First, then, love.

Time passed little by little.

The night grew deeper.

The anger gradually dissipated in the cold, replaced by an irresistible shiver.

Shu Yao rolled over, from left to right.

The mattress is a bit hard and uncomfortable.

She closed her eyes and forced herself to fall asleep.

But I can't sleep.

Memories from last night are uncontrollably creeping into my mind.

The same bed in this large, single-level apartment.

Yesterday in the master bedroom, she was so hot that she kicked off the covers.

The man lay beside her, like a giant furnace constantly radiating heat.

Even with a pillow in between, his burning body heat continued to radiate, making the whole bed warm and cozy.

His breathing was steady and long, right next to my ear.

And there was that big hand, patting her back rhythmically through the blanket.

The overwhelming sense of security and the undeniable warmth allowed her to quickly let down her guard in the unfamiliar environment and get a good night's sleep.

And today.

It's all empty around me.

There were only cold sheets and drafty blankets.

Shu Yao curled up even tighter, almost hugging herself into a ball.

She opened her eyes and looked into the dark room, her teeth chattering slightly from the cold.

I'm starting to regret it.

It's not worth getting a cold just for a bottle of face wash.

But her pride wouldn't allow her to slink back now, clutching her pillow.

She closed her eyes, gritted her teeth, and stubbornly held on.

Outside the window, a fierce autumn wind swept by, and tree branches lashed against the glass, making a dull sound.

Shu Yao shivered and wrapped the blanket tighter around herself.

Without that man who's like a furnace, the bed in late autumn just won't get warm.

*

It's 6:30 in the morning.

The blackout curtains in the guest room were drawn tightly, letting in no light at all.

He Zheng opened his eyes.

The first thing I saw was an unfamiliar ceiling, cold and lifeless.

He threw back the light down comforter, sat up, and grabbed a handful of his messy short hair.

At their feet, a huge black shadow moved.

The God of War lay on the carpet. Hearing its master's movement, it raised its head, its amber eyes showing a sleepy, confused look.

He Zheng raised his foot and gently kicked the dog's belly.

"rise."

The God of War got up, shook off his black fur, and yawned widely.

For two days in a row.

He Zheng slept in this master bedroom for two nights in a row, with the God of War keeping him company.

That night, Shu Yao stormed out, clutching her pillow, and unilaterally announced that they would be sleeping in separate rooms.

He Zheng didn't try to coax him.

He thought that when a woman gets angry, she would calm down after a good night's sleep.

As a result, he underestimated Shu Yao's temper.

This woman has a terrible temper. These past two days at home, she's treated him like he's invisible, not even giving him a glance, refusing to eat his cooking, and ignoring his words.

He Zheng stood up, walked to the window, and pulled back the curtains.

The autumn sun was blinding.

He squinted, looking at the empty half of the bed.

The mattress was too hard, the blankets were drafty, and the only smell in the room was the dog hair from the God of War.

The sweet tuberose is gone, as is the woman who used to flip the pancakes over and over on the side.

He hasn't been sleeping well these past few days.

*

2 PM, Municipal Special Police Brigade.

The sun beat down on the synthetic training field, the ground temperature was approaching 30 degrees Celsius, and waves of heat were rolling around.

The air pressure inside the corps dropped below freezing.

Everyone held their breath and walked on tiptoe, afraid of making a sound.

The center of the air pressure is in the outdoor fighting ring.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The dull, violent impacts pounded on everyone's eardrums, one after another.

He Zheng was wearing only a plain black vest, camouflage training pants, and military boots.

He was wearing black half-finger fighting gloves on both hands.

He stood in front of the heavy sandbags, his posture like a cheetah poised to pounce.

His punches were as fast as lightning.

Left hook, right swing, front kick.

Every move is deadly; there's not a single superfluous flourish, just pure, unadulterated killing blows.

The 300-pound leather sandbag was thrown high into the air by his punches, emitting a series of teeth-grinding groans. Several clear fist marks were even dented into the leather of the sandbag.

Sweat soaked through his black vest, clinging tightly to his body and outlining his bulging latissimus dorsi and abdominal muscles.

He didn't stop, mechanically swinging his fist, as if he wanted to vent all the nameless anger in his body on this inanimate object.

The edge of the fighting ring.

Old Li stood there watching, holding a stainless steel thermos in his hand.

After watching for a full ten minutes, Old Li swallowed hard, unscrewed the lid of his thermos, and took a sip of water to calm his nerves.

This devil is in a terrible mood today. During the shooting practice this morning, he turned the target paper into a sieve, and this afternoon he's been torturing the sandbags.

If we keep hitting like this, the sandbags will start leaking sand.

"Captain," Old Li called out, forcing himself to speak.

He Zheng ignored it and delivered a powerful whip kick, slamming it hard into the middle of the sandbag.

"Bang!"

"Alright, alright, take a break. You've almost ruined that thing." Old Li walked up the steps and handed over a dry towel.

He Zheng stopped and steadied himself.

His chest heaved violently, and his breathing became labored.

He ripped off half of his gloves and threw them on the ground.

He took the towel and hastily wiped the sweat from his face.

He walked to the pillar, picked up a bottle of mineral water, unscrewed it, and tilted his head back to gulp down half of it.

Water droplets trickled down the corners of his mouth, slid past his bobbing Adam's apple, and disappeared into his black collar.

"Did you two have a fight?" Old Li leaned closer and asked slyly.

He Zheng capped the water bottle, gave him a cold glance, and said, "Just bored?"

"Hey, Captain, your face is as black as the bottom of a pot, even a blind person could see it." Old Li leaned against the railing, speaking with the air of someone who'd been there all along.

"Did your sister-in-law kick you out of the master bedroom?"

He Zheng did not deny it, which can be considered as an admission.

Old Li slapped his thigh and laughed, "I knew it! We just moved a few days ago and we're already sleeping in separate beds. You've broken the team record with that speed!"

He Zheng's eyes narrowed, revealing a murderous aura.

Old Li quickly suppressed his smile and said seriously.

"Captain, listen to my advice. Women shouldn't engage in the silent treatment. The longer you give each other the silent treatment, the more trouble you'll cause. You have to coax her."

"Huh?" He Zheng draped the towel around his neck, his brows furrowing slightly.

This word had never appeared in his dictionary.

"Yeah! Women just need to be coaxed!" Old Li started spouting his straight-male view of dating.

"Your sister-in-law is a pampered young lady, she must have a bad temper. Reasoning with her won't work, you need to show her some consideration!"

Old Li gestured with both hands, spitting as he spoke.

"Buy flowers! Flowers are a woman's weakness. Buy the reddest and biggest ones! Deliver them directly to her! Then soften your tone, say a few sweet words, and I guarantee she'll be cured and back in the master bedroom tonight!"

Buy flowers.

He Zheng thought of the rose buds in the greenhouse in the south of the city that had not yet bloomed, but distant water could not quench immediate thirst.

"Where can I buy it?" he asked.

When Old Li heard there was hope, he quickly offered his advice: "That 'Spend Some Time' shop in the city center is a popular online store. The packaging is super flashy, your wife will definitely like it."

He Zheng didn't say anything, but listened to what Lao Li said.

But he is now facing more than just the problem of buying flowers.

And there's also that 2,800 yuan piece of evidence used in the crime.

No matter how many flowers you buy, it won't help if you don't replace that face wash.

He turned around and picked up his phone from the chair next to him.

Unlock and open WeChat.

Click on Sang Xiaojiu.