Chapter 25: The Two Capitals

Suddenly, Ning Linglong flicked her finger.

"Clang—"

A steel ball shot out, striking the protruding head of the "Big C" mask with a loud crash. The mask shattered instantly, as if a bullet had pierced through a brain, and Big C tumbled back into the steam-powered car with a heavy thud.

"Let's put that aside for now!" Li Kang shook his head, casting off the chaotic threads of his thoughts, and said expressionlessly, "Arrest them first! Then... interrogate them!"

A chill flashed in Li Kang's eyes. Daring to lay hands on the Black Box meant these were no ordinary robbers—they had to be dealt with firmly.

"Leave it to me." The youthful newcomer, Bi Xuan, finally found a chance to prove his worth. He gave a serious salute, rubbed his hands together with excitement, and scrambled toward the steam-powered car like a monkey.

The vehicle began to sway violently from side to side, accompanied by the intermittent, pained cries of the dog-headed man inside.

"Done!" Dragging several ropes, Bi Xuan leaped back onto the roof of the vehicle. With a powerful tug, he hauled out a line of tightly bound figures and dumped them onto the ground.

"Are you sure this is okay?" Chu Zhu cast a sidelong glance at the bank nearby. Through the cracked glass, he could see the terrified, wide-eyed onlookers and bank staff who hadn't dared to flee.

"Having 'Gongfu' makes all of this perfectly normal, doesn't it? It’s just a bit of extra strength!" Li Kang said righteously. "Even walking on walls is just Gongfu, isn't it?"

Chu Zhu blinked and gave a thumbs-up. Fine. Since he didn't know the inside story, he would just let them say whatever they wanted.

"So, about my position as an auxiliary officer..."

"..." Li Kang rubbed his temples in frustration, finally saying, "I'll grant you temporary guest status for now."

Even if Chu Zhu insisted, how could he dare to actually register him as an auxiliary officer? Mr. Zhu of the shanty district was a renowned figure, and his involvement with the Black Box was a massive achievement. To put it bluntly, if word got out, people might mistakenly think that he—or even the authorities—had a hidden agenda against the shanty district and were about to launch a crackdown.

That could potentially spark a riot. It sounded absurd—that granting an auxiliary position could cause a riot—but Li Kang didn't think it was an exaggeration. He understood the shanty district and the entire Jinghai City too well. This city, a leader in national industry, was like a steam boiler being suppressed with all its might. Chu Zhu was the pressure relief valve; if he dismantled that valve, it could very well become the fuse that blew the boiler apart.

"If you really want to join us, you have to pass the entrance exam, you understand? It’s just that..."

Chu Zhu let the talk of the civil service exam go in one ear and out the other; after all, he already knew the answers. What he was thinking about now was this "temporary guest" status.

He felt a flicker of anticipation. By any metric, this had to count as Level 1 temporary clearance, right? He wondered what he could dig out of the base this time.

Ning Linglong thought for a moment, gave the mountain-like Guan Fei a sharp elbow, and walked toward the bank.

"Right, why are we still lounging around!" Guan Fei realized the situation and, picking up the naive rookie like a chick, added, "Get to work. Calming the public is also a vital part of our duties."

Chu Zhu watched from a distance as the team used their official police authority to finally settle the commotion. Many who hadn't dared to leave the bank earlier finally began to flee.

"So, what triggered this, Mr. Zhu?" Li Kang said with a hint of sarcasm, only feeling comfortable enough to talk once the rest of the team had left.

"Triggered what?"

"Don't play dumb with me! I’ve watched you grow up, in a way; I know the terrifying energy you possess! If you wanted to join the civil service, you could have done it long ago. You might even have a higher rank than me by now!" Li Kang said calmly.

At seventeen, to be in a position higher than his own... it was unbelievable.

Li Kang’s position within the Jinghai City bureaucracy was unique. Even publicly, he was the commander of the Third District Special Operations Brigade and the Deputy Director of the Third District Police Bureau. Combined with his secret status, he was truly on par with the Director himself. There weren't many people in all of Jinghai City who stood above him. Under normal circumstances, let alone seventeen, it was impossible to reach his level by thirty-seven; it was only normal for someone to reach his height by forty-seven.

Yet, the person before him had overturned the underground order of the shanty district at the age of eleven or twelve, and then created an entirely new order in that lawless land where even the authorities couldn't reach. He was practically a superman.

"You don't want to be an official at all!" Li Kang stated with certainty.

"True. I just want to become stronger, purely and simply. By the way," Chu Zhu raised an eyebrow, "can I apply for a set of internal cultivation techniques with this temporary guest status?"

"No."

"Oh!" Chu Zhu wasn't too disappointed—if they had said yes, he would have been surprised. He said casually, "Won't you reconsider?"

"The Black Box is important, but..."

"I wasn't talking about the Black Box! I was talking about..." Chu Zhu’s words suddenly stopped.

Li Kang froze and followed Chu Zhu’s gaze to see Ning Linglong leading Lu Muxue over, her expression complex.

"Captain, who is this..."

"The daughter of the Deputy Chief Administrator, and also the little princess of the Xue Group," Chu Zhu introduced calmly.

"??? What?" Ning Linglong was stunned, instinctively turning to look at Lu Muxue. "Didn't you say you were a relative of Director Lu?"

The moment she said it, Ning Linglong knew she was being foolish. Perhaps that was just a cover identity! Of course, it was also possible that the other party had told a partial truth—who said Director Lu couldn't be a relative of the Deputy Chief Administrator?

Lu Muxue ignored Ning Linglong, biting her lower lip as if anxious, yet also relieved. "You really know everything."

Li Kang: "!!!"

He realized it belatedly, looking at the smiling Chu Zhu in astonishment.

Chu Zhu continued slowly, "This contribution shouldn't be any less than saving the Black Box, should it? In some ways, it might even be higher!"

Director Lu—he was the head of the Third District Police Bureau.

The Deputy Chief Administrator was the person with real power most likely to succeed the old Administrator in Jinghai City.

As for the Xue Group, their local influence wasn't actually that large. But the problem was that the group was rooted in Tianjing! One of the two capitals!

Yes, it might not be a giant in Tianjing, but any group that could develop there was bound to have ties to those in power. The situation in Tianjing was far too complex. Especially when one considered the connection between this group and the Deputy Chief Administrator that Chu Zhu had hinted at... it was terrifying.