A Dangerous Element? He Was Clearly the Fire Brigade's Favorite

Sing Sing pulled out a pack of cigarettes and took one between his lips.

He flicked his lighter, and a flame sprang up.

He tilted his head and looked at Chief Captain Zhang, the angle of his mouth...

It was asking for a punch.

Really asking for a punch.

"Well, Captain Zhang? Is this human self-propelled bladeless fan and smoke extractor working out for you?"

Chief Captain Zhang ignored him. He had already rushed over to Riptide, covering three steps in two, and grabbed his slender shoulders with both hands.

Riptide was so startled that he took half a step back.

"Young man!" Chief Captain Zhang boomed, his eyes red. "What's your name?"

Riptide squeezed out an answer in less-than-perfect Mandarin. "Janos Quested."

"Janos!" Captain Zhang's voice was loud enough to be heard across the entire drill ground. "From today on, you're my deputy captain!"

He turned and shouted to Lao Chen, "Lao Chen! Get the private quarters ready for him! The two-bedroom apartment!"

Lao Chen had just come down the stairs from the observation deck and nearly tripped as he ran over.

"Captain, that's your..."

"I don't need that place! Let him have it!"

"And hurry up and tell Wang Pangzi in the cafeteria that Comrade Janos gets five meals a day from now on!"

"Breakfast, lunch, dinner, plus morning and afternoon tea! Whatever he wants to eat, make it happen! If there isn't enough money, I'll cover the rest myself!"

Sing Sing raised a hand behind him. "Captain Zhang, um..."

"And another thing!" Chief Captain Zhang hadn't heard him at all. Still gripping Riptide's shoulders, he went on:

"Give him the highest allowance rate, straight away! Special post allowance, hazardous duty pay, technical allowance—max them all out! Give him the full frontline heat relief allowance, and double his New Year benefits!"

Sing Sing raised his hand again.

No one paid him any attention.

Chief Captain Zhang's voice began to tremble.

He grew more worked up as he spoke. "Do you know? With a chemical fire like that, following standard procedure, it takes over twenty minutes to clear the smoke and over forty to put out the fire. We'd have to send out at least three companies!"

"And even then, people might still get hurt. Do you know how many firefighters die in the line of duty across the country every year? Three of the men I trained..."

Chief Captain Zhang clenched his teeth.

"If that had been a real chemical plant explosion, do you realize how many lives you could have saved?"

"Oh, fuck, I can't go on!"

By the time Chief Captain Zhang got to that last sentence, his voice was hoarse.

Riptide looked at the man in his fifties, whose voice was deafeningly loud, at his red-rimmed eyes and the hands trembling slightly with emotion.

The X-Men called him a "dangerous element," and Stryker called him a "high-value experimental specimen."

No one had ever told him he could save lives.

Riptide pressed his lips together and drew a deep breath.

Then the man, skinny as a bamboo pole, straightened his back, brought his feet together, and slowly raised his right hand to his temple.

It was a less-than-perfect salute.

His palm was at the wrong angle, his elbow was too high, and his fingers weren't together.

But he saluted with utmost seriousness.

Sing Sing nodded repeatedly as he watched. He didn't make a joke, which was rare for him.

Chief Captain Zhang froze for a second.

Then the veteran firefighter in his fifties snapped his heels together with a clack and returned a textbook-perfect salute.

"Welcome to the brigade!"

In the end, Sing Sing broke the silence.

"All right, all right, the touching moment's over. Let's talk practical matters."

He leaned toward Chief Captain Zhang with a grin.

"Captain Zhang, that private apartment, five meals, top allowance, double New Year goods... You promised all that in front of the whole brigade, fifty or sixty people. Should I have Lao Chen put it in the meeting minutes?"

Chief Captain Zhang shoved his hand away.

"I keep my word! I don't need you reminding me!"

"Great! Then, as the person in charge of the overseas special talent recruitment project, I have a few little additional conditions..."

Chief Captain Zhang looked at him warily.

Sing Sing raised a finger. "First, Riptide's in poor physical condition, he hasn't been getting enough nutrition, and he weighs less than 120 jin. Physical training is fine, but you can't hold him to the same standards as your bunch of bulldozers."

"For the first three months, focus on recovery training and build up gradually. Don't let him get hurt."

Chief Captain Zhang nodded.

"Second, his Chinese isn't very good yet. Please assign him an interpreter or language partner for everyday use. Someone patient would be best, not someone who talks like a machine gun. And preferably someone without an accent, so you'd better not do it yourself."

Chief Captain Zhang's face darkened, but he nodded anyway. "All right."

"Third, and most important."

Sing Sing's tone grew more serious.

"His younger brother works at our bureau. The two of them have depended on each other since they were little. For holidays—Spring Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, Dragon Boat Festival—you have to approve leave so they can reunite."

"All right!"

"Good!"

Sing Sing clapped his hands. "Then I can rest easy. Riptide, this is your home from now on. Work hard, and don't disgrace our bureau!"

"The apartment has two bedrooms, a living room, and a private bathroom. Captain Zhang himself lived there before. Remember to pack up his personal belongings first, and don't go through his drawers."

Chief Captain Zhang shouted from behind him, "Quit making things up!"

Riptide looked at Sing Sing and opened his mouth, but in the end he only gave his hand a firm squeeze.

His grip was very strong.

Sing Sing patted him on the shoulder, turned, and left.

"Hey, Xiao Zhou!" Chief Captain Zhang called after him.

"Hm?"

"You left sunflower seed shells all over the ground. Shouldn't you clean them up?"

On hearing that, Sing Sing quickened his pace.

"That falls under the category of natural biodegradation of organic matter. It's not my responsibility. Besides, the firefighters can use the shells to train their feet to adapt to different surfaces. Two birds with one stone."

"Sing—Sing!"

"Farewell, farewell! I'm busy with official business! I've still got a stack of reimbursement forms waiting for approval!"

He had already darted out the gate.

Chief Captain Zhang pointed in that direction, trembling with anger, then turned to Lao Chen. "That guy—I'll beat him up one of these days."

Lao Chen thought for a moment. "Captain, I think he's with the 749 Bureau."

"So what if he's with the 749 Bureau? Does that mean he doesn't have to sweep the floor?"

Behind them, the firefighters crowded around Riptide, asking questions all at once.

"Janos? I heard that guy call you Riptide. Can I call you that?"

"I heard you have special abilities. Can I become your disciple?"

"Do you eat spicy food? The cafeteria's poached fish in chili oil is really good! On Fridays we get extra dishes, including red-braised pork ribs!"

Surrounded by firefighters whose enthusiasm was almost frightening, Riptide felt at a loss.

Someone pressed a bottle of mineral water into his hand.

Someone else asked if he wanted to play basketball.

One young man even took out his phone and asked to add him on WeChat, only to be left speechless when Riptide said, "I don't have WeChat yet."

"No Bubble? Then let's exchange phone numbers first!"

But he smiled more than he had in all his years in the United States combined.

Chief Captain Zhang watched from a distance and said to Lao Chen, "Go tell Wang Pangzi to add some dishes tonight! Red-braised beef, fish with pickled cabbage, garlic shrimp—we're welcoming our new deputy brigade captain! No alcohol! He's still recovering! Anyone who dares make him drink, I'll wallop them!"