Chapter 762: Daily Life and Eating Well

The next day, the Cleanup Bureau, next door to Li Ang's office.

"Emma! My dear Emma!"

After patting her own withered money pouch, the "adept at scheming and backstabbing" red-haired bureau chief grabbed her bestie's arm and pleaded with a mournful face:

"Could you... could you lend me a little more money?"

"Not necessarily."

After casting her an emotionless glance, Emma lowered her head and continued handling documents, replying in a cool tone:

"Went drinking again last night?"

"Mm..."

"Then no."

"..."

"Director Olivia, my cleanup report isn't finished yet. Is there anything else?"

"Nothing..."

"Then please."

Watching her bestie's palm coldly pointing toward the doorway, the red-haired bureau chief could only shuffle toward the exit, glancing back every few steps, hoping to hear some sign of a change of heart.

But by the time the red-haired bureau chief slowly inched her way into the corridor, the door behind her—bearing the nameplate "Emma Arman"—slammed shut with a bang, and she still hadn't heard that gentle call from before.

Heartless woman...

After letting out a long sigh, the red-haired bureau chief silently knocked on the door next door, calling out in a soft, honeyed voice:

"Li Ang~ Dear Li Ang, are you in?"

"Come in first!"

Just then, the door that had just been slammed shut miraculously swung open again. Emma appeared at the doorway, looking thoroughly disgusted, and dragged her into her own office.

"Last time! Talk! How much do you need to borrow?"

Hmm?

Heh heh

Watching Emma suddenly change her mind, the red-haired bureau chief's brows couldn't help but rise slightly. The corners of her mouth then curled up as she said meaningfully:

"Emma~ What made you change your mind all of a sudden? Could it be..."

"Are you borrowing or not?"

"Borrowing!"

After glancing at her bestie's increasingly unfriendly eyes, and to avoid having the goddess of wealth flip the table in a fit of rage, the red-haired bureau chief quickly swallowed her teasing words, then raised her right hand and gestured.

"Not much, just five gold wheels this time!"

Borrowing only this little? For you, that really isn't much.

After casting a somewhat surprised look at the red-haired bureau chief, Emma opened her own wallet, counted out five gold wheels and handed them over, then said with some curiosity:

"Why are you borrowing so little this time? Every other time you've come to me for money, haven't you always started at thirty or fifty?"

"This time... the situation is a bit special..."

The red-haired bureau chief said with a thoroughly unlucky look:

"Last night, when I was drinking until the middle of the night, after I paid and was carrying the wine back to the bureau, I only just remembered that I'd forgotten my wallet. When I went back, the waiter told me my wallet had already been taken by someone, and he didn't remember that person's face either.

So I don't need to borrow too much this time. I just need to get through these few days. Once Senior Senior Jie Rui finishes his mission and comes back, I'll have his 'friends' help me track down the wallet."

"..."

So you, a Yellow Path bureau chief of the Cleanup Bureau, a powerhouse with a record of slaying true gods, actually got so drunk you forgot your wallet? Could you possibly be any more ridiculous?

After blinking speechlessly, Emma stuffed the gold wheels into the red-haired bureau chief's hand, then reminded her in a sour tone:

"The places you go to, the drinks are all very expensive, the customers generally aren't short on money, and they generally don't take other people's wallets. Plus, that waiter is very suspicious.

Generally speaking, if a waiter at a high-end tavern notices a customer has left their wallet behind, most of them would helpfully set it aside. If they didn't notice, they'd just say they didn't know. And even to avoid responsibility, even if they really saw someone take it, they'd most likely say they didn't know.

But he specifically told you the thing was taken by someone else, and he didn't remember that person's face. That's very strange. Although it's not necessarily him who took it, he most likely wasn't telling you the truth."

After helping analyze the situation, Emma offered a suggestion:

"Here's what we'll do. Tell me the name of that shop, and what the waiter looks like. I'll go find Li Ang later and have him stop by on his way home from work to ask around and see what's really going on."

"Um... as long as Senior Senior Jie Rui comes back to the bureau, my wallet can be recovered directly. Let's not trouble Li Ang with an investigation, alright?"

Recalling the things she'd said to Li Ang yesterday when she'd invited him for drinks, the red-haired bureau chief couldn't help but blush slightly, and an unusual wave of inexplicable shame welled up in her heart.

"Remember, when someone has a weakness that everyone knows, then you have to be careful." 'Take notes, little Li Ang~ You're still too green~'

Those lines that had sounded so cool yesterday, leaving little Li Ang's face full of awe, had suddenly become a lot more stinging now that she'd gotten so drunk she'd forgotten her wallet.

If little Li Ang found out about this, she probably wouldn't be able to face him for the whole week...

"..."

No, wait—if you're going to talk, then talk properly. Why are you blushing?

Looking at the red-haired bureau chief's somewhat bashful cheeks, and recalling how in the Death Realm she and Li Ang had both had their lips swollen up from the spice, Emma's heart suddenly skipped a beat, and she said through gritted teeth:

"Olivia! Did you... after I left yesterday, did you say something to Li Ang again?"

???

Hearing Emma's question, the red-haired bureau chief's heart also skipped a beat, but she instantly returned to her usual confident expression and calmly asked back:

"What?"

Damn it! You can fool everyone else, but you can't fool me! Anything you say with that expression on your face can't be trusted at all!

After pressing her lips together tightly, Emma said nothing, but got up and walked toward the door.

As for the red-haired bureau chief, who had no idea what had gone wrong, she instinctively opened her mouth to stop her:

"Wait, he's not in! Li Ang has already gone out!"

Hearing the red-haired bureau chief's words, Auntie Ai Ma's steps faltered slightly, and she turned her head to look at her, her face full of suspicion.

"He's really not here."

Seeing Auntie Ai Ma stop in her tracks, the red-haired bureau chief couldn't help but let out a breath of relief and hurriedly spoke up:

"It's already noon now. Before you came back just now, Hearing Li Ang had already gone to the Security Department's cafeteria to eat."

"Really?"

"Really!"

"Then if you clearly knew he wasn't here, why did you still knock on his office door?"

"……"

……

"Hold it steady!"

After piling five or six pieces of fried cod onto Hearing Li Ang's tray, the auntie at the Security Department cafeteria flicked her wrist, scooped a full ladle of beef from the bucket beside her, and dumped it all over the rice along with the braising sauce.

"Alright, off you go! Come back for more if it's not enough!"

"……"

Come back for more? If I come back for more rice, I'm going to burst…

Looking at the portion on his tray—enough to fill two grown men—Hearing Li Ang, who had no idea what he'd done to catch the auntie's eye and really couldn't eat that much, could only force a bitter smile and ask:

"Um… tomorrow, could you…"

"Tomorrow is green bean salmon, roast chicken, and mushroom cream soup. The rest is on the menu by the door… hurry up and get out of here, there's someone waiting behind you!"

"……"

I wasn't asking what we're having tomorrow, I was trying to ask if you could give me a little less tomorrow…

Under the hungry stares of the towering policemen lined up behind him, Hearing Li Ang couldn't help but shrink his neck, hurriedly carried his tray away from the serving counter, then sat down in his usual spot and began to fret over what was on his tray.

This is way too much… even if you swapped in a whole pig, this huge pile on the tray would probably only fill it up about seventy percent, right?

And just as Hearing Li Ang took a deep breath and decided he'd rather burst than waste food, a pig—no, wait… a familiar figure carried a tray over and sat down in the empty seat across from him.

"Just knew you'd be here!"

After setting her tray down on the table, the female police officer, sporting two big dark circles under her eyes, said with a solemn face:

"Hearing Li Ang! I need your help with something!"

"Sure… but you've got to help me out with something first!"

Seeing his savior arrive, Hearing Li Ang, as if granted a great reprieve, nodded hurriedly, then took the female officer's spoon, scooped half of the stewed beef from his own plate, and dumped it onto her tray.

"Quick, help me eat a couple of pieces… Aunt Diana gave me way too much food today…"

(End of chapter)