Eating Melons in the Police Station

That evening, Zhong Jin took Little Tong out to find something to eat.

Although Little Tong, this little rascal, appeared to be completely recovered, Zhong Jin was still quite cautious. All the junk food she loved, like fried chicken, burgers, pizza, and ice cream, was definitely off the table.

He ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‍found on his phone that there was a seafood congee shop near the music fountain plaza, with pretty good reviews. The seafood was freshly killed in the shop, so the ingredients were reliable.

So Zhong Jin took Little Tong downstairs.

He didn't drive today; instead, he pulled out a sleek black road bike from the corner of the parking space. The front bar of the bike had a child seat installed.

Zhong Jin took out a small helmet from the trunk and helped Little Tong put it on. He picked her up and settled her into the seat, then put on his own helmet, swung his long leg over the bike, and they set off.

This bike was something Zhong Jin had bought during his recent obsession with online shopping. After getting the bike, he immediately ordered the child seat and helmet.

His plan at the time was to ride the bike with Little Tong, taking her to try all sorts of delicious food. On breaks, they could ride along the coastal path or have picnics in nearby parks.

Zhong Jin had been in Haishan for a year. Apart from the police station and responding to calls, he had never truly experienced the city. Now that he had a child, he found himself developing all sorts of interests he never had before.

Little Tong sat in the child seat, her head adorned with her father’s carefully chosen Mickey Mouse helmet. Her round head was capped with two mouse ears, and her little face was half-covered by the helmet's windshield. Her pursed lips made her look as cool as her dad.

Up ahead was a pedestrian street with a dedicated bike lane. Zhong Jin sped up, and Little Tong opened her mouth wide, joyfully catching the wind. She shouted, "Faster, faster!"

Zhong Jin tapped her helmet, "You're just a little kid, and you're already chasing thrills?"

After dinner at the seafood place, the father and daughter strolled hand in hand in the plaza to help with digestion. Zhong Jin pointed to a nearby inflatable castle, "Do you still want to play on that?"

Little Tong shook her head, "No."

"Why not? Tired of it?"

Again, Little Tong shook her head. She kicked at the small grass on the roadside with her leather shoes, "I play on that, and you'll leave."

Zhong Jin picked Little Tong up and placed her on the flowerbed by the side of the road. He held her shoulders with both hands and looked into her eyes, explaining seriously, "I left that day because I had work to do, not because you were playing on that."

Little Tong held onto his arm and jumped off the flowerbed, shaking her bob cut dramatically. "I’m just not going to play it anymore."

After walking around the plaza a bit longer, Little Tong pointed to a shooting game booth ahead. "I want to play that."

The booth was a typical setup found in many amusement areas. One end had a few toy guns, and the other end had shooting targets. Hitting a target would earn corresponding prizes. The higher the reward, the smaller and farther the target, making it more challenging to hit.

Zhong Jin took Little Tong over, but the vendor politely declined, "A child this small can't even pull the trigger. She can't play."

Little Tong was a bit disappointed but didn't make a fuss. She just "oh"ed and turned to leave.

Zhong Jin stopped her, "Which toy do you want? I'll shoot it for you."

Little Tong immediately pointed to the largest, most eye-catching stuffed toy in the display case. "I want that cute little bunny."

Zhong Jin glanced at the giant bunny, which stood taller than he was and was fatter than him. Was this really a "little bunny"? Moreover, what was cute about this monstrosity? He was afraid it might trigger cynophobia, just staring at it too long.

Little Tong firmly pointed at the silent giant bunny. "That's the one."

Zhong Jin asked the vendor which target he needed to hit to get the big bunny. The vendor pointed to a small circle plate at the far end, labeled with the number "001." "Hit that, and the bunny is yours."

"Okay, how much does it cost?"

"One shot is a dollar. Ten shots for eight dollars. A hundred shots for sixty-eight. To get that bunny, you'd need at least a hundred shots. Just practice first, but I should mention, it's not guaranteed. I'm not a professional, and that one's really hard. But if you don't get it, don't worry, I can sell you the bunny at its original price, sixteen hundred bucks. Buying it to make your kid happy isn't a bad deal, right?"

The vendor blabbered on like a motormouth, but Zhong Jin just calmly watched him. "Alright, give me one shot."

"What?"

"One shot."

The vendor laughed, "You're kidding, right? One shot? I won't even charge you for that. Just take it." His tone carried a subtle sarcasm, implying that if Zhong Jin didn't want to spend money, he shouldn't play at all. Look at how well-dressed he was, yet so tight-fisted.

Zhong Jin stood behind the line drawn with chalk on the ground, looking relaxed. With one hand in his pocket and the other raising the toy gun, his deep black eyes narrowed slightly. He aimed, shot, and the small circle plate labeled "001" fell.

The plastic bullet hit the center of the plate without a hitch.

The vendor was speechless. "......How did you just casually hit that? Wait, dude, are you a professional or something?"

Usually, customers would fuss over their aim for ages: one moment squatting in a horse stance, the next closing one eye, then complaining about the gun. Most would spend so much time preparing, only to shoot off into the wild blue yonder.

But Zhong Jin didn't do any of that extra stuff. He even had one hand in his pocket.

Even the vendor had to admit, he'd been owned.

The vendor kept his word, though it wasn't without some heartache. He climbed up the A-frame ladder, struggling to pull the big bunny down and hand it over to Zhong Jin.

"Give it a wash before letting the kid play with it. It's been out here for a while, so it's probably dusty." This oversized bunny was just meant to attract customers; it had been there for half a year and never been won.

Zhong Jin hugged the large rabbit, which was almost as tall as him and fatter than he was. He took out his phone, scanned the QR code, and transferred the money. With one hand holding the bunny and the other holding the child, he turned and left.

The vendor looked at the 1,600 yuan that had just landed in his account, feeling a bit surreal. This whole thing was just too bizarre.

Zhong Jin wasn't just throwing money around. These vendors were trying to make a living, and he couldn't bully them with his decade-long professional skills.

Carrying the giant bunny made riding impossible, so Zhong Jin had an idea. He slung the bunny over his back, tied its ears around his neck for stability, and looped its legs around his waist. He pedaled off like that.

Though Zhong Jin had no image to maintain, a nearly 30-year-old man wandering the streets with a giant bunny on his back did look a bit odd. To avoid being recognized, he pulled up the zipper of his jacket to cover half his face.

The little spotlight stealer sitting in front, however, was extremely proud. Whenever anyone looked at them, she shouted loudly, "Look at my little bunny! Do you want a photo?"

Zhong Jin could only bury his face deeper.

Passing by a roadside barbecue stall, Little Tong cried out for some skewers. Zhong Jin pressed her head into his chest. "No way." It was out of the question for him to take that bunny to a barbecue joint. Moreover, the police station was nearby. If he ran into a colleague, it would be beyond embarrassing.

Just as Zhong Jin was thinking that, he heard the unfortunate child cheerfully shout, "Sister Shishi, are you having skewers too?"

Zhong Jin froze on the spot.

Due to the recent case of poisoning at the daycare center, everyone had been under a bit of pressure these days. Now that Liao Hongji and Guo Qi had been transferred to criminal custody, the police station's work had temporarily come to a pause. A few young officers had agreed to unwind with some barbecue and beer.

Little did they know that dishes had just been served when they ran into the chief.

Well, meeting Zhong Jin was a bit awkward, sure, but everyone was still happy to have some skewers with Little Tong. Except, of course, Zhong Jin was awkwardly carrying a massive stuffed rabbit on his back.

Given that Zhong Jin usually maintained a stoic, aloof chief persona, this was a bit too much.

Eyes met with that ridiculously cute giant rabbit, and everyone was caught in an awkward moment. The young people around couldn't help but want to laugh, but they held it in, suppressing their smiles and lowering their heads, barely daring to make eye contact with each other. Any glance between them would surely result in a burst of laughter.

Zhong Jin felt like running away, but the big greedy girl sitting in front of him, Little Tong, was already eagerly asking, "Did you order the spicy beef skewers?"

Then Zhong Jin awkwardly folded his long legs into a tiny stool at the corner of the barbecue stall, while the oversized rabbit, a bit of a nuisance, was wedged into the stool behind him. The rabbit was too big for the small stool and kept tilting toward Zhong Jin, forcing him to manually straighten it.

In stark contrast to Zhong Jin's inhibition, Little Tong, the culprit behind all this, was in her element. Seated at the heart of the barbecue table, she was charming and sociable, inviting everyone to help push her face, and even filling a beer glass with cola, happily clinking glasses and taking big gulps of her "drink."

Zhong Jin thought to himself, "At such a young age, she's already mastered the art of table diplomacy."

As soon as Little Tong was full, Zhong Jin hurriedly took her away. He knew these young colleagues in their early twenties rarely had a chance to relax, and him being there would only make them self-conscious.

Although he was aware that once he left, they would surely mock him relentlessly, he figured, so be it. If they laughed, next week he would just assign them more challenging tasks.

*

Originally, Zhong Jin had planned to take Little Tong to the amusement park on Sunday, but a sudden downpour caught them off guard as they ran back home from their morning jog. Both father and daughter were soaked to the bone by the time they reached their neighborhood gate.

Racing home under the rain, they took hot showers and changed into cozy homewear. Little Tong plopped down on the floor to watch cartoons. Zhong Jin took out his phone and ordered some hot pot ingredients from a nearby large supermarket. On a rainy day like this, nothing beat staying indoors for a warm meal.

The ingredients arrived quickly, and Zhong Jin nagged Little Tong a bit, telling her to stop staring at the cartoons, before heading to the kitchen to rinse the vegetables.

After about ten minutes, Zhong Jin glanced toward the living room and saw Little Tong still absorbed in her cartoons, her upper body propped on a pillow, her short legs sticking up and swaying back and forth.

How leisurely.

Zhong Jin brought out a bowl of bean sprouts and placed it on the dining chair, warning Little Tong, "I'll keep the bean sprouts here for now. You must not touch them, and definitely do not peel off the yellow skin on the beans."

Little Tong glanced at him and replied cheerfully, "Yes, Aunt!"

As soon as Zhong Jin returned to the kitchen, Little Tong got up from the floor and ran to the dining area, standing on a chair, her head tilted, studying the bean sprouts.

With her small hand, she poked the tip of a bean sprout, her two chubby fingers pinching together, and she carefully peeled off the loose skin covering the beans.

"I'm going to peel all of these," the mischievous child whispered to herself.