Then let them offer their loyalty!

Upon arriving at Yan Chen's office, Secretary Bai gently knocked on the door, and Yan Chen's steady and powerful voice came from inside, "Please come in."

Secretary Bai pushed open the door and said inside, "Director, Deputy Section Chief Qiu has arrived."

Yan Chen in the office hummed in response but didn't say anything more.

Secretary Bai gestured to Qiu Tu, who took a deep breath and then stepped into Yan Chen's office.

Perhaps it was because of the rain and overcast weather, but today, Yan Chen's office curtains were unusually open.

It was raining outside, the raindrops tapping on the glass, making a pleasant "drip-drip-drip" sound.

Yan Chen sat by the window, quietly listening to the rain while looking down at the newspaper.

There are no newspapers in the New Territories, so this newspaper clearly came from a shelter.

Thinking this to himself, Qiu Tu walked over and gave a respectful salute, "Good morning, Director!"

Then... I secretly glanced at the contents of the newspaper.

The front-page headline in the newspaper read: "To better manage the various cities within the planned development zone and its outward expansion, the shelter is studying the establishment of a higher-level administrative unit within the zone..."

Qiu Tu was taken aback. Establish a higher-level administrative unit?

Is it a regional administrative agency that integrates more than a dozen cities, such as a "state" or "province"?

Before Qiu Tu could figure it out, Yan Chen put down the newspaper in his hand, picked up the teacup next to him, took a sip of tea, and asked in a cool tone, "I heard you have something to report to me. Is it about the Yin Caimei case?"

Yan Chen was in a good mood today, and even took the initiative to ask, "How's the case going? Is the progress going smoothly?"

Hearing Yan Chen's words, Qiu Tu also came to his senses.

He looked at Yan Chen and said in a strong voice, "Reporting to the Chief! The case is closed! I'm here to report to you!"

"Cough cough." Qiu Tu's efficiency in handling cases was probably too exaggerated, because even Yan Chen choked on his tea.

After coughing, he wiped the water from the corner of his mouth, put down his teacup, and then looked up at Qiu Tu to confirm.

"Is the case closed?"

He glanced at the clock hanging opposite him, did a quick calculation, and said with some surprise, "It's only been three or four hours since you arrested him."

"The case was closed so quickly?"

Qiu Tu wanted this kind of shock, which would help his next plan.

So he grunted and said, "Yes, Chief!"

"I used a little trick. I easily broke through the psychological defenses of several suspects and obtained crucial information and evidence."

"Oh? Is that so?" Upon hearing this, Yan Chen got up, walked back to her desk, sat down, and then looked at Qiu Tu, asking with an indifferent expression, "Tell me. What happened in this case? Who is the murderer?"

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I'll still be updating 3 chapters and 13 words today. I'll post 2 chapters first, and the 3rd chapter will be posted around 1 PM (I feel like my body can handle it this way). Please vote for me!

Chapter 120 Smearing Jia Shu (10,000 words, please vote!)

Hearing Yan Chen's words, Qiu Tu knew that the real test was finally coming.

So, looking at Yan Chen and listening to the soft patter of rain outside the window, he slowly said,

"Director, the 'Yin Caimei case' is actually considered as two separate cases."

"The first case was the 'Yin Caimei spy case'."

"The second case is the 'Yin Caimei death case'."

"The perpetrator in the second case is quite simple. Through our investigation and interrogation, the perpetrator has been identified and confirmed."

"It's Qian Dafu, the son-in-law of Deputy Director Bai of the Civil Affairs Department and the husband of Section Chief Bai, one of the four major transportation companies."

"According to his confession, he has maintained close cooperation with the anti-government armed group, the United Front, over the years, not only supplying them with materials on numerous occasions but also working for them."

"Yin Caimei is an important spy for the Alliance. Through her, the Alliance obtained a great deal of classified intelligence from various departments of the City Hall."

"Therefore, after she was captured, the Alliance was worried that she would expose the entire intelligence network, so they ordered Qian Dafu to silence her."

"Therefore, Qian Dafu used the Cataclysmic Treasure Artifact [Cursed Blueprint] to remotely curse and kill Yin Caimei. This led to the bizarre death of Yin Caimei."

After listening to Qiu Tu's story, Yan Chen nodded slightly, his aged eyes revealing a thoughtful expression.

Looking at Yan Chen's still droopy eyelids and the wrinkles around his eyes and mouth, Qiu Tu felt that Yan Chen seemed a little younger today, though he wasn't sure if it was just his imagination.

That didn't seem to be a change in appearance, but rather a manifestation of vitality...

Yan Chen leaned back in his chair and pondered for a moment, then asked in a deep voice, "That catastrophic artifact is called [Curse Blueprint]?"

Upon hearing this, Qiu Tu snapped out of his daze, nodded, and then took out a document recording the murder weapon, handing it to Yan Chen with both hands. "Yes."

"That Cataclysmic Noble Phantasm is a two-piece set, consisting of the [Book of Curses] and the [Curse Notebook]."

"The person holding the notebook can curse the person reading the book."

"Following the location provided by Qian Dafu, we have found the notebook in the underground vault of his villa."

"The document does indeed state the cause and time of Yin Caimei's death, which corresponds to her statement. And the handwriting has been verified to be Qian Dafu's."

At this point, Qiu Tu paused for a moment, then added, "Although we haven't done a comparison of the origins of the catastrophic forces yet,... it shouldn't be wrong."

Hearing Qiu Tu's account, Yan Chen nodded slightly. "Not bad, it's quite impressive that you were able to handle the case to this extent in such a short time."

Upon hearing this, Qiu Tu smiled and replied, "Mainly because we made a lot of preparations and efforts in advance."

When praised by your superiors, you must not be modest. Instead, you should emphasize your hard work and efforts.

It's difficult for superiors to empathize with their subordinates. If you don't say you've worked hard, why should your superiors think the task is difficult? Why should they think you've made a contribution?

So... three parts credit, seven parts talk.

Qiu Tu naturally began to talk about how hard he had been working lately, "Chief, you don't know, since I took on this case, I've been working on it almost every night!"

"The day before yesterday, in order to find out some clues about a case, I met up with some friends I used to know and we drank until almost dawn. I was so drunk that I almost vomited blood."

"The day before yesterday, in order not to alert the enemy and to lull them into a false sense of security, I deliberately left work early and took my subordinate to her house for a meeting. We talked about the case until late at night."

“Yesterday, in order to execute the plan more perfectly, my colleagues and I stayed up all night to study it. We even got into several fights throughout the night over the details of the case investigation and the distribution of benefits.”

At this point, Qiu Tu rubbed his arms and back, and said with a wry smile, "Even now, my back still aches."

“Even today, before the operation was launched, I was suppressing my anxiety and playing along with the suspects in Emerald Walled City to lower their guard.”

"Take the most difficult section chief, Bai Ru, for example. Just trying to get information out of her left me so tired that my mouth was dry and I could barely lift my hands."

After saying that, Qiu Tu changed the subject, "However, it was precisely because of the efforts of these past few days, and the various preparations and arrangements we made in advance, that we were able to silence the suspect and make him confess to his crimes within just a few hours after we caught him, thus solving the case."

He bowed slightly and concluded, "Of course, the reason we work so hard is to repay the director's kindness in recognizing our talent."

"Being able to complete the tasks assigned to us by the director and share his burdens is a blessing we've accumulated over many lifetimes!"

[Yan Chen's satisfaction level +6]

Hearing Qiu Tu's complaints and flattery, Yan Chen's face showed a rare expression of appreciation.

Instead of simply offering a "not bad" as before, he directly praised, "Not bad. If all departments of the Investigation Bureau could share my burdens like you, I wouldn't feel like I have no one to rely on!"

However, Yan Chen was not swayed by Qiu Tu's flattery. After praising him, he still keenly noticed the sensitive information hidden in Qiu Tu's words.

He changed the subject abruptly and asked, "But... you just said you were working on the case with the security department until late at night? What's going on?"

"Why would the security department get involved in this case?"

His gaze was deep and unreadable, revealing neither joy nor anger, making it impossible for anyone to guess what he was thinking.

However... Qiu Tu had already prepared various contingency plans before coming to see him. So Qiu Tu calmly showed a surprised expression on his face.

"Wait a minute, Director, I don't understand what you mean."

"What do you mean, why is the security department interfering? This... wasn't this your arrangement?"

Upon hearing Qiu Tu's words, Yan Chen's brows furrowed slightly, but he quickly composed himself. He calmly retorted, "I arranged this?"

Qiu Tu nodded, still looking surprised. "Yes."

He said, "When I took on this case, Minister Jia called me to the rooftop and told me that you had taken a liking to me and wanted me to go to the security department as a double agent to exchange information with them."

Yan Chen's gaze was deep and unfathomable; Jia Shu had indeed discussed this matter with him.

Seeing this, Qiu Tu continued, "After that, I kept in touch with the security department intermittently to gain their trust."

"Then... just after you summoned me to your office last time, and I publicly expressed my doubts about Minister Jia, Minister Jia came to me and told me that I had completely misunderstood your and his intentions."

"You were actually giving me pointers. Not letting me investigate Vice Chairman Tian doesn't mean I can't continue investigating this case. Then he told me to use my brain more and see if I could figure out your hint."

"So...after I got back, I kept trying to recall what you said to me, and then...I finally understood your implication."

"This case involves the city hall officials the most. Our investigation department is committed to the law and we certainly cannot let this go unpunished."

"However... if only our investigation department investigates this matter, it is very likely to provoke a strong backlash and retaliation from the city hall."

"At that time, although we will get rid of a group of bad apples, we may also have a falling out with the city hall. We will be constrained at every turn."

"So, if we can cooperate with the military and the security department... shift the blame for this case to the military, let them take the lead, and then sit back and watch the fight, reaping the benefits, wouldn't that be the best of both worlds?"

At this point, Qiu Tu deliberately acted a little excited, "After understanding your hint, I feel that your idea is absolutely brilliant!"

"This way, we get the benefits, and the military takes the blame! It's definitely much smarter than my previous idea of ​​just blindly investigating the case!"

Upon hearing this, Yan Chen let out a barely perceptible snort.

Qiu Tu acted as if he hadn't heard him and continued, "So I quickly adjusted the plan according to your instructions and then reported it to Minister Jia."

"After hearing my plan, Minister Jia said he hadn't misjudged me, and I finally understood his good intentions. It was because of his affirmation that I began to cooperate with the Security Department to execute this plan..."

"If you don't believe me, you can call Minister Jia right now and ask him if he knows about this plan."

After listening to Qiu Tu's story, Yan Chen took a deep breath and then looked at Qiu Tu quietly with his cloudy eyes.

He clearly didn't exude any imposing aura, but Qiu Tu still felt an overwhelming pressure coming from him.

However, Qiu Tu knew he had to hold on, so he looked directly at Yan Chen, his eyes deliberately revealing a hint of confusion about the situation...

After quietly observing Qiu Tu for a while, Yan Chen slowly withdrew his gaze, picked up his teacup, took a sip, and commented, "Your political department does have some clever tricks up your sleeve..."

"You can all understand this kind of 'hint'."

His "cleverness" seemed to have a hidden meaning; it was unclear whether he was referring to Qiu Tu or Jia Shu...

[Yan Chen's suspicion level +0, satisfaction level -2]

After making his comments, he casually remarked, "I will verify this matter with your minister."

"Please continue..."

“You just said that the ‘Yin Caimei case’ is actually two cases. One is a ‘death incident’ and the other is a ‘spy case’.”

"Tell me about the espionage case."

Seeing the notification that appeared in front of him, Qiu Tu breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Yan Chen is a suspicious person. The fact that he didn't doubt himself means... his guidance was successful.

At least for now, he has successfully shifted the blame for "contact with the security department" onto Jia Shu, further escalating the conflict between them...

Given their personalities and current relationship, Yan Chen would not directly ask Jia Shu for clarification.

Therefore, he will most likely arrange for someone to test Jia Shu or observe Jia Shu's subsequent reaction in order to determine whether things are as he said.

He had indeed informed Jia Shu of the plan in advance. Knowing that the plan was planned ahead of time, Jia Shu was unlikely to react excessively and would only wait and see how things developed.

This would only solidify Yan Chen's suspicion that he was behind the plan...

The rest depends on just how unlucky Jia Shu will be, and how Yan Chen will react to the "espionage case"...

Qiu Tu hadn't forgotten that Yan Chen had always wanted to take control of the Qin family. Therefore, the future direction of this case, and which contingency plan he should implement, depended on Yan Chen's stance...

Thinking this, Qiu Tu also perked up, looked at Yan Chen, and began to drop bombshells...

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3 chapters, 10,000 words each! Please vote with monthly tickets! I'm currently working on a new draft, and will continue updating tonight!

Chapter 121 Yan Chen's satisfaction level +20 (10,000 words, please vote for monthly tickets)

He looked at Yan Chen and then said directly, "Director, the Yin Caimei spy case has far-reaching implications."