Guard Team

Biodata

Organization and Authority

Command

• District Chiefs control local deployments. Zhong Tianshou recalls Zone 108’s guards despite Black Crow’s objections, while District Chief Zhang orders Bai Ming to dispatch reinforcements in Zone 96 15 40.
• Cooperation with the Dark Pavilion does not automatically transfer command. Zhong states that he received no orders from his superiors for Black Crow’s operation. Zhang later refuses to formally hand over her Guard Team, citing the lack of precedent, but promises full cooperation 15 42.
• Ordinary nobles cannot deploy the Guard Team outside a zone. Xu Chao nevertheless believes the son of Zone 101’s District Chief could easily arrange such a deployment 29.
• Local units include subordinate leaders. Gate detachments are shown operating under team leaders and a vice captain 16 36.

Zone 108’s Three Tiers

The three-tier structure is explicitly described for Zone 108 14.

Recruitment and Advancement

• Civilian recruitment: Anyone sufficiently capable can join Zone 108’s Guard Team, including civilians 14.
• Promotion to nobility: Exceptional service can earn a member noble status as a special exception 14.
• Political consequences: A guard warns that remarks against nobles could destroy a member’s prospects of becoming a noble or even cost him his position 16.
• Command recruitment: District Chief Zhang previously offered Qin Ashui command of Zone 96’s Guard Team; he refused 42.

Duties and Operations

Internal Security

• Conduct citywide searches, block escape routes, and pursue wanted suspects 6 12.
• Post wanted notices and solicit information from local businesses. During the hunt for Xu Chao, guards advertise a reward of one million magic coins 43 45.
• Handle dangerous incidents that ordinary patrol officers are not expected to confront. Patrol officers primarily patrol the streets and prevent civilian crimes 31.
• Secure the noble district during emergencies, even when doing so weakens defenses elsewhere 15 16.

Gates and Perimeter Defense

• Check identification and inspect people and cargo entering or leaving a zone 31 41.
• Guard the main gate, backup exits, and damaged sections of Zone 108’s electrical perimeter 12 16.
• Tighten exit inspections during a manhunt. In Zone 96, travelers must uncover their faces and submit to full-body searches; bribes no longer bypass these departure checks 41.

Equipment

• Black combat uniforms — Recognizable enough that Qin Xun and Xu Chao attract attention while wearing stolen uniforms outside Zone 108 22.
• Assault rifles — Carried by gate guards and arrest personnel 16 37.
• Pistols and grenades — A fully armed Zone 96 guard carries an assault rifle, a sidearm, and two chest-mounted grenades 37.
• Transport trucks — Used to move personnel through the city and redeploy them during emergencies 6 15 16.
• Surveillance access — Camera feeds and monitoring rooms support searches and reveal attacks, damaged infrastructure, and escapes 15 16 42.

Conduct and Civilian Relations

Protection of Nobles

Protecting nobles takes precedence over civilian security in the documented emergencies.

• Half of Zone 108’s 800 guards remain in the noble district during the hunt for Qin Xun 15.
• Zhong Tianshou recalls guards from the civilian district when nobles are threatened, overriding Black Crow’s warning that the attack is a diversion 15.
• Civilian children already understand that the Guard Team will protect nobles first if trouble breaks out 16.
• This priority does not reflect universal loyalty among the rank and file: one gate guard privately hopes the fugitives kill several nobles before being caught 16.

Corruption and Abuse

• Bribed entry: Zone 96 guards admit Xu Chao and Qin Xun without identification after receiving money 31.
• Inspection extortion: Caravans that pay receive cursory inspections; those that do not can have every item unloaded and examined until nightfall 41.
• Shared proceeds: After accepting money to allow Smoker’s party out of Zone 96, a guard hands it to his vice captain, who keeps half and distributes the remainder among the men 36.
• Selective enforcement: The same guards are willing to overlook suspected wanted criminals unless their superiors have specifically ordered their capture, preferring bribes to a potentially lethal confrontation 36.
• Abuse of search powers: A guard nicknamed Gouzi rejects Chen Qiao’s money and insists on searching her and Sisi as a pretext for unwanted physical contact. Sisi charms him into admitting them instead 41.
• Violence against civilians: Qin Xun recognizes one Zone 108 guard as the man who broke an elderly neighbor’s leg, setting off events that led to the deaths of the man and his wife 14.

Notable Personnel and Associates

• Bai Ming — Commander-in-chief of Zone 96’s Guard Team. He secretly helps his longtime friend Old Crab escape, killing seven accompanying guards and stabbing himself to disguise his actions 37.
• Zhong Tianshou — District Chief of Zone 108. His decision to prioritize the noble district creates the opening through which Qin Xun’s group escapes 15 16.
• District Chief Zhang — Zone 96’s District Chief. She recognizes Bai Ming’s deception but overlooks it because of his years of service, then orders him to reinforce the Dark Pavilion 40 42.
• Black Crow — Captain of the Dark Pavilion’s Night Raven Action Team, not a Guard Team officer. He directs joint searches and seeks greater control over local guards after the failed operation in Zone 108 38 42.
• Qin Ashui — Refused an offer to become Zone 96’s Guard Team commander-in-chief 42.

Story Role

Zone 108 Manhunt

The Guard Team searches Zone 108 as Xu Chao, Dazhuang, and Mengmeng attempt to extract Qin Xun. Truck deployments and blocked routes force the fugitives into an underground hideout. Black Crow subsequently coordinates searches and exit defenses with Zhong Tianshou 6 7 12.

Qin Xun’s group attacks the heavily defended noble district, destroys cameras and an electrical box, and kills more than a dozen guards. Zhong recalls forces to protect the nobles, allowing the fugitives to withdraw in stolen uniforms. At a weakened backup exit, Dazhuang kills six guards with glowing stones and smashes open the iron gate 14 15 16.

Zone 96 Arrests and Search

In Zone 96, Bai Ming confronts Old Crab with seven armed guards but ultimately kills his own men and helps Old Crab flee with his family. After Black Crow intercepts the escapees, Bai Ming tries to withhold reinforcements to protect Old Crab’s wife and daughter. District Chief Zhang overrides him and orders 300 guards to support the Dark Pavilion; a surviving guard later credits the reinforcements with helping defeat and capture Smoker 37 38 40 43.

Black Crow then uses local forces to guard the noble district and exits while searching the civilian district for Xu Chao. Smoker is held in the Guard Team building. Qin Xun and Glasses kill two guards while gathering information, and Qin Xun later kills eight more who are approaching Xu Chao’s hiding place 42 43 45.