo the truth:
“Sister Zhuo, Kang Wei isn’t my boyfriend – Zhou Cheng is.”
“…”
Zhuo Weiping was speechless.
So her guess hadn’t been wrong last time – she’d just identified the wrong person. But Zhuo Weiping also felt relieved. If Kang Wei had some connections, Zhou Cheng surely wasn’t an ordinary person either. If Fan Zhenchuan wanted to force Xia Xiaolan to marry him, wouldn’t he have to consider her boyfriend’s opinion?!
Zhuo Weiping knew Kang Wei and Zhou Cheng weren’t what they appeared to be. Now it would be interesting to see if Zhou Cheng, that two-faced person, could handle a thug like Fan Zhenchuan.
Li Dongliang received Xia Xiaolan’s telegram and immediately went to find his junior apprentice Ge Jian.
“Miss Xia wants us to go to Shangdu early. What do you think?”
If Ge Jian couldn’t adjust his schedule, Li Dongliang would have to find someone else. It was originally planned for May, but now it was being moved up by more than ten days.
Remembering Xia Xiaolan’s generosity, Ge Jian was willing to go to Shangdu. Making money was making money – what difference did the location make? They weren’t young, beautiful maidens worried about being deceived in a strange place! Li Dongliang said food and lodging would be reimbursed, so Ge Jian’s earnings would be pure profit.
Senior apprentice Wan had lost this job opportunity, allowing Ge Jian to step in as a replacement. He cherished this work opportunity.
“I agree, Senior Brother. Just tell me when we’re leaving – I’ll follow your lead.”
Traveling requires at least one letter of introduction. Otherwise, finding accommodation in Shangdu would be difficult. Li Dongliang and Ge Jian each obtained their letters and caught the earliest available bus. Li Dongliang thought that since Miss Xia needed protection now, arriving at her side as quickly as possible was what proper bodyguards should do.
As it happened, Zhou Cheng had the same idea.
This wasn’t some minor dispute – someone was trying to steal his woman. How could he not rush to Shangdu immediately?
It would be unreasonable if his work unit didn’t grant him leave. Zhou Cheng’s superiors were also angry. Their profession wasn’t an easy one, and women willing to marry them showed high ideological awareness – how could anyone specifically target and bully such ideologically aware women? If Zhou Cheng weren’t too young and had already obtained a marriage certificate with Xia Xiaolan, anyone daring to disrupt such a special marriage would be courting death.