BPIFC -Volume 1 – Chapter 167 Secretary

Hearing that the cost was so great, the senior leader fell silent.

Just half a month ago, he would never have believed a word of what Sun Desheng said. But too many things had happened recently—major incidents that only occur once in a decade.

Now, even if Sun Desheng said there might be half casualties, the leader would likely still believe him.

After a moment of hesitation, the leader discussed it with Ren Rong. Only then did he finally say:

“Stability comes first. Everything else can be set aside. I’ll allow an exception for the Bureau of Investigation—temporarily closing the case is fine. Submit your report later for my signature.”

With that, the leader left the meeting room.

Ren Rong and Yang Shuji went to see him off.

Inside the room, only Yang Xiao and a few department chiefs remained—along with Sun Desheng as the only Bureau leader present.

With no outsiders around, Che Qianzi lowered his voice and said to Sun Desheng:

“Fatty, fifty gold bars and you’re already satisfied? Shouldn’t we at least find out that guy’s background? He keeps causing trouble—don’t you feel uncomfortable? At least figure out who he is…”

“That person isn’t important right now, because Director Wu is about to return,” Sun Desheng said with a smile.

“Like the leader said, the top priority is maintaining stability in the capital region. We need to eliminate the negative impact from the airport incident, Yian Building, and that hospital case. This isn’t a small matter—if handled poorly, the Bureau could be shut down again. Brother, choose the lesser of two evils.”

He then turned to the three chiefs of Division Two.

“Listen, all of you—tell your investigators to be careful with surveillance cameras when handling cases. If something like the hospital incident happens again, the Bureau is finished.”

Before anyone could respond, Ren Rong returned to the room.

After sitting down, he said directly:

“No need for formalities. Let’s get straight to the point. Director Sun, even though the case is temporarily closed, we still need an official explanation.”

Seeing him speak, several chiefs and Shen La immediately stood up and excused themselves, leaving the room.

Only the two directors remained—and Che Qianzi, who lacked any sense of timing.

Sun Desheng smiled faintly.

“The explanation is simple. Those people were suicide attackers. After the operation failed, they triggered poison inside their bodies and died before they could be rescued.”

“Small matter.”

Then he added:

“Old Ren, I want to discuss something else with you. The Bureau has been under too much exposure lately. I’m planning to keep a low profile.”

“What do you think about rotating vacations for all investigators? The Bureau assigns travel destinations, spreading them across the country. Only a small number stay on duty.”

Ren Rong was clearly surprised.

After thinking it over, he shook his head.

“That’s probably not appropriate. The leader just told us to carry out reforms. After such a series of incidents, shouldn’t we do a proper review?”

“And if we send everyone on leave, what happens when an emergency occurs? Do we recall them all back?”

Sun Desheng chuckled.

“Old Ren, precisely because of these incidents, everyone is exhausted.”

“In normal times, after a major case, the Bureau should allow rest anyway.”

“And vacations would still follow designated routes. If something happens somewhere, nearby investigators can respond immediately. That’s what we call balancing work and rest.”

“Besides, the more exposure we have, the more trouble we attract. If the Bureau is empty, there’s nothing to expose.”

“Think about it.”

Ren Rong still hesitated.

“If something happens again and no one is around, what then?”

Sun Desheng replied calmly:

“I’ve thought about that too. Division Six is almost back. With Director Wu in charge—and all those white-haired people—nothing will go wrong.”

Ren Rong didn’t immediately agree.

“This is a big decision. I’ll discuss it with Old Yang and the three of us will decide later whether to proceed.”

Then he glanced at Che Qianzi.

“I need to speak with Director Sun privately. Xiao Che, you can go do your own thing.”

“I don’t have anything to do,” Che Qianzi said lazily, leaning back.

“Old Ren, you’re trying to kick me out so you can talk behind my back, huh? Just say it directly—no need to whisper behind people’s backs.”

Knowing his reputation as a “mad dog”—and that he even dared offend Director Wu—Ren Rong forced himself to endure it.

Instead, he said openly to Sun Desheng:

“Director Sun, it’s not that I won’t help. But having Che Qianzi as a consultant is really inappropriate. The field investigators won’t accept it. And you can’t watch him all the time.”

“How about this—he doesn’t become a consultant. Consultants have no real authority anyway.”

“Let him be your secretary instead. He’ll still get consultant-level benefits. How about that?”

Sun Desheng smiled.

“Fine. Since you’ve said so, my brother can’t refuse.”

“Secretary it is.”

“But you’ll need to report this upward for approval.”

“I’ll handle it,” Ren Rong said, finally relieved.

“I’ll submit it now. The approval letter will come back today. You two talk—I’ll go take care of it.”

With that, he left the room.

Now only Sun Desheng and Che Qianzi remained.

Seeing Sun Desheng’s sly smile, Che Qianzi finally reacted.

“Fatty… you were planning this from the beginning, weren’t you? Making me your secretary. Why go through all this nonsense? You’re the bureau chief—can’t you even decide your own secretary?”

“You finally figured it out,” Sun Desheng laughed.

“That’s how it works in other places, not here.”

“When I rebuilt the Bureau, the ministry set three conditions. One of them was: the secretary must be assigned by them.”

“Now understand?”

Che Qianzi blinked.

“So what, they’re monitoring you?”

Sun Desheng smiled.

“My predecessor was Gao Liang. He ran this place airtight and didn’t get along well with the ministry.”

“They were afraid of another Gao Liang, so they always wanted someone inside the Bureau.”

“I couldn’t stop it. So they settled for trying to place a secretary. But I’ve always blocked it.”

“That stalemate lasted until now.”

Only then did Che Qianzi understand.

“Fine. Secretary it is. At least it’s better than nothing.”

Just then, Sun Desheng’s phone rang again.

He glanced at the caller ID and answered with a grin.

“Something happened at home? Uncle Wu is back? Mm-hm, got it. We’ll have dinner tonight.”

He hung up.

His expression turned slightly strange.

“Tonight, come eat with me.”

“Director Wu is back.”

“He says he’s treating us to dinner.”

Che Qianzi froze.

“Who?”

“Wu Rendi? Treating us to dinner?”

Even though he hadn’t known him long, Che Qianzi had already formed a clear impression of that man.

After a pause, he muttered:

“Yeah… nothing to worry about.”

“Twenty years later, you’ll still be a good man.”