The Logic of the System

Office of the Deputy Director of the S City Public Security Bureau.

The sky outside the window was already bright, and the morning light filtered through the gaps in the blinds, cutting bright stripes of light onto the dark solid wood floor. There was a faint aroma of tea and the smell of paper and ink in the air.

Wei Guanglin sat behind his large desk, holding a newly delivered internal briefing in his hand, but his gaze fell on a map of the city spread out on the table. The map was marked with several circles in red and blue ink, and some symbols that only he could understand.

His phone was next to the map, its screen dark, but just minutes before, it had quietly received an absolutely encrypted, concise, and precise status report. The message had now transformed into a clear understanding in his mind: interception successful, person under control, police from N Province blocked.

Everything is proceeding according to plan.

There was a gentle knock on the office door.

"Enter."

The door opened, Zhang Zhigang walked in, saluting, "Director Wei, the person has been brought back and is temporarily housed in the branch office's interrogation room. The people from N Province... have already withdrawn."

Wei Guanglin looked up, his face expressionless, and simply nodded. "Thank you for your hard work, Zhigang. Please sit down."

Zhang Zhigang sat down in the chair opposite the desk, his back still ramrod straight. He was an old subordinate whom Wei Guanglin had personally promoted. Starting from the police station, he rose step by step to become a key member of the branch bureau. He was capable, had a tough work style, and more importantly, he knew the rules, knew when to advance and retreat, and most crucially, he was loyal.

"Director Wei," Zhang Zhigang hesitated for a moment before asking, "Just now... N Province sent a Director Li from their provincial department to make a phone call and put pressure on us. I followed your instructions and stood my ground. However..."

"But what?" Wei Guanglin picked up his teacup and blew on the floating leaves on the water.

"But wouldn't it be...?" Zhang Zhigang didn't finish his sentence, but his meaning was clear. Although the public security system emphasizes "combining vertical and horizontal management," the business guidance and supervision powers of higher-level public security organs are very real, especially at the provincial level. In many cases, the opinions of a department head must be taken seriously by the municipal bureaus below.

Wei Guanglin took a sip of tea, gently placing the teacup back on the table with a crisp clinking sound. He leaned back in his chair, looking calmly at Zhang Zhigang: "Zhigang, you've been in this system for over a decade. Tell me, in our public security system, whose orders do we really listen to?"

Zhang Zhigang paused for a moment, then instinctively replied, "I will obey the Party's command and serve the people."

"Be more specific," Wei Guanglin tapped his fingers lightly on the table, "In daily work, are the instructions from the provincial department more important, or the directives from the municipal party committee and government?"

Zhang Zhigang understood Wei Guanglin's meaning. After a moment's thought, he replied, "Theoretically, we accept dual leadership. But in practice... personnel appointments, financial allocations, and equipment support—these tangible things are all in the hands of the local Party committee and government. The provincial department is more involved in business guidance, inspection and supervision, and coordination and assessment."

"That's right." Wei Guanglin nodded slowly. "'Combining vertical and horizontal management, with horizontal management as the main focus.' This 'horizontal' refers to the local Party committee and government. The provincial department is the 'vertical', and our municipal bureau is an important component of the 'horizontal'. The provincial department can issue us business instructions, inspect our work, assess our performance, and even offer criticism and suggestions on certain issues. But—"

He paused, then emphasized, "The selection of the head of the municipal bureau requires a decision by the municipal party committee standing committee and must be reported to the provincial department for record. The municipal bureau's annual budget requires approval from the municipal government and allocation from the finance bureau. The salaries, benefits, promotions, and expenses related to births, aging, illnesses, and deaths of thousands of officers largely depend on local government funding. How much can the provincial department provide? Just some special funds and subsidies."

"Therefore," Wei Guanglin concluded, "Our 'bread and butter' providers are primarily the municipal Party committee and government. Our political future depends first and foremost on the local leaders. This doesn't mean we shouldn't listen to the provincial departments, but rather that when disagreements arise between directives from the 'vertical' and 'horizontal' levels on specific issues, we must be clear about who our most fundamental support is and who holds the most crucial resources."

Zhang Zhigang nodded silently. He understood these principles, but he wouldn't usually think about them so thoroughly, much less point them out so bluntly like Wei Guanglin.

"This matter," Wei Guanglin continued, "Is rather unique in Lin Feng's case. His own problems aren't serious; he could even be considered an innocent bystander. But Dongbei, in desperation, has resorted to their connections in N Province, attempting to exert pressure and vent their anger through cross-provincial arrests. This isn't just an isolated case. It involves whether the legitimate rights and interests of our S City's citizens can be effectively protected, whether our S City's judicial environment can withstand undue external interference, and even more so..."

He paused, his gaze deepening. "It also involves some people in our S City; shouldn't we give them a warning?"

Zhang Zhigang's heart skipped a beat. He understood the underlying meaning. The "some people" Wei Guanglin mentioned probably didn't just refer to Dongbei, but also to certain local forces that might be connected to Dongbei, or those who welcomed or even secretly promoted this kind of brutal cross-provincial law enforcement. This was an attempt to use a pretext to assert authority, and even more so, a subtle adjustment to the local power structure.

"I understand, Director Wei," Zhang Zhigang said in a deep voice, "That's why you reported to Secretary Wang of the Municipal Party Committee in advance and obtained his support."

"Yes." Wei Guanglin did not deny it. "Secretary Wang's original words were: 'Act according to the law, protect the legitimate rights and interests of our city's enterprises and citizens, and maintain normal economic order. We welcome law enforcement cooperation from other provinces, but it must be standardized and not done arbitrarily.' With those words, I felt reassured."

He looked at Zhang Zhigang: "So, when that Director Li called, you stood up to him not because you, Zhang Zhigang, are bold, but because you represent the S City Public Security Bureau and are carrying out the will of the S City and Government. A department director from the provincial department can't intimidate us. If he really has the ability, let him go to the main leaders of the provincial department and get them to issue a formal document to our city bureau. Do you think he would dare? Is it worth making a scene over the private affairs of a business owner from N Province?"

Zhang Zhigang finally understood. This was a meticulously calculated power struggle. Wei Guanglin had obtained the highest authority in the local government in advance, and then used the pretext of "handling the case according to law" and "protecting local interests" to forcefully intercept them.

The only tactics the other party can use are pressure from higher-level departments via phone calls, but this pressure proves ineffective in the face of the clear stance of the local Party committee and government. If the other party continues to escalate the situation and makes a big fuss, the level of involvement and the costs incurred will be beyond what a single business owner can bear.

"So... what's the next step with Lin Feng?" Zhang Zhigang asked.

"Follow the procedure," Wei Guanglin said calmly. "The so-called 'damage to business reputation' case he's involved in has unclear facts and weak evidence. The materials provided by N Province have many problems. Your branch should investigate according to law, ask questions where necessary, and record what needs to be recorded. After 24 hours, if there is no conclusive evidence that he needs to be detained further, process the paperwork and let him go home. As for the case where our municipal bureau 'needs his cooperation'..." Wei Guanglin's lips curled into an almost imperceptible smile, "It can be a routine investigation involving a clue related to the business competition environment that is currently under investigation. Just go through the motions."

"Yes." Zhang Zhigang understood immediately.

"Furthermore," Wei Guanglin added, "we need to pay attention to public opinion. The Dongbei incident has caused such a stir online. Although we acted in accordance with the law, we must also prevent anyone from distorting the facts and accusing us of local protectionism or obstructing law enforcement. Necessary public opinion guidance can be provided by our colleagues in the publicity department, emphasizing our stance of 'standardizing cross-provincial law enforcement cooperation and protecting citizens' rights in accordance with the law.'"

"Clear."

"Alright, go ahead and get busy." Wei Guanglin waved his hand.

Zhang Zhigang stood up, saluted, and turned to leave the office.

The door closed, and the office fell silent again.

Wei Guanglin picked up the internal briefing again, but couldn't focus on it for a moment. His gaze fell once more on the red and blue circles on the map, but his thoughts drifted further away.

Lin Feng... who exactly is standing behind this young man? Or rather, how many secrets does he himself harbor?

The last time Lin Feng contacted him directly through encrypted channels to inform him of the potential risks of crossing provincial borders, Lin Feng's accurate foresight and calm demeanor left a deep impression on him. During this interception, Lin Feng's unusual calmness made him even more wary.

This is definitely not the kind of mental fortitude an ordinary legal assistant should have.

And then there are his seemingly insignificant "friends" who always seem to appear in crucial positions...

Wei Guanglin rubbed his temples. He knew that his actions this time were not only to uphold procedural justice and to put pressure on local forces, but also, to some extent, to invest in the future. There was a kind of potential in Lin Feng that he couldn't quite see through but sensed.

My phone vibrated again. This time it was a regular text message from an encrypted number, containing only three words: "Arrived home."

It's Lin Feng.

Wei Guanglin looked at the text message, remained silent for a few seconds, and then replied, "Get some rest. I'll handle things in N Province."

He put down his phone and looked out the window. The city's outline was clear and solid in the sunlight.

"Combining vertical and horizontal management, with horizontal management as the primary focus." These eight characters represent one of the fundamental logics governing the operation of China's massive administrative machine. Today, he was merely playing a card that conformed to this logic.

Zheng Dong, who is far away in N Province and is probably furious right now, will probably never understand how fragile and ridiculous the "connections" and "power" he thought he could use are in the face of real rules and power.

At the same time, Lin Feng had already returned to his apartment in the Splendid Garden residential complex.

Lü Yi paced back and forth in the living room like an ant on a hot plate. Seeing him enter, she rushed over, looking him up and down. "Boss! Are you alright? They didn't do anything to you, did they? Damn, those bastards, if I see them again..."

"I'm fine." Lin Feng interrupted his rambling, walked to the sofa, sat down, and stretched his wrists. The few hours he spent at the branch office were very procedural: questioning, recording, and providing some pre-prepared materials to prove that he was just a normal customer. Once the time was up and the formalities were completed, he was politely escorted out. Even the handcuffs that had been temporarily put on him were removed before he left the branch office.

"Are you really alright?" Lü Yi leaned closer, still worried. "What did they ask you? Did they threaten you? Should I go...?"

"It's really nothing." Lin Feng glanced at him. "It's just a formality. The S City police are very 'professional'."

Lü Yi blinked, sensing something amiss, and chuckled, "Good, good. That Captain Wang, his face must be green with envy, right? Haha, let him be arrogant! Even a powerful dragon can't suppress a local snake, ptooey, our boss isn't a snake..."

Lin Feng ignored his comment, took out his phone, and saw several unread messages on the screen. Zhou Wenyuan's message read, "I have been informed of the situation. A legal response plan has been prepared." K's message read, "Relevant communication records and fund flows in N Province have been locked and can be accessed at any time."

There was also a text message that Wei Guanglin had just replied to.

Lin Feng stared at the text message, his finger hovering over the screen for a moment before locking the screen and putting the phone aside.

He leaned back on the sofa and closed his eyes.

The standoff at the highway intersection, the silence inside the police car, the procedures in the police station's interrogation room... all these scenes flashed through my mind.

Then came Zheng Dong's furious, hysterical voice on the phone.

"Well done, Old Zheng, you've got some fun."

Lin Feng silently repeated the sentence in his mind.

They went so far as to use handcuffs and arrest people across provincial borders.

Now it's his turn to play a card.

He opened his eyes and looked at Lü Yi, who was still excitedly muttering beside him.

"Lü Yi."

"Hmm? Boss?"

"I'm hungry. Let's cook."

"Huh? Oh, okay! What do you want to eat? Braised pork? Boiled fish? We need to eat something good today to calm our nerves!"

"Casual."

Lin Feng issued commands to all the assassins using his consciousness.

With the order issued, Lin Feng's vast group of assassins and the network of relationships among each assassin revealed their ferocious fangs to the world for the first time.