The Senior Superintendent of the Guard Office, the beautiful police officer Sir Ch'en, or her full name, Ch'en Huijie. For Luo Zhen, this name of hers was a bit too cute, not suitable for a workaholic like her. Of course, she might be ashamed of having such a cute name, which is why she never revealed her full name unless necessary. She always told others to call her Ling Ch'en, and she would never let anyone else call her by her real name. But this prohibition did not apply to an innocent child like Xiao Ling.
Xiao Ling, who was hugging Ling Ch'en's neck, smiled cheerfully. "Today, Big Brother Luo Zhen and Big Sister Huijie are both here! This is the luckiest day of Xiao Ling's life!" "Yes, yes..." Ch'en smiled awkwardly. Even though she didn't want to admit it, she couldn't say anything when she saw the innocent smile of the little child. She was not wearing her police uniform now, and she was also wearing a cap to cover her face as if wanting to hide her identity. After all, coming to the slums during off-duty hours was not a very praiseworthy thing for a senior police officer of the guard unit.
Luo Zhen tried his best to suppress his laughter under the girl's vengeful gaze. "Miss Ch'en... no, Huijie, you've worked so hard. Why do you have time to be here in the afternoon? Shouldn't you be going home early to rest today?"
"Today was supposed to be my day off. Who do you think made me work overtime?" Old Madam Ch'en's blood-red eyes stared at him fiercely. "And if you dare to call me by that name again, I'll kill you and throw your ashes down the drain!" Wow, this police superintendent is threatening a citizen... Is this a normal situation in the world today? Fortunately, without waiting for Luo Zhen to record her voice and file a complaint in court, the sad-looking Xiao Ling spoke up first. "Big Sister Huijie, do you hate Big Brother Lan Zhen? Are you two fighting?"
"Eh, no..." Old Madam Ch'en was alarmed, replying flusteredly, "W-we're not fighting. It's just that this guy always deliberately provokes me. You see..." Xiao Ling: "Big Sister Huijie, do you have bad feelings for Big Brother Luo Zhen? Are you going to break up? If so, I'd like to be Big Brother Luo Zhen's girlfriend next."
"No! Absolutely not!" Old Madam Ch'en replied instinctively. But she came back to her senses and quickly corrected her explanation, "I mean, no... you can't date a guy like him, Xiao Ling. He's trouble, and you'll be used by him like a slave! And no, I'm not dating this octopus-face. Who said I have a relationship with him?!"
"But you act like Big Brother Luo Zhen's girlfriend." "I-I'm not..."
Luo Zhen shook his head with amusement. He felt that the guard office didn't seem to have trained this woman in the ability to resist being teased at all. Xiao Ling, who had a full ten points in acting, could pretend to cry falsely and win the best actress award. She laughed with amusement while jumping from Ling Ch'en's shoulder to cling to Luo Zhen's. "How was that, Big Brother Luo Zhen! I made it so your big sister doesn't have to break up with you!"
Luo Zhen nodded. "Xiao Ling is really good. But don't tease Big Sister Huijie too much, because otherwise, your big sister might secretly come to assassinate this big brother of yours one day." The female dragon's face was almost as red as a tomato, and if they continued to tease her, she might really have a hidden assassin visit their home. And Luo Zhen didn't want to die single just yet.
Since her beloved big brother and favorite big sister came to visit, Xiao Ling seemed very excited and was unwilling to part from them. So Luo Zhen took her along to deliver food. Xiao Ling, with her lively personality, was like a little sun in the slums. Even the city dwellers who usually avoided others couldn't help but show affection and kindness when they saw her bright smile. This helped reduce a lot of trouble for Luo Zhen when delivering food. When Xiao Ling was running upstairs with a full delivery box, Luo Zhen and Ling Ch'en, who were downstairs, started talking.
"Seeing that cheerfulness, she doesn't seem like an Infected at all," Ling Ch'en sighed and looked at Luo Zhen. "If you want to do good deeds, that's your business, but don't be too conspicuous. There's already a report sent to the police department that a mysterious soy milk shop owner often goes to the slums to deliver food that might infect others with Oripathy."
Luo Zhen laughed before scoffing. "Oripathy can't be transmitted through food, you know? No matter how severe the symptoms are, a patient with Oripathy is not at risk of transmitting the disease, even if that person has sexual intercourse. There is no transmission through childbirth or bloodline either. Everyone knows this well. And if they want to attack me, just let them. Ah... but if I put fragments of Originium stone into the food, that might actually infect others."
Ling Ch'en's expression immediately turned serious. "Watch your words. Don't say something so ridiculous again." She was not angry as usual when teased by Luo Zhen, but looked at him seriously, and she seemed truly displeased. Luo Zhen understood her concern. He nodded, "I'm sorry... I'm not an Infected myself, so I don't feel their pain. It was my fault for joking like that."
"...You're not an Infected?" Ch'en Huijie raised her eyebrows and looked at Luo Zhen with a complex expression. "You say you're not an Infected... but you often run to the slums to help the Infected and others without seeking anything. You want to play the role of a kind saint and deliver sermons to them. Is that normal for an angel like you?"
Luo Zhen shook his head with amusement. "Laterano doesn't accept the Infected either. If an angel is infected, they will be exiled and not allowed to re-enter the country. Let's just drop it... I don't want to talk about it much." Luo Zhen dismissed the topic and started to change the subject. "I'm not a suspicious person, Sir Ch'en. I'm just a commoner who does what he wants. But for you, who is a senior of the guard group, it's a rather bad image if other police officers know that a police superintendent like you is secretly running around the slums at this time."
Old Madam Ch'en stared at Luo Zhen again before cracking a scary smile. "Oh, and what will you do? Call other police officers to see... where are the police?" Miss Ch'en, that joke shouldn't come from your mouth. Old Madam Ch'en coughed a few times when she realized what she had done, before pretending that nothing had happened. "This is my personal time, and I am free to go wherever I want. There's no law in Lungmen that says a senior superintendent can't come here. This is still a street of Lungmen, and I need to protect it, right?"
Luo Zhen smiled, nodding in agreement. "That's right. This is an outer street of the Dragon's Gate, and it's considered a part of Lungmen as well." Even if it was poor and desolate, this place was still Lungmen. Although the police officers of Lungmen were not allowed to enter here, or there were no police laws to protect or prevent theft here, both men, women, the elderly, and children still continued their own way of life and made a living correctly, even if they had to rely on local gangs or the mafia to protect the peace. This had become a part of Lungmen, and it was difficult for anything to change. ...Perhaps Old Madam Ch'en thought her words sounded a bit too exaggerated. Her expression then looked a little downcast. Luo Zhen looked at her side profile, and he couldn't help but seriously think if he would be torn into two if he reached out to hug her now.... but for safety, it was better not to.
He took out a box of red sugar from his supplies and handed it to Ling Ch'en. "Take a box. Finish it, and it will improve your health." "..." Old Madam Ch'en looked at the brightly colored sugar suspiciously, then looked at Luo Zhen as if trying to find his motive. But soon, Ling Ch'en accepted it. She reached out, took a piece of candy, and put it in her mouth. Her clear cheeks puffed up, and she spoke with displeasure, "Stop treating me like a child. And this candy you made isn't hygienic at all. What ingredients did you put in? Why is it that every time I eat it, my heart beats faster, and my whole body feels like I've just had a heavy workout?"
Luo Zhen replied casually, "That means your metabolism is working harder, which is a good thing."