"Ping'an, just look at you—tsk, tsk, tsk... you cut quite the imposing figure!"
Chen Ping'an had only just arrived at the Nanquan Lane Suppression Office when Monkey circled around him once, full of admiration.
By now, what Chen Ping'an wore was no longer the black uniform of a temporary runner. Instead, he was dressed in the official uniform of a registered runner—a blue cloth robe with a crossed collar and narrow sleeves, cinched at the waist with a red woven sash.
Standing out sharply among the majority of temporary runners still in their black uniforms.
The Nanquan Lane Suppression Office had over a hundred temporary runners, but fewer than forty registered runners.
Beside him, Dashan's eyes also betrayed his envy.
"Ping'an, that's really something! Keep up the good work—the future belongs to you young folks."
Old Qin came over and added his praise as well. Since that day, Old Qin had rarely slacked off; he never missed roll call.
While they waited for the head runners to arrive, quite a few runners came up to talk with Chen Ping'an.
Before this, Chen Ping'an had been half invisible at the Nanquan Lane Suppression Office; apart from his own little circle, almost no runner had paid him any mind. But now that he had been promoted to registered runner, things were different.
Out and about, whenever it came up, he was a "head" of some sort at least. Once Chen Ping'an was a few years older, people would be calling him "Head Chen" everywhere he went.
Seeing Chen Ping'an so warmly courted, a flash of resentment crossed Zheng Shiyong's eyes.
"A brat who hasn't even set foot on the martial path—what dumb luck!"
Not long after, a head runner came in through the doorway of the Suppression Office. It was Head Runner Zheng. The moment he stepped inside, he spotted a temporary runner gathered around Chen Ping'an, currying favor.
"All this noise and jabbering—what kind of conduct is that!"
Though Head Runner Zheng's words were aimed at the crowd, his gaze was fixed toward Chen Ping'an.
The face of the temporary runner being stared at froze at once, as if petrified.
"Get back to your post!" Displeasure showed on Head Runner Zheng's face.
Hearing this, the temporary runner who had been currying favor with Chen Ping'an immediately scurried back.
Earning a head runner's displeasure was no small matter.
As Head Runner Zheng walked in, the murmurs in the hall subsided.
"Brat! So what if you are a registered runner? You'll still be under my uncle's thumb!" Zheng Shiyong thought smugly.
Though Head Runner Zheng had said nothing outright, this single act was a veiled warning to Chen Ping'an, and at the same time told everyone else that he did not particularly care for Chen Ping'an.
Any temporary runner hoping to curry favor, seeing Zheng Shiyong's attitude, would surely weigh things carefully before deciding.
Watching Head Runner Zheng's back as he climbed the platform, Chen Ping'an narrowed his eyes slightly.
This Head Runner Zheng...
Because the matter of the Ten Thousand Demons Cult had not yet been resolved, the office chief and deputy office chief did not come today, but the five head runners still reported as usual, with Head Runner Zheng presiding over the pre-shift assembly.
After the pre-shift assembly ended, Chen Ping'an received his newly assigned post.
Since he was now a registered runner entered into the register, he naturally could no longer just tag along under Old Qin. Instead, he was to lead three temporary runners and stand on his own.
Whether by coincidence or deliberate arrangement, two of the three temporary runners he was to lead were ones he had dealt with not long ago.
Cheng Yuan and Zhao Hu. Apart from those two, there was also a newcomer who had joined less than two months ago, named Zeng Jihe.
Chen Ping'an didn't know much else, but he did know that Cheng Yuan and Zhao Hu were fairly senior temporary runners, the type who were good at latching onto the powerful. They seemed to belong to the faction under Head Runner Zheng.
At this, Chen Ping'an grew inwardly wary.
In his previous life's workplace, there had been more than enough underhanded ways to quietly make life hard for someone. Had he transmigrated only to go through it all over again here at the Nanquan Lane Suppression Office?
But...
What was different from his past life was that his abilities now could be clearly displayed and quantified, rather than being at the mercy of anyone who cared to misrepresent right as wrong, turn black into white, shift the blame, or twist him around their finger.
Since Chen Ping'an's new post had only just been decided today, it would formally begin tomorrow; today everything carried on as usual.
That day, Chen Ping'an patrolled Willow Leaf Street with Old Qin, Monkey, and Dashan. He and Old Qin, each in the official uniform of a registered runner, cut a rather intimidating figure walking down the street.
Quite a few of the ruffians who had once been careless and unafraid of Chen Ping'an, upon seeing their official uniforms, all showed a trace of ingratiating smiles.
A registered runner was different from a temporary runner. If a registered runner set his mind to dealing with a ruffian or scoundrel, then more often than not he could make it stick.
So to these ruffians and scoundrels, a registered runner was someone to avoid offending if at all possible!
"Ping'an, starting tomorrow, you'll be standing on your own too!" Old Qin's face bore a touch of gratification. "Your father and I were colleagues for many years. By seniority, I suppose I count as half an uncle to you. All these years, I've not left myself much of anything, but I do have some experience and lessons to pass on."
"Please go on, Old Qin," Chen Ping'an said respectfully.
He still respected Old Qin's character. Though a registered runner, the man never ordered others about, never used his rank to bully those beneath him. Apart from his minor habit of slacking off now and then, there was little to fault him for.
"This business of being a registered runner is different from a temporary runner. As long as you don't commit any great offense, it's an iron rice bowl for life. But sometimes, just because you say you've made no mistake doesn't mean you haven't. Ping'an, remember this. The you in the office chief's eyes isn't necessarily the real you—it's the you in the head runners' mouths. So keeping on good terms with the head runners is one of the most crucial tasks. Take someone like me..."
Old Qin began recounting to Chen Ping'an the experience and lessons of half his lifetime, while Monkey and Dashan pricked up their ears nearby.
"Sometimes a head runner gives an order that you need to carry out at once. But if the people below you aren't up to it, what do you do then? Sometimes it's not that they can't, but that their attitude has gone a bit wrong—then what you need to do is..."
"..."
All day long, Old Qin unreservedly imparted his every experience and lesson. Chen Ping'an listened attentively. Though he would not put all of it to use, it would undoubtedly save him many a detour along the way. Combining Old Qin's experience and lessons with the many insights of his past life, Chen Ping'an reaped a good many unexpected gains.
"Ping'an, that Cheng Yuan and Zhao Hu are Head Runner Zheng's men—be on your guard. And it's not just them; in everything, keep your wits about you."
As the shift neared its end, Old Qin admonished him earnestly.
Clearly, Old Qin—old and shrewd as he was—had seen Head Runner Zheng's malice toward Chen Ping'an.
"Mm, I understand." Chen Ping'an nodded.
He did have that much sense.
"Of the three under you, Cheng Yuan has entered the martial path. Keep a closer eye on him."
Still uneasy, Old Qin added one more word of caution.
In his eyes, Chen Ping'an was still only an ordinary man. Though he had become a registered runner on the strength of his merit, he had neither backing nor real strength, and getting the men under him—especially Cheng Yuan—to submit to him completely would be somewhat of a stretch. He could only watch out for himself more.
"I'll be careful."
Chen Ping'an answered.
Still, with his present strength, if they thought to control him through the few temporary runners under him—well, that he truly did not fear. Now if Head Runner Zheng came himself, that would be more like it!
It just so happened that he now had the Thirteen Yamen Sabers in hand, and could slowly begin to reveal his own martial aptitude.
Chapter 58