Street Encounter with a Thief

Tong Haojing felt that the old houses and dilapidated public facilities were like a forgotten corner of the city when he investigated the residents of the agricultural machinery company. Fortunately, a few elderly women sitting on leisure stone chairs knew that people lived there. When he asked about a resident surnamed Fang, the neighbors turned pale and avoided talking about the situation, but they were particularly sympathetic to a little girl, and when asked why, they all shook their heads.

A deep, narrow alley led directly to the Fang residence. Tong Haojing cautiously entered, but the Fang residence's door was shut tight, and no one was inside. Tong Haojing withdrew from the alley and asked Aunt Qin, who was chatting nearby, "Where are the owners of this house?"

"Hiss—you can't see anyone here during the day!" Aunt Qin's expression was one of fear and apprehension, making one feel that the Fang family must have something shameful.

"Do you know them?"

"I do, but I rarely see them! He usually keeps to himself, only appearing when he picks up or drops off Xiao Yanni."

Tong Haojing decided to return that night. Afterward, he visited about twenty households one by one, made detailed notes, and recorded all his observations with a recording device. At this pace, it shouldn't be a problem to cover the entire community. Tong Haojing mused with satisfaction, a relaxed smile on his face, but thinking of Director Tang's requirement to "familiarize himself," he frowned again.

Tong Haojing felt a slight fatigue, his stomach growling. A noodle shop with the aroma of meat appeared before him. This was the most famous Longmen Lane Noodle Shop in West City, and he decided to eat two taels of puga mian before leaving. The Longmen Lane puga mian shop had once been extremely popular, boasting a history of a hundred years. The most distinctive and flavorful part was the fragrant pea in the noodles, which left a lingering taste, attracting countless diners for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

The noodles were delicious. After finishing two taels, Tong Haojing walked along Hongqiao Street, savoring the aroma of the puga mian, his mind heavy with thoughts. He looked at the colorful electronic billboards lining the street and suddenly thought of something. After a few steps, a young man on a motorcycle bumped twice in a narrow alley, and something tightly wrapped fell from his vehicle. The young man didn't notice and continued to ride forward. Tong Haojing saw it, called out twice, but the young man didn't respond, instead speeding up.

A young man emerged from the crowd, saw this scene, and calmly bent down to pick it up. He glanced at the packaging, then suddenly turned his head to look in the direction the motorcycle had gone. He ran a few steps, made a phone call with a tense expression, and then angrily began to unwrap it.

Tong Haojing stepped forward to stop him.

"Is this yours?"

"...Yes, I... I, it's mine!" The young man was stunned by Tong Haojing's sudden question. Facing a tall man, he spoke evasively, his eyes darting away, unable to meet anyone's gaze. His hands unconsciously tried to restore the packaging, but in his haste, he couldn't get it right, his hands trembling slightly.

Tong Haojing couldn't help but chuckle inwardly. What an audacious person, he thought, so thick-skinned!

"Is it really yours?!"

The young man said nothing more, still frantically trying to figure out how to put it back together.

"If it's not yours, don't claim it greedily. The owner will be here soon, let's see how you explain yourself."

"I'm calling the police!" the young man suddenly said.

"What, you dare to call the police?" Tong Haojing was truly surprised that someone would play the victim in broad daylight. Even funnier was that he was using a police officer to threaten him. It was absurd.

"Let me tell you, I am a police officer!"

"Ah, you're a police officer? Could it be..." The young man was somewhat surprised and excited, then looked at Tong Haojing with a hint of suspicion, wondering if he was an imposter.

"How did you get here so fast!"

Tong Haojing felt something was amiss. He took out his identification and showed it to the young man.

Only then did the young man straighten up and say indignantly, "Officer, this belongs to me. It's an electronic product inside, a high-capacity USB drive. That person on the motorcycle must be a thief!"

"How can you be sure this is yours?" Tong Haojing still didn't fully believe the young man.

"I sell electronics, and I'm the only one in the city selling this kind of high-capacity USB drive. I don't know this person, and I haven't sold him anything like this. My shop is at No. 54 Longmen Lane, West City." The young man took out his ID as he spoke.

Tong Haojing believed him, his face flushing.

A patrol car with flashing lights suddenly stopped in front of Tong Haojing. Two police officers got out, escorting a man in handcuffs.

"Young man, can you identify your goods?" said Officer Lan, a police officer from the station. Tong Haojing immediately saw that the handcuffed man being escorted by him and Lu Tong was the same person who had been riding the motorcycle.

The young man stepped forward.

"Where's my stuff?" the young man asked, glaring angrily at the thief with his head bowed.

"It's in the car. You can get a receipt. This guy is a drug addict, he steals everything!" Officer Lan said excitedly.

"Okay, thank you, officers."

At this moment, Tong Haojing felt a bit embarrassed in front of Officers Lan and Lu. He realized he had almost made the mistake of treating a drug addict thief as the victim.

Just as Tong Haojing was about to apologize, the young man beat him to it. "Officers, I'm sorry, I mistook you for the thief's accomplice just now!"

Tong Haojing was speechless, unsure whether to laugh or cry. At this moment, he suddenly remembered that he needed a high-capacity USB drive himself.

"Young man, what's the capacity of the USB drive? Find the largest one you have for me!"

"The largest is 4TB. I'll give it to you!"

"No, how much is it?"

"Then it's at cost price, 600 yuan!"

"Alright!" Tong Haojing paid. The young man took back his stolen goods and left. Officers Lan and Lu escorted the thief back to the police station.

The sun had set in the west, and the night grew deeper. Tong Haojing had a premonition that the Fang family resident at the agricultural machinery company might have returned home. He called Old Jiang and told him he wouldn't be back at the station before 8 o'clock. Tong Haojing had become Old Jiang's apprentice, and Old Jiang had set a rule for him: "If you leave the station at night, you must call me."

This was also Director Tang's requirement.

Tong Haojing told Old Jiang about buying the external hard drive. Old Jiang spoke after a long pause, complaining on the phone, "Xiao Tong, you're acting first and reporting later. You have more power than the director. You'll have to deal with the consequences yourself!" Old Jiang's words were not without reason. Director Tang valued the authority of his signature above all else. Nothing could better reflect the director's authority than that. For a newborn calf to usurp that authority, one could imagine the consequences.

Unexpectedly, Old Jiang had this attitude. He decided not to claim reimbursement from the director. "If you don't report it, then don't!" Tong Haojing was clearly upset. Old Jiang thought for a moment. Tong Haojing hadn't dealt with finances before, so ignorance was understandable. He intended to comfort him, "There will be opportunities in the future!"

It was getting late. Under the dim streetlights, Tong Haojing was a little unfamiliar with the road to the agricultural machinery company. He circled twice before reaching the building. A resident stared at him and recognized him, saying, "Isn't this the new household registration officer, Tong!" Soon, several people gathered around Tong Haojing, chattering about all sorts of trivial matters in West City. Tong Haojing patiently explained each one.

The streetlight at the bottom of the agricultural machinery company building was broken, and there was no light. Relying on his memory from the morning, Tong Haojing walked about ten steps into the dark alley before seeing a beam of light shining from under a door. Tong Haojing rejoiced inwardly: "Someone's home!"

"Knock, knock," Tong Haojing knocked on the door. After waiting for a while, a little girl's voice came from inside: "Who is it?"

"Police!" Tong Haojing replied.

The little girl peered through the peephole. She saw an uncle in a police uniform. The little girl, filled with trust, opened the door. A girl with a ponytail, wearing a flesh-colored miniskirt, appearing to be about ten years old, stood before Tong Haojing.

"Uncle, are you looking for my dad?" the little girl's voice was piercingly childish. Tong Haojing couldn't believe his eyes. The girl's mature appearance was completely mismatched with her tender voice. As Tong Haojing was wondering, the little girl spoke again: "My dad went out to buy some food and will be back soon!" The little girl looked innocent and cute.

"Haven't eaten yet?" Tong Haojing asked.

"Mm!" The little girl turned and climbed onto the table to get a teacup. "Uncle, come inside for some tea!" The girl was so polite that Tong Haojing felt a surge of affection for her.

"What does your dad do?" Tong Haojing asked.

"He doesn't have a job. He's out most of the time and only comes back to cook for me. His name is Cuntoucao." Tong Haojing vaguely remembered from Old Jiang's files that someone named Fang Shi had the nickname Cuntoucao, but he couldn't recall what he did for a living. So this was the little girl's father.

"What about your mom?" Tong Haojing looked at a photo of a beautiful woman on the wall.

"Mommy left!" The little girl's eyes welled up with sadness. She rubbed her eyes with her hand.

"Is that your mom? She's really pretty!" Tong Haojing asked.

"Mm!" The little girl started crying. She hated it when people brought up her mother because other kids had one, but she had never even met hers and was often mocked for it.

Tong Haojing was affected by her emotions and almost lost control, suddenly feeling a sense of melancholy. This little girl had an unusual past. He then asked for her name, age, and about her schooling.

The little girl calmed herself down from her sadness and said, "My name is Fang Yanni. I just turned ten this year and I go to school at West City Primary."

West City Primary School was a private school with extremely high tuition fees, located five kilometers from Hongqiao Community.

"You travel that far?" Tong Haojing was a little surprised. As he spoke, Tong Haojing noticed how extremely simple Yanni's home was. There was barely anything besides an old dining table and a crooked, faded bamboo sofa. On the sofa was a small, opened foil packet that looked empty. Tong Haojing keenly sensed something was off. He looked at the innocent, lively, and adorable Xiao Yanni. How could she be living in this kind of household?

"Aren't you scared that your dad isn't back yet?" Tong Haojing suddenly asked again.