Striving for Science C79 pt2

"Chang'an!" Shen Chang'an was recording data when he heard Ding Yang's wail, who then threw himself onto his desk. Shen Chang'an leaned back in his chair with disdain: "Just looking at your son begging his father's posture, I know you're up to no good."

"As long as you're willing to help me with this, I'll even call you grandpa." When asking for favors, Ding Yang always adopted a perfect low-profile posture to gain the other person's pity. "My grandpa is turning seventy-nine today, and it's my turn to go out on a field trip, but I want to leave early and go home. You look so handsome and are so righteous, can you switch shifts with me?"

"Hmm..." Shen Chang'an pretended to think, seeing Ding Yang's nervousness, he said, "Today is your grandpa's seventy-ninth birthday, yet you call me grandpa, aren't you afraid that the old man will chase you down and beat you up when you get home?"

"You know, my grandpa is old, but he's still got a lot of energy." Ding Yang said with a bitter face, "He's faster than me when we climb mountains."

"Alright, I'll go out on the field trip for you." After teasing him enough, Shen Chang'an laughed, "Wishing the old man a long life, may he live to 110 and still have the energy to beat you up."

"Hehe, thanks." Ding Yang scratched his head, "If he can live long, it's good that he can beat me up when he's 110. Having an elder in the family is like having a treasure."

Shen Chang'an pushed the data sheet towards Ding Yang: "Then you help me with this, I'm going out on a field trip."

Ever since Dao Nian provided sponsorship for their department, they had a nice new field service car. It was white with the words "Civil Service Department" printed on it. It was much more impressive than their old beat-up van.

Shen Chang'an drove slowly through the streets, occasionally seeing a few street vendors who, upon seeing him, would grab their stalls and run away, leaving him with a distant silhouette.

He wasn't a city management officer, why were they running so fast?

Shen Chang'an saw an old lady selling knitwear by the roadside. She was slow and shaky, still packing up her things. He parked his car by the side of the road and bought a few pairs of gloves from her. He didn't say much, turned around, and drove away slowly.

The old lady was left holding the money from selling the gloves, staring blankly at the departing vehicle.

"His, his movements were too fast, weren't they?" The staff from the social observation program emerged from their hidden corner. "He casually grabbed a few pairs of gloves from the stall and left, indicating that he wasn't really interested in buying gloves, but rather to generate income for our staff member playing the role of an old lady."

"Although we didn't manage to get a clear shot of this person's face, we did capture the car he was driving. The car plate seems to have the words 'Civil Service Department' printed on it. It seems to be some kind of local organization serving the people."

"He used his actions to embody the meaning of their department's name."

Shen Chang'an didn't know his actions were being recorded by a camera. He walked around the street corner and saw a tall, fair-skinned girl in a caramel-colored coat coming out. He found her somewhat familiar and couldn't help but take a second look.

Soon, he noticed something amiss. Not far from the girl, a man in a gray winter coat was staring at her, one hand pressed against his chest, his face showing hesitation and resentment.

Seeing this man, Shen Chang'an finally understood why he found the girl familiar. This man had threatened to kill himself yesterday to make the girl his girlfriend, but she refused.

Because she was wearing glasses and a mask yesterday, he only found her familiar but didn't recognize her.

Thinking about it, the feeling of something being wrong in Shen Chang'an's heart became even stronger. He thought for a moment and decided to park the car and follow to see what was going on.

He had just parked his car when he saw the man charging towards the girl, a flash of silver in his hand. It was... a knife?

Shen Chang'an opened the door and rushed out, not even bothering to close the car door.

"Ah!" The entrance of the shopping mall was bustling with people. Suddenly, a man with a knife rushed out, easily causing panic, so the crowd immediately scattered.

Zeng Yi heard someone scream and looked around. She saw a man with a face full of hatred running towards her, a sharp blade in his hand.

Zeng Yi's mind went blank for a moment. He wants to kill me?

She instinctively dodged to the side, avoiding the man's first strike.

"You wretched woman! I loved you so much, but you humiliated my feelings. I'll kill you!" The man saw the woman he couldn't get, now showing fear in front of him, and suddenly felt a sense of smug satisfaction.

No matter how capable or beautiful a woman is, she's still just a woman. Under his power, she was still so weak. He felt he could control her, decide her life or death.

The more he thought about it, the more excited he became. He grabbed the woman's arm and raised the knife again, stabbing down.

But the knife was stopped.

Who, who dared to stop him from punishing this woman who was obsessed with wealth and status?

In that moment, his powerful strength seemed useless. He was kicked hard to the ground by someone, and a foot stepped on his wrist, forcing him to drop the weapon in his hand.

"He actually dared to injure someone in broad daylight with a knife. Beat him to death!"

"Trash!"

"Beast!"

The surrounding shouts of anger, cries, and the sound of footsteps rushing towards him filled the man with fear. Why was this happening? He had only punished that woman.

"Beat him to death!"

Someone kicked him in the back, someone stepped on his foot, and someone even kicked towards his head, but was stopped by others.

"Everyone, everyone, calm down. Don't hit his head. If someone dies, you'll be held legally responsible." Shen Chang'an stopped the angry crowd, pretending not to see those who were taking the opportunity to step on his feet and hands. "Those who helped call the police, please calm down."

In the face of this sudden situation, the onlookers had already called the police. The man who had been swaggering just moments ago was now beaten up and covered in dust, looking like a rat that couldn't see the light of day.

Large shopping malls have a lot of foot traffic, so there's a police booth nearby. After receiving a report from the public, police officers quickly arrived and handcuffed the man to the police car. He was beaten up, except for his face, which was still intact.

From the mall entrance to the police car, a distance of only a few dozen meters, the man was beaten up again and again. Someone even threw a cup of milk tea at him and tossed a corn cob.

"Ouch, who threw such hot milk tea? Watch where you're throwing, don't accidentally injure our police comrades."

The police: "..."

Should I thank you for your concern?

***

Zeng Yi, still shaken, went to the mall manager's office to rest, accompanied by mall staff and a female police officer. As a passerby who had acted bravely, Shen Chang'an originally wanted to leave, but several enthusiastic citizens wouldn't let him go. Some even praised him for being amazing and wanted to buy him gifts.

Shen Chang'an finally managed to politely refuse these enthusiastic citizens. He turned back to close the car door, only to find that inside the car, which he hadn't had time to close, someone had left cookies, money, and... a bear-shaped lollipop that kids love?

"Who put all this stuff here?" He turned his head to look at the crowd around him. These people looked at the sky, looked at the ground, but they wouldn't look at Shen Chang'an.

"Sisters and brothers, I know you all mean well, but serving the people is my job. I can't accept your things, it would be against department regulations. Please understand." Shen Chang'an looked at the red bills on the seat. "If you really want to show your appreciation, donate this money to the charity project. Consider it as me accepting your gift, okay?"

After Shen Chang'an's repeated persuasion, those who had secretly offered money and food took back their gifts. Only one bear-shaped lollipop remained unclaimed.

Shen Chang'an picked up the cute bear-shaped candy, unable to help but laugh and cry. "Excuse me, who put this candy here?"

"It was me."

Shen Chang'an looked down and saw a little girl riding a children's bicycle standing at his feet. The little girl looked no more than three or four years old, with pigtails, and was incredibly cute.

"Why are you giving me this?" Shen Chang'an squatted down in front of the little girl and asked with a smile.

"Mommy said heroes work very hard. You're a hero, brother. After eating the candy I gave you, you won't be tired anymore." The little girl got off her tricycle and patted Shen Chang'an's head. "Be good, brother."

Shen Chang'an was amused by the child's innocent words. He looked around and saw a young woman standing not far away, who looked like the little girl's mother.

"Thank you for the candy, can I eat it then?" Shen Chang'an unwrapped the candy. "It smells so good."

"Of course it's fragrant, I only get to eat two pieces a week." The little girl swallowed, pretending to be generous. "This is a gift for the hero, you deserve it, eat it."

"Thank you." Shen Chang'an put the candy in his mouth, the faint milky aroma filling his mouth. "It's delicious."

"You're welcome." The little girl puffed out her chest.

After eating two pieces of candy given by the little girl, Shen Chang'an couldn't help but wonder, was this action considered a violation of department regulations?

"Hello, are you Mr. Shen who saved Ms. Zeng?" The policewoman in uniform walked over, glanced at the car behind Shen Chang'an, and smiled, "So you're from the Civil Service Department. Thank you for stopping the criminal and protecting everyone's safety. Ms. Zeng, the victim, is a bit shaken and emotionally unstable. She wants to thank you personally. Would you be willing to meet her?"

"Is she okay?" Shen Chang'an locked the car. As a staff member of the Civil Service Department, comforting victims was also part of his job, so he couldn't refuse.

"Ms. Zeng is not injured, she just got scared. Her family and friends have been notified and are on their way here. They should be here soon." The female police officer explained the situation briefly and added, "It's a coincidence, Ms. Zeng said she knows you."

Shen Chang'an was a little confused. He had never had a formal conversation with this Ms. Zeng, how did she know him?

Following the police to the mall manager's office, Shen Chang'an hadn't had a chance to speak before he saw Chen Panpan rushing in like a whirlwind: "Zeng Yi, are you okay? Are you hurt? How can there be such scum in the world, trying to kill someone after failing to win their love?"

"Who is the handsome guy who saved you? In the world, there are strange and trashy men, but there are also good people…"

"It's me." Shen Chang'an coughed dryly. "Panpan, is this your friend?"

"Chang'an?" Chen Panpan held Zeng Yi's hand and looked at Shen Chang'an in surprise. "You saved Zeng Yi? What kind of fate is this, you met right after leaving the house…"

Chen Panpan suddenly remembered that when she had tried to introduce Zeng Yi to Shen Chang'an, he had clearly refused. She closed her mouth and changed the subject, saying, "Thank you, Chang'an. If it weren't for you, I would have lost this sister of mine."

"Don't mention it. Anyone would have stepped in today, no matter who encountered this." Shen Chang'an also remembered Chen Panpan mentioning the "rich and beautiful" woman to him. It was this girl.

Shen Chang'an politely looked at Zeng Yi. "It's good that you're okay. I haven't finished my patrol work for today, so I'll be on my way."

"Wait." Zeng Yi stopped Shen Chang'an. "You saved my life, I'm really grateful to you. Can you give me your contact information?"

"Do you need to?" Shen Chang'an thought that he and Zeng Yi might not have anything to contact each other about, so he thought for a moment and said, "Serving the people, you don't need to worry about it."

After saying that, he turned to Chen Panpan: "Panpan, take good care of your friend, I'm going on patrol. With such a big incident at the mall today, there must be a lot of people who are scared. I can't rest easy without checking around."

Chen Panpan: "..."

This isn't a straight man, he's clearly a clueless block of wood, no wonder he's been single for over twenty years.

***

Shen Chang'an did good deeds without leaving his name, because after doing good deeds, he would sneak home to show off to Dao Nian. At lunchtime, he told Dao Nian about it.

"I really don't know what kind of men think like that. They say they like someone, but all they do is hurt them." Used to picking fish bones for Dao Nian, Shen Chang'an instinctively picked two pieces of fish for him when he saw them. "If I had someone I liked, I would definitely spoil them and protect them. I'd make whatever they liked to eat, and if they wanted me to pick fish, I'd never pick shrimp. If they wanted me to peel shrimp, I'd never pick vegetables."

He said this while putting the deboned fish meat into Dao Nian's bowl.

After finishing the fish, Dao Nian pointed at the shrimp next to it. "I want to eat shrimp."

"Oh." Shen Chang'an put down his chopsticks, put on gloves, and peeled the shrimp for Dao Nian.

Liu Mao, Shen Tu, Zhao Shu, Yu Lei: ...

What kind of emotional scene is this?