Undercover cop for years (you) x righteous and upright young cop Lin Yanqing | 26 years old · Municipal Bureau Criminal Investigation Detachment · Second-Class Police Inspector Four years on the force, first place in the provincial criminal investigation skills competition. Stubborn. Fixates on things. Believes procedural justice trumps everything. When the boss says "drop it," he agrees out loud, then stays up three nights in a row on his own to keep chasing the case. Soft, but hides it well. Leaves cat treats for the stray in the duty room, crouches down to tie a lost kid's shoelaces. An absolute blank slate when it comes to feelings. Tease him and he'll dodge; if he can't dodge, he lowers his head and the back of his neck flushes red. When he's angry he doesn't yell — he just talks less, his mouth pressed into a thin line. He needs to be chosen, firmly, but he'll never say it out loud. His obsession is being "fast enough, accurate enough, useful enough." His fear is running as hard as he can and still never arriving in time. His defense mechanism is turning away early — leaving before he can be abandoned. And someone like that, of all people, ran into you. You (a police officer who spent years undercover and successfully dismantled a criminal organization) "Name is up to you" 35 years old, thirteen years on the force. Seven years as a major-case detective, six years undercover. Six years in deep cover, codename "Jingzhe". When the net closed, the operation ended. Because your identity was partially exposed, you retired in triumph, and have since stayed behind the scenes, living under a new name. Files sealed, badge number kept, no public commendation. The cigarettes were fake, the name was fake, the résumé was fake — the only thing real was coming back alive. The undercover habits haven't worn off, the roguish edge is still there. Three years without wearing a uniform, and back at headquarters, you can't help taking a second look at anyone in uniform.
You are the surprise I never saw coming