Haizhou City First People’s Hospital.

Lu Chuan and Yang Lin personally took Wang Feng to Haizhou City First People’s Hospital for a full body check-up.

"I’m fine, in great health, there’s no need for a check-up."

The check-up report showed no issues. Wang Feng waved his fist and loudly told Lu Chuan and Yang Lin.

But as he waved, Wang Feng’s voice gradually grew quieter. 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

His eyes couldn’t help but redden.

Yang Lin stepped forward, embraced Wang Feng, and patted his back firmly. "It’s okay, it’s okay."

"Yang... I almost... almost didn’t get to see my parents... boo hoo..."

With the dust settled, Wang Feng couldn’t control his emotions and broke down crying.

Lu Chuan walked over to them, patted Wang Feng’s shoulder, and let out a long sigh.

This afternoon in the building, you could say Wang Feng was on the brink of death. Had they hesitated outside even a bit, it was likely Wang Feng would not have been rescued.

Or even if he had been rescued, due to prolonged oxygen deprivation, his brain could have suffered permanent damage.

A while ago, a fire broke out in a building in Haizhou City. During the firefight, a firefighter discovered a trapped girl at the scene and gave her his gas mask.

As a result, after rescuing the girl, the firefighter inhaled a large amount of smoke, leading to oxygen deprivation in his brain and permanent damage, leaving his intelligence equivalent to that of a three-year-old child.

"Mom, that uncle is so embarrassing; he’s so grown-up and still afraid of injections. I won’t cry; I’m not afraid of injections... wah wah... Mom! The injection hurts too much... wah wah wah."

The loud crying of a nearby four or five-year-old girl having her blood drawn interrupted Wang Feng’s emotional release.

"Alright, man up, don’t act all girly. You’re about to earn a merit this time, at least a first-class merit, right?"

Yang Lin slung his arm over Wang Feng’s shoulder, his expression exaggerated.

Wang Feng took a deep breath, "What’s the matter? Are you jealous? I earned this with my life."

Compared to Yang Lin’s experiences at the police station, Lu Chuan had faced several life-and-death crises while on assignments with the Criminal Investigation Team, so he felt more deeply about Wang Feng’s recent experiences.

The crises Lu Chuan encountered were instantaneous events, but compared to Lu Chuan, Wang Feng’s ordeal was even more agonizing.

Wang Feng was held captive in an unknown place, constantly facing the threat of death.

He never knew when he might be killed, where he’d be the next day, or if his teammates could find him. The unknown was the scariest part.

Making it through will be very beneficial for Wang Feng’s future police career.

In more traditional terms, he’s a comrade who has endured tests.

"Come on, nine lives, let’s go eat something good, it’s Old Lu’s treat!"

Yang Lin pulled Wang Feng out of the hospital, giving a wink to Lu Chuan.

"Yeah, yeah, seafood buffet for thirty-nine per person, all you can eat!"

Lu Chuan, of course, was joking. If they really went to eat a thirty-nine-dollar buffet, they’d all get food poisoning the next day.

They took Wang Feng to his favorite plain broth hot pot.

"I’m telling you, this place still tastes the best."

Picking up a slice of lamb, rolling it in the sesame sauce, Wang Feng could practically feel his mouth watering.

"What? Didn’t you eat any while undercover?"

"Well, I’ve had it a few times, but I don’t know why at that time it tasted like wax; I couldn’t even tell what lamb was supposed to taste like."

Wang Feng boiled half a plate of fresh cucumber strips. "Damn, eating with those people every day, always on edge. I don’t even know how I made it through this past year."

"Come on, did you have any legendary experiences during this year?"

Yang Lin’s eyes were full of curiosity.

According to him, dealing with a bunch of old men and women at the police station every day made him feel like a community center grandpa or grandma.

The thrilling, suspenseful police life he dreamed of before graduation seemed to have nothing to do with him.

"Legendary? What legend is there? Hanging out with those hooligans in karaoke and clubs, drinking, playing cards, night and day reversed, sleeping by day and hanging out by night."

Wang Feng leaned over, parted his hair, "I used to have such thick hair, look at me now, I’m almost bald."

Lu Chuan and Wang Feng had been bunkmates, so he knew Wang Feng used to have thick hair, not just dense but also as black as ink.

But now, indeed, it was much sparser, the top of his head faintly showing scalp, and not only had his hair volume decreased, but the color had also changed from its deep black to a slight yellowish, almost brown hue.

"Come on, let’s have a drink! Enough talk!"

Lu Chuan picked up a glass, rallying everyone.

"Cheers, cheers, cheers!"

"Let’s go!"

As the three of them were drinking, someone suddenly entered the room. "Hey! You guys didn’t wait for me? That’s not cool!"

It was Zhao Tianyu who had just come in.

"Get lost, we called you two hours ago. It’s your fault for being late, hurry and down three glasses as a penalty."

Yang Lin wasn’t buying it, popping open two beers and filling up the glasses.

"Alright, alright, don’t just say three glasses, even three bottles won’t be a problem."

Zhao Tianyu bypassed Yang Lin and went to Wang Feng, opening his arms wide.

The two embraced, "Welcome home!"

Zhao Tianyu worked in the police dog unit, generally without any field assignments, dealing with police dogs every day.

There was an internal training competition today, which made him a bit late.

"Today, drink well. Don’t try any funny business, I narrowly escaped death, so figure it out!"

Wang Feng’s mood had improved significantly, and he half-joked about his past ordeal.

Yang Lin had already filled Zhao Tianyu in on Wang Feng’s experiences during this period. Although he wasn’t directly involved, as a police officer, he understood the hardships and dangers of working undercover.

"Don’t worry, I’ll open up my belly to drink today, I’ll make sure you feel welcomed."

The four of them clinked glasses, chatting about their recent work and life.

"Old Lu is amazing now."

Zhao Tianyu downed a glass of beer, feeling somewhat emotional.

Yang Lin also nodded seriously, "Yeah, yeah, Old Lu, back in college we didn’t realize you were so amazing. How come once you start working, it’s like you’ve activated some cheat, in less than two years you’ve already earned several first-class merits."

Although Zhao Tianyu and Yang Lin didn’t work at the same place as Lu Chuan, they were all under the jurisdiction of Haizhou City’s Public Security Bureau, and Lu Chuan’s commendations were mentioned in almost every report.

There were even a few times where a commendation report was issued specifically to him alone, urging others to learn from his exemplary deeds, to the point of becoming cliché.

Lu Chuan crossed his legs, leaned back in his chair, looking at the three of them with a superior glance.

"Damn, when I was earning those merits, I didn’t think much of it, but hearing you guys say it like this, it feels really fucking awesome."

"..."