Reborn Cat Sheriff

Chapter 570 The Story of Yuan Meijuan
"I……"

Yuan Meijuan's expression became increasingly conflicted.

But Zheng Mingxing maintained a faint smile, said nothing, and simply watched her quietly.

To be honest, Lin Ge thought Zheng Mingxing's attitude was pretty despicable! If someone doesn't want to talk about it, why force them? Everyone has things they don't want to tell others, so why should you, as the instructor, have to find out everything?
“I made the decision to hire you. Originally, you didn’t meet the prerequisites to be an auxiliary police officer, but I saw your attitude or performance during the interview that day and you were very solid, so I made an exception and hired you from all the applicants.”

Zheng Mingxing suddenly mentioned something that made Yuan Meijuan pause for a moment.

Looking up at Zheng Mingxing and seeing his sincere expression, Yuan Meijuan slowly nodded. But she only picked up her water glass and took a sip, without intending to explain further.

Zheng Mingxing didn't urge her, but quietly waited for Yuan Meijuan to think it over.

He knew his concern was well-intentioned, and he knew the other person understood it. It's not good to keep some things bottled up inside, and this might even be the root cause of Yuan Meijuan's usual taciturn nature.

Although she was just an ordinary auxiliary police officer at Zhanghe Police Station, she was considered one of the station's own people. As the station's instructor, Zheng Mingxing felt obligated to help her colleagues solve various problems, including but not limited to dating and marriage.

For example, if Jiang Yiyi and Zhu Jun plan to get married, they need to apply to Zheng Mingxing. The purpose of this application isn't to require Zheng Mingxing's consent to get married, but rather the police system will conduct a certain review of the couple's spouses and approve things like the scale of the wedding banquet. This is an internal requirement and doesn't fundamentally affect the legality of the marriage registration at the Civil Affairs Bureau. However, for disciplinary reasons, the necessary procedures still need to be followed. Even though Zhu Jun and Jiang Yiyi are both police officers, and their background checks would be perfectly acceptable, they still need Zheng Mingxing's blessing before they can officially proceed with their marriage.

The same applies to Yuan Meijuan.

Even though she doesn't usually make any mistakes at work, since it's obvious to everyone that she's hiding something, and Zheng Mingxing noticed something was off from her behavior at Chen Dayu's house today, he can't ignore it.

Yuan Meijuan also understood this principle.

So after a moment of silence, she raised her head and said in a low voice, "I'm sorry, Instructor Zheng, I've caused you trouble because of me."

"Is something really wrong?"

Lin Ge looked at Yuan Meijuan curiously, his ears perked up as he eagerly listened to what was going on.

"So... were you touched today? About that child..."

Zheng Mingxing didn't say much and went straight to the point.

"That's how my mother died."

Yuan Meijuan glanced at Zheng Mingxing, then lowered her head and said, "I'm a left-behind child. When I was little, my parents worked in Guangdong Province, and I was taken care of by my grandmother at home. I remember it very clearly that it was close to the New Year. The villagers saw that my parents had come back from working outside and earned money, so they deliberately spread some unpleasant rumors. Hehe... just like they said Chen Dan's mother was a prostitute and my father was a pimp. I don't know what I did to offend them. Maybe it was just that my father's job there was better than other people working in the village? At first, they were just talking nonsense without any purpose, but later, some people who worked near my parents' workplace, I don't know why, started to exaggerate."

"So, the villagers originally just treated it as a dirty joke and laughed about it without a care, but later someone helped to provide evidence, and everyone who spread the rumor and listened to it believed it to be true, is that what you mean?"

Zheng Mingxing's expression was calm.

Yuan Meijuan nodded, not particularly concerned, and said, "That's pretty much what happened. Anyway, so many years have passed, I've forgotten most of it. I only remember that my father went out and got into a fight with those people, which was quite serious. Then people started coming to my door every day, pointing and whispering, and some even deliberately said unpleasant things loudly at the door, meaning they wanted all the neighbors to hear! My mother argued with them a few times, but it was no use. She went to the village chief to reason with them, but he just brushed her off. In the end, the story spread far and wide, and everyone believed it. There were even thugs who came to my house late at night, banging on the door and saying unpleasant things."

Instead of continuing to play the straight man, Zheng Mingxing poured some water into Yuan Meijuan's teacup, indicating that she could drink some to calm down.

"Some things I learned from my grandmother."

Yuan Meijuan looked up at Zheng Mingxing again, her eyes calm, and said, "Actually, at this point, I don't think it's a big deal. After all, people can say whatever they want, so let them talk! I just didn't expect... my dad, for some reason, to believe it."

"They don't work in the same place?"

Zheng Mingxing was stunned for a moment.

"My mom works in a clothing factory making clothes, and my dad works in an electronics factory making VCDs. They live very close by, but they don't live together. Sigh..."

Yuan Meijuan shook her head, exhaled, and continued, "Anyway, I don't know what happened. The two of them suddenly started arguing and fighting, smashing the house to pieces. People outside came to watch the commotion, and Grandma kept me in my room and wouldn't let me go out. Then the next day... my dad passed away! He died alone on the 29th of the twelfth lunar month, before the New Year was even over. Haha... Then that afternoon, my mom took some medicine at home and died before she could even be saved."

"Are you kidding..."

Lin Ge stared blankly at Yuan Meijuan, never expecting that the so-called rumors at the beginning would actually break down the couple who were originally safe and sound and working hard to support their family.

This is even worse than what happened to Chen Dan!
A rumor caused doubts to grow between the couple, leading to one of them dying and the other disappearing, leaving them to abandon everything they had shared and neglecting their families.
"Humph!"

With a soft snort, Yuan Meijuan actually laughed. "Even so, my dad never came back. Or rather, even now, I don't know where he's been all these years since he left that night. In short, after my mom died, only my grandma and I were left to depend on each other. Plus, the villagers are still saying that my mom committed suicide because she couldn't bear the shame of her affair being exposed, and that suicide has become evidence of infidelity. Heh... Grandma and I couldn't stay in this kind of place anymore, so she took me to the county town. She knelt down to the county primary school principal to let me continue my studies; it's just a pity that I let her down, and I dropped out of school after finishing high school."

"..."

Zheng Mingxing remained silent for a long time before finally saying in a low voice, "Why did you drop out of school? You should know that given your situation at that time, studying was your only way out. For example, if you hadn't been lucky, you would most likely have been rejected because of your lack of education when you applied for the auxiliary police position at Zhanghe Police Station."

"I can't afford it!"

Yuan Meijuan shook her head, then laughed again and said, "When I graduated from elementary school, my grandmother also passed away. I was all alone, and I couldn't even support myself, let alone afford to go to school."

"Was this guy... really that miserable as a child?"

Lin Ge also fell silent, no longer in the mood to gossip about Yuan Meijuan's sad past.

A rumor, or perhaps just a casual slanderous remark made out of jealousy that Yuan Meijuan's father earned more money, ultimately led to a family's tragic situation. How utterly speechless and heartbreaking this is.

Because of a rumor, Yuan Meijuan went from having a happy family to becoming an orphan. Her mother died before her eyes, her grandmother died before her eyes, and her father abandoned her and disappeared without a trace. Is there anything more tragic in this world?

What caused all of this was perhaps just a single sentence that was intended to belittle Yuan Meijuan's parents, without much thought given to it.

But ultimately, with all the embellishments and fabricated evidence, it became a murder weapon.

And he actually killed someone.

Zheng Mingxing remained silent alongside Yuan Meijuan.

Lin Ge watched Yuan Meijuan quietly from the side, his body unconsciously straightening up, no longer looking lazy.

He suddenly felt a sense of irony. Yuan Meijuan's name originally carried the most beautiful meaning: "Sharing the same moon across a thousand miles!" It told a story of love and family affection, with a beautiful prefix; but unexpectedly, it was shattered because of a rumor.

Rumors are like knives; this is indeed true. A decade or two ago, before the internet existed, Yuan Meijuan faced similar tragedies. Now, in the internet age, they seem even more like executioners.

No wonder Yuan Meijuan was so deeply affected today; it turns out that today's events are exactly the same as what happened to her back then. Even the most ridiculous thing is that the accusation that her mother committed shameful acts while working in Guangdong Province remains unchanged.

When exactly did this abnormal concept begin to form?

Lin Ge was somewhat confused.

But inexplicably, even he himself would subtly associate that place with its large migrant worker population with scandals. These two words are completely unrelated!

"It must have been very difficult back then, right?"

Zheng Mingxing sighed.

Yuan Meijuan nodded, but was unwilling to say much about the hardships she had endured back then.

Zheng Mingxing didn't press further, but suddenly changed the subject, laughing as he said, "But how did you get in touch with Hu Lijun? Hehe... Don't think I don't know, your attitude towards Lao Hu is completely different from how you treat others. But let me tell you, Lao Hu has a family! He has a wife and daughter, and our country doesn't support extramarital affairs! If you have any feelings for him, I'm telling you now you can give up!"

"..."

Yuan Meijuan blushed, completely unprepared for Zheng Mingxing to suddenly bring up such a thing.

Lin Ge was also stunned for a moment, almost breaking his back. He stared at Zheng Mingxing speechlessly, thinking to himself that even if this guy wanted to change the subject or distract himself from his grief, he shouldn't have joked about Hu Lijun's matter!
Hu Lijun is Hu Miao's father!
Besides... I didn't see any extra communication between Yuan Meijuan and Hu Lijun.

Speechless at Zheng Mingxing's smiling face, Yuan Meijuan thought for a moment and decided to help Hu Lijun salvage his reputation. After all, rumors had proven their destructive power time and again. And Hu Lijun was innocent.

With a sigh, Yuan Meijuan chuckled and said, “You’ve misunderstood. Uncle Hu and I aren’t what you think. I don’t know if you remember, but there used to be a policy requiring every civil servant to sponsor a poor child to help them continue their studies. Perhaps it was a coincidence of fate, but the school chose me to be Uncle Hu’s beneficiary! From junior high onwards, Uncle Hu helped send me my tuition and living expenses. He’s my benefactor. After learning that I was an orphan, he sent me money every month for six whole years, and he also wrote letters encouraging me to study hard and live well, telling me not to be defeated by difficulties…”

"This……"

Zheng Mingxing blinked, suddenly feeling that Yuan Meijuan's words were quite bizarre.

Is it really such a coincidence?

But Zheng Mingxing does remember that there was such a policy requirement in the past.

At that time, I was not yet employed, and this regulation did not last long before it was discontinued for various reasons.

To be honest, civil servants' salaries weren't high back then. While this model could help underprivileged children attend school, it also easily fostered ungrateful brats, parasites, or freeloaders. There were also many cases of donated funds being misappropriated by families. Children continued to drop out of school, families relied on these donations for food, and even moral blackmail turned a good deed into a joke—these were all common occurrences at the time. Therefore, by the time Zheng Mingxing graduated from university, this kind of "forced donation" had disappeared completely. Although some people still use poverty to morally blackmail others into doing charity, the probability of such incidents has significantly decreased since the flawed policies were eliminated.

"He sponsored you for six years, and now you're his colleague, but he still doesn't know who you are?"

Zheng Mingxing found this part even more interesting and finally understood why Yuan Meijuan treated Hu Lijun differently. After all… he was her great benefactor!
If it weren't for Hu Lijun's support, who knows what would have become of this twelve-year-old orphan?

"Back then, all of us children who received sponsorship were required to remain anonymous. Perhaps it was to prevent anything bad from happening. Anyway, Uncle Hu only knew that the girl he sponsored was surnamed Yuan, but he didn't know that the person was me. He wrote me a lot of letters, and I kept them all. If you, Instructor Zheng, don't believe me, I'll show them to you tomorrow. Hehe... Actually, I sometimes look back at what Uncle Hu said, and it's quite amusing to pretend to be mature."

Yuan Meijuan also smiled.

After such a tragic event, encountering such warmth seemed to be a turning point in Yuan Meijuan's life.

As for her comment about 'pretending to be mature,' Lin Ge could understand it. After all, judging from the timeline, Hu Lijun had probably only been working for a short time at that time. A young man sponsoring a child and encouraging her would indeed have to act more mature.

Zheng Mingxing would naturally not be impolite to insist on seeing evidence when something could be so easily exposed.

Seeing that Yuan Meijuan's mood had brightened, he smiled and said, "So when do you plan to tell him about this? You don't plan to keep it from him forever, do you? It's clearly a good thing. He'll be very pleased and proud to know that the child he sponsored has now become a policeman."

Yuan Meijuan shook her head.

"Can we not tell him? I'm just an auxiliary police officer right now. I want to wait until the day I officially become a police officer like him before I tell him this secret, so he can truly be proud of me!"

"That's not easy!"

Zheng Mingxing paused for a moment, but still earnestly offered his analysis: "To be honest, with your education and work experience, becoming a permanent staff member is quite difficult. In recent years, the Zhanghe Police Station has only admitted Zhao Zhigang and Li Siyu with high school diplomas through special recruitment. But Zhao Zhigang's situation is different; as you know, he mostly benefited from his family's connections—it's a family honor that's hard to hide. As for Li Siyu… frankly, it's not easy for an ordinary police officer to earn merit. It's even more difficult for auxiliary police officers; to get a permanent position through merit, you need a very special, extremely significant achievement. If Li Siyu hadn't encountered this Tiger virus, even if she had earned merit several times with Mimi, she would still have to wait a long time to get a permanent position. It may sound harsh, but for an auxiliary police officer to become a permanent staff member, it's indeed difficult to convince the outside world without shedding blood and going to the hospital."

"It's okay! I'm not afraid of getting hurt, nor am I afraid of challenges."

Yuan Meijuan nodded, though her expression wasn't entirely confident, she still said firmly, "Actually, it doesn't matter if I'm an auxiliary police officer for life. It's not like I have to tell Uncle Hu my secret. I don't think he needs my thanks, and his help to me wasn't for me to do anything for him. So even if I can't get a permanent position, things are fine as they are. Just consider it a bit of a quirky hobby of mine. There's no need to distract him because of what happened back then."

"Then... it's up to you."

Zheng Mingxing nodded.

It was originally a private matter between the two of them, and he really didn't need to interfere.

As long as Yuan Meijuan doesn't intend to interfere in Hu Lijun's family life, Zheng Mingxing doesn't see anything wrong with her actions. Hu Lijun's financial support for her for six years wasn't out of a desire for repayment.

'Bang! Bang!'

Suddenly, a knocking sound rang out.

Lin Ge's ears perked up, and he looked at Yuan Meijuan in astonishment, realizing that the saying "Speak of the devil and he appears" was indeed very true.

"Is Instructor Zheng inside?"

Hu Lijun's voice came from outside the door. He sounded to be in a good mood, which suggested that the work in the mediation room was going smoothly.

"Ha ha……"

Zheng Mingxing glanced at Yuan Meijuan, who blushed and lowered her head. Then she stood up and returned to her desk, raising her voice to signal that Hu Lijun could come in.

"Oh, Xiao Yuan is here too!"

When Hu Lijun saw Yuan Meijuan in the office, he paused for a moment before quickly smiling and greeting her. Although he wasn't used to her quiet personality, she was still a colleague and a reliable young woman, so he didn't have a bad impression of her.

"Still calling me Little Yuan!"

Lin Ge looked at Hu Lijun speechlessly. Could this guy really not know Yuan Meijuan's identity?

"Look at my ass!"

Hu Lijun was not going to be polite to Lin Ge, or rather, all the police officers at Zhanghe Police Station were already aware of the cat's bad temper and would not treat it like royalty in their daily conversations.

After giving Lin Ge a shout, Hu Lijun handed the documents in his hand to Zheng Mingxing.

"Instructor Zheng, the mediation is over."

(End of this chapter)