Chapter 604 - Chapter 604: Who arranged this?

Chapter 604: Who arranged this?

“Boss, why are you checking on these two people?” Yan Chunmi asked cautiously, “Aren’t they candidates for Qing’s shadow?”

Qing Chen glanced at Yan Chunmi, “You were just following me, so you must have seen Qing Yi too. This time in the struggle for the shadow, I want to help Qing Yi win.”

“I see, you have already chosen Qing Yi. Although we know that Qing Yi might be concealing his skills now, he still isn’t the best among all the shadow candidates,” Yan Chunmi murmured softly.

“What, do you have an opinion? Who do you want to choose?” Qing Chen asked.

“I don’t have any opinion, I’ll support whoever you choose, boss,” Yan Chunmi laughed, “By the way, about the Kite Falcons on this side…”

Qing Chen glanced at her, “Finish those two tasks I mentioned first, then we’ll talk about the rest. Alright, go on with your work.”

Yan Chunmi sighed, the new boss seemed to know that the Kite Falcons were also a bit anxious, so he wasn’t in a hurry at all.

Following such a clever boss was certainly good, but it seemed the Kite Falcons’ little schemes were not going to succeed.

She watched the new boss’s figure merge back into the crowd. He had come to City 10 alone, and within just ten days, he had both the Kite Falcons of the Spy Bureau and Team Seven of Intelligence Department One in his grasp.

Such formidable skill could only come from someone whose abilities and mental quality were both top-notch.

Many new officials want to be as carefree as Qing Chen upon taking office, but even the formidable agents of Intelligence Department One, known as Living Hades, couldn’t manage it.

However, the phrase that resonated the most in Yan Chunmi’s mind was something Qing Chen had said to her, “No one needs to sacrifice themselves to achieve my goal.”

Thinking about this, Yan Chunmi smiled. The new boss seemed pretty good.

Qing Chen made his way back to the Utopia Building. As he was about to close the elevator, he saw a girl wrapped up tightly sprint inside.

It was only after entering the elevator that the girl realized who she was with, “Ah!”

Qing Chen helplessly watched the transparent elevator doors as if he had seen and heard nothing.

The girl happened to be the frontline actress he had previously pointed a gun at, Song Niannian.

Perhaps even Qing Hua, Qing Zhun, and Yan Chunmi didn’t know that one very important reason why Qing Chen had stayed in Intelligence Department One for so long was his fear of encountering this actress again at the Utopia Building…

So as to avoid social embarrassment.

But despite all his precautions, he hadn’t returned home in ten days, and the moment he did, he ran into her.

At one point, Qing Chen even thought that this might be another setup orchestrated by someone.

Otherwise, how could it be such a coincidence!

At that moment, the atmosphere in the elevator suddenly became very dramatic.

The screaming didn’t stop. Qing Chen felt that the actress might break down any moment as he earnestly explained, “Madam, I deeply apologize for startling you last time, but could you please stop screaming…”

The elevator also stopped at the 67th floor, and someone outside tried to get in but was scared off by the screaming.

Luckily, the people outside didn’t recognize Song Niannian, otherwise this could have turned into major news.

The Outer World has trending searches, and so does the Inner World, providing a place for public visibility and discussion, called “Frontline.”

If Qing Chen and Song Niannian were found in the elevator together with Song Niannian screaming, perhaps Qing Chen would top tomorrow’s Frontline trending list.

Song Niannian took a delicate, pocket-sized handgun from her small shoulder bag, her hands trembling as she pointed it at Qing Chen.

Reluctantly, he took out his credentials: “Good day, madam. First of all, I am not a bad person. Here are my credentials. I am Inspector Qing Chen from the PCA Federal Central Intelligence Agency. Last time, I was overly sensitive while handling a case and mistook you for a suspect.”

It wasn’t until she saw the credentials that Song Niannian finally stopped screaming. She cautiously examined Qing Chen: “Such a young Inspector? That must be a fake ID. Besides, I heard that there are no good people in the PCA Central Intelligence Agency!”

After saying this, Song Niannian’s expression became wary once again.

Qing Chen couldn’t help but laugh and cry. Was the reputation of the PCA Central Intelligence Agency really that bad outside?

If it were in the Outer World, showing an ID would have been enough to settle matters.

This showed from another angle that the government’s credibility in the Inner World was indeed very poor.

The elevator reached the 112th floor, and Qing Chen quickly walked out and returned to his apartment.

It wasn’t until Qing Chen’s apartment door closed that Song Niannian cautiously walked out of the elevator.

She tiptoed past Qing Chen’s door, then rushed back to her own home.

Unsurprisingly, the room was still filled with the rich aroma of tea.

Qing Chen now clearly understood that the Shadows of Qing’s family were not just idly running over to his place for tea every day, but were waiting there because they knew he had finally left Intelligence Department One.

Shadow chuckled, “The incident that happened on your way home this time is just as exciting as after you entered Intelligence Department One. I’ve looked into that girl called Song Niannian. Her background is clean, with no ties to the corporations, and she seems to have a good temperament too. Her father is even the Chairman of the Tax Management Committee in City No. 3, barely qualifying as coming from a prestigious family, suitable enough for a descendant of Qing.”

“As for the apartment I rent, you’ve visited more often than I have,” Qing Chen sighed as he changed his slippers, “Please stop trying to set me up, in our line of work, it’s better to stay away from celebrities. To be honest, I don’t quite understand what you’re trying to achieve by using Yan Chunmi, known as Kite Falcon.”

“She naturally has her usefulness. Powerful men no longer care much about a woman’s looks; they care more about her status,” said the shadow softly sipping tea in the dark room.

Qing Chen was startled. “You employed her because her status is more enticing to men?”

“Yes,” Shadow looked at Qing Chen. “Are you going to bring up your argument about not exploiting others’ appearances again? What do you think espionage is? What do you think we rely on when we turn our targets? We choose different methods for different people, and that’s exactly what I need to do.”

Qing Chen shook his head, “Anyway, I wouldn’t use her to gather intelligence like that.”

Through these few exchanges, Qing Chen clearly realized two things.

The first: Like he treated people, Shadow of Qing’s was a very ruthless person at heart.

He was only amiable towards him and no one else.

The second: Shadow of Qing’s capability to gather intelligence was even stronger than he had imagined; everything that happened to him along the way was under his control.

“Suit yourself,” Shadow shrugged. “By the way, why didn’t you take the tea leaves I sent with you to Intelligence Department One? Drink it while you’re working. Remember, divide this can into 15 days; it only works if you drink it continuously for that period, not more, not less.”

Qing Chen calculated the time; he had 15 days until his return, just enough time to finish it.

“I didn’t expect that reporting for duty alone would have so many things waiting for me,” Qing Chen explained while sitting on the sofa across from Shadow, then shifted to a more comfortable position.

He looked at the brilliant neon lights outside the window, feeling that the beauty of the city seemed somewhat unreal, while this dark room gave him more of a sense of security.

Shadow asked with interest, “I clearly told you that you could trust Qing Zhun, so why did you say I hadn’t mentioned it when he came to you?”

Qing Chen looked at the shadow. “Entering Intelligence Department One, I needed to set my priorities straight. What if Qing Zhun, relying on his old association with you, interfered with my work? Moreover, as it turns out, I didn’t need your help at all.”

“So, in arranging duties, you could delegate less to Qing Zhun diminishing his presence in Intelligence Department One, Team Seven. Instead, you promoted Qing Hua, who has less connection with me, to a core position,” nodded Shadow.

However, Mr. Shadow showed no sign of anger, instead, there seemed to be a hint of appreciation: “People often trust others easily due to authority, so those adept in speaking often like to quote famous sayings or mention their acquaintanceship with some authority to enhance the credibility of their words. But it often indicates a lack of confidence because you need others to verify you, which means you lack authority yourself. Your ability to rid yourself of my influence and not blindly trust Qing Zhun is a good thing, possessing a quality essential for a leader.”

Qing Chen asked, “What qualities should a leader have?”

Shadow smiled, “The first is not to trust anyone, something I told you a long time ago.”

“That would make life very tiring,” Qing Chen couldn’t fully agree.

Shadow laughed, “You disagree because you haven’t reached that position yet. By the way, do you know the two from the Lottery Center were actually channeling benefits to some core descendants of Qing’s main house? Now that you’ve slaughtered two fat pigs, many in the clan are complaining about you, urging me to replace you immediately.”

Qing Chen looked at the shadow innocently, “I’ve been following your orders in doing my duties.”

Shadow waved his hand, “It’s not a big deal; don’t rush to blame others yet… Why are you so adept at shifting blame when you’ve hardly been at the job?!”

Just then, footsteps could be heard in the hallway.

“Six people,” Shadow’s expression unchanged, “They’re not here for you.”

Qing Chen stood up, quietly listening as the footsteps passed by the door and continued down the hallway.

He then sat back down on the sofa.

“They must be after that female celebrity,” Shadow laughed, “These days, it’s not rare for female celebrities to be kidnapped to serve as slaves to some powerful figures.”

Qing Chen calmly asked, “Did you arrange it?”

Shadow smiled, “Would you guess if I arranged it?”

With that, Shadow actually opened the Door of Shadow and walked through.

Leaving Qing Chen alone on the sofa, thinking about the question Shadow left behind.

If he believed it was Shadow’s doing, then he could just sit in his house and watch the drama, an observer.

If it wasn’t Shadow’s arrangement, the female celebrity’s fate after being kidnapped could be very grim.

Qing Chen stood up again and walked towards the door.

…

That’s it for today. Tomorrow I’m off to Wuzhen for the World Internet Conference, need to get a nucleic acid test done in advance, carry the report, write a speech, and deal with various trifles.

But after this event, I should be able to settle all these matters. Then I’ll be secluding myself to write more updates starting October and won’t go out no matter who calls!

Source: Webnovel.com, updated on N𝘰vgo.co

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