Chapter 96: Chapter 96: Real-life Task
"Wait!" Yang Xiao immediately interrupted, looking towards Nalan Shuo, "Director, I’m new, how can I be entrusted with such a key position right from the start? This... this is absolutely unacceptable."
Yang Xiao understood the basic rules of the workplace. Taking someone’s job as soon as he arrived would certainly make it difficult to carry out future tasks. As a newcomer without a solid foundation, a displaced senior leader might even gather old colleagues to trip him up. If work couldn’t be carried out smoothly, he wouldn’t be able to face the Director, displeasing people both above and below him.
To Yang Xiao’s surprise, the girl’s eyes lit up upon hearing his words, and she almost jumped with joy, "Woo hoo~~, really, Director? You can’t go back on your word, thank you... thank you for recognizing talent, Director!"
In her excitement, the girl didn’t forget to shake hands and congratulate Yang Xiao, her eyes full of sincerity, "Congratulations, Captain Yang, we’ll be working under you from now on. Please take good care of us!"
Yang Xiao: "...Something doesn’t feel right, have I been sold out?"
"Captain Yang, you stay and get acquainted with the work. If there’s anything you don’t understand, you can ask Beibei. I have other matters to deal with."
"And, take that thing off your head."
Director Nalan took the device that Yang Xiao removed and left, not forgetting to cast a glance at Xi Menxiu and Zhuge Zhijie standing outside the door, scolding them for their nonchalance, "Every payday you stir up trouble with a new antic. If there’s any more chaos next time, pack your bags and leave."
After the Director had completely left, the few people exhaled in relief. The girl smiled, "Captain, please have a seat. I’ll clean up the office for you right now, and then you can move in."
"No rush, no rush," Yang Xiao felt a bit awkward, as if he was the one kicking her out.
"Come, Captain, this way, please. Ms. Bei can tidy up by herself," Xi Menxiu, dressed as a beggar, smiled broadly.
As Yang Xiao turned around, he suddenly saw a red paper that looked like a banner attached to the door frame, with six big characters written on it: Captain, not even fit to be a dog!
Yang Xiao: "???"
Beibei, who was preparing to move a computer, reacted quickly. She leaped up, ripped off the banner in one go, and crumpled it into a ball at lightning speed, awkwardly hiding the wad of paper behind her back, "That... Captain, don’t mind it, I’m criticizing the issue, not the person. It was just for fun."
After being led by Xi Menxiu to sit down outside, Yang Xiao’s head was still spinning. He had had his interview in the morning and became a captain before noon – was this promotion a little too fast? He wanted to make progress, but the speed of it scared him a bit. There couldn’t be any dark secrets behind it, could there?
In the blink of an eye, the beggar beside him transformed, changed into a new outfit with a floral shirt, white slacks, and shining leather shoes, complemented by a skinny belt with a huge logo. The newly dressed Xi Menxiu brought over a cup of hot coffee, walking at the forefront of fashion, "Hehe, Captain, please wait a moment, Ms. Bei will come over after she’s done."
Zhuge Zhijie glanced at Xi Menxiu disdainfully, seemingly having little respect for his sycophantic behavior, returned to his own place, stowed away his homework ghostwriting sign, and started doodling urgently, appearing very busy.
"Don’t pay attention to him. He’s a blockhead, only knows how to do things that no one understands. You don’t have to treat him as a person, just think of him as a humanoid machine that can write reports. Oh right, his position is the team’s academic expert," Xi Menxiu enthusiastically introduced to Yang Xiao.
Yang Xiao was stunned for a moment, then responded politely, "Impressive, impressive."
"Academic expert my foot, we’ve followed his ideas three times and got punished five, even got a major demerit, causing me to lose my year-end bonus!" Beibei walked out of the room with disdain, holding a large cardboard box in her arms. Her belongings weren’t many; aside from the computer, there were some trinkets related to Doraemon. It was clear she loved Doraemon.
After setting the cardboard box she was carrying on a desk, Beibei came over to greet Yang Xiao, "Captain, don’t listen to his nonsense. Xi Menxiu doesn’t take up our staffing quota, he’s part of the logistics support staff. If the chairs are broken, or the coffee tastes bad, or if the mouse pad feels off, you can complain to him."
Hearing this, Xi Menxiu grew indignant, stood up shakily and pointed at the girl, "Huang Beibei, you... you can’t slander me, the Director said I’ll be made permanent by the end of the year!"
After driving Xi Menxiu away, the girl sat in front of Yang Xiao, "Captain, I’ve just received your information sent by the HR department. It says you just came out from your first Nightmare World, so there must be a lot you’re unclear about. The Director didn’t have time to explain much to you, but you can ask me any questions."
"What is our main responsibility as an investigation team?" Yang Xiao asked directly.
"Handling supernatural events, of course, I mean supernatural events that occur in reality," the girl explained, "More specifically, it involves controlling the situation so it doesn’t worsen, identifying the source of supernatural events, suppressing the awakening Resentful Eye, coordinating with the subsequent technical teams, and based on the situation at the scene, the Supernatural Event Levels, and the level of threat among other factors, deciding whether to contain the Resentful Eye, demolish it, or seal it permanently."
The girl answered very professionally, giving a highly reliable impression. Yang Xiao nodded, "So... everyone on the team is an Angel Envoy?"
"Yes, including him, even if he barely qualifies," the girl said, tilting her chin to indicate Xi Menxiu sitting across with his legs crossed and sulking.
"There are some things that Director Nalan might not find convenient to tell you, so let me explain. Even though we, the investigators, are also official personnel, our responsibilities are unique, and so we are different from the police. Our primary duty is to quickly secure the scene, prevent the situation from deteriorating further, and minimize casualties and losses. So, those strict protocols don’t apply much to us. Plainly speaking, we don’t need to follow procedures to the letter. Quickly resolving supernatural incidents is our top priority."
Yang Xiao understood and said, "You mean we need to take a special approach for special situations?"
The girl smiled prettily and praised him, "Captain, you really grasp it. No wonder Director Nalan has such high hopes for you."
As they were talking, the door was suddenly pushed open. Two people entered, a man and a woman. The man was tall and burly, looking like he could fit three slim Ximen Xius inside him.
The woman was quite young, appearing even younger than Deputy Captain Beibei. She looked like a college student, wearing a white lace-trimmed stand-up collar shirt, stonewashed jeans, light-colored leather shoes, and had a neat appearance with delicate features that gave off the vibe of the girl-next-door. She carried a canvas bag over her shoulder and also held a blue hardcover folder in her hand.
The burly man walked over to Yang Xiao with enthusiasm, greeting him, "You must be the new Captain Yang. I just got the news. Hello, Captain, I’m Xiong Zhenghui, the team’s technician. They all call me Da Xiong, ha ha ha."
The girl looked at Yang Xiao. Without saying a word, she quickly wrote something on her clipboard and then lifted it to show him neat handwriting: Yu Shu, medical expert, hello Captain.
Yang Xiao was taken aback and then looked at the girl with a touch of pity in his eyes. It was clear that she must be mute.
But the next second, Yu Shu, as if sensing Yang Xiao’s subtle expression, turned around and walked to her seat. First, she put down her folder, then one by one took out a thermos, cell phone, over-ear headphones, and other items from her bag. It was like a treasure chest.
"Hey there, little Shu, what delicious things did you bring today? Let brother Ximen check them out~~" Ximen Xiu was utterly shameless as he bounded over with a nudge and a wink.
"Anyone who dares to bother me is asking for it!" Beibei rolled up her sleeves, scaring Ximen Xiu into making a hasty retreat.
It was the honest Da Xiong who explained to Yang Xiao with a smile, "Captain, they’re like this every day, not really acting proper. Don’t take it to heart, ha."
Yang Xiao really liked the office atmosphere here. It was evident that the team got along well, presenting a united front against anyone, including Director Nalan.
In the following period, Yang Xiao became familiar with Beibei, Da Xiong, and occasionally Ximen Xiu who managed to chip in a word or two. Occasionally, Yu Shu would lift her head and nod politely in their direction.
As for Zhuge Zhijie, just like Ximen Xiu had said, there was no need to treat him as a person. He was like a humanoid robot, always with his head down writing and drawing, busy with something that made him look both tense and impressive.
After an unknown amount of time, the crisp sound of a bell indicating the end of class rang out.
"Ding, ling, ling~~"
The next second, Beibei suddenly jumped up, ran to her new desk, and pulled out a Doraemon alarm clock from a cardboard box, then turned it off, "Time to get off work! Take your time, Captain. I made dinner plans with a beauty, heh heh, and I’ve got a couples’ movie to catch in the afternoon. See you tomorrow!"
Before Yang Xiao could respond, Beibei had dashed out, and the sound of her cheerful footsteps echoed down the hallway. Yang Xiao was dumbfounded, "Wait, don’t we work in the afternoon?"
In an era that promoted voluntary overtime, there was actually a company that only worked in the morning. What kind of fairy-tale company was this, not afraid of being reported for malicious competition by peers?
It wasn’t just Beibei; the other team members were also packing up, apparently ready to leave. Just as Yang Xiao was about to follow suit, Ximen Xiu stopped him with a cheeky grin, "Well... Captain, you can’t go."
"Is there something else?" Yang Xiao had money in his pocket now and was planning to treat himself to a good meal.
"There’s nothing urgent, it’s just that the bureau has a rule. Ordinary investigators can go home at noon, but captains can’t. You need to stay until 4 p.m."
Yang Xiao: "?? Can this be right? The leaders stay late, but the staff leave first?"
It was at that moment Yang Xiao realized why Beibei was so excited after being removed from her position as captain—she had been waiting for this moment!
But soon, another set of footsteps echoed in the hallway. This time, though not slow, there was decidedly less spring in the step. The door was pushed open, and Beibei came back, this time her face bearing a look of displeasure. Director Nalan had returned with her.
Director Nalan’s expressions were serious, and his voice was low and forceful, "I’ve just received news of a sudden supernatural event within our jurisdiction. It’s located in a commercial building near Chunliu Pedestrian Street. It’s of a serious nature, with fatalities already reported. The task is tentatively designated as the Xinmao Building Ghost Incident."
"I am now ordering all members of the Lin’an District Patrol Office’s investigation team to depart immediately. The special equipment you’ll need has been loaded into the vehicles, and specific information about the mission will be sent to you en route."
