Animal Detective

Chapter 519: Chapter 423: On TV

「A few more days flew by.」 The case was officially transferred.

In the office, Ding Yuwei placed the last of the organized case files into an evidence box and closed the lid.

"It’s over."

Ding Yuwei looked up, a smile of immense relief on her face.

Shen Xin nodded slightly. ’That’s right,’ he thought, ’another case closed.’

Zhao Tianxing’s eyes darted about as he suggested, "Shouldn’t we celebrate?"

All three of them turned to look at Shen Xin in unison.

’A celebration is definitely in order.’

Shen Xin glanced at the wall clock. "How about this? Let’s do it tomorrow. For today, let’s just clock out on time and get some rest. We’ve all been working hard for days."

Ever since returning from Suihar, they had thrown themselves completely into this case. Pulling all-nighters was the norm.

When it was time, they clocked out right on the dot.

That was one of the good things about the City Bureau—when it was time to clock out, you could actually leave.

It wasn’t like at the branch office, where "off-duty" was merely a suggestion. A phone call could come at any moment, and you’d have to rush right back to work.

’As for the local police station... does "off-duty" even exist there?’

Shen Xin went to feed his birds, especially Teddy. After sacrificing a few "mouse bros" and feeding his avian friends until they were full, he finally drove home from work.

Instead of heading back to his rented apartment, he drove clear across the city to his family’s home.

He hadn’t gotten far before he was stuck in traffic on the expressway.

But it didn’t matter. To Shen Xin, even being stuck in traffic felt like a form of bliss.

In the family kitchen.

Zeng Wenyi couldn’t help but complain to Shen Xin, "Why did you even bother coming home?"

She could have played more mahjong, but no, she had to break up the game early to come home and make dinner for her son.

Sprawled on the sofa and hugging Evil Bully, Shen Xin rolled his eyes and yelled, "Mom, this is my house."

Zeng Wenyi snorted. "Bullshit. This is my house."

Irritated, Shen Xin kicked at Shen Shuang, who was covering her mouth to stifle a giggle. ’She’s practically an old maid already,’ he thought, ’and she still doesn’t take things seriously.’

Just then, Shen Haolin came downstairs. "I’m heading out to eat!" he yelled toward the kitchen, getting ready to leave.

Some friends had invited him out for dinner.

Zeng Wenyi was completely unfazed; she didn’t even grunt in acknowledgment.

Shen Xin shot up from the couch and stopped Shen Haolin. "Wait, Dad! Don’t go yet. Just wait a little while."

"What for?" Shen Haolin eyed Shen Xin warily. ’He’s up to something.’

Shen Xin glanced at the time—it was almost 6:30. "Just wait a little," he said. "It’ll be quick."

With that, he stood up and pulled Shen Haolin back.

Shen Haolin checked the time on his phone. "If you have something to say, spit it out."

Shen Xin shook his head, insisting it was nothing.

But he couldn’t let his dad leave.

Seeing that it was 6:30, Shen Xin rushed over to turn on the television.

He even turned on the cable box.

Then he switched the channel to Nanjiang TV Station.

Nanjiang had its own TV station, though pretty much no one watched it anymore.

At 6:30 p.m., the Nanjiang news program would air until 7:00, after which it would broadcast the national 7 o’clock news.

Shen Xin felt like he hadn’t watched this program in ten years.

The anchor had changed. It was now a young, beautiful woman with a sweet smile.

Shen Haolin didn’t even spare the TV a glance, just impatiently checked the messages on his phone.

Shen Xin, meanwhile, was fiddling with the cable box, trying to remember how to use the recording function.

The first news segment was about some government meeting.

After that report, there was another segment about the successful completion of a road renovation project.

Almost ten minutes into the broadcast, the anchor smiled and said, "Recently, our city’s Public Security Bureau Criminal Investigation Detachment solved a long-standing cold case."

Shen Xin immediately sat back down.

A moment later, the scene on the TV changed, and Shen Xin appeared on screen, dressed in a crisp police uniform.

"Holy shit!"

Shen Shuang’s eyes flew wide. She looked from the TV back to Shen Xin, then immediately yelled toward the kitchen, "Mom, your son is on TV!"

Shen Haolin had just answered a call from a friend and was in the middle of explaining that he’d be there soon when he saw Shen Xin being interviewed on TV. He froze instantly.

Shen Xin quietly straightened his posture, a single thought running through his head. ’As expected of myself. I’m pretty photogenic.’

Reporters had come for an interview the day before.

One reason was that the poisoning case had attracted a fair amount of public attention back when it first happened.

Another reason was for public relations.

The City Bureau had established a Cold Case Office, and since its inception, it had already solved two cold cases in a row—both of them homicides.

It was an impressive track record.

The public relations department decided to seize the opportunity to generate some publicity.

They wanted to inform the citizens that the Public Security Bureau had created a special Cold Case Office. Its mission was to clear the backlog of cold cases and give a voice to the victims who had suffered for so long.

"What about the TV?"

Zeng Wenyi walked out of the kitchen, spatula in hand.

"The TV! It’s your son!" Shen Shuang pointed at the screen, still in shock.

Only then did Zeng Wenyi see him on the screen. It was Shen Xin, speaking eloquently to the reporters and describing the duties and work of the Cold Case Office. Her eyes immediately widened.

Shen Haolin snapped out of his daze and hurriedly spoke into his phone, "Lao Li, quick, turn on your TV! My son is on TV! For real! The TV! Holy shit! It’s not CCTV, it’s the Nanjiang Platform!"

"What’s wrong with the Nanjiang Platform? It’s still TV! I’m serious, I’m not kidding you, hurry up and watch!"

Shen Haolin’s eyes were gleaming with pride.

On the screen, a caption appeared identifying Shen Xin.

Shen Xin, Team Leader, Cold Case Office, Criminal Investigation Detachment, Nanjiang City Public Security Bureau.

How’s that for a long title?

Zeng Wenyi sat down next to Shen Xin and slapped him on the shoulder, her eyes shining. "Son, you’re really something!"

Shen Shuang nodded in agreement. "Even if it’s the Nanjiang Platform that nobody watches, it’s still TV! Little bro, you’re really moving up in the world."

Shen Xin shot her a glare. ’What does she mean "nobody watches the Nanjiang Platform"? Am I not a person? I’m watching it right now!’

The interview didn’t just feature Shen Xin; Ding Yuwei, the other two members of his team, and even Zhang Hancheng made an appearance.

Unfortunately, the segment was too short, lasting only about five minutes.

As the interview concluded with Shen Xin declaring righteously that he would continue to work hard and make it his mission to serve the needs of the people by solving cold cases, Zeng Wenyi’s face was practically "glowing with pride."

"Shen Shuang, look at that," Zeng Wenyi said, pointing at the TV as she started to lecture her daughter.

’Look at your brother. He’s on television.’

’And what about you? Still treating freeloading off your parents as a lifelong career.’

This angered Shen Shuang so much that she couldn’t stop glaring at Shen Xin. She hugged Zeng Wenyi’s arm and whined, "Mom, Shen Xin did this on purpose! He wouldn’t have even come home if he wasn’t going to be on TV. He just came back to show off!"

"Watch your mouth," Zeng Wenyi said, exasperatedly trying to pinch Shen Shuang’s lips shut.

Shen Haolin forgot all about going out. He started clamoring for a proper celebration and, with great solemnity, began to encourage Shen Xin.

He said that today it was just the little Nanjiang TV Station, but in the future, he should aim for Ningjiang Satellite TV, and after that, with a little more hard work, he could get on CCTV itself.

When that day came, the Shen Family would truly have something to brag about.

As he spoke, he was already getting ready to call Shen Xin’s uncle and aunt to brag about his son being on TV.

Shen Xin couldn’t have stopped him if he tried.

But the TV interview was just an appetizer.

For solving the case, the Cold Case Office also received an official commendation from the bureau.

At the same time, Shen Xin earned another commendation of his own.

This one was from the Songpu side, for the earlier Shenghai Bank case.

Back then, Guo Jianli, the Deputy Chief of the Songpu City Economic Investigation Division, had personally told Shen Xin to his face that his contribution would not be overlooked.

It was now time for those merits to be rewarded.

Of course, the commendation had only been submitted; the specific level of the award had not yet been determined or officially issued.

The commendation from the City Bureau, however, came through quickly.

Back in the Cold Case Office, Zhao Tianxing carefully positioned the award certificate on a shelf, took two steps back, and pursed his lips, murmuring, "Not bad, not bad."

He’d never imagined that he would one day manage to earn a commendation.

He then couldn’t resist picking up the certificate again, pulling out his phone, and asking Yang Zeran to take a picture of him with it for posterity.

When the commendation was awarded at the detachment meeting, they had only taken a group photo, no individual shots.

Yang Zeran ignored the phone and turned to Shen Xin. "When are we meeting to pick the next case?"

When a case was unsolved, he was always conflicted and gloomy.

But now that this one was closed, he was immediately fired up again.

This was especially true since he had been the one to go all the way to Qiong Province and single-handedly obtain the key piece of evidence.

"Forget it," Shen Xin said with a dismissive wave. "Let’s take a couple of days off. Besides, I’ve got my own stuff to deal with."

The case was closed, but the truth behind it left a heavy feeling in his heart.

Shen Xin needed some time to decompress.

Especially since Zhao Hongjie had also attended the commendation meeting yesterday. As he was leaving, he had specifically asked Shen Xin about his "police birds."

’So I’d better take that seriously.’

For the next few days, Shen Xin planned to focus on his birds.

He wanted to successfully form his police bird squadron before the end of May.

And then put on a spectacular performance for everyone.

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