Reborn in the 1970s — Married a Proud Rough Man

Jie Jingchen had been brought to the police station by other officers. They didn’t know how he had ended up here, only that the man was clearly well-acquainted with their captain.

”What’s all the chatter for? Hurry up and uncuff Mr. Qin. The lock-picking tools... AHEM, were a bit unorthodox, true, but you should have asked for clarification first. Hauling someone back here in cuffs just like that is a dereliction of your duty,” Gao Yang said.

”Yes, yes, of course. It was our mistake,” Police Li admitted readily.

”We had a witness and physical evidence...”

”And you have no judgment of your own,” Gao Yang cut Qi Gong’an off.

”Shut your mouth.” Police Li kicked Qi Gong’an again. This partner of his was a real headache—high IQ, but rock-bottom EQ. His many requests for a new partner had all been denied.

’It’s like they’re determined to chain us together forever!’

Qi Gong’an was clearly resentful. He stuck his hand in his pocket and rummaged around, but came up empty. Police Li was getting anxious. ”The key?”

”I dropped it,” Qi Gong’an said, looking at his partner with an innocent expression.

Gao Yang’s expression darkened. Losing a handcuff key... how was that any different from losing your service pistol? ”Are you trying to get stripped of your uniform?”

Qi Gong’an, however, had connections. He was unfazed by Gao Yang’s threat and said without a hint of sincerity, ”I’ll look again.”

Police Li was about to die from anxiety. ’I need a new partner, I absolutely have to get a new partner! Sooner or later, this guy is going to be the death of me.’

”Brother Li, what are you doing? Stop touching me! Hehe, that tickles.” Qi Gong’an swatted at Police Li’s hands as they frisked him.

Gao Yang pressed a hand to his forehead. What a pair of clowns.

”Don’t move,” Police Li barked. He finished patting down all of Qi Gong’an’s pockets and still couldn’t find the key. A sense of dread washed over him. ’Did he really lose it?’

If the handcuff key was lost, this partner was going to be the ruin of him.

A silver needle appeared between Qin Mei’s fingertips. She said to Jie Jingchen, ”Use this.”

Jie Jingchen’s mouth twitched. He stared at the silver needle pinched between her fingers. ’Picking handcuffs with a silver needle? That’s probably not a good idea.’

This was, without a doubt, a provocation.

Gao Yang was stunned, too. If Jing Si refused, his wife would be angry. But if Jing Si picked the lock right in front of him, it would be a bit of a slap in his face.

”Found it! I found it!” Police Li exclaimed, holding the key up high.

To make up for his error and to prevent Xiaoqi from causing any more trouble, Police Li was the one to unlock the cuffs.

Once the handcuffs were off, Qin Mei flexed her wrists. Looking at the cuffs in Police Li’s hand, she couldn’t help but ask Jie Jingchen, ”Did they cuff you like this, too?”

Jie Jingchen said nothing, simply taking her by the hand and leading her away.

Qin Mei was about to call for Jie Duo but saw that the little girl had fallen asleep in Jie Jinghun’s arms. Question marks popped up in her mind. ’Wasn’t Jie Jinghun at Granny’s birthday party? Did it end already? Or did he leave early, too?’

She and Jie Jingchen had only stayed for a little while, just long enough to make an appearance. They had left with Xiao Duo before the banquet even began.

Granny’s birthday party must have been quite the spectacle. Just imagine Jie Jingwei’s ex-wife and current wife in the same room, with Li Axiu there as a ”divine assist”—it was bound to be an explosive mix.

All that drama would surely make it a birthday Granny would never forget.

”Where to next?” Jie Jingchen asked Qin Mei. The whole point of bringing her out today was to let her have fun. Without the little encumbrance of Jie Duo, they could be even more carefree.

”The movie theater,” Qin Mei said. Their bicycles were still parked there, and it was also where their reputations had been tarnished. They had to get back what they’d lost in the very same place.

’A human trafficker and a bicycle thief? People shouldn’t just throw accusations around like that. How did Jie Jingchen look like a trafficker? And how did she look like a thief?’

”You still want to watch a movie?” Jie Jingchen frowned slightly. Honestly, he never wanted to set foot in that movie theater again.

”The movies are terrible; I don’t want to watch one.” Qin Mei truly disliked the films from this era. ”Let’s go get our bikes.”

”Alright.” Jie Jingchen’s intuition told him she wasn’t just going there to ride her bike. But as long as his wife was happy, he’d gladly accompany her through thick and thin.

It was a public place, so they were mindful of appearances. They didn’t hold hands in front of everyone, but simply walked side by side.

When they got to the movie theater, Qin Mei didn’t go straight to the bicycle parking area. Instead, she walked toward the people wearing red armbands. The ”enthusiastic citizens” who had reported them might be different, but the theater staff and the red-armband monitors were the same ones as before.

”Ma’am,” Qin Mei said with a smile, greeting the woman in the red armband.

The woman in the red armband was indeed the same one from before. She clearly remembered Qin Mei and stared at them in astonishment.

She had a vivid memory of the handsome man and beautiful woman before her. The man was a trafficker, the woman a bicycle thief, and they had both been taken away by the police.