Human Relations

After thinking it over for a long while, Chen Xia decided to go with the second option.

Compared to approaching the West City Patrol Inspection Office, it was easier to get help from someone on his own side.

The next morning, Chen Xia got to work on it.

The South District Patrol Inspection Office was a six-story building. The director and chief captains usually had their offices on the fifth floor.

The top floor was reserved for recreation: a Billiards Hall, a gym, a library, and the Archives.

Chen Xia usually spent his time on the first floor and rarely went upstairs unless there was a meeting.

As for the recreational facilities on the top floor, ordinary members were quite conscientious and didn't go there often.

Chen Xia wasn't planning to go upstairs and meet the chief captain or the director directly. He didn't have enough clout, and they wouldn't do him any favors.

There were eight streets in the south of the city alone, and Yijiang City was full of influential people. As a low-ranking member, he figured the safest bet was to have his captain pass the message along.

Chen Xia's captain was surnamed Jiang, a man in his forties. When Chen Xia had been nominated for deputy captain, Captain Jiang had put in a good word for him with his superiors, but Yang Hua's connections had gotten in the way, and that had been the end of it.

"Captain Jiang, what do you think about this...?"

After Chen Xia explained the situation, Captain Jiang understood what had happened.

He looked a little troubled, but after a moment's hesitation, he said he could ask the chief captain about it.

He couldn't go directly, though. He'd call the chief captain that evening and have Chen Xia go home and wait for news.

As it happened, Captain Jiang went to speak with the chief captain. At first, the chief captain hadn't planned to get involved. But when he heard that the person who'd gotten into trouble wasn't a difficult case, and that the matter itself was easy enough to handle, he learned it concerned the young colleague from their Patrol Inspection Office who'd lost out on the deputy captain position. After giving it some thought, he casually made a phone call. The chief captain of the south side of the city knew the one in the west, so all it took was a call asking him to follow the usual procedures.

For people at the bottom, a crisis that threatened life or death could be resolved with just a word from someone above. Captain Sun on the other end heard him out and replied:

"Captain Liu... This Zhu He fellow isn't in too much trouble. Since you've asked, Brother Liu, I'll handle it. But this matter involves the Chief Office, so all I can guarantee is that he'll be held properly and won't die in there. He'll have to wait until those two groups have finished their business, five months from now, before he can be released."

"Captain Liu, I could actually let him go myself, but since he's not your relative and this is about someone under you, we'll handle it this way. You know how it is—this involves the Chief Office, and that woman isn't someone to trifle with. There's no need to go against the current. It'll be enough if he gets out alive. I'm only doing this because of you, Brother Liu. Otherwise, it wouldn't be so easy."

"Hahaha, Old Sun, I'll treat you to tea one of these days..."

Chen Xia waited two days for things to be settled.

His aunt and uncle had also gone two days and two nights without sleep, waiting for him to get back to them.

That day at work, Captain Jiang found Chen Xia and told him there was an answer.

He also handed Chen Xia the Black Bag.

Captain Jiang said, "The chief captain knows you. He had no choice but to give your deputy captain position to someone else last time. Captain Liu told me he felt bad about it, so he helped you take care of this. As for the money, you don't need to give it to him. The chief captain wants you to work hard. You'll still have a chance to move up someday."

Chen Xia stood there, stunned for a moment. He was visibly moved.

For someone like Captain Liu to treat him this way was a considerable kindness.

That evening, Chen Xia wanted to treat Captain Jiang and the chief captain to dinner and give them the money, but they both turned him down. They told him it was a small matter and there was no need to make such a fuss. Everyone had been busy lately.

In other words, the matter was settled.

Chen Xia knew they'd only been willing to step in because of his lost deputy captain position. Otherwise, even that little money might not have been enough.

Still, he thought things had turned out pretty well. At least his aunt's problem was temporarily taken care of.

They still had to wait for the heat to die down. The two Mercenary Groups were locked in a fierce battle, and Chen Xia had a feeling there was more going on behind the scenes than he knew.

Whatever. It wasn't his concern.

After finishing work that day, Chen Xia went home.

As it happened, his aunt and uncle were there too.

They stared at him anxiously. His aunt asked, "Xiaoxia, we still haven't heard anything about my son. What's going on with your end...?"

His uncle stared at Chen Xia too, hoping for an answer.

Chen Xia took out the Black Bag and handed it over with a smile. "Auntie, Uncle, my cousin should be all right for now. The people above said Zhu He won't have any trouble in there. He can come out in five months, once the heat dies down."

He returned the Black Bag to his aunt and explained why they hadn't accepted the money.

It had all come down to luck. The chief captain had stepped in for him; otherwise, it would have been difficult to get anything done.

In the end, it all came down to influence. His aunt and uncle had been beside themselves with worry, yet a few words from the chief captain had resolved the problem.

That only made Chen Xia more determined to work hard and get ahead. He didn't have much going for him now, but if he became a martial artist—or advanced even further—and gained access to the upper circles, he might one day have some say too.

"That's wonderful, Xiaoxia! You've really helped our family out this time!"

His aunt let out a sigh of relief. She'd heard that people who went in with the Canhe Mercenary Group had a hard time getting out alive. This good news was enough to ease her worries for now. They'd find a way to deal with the rest later.

"Auntie, it's getting late. Why don't you stay for dinner?"

Chen Xia offered.

"No, we don't want to trouble you. Thank you so much this time, Xiaoxia. We'll come by again when your cousin gets out."

"By the way, take this money..."

"No, Auntie. I didn't do much to help!" Chen Xia naturally wouldn't take her money.

But as the two of them tugged the money back and forth, Chen Xia managed to pass it to his uncle. His uncle snatched it up, made a couple of vague remarks, and left.

Once they were outside, his aunt said, "You shouldn't have taken the money just now."

His uncle's expression darkened. "Our son's still locked up in there. He hasn't been released!"

"I'm starting to wonder if he didn't refuse the money, but just couldn't get it to the right people and didn't get anything done. Maybe he's just fobbing us off."

"I told you from the start not to go to your nephew. He's just an ordinary patrol officer. He doesn't have any pull."

His aunt grew agitated at that. Pointing at him, she said, "How can you be so heartless? I trust my nephew. If he said this, he must have spoken to someone above him. Our son can get out in a few months—that's already good enough. As long as he's alive, a few more days don't matter."

"Ugh..."

Her husband pulled a pack of cigarettes from his pocket. He took one out, lit it, and drew deeply before muttering, "Your nephew's been at the Patrol Inspection Office for years and still hasn't moved up. Who does he know? He's going nowhere. If he had any real clout, our son would've been released already. The way he's just coasting along, he'd be better off risking his life with a Mercenary Group like his brother. Maybe then he'd amount to something and earn more money."

His aunt snapped, "At least Xiaoxia has a steady job at the Patrol Inspection Office. If it weren't for him, our son might not even be alive. You're heartless to say that. His family's circumstances are what they are—Chen Wu has already gone off to risk his life with a Mercenary Group, and now you want Xiaoxia to do the same? What kind of thing is that to say?"

"You've been running around everywhere these past few days. Did you find anyone who could help? In the end, it was my nephew who helped us get things under control."

"..." Her husband was at a loss for words and sighed. He owned a small food factory, but the people he knew weren't powerful or influential. Faced with a situation like this, he really couldn't find anyone to help, let alone get his son out.

He was still worried about his son, but there was nothing he could do. He said no more, and the two of them climbed into the car and drove away, looking utterly defeated.

Not long afterward, Chen Xia received a transfer of fifty thousand yuan from his aunt. She'd left a message telling him not to refuse it; it was just a small token of her gratitude.

His uncle knew about the money, but didn't argue again. After all, Chen Xia had helped them. No one knew what was happening inside, and they'd have to wait a few months to find out how things turned out. He was still a little anxious and planned to look for another way to help.