Qing Jie is amazing!
Cai Xiaojuan silently gave Lu Qingqing a thumbs up.
"Director Li, I can testify for classmate Lu Qingqing. She did submit a leave request, and the subject teachers also agreed."
"Yes, we can also testify."
"Furthermore, classmate Lu Qingqing was not absent as often as Teacher Tong claimed. Although she didn't attend physical training in the morning yesterday, she returned in the afternoon and went through all the morning's lessons."
"Right! Lu Qingqing at least came back to make up for the classes. May I ask about Tong Meng? She still hasn't returned to school. Why isn't Teacher Tong mentioning it? Is it just because she's your sister?" Kuaishuge
Everyone was speaking up for Lu Qingqing. If before they simply liked Lu Qingqing, now they hated Tong Hua.
Because throughout the entire meeting, Tong Hua had been accusing Lu Qingqing, while not saying a single word about Tong Meng.
It was known that Tong Meng had missed no less classes than Lu Qingqing this week.
As expected, as soon as this remark was made, even Li Hongjiang glanced at Tong Hua with displeasure. He felt incredibly frustrated at this moment. If it weren't for his son, why would he tarnish the reputation he had fought for his entire life?
"Tong Meng has requested leave from me," Tong Hua said.
"Then didn't Lu Qingqing request leave?" Zhan Ruoxuan retorted.
"You must understand that I am your class counselor and oversee all matters of the class. If I haven't received a leave request, then it's invalid," Tong Hua said. "If everyone starts requesting leave from their subject teachers, what about the core management of the class?"
Seeing that everyone still had something to say, Tong Hua quickly added, "Of course, I also know that classmate Lu Qingqing had valid reasons. Considering it's her first offense, the disciplinary action can be overlooked, but some punishment is still necessary."
Saying this, Hu Jia seemed to ponder for a moment: "How about this: I'll punish you by making you do all the school cleaning tomorrow and prepare all the preliminary work for the welcoming ceremony of new students the day after tomorrow."
Uh...
As soon as he said this, everyone fell silent. After all, such a punishment was much lighter than deductions or warnings.
Everyone shared the same sentiment: it's best to seize the opportunity and accept it.
Lu Qingqing also understood this principle, but she still felt uneasy. This approach of raising the bar high only to lower it gently didn't seem like Tong Hua's usual style.
What other trick was he hiding up his sleeve?
However, Lu Qingqing did not object. Doing some work was simple enough.
...
But on the second day, Lu Qingqing discovered that his plan was quite cunning. The cleaning task didn't seem like much, but completing all of it would take at least a whole day, not to mention preparing for the new student welcoming event.
Fortunately, Tong Hua allowed two people to help, so Zhan Ruoxuan and Guan Jinsong stepped forward.
"Qingqing, Tong Hua just wants to wear you out!" Zhan Ruoxuan had been wiping windows, and his hands felt like they were about to break.
"Just consider it exercise," Lu Qingqing replied absentmindedly. After all, it was Sunday again, and Hu Jia was still out of contact. More importantly, his next period of amnesia was approaching.
"Has Captain Hu not been found yet?" Guan Jinsong saw Lu Qingqing's distractedness. "Don't worry too much. What kind of person is Captain Hu? He's talented in both martial arts and literature. Perhaps something delayed him."
In truth, Guan Jinsong didn't even believe his own words.
"Mhm," Lu Qingqing nodded. "Thank you for your help. I want to finish the work quickly so I can go to the Municipal Bureau and ask about the situation."
"Don't worry, we'll be quick and efficient, and we'll definitely finish the task ahead of time," Zhan Ruoxuan said, accelerating his movements.
However, not long after, a teacher from the academic affairs office came looking for her. He asked Lu Qingqing to go to the Municipal Bureau to retrieve some information about the new student class.
"The welcoming ceremony is tomorrow, and they're still retrieving data today?" Zhan Ruoxuan questioned. "This is clearly delaying things."
"You talk too much, kid," the teacher reprimanded Zhan Ruoxuan with a stern face. Then, looking at Lu Qingqing, he said with a gentler tone, "The previously submitted materials omitted their work experience. I intended to go myself, but Teacher Tong Hua said this was for the welcoming preparations and specifically asked for you to go."
Lu Qingqing wrung the water out of her cleaning cloth. "It's fine, I'll go!" Although this would slightly delay things, it was exactly what she wanted.
Lu Qingqing quickly retrieved the documents from the Municipal Bureau. Afterward, she also went to the Criminal Investigation Team, but unfortunately, the office was empty. Just as she was about to leave in extreme disappointment, the ringing of the telephone on the desk caught her attention.
"Hello?" Lu Qingqing answered. Normally, she wouldn't have bothered, as it wasn't her office. But things were different now. She felt that every call might be a message about Hu Jia, and she naturally wouldn't miss it.
"Hello? Speak!" Lu Qingqing found it strange. She had answered the phone, but there was no response from the other end. Just as she was about to hang up and leave, her eyes were drawn to a piece of paper on the floor.
The paper was pressed under a book, revealing only half of it. However, the words "Dao Ren" were clearly visible.
Lu Qingqing pulled it out. It was an action deployment plan. The other contents were not important. What was important was a column stating that an arrest operation would be carried out at Shibanpo Yuqian Tea House at 4 PM.
The Criminal Investigation Team was going to raid a "Dao Ren" den?
Lu Qingqing became excited. How could she miss such an event? After all, Hu Jia might be in the hands of the "Dao Ren."
Raising her wrist, she saw that it was only 12:30 PM. There was ample time. Without looking back, Lu Qingqing rushed out of the police station.
The distance from the Municipal Public Security Bureau to Shibanpo was about 20 minutes. However, this stretch of road was all uphill, leaving Lu Qingqing breathless.
Huh?
Gao Liang?
From a distance, Lu Qingqing saw him coming out of the Yuqian Tea House. He looked around cautiously, suggesting that the operation deployment had not yet begun.
Just as Lu Qingqing was about to approach, two more men walked out of the tea house. The two men first glanced at Gao Liang's back, then exchanged a look and walked away in the opposite direction from him.
Lu Qingqing instinctively hid behind a tree.
Because she recognized the two men. They were the "Dao Ren" she had apprehended when rescuing Feng Si on her way back to the city from Huayan.
Why was Gao Liang with them?
Seeing them leave the tea house one after another, coupled with Gao Liang's demeanor and actions, Lu Qingqing felt uneasy.
But soon, she comforted herself. It was impossible. Gao Liang couldn't possibly be involved!
However, in the end, Lu Qingqing did not reveal herself. She told herself that it wasn't that she didn't trust Gao Liang, but she wanted further confirmation.
So, she remained hidden behind the tree until 4 PM, when Ouyang Wen led a group of people from the Criminal Investigation Team into the tea house.
But they soon emerged, enraged.
Lu Qingqing's heart sank. It seemed the operation had indeed failed.
"Hey! What are you guys doing here?" Lu Qingqing pretended to be passing by and waved enthusiastically. Her gaze swept over Ouyang Wen, who was still fuming. She then looked at Gao Liang, who also wore a dejected expression.
"Qingqing!" Ouyang Wen finally managed a slight smile. "Don't mention it. We wanted to catch the 'Dao Ren' today, but we were unlucky. None of them showed up."
"Hm?" Lu Qingqing was surprised by Ouyang Wen's words. "What do you mean by unlucky?"
Seeing her confusion, Ouyang Wen explained.
As mentioned before, the "Dao Ren" organization was ostensibly a small, insignificant underground group. Although the police knew some of their hideouts, they never interfered. This tea house was one of them.
This time, to find Hu Jia, the higher-ups had specially approved a strike action to apprehend some "Dao Ren" and inquire about Hu Jia's whereabouts. The operation was scheduled for 4 PM according to the plan. Unexpectedly, when they entered, they found no one at the tea house that day.
"They usually come here for tea every weekend, but none of them showed up today. They must have had other things to do. You see, we were just unlucky, weren't we?"
Hearing Ouyang Wen's words, Lu Qingqing thought for a moment and asked, "Could the news have leaked?"
"Impossible! Everyone who knew the order was one of us!" Ouyang Wen said.