Coming into Power

At noon, in the cafeteria. Lu Zhao was eating with a group of officers, and he could sense that morale was somewhat low. It was likely due to the news of Lü Jinshan's impending reinstatement. Although Lü Jinshan couldn't possibly move against the grassroots officers—Ant Ridge border defense station was such a tiny place that replacements couldn't be found anyway—they still had to worry about their benefits and treatment. Thus, utterly crushing Lü Jinshan was essential. As long as he could return, Lu Zhao wouldn't have a single peaceful day. Yet constrained by their current authority, Lu Zhao and Zhang Like were temporarily powerless. Their only option was to look for an opportunity to expose the smuggling route, which might delay Lü Jinshan's reinstatement. At that moment, Zhang Like carried over his meal and sat beside Lu Zhao, cursing under his breath, "Damn it, that skinflint Mo is truly shameless, coming right to my door asking for Honghualang. These fence-sitters just sway wherever the wind blows. "We can't be like them—running around with no backbone whatsoever." The other officers shook their heads vehemently in denial and hurled curses at Mo Kun. "All right, you're acting like the mob," Lu Zhao cut short their display of loyalty and pulled out the transfer order. "I'll be leaving the border defense station for a while to help the special investigation team handle a case." The men were stunned. Zhang Like took the transfer order to look at it, and the surrounding officers crowded in close. "...To accelerate the investigation of major criminal cases in our prefecture, approved by decision of the Yulin Prefecture Public Security Bureau, professional personnel are hereby appointed and assigned to support the special investigation's work." As Zhang Like read it aloud, everyone in the cafeteria was instantly captivated. "Lu Zhao, appointed staff officer of the Fangshi special investigation team! Holy crap, Old Lu, you've really hit the big time!" *** The news traveled faster than a flash flood on Ant Ridge, swiftly making the rounds through the entire station. Liang Fei, who had just returned to his original post and hadn't even begun directing operations, immediately fell back into line upon hearing it. To all of this, Lu Zhao remained unfazed by either favor or disgrace. In the end, these were empty titles outside his control. If they could turn on a dime today, they could turn against him tomorrow. Early morning the next day, the seventeenth. Finishing his session of refining essence into qi, Lu Zhao checked his life force with the blood analyzer. [Life Force: 38] "An increase of 0.2 points in one go." Glancing at the empty bottle of Honghualang, Lu Zhao confirmed that higher-grade life supplements could indeed accelerate cultivation when refining qi into essence as well. He recalled the phrase Zhang Like had been repeating over the past two days: *Get promoted and get rich, drink Honghualang.* Every major distillery had brands with similar auspicious meanings, and as life supplements, they had plenty of practical basis in reality. Only upon reaching a certain rank did one receive quotas for intermediate or even advanced life supplements. Taking the Lang brand of Nanhai Circuit as an example, its intermediate life supplements included Honghualang and Qinghualang, while its advanced life supplements included Hongyunlang and Qingyunlang. Now that he had thirty bottles of Tequ and eight bottles of Honghualang, his life supplements for this month were more than sufficient. After four years at the border defense station, Lu Zhao was tasting sweetness for the very first time. *Ring, ring, ring.* Zhang Like called. The moment Lu Zhao picked up, he heard, "Lu Zhao, hurry to the camp gate. The special investigation team will be here shortly." "On my way." Lu Zhao quickly left his room. Passing the guard room, he greeted Zhang Laoniu and rushed toward the camp gate. Along the way, petty leaders greeted him continuously; officers of any rank would stop upon seeing him and offer a polite "Hello, Staff Officer Lu." Losing the title of temporary instructor for the reinforced platoon did not diminish Lu Zhao's authority. What the mid- and lower-level cadres feared was Lü Jinshan, and having fallen once, Lü Jinshan's golden aura of invincibility was already shattered. If someone as capable as Lu Zhao had still been suppressed by Lü Jinshan, on the flip side, Lü Jinshan wasn't untouchable either; after all, Lu Zhao had managed to turn the tables even after that. At the camp gate. Zhang Like and a gathering of leaders, great and small, were already assembled. Lu Zhao was the very last to arrive. Anyone else might have been reprimanded, but with Lu Zhao, nobody minded—or rather, only Zhang Like and Chen Hongtao had the standing to say anything. Seeing that everyone had long arrived, Lu Zhao frowned. "Old Zhang, your notice was far too late. Everyone else got here before me." Zhang Like chuckled. "Notifications follow an order. It just so happens you were placed last." Chen Hongtao offered an understanding smile. "Staff Officer Lu isn't really late." This left the crowd somewhat dizzy. How could the wind shift like a tornado? Watching the expressions around him, Lu Zhao only then realized that arriving late was a privilege of leadership. Yet there was no profound meaning behind it—anyone who wasn't a leader would be scolded for daring to be late. Now it was merely Old Zhang's vulgar little indulgence, akin to a compliance test to flex his muscles in front of other departments. *** About ten minutes later, a convoy of black jeeps drove through the camp gate. Just like at the end of May, welcomed by the border defense station's numerous leaders, Lin Zhiyan stepped out of the vehicle leading a dozen or so members of the special investigation team. The only difference was that Lu Zhao was now one of the leaders, standing dead center, and was pushed forward by Zhang Like to face Lin Zhiyan directly. This was a task that originally belonged to Chen Hongtao. Lin Zhiyan noticed the subtle shift in atmosphere. She lifted her chin slightly, her brows bearing their usual haughtiness. "Senior Lu, long time no see." She took the initiative to extend her hand. Lu Zhao reached out and took it, saying, "On behalf of the Ant Ridge border defense station, I welcome the special investigation team to guide our work." Zhang Like had initially intended to step in and smooth things over, but upon hearing this, he immediately took half a step back. Couldn't he speak properly after all? In fact, he spoke exceptionally well. While still somewhat detached, it was utterly faultless. Hearing this, a faint smile curved Lin Zhiyan's thin lips. She had heard similar words far too many times; last month, Lü Jinshan had practically wished he could drop to his knees before her, and Lin Zhiyan had paid it no mind—or rather, taken it as a matter of course. Yet Lu Zhao's words made her feel comfortable, carrying an inexplicable sense of satisfaction. *Welcome me to guide their work...* "I'll also need Senior Lu's assistance. Please lend me your guidance going forward." Lu Zhao released her hand of his own accord, stepped back half a pace, and cleared a path leading inside. Lin Zhiyan walked toward the office building, the team members following closely behind. Only after the entire special investigation team had passed did the leaders of the subordinate unit, including Lu Zhao, start moving. "Not bad, Old Lu," Zhang Like nudged Lu Zhao with an elbow and whispered, "I was really worried you'd butt heads with her again just now." Lu Zhao was somewhat speechless. "What kind of person do you take me for? Why would I contradict a superior for no reason?" "Haven't you always been like that?" "Do you think I ever did it without cause before?" "Uh..." Zhang Like was at a loss for words. Thinking carefully, it seemed he really never had. Lu Zhao had never had any disciplinary issues; otherwise, he would have been reprimanded long ago. On the contrary, he adhered to regulations more strictly than anyone at the border defense station, without a single mark against his conduct. Even Zhang Like himself slacked off and skipped work occasionally, Mo Kun took kickbacks, and Chen Hongtao sipped tea during work hours. Everyone had small flaws to some degree—it was only human nature. *It's all because of that old dog Lü making me subconsciously assume Old Lu was in the wrong. That bastard really poisons everything!* Captain Zhang promptly shifted the ideological blame entirely onto Lü Jinshan. The crowd arrived at the office building's meeting room. The special investigation team sat on the left, and the border defense station on the right. Lin Zhiyan sat at the head of the table, and Lu Zhao was deliberately arranged on her right side to facilitate communication between them. This was an unconventional arrangement as well, though not out of Zhang Like vying for power or Chen Hongtao harboring ulterior motives. Anyone with eyes could see that Team Leader Lin treated Lu Zhao unusually. To curry favor with the senior leader, such an arrangement was only natural. A month ago, Lu Zhao couldn't even enter the meeting room door. A month later, he was seated at the head table. Coming into power overnight felt like a dream.