Chapter 20 of 100

Chapter 20

16 min read3,916 words

The Republic of Buxian has its own inspection system. As the citizens of the Zhou Mountain Empire would say, Buxian’s inspections are the most watered down.

As for the Zhenhai Alliance, it’s the most interesting. It’s a commercial alliance without a monarch. No one’s word counts, except for one thing: money.

No matter how much you mock the Zhenhai Alliance, you can’t deny that the quality of the goods it produces, whether military or civilian, is the best, and its currency is the most stable.

Under such a system, inspections have two extremes. If they don’t bring benefits, no matter who conducts the inspection, it’s all nonsense. Conversely, if an inspection can bring benefits, even if you’re just a minor official, there will be plenty of people to support you.

“I don’t know the level of today’s inspection yet; the information hasn’t come through. The level shouldn’t be too low,” said Bi Changsheng, who was also uncertain. Fortunately, inspections in the empire are not frequent, only a few times a year, which is acceptable.

Just as he was about to arrange the work, the door to the lounge was pushed open, and two police officers in uniform walked in. From their shoulder badges, they were of high rank. The most eye-catching were their arm patches, featuring a fierce tiger with a pair of silver wings on its waist.

The Flying Tiger Team. Are these two from the Flying Tiger Team?

Du Qian had only been in the police force for a few days, so he wasn’t familiar with everyone, but he couldn’t possibly not know the name of the Flying Tiger Team.

The Flying Tiger Team is always short of personnel. The minimum requirement for entry is a martial cultivator, and there are age restrictions. Even if you are a martial cultivator, if you are too old, they won’t consider you.

Among the major armed forces in Pingchuan City, the military ranks first, but they are stationed outside the city, with only military districts and logistics units inside. Below the military is the city guard, which is usually under the control of the city lord’s office and is led by the military during wartime, making it a second-line force with dual command.

Below the city guard is the Flying Tiger Team. The Flying Tiger Team also has dual leadership. It is a department under the police system, wearing police uniforms and stationed at the police station. At the same time, it is guided by the city lord’s office, which can directly command the Flying Tiger Team when needed.

The Flying Tiger Team is the combat unit of the police, a relatively pure combat organization. They do not handle public security, criminal investigations, or even major cases like smuggling and drug trafficking.

The Flying Tiger Team’s only purpose is to eliminate the enemy.

The two men entered the room, swiped their identity cards on the card reader at the door, and the green light confirmed their identity. One of them said, “Captain Bi, right? Today’s matter will be handled by the Flying Tiger Team. Your patrol and criminal investigation departments only need to provide support.”

“Alright, how should we support?”

“Simple. Gangsters, hooligans, thugs, thieves—anyone on the list, arrange for them to have a chat. After the inspection, they can do as they please.”

“Understood.”

In a few words, the matter was settled. People from the Flying Tiger Team are like this; they talk about business and leave when there’s nothing to do. Bi Changsheng was used to it. These guys don’t like interacting with others and have their own circles. They are called police, but they are not really police.

To be an excellent police officer, you first need to be familiar with people, then with the area, and only then do your knowledge and abilities come into play. Combat ability is the last priority.

“Did you all hear that? It seems the inspection level has been upgraded, making our job easier. But everyone, be careful. The more such times, the more you must avoid trouble. If something happens, someone has to take the fall,” said Bi Changsheng. Most of the people here were experienced, so he didn’t need to arrange anything further.

“Let’s go.” With a wave of his hand, the patrol officers left the station one by one. Today’s work wasn’t busy, but they had to be on high alert.

Unexpected events are what the little guys enjoy, but as a patrol officer, you hate them the most. Criticism, reprimands, and bonus deductions are minor issues. If you’re not careful and become the scapegoat, you’ll lose your police uniform for sure and might even end up in jail for a few years.

“Uncle Feng, what should we do?” Du Qian asked curiously as he got into the car. He had no experience with this and didn’t know what to do.

“Today we need to split up. Didn’t you see the patrol cars being distributed? This is to save time. I and a few others will invite people for a chat. You and the others will supervise sanitation and street vendors. Those who sell snacks at the docks, tell them to take a day off. If they don’t listen, confiscate their goods.”

“Alright, I understand.” Du Qian found it boring but also felt a bit happy. Today wasn’t busy, so he could walk around the docks and look for spirit fragments.

At the dock intersection, Feng Bao dropped off Du Qian and drove away. His phone didn’t stop ringing as he informed the heads and managers, and gathered the people who usually cause trouble. Today, they just had to have a chat, as they did every year, and everyone was familiar with the routine.

After an hour, Du Qian supervised the sanitation department to clean up the most obvious garbage piles and gave the street vendors a day off. He then walked along the docks, checking each berth.

The Fisherman’s Wharf has 123 berths, almost side by side. Ships are constantly leaving and arriving, but most of the fishing boats here are small to medium-sized, which can only fish in the near sea and rarely encounter spirit fish. Even if they do, they are treated like treasures and are unlikely to have what Du Qian needs.

After more than an hour, he finally found what he was looking for, but the harvest was only half of yesterday’s, and it cost ten yuan. The price of spirit fragments is determined by appearance, with no fixed rate. Du Qian knew that yesterday, Manager Li gave him a favor, and today was the real price.

“Wow... No way, that’s too much.” A startled cry from beside him made Du Qian jump, almost dropping the wrapped spirit fragments.

He had been in a bad mood, reflecting on the day. The spirit fragments were not only fewer in number but also bought at the wrong time. His experience was still lacking. The longer the spirit fragments exist, the more spirit energy they lose. He should have bought them in the afternoon.

Was buying in the afternoon really better? The loss of spirit energy starts from the moment they break, so buying in the afternoon might not necessarily be better.

He was still conflicted when the shout really scared him.

“Who’s there?” Looking up, Du Qian was angry. The small face in front of him was the girl who had caused him trouble yesterday.

Seeing his enemy, his anger flared. He was wearing a police uniform today, and this little girl dared to confront him. He would teach her a lesson.

“Stop, don’t move. Are you trying to assault a police officer?” He placed his right hand on the gun holster at his waist.

Du Qian swore to the emperor that this was just a reflex. Even though he had only been in the police force for a few days, the feeling of having a gun at his waist was great. Even if citizens could buy guns, who would dare to carry one in broad daylight?

He was just a patrol officer, but the charge of assaulting a police officer was quite useful, big or small. Police officers represent the city lord’s office and the empire. The city lord’s office and the empire are very concerned about their reputation. If you harm one of their people, they will deal with your entire family.

Du Qian knew that last night was just a verbal conflict, and both girls were at fault, as was he. His sharp tongue, honed by practicing with Lei Ming, was not pleasant to hear. But today, he would take advantage of his position and bully her.

His heart raced, and the anger that had risen to his head instantly subsided. It wasn’t that Du Qian was particularly rational, but a feeling he couldn’t explain made him calm down.

The situation was wrong. The little girl in front of him was still smiling, but a few steps away, the older girl’s face turned cold. There were also more people around.

The docks were never short of people, with more people coming and going than in a market. Du Qian had only been working for a few days, but he could clearly sense that these people were different from the sea ghosts on the docks. The feeling of being out of place was like the contrast between red and black, clearly defined.

The situation was wrong. These were all strong men, dressed differently, but it was obvious they were a group. They were almost writing “we are a group” on their faces.

Du Qian could clearly sense that these people were very powerful, though he couldn’t tell how powerful.

Actually, Du Qian wasn’t very concerned about their strength. The two girls in front of him were already much stronger than him. His strength came from his uniform, representing the city lord’s office and the empire. No matter how strong they were, could they be stronger than the city lord’s office and the empire?

But their reaction was too much. Dozens of eyes stared at Du Qian, making his hair stand on end, and they were so blatant about it.

A few of them even pulled open their jackets, raised their middle fingers, and glared. It was a provocation, a clear challenge, completely disregarding his police uniform.

“Assaulting a police officer? Do you have evidence? According to the empire’s law, everything needs evidence, or the court will not accept it,” the little girl said, her big eyes twinkling with a smug look.

This made Du Qian both angry and curious, and he couldn’t help but look at her more.

Du Qian wasn’t stupid. Last night, he had guessed that these two girls were not ordinary. He didn’t expect to run into them at the Fisherman’s Wharf today, a place they shouldn’t be.

His face fell. “Little miss, I give up. Look, look at my head. We have a task at the docks today. Can you please not cause trouble? I don’t want to be the scapegoat.”

“What is a scapegoat?” The little girl’s face showed curiosity. With her upbringing, many things were beyond her reach.

“A scapegoat is someone who takes the blame after something goes wrong.”

“You’re a good person. I’ve decided to call you Scapegoat from now on.” The girl was delighted. How interesting, I didn’t know such a thing existed.

“Cut it out... You’re the good person, and your whole family is good.”

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