Forge a path to success.

Chapter 24 Imminent
"I'm so sorry~ I didn't mean to~"

Ji Huaisu chuckled awkwardly and rubbed his hands together, while Chu Hengkong silently turned his head to the side. This childish behavior made his partner back down, and he ran to the others and whispered, "This is bad, what should we do? He seems really angry."

Ji Qiufeng, sitting at the head of the conference room, pretended not to hear while blowing on tea leaves, while Youyou beside him tried hard to suppress her laughter. Jie An distributed documents to everyone, shaking his head and sighing, "Girl, you can't blame him this time. It's like a swordsmith who gets inspired and forges a unique weapon, pondering whether to name it Giant Sword Greedy Wolf or Invincible Steel Breaker, and then you suddenly say, 'I think this sword has a very peculiar design, so let's call it Toilet Plunger'... Once those words are spoken, it's all over. From now on, no matter what it's called, everyone will just call it the Divine Sword Toilet Plunger."

Ji Huaisu gasped: "I didn't really mean you used your hand to flush the toilet... oh no, I mean the spring..."

The snake let out a cackle, the first time Chu Hengkong had ever heard a snake laugh in his life; its voice sounded a lot like a duck. He looked up to the sky and sighed, "Aren't we going to have the meeting or not?"

"Alright, enough nonsense, let's begin the meeting. We'll start with the changes in the situation last month..."

The hotpot meal they didn't get to eat was two days ago; now Chu Hengkong is in a meeting. Being promoted to senior detective means he's now a cadre, required to attend monthly meetings, bi-weekly meetings, develop various emergency plans, and participate in discussions on future decisions. Right now, Jie An is standing next to a large map of Huilong City, pointing and gesturing. The map is filled with colorful circles, each connected to a wanted poster by a long line.

He picked up a black pen and crossed out each wanted poster: "...Last month, the case-solving rate reached 93%, and the arrest rate for current wanted criminals is 65%, including Detective Chu arresting 14 people and Captain Ji arresting 10. The first healing temple has been successfully rebuilt, and the second is on the agenda, greatly reducing the pressure on medical services. It may sound unbelievable, but judging from the central courtyard alone, we can say that the local public security is quite good. Currently, the small and medium-sized gangs in the central courtyard have been basically eliminated. What are your thoughts on the next step?"

If we view the restoration of order as a game of "reclaiming lost territory," then the resurrected forces' base is currently three-quarters of the central courtyard. The upper workshop area is almost entirely dark, while the lowest level is a patchwork of dark, fragmented circles, indicating that the forces have virtually no control over these two levels. Their influence is limited to the central courtyard.

“The great scourge of Central Court has not yet been resolved,” Ji Huaisu spoke first. She pointed to the western part of the map, where a huge gray circle was drawn, encompassing nearly a quarter of Central Court. That circle was the most prosperous area of ​​Huilong City, filled with the villas of the wealthy and the bars and casinos that sang every night. A gray cat perched atop the wealth, greedily coveting the capital city at night.

The gray cat's name is the Maivia Club, a giant in the gambling and prostitution industry, and the culprit behind almost all the disappearances in Midgard. Everyone in Dragon City knows that as long as you pay enough, you can get the club's protection. Countless blood-stained criminals have entered the gray cat's lair, indulging in extravagant pleasures under its lavish lights.

"As long as the club exists, the people of Zhongting will never be at ease," Ji Huaisu said coldly. "Now that the small fry have all fallen into the net, we can finally free up our hands. Now we should concentrate our forces and take down the club in one fell swoop!"

Jie An didn't offer any comment, but instead asked, "What is Detective Chu's opinion?"

"Clean up the swamp," Chu Hengkong said succinctly. The swamp was the lowest district of Huilong City, a poor, chaotic place where various sects gathered, known as "Bize".

Jie An immediately beamed: "Oh, I think this is a great idea! The swamp is vast and rich in resources; who knows how many rare medicinal herbs we can find..."

"Don't let personal factors get mixed into the meeting!" Ji Huaisu frowned. "Chu Hengkong, I know you're thinking about that bastard who hired someone to kill you, but the swamp is not a good place. The people there are so obsessed with demons that they've gone mad, and there are too many underhanded tricks in the underworld. It's too risky and the returns are too low, so it's not a good choice."

The five assassins from the day before yesterday were loose-lipped and readily sold out their employer. The eccentric white-robed man resembled a cultist from the swamp, leading Ji Huaisu to believe the idea was motivated by personal revenge. Chu Hengkong didn't refute this, but suddenly said, "After Tina's case, I've been looking for White Eyebrows' henchmen."

"You found it?" Ji Huaisu perked up.

"I've found nothing. There's no relevant information in the relics, the surrounding residents have no recollection of him, and our people are watching the club's entrances and exits every day, but we haven't found a single clue about him." Chu Hengkong pointed out the key issue. "The club's secrecy is too good; I even suspect they have relics that allow them to become invisible or teleport. Now we can't even track down the whereabouts of a mere thug, so how can we talk about destroying the organization behind him?"

Ji Huaisu was speechless for a moment, then said in a fit of pique, "Break down their doors and go find them one by one!"

“If I were still an assassin, I would smash doors on your orders and I would even take the club owner’s head for you,” Chu Hengkong said. “But now I’m a senior detective, and when I smash doors, I’m responsible for the lives of my men. I can smash doors and walk away unscathed, but others can’t.”

Instead of using a rhetorical question, he used a simple declarative sentence, which suppressed Ji Huaisu's anxiety. She gritted her teeth and said dejectedly, "You're right."

“Of course I’m right. I have far more experience in gang warfare than you,” Chu Hengkong laughed. “Although there are numerous sects of all sizes in the swamp, they all see each other as rivals. In the early stages of clearing out cultists, we not only encountered less resistance, but the local forces were also happy to see it happen.”

“But going to the swamp won’t do us any good,” Ji Huaisu emphasized again, clearly strongly opposed to the decision. “Breaking down the club will allow us to seize a large number of Flowing Pearls and relics…”

“Nearly half the city’s population lives in the swamp. Eliminating the cult in the swamp will greatly stabilize the overall order of Huilong City,” Chu Hengkong pointed out. “No amount of money can buy Huilong’s strength.” Youyou, who was listening in, nodded frequently, looking at Chu Hengkong with the friendliest gaze he had ever given him. Ji Huaisu herself was also convinced, and she reluctantly turned her head: “Father, what do you mean?”

Ji Qiufeng smiled slightly, gesturing for him to finish his tea. Chu Hengkong felt a little strange; given his temperament, this man should have already chimed in with jokes and guided the conversation, instead of making him waste so much breath.

Ji Qiufeng put the teacup aside, opened his paper fan, and said with a smile, "Chu Hengkong's suggestion is excellent. You can discuss the specific details, but you must be very careful..."

He lowered his paper fan slightly halfway through his sentence, revealing a patch of crimson that had seeped through the paper, like an ominous red embroidery. Ji Huaisu stood up abruptly: "Father!"

"It's nothing." Ji Qiufeng wiped the blood from his lips with his fan and smiled. "I accidentally bit my tongue, I... cough...!"

He suddenly began to cough violently, coughing so painfully that it felt as if he were coughing up his heart and lungs. Large splatters of foul blood sprayed onto the conference table; at first, it was bright red, but then the blood he coughed up turned gray. Chu Hengkong had never seen human blood turn such a color before, gray and dry like burnt bones. The wooden table, stained with blood, began to rot, instantly turning into a lifeless pile of decaying wood.

Ji Qiufeng coughed so hard he bent over. This usually composed man could no longer maintain his smile; his eyes lost their luster, and he looked like a dying old man. Everyone was stunned for a moment. Only Youyou jumped up urgently: "Xiao An, go pound the medicine! Everyone out, don't come in!"

"I'm going right now." Jie An's face turned ashen, and he rushed out the door. Ji Huaisu wanted to go take care of her father, but Chu Hengkong silently pulled her away. His intuition told him that the gray blood was an extremely terrifying thing, and he must not touch even a trace of it.

Before closing the door, he saw Youyou bravely wade through the blood and filth, emitting a clear light towards Ji Qiufeng.

·
"Mr. Ji, please eat slowly."

"...Much better. Thank you."

"Please don't say that," Jie An said, squeezing her eyes shut. "If I were more successful, you would have..."

"Don't be so hard on yourself," Ji Qiufeng smiled weakly. "I'm much better now. Go and rest."

Jie An was equally pale. He nodded silently and stood in the corner. They were still in the conference room. Ji Qiufeng, who was seriously injured and unable to move, had a bed and blankets temporarily brought in.

Ji Huaisu helped her father cover himself with the blanket, her voice trembling involuntarily: "I told you you were pushing yourself too hard! You haven't rested for three whole days..."

"We're all going to die eventually, so whether you sleep or not makes no difference," Ji Qiufeng said calmly. "You need to learn to accept it. You might as well help your father write down his will in advance..."

"I don't want to remember this!" Ji Huaisu roared. "How could I possibly accept this?!"

Ji Qiufeng looked at her helplessly, his eyes revealing a father's doting affection. That look blocked all the words she wanted to say. Ji Huaisu quickly walked out the door, slamming it shut with a loud bang.

Chu Hengkong, who was standing at the door with a water bottle, silently took a step back, avoiding looking at his partner's red eyes. Ji Huaisu vigorously wiped her eyes and pushed him away: "It has nothing to do with you!"

She hurried away, disappearing from Chu Hengkong's sight around the corner, where a faint sob could be heard in the distance. Chu Hengkong remained standing at the doorway, not going in. He recalled Ji Qiufeng's every move, his fiery eyes and ever-composed demeanor, that reassuring air of a powerful figure.

It turns out that all of that was an act. This frail patient was the real Ji Qiufeng, watching death approach every single second. He looked so strong, but in reality, even a water gun would be enough to take his life.

That's why Ji Qiufeng was in such a hurry to teach others, because if he didn't hurry, he would really die.

(End of this chapter)