Chapter 133: Stepping on a Landmine

Qin Qing’s proposal to leave the team was put on hold.

Director Feng granted her an extended leave.

Shi Jiang, whose injuries were more severe than hers, somehow recovered faster and was discharged before her.

On the day she was discharged, Zhang Yao brought Mumu along to pick her up.

Mumu hated the smell of hospitals. The moment they reached the front gate, it flopped down and covered its nose, refusing to move.

Qin Qing crouched down and patted its head.

Mumu got up and tugged at her pant leg, eager to leave the place it disliked.

Qin Qing let herself be pulled along.

Zhang Yao walked beside her. “Want to swing by the Bureau for a bit of fresh air?”

Qin Qing shook her head.

“Let’s just go home.”

By “home,” she meant the apartment Liu Simin had given her.

Since moving in, she’d barely spent any time there.

But right now, all she wanted was to retreat into that little space that belonged solely to her.

Zhang Yao said, “Everyone at the Bureau misses you. Your name still comes up all the time.”

Only then did Qin Qing remember that Zhang Yao was now the Deputy Bureau Chief of the Wuning Sub-Bureau. It was rare for someone with his workload to personally come pick her up.

Back then, it was because he had been her liaison officer.

But now…

“Maybe another time. You guys must be swamped too,” Qin Qing replied.

Zhang Yao didn’t press further.

With Xiao Wu and the others around, there was no need for him to escort her home.

His main purpose today was to hand over the task of taking care of Qin Jiamu.

“Don’t overthink things. Take advantage of the break and get some real rest.”

Qin Qing smiled. “Of course. I’ve been looking forward to this vacation for ages.”

Zhang Yao left, disappearing into the sea of traffic, soon indistinguishable from the rest.

The street bustled with people and cars, noisy and chaotic.

Yet standing on the sidewalk, Qin Qing felt an overwhelming quiet, a silence deeper than she’d ever known.

A kind of ignorant silence.

Xiao Wu called out, “Sis?”

Qin Qing snapped out of it. “It’s nothing. Let’s go.”

Back at the residential complex, the security guard at the gate had been replaced. He didn’t recognize Qin Qing, and so Xiao Wu and the others were also stopped for questioning.

Qin Qing didn’t recognize him either.

Her first instinct was to run a background check on the guy…

But she let it go. Surely the hefty property fees weren’t paying for a bunch of incompetent slackers.

They couldn’t possibly mess up something as basic as hiring a decent guard.

Even though she’d been lying in a hospital bed for so long, Qin Qing still felt drained. All she wanted to do was sleep.

And that’s exactly what she did.

With Xiao Wu walking the dog and bringing her meals, she didn’t step outside for days. She curled up at home, binge-watching shows and catching up on series.

She’d missed out on so many good novels and programs these past few months.

Now she was gorging on them, her eyes practically spinning. This stockpile of mental snacks could easily last her through hibernation.

And so, the days drifted by in a haze.

Then, one night, in the dead of night, Qin Jiamu woke her up.

She glanced at the clock. It was just past 4 a.m.

Hugging the little troublemaker, she grumbled, “What do you want?”

After a round of clumsy communication, she finally figured out that Mumu, tail tucked, urgently needed to go to the bathroom.

It looked pretty desperate.

Qin Qing had no choice but to take it downstairs.

What a little tyrant.

It was the middle of the night, and she couldn’t bring herself to wake Xiao Wu and the others just to walk the dog.

They were already under enough stress during their shifts.

After Mumu finished its business, it refused to go back, darting around the complex like a maniac.

At that hour, no one else was around, so she simply unclipped the leash and let it run wild.

There was no way she was going to be dragged around by a frenzied dog.

By the time Mumu had burned off its energy, it was already past 5 a.m.

Dawn was breaking.

Qin Qing was wide awake by then. Instead of heading back, she decided to take the panting, tongue-lolling mutt out for breakfast.

The area around the complex was full of greenery. To find a place that actually sold breakfast, they had to walk a bit.

So she strolled along with Mumu, taking their time.

They were on a road running east to west.

They headed east.

The sun was rising, round and orange, not blinding even when stared at directly.

The chubby orange sun led the way.

The little dog trotted in the middle, baring its teeth in a grin, head held high, proudly showing off its fluffy chest fur. Who knew what had it so cheerful this early in the morning?

Qin Qing followed behind, trailing after Mumu.

Suddenly, Mumu got excited and bolted forward.

There were already some pedestrians on the road. Qin Qing didn’t dare let go of the leash and was dragged into a run by the crazed dog.

Running.

Faster and faster.

Her loose hair whipped into her face, blinding her.

She fumbled to push it aside—

And saw… the sun charging toward her.

That round, chubby orange sun, glowing and solid, came barreling toward her without hesitation, blazing with warmth.

So warm, she could feel the rising heat closing in.

Mumu finally stopped, panting hard, its chest heaving.

Qin Qing wasn’t doing much better.

Mumu barked, “Woof woof woof…”

Qin Qing crouched down and hugged its hot, panting body.

“I don’t know what you’re saying, but… thanks for showing me the sunrise.”

Mumu barked again, “Woof woof woof…”

Exhausted, the two of them finally reached the breakfast district.

Most of the shops had changed hands since she’d last been there months ago.

Whether it was the roadside stalls or the storefronts, everything looked different.

And yet, they all sold the same kinds of food.

Qin Qing scratched her face and asked Mumu, “They’re all copy-paste versions of each other. How am I supposed to choose?”

Mumu barked again.

“I don’t understand you, but based on my experience, at least half of these places are probably awful.”

Drawing on her years of food-hunting instincts, Qin Qing picked two places that looked like they might actually serve something decent.

The two shops stood side by side. Qin Qing ignored the greetings from both shop owners and stood between them, tilting her head to look at one sign, then the other.

She couldn’t decide.

She nudged Mumu with the side of her foot.

“Come on, pick one.”

Mumu understood. It stood up and pointed its furry head toward the shop on the right.

Qin Qing clapped her hands. “Great, got it!”

Then she tugged on the leash and headed straight into the shop on the left. “We’re eating here!”

Mumu’s fluffy face was full of shock: “???”

The owner of the shop on the right: “…”

Qin Qing shrugged at Mumu. “What? I only asked you to pick, didn’t say I’d go with your choice. Ever heard of the process of elimination?”

Mumu: “Woof woof woof…”

The owner of the left-hand shop welcomed her warmly and even gave her a disposable container to use as a makeshift dog bowl for Mumu.

After the morning workout, her energy reserves from last night had been thoroughly depleted.

Qin Qing ordered a whole spread.

Soy milk, steamed buns, sesame balls, tea eggs, fried dough sticks, and osmanthus rice cakes.

She picked up a still-steaming bun and took a big bite…

And nearly cried.

It had been a very, very long time since she’d eaten a bun this awful.

The meat filling was like a lump of iron, the inner dough was undercooked and soggy, and the seasoning was bland at best.

There was even a faint gamey taste to the meat.

She tried something else.

The soy milk tasted slightly sour—maybe it was just her imagination?

The sesame balls were rock hard, comparable to the dried pancake skins she’d once had in Shandong.

And the osmanthus cake? Sticky and cloying.

Qin Qing broke off a piece and offered it to Mumu. The dog sniffed it excitedly, then pushed the makeshift bowl aside and refused to touch it. It even used its paw to cover its nose, making its stance on the breakfast crystal clear.

Honestly, it was impressive that the shop owner had managed to gather so many terrible-tasting things in one place and still keep the business running.

Truth be told, Qin Qing didn’t want a second bite of any of it.

But Mumu the little mutt refused to help her out, and she couldn’t just waste it all.

With a look of tragic resolve, she replayed scenes from the Safir Port war zone in her mind.

Only then could she convince herself to temporarily sacrifice her sense of smell and taste and shove the food into her stomach.

She gave a swift kick to the dumb dog who wouldn’t share her suffering.

“You’re not eating now, but one day you’ll have to. From now on, you need to learn that scouting out new food spots always comes with the risk of stepping on a landmine.”

Mumu: “Whimper whimper…”

After leaving the breakfast shop, Qin Qing downed an entire bottle of vitamin C drink just to wash away the strange flavors lingering in her mouth.

Mumu, stomach still empty, didn’t want to move.

Qin Qing spotted a boutique fruit shop across the street.

She asked, “Wanna go up to Baiyun Temple for lunch?”

Mumu came back to life on the spot, stood up, gave itself a shake, and every strand of fur gleamed smooth and shiny.

Its doggy eyes sparkled with anticipation as it looked at her.

“Greedy mutt!” Qin Qing scolded, but still took it into the fruit shop, picking out a few fruits that looked and tasted great.

She muttered to Mumu, “I should message Xiao Wu and the others. Otherwise, when they wake up and see we’re gone, they’ll think something happened again.”

Mumu: “Woof woof woof…”

“I already told you I don’t understand you. Why are you so chatty today?”

As Qin Qing stepped out of the fruit shop, a familiar car was parked by the roadside. Behind the wheel was one of her security guards.

Just as she was wondering about it, someone approached from the side. “Sis, we’ll take you to Baiyun Temple.”

It was Xiao Wu.

“???”

Xiao Wu grinned.

“We’ve actually been following you the whole time. But since it seemed like you didn’t want company, we stayed out of sight.”