Chapter 403: Chapter 331: The 3 Billion Major Case
They say the Economic Crimes Division is a good place to be in the police force.
The hours are regular, there’s no danger, and as for those "vicious" white-collar criminals—if you really push them to the brink, what are they going to do? Bite you?
Most importantly, they were the ones who handled the big money.
But that was before.
Now, as a few of the younger officers in the division liked to complain, they were a bunch of guys earning four-figure salaries—people who had to sneak tea from each other in the office—yet all they talked about were cases worth tens or even hundreds of millions.
When the Criminal Investigation Division closes a case, they wait for commendation banners.
And them? When they closed a case, they waited for complaints on the 12345 hotline.
Oh, and when they sent case files to the procuratorate, they had to use suitcases.
The Criminal Investigation Division’s case files were measured in centimeters; theirs were measured in meters.
Compiling all of that into bound volumes was enough to kill a man.
So after a few years in Economic Crimes, you’d suffered just as much as any criminal detective.
Take Zhang Songhao, for example. He was just over forty, but he looked like he was fifty. Whenever he stepped outside and a gust of wind blew, the first thing he did was clamp a hand on his head to protect his thinning hair.
He hadn’t started out in the field; he was originally a criminal detective. But leadership had saddled him with the heavy responsibility of building up the Economic Crimes team.
He was a rough-and-tumble guy who’d once chased robbers in high-speed pursuits and slammed his fist on the table in interrogation rooms. Yet, he had forced himself to study financial accounting and had even grown to love watching business news.
As a result, his whole demeanor had softened considerably. He greeted everyone with a cheerful smile.
When he heard Shen Xin ask if it was about Jiang Qi’s case, he laughed. "You’re a detective, through and through. Can’t hide anything from you guys."
But then he quickly changed his tune. "How about we talk tomorrow? You just got back from your trip. You should take a day off to rest. We’ll discuss it tomorrow. It’s not urgent for us, anyway."
He probably meant well, but he’d already piqued Shen Xin’s curiosity, leaving him hanging. It was an awful feeling.
Shen Xin pressed for more, but he wouldn’t budge, just telling him to get some rest and they’d talk tomorrow.
The folks in Economic Crimes were notoriously tight-lipped.
Shen Xin had no choice but to drop it.
He returned to the office, filled out his expense report, and left work early.
Sun Zhao had told him to take a day off, after all.
Most importantly, he had to get Ten Thousand moved.
Shen Xin called for a cargo van, loaded Ten Thousand inside, and headed straight for his family’s factory.
Shen Haolin was thrilled to see Shen Xin.
He greeted him with an uncharacteristically fierce hug.
Shen Shuang had told him their dad already knew about the landslide and had even helped calm their mom down.
Shen Xin couldn’t help but wonder when Shen Haolin had gotten so capable that he could even handle their mom.
"Don’t worry about your mother."
Shen Haolin waved his hand dismissively. "She’s got long hair and short-sighted views. You’re a real man. What’s a little danger?"
"Most importantly, you were saving someone. That makes my son a hero. And what does that make me? The father of a hero."
Shen Haolin’s face beamed with pride.
While his father was in high spirits, Shen Xin decisively pulled him downstairs to show him Ten Thousand.
Then, pointing to a distant corner of the factory grounds, he said, "Dad, could you build a shed for him over there? We can raise him here. Just need to buy some feed; it won’t cost much."
Seeing a live donkey, Shen Haolin was stunned. He asked what was going on.
’A pet... for me?’
The thing was, Shen Xin had gotten Zeng Wenxi a cat. So why was he getting a donkey?
Shen Shuang had said his parents already knew, so Shen Xin assumed they had also seen the video of the mudflow.
’Anyone who knew me and saw that video would have recognized me.’
"Dad, this is no ordinary donkey. He saved my life."
Shen Xin explained how, with the mudflow right behind him, Ten Thousand had charged back through the rainy night to save him.
And on the way down the mountain, too.
"If Ten Thousand hadn’t caught me, I might have slipped and fallen all the way down."
’If that doesn’t make him my savior donkey, I don’t know what does.’
After he finished, he suddenly realized his father’s expression was off.
"A mudflow?"
Shen Haolin’s eyes widened, his expression instantly turning serious. "Son, what in the world happened out there?"
It was just supposed to be a work trip.
Now there was a landslide *and* a mudflow.
And he almost fell off the mountain?
Shen Xin mentally cursed his loose lips and quickly changed the subject. "Um, I’ll tell you the details later. By the way, Dad, I’ve been transferred to the City Bureau. I’m a team leader now. It’s not a huge position, but I’m in charge of a few people."
’Right now, it’s just Ding Yuwei.’
’But in the future?’
’With Zhao Tianxing, that’ll be two.’
Sure enough, Shen Haolin’s attention was diverted. He asked in delighted surprise, "Transferred to the City Bureau? Is that a promotion?"
Shen Xin nodded eagerly. "Of course it is."
He added that the bureau chief thought very highly of him and had even created a special office for him to lead.
Shen Haolin sucked in a breath. "Wow, they really do value you then," he said, thrilled. "The City Bureau... Son, you’ve made it big!"
Shen Haolin clapped Shen Xin on the back proudly.
He was about to call Zeng Wenxi and tell her not to bother with dinner—they were going out to eat.
Shen Xin quickly stopped him.
He explained that the precinct was having a team dinner that night and they could celebrate later. Then he made a quick escape.
’Anyway, I’ve dropped off Ten Thousand. I’ll just leave him for Dad to look after.’
He went out, hailed a cab, and had driven a good distance before he received a text from his dad.
"You little rascal, don’t you dare do anything so dangerous again. Otherwise, I won’t be able to stop your mother."
After that scolding, another message came through asking how to take care of the donkey and if there was anything it shouldn’t eat.
He didn’t want to mess it up.
He must have watched the video by now and understood what "Ten Thousand charging back to save me" really meant.
The transfer to the City Bureau still had to go through the official process, which would take a while.
He went to work as usual the next day.
When he got to the station, he ran into Zhao Tianxing at the door.
Zhao Tianxing stamped his foot, snapped a salute, and called out, "Director."
To explain: during the team dinner last night, Shen Xin had mentioned to Sun Zhao and Chen Chao that he wanted to take Zhao Tianxing with him, in addition to Ding Yuwei.
Neither of them had objected. Chen Chao had even asked with a grin if he wanted to take a few more.
For one, Shen Xin was one of their own. As his "parent unit," they had to send him off with a proper "dowry."
How was he supposed to get things done in a new post without anyone he knew?
Secondly, Chen Chao knew perfectly well that a better platform meant better prospects for the future.
It was a great opportunity for Zhao Tianxing to transfer to the City Bureau.
So they both agreed that as long as Zhao Tianxing himself was willing, they had no objections.
When Shen Xin asked Zhao Tianxing, the guy started giving him a whole spiel about how the City Bureau was a tough place to be, that he was a field operative and wasn’t cut out for a desk job.
He also claimed he had no ambition for promotions and just wanted to be a dedicated detective.
It wasn’t until Shen Xin said, "Fine, suit yourself," that he did a complete 180. He threw an arm around Shen Xin’s shoulders and said that when a brother asks for a favor, how could he possibly say no.
’But where did he get "Director" from?’
’He should be calling me Team Leader.’
Zhao Tianxing said seriously, "Shen Xin, here at the precinct, you’re a team leader, no doubt. But at the City Bureau, you’ll be in charge of the Cold Case Task Force *Office*. Since it’s an ’Office,’ that makes you the ’Director,’ doesn’t it?"
Shen Xin had a moment of realization.
"Hey, it’s a tiny post, not even a real rank. Don’t go around saying things like that," Shen Xin quickly interjected.
The City Bureau wasn’t like the local precinct; it was full of proper departments and offices. Running around shouting "Office Director" would just make him a laughingstock.
He hadn’t been in the office for long when Zhang Songhao came to find him again.
This time, he didn’t beat around the bush and led Shen Xin straight to his office.
Shen Xin finally had a chance to ask him about the progress on that case.
It had been almost three months since the Lunar New Year.
After asking, he lowered his voice. "Captain Zhang, it’s a huge case, right? Give me a number. Shock me."
He understood that the case details couldn’t be revealed, but the monetary amount would be made public once the case was solved. Telling a colleague now should be fine.
Most importantly, the number would give him a sense of the case’s scale and importance.
Zhang Songhao considered for a moment, then held up three fingers.
"Ten million?"
Shen Xin was taken aback, then quickly corrected himself. "No, wait. A hundred million?"
Given that it involved a bank and they’d been investigating for so long, thirty million seemed a bit low.
A hundred million seemed more likely.
Three hundred million... damn. That was a huge case, no doubt.
Zhang Songhao just smiled without replying.
But there was something about that smile... Shen Xin’s heart skipped a beat, and his eyes widened. "Captain Zhang, don’t tell me you mean a billion!"
"Three billion?"
’That’s insane.’
Zhang Songhao was still smiling.
So that was a yes.
"Holy shit," Shen Xin blurted out. "No wonder it’s been taking you guys so long."
A three-billion-yuan case could easily take a year or two.
"Is it really three billion?" Shen Xin couldn’t help but ask.
’If that were cash, imagine how much that would be.’
Zhang Songhao waved his hand. "That’s just the theoretical number."
Hearing that, Shen Xin finally understood.
’For example, if a company has a market cap of three billion, does that mean it has three billion in cash?’
’It’s not the same thing at all.’
But even if the number was inflated, it was still a massive case.
Shen Xin quickly asked Zhang Songhao why he had sought him out.
Zhang Songhao said, "This case happened five years ago, so it’s been difficult to investigate. We’ve hit a few snags."
"Basically, we’ve zeroed in on a suspect. We believe he’s involved and might be holding on to some key evidence."
"But for certain reasons, we can’t investigate him thoroughly. That’s why we were hoping you could help us out. Didn’t you help Old Feng before, using that cat of yours for reconnaissance?"
"So..."
He trailed off, giving Shen Xin a look that said it all.
Shen Xin understood, but he had a question.
’A case this big must have authorization for technical surveillance, right?’
’Wiretapping phones, for instance, is standard procedure.’
’And if they’re already using technical surveillance, why do they need my help?’
Zhang Songhao’s exact words were "for certain reasons, we can’t investigate him thoroughly." What were those reasons?
Shen Xin asked.
Zhang Songhao just shook his head, refusing to say more, but his eyes held a hint of frustration. He only asked if Shen Xin could do it.
"The suspect has a villa that we can’t get into. We were hoping your cat could get inside and take a look around for us. That’s the gist of it."
Everything he said was vague—"basically," "hoping." He really didn’t want to reveal a single detail about the case.
As for why they’d come to him, it was surely because of his track record.
"Sure, I can do it. And I’ve got the perfect agent for the job—Sergeant. You’ve probably seen him, my all-black cat. At night, he could be lying right in front of you and you’d never know."
"Da Mei is living the high life with my mom now, and so is Evil Bully."
’It has to be Sergeant. I had exactly this kind of situation in mind when I took him in.’
"And as it happens, Cai Zhe and his team have rigged up an even smaller collar."
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