As the minister of the Political Department, Jia Shu was a figure that could stop children from crying throughout Xinjie City.
Despite always wearing a pair of gold-framed glasses and appearing cultured, courteous, and gentle, only those who had truly encountered him knew how cruel and bloody his methods were.
Unfortunately... Liu Fuping was precisely one of those who had encountered him.
As one of the earliest agents to join the Political Department, Liu Fuping had learned various techniques directly from Jia Shu, from interrogation skills to the torture of prisoners, and even to human dissection.
Therefore, as his semi-disciple, she knew better than anyone the cold-bloodedness and cruelty of Jia Shu, and the terror he inspired.
Thus, when Jia Shu exposed Liu Fuping's identity, her face turned deathly pale, her body stiffened, and she didn't even have the courage to muster any rebuttal.
—Because she knew, once Jia Shu found her, he was already 100% certain of her identity.
Hence, as if her soul had been stolen, her eyes were lifeless, and she rigidly walked towards Jia Shu like a walking corpse.
Under the dim light of the corridor, Jia Shu, with half of his body shrouded in darkness, revealed a smile that was neither a smile nor a laugh. Looking at Liu Fuping, he praised, "That's my proud student."
"Knowing not to make futile efforts..."
In the darkness, he seemed particularly sinister and terrifying.
After he finished speaking, he did not glance at Liu Fuping again. Humming a tune, his face broke into a slightly mad smile, hands in his pockets, he strode towards his office first.
Watching his scholarly figure walk away, Liu Fuping clenched her teeth, her knuckles turning somewhat white.
But she really didn't dare to run away, so she could only silently and stiffly follow Jia Shu forward.
However... just as they were about to approach the door of the Investigation Bureau, her left hand moved slightly, her thumb quietly sliding a ring off her index finger.
And when the ring was about to touch the ground, she gently nudged it with her foot, avoiding direct contact with the floor.
So the ring landed quietly at the door of the Investigation Bureau office.
Seeing this, Liu Fuping felt a slight relief in her heart.
Although she didn't know if Qiu Tu would find the ring; even if Qiu Tu found it, she didn't know if it would lead him to her; and even if he did find her, she didn't know if he could save her from Jia Shu.
But... perhaps due to the trust in Qiu Tu, or perhaps wanting to grab onto the last straw, she still did it...
'Qiu Tu... it's all up to you now.'
Thinking this, Liu Fuping slowly walked through the corridor with a ghastly pale face and entered Jia Shu's office.
What she didn't know was, at the moment she stepped into Jia Shu's office, that very corridor where she and Jia Shu had stood opposite each other had the pervasive shadows twist like living creatures gone mad.
In an instant, a serpent-like shadow silently slid across the ground, then picked up Liu Fuping's ring and returned to the darkness...
The darkness was spreading, and in Jia Shu's office, a ring slowly appeared in his hand...
Qiu Tu actually quite enjoyed the solitude of his own nighttime.
The tranquility of the night always made him feel a deep sense of peace, even his work efficiency seemed much higher.
After spending about fifteen minutes to archive all the materials of the "Yin Caimei case," Qiu Tu put away the files into the drawer and then prepared to look for Bai Ru.
Just as he was leaving the office, he ran into his former superior, Chief Zheng Tao of the Interrogation Section.
Seeing Qiu Tu, Zheng Tao's expression was noticeably unnatural.
Today, the news of Qiu Tu's startling promotion had spread throughout the Investigation Bureau. Even those most politically naive knew that Qiu Tu was on the rise.
So, despite his reluctance and envy, Zheng Tao still didn't want to offend Qiu Tu, the new political star of the Investigation Bureau—especially since the two had had conflicts before.
Therefore, he awkwardly and insincerely greeted, "Chief Qiu, are you leaving work?"
After greeting him, Zheng Tao didn't expect to hear anything pleasant.
After all, Qiu Tu had never respected him as a boss when he was his subordinate. Now that he had been promoted and was above him, he surely wouldn't give him any face.
To his surprise, Qiu Tu actually smiled at him and said warmly, "Yes, Chief Zheng. Are you just finished with work too?"
This rare show of goodwill from Qiu Tu caught Zheng Tao off guard. His usually stern face couldn't help but show a trace of surprise.
He nodded hastily, chuckling, "Yes, just finished. It gets so busy every day."
Qiu Tu nodded earnestly, saying, "I understand, I understand. After all, it's only because you work so hard that our Interrogation Section is the most efficient department in the Political Department."
At that moment, Zheng Tao was even more shocked.
Honestly, if it weren't for the fact that assaulting a superior in the Political Department was a crime, he would have loved to crack open Qiu Tu's skull to see what was going on inside!
Could a promotion really enlighten someone?!
If Qiu Tu knew what Zheng Tao was thinking, he would probably just say "You're overthinking it."
The reason why he had always been at odds with Zheng Tao was because... Zheng Tao was his boss and had always made him work overtime!
Not fighting back against a boss who exploited you would only make one miserable, right?
Now... Zheng Tao was no longer his boss. So whether Zheng Tao was unreasonable or not didn't concern him anymore. Why then would he still need to be hostile towards Zheng Tao?