Turning Grief into Joy, Section Chief Li

What the hell gave birth?

Did your wife give birth?

Li Fan looked at Wu Qian with a hint of resentment.

You need to explain to me why tonight turned out so differently from what was said at the dinner table.

Wu Qian seemed to understand Li Fan's resentment. He didn't give Li Fan a chance to speak, instead grabbing his hand and saying:

"Fan, you were startled tonight, but this is your opportunity! Division Chief Wang from the Personnel Division of the Political Work Department just called me. You performed a meritorious service tonight, and the Bureau is preparing to promote you to a full-time investigator immediately!"

Li Fan's eyes widened.

What about my precious year-long internship!?

What about the internship I was using to slack off with the Cleaning Association?

Without waiting for Li Fan to speak, Wu Qian continued:

"Deputy Division Chief Liu Dalong and I discussed it on the way here. You handled an anomalous infection incident on your very first day, safeguarding the department's security and reputation. It's a major contribution, so we've decided to promote you directly to Section Chief."

A Section Chief, too!?

"No, Division Chief Wu, isn't that inappropriate? I was hoping to go through long-term training before becoming a full-time employee. Being promoted so directly makes it hard to convince others, let alone becoming a Section Chief..." Li Fan hurriedly refused.

Are you kidding me? He was planning to coast until retirement.

Wu Qian and Liu Dalong exchanged a look, both wearing expressions of gratification.

"A young man who doesn't fight for credit and isn't complacent—what a fine quality! But there's no need to be humble. The Personnel Division has already decided, and I've even secured the staffing quota," Wu Qian said.

"As for the Section Chief position, our department currently has five sections. Since Old Sun is retiring, you'll temporarily serve as the Chief of the Fifth Section. There aren't any staff members there yet, but we'll assign some to you once we have the manpower."

The reason they gave Li Fan a Section Chief position was mainly because the Dissection Department had few young people; they had plenty of quotas but few staff, so giving away a title didn't cost them anything.

Moreover, tonight's incident was neither big nor small, but the Dissection Department shared responsibility. They had to turn a funeral into a celebration as quickly as possible, spinning the accident into an achievement.

Quickly pass the buck!

Li Fan waved his hands and said:

"I really can't! Division Chief, I just arrived at the department, I don't know anything, and I've only worked one day! I pulled one night shift, and now I'm a full-time employee and a Section Chief? It's not right!"

Seeing that Li Fan was genuinely unwilling to be promoted or take the position, Wu Qian couldn't help but be moved.

Having spent so many years in government agencies, he knew deeply that young people who didn't fight for fame or profit and worked silently were rare!

Liu Dalong even gave Li Fan a thumbs up.

Wu Qian patted Li Fan on the shoulder and said:

"Fan, the promotion is a decision by the Political Work Department—which is to say, the Bureau's decision. It's settled. As for the Section Chief position, I've already submitted the paperwork."

"Just do it! There's nothing to be embarrassed about. No one in our department will gossip about you; they all admire you! You've worked hard tonight, go back and get some rest."

Seeing that refusal was impossible, Li Fan sighed and said:

"Sigh, alright..."

Wu Qian was speechless. Why did it feel like he was forcing the boy?

"Li Fan!" Two young people in Investigation Department uniforms pushed the door open and called out to him from a distance.

"Wang Chaolong, Zhang Ya." Li Fan, feeling dejected, nodded at them.

Both were classmates from his initial training who had joined the Investigation Department.

Seeing Li Fan's cold demeanor, Wang Chaolong frowned slightly before walking up to him with a smile:

"Zhang Ya and I are with the 7th Brigade of the 3rd Detachment of the Investigation Department. We heard the Amalgam sent over yesterday had issues, so our captain sent us to take a look."

He then sized Li Fan up, his gaze sweeping over Li Fan's somewhat disheveled appearance, and said in a condescending tone:

"Li Fan, is your Dissection Department that busy? You look quite haggard. Anyway, there's no real future there, no need to work so hard... By the way, probationary investigators in our Investigation Department usually become full-time in a month. I heard you guys at the Support Center have to wait a year?"

During the early stages of their initial training, Li Fan had been the top performer, which had made Wang Chaolong very resentful. Now that the other party seemed to have fallen on hard times, he wanted to find a sense of superiority.

Li Fan nodded earnestly, his voice sounding dejected:

"A year is pretty good, too. I think one really needs long-term tempering before becoming a full-time employee."

Zhang Ya and Wang Chaolong exchanged a look, wearing fake smiles as they said:

"Oh, Li Fan, don't take it to heart. Whether it's a year or a month, you'll become a full-time employee eventually. It doesn't matter. Regardless of our positions, we're still classmates."

Wu Qian, standing to the side, had already caught on to the situation and said with a beaming smile:

"You're from the Investigation Department? What business do you have with our Section Chief Li?"

Section Chief Li?

Wang Chaolong and Zhang Ya were stunned. Wang Chaolong then laughed and said:

"This... senior, you really know how to joke. Li Fan is still a probationary investigator; it takes at least a year to become full-time. Jokes like that could easily hurt his self-esteem."

Wu Qian's expression turned stern as he shook his head:

"Who's joking with you? The 7th Brigade of the 3rd Detachment of the Investigation Department was negligent in its defenses and failed to conduct a deep preliminary cleaning. The anomalous item you sent over carried a massive safety hazard that nearly caused a major accident! Comrade Li Fan of our Dissection Department remained calm in the face of danger, resolved the hazard as a probationary investigator, and has been promoted to Section Chief on the spot with the approval of the Bureau's Political Work Department. I will be writing a report to the Bureau regarding the issues in your 7th Brigade!"

Wang Chaolong and Zhang Ya's expressions shifted drastically, and they looked at Li Fan in disbelief.

They had originally felt a sense of superiority, never expecting that he had already been made a permanent employee, and a leader at that!

They snapped back to reality, hurriedly saying to Wu Qian:

"This responsibility doesn't lie with our brigade..."

"May I ask who you are?"

Liu Dalong, standing to the side, immediately spoke up:

"This is Director Wu from our Dissection Department. You lot can't make the call on a matter of this magnitude; get your captain here!"

The 7th Brigade certainly had a high opinion of themselves, sending two fresh recruits over to spout nonsense.

Only now did Wang Chaolong and Zhang Ya realize the gravity of the situation; they greeted Li Fan politely and slunk away.

In the hall, the "corpse" of the Amalgam was loaded onto a surgical gurney and wheeled away.

Looking at the three faces of the Amalgam and recalling how they had acted like living people—even speaking and communicating—a strange feeling welled up in Li Fan's heart.

"Director Wu, how are the victims of these anomalous incidents handled in the end? Is there any compensation?"

Wu Qian immediately understood what Li Fan meant, patted him on the shoulder, and said:

"Don't worry, the Bureau provides condolence money. There's no helping these things; it's just like traffic accidents or diseases. You'll get used to it once you've seen more."

Soon, a middle-aged man in uniform arrived.

It was Wang Yong, the captain of the 7th Brigade, 3rd Detachment of the Investigation Department.

Wu Qian immediately took Liu Dalong over to battle it out.

Li Fan took the opportunity to say his goodbyes, picked up his backpack, and returned to the dormitory.

He was truly exhausted after this night.

However, he didn't rush to sleep; he took a shower, then pulled out a Shell Currency to start researching.

When he saw the Shell Currency and the Tiger Pillar God yesterday, he had felt a sense of familiarity.

In his past life, as an antique dealer, he had come into contact with a vast and complex array of artifacts. In his memory, the style of that Shell Currency was remarkably similar to that of the Gutuo Kingdom in the southwest!

Moreover, this strange ritual and the method of stuffing large quantities of Shell Currency into the body clearly pointed to a mastermind behind the scenes.

This was no ordinary anomalous infection event.

Sure enough, Li Fan quickly found several news reports:

"...Annual archaeological breakthrough, the tomb of the Gutuo King!"

"...Bronze shell-storage vessel featuring human sacrifice unearthed; it is magnificent and fills a gap in domestic archaeology."

"...Several members of the Qingshan Archaeological Team have gone missing in the Cloud Mountain, west of Gu City..."

The sacrificial scene on that shell-storage vessel was identical to the one the Tiger Pillar God had performed after controlling the crowd of corpses!

He just didn't know who the mastermind was.

Perhaps, he could try asking the Tiger Pillar God...

Looking at the bag full of Shell Currency, Li Fan pondered for a moment. He inserted his left hand into the pile of coins and, with his right hand, gently tugged at the void, pulling out the phantom of a bronze chain.

Through that bronze chain, he could sense the emotions coming from the Tiger Pillar God at the other end.

It seemed... to have already pissed itself in fear?

Where did this thing come from? Tell me.

In an instant, the surrounding scene shifted, and Li Fan found himself inside a shopping mall!

This was... the Tiger Pillar God's memory!

People were coming and going in the mall, and in front of him was a checkout counter.

"Hello, that's 6580 yuan in total. How would you like to pay?" the male cashier with a chubby, round face asked the customer with a smile.

The customer in front of him was wearing sunglasses, a mask, a hat, and gloves. Even though it was summer, he was wrapped head-to-toe in a black trench coat. The skin visible was gray, looking extremely bizarre.

The clothes he was buying were also a trench coat.

The man in the trench coat gently extended a hand and said, "Are coins acceptable?"

The cashier frowned, just about to refuse, when he saw the black Shell Currency.

It was rusted, blackish-brown, and carried a metallic luster. On its surface was the pattern of a beautiful woman being torn apart. The pattern was so clear and so lifelike that he could even hear a shrill, melodic wail!

The moment he saw the coin, the cashier's heart was instantly filled with desire!

He had to have it!

He had to have her!

The cashier practically snatched the Shell Currency from the man's hand. He stared fixedly at the coin, his eyes filled with greed, and he couldn't help but lick his lips.

His tongue seemed to have grown longer.

It was so beautiful, so beautiful. He had never imagined that tearing a person apart could be so aesthetic...

"Is one enough? If not, I have more here," the man in the trench coat rasped, pulling out another handful of dark brown shell currency. Each shell was etched with a gruesome, bloody scene of suffering. "The Lord of Unity blesses you."

Those being torn apart by beasts, those sawed into pieces, those being melted, those being ground to dust...

Too beautiful... so beautiful... The cashier's eyes were filled with craving and desire. He snatched the coins frantically, clutching them tightly in his hands as he muttered, "Mine! These are all mine!"

He studied the patterns on the shells intently, then suddenly looked up at the man in the trench coat with a jolt of vigilance, only to find that the space before him was empty.

The trench coat had been taken as well.

"So beautiful... so beautiful..." The cashier stared down at the coins, murmuring to himself. Drool dripped onto the shell currency as his neck slowly began to elongate.

He held the shells up to his eyes, suddenly feeling a strange itch in his fingers. Before he realized it, they had begun to stick together, as if fusing into one.

The cashier paid no mind to this at all, his bulging eyes fixed solely on the images upon the shells.

"It's a pity this beauty exists only on shells... If only it were real..." The last string of his sanity snapped. The cashier looked toward the people bustling around him.

This true beauty should be brought to life!

He grinned wide, laughing heartily as his mouth split all the way to his earlobes...