After their trip to the police station ended, Chen Shen took Xue Rui out for a meal.

As for the location, he let Xue Rui pick.

Xue Rui, without any hesitation, chose his family’s restaurant, Qunfang Tower.

As he got out of the car, Chen Shen threw on a long coat, completely covering his summer-issue police uniform.

Xue Rui noticed this detail and gave Officer Chen a long look.

"You go on in and order. I need to make a phone call," Chen Shen said.

Xue Rui nodded. When he reached the entrance, he stopped and glanced out of the corner of his eye in Chen Shen’s direction. He was heading to a nearby bank.

’So noble. I thought he would just put it on a tab,’ Xue Rui muttered to himself.

Walking into the lobby, the receptionist recognized the boss’s son at a glance.

"Well now, Young Master, what are you in the mood for today?" the young woman at the front desk teased.

"What’s this ’Young Master’ stuff? If people overhear you, they’ll think Qunfang Tower is some kind of shady place," Xue Rui said, feigning seriousness.

He had a great relationship with the staff here, and this kind of banter was a daily occurrence.

Xue Rui leaned on the counter and chatted with the receptionist, his eyes glancing toward the entrance from time to time. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

His trip to the police station had been purely to tag along; it didn’t really matter whether he went or not.

But he could sense that Chen Shen had something he wanted to say to him but was struggling to bring it up.

This meal was clearly about Chen Shen asking him for a favor.

’The captain of the traffic police has a favor to ask of me? You’ve got to be kidding me.’

He guessed it was most likely a request from Chen Tingting. After all, one look at Chen Shen and you could tell he was the type of doting father who could never refuse his daughter’s pleas.

That was why he had chosen such an expensive place—to make Chen Shen back off. He never expected the man to actually go withdraw cash.

"Just pretend you don’t know me in a minute. And when it’s time to pay the bill, bring over a few eggs..." Xue Rui said quickly, seeing Chen Shen walk in.

"Okay." The receptionist wasn’t too surprised. The boss’s son was a real character; he was capable of ordering his own restaurant’s food to sell for pocket money, so what wouldn’t he do?

She was just an employee. She didn’t care what kind of trouble Xue Rui stirred up; it would all end up on the boss’s tab anyway.

"Have you ordered yet?" Chen Shen asked with a smile, patting Xue Rui’s shoulder.

"This gentleman has already ordered. This way, please, gentlemen." A uniformed waiter led the two of them to a private room on the top floor.

The glass window offered an unobstructed view of the street below.

"Uncle Chen, if there’s something you want to talk about, just be direct. Let’s skip the pleasantries about being grateful; that would feel too insincere," Xue Rui said, cutting straight to the chase.

Honestly, he was also very curious. ’What on earth did Chen Tingting ask her father to do?’

’Deliver a love letter?’

’That seems a bit too absurd.’

’Then again, it could be a warning.’

"You saw right through me, huh?" Chen Shen scratched his head, embarrassed. ’This kid is no simple character,’ he thought. ’His social skills are impeccable.’

’He probably chose this place because he guessed I was going to say something about Chen Tingting.’

But as a father, he was really at a loss. His daughter was head over heels for Xue Rui, and he felt she was still too young for a relationship.

However, the problem was with his daughter, not Xue Rui, which made things very difficult for him.

Especially since Chen Tingting was raising hell, insisting on transferring to Xue Rui’s school.

The main thing was, his wife agreed with her and was pressuring him to make it happen...

She kept saying things like, "You have to be proactive to get a good man! First come, first served."

Chen Shen’s wife was ten years younger than him. She was only nineteen when they got married, while he was almost thirty...

His wife had also been the one to take the initiative, passionately pursuing him when he was a man of few words. She had pulled him out of a low point in his life.

Over the years, she had done everything she could to hold their family together and had put up with a lot.

Chen Shen couldn’t argue with his wife’s words, because that was how their own love story had begun.

At home, it was two votes against one, so he had no choice but to bite the bullet and do it.

But whenever he remembered his daughter was only sixteen, a sour feeling welled up inside him. ’Isn’t it a little too early...’

...

Exquisite dishes were brought out one after another, and for each one, the waiter would give a long introduction.

Every time Chen Shen heard how high-grade the ingredients were, his heart ached from the cost. This meal was too extravagant; it would probably cost him a month’s salary. However, he didn’t let it show, simply turning the newly served dish toward Xue Rui.

Xue Rui didn’t eat much either. After all, Lin Ruoxi had likely already made dinner, and he couldn’t very well show up with a full stomach.

Besides, he’d promised he would be back soon, but who could have guessed they’d end up taking a detour to the police headquarters.

"Uncle Chen, I think at this age, academics are the most important thing, don’t you agree?" Xue Rui said.

Chen Shen froze for a moment, then replied, "Right."

An indescribable feeling churned within him. He hadn’t even opened his mouth, yet it already felt like his daughter had been thoroughly rejected.

It left a bad taste in his mouth, as if his daughter were some unwanted burden he couldn’t marry off.

Sure, Xue Rui’s family drove a BMW 730, and in terms of financial status, his own family was definitely out of their league.

But Chen Shen felt that after so many years in the Hedong public security system, he still had some clout.

However, with a kid as sensible as Xue Rui, he couldn’t very well get angry. He just felt a profound sense of helplessness regarding his own daughter.

Xue Rui was the classic "other people’s kid."

He was sensible, polite, and tactful. He understood what Chen Shen wanted to say without it being spelled out, and he had given him plenty of face.

His daughter, on the other hand, only thought about boys.

"Sigh..." Chen Shen gulped down his juice, a bitter feeling in his heart.

He had driven here, so he couldn’t drink alcohol.

He and Xue Rui met each other’s gaze for a long moment, each understanding the other’s unspoken thoughts.

But he still prepared to proceed with his original plan.

Chen Shen spoke in a placating tone, "Xue Rui, how about Uncle Chen arranges for you to transfer to Yanchi Middle School? An old friend of mine is the dean of students there."

Yanchi Middle School was a top-tier public high school, its faculty famous throughout the city.

Any other family would be jumping at the chance to use such a connection.

But across from him was Xue Rui, from an extraordinary family. In this luxurious restaurant, not only was he not intimidated, he was as comfortable as if he were at home.

’Would a family like his really worry about getting into a good school?’

There had to be a reason Xue Rui was studying at Hedong Second Middle School; it wasn’t because he couldn’t get into a better one.

If he absolutely had to have the two kids in the same school, it would be better to help Xue Rui transfer to a good school. That way, both children would have a bright future.

Xue Rui had just taken a sip of water when he choked on it and started coughing violently. "COUGH! COUGH! COUGH! Uncle Chen... what did you just say?"

Those words truly stunned Xue Rui. ’Help me transfer schools?’

’And to Yanchi Middle School, the one his daughter attends?’

’And he was asking it like a favor! I really thought Officer Chen was going to warn me to stay away from Chen Tingting.’

’But... he wants me to serve myself up on a silver platter?’

"Don’t worry, Tingting’s interests are always fleeting. This whole thing will probably blow over in a few days. When it does, if you want to go back to Hedong Second Middle School, Uncle Chen will help you arrange it," Chen Shen added.

Chen Shen was very satisfied with Xue Rui. Since the boy was so sensible, he didn’t need to worry about his daughter’s "safety."

It was just unfair to Xue Rui, and he felt a little bad about it.

"Uncle Chen... do you even believe that yourself?" Xue Rui asked with a strange expression. That girl, Chen Tingting, was just too easy to read.

A girl like that was completely consumed by the idea of romance. She would disregard everything for the sake of some imagined love story. How could she possibly give up so easily?

"..." Chen Shen was silent.

"Why?" Xue Rui asked, confused.

’What could possibly make a man approaching fifty lower himself to plead with a teenager?’

"Every family has its own problems," Chen Shen sighed.

Xue Rui couldn’t for the life of him figure out what kind of "problems" could force an iron-willed tough guy like Officer Chen into such a predicament.