Police officer Chen Shu

Chapter 113 Climbing Mount Huangshan
As night falls and the air grows cooler, fallen petals turn to frost.

Chen Shu got completely drunk yesterday and overslept. When he woke up, it was already dark.

Since he was already late, he wasn't in a hurry. He leisurely got dressed and washed up, then went downstairs to the "Daily Chinese Restaurant" for dinner.

I took out my phone during lunch and checked it out. The group chat in the office was still buzzing with activity. I could imagine the chaotic scene in the duty room right now.

However, there was no phone number to call Chen Shu.

The Zhongshan Police Station officers were used to the casual work schedule of the community security officers, since their main task was to meet the targets set by the bureau. If the targets weren't met, the officers would still have to clock in on time every day and work overtime at night, only to be scolded in the end.

Only Cheng Mian, who drove Chen Shu home last night, left a message on WeChat saying "Reply when you wake up."

Chen Shu replied while eating.

Cheng Mian usually laughs heartily and seems like a carefree person, but he actually has an extremely sensitive personality. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been chosen by the Legal Affairs Division to go to the Municipal Public Security Bureau to be responsible for reviewing bail applications for criminal cases throughout Dongzhou City.

A few minutes later, Cheng Mian called.

"Haha, Chen Shu, you had a great time yesterday!"

Chen Shu was a little embarrassed, unable to swallow the food in his mouth, and could only respond with "uh-huh".

Cheng Mian didn't take it seriously: "This is probably the first time you've encountered a case like this. Actually, it's quite normal in our city. For example, there are plenty of such problems in hotels, massage parlors, and even public bathhouses. You don't need to think too much about it. Just do your job well."

Cheng Mian, who works in the Legal Affairs Division, has seen all sorts of cases and has long since developed an impenetrable defense mechanism.

Chen Shu swallowed his food: "Alright, I know. Thanks to you last night, you probably couldn't have carried me alone with my weight."

"Haha, you definitely couldn't handle it. It took two people, the Didi driver and the driver, to carry you up there! Okay, I have a case to handle right now, let's talk next time."

After hanging up the phone, Chen Shu finished his meal in a few bites.

After a good meal and a good night's sleep, he was full of energy and had nothing to do, so he decided to go to the nearby cinema to watch a movie and kill some time.

"Jingle Bell!"

The phone rang, and Chen Shu glanced at his phone. It was his instructor, Zeng Hong.

"Xiao Shu, how's the malicious reporting going? Any progress?"

Thinking about this incident made Chen Shu feel somewhat uncomfortable, but he still recounted the whole story to Zeng Hong.

After the story was told, Zeng Hong offered a few words of comfort.

Perhaps sensing Chen Shu's disappointment during the conversation, Zeng Hong suddenly stated before hanging up that Chen Shu must use up his annual leave this year after the "Civilized City" campaign is over, otherwise his annual leave bonus will be suspended at the end of the year.

Annual leave bonus is calculated based on the length of leave, and is generally 200 yuan multiplied by the number of days off per year.

As a police officer with seven years of service, Chen Shu has five days of annual leave. If he adds the two weekends at the beginning and end of the week, it becomes a nine-day long holiday.

However, this is only in theory. Normally, grassroots police officers take their leave according to the actual number of days they take. After returning from their leave, they have to make up for the shifts they missed during the holiday.

It's already early winter, and in a little while it will be January. After the New Year, the annual leave will be over.

"Having seen the Five Sacred Mountains, one need not see any other mountains; having seen Huangshan, one need not see any other of the Five Sacred Mountains."

Aside from business trips, Chen Shu hadn't traveled outside his province for many years, so this time during his annual leave, he chose Huangshan in Ontario. On the first day at noon, he took the high-speed train to Huangshan Station and headed straight for the Huangshan Scenic Area.

Now that he's out of his police uniform, he's lost the weathered look that uniforms usually bring. His tall, slender frame, paired with a simple windbreaker and backpack, makes him stand out with an air of authority, a true model of a good young person in society.

However, the slight weariness in his eyes diminished his overall charm.

We arrived at the scenic area around 3 p.m.

Chen Shu stood at the foot of the mountain, looking at the nearly empty cable car station, thinking to himself that he should be feeling more comfortable right now.

Given his personality since childhood, anything that requires waiting in long lines for an extended period of time, whether it's a fun and exciting amusement park ride or a delicious and trendy restaurant, is simply goodbye.

Chen Shu specifically chose to climb the mountain in the afternoon and descend it the next morning to avoid the peak hours for the Huangshan cable car.

We took the cable car up the mountain, and unexpectedly, a light drizzle started to fall. Although it wasn't heavy, it didn't stop.

Chen Shu pulled the hood of his windbreaker over his head and took out his trekking poles from the side pocket of his backpack. He glanced at the crowd of people queuing up to take the cable car down the mountain, then turned back to look at the empty mountain path in front of him.

Chen Shu wanted to smile, but he couldn't.

The weather on the mountain was a bit cold, so Chen Shu tightened his backpack straps and headed straight for the cable car station exit.

The mountain hotel that Chen Shu had booked was very close to the cable car. Since it was still early and the road was wide, he deliberately took a longer route and leisurely drove around.

There weren't many tourists left in the mountain scenic area. Although the weather was bad with light rain, everyone's faces were filled with happiness and joy as they took photos or rested in twos and threes.

Chen Shu, with a DSLR camera hanging around his neck, suddenly felt a little envious. Although he had been traveling alone since college, as he got older, the images of Huang Siqian, Zhu Chaoran, Cheng Mian, Chen Chuan and others still came to mind.

In fact, Chen Shu contacted his friends one by one before this trip.

Huang Sisi declined somewhat shyly, explaining that she was new to the firm and embarrassed to ask her mentor for leave.

Zhu Chaoran used his annual leave at the beginning of this year.

Because of his position in the legal system, Cheng Mian had to go with veteran comrades in the branch to review cases from that year at the end of the year, and he also had to go to the provincial legal system brigade from time to time to fill in any gaps.

Chen Chuan, who was in the Technical Investigation Detachment, was quite free, but he lost interest as soon as he heard that they were going to Huangshan, saying that he would rather go to Siya Beach in the dead of winter.

Li Chaoyang, a fellow member of the security team, was another example; in addition to his regular shifts, he also had to cover Chen Shu's shifts.

After making several contacts, Chen Shu ultimately decided to go to a distant place alone, just like he did in college.

Upon reaching Tianxia Peak, looking into the distance, the setting sun was gradually disappearing into the sea of ​​clouds. Chen Shu raised his right foot and placed it on a large rock, his left hand supporting him with his hiking stick, his right hand gently resting on his right knee, standing there motionless.

Huangshan Mountain in the rain is full of beautiful and ethereal charm. As the sun sets, the sea of ​​clouds churns among the mountains, a truly breathtaking sight. After sunset, the wind immediately picks up.

Throughout the entire ordeal, Chen Shu never took out the DSLR camera hanging around his neck to take any pictures.

Upon arriving at the hotel lobby, the staff warmly offered me a bowl of steaming ginger tea.

Chen Shu thanked him, took the drink, and drank it down in one gulp, feeling a little warmer inside.

(End of this chapter)