A Passing Grade, Arrogant and Stubborn!

"Come in."

A hearty voice came from inside the room. Cheng Ye turned, patted Raul's stiff shoulder, and pushed open the door.

As the Duty Station Chief of North Station, Benn Towns had a private office covering 150 square meters.

The office was divided into an outer and inner area.

In the outer area, enormous floor-to-ceiling windows covered the entire west wall, offering an unobstructed view of the wilderness beyond the Checkpoint.

In front of the windows stood a large desk made of dark walnut. Leather folders and brass paperweights were neatly arranged across its surface, while an antique clock ticked steadily in the corner.

The inner lounge was screened off by a sandalwood divider inlaid with mother-of-pearl patterns. The outlines of a leather sofa and a liquor cabinet stocked with whiskey were just visible beyond it.

This was an old man who knew how to enjoy life.

Cheng Ye stepped inside at an unhurried pace. His gaze swept across the wall facing the door, where portraits of North Checkpoint's former Duty Station Chiefs hung, before settling on the one in the center.

The man in the photo had a neatly trimmed salt-and-pepper beard and a gaze as sharp as a falcon's. He was the very picture of a proper British gentleman, just as Cheng Ye had always imagined one.

The man himself sat behind the desk, a half-smoked cigar between his fingers as he flipped through some documents. Ash drifted into an ornate wooden ashtray, piling up like a small mound of pale snow.

"Station Chief Towns, hello. I'm Cheng Ye, the Apprentice Inspector reporting for duty at North Checkpoint today."

"Young man, I've heard your name."

Benn Towns slowly raised his head, set down the documents, and smiled. "Though that was seventeen years ago, back when your grandfather was still around."

"My grandfather?"

Cheng Ye kept his expression neutral.

Liu Bi had kept tight-lipped about how Cheng Long had died and where he had died. He had only said that he would tell Cheng Ye the truth after he completed his first Field Mission and gained the ability to survive on his own. And now there was this "grandfather," whose name he had never even heard.

Hang on, how did his predecessor end up with so many impressive relatives?

With connections like these, he shouldn't have wound up such a mess in the Inner City. He'd stayed a... well, you know, right up until he died.

"Ah, you and Cheng Long don't look alike at all, but you really do resemble your grandfather."

Towns's gaze wandered. His words were disjointed, as though he were remembering something from long ago.

It took him more than ten seconds to gradually come back to himself.

"If you hadn't fired, I would've given your performance today a score of 90. At your age, you've already shown greater potential than Cheng Long. You're more mature than he was, and you know how to get things done."

"If you'd fired just once, I would've lowered your score to 70. Knowing how to use the rules to protect yourself and constrain your enemies—people with wisdom deserve praise!"

"But it's a shame you fired twice. I can only give you a passing score of 60. Don't learn from Cheng Long, and especially don't learn from Liu Bi. They got where they are today through luck, not muscle or recklessness."

Towns spoke slowly, like he was teaching a younger relative, pausing now and then to tap off his cigar ash.

"All right, don't worry too much. I've got some history with that old fellow Cheng Wu. He didn't have the nerve to ask me to look after his junior before he left, but I'm not going to single you out now, either."

"As long as you stay inside the Checkpoint, I'll make sure you're completely safe. No one will deliberately target you."

"But once you cross that line..."

Towns pointed at the windows. Cheng Ye turned to look and saw a thick yellow line, about three meters wide, stretching across the ground in front of the eight inspection lanes.

The yellow line was impossible to miss. To cross it, you'd have to leave the lanes, which meant stepping out of the Quarantine Zone and into the wilderness.

"Any other questions?"

"No. Thank you for looking out for me, Station Chief Towns. I'll remember it."

Cheng Ye bowed slightly, feeling a little more favorably toward the old man.

A man in Towns's position had no reason to trick him. If he really wanted to make trouble for Cheng Ye, there were plenty of ways he could do it.

But the fact that he'd said all this meant the West Faction wasn't as united as Cheng Ye had assumed. There had to be differing opinions within it.

That made sense. It would be strange if a faction had only one voice.

"All right. Since you've earned a 60, this first evaluation is yours. And remember to come see me for a signature before each rotation."

Towns pulled a sheet of paper covered in text from a leather folder.

The top half listed Cheng Ye's basic information, and the bottom half was the evaluation section for his internship. The red seal of North Checkpoint was stamped at the very bottom.

Under the Checkpoint's rules for converting interns to full status, Cheng Ye needed to collect three such evaluation sheets at each of the Central Checkpoint, the North South Sub Checkpoint, and the South Checkpoint before he could end his internship and become a full Phase One Inspector.

Towns was willing to give him one right now, which clearly meant he approved of Cheng Ye's performance on arrival. His methods and temperament both met the Minimum Standard for an inspector.

Of course, Cheng Ye guessed that if he'd earned the 90 Towns had mentioned, he wouldn't just be holding one sheet. He might've been given two, or even all three.

But—

"Thank you, Station Chief!"

"Go on."

Cheng Ye nodded, folded the evaluation sheet, and tucked it into his backpack. Then he opened the door and left the office.

To his surprise, Raul hadn't left. He was waiting by the railing not far from the office.

"Hm? Is there something else you wanted to say to me?"

Cheng Ye couldn't help being curious.

By the usual villain playbook, Raul should've been throwing out a couple of threats right about now, telling him this wasn't over.

As long as Cheng Ye stayed at North Checkpoint, the young masters would band together and make his life hell.

They'd only let it go if he got down on his knees and begged for forgiveness someday.

But reality turned out to be completely different from what he'd expected.

"Inspector Cheng, if you're willing, I'd like to make a deal with you."

Raul walked over. The stiffness had left his face, replaced by a calm expression tinged with a hint of ingratiation.

"Oh? Let's hear it."

"Garcia is Jamie's uncle. To a large extent, he targeted you because he wanted to avenge his nephew. We only egged Jamie on because we wanted to see a Dongren inspector make a fool of himself. To be honest, whoever had come today—whether it was you or some other Dongren—we would've done the same. It wasn't personal."

Cheng Ye gave a nasal "Mm," signaling him to continue.

"The struggle between the East and West Factions is a conflict between inspectors. It's about competing interests, and it has nothing to do with juniors like us, who don't even know when we'll inherit our positions."

At this point, Raul lowered his voice. "Jamie's father only has one son. Even if Jamie knelt in front of you today, he'd still be able to become an inspector later. But I'm different. My father has four sons, and I'm the eldest. If I back down to you today, he'll never let me inherit his position."

"So you want me to pretend to go along with you?"

"No." Raul quickly shook his head. "All you have to do is keep what happened today to yourself. Don't go around publicizing it among the Dongren like Garcia, Jamie's uncle, does. I'll make sure we all act as if nothing happened today. Everyone will forget this unpleasantness."

Well, now, this is interesting.

Cheng Ye narrowed his eyes and sized up the blond boy in front of him.

The others still had the naïve arrogance of kids who didn't know how big the world was, but Cheng Ye had already caught a hint of calculation in Raul that didn't belong in someone his age.

"What do I get?"

"A promise."

Raul immediately grew serious. His fingertips unconsciously rubbed the button on his cuff. "I've thought it over, and this is the most valuable thing I can offer. As long as it doesn't involve the inspectors' factional struggles, I can guarantee that, no matter what happens within North Station's territory, I'll protect you once, without conditions."

"Or, to be more precise, even if it does involve a direct conflict between the factions and you're trapped at North Station, I can buy you some time to call the Dongren for help."

Cheng Ye didn't care much about the first part, but the second part... His eyelid twitched as he listened.

"You seem to be taking a pretty big risk."

"Not at all."

Realizing the deal was done, Raul let out a long breath and smiled genuinely for the first time.

"There's only one inspector's post, and my three younger brothers all have their eyes on it. What do you think I should do? Roll around in the mud with them, or make friends with someone who dares to fire a gun at the Checkpoint?"

"All right. I'll act like nothing happened today."

Cheng Ye waved a hand and started walking away.

They were just a bunch of pampered young masters. When it came to being ruthless, even the kids at an orphanage could beat them.

Besides, he hadn't planned to tell anyone about what happened in the first place. Getting Raul's promise out of it was an unexpected bonus.

But after taking a couple of steps, Cheng Ye abruptly stopped and turned around, nearly giving Raul PTSD.

"Something else?" Raul asked, trying to suppress his panic.

"I'm supposed to be on duty in Zone A today, right? It's my first time here. Why don't you show me the way while you're at it?"

"It'd be my pleasure."

Damn, he could've said so earlier. That scared the hell out of me.

Raul secretly let out a sigh of relief, but he'd already decided to keep as far away from this bringer of bad luck as possible from now on.

He should've known better. Anyone who dared to come to North Station for their first rotation couldn't be entirely unprepared.

It was only because Cheng Ye looked so young that everyone had been mistaken, thinking they could easily push him around.

But the truth was, they weren't even on the same level as Cheng Ye. His methods were more ruthless than those of some Phase Two Inspectors.

And the most troublesome thing about him was how well he understood the Checkpoint's rules.

When it came to dealing with a clever guy like that, it was better to leave him to the inspectors in Halin's faction and let them worry about him.

"This young man's too hotheaded. I reckon he won't last many rotations."

The footsteps outside faded away.

A figure emerged from behind the office's wooden screen. It was none other than Deputy Station Chief Evan Davidson.

"He's ruthless, but he has no foundation. In the end, he'll only be stubborn and self-righteous, hurting himself and others."

"That's why I said he reminds me a little of Cheng Wu."

Towns laughed softly as he replied. "But if young people aren't hotheaded, can you really call them young?"

His words seemed pointed, clearly carrying a double meaning.

Davidson's expression shifted, and he abruptly straightened his back. "I've been busy with Field Missions lately and haven't kept a close enough eye on things. Rest assured, Station Chief. This won't happen again."

"Good. Things have been chaotic at North Station lately. It's only natural that outsiders might laugh at us."

P.S. Thanks to Hinat, Brave Warrior, Hold On, Fellow Daoist, One Slash, and reader 20170701 for the monthly tickets. Thank you!

P.S. 2: It's a new week, and I'm planning to push for a spot on the new-release rankings. I sincerely hope you can all check out the latest chapter every day and follow along. This really matters for a new book and affects the recommendations it gets later. San Jin thanks you!