Jiang He's reputation wasn't confined to Nanfeng Academy. Among the upper echelons of Nanfeng City, she was a popular topic of conversation, and word spread far and wide.
Old Sun hadn't expected that this young brother of his would have such a legendary backstory.
"However, he's still a 2nd-tier professional. A little hazing shouldn't be a problem..." he cautioned. "But brother, you absolutely cannot do anything serious to him. That would make things messy. His position at the Research Department is also a shield."
"Got it. Whatever you say, Brother Sun." Su Chen readily agreed.
If he could pry Qi Chuan's mouth open, everything would become much simpler.
Seeing that Su Chen wasn't being stubborn about it, Old Sun relaxed. "Hmm... go with your new teammates. They should be getting back right about now. With the collective merit, a celebration is in order."
"A freshly minted 2nd-tier professional — I'll shadow you from a distance, just in case something goes sideways." Old Sun's tone was casual.
Old Sun led him downstairs to the garrison hall. Three floors had been hollowed out to create one vast open space, teeming with Supervision guards either returning from patrols or gearing up to head out. The rumble of low voices filled the air.
Rest Room 0512. Old Sun pushed the door open, and the excited chatter inside cut off abruptly. Several pairs of eyes swiveled toward them.
"Section Chief Sun..." One man stood up — bare-chested, his torso marked with scars, head shaved to a close crop.
"Old Zhao, this is your new squad member, Su Chen. Get acquainted." Old Sun stepped aside, revealing Su Chen behind him.
"Su Chen, this is Zhao Xiong — your patrol squad leader."
Zhao Xiong gave him an appraising look. The other six members shot glances his way as well.
A parachuted VIP kid. They'd been notified yesterday and already resented having another dead-weight freeloader.
But then, that morning, they'd been summoned out of the blue to bust a black-market den — and somehow came away with a collective third-class merit.
The sharper ones among them quickly realized this had been tailor-made for the new arrival.
When good fortune drops from the sky, resentment tends to evaporate. Some even felt a touch of gratitude.
"Zhao Xiong, come with me for a moment." Old Sun called the squad leader away.
Su Chen stayed behind to greet his new teammates — four men and two women. Aside from Zhao Xiong, who was a professional, the rest weren't. But they were no ordinary people either.
"Lili, didn't you say you'd repay this with your body?" someone teased, glancing at the woman in a crop-top. She had bronze-toned skin, muscles sculpted from years of rigorous training, and shoulder-length short hair. Her features were fair enough, with a dashing, spirited air about her.
"Interested, handsome?" She wasn't the least bit fazed, arching an eyebrow at Su Chen.
"Enough messing around." Zhao Xiong returned, his voice firm. "Overtime shift. Gear up. Five minutes."
Surprise rippled through the group. A few glances drifted toward Su Chen, recognizing this probably had something to do with him.
But no one commented. They reopened their lockers and reached for equipment.
"Su Chen, your combat uniform hasn't arrived yet. Skip the gear for today," Zhao Xiong said.
The squad was well-trained. Four minutes later, they were suited up, loaded into the patrol vehicle, and heading toward their destination.
"Captain, what's the mission?" A scarred, heavyset man leaned over to ask.
Su Chen already knew his name from the earlier introductions — Han Da.
"We've received a tip that a location may be harboring contraband," Zhao Xiong replied, eyes forward.
"Oh." Han Da nodded thoughtfully and settled back.
Su Chen watched the light outside the window grow dimmer. He hadn't expected Qi Chuan to actually be a 2nd-tier professional. The question was what rank his class was.
Roughly half an hour later, they arrived at their destination — an upscale apartment building. Flashing their uniforms, they went straight up to the sixteenth floor.
Knock! Knock! Knock!
"Supervision guards?" Qi Chuan opened the door. He'd already seen Zhao Xiong and the others through the peephole and looked somewhat confused.
But after opening the door, he spotted Su Chen standing to one side. His expression shifted instantly. "Su Chen? It's you!"
Su Chen greeted him with a smile.
"Mr. Qi Chuan, we've received a report indicating that you may be harboring contraband. We're here to investigate." Zhao Xiong was all business.
"Contraband?" Qi Chuan's face went cold, his eyes boring into Su Chen.
"Move!" Han Da shouldered his way forward, shoving past Qi Chuan — only to stumble backward from the impact.
"Are you resisting!?" Han Da's expression darkened.
"Step aside." Zhao Xiong's tone left no room for argument.
Su Chen glanced toward the far end of the hallway, where Old Sun's rotund silhouette lurked, half-hidden.
Qi Chuan's face was ugly. He hadn't imagined that the insignificant little refugee from before could now wield power against him like this.
He knew exactly why they were here. He knew what was coming. But there was nothing he could do except step aside with a bitter grimace.
"Lili, living room. Han Da, bedroom." Zhao Xiong issued rapid commands, and the squad fanned out. He himself remained in the living room, watching Qi Chuan.
"Tsk..." Su Chen surveyed the apartment. It was decently sized, tidily kept, with a massive floor-to-ceiling window overlooking the nightscape.
More importantly, a wedding photograph of Qi Chuan and Jiang He hung on the wall.
"You and Teacher Jiang really do have a deep bond." Su Chen stood before the wedding photo, sighing wistfully as he traced his fingers over "Jiang He."
The corner of Zhao Xiong's mouth twitched. Standing in another man's home, stroking photographs of another man's wife — that was just...
Qi Chuan's jaw muscles flexed, his face an expressionless mask.
Su Chen lowered his hand from the photo, his voice dripping with nostalgia and longing. "Your wife is really something else..."
Flames erupted in Qi Chuan's pupils. The room temperature spiked!
Zhao Xiong's muscles locked tight. Nearby, Lili, who'd been pretending to search through things, stared wide-eyed.
But it lasted only a heartbeat before Qi Chuan reined himself in, his expression returning to a blank slate.
Because Old Sun had appeared in the doorway. Beneath that seemingly soft, corpulent frame radiated an aura that made one's blood run cold. The killing intent in those mung-bean-sized eyes sent a chill down Qi Chuan's spine.
'He can really hold it in...' Su Chen felt a twinge of disappointment. His status had changed. If Qi Chuan had actually attacked, it would constitute assaulting a Supervision guard — an entirely different offense.
Old Sun would've been well within his rights to kill the man on the spot.
"Captain, found it." Han Da emerged from the bedroom, holding a small glass vial containing a striking pink flower.
"Poppy Dust Flower. A hallucinogenic substance. Level-1 contraband. You'll need to come with us." Zhao Xiong's voice was granite.
Qi Chuan seemed to have expected this. He merely gave a cold laugh and cooperated, holding out his wrists.
Electromagnetic shackles locked into place. The group returned to the Supervision Department and tossed him into a temporary holding cell.
"...Hmm. He's a mid-2nd-tier class — Fire Refiner," Zhao Xiong observed through the glass, studying the silent Qi Chuan within. He looked down at the assessment data. "Class development progress seems to be under 5%."
"Su Chen, we can hold him for seven days at most." Zhao Xiong turned to the young man beside him.
"Understood." Su Chen nodded. "Can we keep him starved the whole time?"
"We have to provide food. But he's a professional — his nutritional demands are high. We can put him on a low-nutrition diet. It's basically the same as starving." Zhao Xiong explained.
"Do that." Su Chen left that instruction and turned to leave, planning to come back in a few days for the interrogation.
"Captain, what is this VIP kid trying to do? He's not even going that hard," Han Da sidled up, his tone conspiratorial. "Want me to add a little something extra?"
"Do as he says. Don't take matters into your own hands." Zhao Xiong's rebuke was sharp.
Han Da nodded sheepishly.