The police didn't know the specifics of the situation and didn't take Tao Ruiming for questioning
immediately. When He Chuan Zhou entered, Tao Ruiming immediately stood up and stared at her intently.
After lengthy contemplation, he thought he had found a loophole. Though not very convincing, it seemed
logically consistent enough. Clinging to this issue like a lifeline, he almost desperately questioned He
Chuan Zhou, "If what you said is true, why did He Xu save my mother? How could you not use this to threaten
us?"
He Chuan Zhou gave him a deep look without responding, then handed her phone to the nearby police officer
after finding a link.
"This is the relevant video. Since its release this morning, it has garnered a significant number of views.
The accusations made are largely fabricated. Please verify this. Also, although he didn't explicitly mention
my name, I'm the only female officer with the surname He in the investigation team. His actions have
seriously damaged my reputation."
The police officer had seen the video at noon, so he only glanced at the thumbnail without playing it and
turned to ask Tao Ruiming, "Did you post this?"
Tao Ruiming was less forthcoming this time but didn't deny it either.
He Chuan Zhou added, "There is also someone named Han Songshan who planned this with him."
The police officer said to Tao Ruiming, "You’re quite daring, so eager to go to the detention center to
accompany your friend?"
He Chuan Zhou checked the comments section. Sure enough, her name and position had already been posted.
Articles by Qiudu Qiuliang were inevitably dug up and analyzed one by one. Because the topic involved the
fairness of law enforcement in the public security system, various troublemakers had jumped out, creating
chaos online.
"What are you looking at?" The police officer glanced at her screen and advised, "Don't look at it. Many
netizens like to make wild accusations based on their imagination without knowing the facts. Don't take
their comments to heart."
He Chuan Zhou said, "I’m looking to see if anyone has posted the true cause of He Xu's death."
The police officer pondered for a moment before saying, "We know about it. Reporters came today, and our
chief has responded several times."
He Chuan Zhou raised her head and pressed the lock screen button on her phone. Tao Ruiming, on the other
hand, widened his eyes looking at her, with a dazed and fearful expression, quite different from his
previous aggressive demeanor towards He Chuan Zhou.
Considering He Chuan Zhou’s presence, the police officer kept his words brief and turned his body slightly
to avoid her gaze.
"The person who reported the incident was standing at the edge of the rooftop, extremely agitated. She
demanded that He Xu come forward to reason with her. During the tussle, she slipped and almost fell. He Xu
reached out to pull her up, but she instinctively grabbed his arm, causing both of them to fall. Nearby
colleagues rushed to grab the informant's hand but couldn't catch He Xu in time."
In a few plain words, he narrated the loss of a life.
So brief that it didn't allow any time to brew feelings of sorrow.
The police officer turned back, intending to say "my condolences," but noticed that He Chuan Zhou wasn't
looking at him. She was gazing out the window, her face showing no sign of grief, just a detached
distraction. Feeling it might be inappropriate, he changed his words to, "That's it."
He Chuan Zhou maintained an almost cruel facade of calm, which he found hard to witness. Turning back, he
noticed that Tao Ruiming, who had previously been so belligerent, had also fallen into deep silence.
He no longer insisted it was false or impossible. The defense built on self-deception had ultimately
crumbled.
The police officer placed his hand on Tao Ruiming's shoulder and led him to the adjacent room for
questioning.
Another colleague guided He Chuan Zhou to register the necessary information, and after she confirmed and
signed, they sent her out of the police station.
It wasn’t until she got into her car, stepped on the gas, and turned into a narrow one-way street congested
with vehicles that He Chuan Zhou felt relatively okay.
Her mind was calm, unexpectedly recalling the events of the day He Xu had his accident.
At that time, the police had informed Tao's mother that there wasn't enough evidence to prosecute He Xu.
Unable to accept this, Tao's mother went to the rooftop of a tall building and threatened to commit suicide,
demanding that He Xu come out and confess.
A colleague from the station called He Xu, but He Chuan Zhou answered the phone.
She casually responded with "Got it," then hung up and deleted the call record.
She thought the other party was just a bunch of lunatics, their lives or deaths irrelevant. If they wanted
to jump, they should be given a quiet place to do so.
Unfortunately, this secret was exposed soon after.
He Xu came out from the balcony after doing laundry, and the phone rang again. The chief painstakingly
advised him to come and help calm Tao's mother down because the situation was getting really ugly.
He Xu's face grew serious, and after replying with a few words, he looked up at He Chuan Zhou, who was
silently sitting in the living room.
They stared at each other silently, neither speaking first.
Any words spoken at such a moment would likely be insincere and hurtful.
He Xu couldn’t think of a better outcome and felt deeply frustrated and dejected. Although only in his
forties, the wrinkles on his face spoke of years of hardship. Some problems, no matter how strong or
composed he was, he still couldn't handle.
Life is full of challenges that compromise cannot solve.
He Xu sighed lightly, looked away first, and went to his room to change clothes. When he came out, He Chuan
Zhou was standing in front of the storage shelf in the living room, blocking his path.
A car approaching with high beams on forced He Chuan Zhou to close her eyes momentarily.
Possibly because of the long period without recalling, she could no longer empathize with her past self or
remember her exact feelings at that time.
It was a period that couldn't be described as kind, nor could she remain as calm as she was now.
She only knew her anger and resentment were sharp, telling He Xu in a strained voice not to go, not to
meddle in their affairs, that they deserved to die.
He Xu's expression was hurt, and he pleaded softly, "Stop saying that. If I don't go, she might really
jump."
He Chuan Zhou sneered, "She won't! If she were that determined, I'd visit her grave every year!"
He Xu said helplessly, "Don't say that. Chuan Zhou, she's just a mother."
He Chuan Zhou couldn't accept it. She couldn't be as tolerant as He Xu, nor could she face such humiliating
injustice calmly.
The more He Xu tried to stop her, the louder she spoke.
Her brain seemed out of control, the rage burning across the grassy plain, occupying all her rationality,
aiming to achieve one goal: to keep He Xu from going. For this, she would say anything, even curse
viciously.
"Then let them die! They all deserve to die, what does it have to do with you!"
He Xu, really anxious now, pushed her lightly.
The push wasn't hard, but He Chuan Zhou lost her balance, stepped back, and bumped into the cabinet behind
her, causing a decorative glass piece to wobble and fall.
He Xu's expression changed to one of extreme fear, immediately reaching out to shield her head.
The heavy object hit his arm, then fell to the ground, shattering into small blue fragments.
He Chuan Zhou was stunned, her furious words stopped.
"Dad."
She crouched down to check He Xu's injury. He Xu took the opportunity to hug her tightly, his voice sounding
pitiful to her ears.
"Chuan Zhou, it's my fault. I didn't handle it well."
He whispered many things in her ear.
He felt he had been too cautious and indecisive, wanting everyone to be unharmed, but failed to achieve
that.
He shouldn't have excessively demanded Tao Siyue to be brave, ignoring her position, which eventually led to
an uncontrollable situation, and told He Chuan Zhou not to blame her.
Then he said to He Chuan Zhou that just as he wanted to protect her, it wasn't Tao Siyue's mother's fault
either.
He Chuan Zhou didn't know the specifics of the case from back then, as He Xu had never disclosed them to
her, only that it was deeply complicated.
At that time, He Xu was optimistic that things would develop positively and said he had found a solution,
urging He Chuan Zhou not to harbor malice toward the world because of him.
Surrounded by his embrace, He Chuan Zhou couldn't refuse his requests and agreed to everything.
In the end, He Xu put on his police cap, stood at the door, and asked with a smile, "Do you want to go with
Dad?"
He Chuan Zhou’s car came to a stop, and directly in front of her was that long wooden bench again.
She pulled out the key and sat still. Her gaze wandered outside the window, catching various hazy outlines
in the dim light, and she recalled He Xu's words one by one.
Her eyes and brain felt disconnected, like being in a state of unclear sleep, until someone knocked on her
window, and she noticed a person standing beside her car.
Zhou Tuoxing asked, "Are you okay?"
His voice was muffled by the glass, but she could guess what he was saying from the movement of his lips.
He Chuan Zhou didn't want to move, but Zhou Tuoxing kept waiting outside. It took a lot of effort for her to
muster the strength to move her heavy limbs and open the car door to get out.
From an open window on the second floor came the sound of a pan being tossed and stir-frying, along with the
aroma of meat soup and a child's frantic arguing. Warm light spilled from the window, covering a blurry
figure behind it, exuding a very ordinary sense of domestic life.
He Chuan Zhou looked up for a while, then turned to ask, "Have you eaten?"
Zhou Tuoxing replied, "No."
"Can you cook?" He Chuan Zhou’s voice sounded a bit dreamy, "I want to eat."
Zhou Tuoxing, who was always inclined to comply with her requests and was willing to compromise his
principles for her, answered without hesitation, "I can."
He looked at He Chuan Zhou seriously and asked, "What do you want to eat?"
He Chuan Zhou didn't have an answer immediately, but the feeling of confusion faded significantly, allowing
her to think normally again.
Zhou Tuoxing said, "Let's go to the supermarket. There's nothing at your place."