Chapter 152 Have we met somewhere before?
Su Xiaonuan also stood up, revealing a relaxed smile: "You're welcome, Officer Lu, it's what I should do."
The two walked out of the interrogation room one after the other.
Lu Zheng walked ahead, his posture upright, but his back seemed more tense than usual.
His mind kept replaying the scene in the office just now, where Su Xiaonuan was surrounded by a group of police officers, and her innocent and harmless appearance, always smiling gently at everyone.
A strange, subtle sense of unease crept into his heart like vines.
He knew perfectly well that to Su Xiaonuan, he might be more familiar than a stranger, but he was just a "somewhat familiar policeman uncle." He had no right or reason to interfere with her or to tell her not to smile so unguardedly at everyone.
This clear understanding made his uncomfortable feeling even more pronounced.
He pressed his thin lips together almost imperceptibly, forcibly suppressing all his surging emotions, intending to seal them away in the deepest part of his heart, like unsolved mysteries, never to be touched again.
However, Su Xiaonuan seemed to have suddenly become enlightened today, or rather, it was the colder-than-usual aura emanating from Lu Zheng that caught her attention.
Just as he turned to leave, Su Xiaonuan looked at the profile of his face, and a strange sense of familiarity suddenly struck her.
She tilted her head, her clear eyes filled with pure confusion, and suddenly spoke, her voice soft and sweet: "Officer Lu, haven't we... met somewhere before?"
Lu Zheng's steps froze abruptly, his breath catching in his throat for a moment.
His brain was like a lake tossed with a boulder, instantly surging with waves. Countless faded images of his childhood in the courtyard flashed by—the little toddler running behind them, the little one who fell and got covered in mud on the training field but gritted his teeth and didn't cry, and the big, red, and reluctant eyes when they parted... Countless thoughts collided fiercely in his mind.
Admit it? And then what? Reminisce?
Tell her that he is the boy from the compound who was once called "Brother Zheng" by her, but lost contact with her after his family moved away and his adoptive father sacrificed his life.
The fact that she can forget it means that those childhood memories may have long been blurred for her, or even irrelevant.
Forcing the topic to come up will only create more awkwardness.
Moreover... his feelings for her now seem to have changed beyond those of a simple childhood playmate.
He himself had not yet sorted out the feelings of wanting to get close to her, wanting to protect her, and feeling annoyed by her "aloof" attitude towards him, let alone how to express them.
After careful consideration, almost in the blink of an eye, Lu Zheng made his decision.
He turned around abruptly, avoiding Su Xiaonuan's probing gaze, his voice carrying a tension and embarrassment he himself was unaware of, and he vehemently denied it: "No. You're mistaken."
After saying that, he left in a hurry, his back view carrying a hint of fleeing in panic.
Su Xiaonuan watched his retreating figure as he practically fled, blinked, and her doubts only deepened instead of dissipating.
She was very confident in her memory, especially her sense of people.
Lu Zheng's stiffness and haste in denying the allegations just now were too unnatural.
She touched her chin, silently labeling the name "Lu Zheng" as "to be observed" in her mind, deciding to leave it aside for the time being, but she remembered this little episode.
Putting aside this small doubt, Su Xiaonuan thought of the eager police officers outside, and a smile returned to her face.
She walked to her stall and deftly relit the fire and heated the pan. Fortunately, she always had extra ingredients.
Soon, the rich aroma of squid, with its smoky and spicy notes, once again filled the air, like an invisible hook, precisely drifting into every corner of the police station office.
The police officers, who were originally "working diligently," twitched their noses in unison, exchanged knowing glances, and their lips curled into wild smiles.
"They're here! They're here!"
"This taste... is amazing!"
"Can someone go ask Boss Su if he's selling?"
Finally, a senior police officer was chosen by the crowd. He rubbed his hands together and walked to the stall with a smile: "Um... Mr. Su, look, it's almost lunchtime, and everyone's hungry... Could you... spare some of your squid for us? We'll pay double the market price! But... could you please take it inside?"
It's still during working hours, and it's really inappropriate for a group of people to crowd around and buy snacks.
Su Xiaonuan couldn't help but chuckle at the other person's "eager" yet forcedly serious expression, her eyes crinkling into a smile: "Of course! Officers, you've worked hard maintaining order, it's on me!"
Her hands moved non-stop, and soon strings of perfectly grilled squid came out of the oven, filling the air with their aroma.
"No, no, the money must be paid!" The old police officer waved his hand hurriedly, and a group of officers behind him nodded in agreement.
Su Xiaonuan couldn't refuse, so she smiled and agreed, "Okay, okay, then it'll be at cost price."
She deftly divided the grilled squid into several large trays.
Just then, Lu Zheng finished what he was doing and came out of another office.
As soon as I turned the corner of the corridor, the familiar and tempting aroma of spicy and savory food wafted over me, even stronger than the smell I had in the courtyard before.
Then, he saw this scene—Su Xiaonuan was standing in the center of the office with a big tray piled high with squid skewers, smiling broadly. She was surrounded by a group of subordinates whose eyes were gleaming with greed. Although they were still barely maintaining their posture, their eyes looked like they wanted to swallow the tray whole.
Su Xiaonuan was responding to their thanks gently, her unpretentious and friendly smile glaringly obvious to Lu Zheng.
His face unconsciously darkened, his thin lips pressed tightly together, and the air pressure around him instantly dropped several degrees.
A sharp-eyed police officer was happily waiting to be fed when he inadvertently turned his head and suddenly saw Lu Zheng standing around the corner like a black-faced demon, staring at them with a "death stare". He was so frightened that he almost dropped the documents in his hand.
He quickly and secretly tugged at the hem of his colleague's shirt, winking at him.
The person next to him was intently staring at the squid. Annoyed by being pulled, he muttered "What?" and turned his head. His gaze met Lu Zheng's icy eyes, and he froze instantly, gasping for breath.
Like a domino effect, one after another, soon everyone in the office noticed Lu Zheng standing in the shadows.
The lively atmosphere froze instantly, and everyone fell silent, even holding their breath.
Su Xiaonuan also sensed the change in atmosphere and followed everyone's gaze to see Lu Zheng, whose face was pale.
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