Binjiang Police Affairs
Chapter 252 - 185 "Can’t Do Anything Else"_3

Chapter 252: Chapter 185 "Can’t Do Anything Else"_3

The shipping company’s largest barge weighs a hundred tons, while the barges of township shipping enterprises are smaller than those of the county shipping company. To transport ten thousand tons of coal back, at least a hundred and fifty ships are needed!

Imagine that many ships navigating the Grand Canal, stretching so far.

Moreover, the canal is filled with numerous fleet and individual ships, with such high vessel density, and having to pass through many locks. Forming a convoy like that on the Yangtze River is impossible. Once they enter the Grand Canal, the formation is bound to be disrupted or even scattered for one reason or another.

Scholar Yu stroked his chin and said, "Including about forty members of the Cooperative Defense Team, it’s still not enough. With that many ships, we can manage the front, but not the tail."

Xu Sanye had already considered this, tapping on the table and saying, "Let’s wait until we confirm how many ships are participating in the escort. We’ll study it carefully then. We can set up three or four command posts. The communication section must participate in the operation, and we must set up a relay station in the fleet, equipping every ship with walkie-talkies to ensure smooth communication.

The swift boats of 003 and Port Supervision, being small and fast, should join the action. By then, we’ll load them onto the barge, cover them with tarpaulins, and whether we encounter water bandits or river bullies at the front or back, we can quickly launch them into the water to organize the police to take immediate action."

That plan is indeed feasible.

Scholar Yu thought for a moment, then looked up and said, "Director Xu, two swift boats may not be enough. We must take the locks into consideration. If some of our cargo ships are on the south side of the locks and others on the north side, what then?"

"Does Binjiang have any units equipped with small speedboats?"

"It’s difficult to borrow small speedboats, but we could borrow a few assault boats."

"Assault boats will do. Even if blocked by the locks, we can carry them ashore, run to the other side of the lock, and launch them again. We always value speed in our operations."

Political Commissioner Wang said, "If we use assault boats, we must hurry to organize training."

Scholar Yu asked, "Director Xu, is it too late for us to sharpen our blades on the spot?"

"It should be on time, as the shipping company still needs to contact suppliers for northbound shipments."

Xu Sanye extinguished his cigarette butt and then coldly said, "Old Wang was right. Escorts are just a temporary solution and do not address the root problem. Therefore, we must prepare meticulously this time, aiming to capture more water bandits and river bullies to have a deterrent effect. We want those water bandits to fear us and not dare to extort or blackmail when they see our Linghai ships again."

So, he wasn’t just going to escort— he was there to establish authority...

But speaking of which, he always kept the best defense is a good offense on his lips, always taking the initiative, never passively defending. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be Xu Sanye.

Scholar Yu realized he was going to stir trouble in the Grand Canal and asked with a wry smile, "Director Xu, it’s easy to arrest people, but what do we do after catching them? That’s their jurisdiction, and we don’t have authority there."

"Those bastards extort from my jurisdiction’s shipping enterprises, steal from the shipments of my jurisdiction’s shipping enterprises, and assault the employees of my jurisdiction’s enterprises. How do I, the head of the Water Police Station, have no jurisdiction? Director Yu, you’re the legal expert, study the laws and regulations well, there must be a way."

"There really is no way."

"I don’t care, I will definitely catch them. We only get one chance, and I will catch as many as I can, we’ll sort it out afterward!"

The Linghai County Shipping Company was extorted for several hundred thousand yuan, with several elderly employees being assaulted.

Scholar Yu understood Xu Sanye’s angry emotions and quickly said, "Director Xu, don’t be hasty. I happen to know the director of the Canal Police Department. It’s too late today, I’ll call him tomorrow to ask for his assistance. If we really catch those water bandits and river bullies, we’ll transfer them nearby."

Xu Sanye sternly inquired Scholar Yu, "Transfer them to them, but what about the past incidents? How do we deal with the several hundred thousand yuan extorted?"

"You are not asking Commissioner Ding to organize investigators to carry out an investigation and gather evidence, are you? When the time comes, assign a few investigators to work together with the Canal Police Department’s Criminal Investigation Team to do our utmost to recoup losses for the shipping company."

"This method is feasible, but I can think that way, you cannot."

"Director Xu, I don’t quite understand."

"Director Yu, you are the chief of the Binjiang Water Police Branch. You need to have a higher perspective and consider whether shipping enterprises across the entire city have encountered such situations, whether they have suffered economic losses, or whether their crew members have been assaulted."

"Are you suggesting, just like last time when we cracked down on the water bandits on the river, that we first collaborate with the District County Police Departments to gather clues?"

Xu Sanye slightly nodded, his words laden with deep meaning: "Last time, when we cracked down on the water bandits on the river, the outcomes were significant. The first strike by the Water Police Team and Water Police Station was well executed, but only a few districts and counties along the Yangtze River participated.

This is an opportunity to let those District County Police Departments not along the river know that you, as the Chief of the Water Police Team, are qualified to provide operational guidance on their water security."

The Water Police Team is ranked the lowest at the City Bureau.

In others’ eyes, the Water Police Team, which merely serves as an assisting force for Port Supervision, Fishery Administration, and Customs, holds little status within the City Bureau, always seating at the back row during meetings.

Political Commissioner Wang feels Xu Sanye’s point has some merit, looking up and saying, "It takes more than one cold day for a river to freeze three feet deep. The poor security in the Canal’s Jiangbei Section isn’t a matter of one or two days; businesses across all districts and counties have suffered deeply, plagued by the water bandits for a long time.

Director Yu, we can first issue a notice in the name of the Team, requesting all District County Police Departments to compile information on this matter, especially crime clues and economic losses suffered.

The Canal Police Department must take this seriously. If they don’t pay attention and assist, we’ll report it to the Provincial Department. After all, they’re not part of our system, so we don’t need to worry about offending anyone."

Before Scholar Yu could speak, Xu Sanye puzzledly asked: "Canal Police Department isn’t part of our system?"

After taking office, Political Commissioner Wang attended two water security-related meetings at the Provincial Department, getting to know many peers in water security, including the Chief of the Canal Police Department.

He patiently explained: "In 1978, a passenger ship on the canal caught fire due to a passenger bringing aboard adhesive for a water pipe connector, killing over sixty people and drawing significant attention from the province, leading to the establishment of the Provincial Canal Police Department.

The Police Department is located in Huaiyin but is neither under the Huaiyin Police Bureau nor the Provincial Department. Instead, like the Jiangbei Waterway Administration Office that governs transportation, locks, waterways, and ports along the Canal in the Jiangbei Section, it is under the Canal Shipping Company which belongs to the Transportation Department."

"They are industry police!"

"Yes, much like the Changhang Navigation Police. There are many police officers, but primarily they are onboard police. They not only ensure passenger safety but are also responsible for the water security from Yangzhou to Xuzhou along the canal.

In Yangzhou’s Shiqiao, Shaobo; Suqian’s Liu Laojian, Zaohe; Xuzhou’s Liu Mountain, Jie Tai; and Huaiyin including Huai’an and Huaiyin, they have set up eight police stations, covering a total length of four hundred and four kilometers."

Four hundred and four kilometers, a concept longer than from the East Sea to Jiangcheng by more than a hundred kilometers, averaging a police station every fifty kilometers.

It’s overwhelming for one Police Department to maintain security along such a lengthy waterway.

This was the first time Xu Sanye heard about it, realizing the difficulty in managing canal security, Scholar Yu added with a bitter smile: "They have their challenges, facing more pressure than us. Whatever they do requires the cooperation of local police, and they are responsible not only for canal security but also, like port supervisions, for water traffic safety, serving as onboard police, water police, and also water traffic police."

...

PS: 5,500 words, a bit late in the update since it’s not divided into Chapters.