Chapter 16: Why Are You Lifting My Clothes?

Can I say no... Yu Dazhang's scalp went numb, unable to guess what Qu Tuotuo wanted to do.

Coming out to the outer corridor, Qu Tuotuo walked very slowly, as if observing the surroundings.

Yu Dazhang walked beside her, lagging half a body length behind.

"Actually..." Qu Tuotuo suddenly spoke:

"In our two meetings, what you did to me was unfriendly, right?"

Here it comes, here it comes, finally it's coming... Yu Dazhang knew her giving the banner was fake, and demanding accountability was the truth.

"What I did was quite excessive, but the situation at the time..."

Yu Dazhang tried to excuse himself, but thinking of what he had done, he immediately felt guilty, so he simply said directly:

"Forget it, I won't explain either. I apologize to you; I hope you can forgive me."

Qu Tuotuo's steps paused for a moment, seemingly not expecting the other party to apologize so straightforwardly.

Actually, thinking from her perspective, she knew Yu Dazhang acted out of good intentions.

Risking his life to save her; just based on that alone, she should forgive him.

But the problem is, this apology was something she came over and demanded, not something he willingly gave.

"Do you know, I waited for you for over a week," Qu Tuotuo said in a low voice:

"If you could have come to find me and clarify, even just to explain one sentence, that would have been good. But you did nothing."

I didn't dare... It was precisely because Yu Dazhang felt he had gone too far that he didn't want to face Qu Tuotuo.

Most importantly, he felt guilty; meeting her, he didn't know what to say.

Once a person does something wrong, the vast majority choose to escape or let things take their course; very few can face it actively.

Yu Dazhang was no exception.

"Before, I wanted to go find you to apologize, but work got busy and I forgot."

Now, he could only make excuses.

"Then..." Qu Tuotuo's expression suddenly changed, revealing a smile:

"Was your apology just now sincere?"

"Sincere, absolutely sincere."

Seeing Qu Tuotuo smile, Yu Dazhang immediately chimed in, but this smile made him feel a bit uneasy.

"Then promise me one condition." Qu Tuotuo's smile grew brighter and brighter.

"Speak." Yu Dazhang replied without hesitation.

Qu Tuotuo stopped walking, looked around, and then quickly walked to the stairwell entrance.

Seeing Yu Dazhang didn't follow, she waved her hand:

"Come on, come inside here to talk."

Big sister, what are you up to... Yu Dazhang really didn't want to go over.

Once the two entered the stairwell, Qu Tuotuo put away her smile and said seriously:

"You offended me twice; I only ask to hit you once. Is that too much?"

"This..." Yu Dazhang hesitated and asked:

"Just once?"

Qu Tuotuo nodded: "I keep my word."

"Can we not hit the face?" Yu Dazhang feared a Palm print on his face would make his colleagues laugh at him.

"Sure." Qu Tuotuo agreed readily.

Then there's no problem; hitting once is fine... Yu Dazhang knew Qu Tuotuo just came to vent her anger.

Letting her vent this anger today would save him from being on edge in the future.

In Yu Dazhang's eyes, Qu Tuotuo was just a young girl; presumably, she didn't have much strength.

Looking at her small hand like green onions, one could tell she was raised in luxury.

"Come on!"

Yu Dazhang puffed out his stomach, closed his eyes, and put on an air of facing death with courage.

Don't say once; even if you hit me for ten minutes, I won't even blink.

But the next second...

"Hey, why are you lifting my clothes?"

Yu Dazhang felt his stomach go cold; opening his eyes, he realized his T-shirt had been lifted up.

Qu Tuotuo held his clothes with one hand, while her other hand was raised high...

"Smack!!!!!"

A huge roar.

At this moment, the voice-activated lights in the entire building turned on. Yu Dazhang's eyes nearly popped out from the pain; his stomach felt as if someone had seared it hard with a red-hot iron.

"Eeeeeeeee..." He tried his best not to let himself cry out.

Qu Tuotuo blew on her palm, looking at Yu Dazhang with a satisfied expression:

"Your screaming sound is different from ordinary people; you're truly amazing."

When the Criminal Investigation Team members followed the sound to the stairwell, they only saw Yu Dazhang alone.

They saw him curled up on the ground, holding his stomach with both hands, twitching and twitching.

"Dazhang, what's wrong? Are you okay?"

Lu Zhongxin grabbed his arm, wanting to pull him up to check.

"Don't, don't move me; I just need a moment to recover."

In the following days, Yu Dazhang returned to normal life.

The slap from Qu Tuotuo had left a small black-purple Fingerprint on his abdomen, and only recently had it begun to fade.

"Fuck, he trained in the Five Poison Palm."

Please... collect... 6... 9... Books...!

Standing before the mirror, Yu Dazhang gloomily patted his belly.

Not bad—at least it doesn't hurt anymore.

He arrived at the Criminal Investigation Team.

Lu Zhongxin was assigning operational tasks; seeing Yu Dazhang, he waved him over.

"You're just in time—today you're going back to the matchmaking corner."

Yu Dazhang froze: "What?! I'm going back to matchmaking?"

Lu Zhongxin gave him a look.

"Last time you played it well—you've got experience."

"That's not what I mean," Yu Dazhang hurried to explain.

"Last time I chased the suspect, lots of people in the park saw me—I'll be recognized if I go back."

Yu Dazhang calculated the days—it had been about half a month since his last visit to Renmin Park.

Too short a time; those old aunts would still remember him.

"Don't think too highly of yourself," Lu Zhongxin grumbled.

"Everyone who hangs out in the matchmaking corner has seen countless people—they've already forgotten you completely."

That made sense… Yu Dazhang couldn't help but nod in agreement.

Given the density of the matchmaking corner, one person walking through would encounter at least forty to fifty people of the opposite sex.

Who could remember every single one? That would require an extraordinary memory.

"Could the suspect recognize me?" Yu Dazhang still worried.

"The three you arrested last time are still locked up," Lu Zhongxin said sternly.

"This time we're going after the ones handling pick-up and smuggling the stolen goods."

Yu Dazhang smiled:

"Why do they always meet up at the matchmaking corner?"

Maybe they're all single and just killing two birds with one stone… Yu Dazhang thought it but dared not say it aloud.

Lu Zhongxin knew he was joking and didn't respond; instead, he walked to the door and called him out.

Outside, Lu Zhongxin whispered:

"In the kidnapping case last time, you contributed the most—Captain Wei has already submitted the commendation report. If nothing goes wrong, you'll be confirmed at least six months early."

Probationary officers in the Criminal Investigation Team serve a one-year internship.

Those who fail will be urged to leave or transferred to other departments.

Yu Dazhang was effectively pre-selected by the Criminal Investigation Team.

"Thank you, Master."

"Why thank me? You earned it with your performance—no one can envy it."

Having a student like him made Lu Zhongxin feel proud.

To outsiders, Yu Dazhang was clearly his own protégé.

The more successful the student, the better the teacher's instruction.

Songhai Renmin Park Matchmaking Corner.

Yu Dazhang picked up a cardboard sign, looked left and right, then decided to return to his old spot.

Because it offered the best view—no obstructions front, back, or sides—and it was close to the entrance.

When he arrived, he placed the sign against his chest and tidied his clothes and hair.

No sooner had he looked up than he heard an exclamation:

"It's you again!"

Yu Dazhang stared at the old aunt before him, studied her face, and found her vaguely familiar.

"Auntie, hello," he waved, greeting her warmly.

"Wait here—I'll go get someone!"

(End of Chapter)