Tips: The ending of the previous chapter has been revised.
…
…
Chixia stepped forward from behind, grabbing both of Lucian's wrists without a word:
"Today, I, Patroller Chixia, will arrest you for the safety of Jinzhou's beautiful girls!"
Lucian, hands behind his back, gave an awkward smile, "Xiaofang… you know me. I'm all about pure love! How could I do anything to threaten the safety of beautiful girls?"
Chixia's face flushed, "What Xiaofang! I told you, call me by my title during work! It's Patroller Chixia."
"And don't think you can fool me. I saw what you were about to do."
"Besides, from what I know of you, the word 'pure love' doesn't exactly fit, does it?"
Lucian's expression turned serious, "How doesn't it fit? Pure love for every beautiful girl—how is that not pure love?"
Chixia: "You call that pure love?"
Lumi hesitated, "Um… maybe we should let Intelligence Officer Lucian go? I believe he didn't mean any harm."
Lucian's lips curved, "See, see? Even Lumi's not saying anything, Chixia. Why are you butting in?"
"Even if you're an Patroller of Jinzhou, even if you and Lumi are friends, you can't just pin crimes on me!"
Chixia paused, "Pin… what? Lumi, did you catch that?"
Lumi shook her head, "I didn't get it either… but I think Intelligence Officer Lucian means you can't just arrest good people, right?"
Lucian nodded slightly, "Exactly, Chixia. Let me go already."
Chixia hesitated, "But…"
She had clearly seen Lucian's sneaky hand reaching for Lumi's…
If she hadn't passed by and called out, Lumi might've been in trouble.
Lumi didn't mind, which gave Lucian confidence, "But what?"
"As an Patroller, you need evidence to arrest someone. No evidence, and it's just false accusations!"
Chixia was sweating profusely, "But I clearly saw you reaching out…"
As a young woman just beginning to understand romance, she felt too shy to mention private parts in public.
Lumi asked, puzzled, "Reaching out, and then?"
Lucian jumped in, "Of course, I was reaching out to swat a mosquito off Lumi's back."
"After all, helpful Intelligence Officers like me are rare, but Chixia scared the mosquito away as soon as she showed up."
"What if that mosquito goes and bites someone else? What if it's carrying a virus? Xiaofang, tell me, what's the deal with you… ugh!"
Lucian shook his head, sighing with a face full of disappointment.
Chixia couldn't believe it, "This… you're blaming me for this?"
"And that mosquito story is obviously made up!"
Chixia hurriedly grabbed Lumi's arm, "Lumi, you need to stay away from Lucian. This guy's a flirt!"
Lucian: "?"
Chixia continued, "This guy flirts with girls everywhere. You need to be careful not to fall for his tricks."
Lumi frowned, "Flirting with girls everywhere? That doesn't sound like what I've seen."
"I remember reading in the Jinzhou Daily that Mr. Lucian stopped a Fractsidus plot and was called a true hero!"
"…How could he be like you say?"
Lucian crossed his arms, scolding, "Exactly, Chixia. Not only do you, as an Patroller, fail to promote my heroic deeds and take me as an example, but you're slandering me with baseless accusations. What's your crime, huh?"
Chixia: "???"
"Damn it, you haven't changed a bit after all this time. You can talk black into white!"
Chixia angrily grabbed Lucian's collar, shaking him back and forth.
Lucian seized the chance to grab her wrists and pull her into his arms.
He ruffled her red hair, "Miss me after all this time?"
Chixia, in his embrace, huffed playfully, "You didn't even come see me after so long. Honestly, don't forget we're supposed to get married!"
Lumi rubbed her big, expressive eyes, utterly confused. Chixia had just warned her to stay away from Lucian, so why was she clinging to him now?
And Patroller Chixia, who was so warm and cheerful in her mind, seemed like a different person around Intelligence Officer Lucian…
Lucian was also puzzled. Was this Chixia's dream or Lumi's dream?
Why were both of them here?
And…
Lucian glanced around. It was still eerily quiet, with no apparent danger…
Just as he pondered, Lumi spoke first.
Though she didn't understand Chixia and Lucian's relationship, she knew she was still on the job.
"Lucian, Chixia, I need to head to Whining Aix's Mire, so I won't bother you two."
Whining Aix's Mire? Lucian's senses perked up.
"What are you going to Whining Aix's Mire for?"
Lumi scratched her head, embarrassed, "One of my team members, Fu Lei, accidentally lost some cargo, so I want to check it out."
"And I need to find the goods quickly. I heard the client who lost them is really anxious!"
Lucian nodded slightly. So this was the lost cargo the Exile mentioned earlier.
This must be Lumi's dream, though he wasn't sure why Chixia was in it.
"In that case, I'll go with you."
Chixia looked up, puzzled, "?"
"Then I'm going too!"
Lucian ruffled her hair, "Don't you have patrols to do?"
Chixia shook her head, "I haven't had a break in ages. Taking one day off won't hurt. Besides, Yangyang's got it covered!"
"This is a rare chance to spend time with you. I need to make the most of it, and also…"
"Also?"
"Keep an eye on Lumi so she doesn't fall into your clutches!"
Lumi: "?"
Lucian: "?"
Lumi lowered her head, mumbling, "Chixia, don't worry. Intelligence Officer Lucian is so high-ranking, I know my place…"
Lumi seemed a bit self-conscious.
Her hometown, Yuezhou's Changzhuang, had been cut off from the outside world after The Lament's invasion, losing all contact.
Since then, Yuezhou's technology had stagnated, even regressed, and its people returned to hunting, fishing, and farming in the deep mountains to survive.
Much later, Lumi had fainted while hunting and was found by a Lollo Logistics transport team, finally seeing the outside world.
Lucian coughed lightly, "Lumi, you heard me earlier. I'm all about pure love! As for what pure love means, let Chixia explain it to you!"
Chixia knocked his head, "Explain, my foot!"
She grabbed Lumi's hand, "Don't mind him. This guy's never serious…"
Lumi glanced back at Lucian, her mind racing.
She'd heard Lucian's definition of pure love: pure love for every beautiful girl…
She wondered if she counted as a beautiful girl in Lucian's eyes. Her mother had always said she was pretty…
Thinking of this, Lumi's lips pursed, her face slightly flushed.