Era: Starting from the local police station

Leaving No. 88 courtyard.

Humming a little tune, I arrived at the police station.

As soon as I stepped through the gate, I heard Liu Baojia's voice: "Deputy Director Jiang, you're back?"

Turning my head, I saw Liu Baojia sitting by the window with a smile on his face.

Jiang Zhenghua walked to the window, took out a pack of Daqianmen cigarettes from his pocket, pulled out two and handed them over: "Have a smoke."

Liu Baojia quickly took it with both hands and lit a match on the table to mark his name.

After lighting a cigarette, Jiang Zhenghua asked, "Why didn't you get a single bed? Sleeping like that, your neck can't take it, can it?"

Liu Baojia looked back.

Chen Shan was sitting on a gray stool, his head leaning against the wall, and he was snoring softly.

He was about to step forward and wake him up.

Then Jiang Zhenghua said, "Don't bother me, you've had a long day. As long as you're not both asleep at the same time, it'll be fine."

Liu Baojia nodded and said softly, "There used to be a single bed here, but Director Qiao had it moved away because he said it would be hard to explain if the higher-ups saw it."

Jiang Zhenghua smiled and nodded: "A fixed one definitely won't work, but we can get a folding single bed. We can fold it up and put it somewhere else during the day, and take it out to use at night. That way, the higher-ups won't say anything."

At that moment, Chen Shan's head suddenly dropped, and he instantly woke up.

Hearing voices nearby, he looked up and saw Jiang Zhenghua standing by the window, and quickly stood up.

He said somewhat embarrassedly, "Deputy Director Jiang, I'm really sorry, I just fell asleep."

Jiang Zhenghua waved his hand, took out a cigarette and handed it in through the window: "It's nothing serious. It's just that sleeping like this is bad for your cervical spine, and your neck will hurt the next day."

Chen Shan took the cigarette, and seeing that no one was going to pursue the matter, he smiled and said, "Given these conditions, I'm already quite content to be able to steal a nap."

Liu Baojia, standing to the side, asked, "Deputy Director Jiang, what kind of folding bed did you just mention?"

"Don't we have them? Many factories in China produce them now. Doesn't our public security system have them?"

Jiang Zhenghua remembers that there are folding beds available now, including two styles: military folding beds and ironwood folding beds.

Among them, military cots were made of steel frames and coarse linen fabric after industrial recovery, steel pipe welding and technology matured, and were manufactured by some parts factories.

In the early 50s, due to the shortage of postwar supplies, ironwood folding beds, also known as civilian wooden beds, appeared. They were made of solid wood and canvas and were the most common type. They were simple and durable. They were produced by cooperatives and standardized by state-owned enterprises. You could often see inscriptions such as "joint public-private enterprise" or "local ironworks" on the folding beds.

"We have those things. It's just that our institute hasn't applied for them yet."

Jiang Zhenghua nodded: "Then I'll ask Chief Qiao for three. One will stay here at the gatehouse. Everyone can take turns sleeping while they're on duty. The other two can be put away for temporary accommodation if there are any detainees in the future."

Chen Shan's eyes lit up: "The higher-ups will definitely approve such a reason."

"Alright, you two can continue your shifts. Only one of you can take a nap at a time, and whatever you do, don't do it together."

The two nodded repeatedly, saying they understood.

Jiang Zhenghua waved and walked into the courtyard.

Upon arriving in the backyard, one could hear snoring coming from inside the house, one after another.

Jiang Zhenghua paused in his steps.

I quietly walked to the second dormitory room and listened intently.

I couldn't hear a sound at all.

He reached out and pulled, and the wooden door creaked. Then he groped around on the wall, grabbed the rope, and pulled, making a click on the switch on the wall.

The dim, yellowish incandescent light bulb turned on immediately.

Qiao Fuping, who was lying diagonally on the bed, suddenly opened his eyes and rubbed them.

Jiang Zhenghua said somewhat embarrassedly, "I'm sorry to have woken you up."

Qiao Fuping waved his hand, then pointed to a bed: "That's yours, it's already made up for you. By the way, you're not drunk?"

Jiang Zhenghua walked over.

The single bed has brand new gray sheets and a gray comforter.

Put the bag in your hand on the bed.

He took two steps forward, came to Qiao Fuping's bedside, and casually took out a cigarette case from his shirt pocket, offering one to him: "It was just a simple celebration. We still have a case to investigate tomorrow, so we didn't drink much."

Qiao Fuping took the cigarette: "The rest of the toiletries are under the bed."

Jiang Zhenghua nodded: "You go ahead and smoke. I'm going to take a shower and wash my clothes while I'm at it."

I quickly rinsed it under the tap.

Then I washed the clothes and hung them on the line in the yard.

Go back to dorms.

Jiang Zhenghua lit a cigarette: "Did the instructor go home?"

"He hasn't been home for two nights. After you left, Old Zhang rode his bike back."

Jiang Zhenghua nodded.

He plopped down on the bed, then remembered the issue of resting in the duty room: "Uncle Qiao, I just passed by the gatehouse and saw that there wasn't a single bed available. How about we request three folding beds?"

"I applied last time, but Director Yang rejected it."

Speaking of this, Qiao Fuping also felt somewhat helpless.

Jiang Zhenghua looked puzzled, then suddenly realized something: "Under what pretext did you apply?"

"Of course, it's a bed for duty personnel."

That's way too direct.

Jiang Zhenghua was speechless: "This time, the application was made under the guise of providing beds in detention cells."

Upon hearing this, Qiao Fuping was taken aback, then slapped his forehead and said, "Oh dear, look at my brain. Although we value being truthful, how can we write this down exactly as it is? No wonder Director Yang looked at me so strangely back then."

He glanced at Jiang Zhenghua: "I'll submit the report tomorrow. Otherwise, sitting and resting on duty is just too torturous for the comrades."

Jiang Zhenghua smiled and nodded.

Listening to the snoring coming from next door, my ears tingled: "Who's that? Why is it snoring like thunder?"

Qiao Fuping chuckled: "The loudest sound, besides Old Geng, is definitely from Qin Weijun. As for the softer but drawn-out one, it must be that kid."

He lay down and said, "Don't worry, these two rarely stay in the dormitory, they only do it occasionally."

Jiang Zhenghua threw away his cigarette butt and said, "I'm just curious. Snoring is all too common in the army. The guy under my bed, tsk tsk, his snoring is like an earthquake."

He suddenly laughed: "After we get used to it, when he's on duty, the guys in the dorm can't sleep. We always feel like something's missing. We can only fall asleep peacefully when he comes back."

Qiao Fuping laughed out loud: "That's right. Now that you mention it, I'm reminded of something a former comrade-in-arms once said. When he first got married, his wife couldn't sleep all night because he kept bothering her. But after she got used to it, just like you said, once he wasn't around, she would complain that she couldn't sleep without him."

He suddenly sighed, "What a pity. In 1937, the War of Resistance against Japan broke out, and his wife was killed in a Japanese bombing raid. Because of this, he resolutely decided to join the army to fight the Japanese and avenge his wife."

Jiang Zhenghua asked softly, "And what about him now?"

Qiao Fuping's face was filled with pain. He closed his eyes and said in a heavy voice, "Unfortunately, he sacrificed himself on the battlefield when victory was just around the corner, and he didn't get to see what we have today."

Jiang Zhenghua saw him close his eyes in pain and didn't say anything more.