Chapter 10: An Unorthodox Move

“Zhengyang? Are you listening?” Lu Xiujuan called anxiously.

“I’m listening. Tell me how I can help.”

“I need you to find out how many of them there are and where they are. I also need to know why they’re so desperate to get what I have.”

Chen Zhengyang felt overwhelmed. Where could he find that out? The criminal investigation unit wouldn’t tell him where its officers were. But could the last question have something to do with that person?

“Xiujuan, listen. This is too big. I’m not sure I can help you.”

His words chilled her to the bone. After more than two days in hiding, she was utterly despairing. Her vision darkened and she nearly collapsed.

“But I know someone who can.”

His words were a light in the darkness. “Tell me! Quickly!”

“I hear we have a new police chief. She’s also acting county chief and deputy county Party secretary. My guess is she may have come because of the three county chiefs’ deaths.”

“A new police chief?” Lu’s spirits lifted.

“Yes. Apparently she transferred from the military. Police chief, acting county chief and deputy Party secretary all at once—it’s an extraordinary appointment. People at the bureau say she has an impressive background. I hear she came from a special forces unit.”

“Really?” Lu sensed something unusual. “Do you have her contact information?” She couldn’t go out herself. She would be caught before she ever reached the woman.

“No, but I can try to find it. Remember my older brother?”

“Yes. He’s in the military too.”

“Right. He’s in a special forces unit. He said their instructor’s surname was Lin. I don’t know if she’s our new chief.”

“Please ask him right away. I’ll wait to hear from you.” Lu felt as if her heart could barely hold out. Without help, she was sure she would die.

Chen hung up, unaware that someone was crouching silently in the next toilet stall. Chen Zhengyang had some nerve. Wasn’t he afraid Lü Dayong and Liu Yixiong would find out?

Heart pounding, the person pulled a pen from a pocket, quickly wrote a line on a scrap of paper and slipped it beside Chen’s feet.

Chen looked down, startled. “Who’s there?”

He picked up the note. His eyes widened as he read: Don’t go to the office, and don’t stay in the restroom. Neither is safe.

He hurriedly put the note in his mouth and swallowed it. If neither place was safe, someone must be watching him. The thought made his heart nearly stop.

He composed himself, washed his hands as though nothing had happened and returned to his office. Then he found an excuse to take leave and walked out of the public security bureau building.

Once outside, he called his brother. After some teasing, his brother heard that the matter concerned Gaoshan County and frowned. Their instructor seemed to have gone there as police chief. Was something wrong?

“Wait. I’ll contact her right away. Tell your colleague not to run around. Our instructor should already be in Gaoshan.”

“All right.” Chen’s heart pounded.

Several minutes later, his phone rang. “Chen Zhengyang? This is Lin Ying from the county bureau. Where are you?”

Chen jolted, overjoyed. “Director Lin, hello! I’m out now, in an alley off Xingyi Street.”

“Good. First, make sure you’re safe. Then tell me about your colleague.”

Chen described Lu Xiujuan’s situation. Lin frowned deeply. She hadn’t imagined Gaoshan was rotten enough for its criminal investigation unit to act as an accomplice. There was no time to think through every hidden detail.

“Tell your friend to go to Friendship Hotel and find a man named Xu Pang. Give him her name. She should ask nothing and say nothing else, just follow his instructions.” Lin hung up after the brief directions.

At the hotel, she looked at Duan Fei and raised an eyebrow. “Can you go bring the old lady back?”

“No problem.”

Lin nodded. The matter was far from simple. An idea occurred to her, and she called the political affairs office of the Gaoshan County Public Security Bureau.

“Director Xue?”

“Who is this?”

“Lin Ying.”

Those three words silenced the office. Everyone looked at Xue Huaimin, the political affairs director. The new chief had called him before even showing her face. His colleagues watched enviously as Xue stood in excitement. “Hello, Director!”

“Notify all officers immediately. There will be a surprise fitness inspection this afternoon. Every officer at deputy section chief level or above must be tested. This month’s fitness score must exceed last month’s, or the performance bonus will be deducted.”

Xue wanted to curse. His office handled fitness, but they had never done anything like this. What was the surprise inspection for?

“Director Lin, fitness assessments usually require advance preparation and notice. This is too rushed.”

“Can you do it?” Lin wasted no words. Xue was bewildered; his heart nearly stopped.

“If you can’t, I’ll find someone who can.” She hung up.

Xue was stunned. A powerful sense of danger washed over him. A new official always made a show of authority, and Director Lin’s first move was aimed at fitness. His office was responsible for the tests. If he failed, he would be the first person she made an example of.

He ran to Liu Yixiong’s office.

“A surprise fitness inspection? Everyone at deputy section chief level and above has to pass?” Liu’s face darkened. He certainly fell into that category, and he certainly couldn’t meet the standard. What the hell kind of move was this?