Chapter 247: Chapter 245: Promotion to Vice Commander
「Three days later.」
Public Security Bureau, Golden Scale Guard headquarters.
Inside the Commander’s office, the air was fragrant with the scent of brewing tea. The smile on Li Jingxuan’s face was even warmer and more cordial than usual as he personally handled the teapot, pouring a steaming cup for Su Yu, who sat in the guest’s seat.
"Younger Brother Su, come, have a taste. This is pre-rain spring tea, freshly picked this year. It’s the Cloud Mist Spirit Tea, a special supply from the Inner City."
Su Yu lifted the teacup, gently nudged aside the floating leaves, and took a small sip.
The tea was light and sweet as it entered his mouth, instantly refreshing. A pure, verdant Spiritual Qi slid down his throat and into his abdomen, clearing his mind and sweeping away the last vestiges of mental fatigue from the past few days.
"Excellent tea," Su Yu praised sincerely. "This pre-rain Cloud Mist is as fragrant as they say. Sir, since you’ve acquired such a top-grade tea, you’ll have to be generous later and spare your subordinate two taels to savor back home."
"HAHAHA! Of course, of course!"
Li Jingxuan laughed heartily and waved his hand expansively. "You took down a high-level stronghold of the Black Lotus Sect and personally beheaded three of their high-ranking deacons. That’s a monumental achievement! Forget a mere two taels of tea—even if you took my entire stock, your big brother here wouldn’t mind one bit!"
At that moment, Li Jingxuan was feeling absolutely ecstatic.
After Su Yu’s stunning combat report was submitted, not only did it make Li Jingxuan look good in front of Mansion Master Pang, but it also completely overshadowed the other three Guard headquarters. Immensely pleased, Mansion Master Pang had, with a stroke of his brush, granted the Golden Scale Guard a large number of new slots for elite personnel.
Now, the more he looked at Su Yu, the more he liked him. He had already come to see him as an absolute core confidant under his command.
"Younger Brother Su, if I’ve calculated the hour correctly, Mansion Master Pang will be summoning us soon. He should be publicly announcing your appointment to Vice Commander." Li Jingxuan set down the teapot, his tone becoming very serious. "From now on, I’ll be counting on you and Commander Lin for half of the Golden Scale Guard’s affairs."
"You’re too kind, Sir. This is all thanks to your support and guidance," Su Yu said, standing and clasping his fist. The gratitude in his voice was genuine.
Having lived two lives, he knew this better than anyone.
In a vast and complex bureaucracy like this, even if you were an Overseas Dragon capable of overturning rivers and seas, it would be useless without a direct superior who could hold his own and was willing to empower and back you. No matter how great your accomplishments, you would be skinned layer by layer by those ruthless, well-connected vultures, or they would simply steal your credit halfway.
"Ah, Younger Brother Su, you’re being far too polite."
Li Jingxuan strode forward and slung a very familiar arm around Su Yu’s shoulders, lowering his voice. "I have extremely high hopes for your talent and future. With your monstrous aptitude, a mere Vice Commander is by no means your final stop. Who knows, in the future, your big brother here might have to rely on you to give me a hand! From now on, when we’re in private, just call me Brother Li. There’s no need for such formality between us brothers."
"Since Brother Li has said so, then this little brother won’t stand on ceremony anymore," Su Yu replied with a smile, going with the flow.
Hearing this, Li Jingxuan was so pleased he clapped Su Yu on the shoulder again and again, a grin splitting his face.
He came from the Li Family, one of the three great families of the Inner City. The core tenet of the Li Family’s ancestral teachings was: "Recognize a flood dragon in the ripples; befriend a hero before he has risen."
Li Jingxuan had seen Su Yu’s Martial Arts talent and character very clearly throughout this process. Seizing the opportunity, before Su Yu could truly soar to the heavens, to bind their purely professional relationship into a close, personal brotherhood was, without a doubt, a worthwhile investment.
KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!
Just as the two were chatting happily, a knock came from the door.
"Sir, the Lord Mansion Master requests your presence. He has ordered you and Captain Su to proceed to the Central Army meeting hall immediately."
Inside, Li Jingxuan’s smile vanished. He straightened his collar, turned to Su Yu with a glint in his eyes, and said, "Let’s go, Younger Brother Su."
One after the other, they stepped out of the office and strode briskly toward the Mansion Master’s main hall.
...
「Mansion Master’s Residence, Central Army Meeting Hall.」
The atmosphere in the hall was solemn. The highest authority in the Public Security Bureau, Pang Xuan, sat ramrod straight in the large seat of honor at the head of the room.
In the first seat on the left below, Commander Ye Xiaohong had just finished his report on the recent Black Lotus Sect defenses and was sipping tea to soothe his throat. In the auxiliary seat opposite him, Commanders Zhao Sen and Wang Yungui also sat ramrod straight, looking as if they had long since finished their own reports.
Behind each of the three Commanders stood a figure, straight and still as a javelin.
These three were the core, trusted Captains from their respective Guard headquarters. They were also the top contenders with the greatest hope of being promoted to the position of Vice Commander this time.
Behind Commander Zhao Sen stood a young man named Zhao Mu.
He looked to be about Su Yu’s age, but his face was deathly pale, without a trace of color, like a consumptive who had not seen the sun in years. What was more striking was that, in the already slightly warm weather of mid-spring, he wore a thick, old, black felt hat pulled down tightly on his head. The man exuded a sense of incongruity.
Behind Commander Wang Yungui was a tall, thin Captain, built like a bamboo pole, named Qian Langxing. His nickname was "Water Ghost."
Qian Langxing was famous within the Public Security Bureau. He possessed an almost freakish affinity for water; his ability to hold his breath and fight underwater was second to none. Just last month, he had single-handedly infiltrated the depths of the Black Water River and eliminated Ma Biao, the Water Bandit leader who had a bounty on his head from the Public Security Bureau for many days.
Ma Biao was a genuine mid-stage Flesh Refining Realm master. Relying on his familiarity with the undercurrents of the Black Water River, he had ambushed merchant ships from the city multiple times and had even audaciously hijacked a grain transport ship from the Public Security Bureau. Mansion Master Pang had sent men to encircle and suppress him several times, but he had always escaped by taking to the water.
No one expected that such a tough nut to crack would be ambushed and killed underwater by Qian Langxing alone! Mansion Master Pang was overjoyed, immediately rewarding him with 6,000 merit points and issuing a commendation to the entire bureau.
As for the person standing behind Ye Xiaohong, it was the only woman in the room, Feng Ting.
This woman was tall and statuesque, standing well over 1.9 meters. She didn’t have the fair, delicate skin of a typical young lady from a noble family, but rather a healthy, bronze-wheat complexion that radiated explosive power.
She wore a set of practical, tight-fitting leather armor that perfectly accentuated her wild, graceful figure, much like a cheetah’s. Her long, powerful legs were especially eye-catching, their visual impact nearly on par with Yang Ai’s own perfect pair. The only difference was that Yang Ai was like smooth, alluring white jade, while this woman was a leopardess, ready to pounce and maim at a moment’s notice.
It was this very leopardess who, a few days ago, had led her team to be the first to tear through the Black Lotus Sect’s disguise at the southern freight yard. She had brazenly slain two of the fiends, captured a core leader alive, and taken first blood in the conflict.
"Well now, everyone’s here. It seems we of the Golden Scale Guard aren’t late after all."
With a hearty laugh, Li Jingxuan strode into the hall with Su Yu.
SWOOSH!
In an instant, all eyes in the hall swiveled in unison to land on the two of them. To be precise, they focused on Su Yu, who was half a step behind Li Jingxuan.
Unlike Li Jingxuan, whom everyone was familiar with, this was Su Yu’s first time stepping into the meeting hall that represented the highest seat of power in the Public Security Bureau.
The several Captains present usually paid close attention to the experts within the Bureau, each of them nursing a hidden competitive spirit.
And the terrifying news of Su Yu’s feat—toppling a high-level Black Lotus Sect stronghold and decisively killing three high-ranking deacons—had already spread throughout the entire Public Security Bureau!
Coupled with his halo as the number one prodigy of Black Stone City’s Outer City, seeing him now in the flesh, everyone’s eyes glinted with intense curiosity, scrutiny, and apprehension.
When Pang Xuan saw Li Jingxuan and Su Yu, a rare, amicable smile broke through his usually stern and cold expression. "The Golden Scale Guard has arrived just in time. Take your seats. There are no outsiders here today. I’ve mainly gathered a few of the Bureau’s outstanding young colleagues to reward them for their merits."
Su Yu followed Li Jingxuan to the right side below the main seat. His expression was calm as he swept his gaze across the room, silently committing the Commanders and Captains to memory.
Seeing that everyone had arrived, Pang Xuan’s smile faded, and he slowly rose to his feet.
"To see so many exceptionally outstanding young colleagues emerge from my Public Security Bureau today, I am greatly heartened."
Pang Xuan’s gaze turned heavy and grim. "But the threat from the Black Lotus Sect fiends is severe, and their infiltration vanguard has repeatedly stirred up trouble in the Outer City! This is not only a grave provocation against our Public Security Bureau, but also a trampling of the iron laws of the Great Xia Dynasty!"
The atmosphere in the hall grew heavy.
Everyone knew that if, at such a critical juncture of life and death, the Public Security Bureau couldn’t even hold the defense line of the Outer City and allowed the Black Lotus Sect to muddy the waters, then there would be no reason for the Bureau to exist at all! At this moment, they would all rise or fall together!
"However, fortunately!"
Pang Xuan’s tone shifted, now laced with a murderous aura. "More reinforcements from Jian’an Prefecture and Qingzhou Prefecture are on their way! Our current mission is to nail ourselves to this Outer City, root out this first wave of fiends attempting to infiltrate and sabotage, and slaughter every last one of them!"
"And now, the outstanding colleagues in our Bureau have not disappointed!"
Pang Xuan’s sharp gaze swept over the four young people standing below:
"First, we had Cui Wanhe who earned a promotion through merit, and now we have the four of you distinguishing yourselves! Zhao Mu, Qian Langxing, Feng Ting, and Su Yu!"
Pang Xuan’s gaze finally landed on Su Yu with appreciation. "Especially Su Yu! Wiping out a high-level Black Lotus Sect stronghold in one fell swoop, and slaying three Flesh Refining Realm high-ranking deacons on site! This great merit has displayed the might of our Public Security Bureau and boosted the military prestige of our Black Stone City!"
"I hereby announce!"
"Effective immediately, Su Yu, Zhao Mu, Qian Langxing, and Feng Ting are promoted to Vice Commander of the Public Security Bureau!"
"Furthermore, in accordance with the laws of military merit, Su Yu and the other three will be rewarded with a certain amount of merit points! I hope all of you will continue to strive and achieve new merits on the battlefield against the Black Lotus Sect!"
"Your subordinates accept the order!"
The four voices rang out like a great bell as they clasped their fists.
...
After the meeting concluded, the crowd filed out of the hall.
Su Yu had just stepped over the threshold of the main hall, about to return to the Guard headquarters.
"Commander Su, please wait."
A cool, clear voice sounded from behind him.
Su Yu stopped and turned to look.
He saw the tall, statuesque woman, Feng Ting, striding directly toward him on her eye-catching, long legs without any hesitation.
"I am Feng Ting. I’ve heard much about the great reputation of Commander Su, the number one prodigy of Black Stone City. Might I be so fortunate as to formally make your acquaintance today?"
