Great Power Reclamation

Chapter 2937 A Not-So-Significant Car Accident

Her metaphors are full of tech geek style, yet strangely sincere and passionate.

Qin Zheng was completely stunned. He had heard all sorts of confessions, but never one like this. Direct, frank, even a little arrogant, yet it suited her perfectly, making his heart pound uncontrollably.

He looked at the girl before him; she was bold, intelligent, and sometimes reckless, yet always managed to turn the tide. She was like a flame, burning fiercely to warm his icy heart.

He remained silent for a long time. So long that Huang Shanshan almost thought she was about to be silently rejected again, he suddenly sighed softly, a sigh that carried a sense of resigned compromise and... a hint of barely perceptible relief.

“I’m a… boring person. My life consists of nothing but work and rules,” he said in a low voice, as if giving a final warning.

“What a coincidence!” Huang Shanshan’s eyes lit up instantly, and her smile returned, like the brightest star in the night sky. “What I’m best at is breaking the rules and making the boring system fun. We can complement each other!”

Looking at her radiant smile, Qin Zheng finally couldn't help but slightly curl the corners of his lips into a smile as well. Although the smile was small, it was truly genuine.

"Then... let's give it a try?" He heard himself say this. His voice was soft, his face was red, but it clearly touched Huang Shanshan's heart.

Huang Shanshan was overjoyed and almost jumped for joy! But she forced herself to remain composed, maintaining what she considered to be an elegant and calm demeanor, and extended her hand:
"Okay, Captain Qin, please guide me in the future. First step, I've made a reservation for the newly opened revolving restaurant in the city center tomorrow night at seven o'clock!"

Qin Zheng watched as she feigned composure despite being incredibly excited, and the smile in his eyes deepened. He reached out and took her hand.

Her hands were much smaller than his, soft yet strong. They were soft and warm, just like her.

"Okay." He nodded.

The night wind in Junken City carried the unique coolness of the frontier, but it could not dispel the warmth that was quietly rising between the two.

Huang Shanshan mentally gave a victory sign: Yes! This difficult "alpha wolf" (or little lamb?) has finally been successfully "captured" and brought into the fold by Huang Shanshan! But if it wants to run away, of course, no way!

Of course, she knew that this was only the first step in a long journey. She would need to invest a lot of time and energy in "taming" and "maintaining" this advanced system, and she would enjoy the process.

But what does it matter? What Huang Shanshan has in abundance is a spirit of challenge and... patience.

The days ahead are destined to be anything but boring. Having confirmed their "let's give it a try" relationship, Huang Shanshan's enthusiasm has only grown stronger.

She began to "infiltrate" Qin Zheng's life in every way, as if she were cracking an extremely complex encryption protocol.

Qin Zheng's life was indeed as he himself said, almost rigidly regular.

Morning run, work, dinner, reviewing materials, rest—the cycle repeats itself endlessly. His temporary dormitory is so tidy it looks uninhabited, with items arranged strictly according to some kind of internal order.

Huang Shanshan's appearance was like throwing a powerful deep-sea bomb into a calm, still lake.

Their chance encounters during morning runs have become a regular occurrence. Huang Shanshan still gets tired after running only a short distance, but she spends increasingly more time walking alongside Qin Zheng.

At first, she was always chattering away, but gradually she learned to observe. She noticed that Qin Zheng liked to completely zone out when he ran, so she would quietly run alongside him for a while, only coming over to talk when he was stretching.

She noticed that although he rarely showed emotion, his eyes would slightly crinkle when he heard her imaginative technological ideas or her sharp critiques of certain social events. This subtle change became Huang Shanshan's greatest reward.

She began to "invade" his dining table. In the cafeteria, she could always "precisely" find Qin Zheng eating alone, and then naturally sit down with a mountain of plates piled up on her plate.

"Captain Qin, try this sweet and sour pork. Aunt Zhang is doing an exceptional job today!"

"Qin Zheng, don't you eat green peppers? Being a picky eater is bad; you'll lack vitamins."

She would even transfer the food he had glanced at a few times from her plate directly into his bowl, the action as natural as if she had done it a thousand times.

Qin Zheng went from being stiff and resistant at first, but gradually got used to it, and would even silently finish the food she offered him occasionally. This silent indulgence made Huang Shanshan secretly happy.

At work, she remains the irreplaceable "chief technical advisor".

Qin Zheng was in charge of the follow-up cleanup and reinforcement work, which required a lot of technical support. Huang Shanshan was available whenever needed and worked incredibly efficiently. However, she started to "get lazy" on some insignificant little details.

"Captain Qin, this log analysis script is so complicated, could you take a look at it for me?"

"Qin Zheng, how do we optimize the parameters of this encryption algorithm? You're experienced, could you give me some advice?"

She subtly created opportunities for him to "help" her, satisfying his inner need to be needed and his sense of value.

Although Qin Zheng would say, "Why do you need to ask such basic questions?", he would always put down what he was doing and patiently explain to her or even help her solve the problem.

Looking at Huang Shanshan's admiring expression of "sudden realization" and "you're so amazing," even though he knew she was probably faking it, a strange, pleasant feeling quietly arose in his heart.

Huang Shanshan also discovered a "weakness" in Qin Zheng—he was actually quite interested in the history and culture of the military reclamation city and even the entire Northwest, but he was usually too busy with work to pay attention to it. So, on the weekend, she simply waited for him at the dormitory entrance:
"Captain Qin, you should experience life outside of work! Come on, let me take you to see the Military Reclamation Museum and feel the passion of our fathers' generation in starting their businesses!"

Or, "I know there's a poplar forest outside the city that's perfect to see this season. It's only a half-hour drive away. Go there and relax your mind; maybe you'll come up with a new idea for the case!"

Qin Zheng initially refused, but he couldn't resist Huang Shanshan's persistent pleading and the phrase, "You promised to give it a try, and giving it a try includes experiencing life with me!" In the end, he would usually be dragged out the door by her.

At the museum, listening to Huang Shanshan explain the stories behind the exhibits in her unique, lively, and vivid language, Qin Zheng found it much more interesting than reading dry reports.

In the poplar forest, watching the golden leaves against the azure sky, with the energetic girl running around taking pictures beside him, he felt a long-lost sense of relaxation.

He even condoned Huang Shanshan's "childish" behavior: such as forcing her to take a photo with him using a huge poplar leaf, or buying two roasted sweet potatoes from the roadside, giving him one, and then eating it with his hands covered in black ash.

Huang Shanshan's pursuit was both bold and meticulous. She remembered that he drank coffee without sugar or milk, that he liked to use specific bookmarks when reading, and that if he frowned even slightly, it might mean he had an upset stomach.

She would quietly shield him from unnecessary social engagements, silently brew him a cup of warm tea to soothe his stomach when he was working late into the night, and when he was in a low mood due to setbacks in his case, instead of lecturing him, she would tell him an extremely lame technical joke.

Qin Zheng, this iceberg, is melting at a speed visible to the naked eye.

He would start subconsciously searching for her in the crowd. When she got her face covered in dust from fiddling with new equipment, he would naturally reach out and wipe it off for her.

She would buy her favorite brand of juice in advance when she "bumped into" him again.

While she was enthusiastically sharing interesting stories, although he didn't say much, his gaze would remain fixed on her face, with a focus and gentleness that he himself didn't even realize.

The people of Junken City gradually discovered that Qin, the investigator who seemed like a cold-faced devil, wasn't so cold after all.

He was always accompanied by that bright-smiling, technically superb young woman named Huang, and the way Investigator Qin looked at her… well, that's something. The turning point came on a rainy night. Qin Zheng received an urgent assignment, needing to travel overnight to a neighboring city to coordinate crucial evidence. The rain was heavy, and the road conditions were complicated.

Upon learning this, Huang Shanshan didn't say a word, picked up her equipment, and climbed into Qin Zheng's car.

"What are you doing?" Qin Zheng frowned.

"Driving long distances in this weather, especially at night, your vehicle's communication and navigation systems are not secure enough."

"I'll provide you with real-time technical support to prevent signal interference or eavesdropping, and I can also help you plan the safest route. Don't worry, I won't disturb your driving; I'll just relax in the back seat."

Her reasons were perfectly valid, but her eyes flashed with a "you can't get rid of me" light.

Qin Zheng looked at her rain-dampened hair and the thermos she was clutching tightly in her arms—clearly meant for him, filled with hot tea. The words of refusal reached his lips, but instead came out as:

"fasten your seatbelt."

On the road, the rain intensified, reducing visibility to almost zero. Huang Shanshan remained quietly in the back seat, her fingers flying across her laptop, ensuring uninterrupted communication and route safety.

Occasionally, she would quietly remind people: "There is a section of road with severe flooding three kilometers ahead. I suggest you take XX Road as an alternative route."

Her presence gave Qin Zheng a strange sense of security.

Suddenly, at a sharp bend, an oncoming truck went out of control, skidded, and crashed violently into their car!
Qin Zheng's pupils contracted, and he slammed on the brakes! The tires screeched on the wet road!

At the last second, the vehicle narrowly avoided a collision, but its rear end was still grazed, and it lurched violently before crashing into the roadside guardrail!
"Shanshan!" Qin Zheng immediately turned his head to look at the back seat.

Huang Shanshan was thrown against the back of the front seat by the huge inertia, and her laptop flew out of her hand. She groaned, and her forehead instantly turned red.

"How are you?" Qin Zheng's voice was filled with urgency and panic that he himself was unaware of. He even unbuckled his seatbelt and leaned over.

Huang Shanshan sat up with a grimace, but her first instinct was to reach for the computer.

"It's nothing, it's nothing... just a scrape... is my data okay? Is your communication still working?"

After confirming that the equipment and lines were fine, she belatedly touched her forehead and gasped, "Ouch... I think I have a bump."

Qin Zheng's heart skipped a beat. He immediately got out of the car, braved the rain to check the vehicle's condition, then returned, his face terribly grim. The rear of the car was damaged, rendering it unable to continue its long journey.

He took out his phone to call for help, but found the signal was extremely weak. In the remote, rainy night, he didn't know how long it would take for rescue to arrive.

Qin Zheng took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down and deal with the immediate problem. He took out the first-aid kit from the car and found iodine and cotton swabs.

"Come here," he said to Huang Shanshan in the back seat, his voice low.

Huang Shanshan obediently came closer. The car interior was dimly lit, and Qin Zheng carefully used a cotton swab to wipe the red and swollen area on her forehead.

His movements were somewhat clumsy, yet exceptionally gentle, and his breath was almost touching.

The two were very close together, and the only sounds inside the car were the raindrops hitting the roof and their intermittent breathing.

Looking at his tightly pursed lips and focused gaze, Huang Shanshan suddenly forgot her pain, her heart pounding like a drum.

"Don't come next time...it's too dangerous." Qin Zheng suddenly spoke, his voice hoarse.

"That won't do," Huang Shan retorted without hesitation. "It's more dangerous for you to go on this kind of mission alone. With me here, I can at least help you avoid a lot of risks. What's a little injury like this..."

Before she could finish speaking, Qin Zheng suddenly stopped what he was doing, raised his head, and looked at her intently.

That look was no longer the calm or scrutinizing gaze of the past, but rather surging with a complex and intense emotion: concern, lingering fear, being moved, and a feeling that was almost bursting forth from its cocoon...

He raised his hand, not to continue treating the wound, but to gently brush away a stray strand of hair from her cheek, his fingertips, trembling with warmth, brushing against her skin.

Huang Shanshan held her breath instantly.

"Huang Shanshan," he called her by her full name, his voice as low as the night rain outside the window, "Do you know, you are very..."

He seemed unable to find the right words, and in the end just sighed, his tone carrying a resigned compromise and an unprecedented tenderness:
"...It's very worrying."

These words touched Huang Shanshan more than any sweet talk. She saw the most genuine worries and emotions beneath his icy exterior.

She suddenly laughed, her forehead still bearing the ridiculous stain of iodine, but her eyes shone with an astonishing brightness:
"Then Captain Qin should worry about me more, preferably for the rest of his life. Keep a close eye on me, and I'll be safe, right?"

Such a bold and straightforward "marriage proposal" was blurted out in this embarrassing situation.

Qin Zheng was completely stunned. He looked at the girl in front of him, disheveled and injured, yet smiling as if she possessed the whole world, her eyes filled with undisguised love and trust for him.

A corner of my heart suddenly collapsed.

All reason, rules, and sense of distance crumbled at this moment.

He suddenly reached out, not to push her away, but to gently pull her into his arms. His movements were hesitant, but he tightened his grip firmly in the end.

Huang Shanshan's cheek was pressed against his slightly damp, chilly coat, and she could hear the rapid beating of his heart, which mingled with her own thunderous heartbeat.

Outside, the rain was pouring down, but inside the car it was warm and cozy.

After a long while, Qin Zheng's deep and clear voice rang out above her head:

"it is good."

A single word carries immense weight.

Then, the two mouths were welded together and couldn't be separated.

After a long while, Huang Shanshan nestled in his arms, smiling like a child who had stolen the sweetest honey in the world.

She knew that she had not only captured this "little lamb," but had also successfully installed a "highest-privilege program" in his heart that belonged only to her and would never be uninstalled.