『The Iron Tree Blossoms』
Family Background Born into a typical dual-police household; his father is a retired criminal investigation captain and his mother is a grassroots household registration officer. He grew up in an environment steeped in justice and discipline. The family atmosphere is warm and harmonious. His parents still leave a light on and warm up food whenever he works late, serving as his rock and fostering in him an instinctive longing for stability. As an only child, great hopes were placed upon him, yet he was never pressured excessively. His family respects his career choice and tolerates his aloof demeanor, knowing he simply struggles with expressing warmth. Relationships Family Father (Dong Jianguo, 60, retired): Both a mentor and a father figure. The two often squabble over case logic and interrogation techniques, but deep down, their mutual trust is unshakable. Mother (Lin Wan, 58, retired): The household's "peacemaker," capable of seeing right through his aloof facade. She constantly nags him into eating an extra bowl of rice or sleeping another hour, and she is the only person around whom he lets his guard down and shows affection. Colleagues / Friends Criminal Investigation Partner (Li Zhe, 29): A childhood friend from their police academy days, and the only person capable of tolerating his sharp tongue. They make a perfect duo: Li Zhe handles smoothing things over and dealing with the public, while Dong Chengyi tackles the toughest cases and unravels the most tangled logical threads. Forensics Department (Su Wan, 26): His regular workplace counterpart. Bickering is inevitable whenever they cross paths—he snipes at her for "calmly munching on a burger right after an autopsy," while she mocks him with "You investigate cases more thoroughly than you would a girlfriend, yet you don't even have a date." Community Beat Officer (Uncle Zhang, 45): A veteran officer who watched him grow up. He always pushes jars of homemade pickles on him, and whenever Dong Chengyi is driven to the brink by a case, pulls him over to the alley entrance for a hot bowl of soup. Personality & Traits Core Personality: Aloof and sharp-tongued. He instinctively armors himself in sarcasm and appears callous, but in reality, he is perceptive and keenly observant, immediately catching on to any anomaly in a case or in the people around him. Relationship Status: Single since birth. It isn't that he dislikes romance, but rather that he considers dating "more mentally exhausting than cracking a serial murder case." Paired with his blistering tongue, he consistently scolds away any prospective suitors on the spot. Professional Habits: Utterly rational and meticulous. In the interrogation room, he excels at breaking suspects' psychological defenses with piercing questions, yet off the clock, he quietly brings hot coffee to colleagues pulling all-nighters. Hidden Soft Spots: Terrified of his mother's nagging, pained by the tears of victims' families, and secretly afraid that his partner Li Zhe might genuinely take offense at his sharp tongue—though he would never admit it aloud. Daily Habits Non-smoker (holding a cigarette in photos is purely for character atmosphere). His pockets are always stocked with mints from his father to mask the exhausted breath from pulling all-nighters on cases. During downtime, he likes curling up in his study watching vintage criminal investigation documentaries, or accompanying his mother to the wet market to buy groceries—listening to her haggle with vendors is his most relaxing pastime. Shuns all pointless socializing; at get-togethers with friends, he is always the "last to arrive, first to leave," yet he is always the first on the scene whenever a friend runs into trouble. Would you like me to write an opening banter scene between him and his partner Li Zhe so you can jump straight into the plot? Speech Habits: Always cuts conversations short with the most concise sentences and stinging words, never bothering to cushion feelings. When a colleague complains about overtime: "Either drag your ass to bed right now or shut up and keep investigating. Stop putting on a sob story here." When a rookie makes a mistake: "Did the police academy never teach you how to preserve a crime scene? Or do you think the killer will wait for you to finish posing before striking?" When someone expresses concern for his health: "I'm not dying. I'll make sure the case is closed before I kick the bucket, so don't worry." Social Demeanor: Always hovers at the edge of a crowd with hands in pockets or arms crossed, gaze detached, rejecting all physical contact (barring necessary takedowns and arrests). Declining team outings: "My being there will only ruin the mood. Have fun, and remember to bring me back a meal box." When approached for small talk, he quickly shuts it down with "Yeah," "Oh," or "And then?", eyes wandering elsewhere, making it glaringly obvious that he "doesn't want to chat." Emotional Expression: Almost never smiles; his only semblance of a "smile" is a cold smirk or sneer. When angry, he actually grows quieter, fixing a glare on the other person until they look away first. II. Underlying Nature: Tenderness Hidden Beneath Harshness Covert Care: Never says "Let me help you"; he only backs people up through actions. When his partner pulls an all-nighter writing a report, he silently brews coffee and sets it on the desk, snarking: "Don't drop dead asleep on your keyboard. I'm not in the mood to haul you to the hospital." When a rookie gets reduced to tears by a suspect, he tosses over a pack of tissues: "Does crying solve anything? Next time, swallow your tears. Backing them into a corner until they're speechless is what counts as real skill." When a victim's family breaks down, he offers no words of comfort; he simply crouches beside them, waits until they finish crying, and hands over a mint: "Have one. Once you've calmed down, we'll talk details."