Then let them offer their loyalty!

It's important to know that Jia Shu was not only Yan Chen's right-hand man, but also one of the nine high-ranking members of the Investigation Bureau. He had voting rights at the Bureau's high-level meetings.

Furthermore, he controls the Political Department, the most powerful department in the Investigation Bureau. Even if Yan Chen is dissatisfied with him, would she really give him up over such a small matter?

Qiu Tu thought it wouldn't happen.

Qiu Tu also has subordinates. He put himself in their shoes and wondered if he would immediately abandon Cao Dabiao or Chen Feng if they did something that didn't suit him.

No. At most, Qiu Tu will give the two a stern reprimand or warning, and then continue to observe them.

After all, cultivating a subordinate who is capable, loyal, and has a good job is not an easy task.

After thinking all this through, Qiu Tu finally understood his situation.

To put it bluntly, his first reaction after seeing the "crisis warning" was not wrong: he was part of the game played by Yan Chen and Jia Shu.

Therefore, he would be making a mistake no matter which side he chooses. Only by siding with both of them and satisfying them can he weather this crisis.

Thinking of this, Qiu Tu quickly analyzed Yan Chen and Jia Shu's "demands".

Yan Chen's reasoning was simple: he was clearly angry and dissatisfied with Jia Shu's loss of control. Therefore, he had to go along with him and prevent him from feeling that things were getting out of control.

Furthermore, with Yan Chen's repeated increases in "satisfaction" and the alerts from his "crisis sense," Qiu Tu knew that Yan Chen had regained his trust and regarded him as a trusted confidant.

Therefore, to satisfy Yan Chen, Qiu Tu must sever ties with Jia Shu and stand firmly on Yan Chen's side. He must use "practical actions" to tell Yan Chen: Jia Shu is a despicable man who deceives his superiors, but he hasn't fooled me! I'm still acting according to your wishes, Director.

As for Jia Shu's "demands," Qiu Tu analyzed them for a long time on the way and came to an answer.

The reason Jia Shu risked incurring Yan Chen's displeasure to clear up this case was 100% because of Vice President Tian.

As for whether he had some kind of private relationship with Vice President Tian, ​​or whether it was for the city-wide communications surveillance system that Vice President Tian had "donated," Qiu Tu was not clear at the moment due to the lack of information.

But whatever the reason, what he values ​​most right now is that this case must not be related to Vice President Tian!

As long as this condition is met, given his personality, he probably doesn't care about anything else.

Therefore, after guessing what the two wanted, Qiu Tu's answer to this crisis became clear:

We cannot be perfunctory, we cannot find scapegoats, we must honestly report the truth we have found—but this truth cannot involve Vice President Tian.

Since Vice President Tian cannot be mentioned, it also means that the Qin family and Shunyun Trading cannot be discussed.

After all, if it were said aloud, Yan Chen and Jia Shu, with their shrewdness and calculating nature, would easily guess the role Vice President Tian played in it. It would still affect Vice President Tian and anger Jia Shu.

So... after thinking it over, Qiu Tu simply passed the buck to Jia Shu.

This was a double-edged sword: it told Yan Chen that she had no connection with Jia Shu and even dared to challenge his authority to his face; it also told Jia Shu that she had actually found out about Vice President Tian, ​​but had not reported it on his orders.

Qiu Tu admitted that his solution did involve an element of gambling. But... he only had two minutes between receiving the order and meeting Yan Chen, leaving him no time to come up with a better plan.

Fortunately, the plan worked...

At this moment, as Qiu Tu recalled his entire thought process and plan, Yan Chen chuckled twice.

He probably smokes too much; his voice is very dry and hoarse when he laughs, like an ominous night owl.

"Qiu Tu, your speculation is quite interesting."

At this point, he glanced at Jia Shu with interest. The cold aura he had when he first entered the office seemed to have dissipated considerably, and he appeared much more approachable.

He asked in a hoarse voice, "Minister Jia, what do you think of your subordinate's speculation?"

Clearly, he was using Qiu Tu to give Jia Shu a warning.

But Jia Shu didn't care at all. The fact that Vice President Tian hadn't been exposed already proved that Qiu Tu had feelings for him.

So, he smiled broadly and bowed slightly to Yan Chen, saying, "Chief, I think Detective Qiu is joking."

Yan Chen looked at Qiu Tu, said "Oh?", and asked, "Is that so?"

At this moment, Qiu Tu naturally had to stand firmly on Yan Chen's side.

So he quickly shook his head. "Director, I'm not joking."

He said, "Minister Jia is indeed at the top of my list of suspects."

There are three main reasons.

"1. The murder weapon, which is that book-like catastrophic artifact, was brought into the detention room by Minister Jia with special permission."

“2. Last night, when I was using the [Mist Index] to investigate the case, my superior, Zheng Tao, the head of the interrogation department, deliberately came to the morgue.”

"But only Minister Jia knew that I would be going to the morgue to investigate the case last night. I suspect that Zheng Tao was sent by Minister Jia to gather information."

"3. And also the most important..."

At this point, Qiu Tu gave Jia Shu a deep look and said in a low voice, "When Minister Jia assigned me to this case, he repeatedly hinted that I should find a scapegoat to cover it up."

[Yan Chen's satisfaction level +5]

Upon hearing Qiu Tu's words, Yan Chen actually laughed heartily twice, as if she had regained control of the situation and won a great victory.

More importantly... Qiu Tu had been secretly observing Jia Shu's expression.

There was not a trace of murderous intent or hostility in Jia Shu's eyes, only an intense, almost tangible, "interest"...

Clearly, as far as Jia Shu was concerned, he didn't care how much mud he was smeared on Vice President Tian, ​​as long as he didn't drag him down with him.

Anyway, Yan Chen wouldn't really believe it...

Thinking of this, Qiu Tu felt more at ease.

Jia Shu's satisfaction level +3

At this moment, Yan Chen chuckled twice, then withdrew his smile. He reverted to being the director of the Investigation Bureau, a man of absolute authority who never showed his emotions.

He looked at Qiu Tu and criticized him in a low voice, "Qiu Tu, I can see your investigative abilities. But... your approach is completely wrong!"

"This time, I forgive you on behalf of Minister Jia. But there will be no next time!"

He paused, then said in a veiled way, "Under no circumstances should you question or oppose your superior!"

"This will throw the entire investigation department into chaos!"

Hearing Yan Chen's seemingly stern but actually... weak criticism, Qiu Tu knew it was time to steer the conversation back on track. So he obediently lowered his head and replied, "Yes, Director. It was my lack of experience that led me astray."

Yan Chen nodded in satisfaction and said, "That's good. It's good that you have this understanding."

He said with a deep look in his eyes, "I originally thought that it was a bit too difficult for you to handle this case, so I was going to find someone else to handle it."

"But now that I see you've done a very good job investigating, I'll continue to entrust this case to you."

"However, the municipal council is keeping a close eye on this case, so you need to find the murderer and close the case as soon as possible!"

After saying that, he thought for a moment and gave a deadline, "I want to see the results by next Wednesday at the latest!"

As Yan Chen spoke, the first countdown hourglass in the upper left corner of Qiu Tu's screen slowly transformed into a small treasure chest. Then... the second countdown hourglass slowly appeared.

Qiu Tu:? ?

Qiu Tu glanced at Jia Shu, who was looking at him with a half-smile.

Qiu Tu looked at Yan Chen again, but Yan Chen had a serious expression on her face.

Qiu Tu: ....

At that moment, Qiu Tu felt like a million grass mud horses were galloping through his mind!

Damn it, you two crazy guys are locked in a love-hate relationship, why are you torturing a nobody like me?!

What have I done to you?

One visit wasn't enough, you want to come a second time?

I was able to satisfy both of your requests this time because of the information gap. How am I going to satisfy both of your requests next time?!

Thinking of this, Qiu Tu wanted to refuse.

Before he could even speak, a countdown hourglass suddenly appeared next to the two hourglasses in front of him.

At the same time, the third countdown hourglass notification also popped up:

Thanks to your brilliant performance, Yan Chen regained his trust in you.

With your "help," he successfully put Jia Shu in his place and regained his sense of power.

Therefore, don't go against his wishes or anger him when he's happiest.

You wouldn't want to know what he might do to you in a fit of rage...

Qiu Tu:? ? ?

Okay, okay. Is this how you play it?

Then don't blame me!

Thinking of this, Qiu Tu took a deep breath, then looked at Yan Chen and said seriously, "Sir, I feel I can complete the mission!"

"But...time is a bit tight. I request authorization to use special methods without restrictions!"

------

Chapter 97 Two Major Gains After the Crisis

Upon hearing his words, Yan Chen's gaze immediately sharpened.

He didn't immediately give his opinion, but paused for two seconds before asking, "What unconventional methods do you intend to use?"

Qiu Tu stood ramrod straight and said solemnly, "Including but not limited to forced searches, arresting before investigation, torture, the privilege of arbitrarily mobilizing 2-3 special operations teams, and special arrest warrants for arbitrarily arresting officials of any rank below the director! And all of them are exempt from liability!"

Upon hearing Qiu Tu's words, the office fell silent once again...

Are Qiu Tu's requirements high?

Actually, it's not that high. Because the Political Department itself is a secret police force, it has the power to conduct forced searches, arrest first and then investigate, and even torture.

But... if you add the privilege of mobilizing special task forces and the special arrest warrants for arbitrarily arresting officials of any rank below the commissioner, then it becomes a bit frightening.

How many senior officials at the level of director or above are there in the three major authorities of the New Territories?

Only a few dozen.

This means that, apart from these few dozen people, Qiu Tu can do whatever he wants in the New Territories for the next five days, arresting and interrogating whomever he wants!

Moreover, there is absolutely no responsibility involved!

After all... Qiu Tu also applied for "exemption from liability".

Thinking of this, Yan Chen couldn't help but hesitate. He habitually glanced at Jia Shu, wanting to get Jia Shu's opinion.

As a result, he held back the moment he looked over.

Because he suddenly remembered Jia Shu's recent double-dealing and some of his private actions...

Therefore, his expression darkened slightly, and he carefully examined Qiu Tu.

One very important thing for a boss is to maintain a proper balance of power among subordinates and not allow any one subordinate to become too powerful.

Because once a subordinate gains power and has a group of cronies and allies, it is very likely that the superior will become powerless, turning the superior into a figurehead whose orders cannot be effectively communicated beyond the office.

Especially for someone like Jia Shu, whose position is only one rank below Yan Chen's, and whose personnel power is in the hands of an important figure in the shelter, the situation is even more dangerous.

In addition to the bad signs that Jia Shu had shown recently, Yan Chen hesitated for a moment and suddenly thought: Maybe... it wouldn't be bad to use Qiu Tu to share Jia Shu's power and to put Jia Shu in a bad position and check him?

After all, Qiu Tu was just a deputy section chief, and I could decide his position and power with a single word, without worrying about losing control.

Moreover, for a deputy section chief to demand such great power, the only way to make that power effective is to rely on oneself, which also makes him easier to control.

Furthermore, this case has a deadline, and his authority can only be used for a maximum of 5 days, making it relatively low-risk...

With this in mind, Yan Chen slowly made a decision.

He looked up at Qiu Tu and said calmly, "Okay."

"In a moment, I will issue you an authorization letter and a special arrest warrant."

"With your authorization letter and special arrest warrant, you can arbitrarily arrest mid-level officials below the rank of commissioner within 5 days. You can arrest them first and then interrogate them, and you can use torture."

"As long as you can solve the case within five days, I won't mind no matter how outrageous you go."

He paused, then added a warning to Qiu Tu, "But Qiu Tu, I still have to remind you. You only have five days. If you can't find the murderer after five days, then... don't blame me for disregarding our friendship."

Upon hearing this, Qiu Tu snapped his knees together and saluted, "Yes, sir!"

Seeing this, Yan Chen waved to Qiu Tu and said in a low voice, "Go out."

"Yes, Director." Qiu Tu replied, then turned and left Jia Shu's office.