154: Chapter 154 The Great Traffic Jam

On Friday evening, Zhao Yang walked out of the Shanghai Public Security Bureau.

He had spent almost the entire day there. The technical department at the Public Security Bureau had developed a piece of software and wanted to run it on the "Cross-Regional Crime Organization Identification and Early Warning System" from the Third Institute, but it ended up throwing a bunch of bugs.

The Old Ancestor of this System was Zhao Yang, and his programming skills were the highest; since the Municipal Bureau Director had personally asked him for help, he naturally couldn't refuse.

After spending the better part of the day, he finally managed to help them get the program running.

Seeing that the time was getting late, he didn't return to the Procuratorate but headed straight to Metropolitan Night to attend Old Sun's farewell banquet.

These days, traffic in Shanghai was just like in Beijing—private cars were becoming more numerous, and the roads were getting more congested.

Once he drove onto the Central Ring viaduct, he was completely stuck; there were cars everywhere around him.

Zhao Yang sighed helplessly and called Prosecutor Qin Wenxuan, telling him that he was stuck on the Central Ring and would likely be late.

Prosecutor Qin Wenxuan burst into laughter: "You actually dared to take the Central Ring at this hour? Well, you might as well just sit there."

Zhao Yang gave a wry smile: "I don't usually take this route when I drive. It looked shorter on the map, so I chose it. I didn't think it would be this congested."

"It's always congested, and it seems like there was an accident today. Don't worry, just wait. I'll explain it to Old Sun. Rest assured, he once spent four hours stuck on the Central Ring himself, so he'll understand."

After hanging up, Zhao Yang looked at the endless line of cars ahead and behind him, shook his head helplessly, and thought that he should switch to an electric motorcycle in the future.

After sitting for a while, he rolled down the window to get some air and took the opportunity to lean out and check the situation ahead.

At that moment, a waft of fragrance brushed past. A woman wearing a white fleece vest, walking with a brisk, airy gait, passed by. The woman's peripheral vision swept over Zhao Yang's face; her footsteps stopped immediately, and when she turned to look, her eyes lit up instantly.

Zhao Yang also looked at her—what a coincidence, it was Hu Yifei, the female lead of "iPartment".

He vaguely remembered this scene; it must have been from the "Massive Traffic Jam" episode. Zeng Xiaoxian, the host of a late-night radio show, was on his way to the TV station to record a program. He had smugly rented a convertible, with Lu Zhanbo driving, and Hu Yifei and Lü Ziqiao accompanying him. They had tragically gotten stuck here at the Central Ring roundabout. Hu Yifei and Lü Ziqiao had gotten out of the car to stroll around, leaving Zeng Xiaoxian alone in the car, anxious and impatient.

Zhao Yang remembered that in the show, Hu Yifei had encountered a wild man driving an off-road vehicle and then a professional, warm-hearted man driving an Accord, and she had chatted happily with both. He just didn't know if she was currently on her way back to find Zeng Xiaoxian or if she had just started wandering around.

While he was reminiscing, Hu Yifei had already walked back and was eyeing Zhao Yang: "Handsome, are you a movie star?"

Zhao Yang was taken aback for a moment and smiled: "Unfortunately, I am not an actor."

Hu Yifei didn't respond, her eyes still glued to his face: "You're so handsome, and yet you're not a movie star!"

"Most handsome guys don't go into show business." Zhao Yang chuckled, "Are you impatient and wanting to 'walk the Central Ring'?"

"Huh?" Hu Yifei was stunned, "Walk the Central Ring? Isn't this the Central Ring?"

Zhao Yang extended his index and middle fingers, moving them alternately like two legs walking: "Walk... the Central Ring."

"Uh..." Hu Yifei realized what he meant and burst into laughter, "Not 'walk the Central Ring'! It's just that since we're stuck anyway, I got out to walk around and look at things."

"Oh, so what's the situation up ahead?"

"A never-ending stream of cars; I doubt it'll clear up for at least two hours."

Zhao Yang felt helpless too. He remembered that this traffic jam would last until nightfall; by the time he got through, the event might already be over.

A cold breeze blew across the bridge, and Hu Yifei hugged her arms.

Zhao Yang smiled: "Would you like to get in the car to warm up? The weather forecast said the temperature isn't low, but it's still a bit cold when the wind picks up."

Hu Yifei's eyes lit up: "Sure, sure, thank you."

Zhao Yang unlocked the doors. Hu Yifei pulled the door open and hopped into the car with a swift, agile motion—truly deserving of her reputation as the ceiling of combat power in iPartment.

Sitting in the car, Hu Yifei looked around, a bit surprised: "Did you customize the interior of this volkswagen passat yourself?"

Zhao Yang smiled noncommittally: "It is indeed different from the average volkswagen passat."

"Wow... this leather is really nice, so soft and fine! There's even a screen in the middle; this must have cost a lot to install." Hu Yifei said to herself while looking around, "It's much more comfortable to sit in than a regular volkswagen passat."

"It's alright." Zhao Yang smiled, "Is the air conditioning temperature comfortable?"

Hu Yifei nodded. She noticed the two small, alternating national flags on the dashboard and probed: "Handsome, what do you do for a living? Are you in the public sector?"

Zhao Yang nodded: "Yes, I work in the public sector."

"Which department? Can you reveal that?"

"The Procuratorate."

"Wow, a prosecutor!" Little stars appeared in Hu Yifei's eyes as she looked Zhao Yang up and down, imagining what he would look like in uniform.

Zhao Yang smiled faintly: "With such clear eyes, beautiful, I'm guessing you're either still a student or working at a university, right?"

"Huh?" Hu Yifei was taken aback for a moment, then laughed, "You guessed right. I stayed at the university after getting my master's degree, and I'm a counselor now. By the way, you said my eyes are clear? Really?"

Zhao Yang nodded: "Yes, your eyes... are especially, especially clear."

"Thanks for the compliment. You really know how to talk, handsome."

Zhao Yang's lips curled up. Indeed, in this day and age, "clear" was still a purely positive term.

Just as Hu Yifei wanted to continue the conversation, her phone suddenly rang. The words "Scumbag Zeng" flashed on the screen. She pressed the answer button and said with dissatisfaction: "Zeng Xiaoxian, what do you want? The road ahead is still packed tight."

"Where did you run off to? Get back here immediately! If you don't come back, two men are going to duel."

Hu Yifei was stunned: "What two men dueling? What are you talking about?"

"One has a tattoo, and the other is dressed in a suit. Hu Yifei, what on earth have you done?"

Hu Yifei was suddenly alarmed: "I'm coming over right now, just wait."

After hanging up, she looked at Zhao Yang with an apologetic expression: "I'm sorry, I can't talk anymore. There's an emergency with my friend, and I need to rush over."

Zhao Yang nodded: "Go ahead."

After Hu Yifei left, Zhao Yang leaned back in his seat, watching the sky outside the car window gradually darken. He turned on the in-car TV and tuned into "Ruyu Has an Appointment".

Zeng Xiaoxian had perfectly missed his chance to be on TV. His boss, Lisa Rong, had drafted Guan Gu Qiji, who had come to the station to support Zeng Xiaoxian, on the spot. Thus, on the "Ruyu Has an Appointment" program, Zeng Xiaoxian's roommate—the manga artist Guan Gu Qiji from Japan—had replaced him as the guest, walking onto the stage in front of the camera with wild gestures, looking just like a monkey.

Just as Zhao Yang was watching the comical "Ruyu Has an Appointment", the farewell banquet held by the Procuratorate for Old Sun was in full swing, with glasses clinking and people mingling.

Opposite the "Fisherman's Evening Song" private room, Manager Chen Sifu was having dinner with his employees. The employees were in high spirits, but Manager Chen Sifu was distracted. He kept glancing at the door opposite and would go out for a stroll every now and then.

He even carefully leaned against the crack of the door opposite to peek inside, but he still couldn't see a trace of Zhao Yang. He was even tempted to call Song Siming.

Was the intelligence today accurate or not?