I became the police station's darling after I could understand what the furry creature was sayi

Chapter 266 Sarcasm? Childhood Sweethearts? Sorry?
Qingshan Residential Area was built in the 1990s. The exterior walls are patched up, and there are still a few red bricks that can be knocked out.

The community is mostly populated by elderly people and children. Around noon, the children were playing together in the fitness equipment area, and occasionally you could hear the grandmothers standing upstairs shouting for their children to come home for lunch.

Nan Punian parked the car outside the residential area, and the two walked towards Chen Cheng's old building. Because they were unfamiliar faces, they attracted the attention of the children along the way.

The building is six stories high. Chen Cheng’s home is on the third floor. The stairwell is piled with clutter, including abandoned children’s bicycles, unused bed frames, and relatively new-looking electric vehicles. Several wires run from the bathrooms of the residents’ homes to the first floor to charge the electric vehicles.

As the two entered Unit 2, they could clearly hear the sounds of a couple arguing coming from their apartment on the second floor. The atmosphere was very lively.

Nan Punian raised his hand and knocked on the iron gate of room 302.

"Who is it?"

A slightly aged voice came from inside the house, and then the inner wooden door, painted green, was opened.

A man who looked nearly ten years older than his actual age appeared before them. He was less than 1.7 meters tall, thin, hunched over, and wearing reading glasses. If you looked closely, his features bore a striking resemblance to his son, Chen Cheng.

When Chen Ming saw the two of them, he was clearly taken aback. Before Nan Punian could take out his police ID, he seemed to have already reacted and opened the iron gate.

"Come in."

Nan Punian and Nan Shu exchanged a glance and stepped into the house.

The walls were red and green, with the green paint peeling off and revealing the yellowed putty. A wall-mounted TV stood on an old-fashioned TV cabinet, and behind it, the wall was covered with faded and white certificates of merit. At a glance, they were all the certificates that Chen Cheng had received from childhood to adulthood.

Judging solely from academic performance, Chen Cheng is undoubtedly the kind of child that adults always talk about.

The balcony is filled with green plants, and the sunlight streaming in from outside prevents the house from feeling dark; instead, it gives people a sense of peaceful and cozy tranquility.

The front door faces the dining table, next to which is a row of cabinets filled with various medals, trophies and certificates. Nan Shu glanced at them and saw that they were all the prizes Chen Ming had won over the years as the inheritor of the intangible cultural heritage of "one duck, eight ways".

As an elderly person living alone, Chen Ming keeps the entire house very clean and tidy.

"Are you here to ask about Acheng?"

Chen Ming asked the two to sit down, and then sat on the single sofa diagonally opposite him, rubbing his knees with both hands.

Although it was a question, the tone was full of certainty.

Then, noticing that Nan Shu was looking at the cabinet, he said, "This duck can be prepared in eight ways. It actually refers to taking a farm-raised duck that weighs seven or eight pounds and cooking it in six different ways: frying, stir-frying, braising, steaming, and stewing, to make different dishes."

"Among them, braising is the most important, and the method of slicing the duck is particularly particular. It must be 'three three three one'. The three threes refer to the 30 hours of slow braising over a low flame, which requires the duck to be completely soaked in the braising flavor from the inside out. The second three is..."

When it came to professional matters, Chen Ming lost his initial restraint and spoke fluently, his cloudy eyes shining with an unusually bright light. It wasn't until he caught sight of Nan Punian out of the corner of his eye that he paused, realizing, "Excuse me, did I say too much?"

"It's alright. Given Mr. Chen's research and insights on ducks, I would be very happy to have more conversations and discussions with him in a different place."

Nan Punian said with a faint smile.

Upon hearing this, Chen Ming's face flashed with embarrassment. He gave the two of them a dry laugh and reverted to his initial reserved and nervous demeanor.

Nan Shu turned her head to look at Nan Punian. How come she never noticed before that Captain Nan was so sarcastic?
"Officers, what brings you here today...?"

Nan Punian did not answer, but instead took out his police ID, gave a brief self-introduction, and then asked:
"I wonder if Mr. Chen has ever heard of the name Ning'an?"

"Ning'an?" Chen Ming was taken aback.

"That child... is also a child with a hard life, but why did the officer suddenly mention Ning An?"

"Can you tell us about the relationship between Chen Cheng and Ning An?"

Nan Pu Nian didn't answer but asked a question instead.

Chen Ming realized he had talked too much, so he awkwardly rubbed his fingers together and nodded, "Of course."

"Ning An and A-Cheng are childhood sweethearts... That girl is academically gifted and has a cheerful personality. Many families in the neighborhood like Ning An, but..."

Chen Ming paused, his expression wistful, and sighed softly, "Heaven is blind. Such a good girl, she died in a car accident, so young and beautiful. Just two years ago, Old Ning and his wife also passed away from illness..."

At this point, Chen Ming's voice choked up, and he raised his hand to wipe the corner of his eye.

"Did Chen Cheng show any unusual behavior regarding Ning An's death?"

Nanpu's Years of Life.

“After Ningning passed away, Acheng locked himself in his room and didn’t go out for a week. After attending Ningning’s funeral, he never mentioned Ningning again.”

The dead are dead. Chen Ming is not the kind of person who would put too much thought into emotional matters. For example, when he mentions Ning An and the Ning family's fate, he feels emotional and sad, but in terms of friendship, Chen Ming's relationship with the Ning family is probably not as good as A-Cheng's.

In addition, during that period, Chen Ming was busy promoting intangible cultural heritage. After paying respects to the little girl, he threw himself into his work and never thought about how Chen Cheng, who was only eighteen years old at the time, adjusted his mindset.

Nan Punian: "Did you know that Chen Cheng often visits Ning An's cemetery?"

Chen Ming was taken aback, shook his head, and stammered a few times, "Officer, I'm not afraid you'll laugh at me, but Cheng... we've never been very close since he was little. He's quite independent, so..."

Nan Punian nodded knowingly.

"Okay, we understand." With that, he stood up.

Seeing this, Chen Ming also stood up.

"Mr. Chen, thank you for your cooperation. If there are any further updates..."

Before Nan Punian could finish his polite words, Chen Ming quickly added, "If Acheng comes back to me, I will contact the police immediately and persuade him to turn himself in."

Nan Punian gave him a deep look and smiled.

"Okay, then we won't bother you any longer."

The two walked towards the door, and Chen Ming followed closely behind with unsteady steps, escorting Nan Shu and the other to the door. Just as they were about to leave, he hesitated for a moment before saying, "Officer."

The two stopped in their tracks and turned to look at him.

Chen Ming leaned against the wall with one hand, half of his body hidden in the shadows, his eyes drooping, not daring to look at Nan Punian's face. He hesitated and said, "Could you help me apologize to the Dong family? In the end, it is our Chen family that has wronged Anhe and the Dong family."

“An, An and she are so good friends, so sensible. She even replaced the TV for me. I… I’m such a bad parent!”

(End of this chapter)