Chapter 11: Joining the Criminal Investigation Unit

“Zhu Yue, your post has already been assigned. We are short-staffed in community policing. What do you mean by this?”

Inside the room, another man spoke—likely the captain or deputy captain of the community policing team.

The allocation of posts for new police officers had been discussed and arranged well before the recruitment exams; it was not decided on the day they officially joined. At that time, no one knew who would be admitted to the Wanglou Police Station, nor what kind of person they would be.

Zhu Yue smiled and said, “Let’s discuss it. Whether the community team has one more or one less doesn’t really matter—they have over sixty people, while I only have a dozen or so.”

The other party shook his head. “Most of those sixty-plus are auxiliary police. Our official police force is stretched thin. I need at least one more full officer to properly allocate resources.”

Auxiliary police have no law enforcement authority. During police operations, a formal police officer must be present to command. In other words, even if auxiliary officers have ten or twenty years of experience and offer sound advice during operations, a rookie like Han Ling, once certified to enforce the law, can still veto decisions.

So having many people is useless; what matters is having more official officers.

Others found the conversation amusing and chose to watch quietly since they were not short of personnel. The most understaffed unit was the criminal investigation team. In recent years, with the increasing complexity and diversity of crimes, the difficulty and workload of case handling had grown, demanding specialized police officers.

Han Ling’s major at the police academy was investigative studies. Even if he had only demonstrated moderate ability during training drills, Zhu Yue would find a way to get him into the criminal investigation team. After all, he had already outplayed new recruits from the Municipal Bureau’s criminal investigation division during exercises. Not placing him in the criminal investigation team would be a waste.

Assigning him to the community policing team to gather information, resolve difficulties, handle disputes, and chat with elderly residents would be a pity.

Han Ling was somewhat surprised to find himself in demand. When he heard his reputation was not great, he thought no one would want him.

“Captain Liu, you say you have enough officers, but I’m telling you, I’m barely managing as it is. Adding Han Ling would stretch us even thinner. I think... assignments should be based on actual needs,” Zhu Yue said firmly, determined to secure Han Ling’s placement.

The man addressed as Captain Liu showed no intention of negotiating. “The assignments are final. There’s no point in arguing.”

After speaking, he looked toward the station chief and the instructor.

The instructor was much younger than the station chief, appearing to be in his thirties, wearing glasses. He looked less like a police officer and more like an office clerk. Normally, it was hard to become a police station instructor at such a young age—either one had to be exceptionally talented and lucky, have influential connections, or be selected by the authorities.

“Why not ask Han Ling himself?” the instructor suggested, offering a humane and democratic proposal.

“No. New officers have no right to choose; they must obey the assignments,” Captain Liu refused.

That was true. New officers indeed had no choice. Even if leaders asked, it was merely a formality; taking it seriously would be foolish.

They all turned to the station chief.

Station Chief Tao Guowei took a drag from his cigarette, fixed his gaze on Han Ling, and said, “You exploited a loophole in the rules, ran away from the film base fire scene, and showed poor discipline. I heard Commissioner Ding from the city bureau was very displeased on site, yet you’re being treated like a treasure.

“If you’re eager to volunteer, be careful not to cause trouble in the future.”

The instructor smiled and added, “Commissioner Ding was unhappy, but Officer Wu seems to have a good impression of him, and Director Zheng hasn’t expressed an opinion yet. It’s a matter of perspective.”

His attitude toward Han Ling was different from that of Ding Lingfeng, probably due to age differences.

Tao Guowei offered no comment, instead glancing at another man present, who had remained silent, scrutinizing Han Ling the entire time.

Wanglou Police Station had four deputy chiefs, and this man was one of them. His surname was Zhao, and he oversaw core internal operations, including community policing and criminal investigation.

Deputy Chief Zhao scratched his suddenly itchy head and said, “Han Ling, when you were at the film base, did you deliberately leave a flaw so Zhang Yunhang and the others could identify you as the ‘culprit’?”

Han Ling thought to himself: Why is everyone so focused on this point?

Seeing Han Ling didn’t answer immediately, Deputy Chief Zhao didn’t press further and smiled, “You’ll go to the criminal investigation team first. If it doesn’t work out, then community policing it is.

“Don’t mind what Chief Tao said earlier. He prefers obedient new officers and probably thinks you’re a bit disobedient.”

Deputy Chief Zhao’s meaning was to assess Han Ling’s ability first—to see his talent, adaptability, and whether his police academy knowledge could be applied practically. If his performance was average, Zhu Yue wouldn’t insist on keeping him.

Finally, Zhao played the role of the stern figure to ease Han Ling’s anxiety.

Being reprimanded by the station chief on the very first day would unsettle anyone.

“Deputy Chief Zhao!” Captain Liu of community policing was displeased.

Deputy Chief Zhao waved his hand, “That’s final.”

Seeing this, Captain Liu understood the decision was made and had to give up, though he still shot a glare at Zhu Yue.

They were old friends, so disputes and arguments were normal—even insults at times—but such things never affected their camaraderie.

At this moment, Station Chief Tao Guowei spoke up, “Alright, Zhu Yue, take your prize and leave. Teach him well.”

Zhu Yue stood and departed with Han Ling, followed by other officers from different units. The room was left with only the station chief and the instructor.

Once the door closed, Tao Guowei laughed quietly.

He had only said a few words earlier, afraid that speaking too much would scare the boy.

In truth, all three thought Han Ling was a promising prospect, but it couldn’t be openly acknowledged. There had to be some controversy—after all, arson was a fact, and escaping the film base was a fact. Overpraising him would be tantamount to encouraging officers to flout the rules.

Too many rule-breakers would lead to chaos.

Moreover, placing Han Ling in the criminal investigation team was not the station’s initial suggestion. It came after Deputy Captain Ji Bowen of the district’s criminal investigation brigade visited and discussed the matter.

Neither Zhu Yue nor the community policing team knew about this.

“Captain Ji must have taken a liking to this kid. If he excels, Han Ling won’t be able to stay long at Wanglou Police Station,” Deputy Chief Zhao remarked.

Tao Guowei chuckled, “If he wants him, I’m even more reluctant to give him up. We’ll see what happens.”

Ji Bowen was only a deputy captain and had no authority over Tao Guowei’s decisions unless the district chief intervened.

For the district chief to intervene, Han Ling would need to be outstanding, which he was far from at the moment.

...

Zhu Yue took Han Ling to collect his temporary uniform.

Some time ago, Han Ling and the other new officers had already submitted their measurements—height, weight, shoulder width, and so on—for tailored uniforms, which took about two weeks to produce.

Then the two went to the equipment room to receive personal gear, including a baton, handcuffs, pepper spray, a high-intensity flashlight, and more.

Han Ling glanced around and paused when his eyes fell on the gun and ammunition cabinet.

The firearms and ammo were stored separately, double-locked, under strict management.

In his previous life, marksmanship had been his top skill, even surpassing his mental calculations. His combat skills were relatively weaker but still decent.

Noticing Han Ling’s gaze, Zhu Yue smiled, “Once you pass the firearms qualification test, you can carry a gun while on certain assignments. But as you know, the main purpose of a gun is deterrence. You must have a keen judgment of when it’s appropriate to shoot, or things could get complicated.”

Han Ling nodded silently.