Chapter 1 (1/2)
Chapter 1 – A Present At the Door
Before we start, this is a novel revolving around a police force and one specific officer (is a cadet for the first 25 chapters). The first 25 chapters will be an academy arc with Chinese humor so… if you don’t like it, don’t read it. If you hate it, sucks for you, because I wish I was good enough to open it to a broader audience.
Genre: Comedy, Police, School life, Anti-hero MC, Government
As if the night brought about the spring breeze, the next morning was met with the colors of blooming spring flowers.
After the snow cleared, the smog-enveloped city finally welcomed a warm and sunny day. After several days on continuous snow, the sidewalks were covered in a thick layer of white. The pa.s.sing pedestrians finally took off the thick face warmers that had never left their sides for the last few days, and finally let of a breath of the pent up turbid air in their chest.
According to the street sign, to the right was Ocean Avenue East; to the left was the province Police Academy.
A modern SUV police cruiser stopped for a moment at the traffic stop, then turned left towards the academy’s direction.
This place were known to many as the province’s cradle of police officers. A few hundreds of police personnel are sent out from this school every year. Before each year’s last semester begins, branches of the Ministry of Public Security from various cities would pick out interns.h.i.+p personnel from the graduating cla.s.s of that year. However, a police cruiser with a Provincial Hall license plate was a first. After driving another few kilometers, the school building of the police academy was already in sight. Its olive colored walls were especially eye catching compared to the rest of the buildings.
The car drove onto campus, and when it parked at the school building, the school’s Instructional Director Jiang Xiao Yuan and Princ.i.p.al w.a.n.g Lan were already present to greet the guest. The few men’s exchange of greetings fell into the view of someone behind the 3rd floor first room of the dorm building. This was a male student with nothing special about his face. He poked at the cla.s.smate who was playing on his phone and softly said, “They’re here.”
Putting away his phone was a chubby male student with swell cheeks. His round face led to his cla.s.smates giving him the nickname of Doubao (Bean Bun). The one who alerted him was his desk neighbor Yu Zui (Further Guilt). Doubao lightly said, “Yu, this time the Provincial Hall is here to grab people so the instructor told us to regard this pretty highly. Do you think this kind of good thing can fall on our heads?”
TL NOTE: The () are the literal readings of the names.
Yu Zui’s look was quite limpid. As he glanced around this lecture hall, the whole place was in an uproar. The new of the Provincial Hall’s recruitment was announced quite early, and had excited many of the fresh officer cadets, many of which began to fantasize about their future. However, the disparity of level between the cadets was also quite apparent. A hundred or so cadets were internally recommended, and many were registered residents of this city. Compared to the back rows with the group of cadets originating from remote towns and counties, the two groups were visibly leagues apart. As such, it was quite difficult for the two groups to sit together.
Once Yu Zui thought to this point, he shook his head, “Won’t happen. It will be our turn to enjoy good things. The results are probably already set internally.”
“But the instructor said that this time is voluntary application and open selection, so it shouldn’t have any of under-the-table manipulations by the guys above, right?” Doubao asked with doubt.
“You can’t call it manipulations if you don’t do it under the table. Leaving the provincial spot for you? Do you think it’s like TV? Happiness is just that easy?” Yu Zui replied in whisper.
“But this is a recruitment after all, so it shouldn’t be all shady, right?” Doubao looked for a glimmer of hope.
“Even if it’s just saving a place, it would never be your turn.” Yu Zui laughed. Seeing that Doubao was not too believing, he moved closer and added, “I’m guess not a chance. Do you believe me, or the organization?”
“You’re right, neither one is too trustworthy.” Doubao shook his head and immediately rejected both options. But after taking a look around at the fellow small town cadets, he really had no choice but to believe Yu Zui’s words. If you want good looks, none of them had it. If you wanted good family background, none of them had that either.
At that moment, footsteps could be heard coming from outside. The room of cadets immediately sat upright and still. Knowing that the Provincial Hall’s people are here, the cadets’ faces all held excited expressions. They immediately concluded their whispering, instead they all maintained the look and discipline of trained police officers.
Director Jiang Xiao Ruan glanced through the window and was quite satisfied with the cadets’ manners and appearance. He had then explained the whole details of the department. The almost graduating seniors were a total of 108 cadets. The male to female ratio was severely out of balance. There were only 10 female cadets compared to the 98 male cadets. The graduating cla.s.s comes from this year’s criminal psychology, criminal investigation, computer science, and forensics departments. The selection personnel from Provincial Hall was the Section Chief of the Criminal Investigation Department, Xu Ping Qiu, and Criminal Research Department’s director, s.h.i.+ Qing Huai. This kind of thing normally would not require the Princ.i.p.al to personally show up, but given the fact that Xu Ping Qiu was both the Provincial Hall’s agent and an alum of the Provincial Police Academy, even w.a.n.g Lan was startled by the personnel choice.
The two recruiters also looked through the window at the lecture hall. The cadets all sat with their backs straight and heads up, looking so uniform that they were looked a phalanx formation. This sight subconsciously caused a hint of a smile to show up on Xu’s face. It was like a call back to when he had first graduated from the Academy. Although he was an idiot back then, he was still proud, young, and vigorous like these cadets.
The lecture hall’s doors sprang open as the old princ.i.p.al personally opened the door. A row of people walked in in a line. The cla.s.sroom instructor introduced them enthusiastically, “Students, let me introduce to you all, the Provincial Hall Criminal Investigation Department’s Section Chief – Mr. Xu Ping Qiu. Please welcome Chief Xu.”
Once the introduction ended, applause immediately sounded throughout the hall. Many of the cadets’ eyes were br.i.m.m.i.n.g with light. The clapping became more intense while everyone began to whisper amongst themselves.
“So he is Xu Ping Qiu, the one who solved the serial murder case? I’ve studied that case record before.”
“Probably, how many Xu Ping Qiu could there be?”
“That’s right. I’ve seen his pictures before. Internal information from my dad’s computer.”
“Wow, could it be that if we were to become criminal police, he will be our leader no matter where we are working from?”
“Of course. He is the elite of elites, so even if he isn’t busy, you might not get to see him.”
“Seeing him is quite different from what I heard about him. He looks too…concerned about the country and the people…”
“…………”
The cadets secretly whispered among themselves while a middle-aged man walked onto the podium. Average height, slightly dark-skinned, deep wrinkles on his forehead… Certainly the look of one who worries too much. It was a female student who said the phrase, so it evoked a short burst of laughter from the crowd. Although the instructor gave out a warning, Xu Ping Qiu had unexpectedly laughed with a friendly expression. Getting the attention of the students, he immediately started by saying, “I’m sorry everyone, my looks had disappointed you all.”