Then let them offer their loyalty!

Page 203

Bai Secretary gestured towards the light gray fabric sofa and said to Qiu Tu, "Please sit down, I'll get you a cup of tea."

As he spoke, he turned around and brought a pot of water from the kitchen, and began rinsing the teaware in front of Qiu Tu.

Qiu Tu tentatively sat down on the sofa. After seeing that his "crisis sense" gave no warning, he relaxed and naturally watched Secretary Bai start making tea.

While Secretary Bai was making tea, Qiu Tu, while watching, couldn't help but bring up the previous topic again. He said, "Since you're not a follower of the evil god, why did you say I should have come sooner?"

"Does this mean you're waiting for me? And what... are you waiting for me to do?"

Hearing Qiu Tu's words, Secretary Bai lowered her head and poured tea with a gentle demeanor while smiling and replying, "Ever since we publicly broke up, it seems that we've mostly relied on tacit understanding to get things done."

"And we've never met or talked, have we?"

"Don't you think we should have met up and had a proper talk a long time ago?"

"So I'm saying, you should have come to see me a long time ago, is there a problem?"

Upon hearing Secretary Bai's words, Qiu Tu's expression froze.

Secretary Bai was absolutely right.

The two had indeed not spoken since Bai, the secretary, tipped off Qiu Tu, which aroused the suspicion of Yan Chen and Jia Shu.

We only met occasionally and exchanged glances a few times.

Therefore, what Secretary Bai said is indeed reasonable.

However... what Qiu Tu didn't understand was, did Secretary Bai really not know what he was investigating recently, and didn't he know that his words and attitude were ambiguous?

Thinking this through, Qiu Tu recalled their conversation when they first met and pressed on, "Alright, I guess I misunderstood what you said earlier. But... what about when you said the house was full of ambushes?"

"If we don't have any conflicts, why would you ask me if I'm afraid you've laid traps all over the house?"

Upon hearing Qiu Tu's words, Secretary Bai's smile grew even brighter.

After washing the tea set and brewing the tea, he placed a cup of tea in front of Qiu Tu, gestured with his hand, and then said...

"Don't you know how many people you've offended lately? Don't you know how many people want you dead?"

"Aren't you worried about being ambushed when you go to an unfamiliar place?"

"This... was just a joke."

Qiu Tu:......

To be honest, Secretary Bai's explanation was perfect, as if there were absolutely no problems.

But everyone here is a shrewd person who knows how to navigate the officialdom.

A single sentence caused ambiguity; it could be attributed to Secretary Bai's slip of the tongue, or Qiu Tu overthinking and misunderstanding.

However, it's extremely rare for two consecutive sentences to contain a slip of the tongue or be misunderstood.

Thinking this, Qiu Tu gave Secretary Bai a deep look, and prepared himself: It seems... tonight is going to be a tough battle.

Thinking this way, Qiu Tu also abandoned his initial direct and decisive approach and began to engage in a war of words with Secretary Bai.

He picked up his teacup, downed it in one gulp with gusto, and then asked, "Old Bai, you said I've offended a lot of people, and that many people want to kill me. Who are they?"

Seeing that Qiu Tu had drunk his tea, Secretary Bai also picked up his own teacup, took a sip, and then said, "For example... Committee Member Huang, oh, no, I should say Speaker Huang."

At this point, Secretary Bai paused, as if just remembering something, and looked at Qiu Tu, asking, "Oh, right. Qiu Tu, did you know that Speaker Huang's people have come to the New Territories?"

Qiu Tu frowned slightly upon hearing this.

If he remembered correctly, he had just learned of this secret information last night from his "crisis sense".

Unexpectedly, Lao Bai also received this news and then released it at this time.

Recalling the ten-odd minutes he spent meeting with Lao Bai, Qiu Tu realized that Lao Bai had controlled almost the entire conversation.

This is not good news for Qiu Tu, who always likes to control the pace of conversation in order to test and win people over.

Thinking this, Qiu Tu thought to himself: This can't go on any longer. We have to break this deadlock!

So, he quickly came up with a plan and decided to throw out a bombshell to test Secretary Bai's true colors.

"Wu Zhi, isn't that right?"

"A counselor in Huang Shangzong's office."

“I know about this.”

Sure enough, Secretary Bai was visibly startled when she heard Qiu Tu's bombshell.

Clearly, he hadn't expected that Qiu Tu also knew this secret information, and even knew the enemy's position and name.

This surprise caused a rift in the conversation that he had been maintaining since he entered the room.

Qiu Tu keenly observed all of Secretary Bai's expressions and roughly made up his mind.

He tentatively began his attack, "Old Bai, do you know some inside information?"

Upon hearing this, Secretary Bai snapped out of her reverie, then smiled and shook her head. "How could I possibly know any inside information?"

"I just happened to hear that Committee Member Wang received a distinguished guest last night, and the two had a very pleasant conversation."

"Oh, by the way, it seems that Committee Member Wang is quite familiar with Deputy Section Chief Ji of the Political Department."

"So, halfway there, I called Deputy Section Chief Ji over, and we chatted for a long time."

"Deputy Section Chief Ji..." Qiu Tu muttered with a deep look in his eyes, knowing that Secretary Bai was referring to Yan Chen's confidant, Ji Chen.

Ji Chen was placed in the Political Department by Yan Chen half a month ago. He was first promoted to a first-class detective.

Just a few days ago, after Zheng Tao was promoted to deputy director, the vacant position of interrogation section chief was filled by a deputy section chief, and Ji Chen took over that deputy section chief's position.

It can be said that Chi Chen is the detective in the Investigation Department who has been promoted the fastest in the past year, apart from Chiu Tu.

The speed of that triple jump has also left behind many legends within the Exploration Bureau.

More importantly, even though he had entered the ranks of the Political Department, he still served Yan Chen, acting as a half-secretary.

Therefore, his words and actions to the outside world, to some extent, represent Yan Chen's attitude.

Upon hearing this, Qiu Tu's eyes flickered.

Huang Shangzong, the city hall, and Yan Chen—have they come together like this?

This was indeed some unsettling news for Qiu Tu.

Fortunately, he came up with a solution after learning about the crisis last night. Otherwise, he might be in a complete mess right now...

While Qiu Tu was quietly pondering the crisis, Secretary Bai was also silently observing him.

Seeing that Qiu Tu was not alarmed by this news, he smiled slightly and continued to pour and drink tea.

After a few seconds of quiet contemplation, Qiu Tu came to his senses, gave Secretary Bai a deep look, and said, "Thanks, Brother Bai."

Secretary Bai laughed heartily upon hearing this. He pointed at Qiu Tu and said, "You, you're so slippery. When you doubt me, you call me Old Bai, but now that I've helped you, you call me Brother Bai."

"You're way too realistic!"

Upon hearing this, Qiu Tu chuckled twice, then tried to save face, saying, "I just took over the supervisory department, so I have a bit of an occupational hazard; I'm suspicious of everyone."

"Please forgive me, Brother Bai."

At this point, Qiu Tu seemed to have just remembered something, and then asked casually, "By the way, Brother Bai, when will my secretary be ready?"

Qiu Tu said, "I remember that secretaries at the level of deputy minister or above are arranged by our administrative office. And they are usually arranged on the same day or the next day."

Where is my secretary?

Upon hearing Qiu Tu's words, Secretary Bai said "Oh," and then, while taking Qiu Tu's teacup, said, "I was just about to tell you about this."

"Minister Shi said your position is rather sensitive and special, and the selection of a secretary needs to be careful, so he asked me to postpone the arrangement for you for a few days. He wants to make a careful selection."

"Minister Shi of the Human Resources Department...?" Upon hearing this, Qiu Tu gave Secretary Bai a deep look.

Then he asked with a smile, "By the way, Brother Bai. Who ultimately chose Zheng Tao for the position of Deputy Director of the Public Security Bureau? Was it also Minister Shi?"

Upon hearing this, Secretary Bai pondered for a moment before slowly saying, "It seems that it was Deputy Director Yu who made the selection, right?"

"I've forgotten the specifics. But it shouldn't be Minister Shi."

“Deputy Director Yu…” Qiu Tu was visibly taken aback, then gave Secretary Bai another deep look. He then asked, “By the way, Brother Bai. Did you personally pick up Director Yan’s daughter, Yan Yan, from the shelter when she arrived in New Territories?”

Hearing Qiu Tu's barrage of questions, Secretary Bai smiled and shook his head. Then he poured Qiu Tu a cup of tea and joked, "You're really showing signs of professionalism."

"Do you treat me like a suspect? You keep interrogating me."

"Come, have some tea, have some tea."

Seeing this, Qiu Tu realized he had been a bit too hasty. So, he readily accepted the advice, picked up the teacup, tilted his head back, and drank it all in one gulp.

Just as Qiu Tu finished his tea, he suddenly heard Secretary Bai's deep voice, "I didn't pick them up that day, it was Ji Chen. I waited until they arrived at the villa before I went out to greet Miss Yan Yan."

"I remember it was raining that day, and after just a few steps, half of my sleeve was wet."

"That's why it left a deep impression on me..."

Hearing Secretary Bai's account, Qiu Tu's hand trembled involuntarily, and his eyes widened. He suddenly understood what Secretary Bai had been trying to achieve by saying so much tonight...

'Is this... a deliberate attempt to reveal my identity to me?'

-----

Two chapters, 10,000 words each, please vote with monthly tickets!

Chapter 238 The Secret Revealed by Secretary Bai (10,000 words, please subscribe)

Thinking this, Qiu Tu continued to drink his tea while secretly glancing at Secretary Bai.

At this moment, Secretary Bai seemed to say something completely unrelated to the previous statement; he simply lowered his head and quietly sipped his tea, appearing very serene.

Qiu Tu recalled all the scenes of Secretary Bai in his memory and found that he seemed to always have the same expression.

With a faint smile on his face, there was neither aggression nor a sense of distance, only a peaceful state of mind.

It's as if everything in this world is fleeting to him; he doesn't care about it or value it.

To be honest, it was precisely because of this impression of Secretary Bai that Qiu Tu found it hard to believe when he discovered that Secretary Bai was most likely a follower of an evil god.

After all... how could someone without desires be seduced by an evil god and become a believer in that god?

What could the evil god possibly use to tempt him?

Money, power? Beautiful women, immortality?

To be honest, Qiu Tu didn't know if it was true that you can only know a person's face but not their heart, but he always felt that Secretary Bai didn't seem to care about these things on the surface.

Just as Qiu Tu was thinking this, Secretary Bai put down her teacup, smiled, pointed to the courtyard of her villa, and said, "Do you remember the flowers you and Atai gave me?"

Qiu Tu recalled for a moment, then remembered that Secretary Bai didn't have any other hobbies besides reading and appreciating flowers.

Books are rare treasures in chaotic times, and Qiu Tu and Atai couldn't get their hands on them. So after Secretary Bai returned to New Territories City, Qiu Tu and Atai dug up a few flowers from the suburbs and gave them to Secretary Bai.

Secretary Bai was very pleased with them and praised them for their good taste.

Thinking this, Qiu Tu couldn't help but say, "Oh, I remember. Atai and I went to the outskirts to dig up chrysanthemums for you."

Upon hearing Qiu Tu's words, Secretary Bai smiled slightly, gestured to Qiu Tu, and then got up and walked towards the courtyard.

Seeing this, Qiu Tu couldn't help but follow.

Upon entering the villa's inner courtyard, Qiu Tu was greeted by several beautiful chrysanthemums with graceful and charming blooms.

The chrysanthemum stalks were tall and upright, with round buds that grew towards the sky, producing two flowers on a single stem, their petals curved and curled.

Seeing those few chrysanthemums, Secretary Bai sighed softly, then squatted down, gently stroking them as she said, "All things in this world are actually shrouded in a dreamlike white mist."

Sometimes, you think you've seen the truth, but you've actually been wrong.

At this point, Secretary Bai pointed to the flowers and said with a smile, "You and Atai always thought these were chrysanthemums."

"And these flowers do indeed look like chrysanthemums."

"But they are not actually chrysanthemums, but orchids."

"Orchidaceae, Cymbidium, Chrysanthemum indicum."

"A very precious orchid variety that existed before the Cataclysmic Era, I never expected that you two roughnecks would find it."

"Don't be fooled by its chrysanthemum-like appearance and the fact that it's called 'Chrysanthemum,' it's actually an orchid."

Listening to Secretary Bai's seemingly meaningful words, Qiu Tu couldn't help but ask, "In that case, is it right or wrong for Atai and I to dig it up?"