Chapter 586: Chapter 585: 559: Daughter and Boss

“Even without you saying it, we’re doing our best. This case is like a sword hanging over our heads. I can’t be at ease until we solve it.” Lin Zeguang grits his teeth, finding the suspect to be extremely cunning; even with so many police, they couldn’t locate him.

“You’re still the same, hating evil as if it were your enemy. I remember when you first joined the unit, you said you joined the special forces to become a SWAT officer. Now your wish has come true.”

Lin Zeguang was just about to praise Yu Minglang and follow the same manners, but he heard Yu Minglang’s annoying add-on.

“You said that after joining the SWAT, you still need help from our special forces for problems you can’t solve. According to the negation of negation law, the unity of the progressiveness and tortuousness of the development of things, you’ve made a big detour in the end, but you’ve returned to the starting point. Hahaha!”

After the last three laughing words, Lin Zeguang really wanted to beat him up.

“Just you wait, we SWAT officers aren’t pushovers either. I don’t believe we can’t solve the case without your help!”

The two people’s line of sight mixed together, creating crackling sparks. Xiao Qian watched from the side and leisurely added a comment.

“Is this what they call ‘loving and killing each other’ in legends?”

“…” Yu Minglang felt disgusted.

Lin Zeguang was also disgusted. The two looked at each other and turned their faces away simultaneously. Who would want to be friends with such a giant gorilla/fox?!

Lin Zeguang still had to continue patrolling, while Yu Minglang took Xiao Qian for a late-night snack.

Eating delicious crab meat soup dumplings at night has a sense of guilt. Xiao Qian realized that since Yu Minglang came back, her nightly meals spiraled out of control.

It was bad enough with the skewers, and the sinful hotpot, but now in the middle of the night, he brought her to eat crab meat soup dumplings. Xiao Qian verbally rejected, but ate with more joy than any one else.

This place’s soup dumplings were very authentic with a thin layer of translucent skin, and you could see the shaky soup inside when picked up. The broth combined with crab meat is delightful when eaten on a hungry night.

Since there were no outsiders, Yu Minglang ordered a bottle of rice wine for Xiao Qian. When eating hairy crabs, you shouldn’t drink beer or you might suffer from gout and other diseases. Rice wine helps activate blood circulation and warm the stomach, countering the coldness of the crab.

Delicious food and drinks washed away the unpleasantness from the live broadcast. Yu Minglang was worried that Xiao Qian would be troubled by this incident, so he deliberately picked light topics to chat with Xiao Qian, diverting her attention.

“Qian Bao, do you know what the alternative name for rice wine is?”n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Unexpectedly, this topic brought up Xiao Qian’s sad memories.

“In some places in the south, after a daughter is born and cries for the first time, the father will use glutinous rice to make Nu Er Hong wine and bury it under an osmanthus tree, like hidden fatherly love. Rice wine is generally called this, and when the daughter is getting married, it’s taken to the husband’s family as a dowry. The first three bowls are scooped out and offered to the father, father-in-law, and husband, symbolizing a prosperous family. This is Nu Er Hong. In some places when a son is born, they also make and store yellow wine, which is called Zhuang Yuan Hong. But if a daughter dies halfway and doesn’t grow up, and the wine is taken out and consumed, it is no longer called Nu Er Hong but Hua Diao.”

This topic made Xiao Qian very melancholic, and she even lost her appetite.

Yu Minglang didn’t know why she suddenly put down her chopsticks and stopped eating. He thought she was still upset about being harassed during the live broadcast. He was about to speak when he saw a man in a snow-white uniform come out from the back kitchen, carrying a plate of spicy crab claws to put on Xiao Qian’s table.

“Wine and food have emotions too. What you said earlier was a misunderstanding. In my hometown, Hua Diao was originally used to store wine in painted and carved wine jars, hence the name. The custom of using Hua Diao for a daughter’s wedding originated in this way. In our town, when a daughter is born, we congratulate the entrance of Hua Diao, symbolizing a father’s deep love for his daughter, expressing thoughts and feelings. I think every father pours their entire heart into their daughter, loving them unconditionally.”

“Not all fathers are like that.” Xiao Qian thought of Chen Lin.

“Maybe the appearance you see to some extent reveals the essence behind the phenomenon, and there might be nothing behind it. Everything at the moment might be true or false, it all depends on your heart.”

Xiao Qian felt this man spoke in a peculiar way, staring at him for a few moments. Honestly, if he wasn’t wearing a chef’s uniform, she’d never have believed such a modern philosophical theory came from a cook.

The man placed the spicy crab claws on the table, and Yu Minglang glanced at him, “We didn’t order this.”

“It’s my treat, as there are friends coming from afar. I just happened to make this. I am Xuan, the owner of this place.” The man gave a gentle smile to Xiao Qian and Yu Minglang before turning around and leaving.

Yu Minglang looked at his back, thinking he was different from ordinary people. He had the same thought as Xiao Qian: this man really didn’t look like a chef.

Being explained in this way by the restaurant owner, Xiao Qian felt a little better. She calmed down and diverted her sadness.

“By the way, fathers who buried Nu Er Hong under the osmanthus tree often go and step on the soil there. Do you know why?”

The correct answer is that stepping on the soil gives a sense of stability, just like a father wanting to raise his daughter steadily and earnestly.

But when Yu Minglang explained it, it changed the meaning.

“If it were me, I’d stomp on it, thinking maliciously to myself, whoever dares to bully my daughter, I will crush them into jerky. When the wine is opened, it’s time to take revenge on those who bullied my daughter, and the grass on their graves will be three feet high!”

“…” Xiao Qian was speechless, this guy could really ruin classics.

After settling the bill, Xiao Qian and Yu Minglang were about to leave when the owner Xuan called to stop them.

“Take this with you and drink it later.”

Xiao Qian opened the bag to find a well-packaged bottle of Nu Er Hong wine inside.

“Isn’t this inappropriate…?”

They had already been treated to spicy fried crab during dinner, and now they were accepting gifts upon leaving.

Yu Minglang took out his wallet, “How much is it? Let me pay you.”

The owner waved his hand.

“I just like you two, so it’s free. By the way, if you don’t want to drink it right now, you can bury it together and open it when you’re both old, sharing the aromatic drink.”

Yu Minglang enjoyed this blessing and accepted it with a grin, “Then I also wish you a prosperous business.”

“I’ve never lacked money, but I prefer the blessing of a reunion with my family.” Xuan looked at Xiao Qian and smiled faintly.

When Yu Minglang led Xiao Qian out the door, Xuan finally let the smile fade away and removed his white chef’s coat, disliking the cheap fabric and smoky kitchen smell.

Two more people came out of the kitchen area behind the white curtain. One handed the man a coat, the other respectfully offered a handkerchief.

Xuan wiped his hands, cleaned up the annoying greasy smell before putting on the coat. He ordered the blonde foreign-looking girl who handed him the coat.

“Keep an eye on Chen Xiaoqian, understood?”

“Yes, but – my payment…”

“When the job is done, you won’t be shortchanged.”