BPIFC -Volume 1 – Chapter 112 Courier

“Just as you thought…” Hao Zhengyi smiled and glanced at his younger brother, then continued.

“More than 160 people on the blacklist are already converging toward Yong’an Building. At this rate, by tonight the number will exceed 300. Everyone, get ready.”

Everyone understood what he meant.

Since the establishment of the Special Investigation Bureau, aside from the catastrophic incident that led to the death of the former bureau chief Gao Liang, they had never faced a situation of this scale. Three hundred practitioners of mystical arts—this level of force was already comparable to the Bureau itself (excluding Division Six).

Hearing this, cold sweat began to form on Ren Rong’s palms.

He was shaken. He had never expected that on his very first day in office, he would encounter a crisis of such magnitude. If he had known earlier, he might have preferred delaying his appointment by a week. Then this problem would have still fallen on Sun Desheng.

If Sun Desheng solved it, the credit would still belong to him, Ren Rong, as the new bureau chief. If he failed, the blame would also fall on Sun Desheng, making his own takeover even more justified. Either way, he would have been secure. A pity…

Seeing all the directors waiting for his decision, Ren Rong coughed and said:

“Director Hao makes a valid point. It looks like we’re facing a tough battle today. The enemy numbers are now equal to ours in the Bureau. Some of them have already entered Yong’an Building. The situation is not favorable. I propose requesting support from higher authorities and allied units. If necessary, we can deploy a full unit of armed police for joint operations.”

Before he could finish, he noticed the directors all looking at him strangely.

Realizing he might have said something wrong, he immediately stopped.

“What… is there a problem with what I just said?”

The directors exchanged glances.

Finally, Director Ximen Lian from Division Two spoke.

“If we do that, Director Ren, the nature of the Bureau will change. Deploying an entire armed police unit—this kind of operation cannot be concealed. We would be forced into the public spotlight. From tomorrow onward, the media would be full of reports about us.”

Director Hao Wenming added:

“We’ve used outside assistance before, but only in remote areas. Afterward, they helped clean up the aftermath. Even then, we needed carefully crafted explanations for the media. But this is the capital. Deploying armed police here would cause a massive incident—how big do you think the fallout would be?”

Hearing this, Ren Rong’s face turned slightly red.

He had no experience with this kind of situation and could only say:

“Then we can only rely on the Bureau itself. We’re at a disadvantage in numbers… so we’ll have to use a surprise strike.”

“Director Ren, it doesn’t have to be about fighting,” Director Hao Zhengyi couldn’t help but interrupt.

He had read Ren Rong’s file—his previous handling style was extremely aggressive. In the Chiwishan village gu incident, he had even called in armed police and used explosives in broad daylight to destroy a cave, then used flamethrowers to kill the gu queen. The aftermath caused widespread rumors and chaos, which were barely suppressed through official channels.

After a pause, Hao Zhengyi continued:

“I suggest splitting our forces. The main team will set up control at Yong’an Building, while smaller teams intercept others on the blacklist. We persuade them by explaining the consequences and bringing them back to reason. After all, they don’t want direct conflict with the Bureau. If we delay long enough for Division Six to arrive, everything else will be easier.”

With no better option, Ren Rong could only agree on the details.

He then ordered everyone back to their buses and dispersed teams to intercept targets still en route.

He himself, along with Director Hao Wenming and personnel from Division Five, headed toward Yong’an Building. Meanwhile, they kept trying to contact Division Six—but the white-haired members were nowhere to be found.

Over an hour later, they arrived near Yong’an Building.

Their vehicle stopped across from a four-story residential building, and they were taken to a unit on the top floor.

The apartment was small—just one bedroom and one living room, about 50–60 square meters.

Ren Rong frowned.

“Is there no larger place? This is supposed to be our command center—we can’t even fit everyone here. And more importantly, who is surveilling whom? Our target is on the 7th to 9th floors of that building, and we’re on the 4th floor.”

“We already got lucky finding this place,” replied an investigator from Division Five under Ouyang Pianzuo.

His tone was not respectful.

He pointed outside the balcony.

“See that street? That’s under Hebei jurisdiction. The tallest building there is Yong’an Building. More than fifty blacklisted individuals have already entered it. You want the command center inside that building instead? Then we wouldn’t even wait for Division Six—we’d be in a full-blown firefight already.”

Ren Rong was stunned.

He felt his authority slipping. Even a low-level investigator dared to speak to him like this. Worse, neither Hao Wenming nor Ouyang Pianzuo tried to smooth things over—they seemed to be waiting for the situation to unfold.

He had no idea he could rely on these Bureau veterans.

After a moment of hesitation, he suppressed his frustration.

Quietly, he sent a message to his former department, requesting undercover support. If necessary, he would show the Bureau that he was not entirely dependent on them.

Just then, Vice Director Xiao Yifeng from Division Five approached.

“Latest update—we’ve intercepted over thirty people. They’ve agreed to leave Beijing immediately. There were three minor clashes, but they’ve been resolved by teams from Divisions Two, Three, and Four. They’re escorting them to the airport.”

At least this was good news.

But before Ren Rong could relax, Xiao Yifeng received another call.

After a few words, his expression changed.

“Trouble. One of them disguised as a courier—Liu Zhiyou—is heading toward us. He probably suspects something due to the earlier commotion.”

“Who?” Director Hao Wenming immediately reacted.

“Liu Zhiyou… that bastard has photographic memory. We’ve met him before during Sun Desheng’s negotiation case.”

He turned to Ren Rong.

“This time we’ll need you. We can’t let him meet us.”

Before Ren Rong could respond—

Knock knock knock.

A voice came from outside the door:

“Anyone there? Courier for He Anhua. Cash on delivery. Please sign for it… anyone there? Delivery.”

The room instantly fell silent.

Xiao Yifeng leaned in and whispered:

“He Anhua is the homeowner, about your age. A postal worker at the basic level. Divorced… they probably haven’t seen his photo.”

With no other choice, Ren Rong forced himself to respond.

“Wait a moment… I didn’t order any courier. Cash on delivery? Hold on, I’m getting dressed…”

As he spoke, he quickly stripped off his clothes, threw on a blanket, and scrambled into loose shorts.

He ran his hands through his hair to make it look like he had just woken up.

Then he walked to the door, cracked it open slightly, and yawned.

“What delivery? I didn’t order anything…”