Chapter 177: This Is A Notice, Not A Discussion!
“No rush.”
Cao Weida reached out to stop him.
“Hm? Cao’er, do you have anything else to say?”
“Indeed I do.” Cao Weida pulled him to sit down, chuckling inwardly: Mama’s kiss, sure enough, money works best.
Just before, he had that look of being torn both ways, but after hearing about the monthly dividend, this enthusiasm was even more spirited than going to a brothel.
“Here’s what I’m thinking: the patrolmen, sergeants, and patrol officers below have intricate relationships with the gangs in their own jurisdictions, and many are closely involved, so I’m thinking we can’t have people from their own jurisdictions handling the arrests.”
“Otherwise, the final result will surely be unsatisfactory.”
“So I’m thinking, how about we do cross-jurisdiction arrests, and before the arrest action, all patrol officers are not allowed to go out privately, and even less allowed to communicate with each other.”
“This way, although we still can’t eliminate all networks of connections, we can maximize the arrest of these local ruffians and scoundrels who harm the neighbors.”
“And the remaining ones won’t pose too great a threat to public order and stability in the jurisdictions afterward.”
“This way, merchants can do business with peace of mind, the people can go out on the streets with peace of mind, business can improve, and the money we get can be even higher.”
“Yes, yes, exactly, just do as you say!” Xu Hancheng listened with sudden realization.
,
“Is everyone here? I won’t give any long speeches. To put it simply, I urgently called you here to announce one thing: starting today, our Outer Fifth District Police Station will arrest the black and evil forces in the jurisdiction!”
“All personnel participating in the arrests can go to the armory to requisition firearms. Those who dare to resist during the arrest can be shot on the spot!”
After hearing Xu Hancheng’s words from the main seat, everyone present had a look of disbelief.
All along, they had been managing their jurisdictions with a mix of black and white. Why, out of the blue, did Bureau Chief Xu suddenly issue such an order?
It truly caught them off guard and took many people by surprise.
Many sergeants and patrol officers had flickering gazes.
They were all colluding with the black and evil forces in their jurisdictions, and many were even their umbrellas.
Now Xu Hancheng suddenly issued this order, which was practically cutting off their money bags!
“Bureau Chief Xu, isn’t this a bit inappropriate? Such a big operation will inevitably cause chaos in Beiping’s public order.” One sergeant spoke up.
With the first one starting, immediately the second and third followed.
“Yes, Bureau Chief, Beiping’s public order is already in turmoil, and so many things have happened. If there’s another big move now, what if it causes public order to collapse?”
“I think, how about waiting a bit longer? It’s too sudden.”
Watching the scene of one speaking after another, Cao Weida sneered inwardly.
Wait a bit longer?
Wait for you to prepare with those black and evil forces?
What was needed was a surprise attack to maximize the effect.
“I support Bureau Chief Xu’s proposal.” Cao Weida was the first to stand up in support, his gaze sweeping over the room. One by one, the patrol officers and sergeants glanced at each other and then immediately looked away.
Right now, Cao Weida’s deterrent power was at its peak. With Ono Shiota backing him, they had no courage to confront him.
“Bureau Chief Xu, as the Police Station Chief of our Outer Fifth District outside Beiping City, cares for the people and is deeply worried about the current chaotic public order environment, wanting to make some due contributions to his jurisdiction.”
“Such a beneficial measure for the people—why are you obstructing it?”
“Or do you collude with those gangs and have some unspeakable connections?”
“Cao Patrol Officer, you’re going too far with that. What do you mean we collude with those gangs? That’s completely baseless!” A patrol officer shot to his feet, looking displeased.
“I’m just considering public order and stability in the jurisdiction. If this action is too big and triggers a series of unpredictable problems, won’t the Bureau Chief have to bear the responsibility in the end?”
Seeing someone dare to jump out and retort Big Brother Cao, Little Ear immediately slammed the table and cursed: “Pan Datou, who are you talking to! Believe it or not, this old man will slap you!”
“You!” Pan Datou’s face flushed red from the scolding, and he slammed the table too, roaring: “Little Ear, don’t think this old man is afraid of you! Slap me? Come on, if you’ve got the guts, slap me and see!”
“Oh~ pretty bold, huh! You think I don’t dare, right!” Little Ear scowled, kicked a stool aside with one leg, rolled up his sleeves, and was about to go fight.
“Come on! I’m scared of you! This old man wasn’t raised to be scared!”
Cao Weida rubbed his brow with a headache, feeling both gratified and amused inwardly.
Gratified that Little Ear truly saw him as Big Brother—whoever dared to bare their teeth at him, Little Ear would go fight.
Amused that Little Ear was too hot-headed; this wasn’t the time for fighting!
They even hoped for the scene to get chaotic.
Bang~
“Enough!” Cao Weida pulled out his pistol and fired a shot into the air, roaring.
The scene instantly quieted down.
“Little Ear, get back here and sit properly!”
“But…”
“But what! You won’t even listen to me anymore?!”
Little Ear walked back indignantly and sat down obediently.
Cao Weida slammed the gun on the table with a clang, his gaze first on Xu Hancheng, then coldly sweeping over everyone present.
“The Bureau Chief said just one sentence, and you’ve all chattered on endlessly about this problem and that.”
“And causing a series of problems? Ridiculous!”
He sneered, fixing his gaze on Pan Datou. “I just want to ask you, Pan Datou, what are all these ‘series of problems’ you’re talking about?”
“Our police station’s duty is the city’s public order and stability, and those black and evil forces are one of the biggest disruptors!”
Duomen chimed in to cheer:
“Cao Patrol Officer is right. Arresting them all won’t cause problems; it’ll solve a lot of them!”
“We’re all on duty drawing pay; our job is to maintain public order in one area. Arresting those people is just our duty, isn’t it?”
Many sergeants showed approval. Most of them had risen from patrolmen and had no fondness at all for those local ruffians and scoundrels. They knew how these people bullied the neighbors and how those neighbors dared to be angry but not speak out.
Many times, if not for supporting their families or fear of revenge, they really wanted to beat these villains to death!
But some patrolmen sneered inwardly: What bullshit duty—whether those lowly people live or die is none of their business!
They only knew that if the black and evil forces were hit, their source of income would be cut off!
Cao Weida took in all their expressions,
“The Bureau Chief just said it’s an announcement, not a discussion!”
“What, is the Bureau Chief’s order just fart in your eyes?!”
This…
All the patrol officers and sergeants looked at each other and fell silent.
They didn’t dare respond to that. Don’t think Xu Hancheng looked like Maitreya Buddha, amiable all day, but if you really took him for a pushover, you’d be greatly mistaken.
To reach the position of Bureau Chief, one either had sky-high connections or formidable methods.
Xu Hancheng had been Bureau Chief for so many years without doing anything heaven-defying or harmful, yet remained as steady as an old dog—how could he be weak and incompetent?
If so, he would’ve been ousted long ago.
“Ahem.” Xu Hancheng coughed, awkwardly saying: “Cao’er, that metaphor is good. Don’t use it next time.”
With that, he straightened his face, looking solemnly at everyone present, and said gravely:
“What Cao Patrol Officer just said is exactly what I meant.”
“I’m issuing a notice, not discussing with you! If any of you have objections, you can report to me individually after the action ends, but now, you just need to execute!”
“Some people had better behave honestly. Don’t make it ugly for all of us mutually.” His gaze swept over those who had been the most vocal earlier.
Those stared at shrank their necks and fearfully avoided his gaze.
“Also, from now on, you are not allowed to talk or contact each other. This action will…”
He went on at length, repeating everything Cao Weida had told him about countermeasures, then directly began assigning cross-jurisdiction arrest areas, regardless of their willingness.
Don’t think Xu Hancheng seemed hands-off with his subordinates usually, but Cao Weida interestingly discovered that the arrest jurisdictions for those sergeants colluding with black and evil forces were almost all swapped with those of the more conscientious sergeants.
Just from this, it was clear Xu Hancheng had a thorough grasp on nearly every sergeant.
“Tsk, interesting, truly interesting. As expected of someone who later became a Confidential Bureau operative—not simple at all.”
Near Zhengyangmen Railway Station, Cao Weida sat with Duomen, Little Ear, and a few brothers at a small stall, eating fragrant pan-fried buns.
He’d been in Beiping City so long but hadn’t properly explored beyond Outer Second and Outer Third Districts. This was a good chance to stroll around.
They were eating happily when a patrolman came running from afar, panting heavily.
He was Liu Da—a very straightforward and prominent name—the eldest of the Liu family, one of Zhao Dashan’s subordinates.
“Cao Ye, Master Duo, Big Brother.”
“Don’t rush, drink some water first.” Cao Weida handed over a bowl of water. Once Liu Da’s breathing steadied, he asked: “So panicked—what news did you hear?”
“I… I don’t know how to say it.” Liu Da gritted his teeth, his expression shifting uncertainly:
“Cao Ye, how about you all come with me to near the train station to see for yourselves.”
“Train station?” Duomen pondered: “If I recall correctly, that should be Liu Heizi and Humpbacked Zhang’s turf.”
“Right, it’s their turf.” Little Ear, who had scouted the info ahead, nodded affirmatively.
