Li Fulin's mind went blank. Why? Why was Lu Changqing hosting the prize draw here? Hadn't he just been released from prison? How could anyone hire a convict to work? He was utterly bewildered.
In moments, the few people in front of him had all drawn their slips; some won one towel, some won two. Finally, it was his turn. Lu Changqing had just sent off a customer, looked up, and saw Li Fulin. This guy actually dared to come draw a prize. For someone like him, Lu Changqing didn't even want to give him a single towel. "Li Fulin! You ran off earlier. The police searched the entire People's Market for the person who made the false report but couldn't find you. I didn't expect you to be here."
Li Fulin's face was pale, but he forced himself to argue, "I haven't broken any law. I just made a phone call. Even if the police see me, at most, they'll just criticize and educate me."
Lu Changqing sneered. In this era, most people were conservative in their thinking, held strong notions of right and wrong, and harbored a special reverence for the police. Just one sentence of intimidation was enough to make his face change color. The prize draw was almost over; this wasn't the time to argue with him. "There's no prize for you. Get out!" As for Li Fulin, not going up and breaking his legs was already a great act of self-restraint, so his words were very impolite.
Li Fulin was furious. The 21-inch color TV was right there, and he wasn't allowed to draw a prize. "Why can't I draw a prize? You're just an employee. Believe it or not, I'll go tell your boss that you just got out of prison."
Lu Changqing said coldly, "I *am* the boss!"
"You!" Li Fulin was choked into silence, his face showing an expression as if he'd seen a ghost. This prize draw event was unprecedented in its scale and spectacle. The thermal flasks were already one yuan cheaper than at the People's Department Store, and it even came with a chance to win a prize. At worst, one towel; at best, two towels. If you were truly lucky, a 21-inch color TV to take home! Such an event, and Lu Changqing was the boss. He simply couldn't believe Lu Changqing had such capability.
Lu Changqing directly began to usher him away. "I told you, people like you don't deserve to draw a prize. Get lost."
Li Fulin was unwilling. After waiting in line for so long, not being allowed to draw a prize was absolutely unacceptable. "I bought a thermal flask, so I should be allowed to draw a prize. That's the rule. If you don't let me draw, then you're a cheat."
At this point, the customers at the back of the line began to get impatient and urged, "Hurry up! Everyone's waiting to draw a prize. Can you stop dilly-dallying?" With one person taking the lead, many others joined in, and things threatened to get out of control.
Lu Changqing said irritably, "Consider yourself lucky today, Li. Go ahead and draw! Draw your prize and then get lost!"
Li Fulin grunted indignantly, then reached his hand into the prize box. After fumbling around, he pulled out a slip of paper with two marks on it—two towels. Lu Changqing tossed two towels at him. "Consider yourself lucky! If you don't want another beating, get out!"
Li Fulin took the two towels, his eyes glaring at Lu Changqing with venom. "Just you wait! This isn't over between us!" Lu Changqing's anger was instantly ignited by his words. Old and new grudges surged to his mind. He glared at Li Fulin, clenching his fists. Li Fulin sensed the shift in mood and quickly disappeared into the crowd. Lu Changqing looked at the few remaining prize drawers, could only curse under his breath, and continued to guard the prize box.
Li Fulin entered the crowd but was reluctant to leave. He looked back at the 21-inch color TV on the table, and an idea sprouted in his mind like wild grass. *There's something wrong with this prize draw. Out of ten thousand participants, only about a hundred are left, yet the grand prize, the color TV, hasn't been drawn. Lu Changqing must be up to something.* Believing he had discovered the truth, this was an opportunity to ruin Lu Changqing, at least putting him in jail for another ten to fifteen years. Thinking this, he quickly ran out of the crowd and called the police from a small shop. "Hello, is this the Public Security Bureau? I want to report someone. Someone is committing fraud on New Year's Eve, and nearly ten thousand people have been swindled. He's a convict named Lu Changqing, and he's perpetrating a scam in front of the People's Department Store. Come quickly and arrest him!"
The operator was startled. Nearly ten thousand people scammed on New Year's Eve—this was a mass incident. She immediately reported the case to her superiors. Liu Shouzhong had just returned to the police station. While warming his hands by the fire, he grumbled, "People are getting bolder and bolder these days. Daring to trick the police on New Year's Eve! Don't let me catch him, or I'll make him keep watch with me at the station tonight!" No sooner had he finished speaking than the phone in the duty room rang. He picked it up, startled. It was from the bureau, saying someone was committing fraud in front of the People's Department Store, and nearly ten thousand people had been swindled. He was instructed to verify the situation. Without even time for a sip of water, he immediately rushed to the People's Department Store.
After calling the police, Li Fulin returned to the prize draw site. He watched as the number of people drawing prizes dwindled, leaving fewer than forty. If he didn't stop it now, by the time the police arrived, the scene would disperse, and all the witnesses and evidence would vanish. Anxiously, he stepped forward and shouted, "You've all been tricked! He's a swindler!"
When he yelled this, many people who had finished drawing their prizes but hadn't left, waiting to see who won the grand prize, all looked over. Lu Changqing looked at Li Fulin with eyes cold as knives. It was him again! He really wished he could have punched him to death right then and there.
Li Fulin grew even more excited when everyone looked his way. "You've all been tricked! This person isn't good. There are no color TV prize tickets inside at all. You've all been scammed!"
A woman stepped forward. "Scammed? The prize tickets haven't all been drawn yet. How can you say we've been scammed?"
An old man nearby also said, "A thermal flask for nine yuan, one yuan cheaper than the department store. I think this young man is very honest."
Li Fulin hadn't expected such fools, scammed yet unaware, even speaking up for Lu Changqing. He couldn't help but sneer, "Do you know who he is? A convict! He was imprisoned for three years for hooliganism and was only just released today. How could he possibly be giving everyone a discount?"
As soon as he spoke, a stir went through the crowd. Many people began to point fingers at Lu Changqing. Some even started to hurl insults. However, those eagerly waiting to draw prizes ignored all this, and the people at the front of the line continued to draw. Lu Changqing could only busy himself with the customers, having no time to bother with Li Fulin. In fact, if he had just ten more minutes, the prize draw would have been over. At this point, Lu Changqing was also starting to get anxious.
Amidst Li Fulin's shouting, some people were swayed and started to join in, jeering, "It's unfair! There's a hidden agenda! Clearly, there are no color TV prize tickets inside! This is fraud!" One person started shouting, and others immediately followed, with more and more people denouncing Lu Changqing. Only the last twenty people remained to draw prizes.
Just then, Liu Shouzhong arrived. His first action was to stop the draw. "Everyone stop! The prize draw is suspended. Someone reported fraudulent activities related to the draw. Stop immediately!"
Lu Changqing frowned, handed a towel to a winner, and turned to look. He saw a person in a grass-green uniform, wearing a wide-brimmed cap with wheat ears and an emblem, and several five-pointed stars on the epaulets. He paused, feeling a little disoriented. In the future, police officers would wear blue, the internationally unified police uniform color. But now, this officer was still wearing grass-green, which was a bit hard to adjust to. However, these were only momentary thoughts. At this moment, he had to actively inquire about the situation. "Officer, hello. This is a legitimate event; there's no fraud involved. Who called the police? Is there a mistake? Maybe it's a prank."
Liu Shouzhong nodded. "Perhaps. Someone tried to trick me earlier too, but I still need to verify the situation. If there's no problem, you can continue."
Li Fulin heard this and grew anxious. "I'm the one who called the police! This person is Lu Changqing, a convict! I'm certain he's committing fraud! Out of ten thousand prize tickets, only twenty people haven't drawn yet. The biggest prize, the big color TV, still hasn't been won. It must be that there's no first prize in this box, otherwise, the color TV would have been drawn long ago! He's definitely committing fraud!"