There are only eight police officers at Jiangmiao Police Station. Besides the instructor Samuel Grant and Mark Lee, the administrative clerk Emily Scott and the household registration officer Julia Lane are both female officers in their thirties. One officer was transferred to the county bureau’s security team a few days ago. That sallow, thin middle-aged man is called Matthew Reed, an old comrade who returned from military service a few years ago. Another officer, Henry Harris, has gone to the countryside. Including David Carter, there are exactly eight officers.

David Carter carefully observed these new colleagues, combining what he had learned so far. This was a habit he had developed since his school days—at Jiangkou County Middle School, at the police academy, and later at the county bureau’s criminal police team. Now, it was the same at Jiangmiao Police Station.

Samuel Grant is the station’s instructor and also the secretary of the party branch, naturally the second-in-command. Although the party leads the gun, in this semi-militarized public security unit, the administrative head is still in charge—the station chief is the real core of the police station. The police station is a frontline combat unit, with business work as the top priority. As long as the team doesn’t have major problems, the year-end assessment is all about solid business performance data.

Chief Frank Quinn has only been at Jiangmiao Police Station for less than two years, but it’s said that he’s not only well-liked in the bureau, but also highly regarded by the Jiangmiao District Party Committee. It’s said that Frank Quinn was neither a soldier nor a police academy graduate, but was transferred from the Agriculture Bureau. He’s only been in the county public security bureau for six or seven years, yet he was promoted from an ordinary officer to the chief of Jiangmiao Police Station, which is enough to prove his exceptional ability.

The rest are ordinary officers like himself. Matthew Reed seems rather taciturn and doesn’t have great relationships in the station. Henry Harris was the last to rush back from the countryside, only a few years older than himself, a lean young man who returned from military service, apparently from the county seat, and seemed pretty decent after some interaction. As for the two female colleagues, David Carter didn’t pay much attention—one just over thirty, the other close to forty. However, Emily Scott did look rather alluring.

Lying on the freshly made bed, David Carter let out a heavy sigh. So, he was in a new environment again.

Sigh, the criminal police team—he had only been there for ten months before he had to leave. Judging by the way Mark Lee and Henry Harris seemed hesitant to speak earlier, they must have wanted to ask why he was sent to Jiangmiao Police Station. Hmph, disaster and fortune are intertwined. Can I, David Carter, really not handle even such a minor setback?

As night gradually fell, the shouts of the joint defense team playing poker could be heard downstairs. David Carter knew that once night fell in Jiangmiao town, there were hardly any people on the streets. There weren’t many entertainment options—the cinema opened and closed, barely surviving. Aside from a dance hall and a video hall that could gather a bit of a crowd, everywhere else was pitch dark.

There were only so many residents on the street, and people had gotten used to this relatively monotonous and dull life. It was better in the summer, when people would go out for walks, but in winter, by eight or nine in the evening, the streets were so deserted you could die of fright. If there was nothing to do, people either went to bed early or played poker or chess to pass the time.

Compared to the streets of Jiangmiao town, the textile factory’s residential area was actually much livelier. Besides the dance hall, the factory also had a library and a cinema that doubled as an auditorium. There were also several billiard rooms that had evolved from snooker halls, teahouses, book rental shops, and video halls. David Carter really missed his days attending middle school at the children’s school.

His mind wandered from one thing to another, and David Carter couldn’t settle down lying in bed, so he got up and looked out the window at the countryside. Frank Quinn and Henry Harris’s families were in the county seat, while Mark Lee was from Wuhe Town in the county. The other officers were all locals, and except for those on duty, most went home after work. Today was Mark Lee’s turn on duty. They had planned to throw a welcome party for David Carter, but since the chief wasn’t back, it would have to wait until tomorrow. Mark Lee had disappeared somewhere as well.

Chapter Four: Just Arrived

Back in bed, David Carter found he still couldn’t fall asleep, his thoughts running wild like an unbridled horse.

It seemed that his relationship with Evelyn Turner had finally run into trouble. In fact, David Carter had realized this three months ago.

The gap between the city branch and the suburban county bureau wasn’t just a matter of a foot or two. No matter how strong their feelings were, in the face of the floodwaters of distance and the passage of time—forces that could wash away anything—the dam of their relationship could only end up collapsing. He had done everything he could to patch up the cracks, but how much good could it really do?

He had thought that, having seen so many couples part ways after graduation, he would have built up some mental resistance. But when he saw that pale-faced, delicate-looking guy enthusiastically courting Eric Turner, and Evelyn Turner smiling so sweetly, the feeling in his heart could only be described as gut-wrenching.

Evelyn Turner was David Carter’s classmate at the police academy, and one of the most famous beauties in their year. From the very first day he met her at school, David Carter had been completely captivated.