Midnight Bookstore

Chapter 61: Fleet of Cars (Part 2)

The police officer sat there flipping through a book, occasionally taking out his phone to check the time.

Honestly, Zhou Ze and Bai Yingying were very stressed when he was in the store.

It felt like there was a thorn in Zhou Ze’s back.

This was a good police officer. He was full of righteousness. Coupled with his police uniform, it was enough to make all evil retreat.

However, Zhou Ze could not retreat. After all, this was his shop.

Fortunately, Zhou Ze and Bai Yingying were not low-level wandering spirits or mountain spirits. Although they were uncomfortable, they did not bear any substantial harm.

On the contrary, Zhou Ze respected him from the bottom of his heart.

It was true that the human heart was inscrutable.

However, as a ghost, he was more sensitive to such feelings.

Therefore, the batch of books that Zhou Ze had given him at the start was not to tease him, but Zhou Ze’s preconceived notion that a police officer who could nurture such righteousness should like to read serious and valuable books.

However, Zhou Ze later realized that the police were also human.

Humans had their own interests and hobbies. For example, this police officer sitting in front of him was engrossed in his novel.

“Uncle, have some tea.”

Bai Yingying timidly brought the teacup over.

“Oh, thank you.” The police officer took the teacup and looked at Bai Yingying. “Aren’t you going to school?”

“It’s the holidays today.”

Bai Yingying did not dare to say that she did not go to school. She did not want to cause more trouble.

Bai Yingying was a little afraid of the person before her. In fact, she was even more afraid than Zhou Ze.

Zhou Ze was a person of this generation, so he could immerse himself in this way of thinking. The person before him naturally made him feel afraid, but from another perspective, it also meant that this person before him was more worthy of respect.

Bai Yingying, on the other hand, only felt that her heart was beating faster. After handing over the tea, she immediately ran to the second floor, not wanting to come down again.

“Boss, how much?” The police officer looked at Zhou Ze.

“Do as you see fit,” Zhou Ze said.

“This won’t do. Forget it. I’ll settle the bill when I leave. They’ll probably pick me up in half an hour.” The police officer sat down again and touched his pocket. He was stunned.

As an avid smoker, Zhou Ze understood and handed him a cigarette.

“Thanks.”

The police officer thanked Zhou Ze for lighting the fire for him, and the two smoked together.

Cigarettes were indeed a bridge for men to socialize. From strangers to smokers, it was also convenient to brag.

“You don’t have a good business here, do you?” the police officer asked.

“Just pass the time,” Zhou Ze replied.

“Oh, I remember who you are.” The police uncle patted his head and said, “During the fire last time, you charged into the fire to save someone, right?”

Zhou Ze nodded.

“Oh right, the Bureau wanted to send you a silk banner last time, why didn’t you pick it up?”

“I don’t want to be in the limelight,” Zhou Ze replied.

The police officer nodded and said helplessly, “Indeed, no one expected the arsonist to be one of the heroes who rushed into the fire to save the victim.”

“F*ck, the taxi has really disappeared. It’s not easy to get a taxi at this hour. I can’t even get a taxi. Old Zhou, looks like we really have to move. We can’t even get a taxi in this godforsaken place. I’m missing a cable here, so I have to go back and buy it again. Otherwise, I won’t be able to install the main machine.”

Xu Qinglang complained as he walked in. Then, he saw the police officer sitting in the bookstore.

“Yo, Chief Zhao!”

Xu Qinglang obviously knew this police officer. He immediately smiled and said warmly, “Chief Zhao, you seem to be in good health. Tss, I remember seeing news about you a while ago. What did you write? I forgot, but it seems like you’ve earned another merit and received a medal. Yes, that should be the case. Congratulations!”

“You little thing, you’re getting better looking.” The police officer stood up with a smile and patted Xu Qinglang’s shoulder, appearing very intimate. “Are you still sneaking around now?”

Xu Qinglang replied, “Of course not. My house has been demolished and I’ve been given over twenty houses as compensation. I’m now a lawful citizen.”

“You…” Chief Zhao pointed at Xu Qinglang. “You’ve finally gotten what you deserve. ”

“Chief Zhao, your son is getting married soon, right? How about I give you a bridal room for your son?”

“Rascal, if you dare to say such nonsense in front of me again, believe me when I say I will drag you back to the police station,” Chief Zhao scolded sternly.

“Heh, I only own a noodle shop here. It’s not like I’m bribing you. If it weren’t for you, I probably wouldn’t have been able to hold on to my old house and those demolitions. It’s my duty to give you a house.”

“Just live your life.”

“You know each other?” Zhou Ze asked.

Chief Zhao nodded and said, “Yes, more than that. This kid has been stealing from the streets since he was less than ten years old. I’ve caught him many times.”

“When I first caught him, I told my police officers that I caught a little girl. Who knew that he was a little boy!”

“That’s the thing in the past, let it be…” Xu Qinglang did not want Zhou Ze to hear about his past.

“If you want to talk about it, you have to talk about it. You’ve done a lot of things in the past. You can’t forget those mistakes. You have to remember them in your heart and remind yourself not to make them again. Good days are hard to come by.”

“I understand, Chief Zhao.” Xu Qinglang nodded.

“By the way, I used to send you to Master Sun as an apprentice. How is Master Sun doing now?” Chief Zhao asked.

“Not bad, but his shop was passed on to his son, so I came out on my own.”

So this was the reason why Xu Qinglang opened a noodle restaurant. Back then, something happened to his family and he almost became a gangster. At that time, Chief Zhao, who was the police station’s director, caught him and educated him several times. In the end, Chief Zhao even arranged for him to be an apprentice in a noodle restaurant. That was how he managed to walk the right path.

Otherwise, Xu Qinglang might have to ‘own’ another room, which was a prison cell.

“Chief Zhao, why are you here?” Xu Qinglang reminded him in a low voice, “Let me tell you, the geomancy of this place is bad.”

In other words, Zhou Ze’s bookstore had more dead people than living people.

Zhou Ze raised his eyebrows. ‘What do you mean?’

“Rascal, your habit of acting mysterious hasn’t changed. I was born under a red flag[1] and grew up under a red flag. I don’t believe in such crooked ways.

In any case, he had done nothing wrong and was not afraid of ghosts knocking on his door.

“Even if there are ghosts in this world, ghosts are afraid of me. I’m not afraid of ghosts!”

Zhou Ze touched his nose. ‘You’re right.’

“Chief Zhao, I’ll cook a few dishes. We haven’t seen each other for many years. How about two hours tonight?”

“I can’t. Someone will come and pick me up later. I’m going on a business trip to another province. I was afraid that I would be bored on the road, so I bought two novels to read on the road.”

“You’re already a chief, why are you still so busy?” Xu Qinglang felt a little regretful.

“It’s good to be busy. I’m a police officer. If the police slack off, the civilians won’t be able to rest easy.”

Chief Zhao scratched his head and put his cap back on. Then he took out his phone and checked the time.

“It’s about time. They should be here to pick me up. I’ll be leaving first.”

“Goodbye.”

Zhou Ze thought to himself that he had finally sent this great god who shone with boundless radiance away.

Chief Zhao walked to the door and suddenly thought of something. He reached into his pocket to take his wallet.

“My old brain… Drinking tea with a book and almost forgetting to pay.”

Xu Qinglang immediately went up and said, “Look at how you’re treating me like an outsider. I gave it to you. This boss grew up eating my food. We’re family.”

Zhou Ze was speechless.

“That won’t do. Why do I need you to pay for my book?” Chief Zhao disagreed.

“Sure, I’ll pay you a visit in a few days and ask you to pay me back for my books. I’ll also get a free meal. How about that?” Xu Qinglang pleaded, “You have to give me a reason to visit, right?”

“Alright, your helper’s culinary skills are not bad. When the time comes, I might not be at home, so get your helper to cook a meal for you. You should learn a tip or two from her. In the future, try to convert this restaurant into a hotel. A person has to have some aspirations. Don’t just lie in the house and wait for death. That’s meaningless.”

“Hey, why would I go if you’re not at home?” Xu Qinglang laughed.

“Alright, I’m leaving. Goodbye!” Chief Zhao waved at Zhou Ze and Xu Qinglang before pushing the door open and leaving.

“Boss, there are so many cars outside!” Bai Yingying, who was on the second floor, shouted at the people in the bookstore.

“What car?” Xu Qinglang asked. “Is it a motorcade?”

“How can a wedding have eight sedan chairs?” Zhou Ze teased Xu Qinglang.

“They’re not wedding cars, they’re taxis. There are so many taxis. The whole road is filled with taxis,” Bai Yingying said. She could see very clearly from the second-floor window.

“Taxis?” Xu Qinglang was stunned for a moment, then said, “Damn, I was wondering why it was so difficult to get a taxi today. The taxis are gone. Are they organizing a strike parade?”

Suddenly, Xu Qinglang was stunned.

He seemed to have thought of something and immediately took out his phone to search. Finally, he found it.

That was news from half a month ago.

On the front page of the news was a big picture of Chief Zhao. The following content was about a car theft gang that had traveled to many provinces and was caught in Tong City. It was discovered by a deputy police chief who came home from work. During the fight, the deputy chief was unfortunately killed in the process.

Three days later, the police caught the criminal gang in one fell swoop. They did not miss a single one of them. Most of them stole taxis, and they even tainted their hands with the blood of two taxi drivers.

Chief Zhao had long been sacrificed.

“He’s already dead… I remember when I saw this news, I was sad for a long time. But when I saw him in front of me just now, I subconsciously felt that he was still alive. I didn’t recall this news at all.”

Xu Qinglang looked at Zhou Ze angrily.

“He’s a ghost, he’s not a living person. Why didn’t you remind me earlier? I still have a lot to say to him!”

Zhou Ze was also stunned. “He’s a ghost?”

“You didn’t notice? You’re a ghost, you didn’t realize?”

“When he came in, I observed that he was human.”

“How can he be human!” Xu Qinglang almost growled.

Previously, he just wanted to bid goodbye to the other party. Now, he was more concerned about chit chatting?!

“Why would I lie to you? I’ve observed him carefully, but I didn’t realize he was a ghost.”

“I didn’t notice it either.” Bai Yingying walked over.

At this moment, on the road outside the shop…

The taxis lined up in two rows and slowly moved forward. The line was very long, with no end in sight.

Xu Qinglang pushed open the bookstore door and walked out, followed by Zhou Ze and Bai Yingying.

Close to a thousand taxis gathered together and formed a convoy. The older brothers and sisters no longer had the habit of overtaking the cars.

This time…

They drove very slowly.

Behind the convoy.

There was a carriage with sad music playing inside.

At the same time, a large black and white picture hung above the hearse. It was Chief Zhao’s portrait.

“Is it the funeral today?” Xu Qinglang asked sadly. “So he said he was going on a business trip and someone came to pick him up. Is it this funeral procession? But how could I not tell that he was a ghost? How could you not tell?”

“Some people are alive, but already dead. Some people died, but they are still alive. Perhaps that’s the reason,” Zhou Ze said.

“Sigh.” When Xu Qinglang heard this, he nodded. Then, he waved toward that long fleet of carriages, saying goodbye.

At the same time, he felt relieved. No wonder it was so difficult to get a taxi in Tong City today.

Zhou Ze watched as the car with the portrait slowly drove over.

And said to himself, “Have a safe trip.”

[1] Flag of China