Chapter 282: Bringing the Widow Home

Chief Liu adopted an official tone, but Ye Cheng wasn't afraid; he met Chief Liu's gaze and stepped forward.

"Chief Liu, Zhang Xiuqin is a widow; she has a minor son who just had heart surgery. You arrested his mother—if something happens to the child, can you bear the responsibility?"

"Zhang Xiuqin is the minor's sole guardian; we can request bail."

Hearing Ye Cheng say that the widow had a son, Chief Liu didn't care; even if she were the sole guardian, he wasn't afraid—there are plenty of such cases in the village; a neighbor could just help look after the kid, it's not a city child.

But the child has a heart condition, so he felt uneasy; if something happened to the child, even if he followed procedure, the village would surely kick up a fuss—he might even lose his official hat.

Although he knew Ye Cheng made sense, as a leader Chief Liu couldn't let a youngster intimidate him; he straightened his face and said to Ye Cheng,

"The case is the case; if you have family difficulties, the village can help resolve them. Once we clarify things, we'll naturally release her sooner. Go back and tell the village what to do—don't waste more time; it's almost 12 o'clock."

Chief Liu's tone had eased considerably, but this Ye Cheng was a hothead; he still wanted to send him away quickly, feeling this guy wasn't easy to deal with.

Ye Cheng listened to Chief Liu's words, then suddenly broke into a smile,

"Chief Liu, her child has always been with her alone; no one else can manage him. I'll now ride back, bring the child over, and leave him in your duty room—you decide whether to lock the child up or release his mother."

Saying that, Ye Cheng turned and left.

Chief Liu was a bit at a loss—this guy wouldn't really be that bold, would he?

But thinking back to their previous fight, it's hard to say for sure.

Outside, the motorcycle had already started; Chief Liu panicked and rushed out immediately.

"Um, Ye Cheng, don't go—we can discuss this."

Seeing Chief Liu rush out, Ye Cheng stopped pretending, got off the bike, then began to ingratiate himself, lowering his posture to start persuading,

"Chief Liu, I know you're in a tough spot, but there's compassion beyond the law—we should also talk about human feelings; such a tiny child, you'd say how pitiful, right.

You're the parent-official of our area—city folks are people, and so are we townsfolk; we all rely on you, Chief Liu, so you'd better stand up for us and back us up."

Chief Liu had been a little annoyed, but Ye Cheng's words heaping the parent-official honor on him made him feel a bit embarrassed.

"Hey, Ye Cheng, I'm just a small police station chief, a sesame‑seed‑sized official—how could I be called a parent‑official? That's the mayor's secretary."

"Chief Liu, we can't rely on those big officials; in our eyes you're the biggest authority—if you don't look after us, who will, right?"

"You're something else." Chief Liu chuckled smugly, pointing at Ye Cheng, "Alright, go handle the paperwork later and bring the person back. But you must stay on call—when we summon you, you come."

"Sure, sure, Chief Liu, rest assured—we're law‑abiding citizens, and besides, it's not a big deal; we won't run." Ye Cheng patted his chest to guarantee.

"Alright, go."

Chief Liu waved his hand; immediately someone came over to help finish the bail paperwork, left Ye Cheng's contact info, and only then did Ye Cheng lead the widow out of the police station's door.

Just before leaving, Chen Shichao also came out and gave Ye Cheng a thumbs‑up,

"Brother, you're awesome—even Chief Liu was swayed by your words."

"Chen bro, it's not just because of you—having someone from our village here gives me confidence."

Chen Shichao laughed heartily at Ye Cheng's words, "You really are something—having a person like you in our village means there's hope for the future."

After exchanging a few pleasantries with Chen Shichao, Ye Cheng had the widow sit in the back seat, and they rode toward the village.

The night was hazy; the motorcycle pulled the two along a country lane.

After coming out, the widow hadn't spoken; as a respectable woman detained and interrogated by police for two hours, she was completely dazed.

After the bike had been going a while, the widow finally came to; she leaned her body toward Ye Cheng, resting her head on his back.

Feeling her lean against him, Ye Cheng sensed it immediately but felt awkward moving, so he could only offer two words of comfort,

"Aunt, don't overthink it—it's nothing serious."

From behind, the widow murmured, "A Cheng, thank you—having you here puts my mind at ease."

Hearing that, Ye Cheng felt his heart race; he didn't want to lean into that just yet, so he quickly said,

"Aunt, we're from the same village—we help each other."

The widow snorted a laugh behind him, sat up straight, and said, "You—are you scared? Rest assured, I know my place; I won't get any ideas.

"But if you're thinking about it…"

The widow lowered her voice and leaned in again, "I can also help you—without the identity stuff."

Those words made Ye Cheng's whole body heat up—damn, this middle‑aged vixen really knows how to flirt.

"Aunt, drop that—tell me what the police asked you."

Getting down to business, the widow sat upright and said, "They just asked whether I was the seller, what I'd put in it, and if I had a business license, etc."

"But A Cheng, rest assured—I didn't say you taught me."

Ye Cheng calmly replied, "Aunt, don't worry—even if you said it, it's fine; this isn't our cooking's fault—some people are allergic, so I limited each person to two jin."

"A Cheng, will we still be able to sell the crayfish later?" the widow worried—this was a good source of income.

"Yes, but we'll have to pause for a while—don't worry, this thing will be sold nationwide eventually."

"Exactly—later, all over the country, whenever the season comes, everyone will be eating crayfish; as for rhabdomyolysis, just go to the hospital if needed—people never shy away from these things for the sake of eating."

"For now we can't sell it—that's not to say we can't make money, but I still owe you 30,000 yuan." The widow fretted; having just found a money‑making avenue, now it's gone—how could she not worry?

"Aunt, the debt isn't urgent, and I'm not in a rush for money; as for future earnings, let me think again—I'll try to find you a lasting business."

They chatted and soon arrived back in the village.

As soon as they reached the village, the widow rushed to pick up her child—it was already late at night, but Qian Shen's place still had its lights on.

"Qian Shen, Qian Shen." The widow called softly twice.

"\"Xiuqin? You're back? \" came Qian Shen's delighted voice from inside."