4.5 Driving Lessons: One Month Later

"Jingjing, are we really doing this?"

"Yes, Jie-fu. We are."

"Is it really okay?"

"Yeah. Trust me.

"But...but..."

"Don't be afraid."

"I am nervous. It's my first time."

"I know."

"What if I make a mistake?"

"It'll be okay. I am here."

"Do you think I am good enough?"

"Not at all. Your parking skills are still theoretical. You reverse like a donkey trying to catwalk on one leg. But at least you can take the car forward and know when to speed up and when to slow down."

"Is that enough for the road?"

"No, but we need to get you on the road sometime. We can't just keep driving around the campus. Don't worry, we will take it slow. Baby steps."

"But what if there are other vehicles?"

"The university road is almost empty at this time of day. Just stick to your lane, and drive carefully. If anything happens, remember that I am here."

"Okay. I will trust you."

"Thank you, Jie-fu. Now, let's start."

Li Wei started the car. This was one aspect of driving he had mastered completely during a month of lessons. Very slowly, he pressed the accelerator pedal while focusing intently in front of him, scanning for anything that might be heading their way."

"Jie-fu, you can go a little faster. We are barely moving. And don't be so stiff. Relax, and don't focus on a single point."

"Okay, okay."

They drove for a little while.

"Alright, let's turn here. Yeah, that's right. Slowly, slowly."

"Jingjing, I think we are stuck."

"Jie-fu, you are pressing the brake pedal. Press the accelerator."

"Ohh! Sorry."

"Okay, let's finish the turn. Yeah, that's great. See, it's not so bad."

"Yeah. I think I can get the hang of this."

Suddenly, sirens started blaring, and a police car began following them.

Li Wei, to whom rules and authority were as inviolable as the laws of physics, was in full-on panic. "Jingjing. What do we do?" he asked. "It's the police. They are going to arrest us."

"Don't be scared, Wei-ge. Just stop the car over here on the side. Good. Now let's switch seats. I'll handle this."

"Should I pretend to be your daughter?"

"What?!"

"Huh?!"

"Wei-ge, you are panicking. It's okay. We haven't done anything wrong."

"Yeah, yeah, that's right. I mean, you have a license, right? We can just say that you were driving."

"I don't have a license."

"Wait, what? What do you mean? You forgot to bring it?"

"No. I never got a driving license."

A policewoman knocked on the window. When it was lowered, she saw a calm female driver with a cute smile and a slightly trembling male passenger. "Your license and registration, please," she asked.

*     *     *

An Mei looked at the clock. It was nearly 8:30. The breakfast was ready, but Li Wei and An Jing were still not back. Usually they were home by 7:45 after Li Wei was done "running with Professor Shen." Of course, An Mei knew that it was an absurd lie. The fact that An Jing had covered for him and that they were coming home together for breakfast meant that those two were up to something together. Despite the secrecy, An Jing's involvement in whatever Li Wei was up to had eased An Mei's worries. She had let them keep their secret for now and was pretending to be completely oblivious. But why were they so late today? Both of them had classes at 9, and Jingjing had to go back to her dorm to get changed. When she was about to pick up her phone and call them, it started ringing, showing an unknown number.

"Hello? Who is this?" An Mei asked the caller.

"Is this Ms. An Mei?" A young girl's voice, probably close to An Mei's own age, asked from the other side.

"Yes. This is her. May I ask who is calling?"

"Ma'am, this is Officer Leng Ruo from the university police precinct."

"The police?" An Mei's tone changed from curiosity to slight worry.

"Yes, ma'am. Are you the wife of one Li Wei, male, 22, and sister of one An Ying, female, 18?"

"Yes...yes, officer, I am. But her name is An Jing, not An Ying."

"Is that so? Thank you for the correction, ma'am. It seems the perp has lied to us."

"The perp? You mean my sister? What happened to her? What happened to my husband?" An Mei asked, her worry now turning to panic.

"Yes, ma'am. I was referring to your sister, An Jing, female, 18. Perp 1, An Jing, female, 18, along with Perp 2, your husband Li Wei, male, 22, was caught next to the university road at 7:25 a.m. driving a Dragon S6 electric vehicle without a driving license. They were taken into custody by myself, Officer Leng Ruo, at 7:35 a.m. after they failed to produce relevant documentation." Despite the formal tone, the voice on the other side of the line seemed quite proud of this accomplishment.

"They were driving a car? But...but we don't own a car. My sister just has a bicycle, and my husband just walks or takes the bus," An Mei said, hoping that the officer was mistaken.

"I see. It appears that this case might be more serious than I previously thought. Your statement seems to contradict the documentation they produced at the time of their capture. We now have to consider the possibility that the perps stole said vehicle and were taking it for a joyride without a proper license and a forged registration. Thank you for your cooperation ma'am. I will be sure to investigate this to the full extent and root out the ringleaders of this operation."

"They...they stole a car? Officer, that's not possible. My husband, he would never do anything like that. He is a sweet and gentle man. I think there must be some mistake, please." An Mei pleaded as tears started streaming down her beautiful cheeks.

"I will take that into consideration, ma'am. I suspected early on that An Jing, female, 18, was the leader of this duo. She has all the signs of a classic teenage delinquent. Don't worry, Ms. An. I will investigate this case fully and make sure that justice is served.

An Mei was about to say that her sister is also innocent, but then remembered that it was An Jing, and nothing about her was innocent. "Officer... Can I...can I talk to them, please? I want to see if they are okay."

"Ahh! Yes! That was the purpose of my call. We want you to come to the university police station to answer a few questions. Don't worry, ma'am, you are not under investigation, yet; we just want to clarify a couple of things."

"I will... I'll be there. I am coming," said a distraught An Mei.

As soon as the call ended, a scared and tearful An Mei made another frantic phone call.

"Jie."

"Hello? Xiao-Mei? What is it? Are you crying?" Li Fen asked, her voice full of concern.

"Jie, Weiwei, and Jingjing...he..." An Mei broke down in tears before she could finish her sentence.

"Meimei, calm down. What happened to Weiwei and Jingjing? I am here. Don't worry, whatever it is, I will take care of it."

"Jie...they...they were arrested."

"What? When did this happen? Why didn't his security detail tell me about it? Where are they right now?"

"I just got a call...from the university police station. The officer said...she said...Weiwei and Jingjing...she said... They stole a car."

"Stole?" There was a moment's pause. "Meimei, listen. Everything will be all right. I will take care of it. We will be at your apartment in 10 minutes. We will go to the police station together. It's going to be all right. Don't cry, okay?"

"Okay, Jie," An Mei sniffled.