Inspection

At the entrance of the Lianwei Heavy Control Company Building, vehicles arriving from the Disposal Bureau pulled up across the plaza, and over a hundred members of the bureau climbed out. All of them were armed personnel implanted with surveillance and combat implants, possessing considerable fighting capability. Led by bureau operatives and carrying a substantial array of light and heavy weaponry, they assumed a combat posture. If prior notice of an inspection had not been given, one might have thought they were about to launch an assault at any second. The female assistant stepped outside with several security guards. The company's convoy had only just arrived, yet the Disposal Bureau had already shown up at their doorstep to conduct a search—ample proof of Center City's hostility toward them. Yet prior to coming here, the company had anticipated this development and made preparations well in advance. Rather than putting up resistance, she calmly stepped forward to speak with the Disposal Bureau's officer in charge. After exchanging a few words and seeing the inspection warrant presented by the Disposal Bureau, the assistant stated that they would cooperate with the search, though she also insisted that the company's legal team accompany them the entire way to provide legal protection. The bureau's officer in charge this time was surnamed Bao, a captain of the investigation tactical team and a Third Limit fighter. He had already been tasked with investigating Lianwei Heavy Control during the tenure of the previous Investigation Supervisor; highly experienced and deeply trusted by the former supervisor, he had been considered one of his confidants. After Chen Chuan took office, he had not reassigned Bao, keeping him in charge of leading the team. Upon stepping inside the company building, Captain Bao swept his gaze around and sent a message via his boundary credential following standard procedure: "Supervisor, we have entered the building. Beginning inspection now." He then made a hand signal, and the team members streaming in behind him promptly dispersed according to their combat squads. They had entered the Lianwei Heavy Control building for inspections several times before and were thoroughly familiar with the layout. In the past, they had confiscated many items, though some inconsequential ones had gradually been returned after Lianwei Heavy Control paid the fines. This time, their primary objective was to inspect various field equipment and the goods brought over by the convoy. After checking the other items, a squad headed down to the basement and saw the ceramic chest standing over a person's height. Captain Bao asked, "What is this?" The female assistant calmly replied, "An active conscious entity embryo." She made no attempt to conceal it. Bringing an active conscious entity into Center City had been approved by the Municipal Council, along with a commitment that all high-energy nutrient solutions would be procured through council-authorized channels. Furthermore, the mere presence of an active conscious entity served as an external deterrent, so they had no fear of the Disposal Bureau knowing about it. With a stern expression, Captain Bao had his people approach with field detection equipment to inspect it. Although the Municipal Council had passed the review, the Government Affairs Hall still retained the authority to retrieve information and conduct oversight. Chen Chuan observed from behind the scenes. With Andun maintaining field data links and the personnel on site transmitting feeds, he was able to witness the entire inspection process. However, he noticed that Captain Bao merely had his men check it with instruments without ordering Lianwei Heavy Control to open the ceramic vessel. In itself, such conduct was beyond reproach. Yet this inspection was meant not only to apply pressure to Lianwei Heavy Control, but also to deliver a warning and establish deterrence through action. If Bao had grasped his intent, he would have acted more aggressively rather than adhering strictly to standard procedure, which posed zero pressure to a thoroughly prepared Lianwei Heavy Control Company. At this moment, Chen Chuan was already considering reassigning Captain Bao once the tactical team returned. Once the inspection of all items concluded, the tactical team began verifying personnel records one by one. The check revealed that most individuals matched the reported roster. However, upon checking a security captain with Third Limit strength, they discovered he was not on the records and immediately questioned him. "According to the agreements between national governments and various enterprises, every Third Limit fighter operating externally must maintain a detailed itinerary. Why is your itinerary log for the past three days blank?" The security captain replied, "I was hired by the company midway and only arrived in Center City today. I haven't had time to file a report with the Government Affairs Hall yet." The bureau inspector said sternly, "You entered Center City three hours ago. Your first order of business should have been to file that report." The security captain argued, "I was looking out for my employer. As a mercenary, my employer's safety always comes first." Captain Bao made a gesture. Several bureau members immediately leveled their guns and closed in, corralling the surrounding personnel away to a safe distance. He looked sternly at the security captain. "Lay down all your weapons. You are under arrest." "What?" The security captain instinctively reached for the sword at his waist, but several gun barrels were instantly trained on him. He immediately looked back toward his employer. The female assistant, standing outside the perimeter, spoke up: "Captain Bao, our apologies. This was an oversight on our part." Turning to the security captain, she said seriously, "Please lay down your weapons and go with the Disposal Bureau officers. Since this is not entirely your fault, your fee will be paid in full, and we will provide you with due compensation." The security captain raised his hands, allowing the bureau members to strip him of his weapons, bind him in specialized restraint chains, and escort him out under custody. Chen Chuan saw all of this clearly through his boundary credential. Although on the surface it appeared they had caught Lianwei Heavy Control slipping and achieved a deterrent warning, he could tell this was a flaw deliberately left by the company. These people knew full well that if the Disposal Bureau came away empty-handed with nothing to show for the operation, it would likely find other ways to stir up trouble elsewhere. This was a concession thrown out to "placate" the bureau. The inspection proceeded. The team then took note of two private security personnel holding special security credentials—a man and a woman codenamed "Raptor" and "Eel." These two possessed a Black Steel rank rating. Black Steel rank was a universally recognized evaluation in the private security and mercenary sectors, denoting fighters who had combat experience against commissioned warriors from the Confluence. If compared against the Disposal Bureau, they corresponded to First- to Third-Class Operatives. While their exact combat prowess could not be directly judged, Lianwei Heavy Control had never previously dispatched fighters of this caliber to Jibei Dao Center City. According to the readout, the two were responsible for protecting Lianwei Heavy Control's head of operations for this deployment. Once the information on all armed personnel had been verified, Captain Bao said to the assistant, "If Lianwei Heavy Control makes any adjustments to weapons or biological organisms, the information must be reported promptly. The same applies to armed personnel." The assistant replied, "Naturally. We abide by Center City's laws." She glanced to the side. "We have a top-tier legal team." Captain Bao glanced at the legal counsel standing by, stepped aside, and spoke into his boundary credential: "Reporting. All items have been inspected; no contraband was found. All armed personnel have been verified. Requesting permission to withdraw." Chen Chuan spoke up then: "Captain Bao, ask about their person in charge. I need to verify their identity." A flicker of hesitation crossed Captain Bao's eyes, but he raised his head nonetheless. "Where is your person in charge? We need to see her; there are matters we need to confirm with her." The assistant said, "The young lady is not an armed operative and carries no weapons. She holds a special transit permit issued by the Municipal Council and is under no obligation to comply with your inspection." Captain Bao said, "Nevertheless, I hope you will cooperate." The assistant stated gravely, "This does not adhere to proper procedure. If you insist, I will have no choice but to initiate legal proceedings against you." As she spoke, though the legal team behind her remained silent, their hands were already busy logging notes and transmitting messages. Captain Bao frowned. Just then, a man who looked like a squad leader stepped forward from the distance and spoke sharply: "This is a special period. All departments are authorized to enforce the emergency regulations of the Government Affairs Hall. If you wish to file a complaint, you may do so with the Government Affairs Hall afterward. But for now, please comply with our request—otherwise, we may deem your side to be failing in its obligation to cooperate." Captain Bao looked at him, a trace of displeasure in his eyes, but said nothing. The female assistant placed a finger against her boundary credential, as if listening to something. After a moment, she looked up and said, "Please follow me." She added, "Captain Bao, you alone." Captain Bao nodded and said in a low voice, "Without my order, no one is to act on their own." That said, he followed the assistant into the elevator and rode up toward the top-floor office. The other members of the Disposal Bureau waited downstairs. Roughly twenty minutes later, he came back down and spoke into his boundary credential: "Supervisor Chen, there are field interference organisms up there, so I couldn't transmit any messages, but I saw her in person. I will report the specifics to you face-to-face once I return." A voice came over the boundary credential: "Return." "Yes, sir!" Captain Bao barked to the rest of the squad, "Fall back!" All personnel promptly withdrew from the company building in an orderly fashion, boarded the vehicles, and headed back toward the Disposal Bureau. Chen Chuan switched off the display on his field screen. Judging from this operation, most of the participants were just as he had assessed—merely fulfilling their tasks strictly by the book. Without explicit additional instructions, they would not meddle, showing little initiative. This was understandable, of course. For rank-and-file personnel, doing things by the rules was sufficient; at least it prevented mistakes. But Captain Bao's performance was unsatisfactory. As an experienced captain, he understood certain things clearly and shouldn't have needed a subordinate to speak up on his behalf. Acting this way was simply because he didn't want to invite trouble upon himself. As for that squad leader, Chen Chuan glanced at his name. Xu Changfeng. Though he was only a Second Limit fighter, that was actually the norm. A great number of field agents below hadn't reached any limit at all; reaching the Second Limit was already fairly decent. This man could be put to use. He had seized this opportunity himself. Chen Chuan was willing to give him a chance.