The "Accident" Outside the Door
The municipal public security bureau building appeared particularly solemn under the leaden sky, its cold glass curtain wall reflecting the gloomy light, as if it too were imbued with the oppressive atmosphere inside.
Zhang Qian, carrying a bulging paper tote bag—which she used to organize her personal belongings—staggered out of the imposing revolving glass doors of the Municipal Public Security Bureau.
The suspension notice was officially issued during the meeting this morning. Although she was mentally prepared, when the document with the official seal was read aloud, and when the eyes of her colleagues, whether sympathetic, contemptuous, or gloating, swept over her intentionally or unintentionally, she still felt a stinging sense of humiliation and dizziness.
Years of hard work and careful maintenance of her dignity crumbled in the face of that idiot Sun Tingting and that damned recording. Her uncle's unprecedentedly stern and disappointed tone on the phone last night shattered her last shred of hope.
She stood on the high steps at the entrance of the municipal bureau, took a deep breath of the cool air mixed with car exhaust and dampness, and tried to suppress the suffocation and anger surging in her chest.
The future? No hope of promotion, relegated to a marginal position and sidelined, possibly even forced to resign... Her future was bleak. She gritted her teeth, a hint of resentment and unwillingness flashing in her eyes, but more than anything, a sense of utter emptiness drained of her strength.
She pulled out her phone; the screen showed the ride-hailing order she had just placed, and the driver had already accepted. The location was right in front of the Municipal Public Security Bureau. She glanced irritably at the constant stream of news notifications popping up at the top of the screen, most of which were related to her and that damned Lin Feng case. She swiped the notifications away as if avoiding a plague.
The wait felt incredibly long. Every second felt like torture. The paper bag in her hands seemed to grow heavier and heavier, digging painfully into her fingers.
Suddenly, the phone rang sharply; it was the ride-hailing driver.
"Hello? Ma'am, I've arrived. I'll stop a little way from the intersection in front of your workplace. Parking isn't allowed for long periods here, could you please move a few steps forward?" The driver's voice was cautious and pleading.
That one sentence was like a spark, instantly igniting Zhang Qian's long-suppressed anger!
"Take a few steps forward?!" She suddenly raised her voice, which became shrill and piercing with excitement, drawing a glance from the armed police officers on guard at the entrance. "My location is right in front of the Municipal Public Security Bureau! Why don't you just drive over?! Do you know who I am? You expect me to walk over? Believe me, I'll file a complaint against you right now and have your account banned by the platform!"
She practically yelled these words, as if she wanted to vent all the grievances she suffered at work and the fear of her future on this driver she had never met. This arrogant attitude was almost an instinct for her to protect her pitiful self-esteem at this moment.
The driver on the other end of the phone was clearly taken aback by the sudden outburst of anger. After a pause, he explained helplessly, "No, ma'am, please don't get agitated. This is truly a one-way street. I just went around in circles to get here. Parking here now is a violation, and a single traffic camera ticket costs three cents and two hundred yuan! Please understand, it's just a short walk, three minutes at most..."
"I'll be considerate of you? Who's being considerate of me?!" Zhang Qian ignored him completely, rudely interrupting him, "I'm telling you! I'm giving you three minutes! Within three minutes, your car must be in front of me! Otherwise, I'll not only file a complaint against you, I can also have your car impounded! You believe me?!"
She roared, giving the other person no chance to explain, and slammed the hang-up button. Her chest heaved violently, and her face flushed with anger. She stared intently at the time on her phone screen, starting to count down the seconds. With each passing second, her frustration and rage intensified. She felt like a powder keg ready to explode, and this disobedient driver was the fuse.
Time ticked by, and cars streamed along the road in front of her, but none of them were the ride-hailing car she was waiting for. The air after the rain was damp and heavy, making it hard to breathe.
One minute and thirty seconds... two minutes...
She couldn't help but dial the driver's number again, almost yelling, "Where are you?! I haven't seen you yet?!"
The driver's voice was tinged with anger, but he was still trying to control himself. "Ma'am! I'm going out of my way! This is a one-way street, I have to make a U-turn at the next intersection! Could you please wait a little longer?"
"No way!" Zhang Qian said firmly. "Two minutes and twenty seconds! I'll give you another forty seconds! If you don't finish, I'll report you!" She slammed down the phone again, like a gambler who had lost everything, desperately clinging to the last remaining time.
Just as she was fully focused on keeping track of the time on her phone and finding that damn ride-hailing car, a deep, powerful engine roar came from afar. This sound was different from other cars; it was heavier and more imposing.
Zhang Qian glanced up subconsciously—it was a dirty, heavy truck slowly driving along the road. She didn't pay much attention; these kinds of cargo trucks were common on the outskirts of the city. Her gaze quickly returned to her phone screen and the intersection ahead, searching for a ride-hailing car.
Two minutes and fifty seconds... two minutes and fifty-five seconds...
The engine sound seemed to grow closer and louder, almost to the point of being annoying. A subtle unease, like tiny insects, suddenly burrowed into Zhang Qian's anger-filled mind. She looked up again—
This time, her pupils suddenly contracted!
The massive heavy truck, its huge cab like a moving wall, had somehow veered off course and was hurtling towards the roadside where she was standing with a seemingly slow but unstoppable momentum! It was so close that she could even make out the mud-splattered bumper and the blurry license plate!
"Boom--!!"
The ear-piercing engine noise suddenly intensified, and a large number of heavy trucks accelerated abruptly, rushing straight towards Zhang Qian!
Time seemed to stretch out infinitely in that moment. The anger and anxiety on Zhang Qian's face froze instantly, then were replaced by extreme terror and disbelief. Her mind went blank; she wanted to scream, but her throat felt like it was being choked, and she couldn't make a sound. She wanted to back away, but her feet seemed to be nailed to the spot.
She only had time to see the huge, stained tire rapidly enlarging in her field of vision, filling her entire field of view.
"Bang!!!"
A dull, teeth-grinding bang drowned out all other sounds.
Zhang Qian felt as if her body had been struck by a giant Iron Hammer; indescribable pain instantly swept through every nerve. She could even clearly hear the terrifying sound of her bones shattering. Like a broken rag doll, she was easily sent flying, tracing a brief, twisting arc in the air before crashing heavily onto the cold, damp asphalt road several meters away.
The world rapidly blurred and darkened before her eyes, until she finally lost consciousness completely. The brand-new paper tote bag scattered around her, its contents—a thermos with the company logo, several work notebooks, a small potted plant—rolling to the ground, stained with mud and... a glaring crimson.
"Ouch! Someone's been hit!!"
"Quick! Call 120!"
"Right in front of the Municipal Public Security Bureau! Oh my god!"
After a brief silence, there were terrified screams and shouts from passersby.
Within seconds of the impact, several police officers rushed out of the city police station. Some immediately went to check on Zhang Qian and, seeing her lying there motionless, covered in blood, their expressions changed drastically. They anxiously called the command center for an ambulance while attempting to provide initial first aid. Others reacted quickly, efficiently dispersing the crowd, setting up a cordon, and surrounding the truck involved in the accident to prevent the driver from escaping.
The scene was chaotic at one point, with sirens, shouts, and murmurs all mixed together.
Two police officers cautiously approached the driver's seat and suddenly pulled open the door.
The scene inside the driver's cab surprised even the well-traveled and knowledgeable.
The car reeked of alcohol. A middle-aged man, who looked to be in his forties, with an ordinary face and wearing blue overalls, sat in the driver's seat. There was no panic on his face, no fear of hitting someone, and not even... a trace of emotion. The car radio was playing a noisy folk tune, completely out of place with the tense atmosphere outside.
Even more astonishingly, he had one hand casually resting on the steering wheel, while the other hand was holding a clear glass bottle of liquor, most of which was already empty.
"Get out of the car! Put your hands behind your head and get out of the car immediately!" a policeman shouted sternly, his hands already on his police equipment at his waist.
The middle-aged man seemed to only then notice the police outside. He slowly turned his head, his gaze calmly sweeping over the police officers who were standing guard outside the car, and Zhang Qian lying on the ground in the distance. On his face, there was even an extremely slight, almost eerie smile, the curve of his lips so subtle that it sent chills down one's spine.
He ignored the police's orders and showed no intention of resisting or fleeing.
Just as several police officers were about to step forward to forcibly subdue him, he made a move that surprised everyone.
He raised the hand holding the bottle towards the police outside the car, as if to salute or to complete some kind of ritual, then tilted his head back and gulped down the remaining liquor in the bottle without hesitation, not a drop left.
The spicy liquid slid down his throat without him even flinching. The empty bottle slipped from his hand and shattered on the driver's side floor with a loud crash.
He exhaled a satisfied breath, heavy with the smell of alcohol, and then sat there quietly, letting the police rush up and roughly drag him out of the driver's seat, pin him to the ground, and put cold handcuffs on him.
He didn't utter a single word from beginning to end; the eerie calm on his face was a chilling contrast to the bloody tragedy he had just committed.