Passing Score, Stubborn and Self-Willed!

"Please come in."

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

As the station chief of North Station, Director Downs had a private office of 150 square meters.

The office was divided into inner and outer sections.

The outer area had a massive floor-to-ceiling glass window covering the entire west wall, offering a panoramic view of the wilderness outside the checkpoint.

In front of the window stood a large mahogany desk, neatly arranged with leather folders and a brass paperweight. An old grandfather clock in the corner emitted a steady "tick-tock."

The inner resting area was separated by a sandalwood screen inlaid with mother-of-pearl patterns, vaguely revealing the outline of a leather sofa and a liquor cabinet stocked with whiskey.

This was a man who knew how to enjoy himself.

Cheng Ye stepped in slowly, his gaze sweeping across the wall directly opposite the door, where photos of past station chiefs of North Checkpoint were hung. His eyes finally settled on the solo photo in the center.

The man in the photo had a neatly trimmed, salt-and-pepper beard and eyes as sharp as a falcon's. He was the epitome of a standard British Gentleman in Cheng Ye's rigid impression.

The real person was currently sitting behind the large desk, a half-smoked cigar between his fingers, flipping through documents. Ash fell silently into a carved wooden ashtray, accumulating into a small pile of light gray snow.

"Director Downs, hello. I am Cheng Ye, the Apprentice Inspector reporting for duty at North Checkpoint today."

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

Director Downs slowly raised his head, put down the documents, and smiled, "But that was seventeen years ago, when your Grandfather was still around."

"My Grandfather?"

Cheng Ye remained composed.

How exactly Cheng Long died, and where he died, Liu Bi had kept it a secret from him. He only said he would reveal the truth when Cheng Ye completed his first Field Mission and had the ability to survive independently. Not to mention a "Grandfather" whose name he had never even heard before.

Wait a minute, where did this Previous Body get so many awesome relatives?

With such a background, he wouldn't have ended up in such a pathetic state in the Inner City, dying as a... cough cough.

"Ah, you don't resemble Cheng Long at all, but you, you really look like your Grandfather..."

Downs' gaze drifted, and he spoke incoherently, as if reminiscing about a distant past.

After more than ten seconds, he gradually came back to his senses.

"If you hadn't fired your weapon, I would have given you a score of 90 for today's performance. You've already shown greater potential than Cheng Long at this age. You are more mature and more resourceful than him."

"If you had only fired one shot, I would have lowered your score to 70. Knowing how to use rules to protect yourself and restrain your enemies, a wise person should always be praised!"

"But unfortunately, you fired two shots. I can only give you a passing score of 60. Don't learn from Cheng Long, and don't learn from Liu Bi. The reason they got to where they are today wasn't muscle and recklessness, but luck."

It was as if he were lecturing a junior member of his own family. Director Downs spoke slowly, flicking ash from his cigarette from time to time.

"Alright, you don't need to worry too much. I have some acquaintance with that old fellow Cheng Wu. Although he was too ashamed to ask me to look after his junior before he left, I won't 'pay special attention' to a junior like you at this time."

"Stay within the checkpoint, and I'll guarantee your absolute safety. No one will target you specifically."

"Once you cross that line..."

Downs pointed out the floor-to-ceiling window. Cheng Ye turned his head and saw a widened yellow line, about three meters thick, stretching across the front of the eight inspection lanes.

The yellow line was exceptionally conspicuous. To cross it meant leaving the lanes and entering the wilderness outside the Quarantine Zone.

"Any other questions?"

"No, thank you for your care, Director Downs. I'll keep it in mind!"

Cheng Ye bowed slightly, developing a better impression of the old man before him.

Given the other man's status, there was no need for him to deceive him. If he truly wanted to act maliciously, there were countless ways to do so.

But since he could say these words, it meant the West Faction wasn't as monolithic as he had imagined. There should be different voices within it.

This also made logical sense. It would be strange if a faction had only one voice left.

"Alright, since you've reached 60 points, this first evaluation is well-deserved. Also, remember to come find me for a signature before each rotation."

Downs pulled a white paper covered in text from a leather folder.

The top half of the paper contained Cheng Ye's basic information, while the bottom half was the evaluation section for his probationary period. A vermilion seal from the North Checkpoint was stamped at the very bottom.

According to the checkpoint's rules for transitioning from probation to a formal inspector, Cheng Ye needed to obtain three such evaluation papers from both the Central Checkpoint and the North and South branch checkpoints to leave his probationary period and become a formal first-tier inspector.

Downs' willingness to give him one now clearly indicated his approval of Cheng Ye's performance during his reporting, deeming both his methods and his temperament to meet the minimum standards for an inspector.

Of course, Cheng Ye guessed that if he had managed to get the '90' points that Downs mentioned, he wouldn't be holding just one paper now, but perhaps two, or even three.

But.

"Thank you, Director!"

"You may go."

Cheng Ye nodded, folded the evaluation paper, put it in his backpack, and pushed the door open to leave the office.

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

"Hmm? Is there something else you want to say to me?"

Cheng Ye couldn't help but be curious.

Following the usual villainous script, Raul should have been spewing threats now, telling Cheng Ye this wasn't over.

As long as he stayed at the North Checkpoint for one more day, the Second Generation Heirs would unite and target him to death.

This matter could only be put to rest if he were to beg for mercy on his knees one day.

However, reality was the exact opposite of what he had imagined.

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

Raul walked over, the stiffness gone from his face. His expression was calm, tinged with a hint of fawning.

"Oh? Tell me about it."

"Garcia is Jamie's uncle. His targeting you was largely to vent anger on behalf of his nephew. We only instigated Jamie back then because we wanted to see Inspector Dongren embarrassed. To be frank, whether it was you or any other Dongren who showed up today, we would have done the same. It wasn't specifically targeting you."

Cheng Ye hummed noncommittally, signaling him to continue.

"The struggle between the East and West factions is a conflict between inspectors, a conflict of interests. It has nothing to do with us juniors who don't know when we'll get to succeed."

At this point, Raul lowered his voice. "Jamie's father only has this one son. Even if he kneels to you today, he can still 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 the position."

"So you want me to play along with you?"

"No need." Raul quickly shook his head. "As long as you don't reveal what happened today, and don't publicize it widely among the Dongren group like your uncle Garcia did, I'll guarantee that nothing happened today, and everyone will forget this unpleasantness."

Hmm, this guy's got something.

Cheng Ye narrowed his eyes, sizing up the Blond Boy before him.

The others still exuded an ignorant immaturity, but in Raul, he detected a hint of calculation that didn't belong to his age.

"What can I get?"

"A promise."

Raul immediately turned serious, his fingertips unconsciously rubbing the button on his cuff. "This is the most valuable chip I could think of after much deliberation. As long as it doesn't touch upon the factional struggles between inspectors, I can guarantee that within the North Station's jurisdiction, no matter what happens, I can unconditionally help you out once."

"Or, to be more precise, even if it involves direct conflict between factions, and you get trapped at the North Station, I can still buy you some time to call the Dongren for help."

Cheng Ye was indifferent to the first part, but the latter... his eyelids twitched after hearing it.

"You seem quite bold?"

"You're too kind."

Realizing the deal was struck, Raul let out a huge sigh of relief, a genuine smile appearing on his face.

"There's only one inspector position, and my three younger brothers are all eyeing it. Do you think I should be rolling in the mud with them, or find someone who dares to shoot at a checkpoint to befriend?"

"Alright, I'll pretend today never happened."

Cheng Ye waved his hand and walked away.

A bunch of second-generation heirs raised in greenhouses, their ruthlessness couldn't even compare to the brats from the orphanage.

Besides, he never intended to publicize this matter. Getting Raul's promise now was an unexpected surprise.

However, after taking two steps, Cheng Ye suddenly stopped and turned his head, startling Raul so much he almost had PTSD.

"Something else?" Raul suppressed the panic in his heart.

"I'm supposed to be on duty in Zone A today, right? It's my first time here, why don't you escort me there?"

"It would be my honor."

Damn it, you should have said so earlier, you scared me.

Raul secretly breathed a sigh of relief, but he also made up his mind to stay far away from this plague god in the future.

He should have realized it earlier. How could someone who dared to come to North Station for his first rotation be unprepared?

It was just that the other party was too young, which made everyone else have the illusion that they could easily handle him.

But in reality, they were no match for Cheng Ye at all. This guy's methods were even more ruthless than some second-tier inspectors.

And the most troublesome thing was that he knew exactly how to exploit the rules of the checkpoint.

Dealing with someone like this, who had a brain, should be left to the inspectors from Halin's faction to worry about.

"This young man is too arrogant. I think he'll die within a few rotations."

Footsteps faded outside the door.

A figure emerged from behind the office screen. It was none other than Deputy Station Chief Ivan Davidson.

"Ruthless in action but unstable in foundation, ultimately just self-willed and harming others and himself."

"That's why I said he's a bit like Cheng Wu."

Tang Si added with a light laugh, "But if young people aren't arrogant, are they still young?"

His words were clearly a double entendre.

Davidson's expression changed, and his back straightened abruptly. "I've been busy with external affairs recently and haven't disciplined properly. Station Chief, don't worry, this kind of thing will absolutely not happen again."

"It's good that it won't. North Station has been noisy lately, it's inevitable. It makes outsiders laugh."

Ps: Thanks to Hinat, Zhuang Shi Qie Man, Dao You Yi Dao, and Shu You 20170701 for the Monthly Tickets, thank you!

ps2: A new week. I plan to make a push for the new book charts. I implore everyone to click on the latest chapter every day and give me some Follow-up Reading. This is really important for a new book and concerns a series of subsequent recommendations. San Jin thanks you all!