Binjiang Police Affairs
Chapter 270 - 196 "Remove the Firewood from Under the Pot

Chapter 270: Chapter 196 "Remove the Firewood from Under the Pot

"They say short separations make the reunion all the sweeter, but when the moment of farewell actually comes, Han Yu feels very distressed, and Han Xiangning is even in tears."

"But as the old saying goes, ’You must part from friends after accompanying them for a thousand miles,’ with the melancholic sound of the steam whistle, Bai Shen Passenger Liner slowly departs from Bailong Port Pier."

"Han Yu stands by the railing, waving desperately. He can clearly see Sister Zhang Lan waving back, pulling Han Xiangning, who is covering her face crying, back."

"All this, Shao Lei watches intently; after finishing inspecting his designated cabins, he walks up to the deck and pats Han Yu on the shoulder."

"Brother Shao, all done?"

"All done."

"The river is cold in winter; the passengers stay in their cabins or the corridors, seldom coming up to the deck to brave the cold wind."

"Shao Lei glances back and hesitates before asking, ’Salted Fish, haven’t you contacted Lin Xiaohui for a long time?’"

"Han Yu is taken aback, looking embarrassed as he responds, ’Well, I’ve been on vacation recently. Not only vacation, but I also joined an operation from the station, so I was too busy to keep in touch.’"

"’Not just busy, right?’ Shao Lei counters with a smirk. ’It’s better to cut it off completely if it needs to end. Not contacting is perhaps for the best.’"

"Having a significant other and forgetting the neighbor you grew up playing with is indeed unreasonable."

"Han Yu, extremely embarrassed, rolls up the collar of his leather jacket and can’t help asking, ’Brother Shao, how come you’re asking about this?’"

"The once Little Salted Fish has turned into a young man, the girl who once sewed became a model; after finishing the finals of a modeling contest, she went back to the garment factory astonishingly, and the girl from the Port Supervision Bureau has even become Salted Fish’s girlfriend..."

"Time flies so fast, so many changes have happened."

"Filled with emotion, Shao Lei gazes toward the Dunship at Yanjiang Police Station, saying, ’Lin Xiaohui called me a few days ago.’"

"Han Yu instinctively asks, ’What did she call you for?’"

"’She asked me to help her buy tickets.’"

"’She’s going back to Linghai!’"

"’She mentioned she needed to help her factory recruit workers from Linghai. I told her tickets are hard to come by nowadays, and since their factory is in Qibao Town, traveling to Sixteen Piers Pier to catch a boat is too cumbersome. It’d be better to take a bus from the long-distance bus station.’"

"Shao Lei smiles and adds, ’She says she likes to take the boat. She’ll take the bus back once she’s done recruiting, as it seems her factory will charter a bus to pick them up.’"

"Han Yu wanted to ask Shao Lei if Lin Xiaohui mentioned anything else but hesitated to ask."

"Knowing Han Yu feels awkward, and almost certain he wants to know more about Lin Xiaohui, Shao Lei continues, ’The other girls who reached the finals with her, some signed with modeling agencies, some are doing calendars, advertisements, some are learning to sing and dance preparing to be stars, and several were hired by airlines.’"

"She, on the contrary, left the factory and went back again, which greatly moved both the Hong Kong boss and the Chinese leaders. They not only want to train her as a cadre but have directly put her in charge. Initially tasked with overseeing a workshop, now she has more responsibilities.’"

"Han Yu curiously asks, ’In charge of what?’"

"’Having been a finalist in the model contest, she practically became the face of the factory. Whenever leaders visit for inspections or clients come for evaluations, she participates in the reception.’"

"’Brother Shao, how do you know all this?’"

"’Well, she went to East Sea on your behalf when you sent her off by ship, so of course, I had to inquire about her well-being. Although it was just a chat on the phone, it was clear that she’s doing well and having a good life there.’"

"’That’s great to hear; now I feel relieved.’"

"Although Lin Xiaohui never mentioned Salted Fish at all during the phone conversation, her insistence on taking the boat back to Linghai shows that, subconsciously, she still thinks of Salted Fish."

"Yet compared to Lin Xiaohui, the girl from Binjiang Port Supervision Bureau who just accompanied them to the dock suits Salted Fish more."

"Not to mention that Salted Fish went to the Marine Bureau to learn how to operate ships, and he was away for four to five months."

"The passenger liner either sails at sea or floats on the river; communication is inconvenient, and his departure this time is almost like disappearing without a trace, only someone in the same field of maritime transport would understand and even support him."

"Shao Lei didn’t want Han Yu to dwell on it. He looks up in the direction of the pilot house and changes the subject: ’Salted Fish, are you boarding the Changxiu after you arrive in East Sea?’"

"’I’ll definitely board the Changxiu this time; I’m switching ships after the Spring Festival travel rush is over.’"

"’No more Northern Ocean routes, switching to Southern Ocean?’"

"’No.’"

"Han Yu smiles and explains, ’You know the situation with the Marine Bureau; everyone wants to board passenger liners. But there can only be one third officer on a passenger liner; it’s not possible to assign two.’"

"As Salted Fish mentioned, everyone is eager to get into the passenger company of the Marine Bureau, which manages passenger, oil, bulk one (coal), and bulk two (miscellaneous) divisions."

"One of the advantages of being on a passenger liner is obvious. For instance, the passenger department has many female colleagues; as the saying goes, ’men and women together make the work lighter’."

"Also, passenger liners have fixed schedules; with regular voyages, one’s salary won’t drop, plus there’s a bonus for each voyage."

"Now they are promoting ’liberalization and vigor’, allowing various services on board, even small-scale trading, as long as a fee is paid to the company."

"Though Shao Lei belongs to the Changhang System, he’s not completely unaware of the Marine System, and asks instinctively, ’Salted Fish, you’ll soon be officially a third officer!’"

"’Yes.’"

"’Once you get your third officer’s certificate, which ship will you be on?’"

"Maybe it’s a cargo ship, an old and worn-out cargo ship."

"Nobody wants to board it, and yet you have the chance to?"

"I’m not their formal employee, it’s already not easy for me to get on board."

Shao Lei thought for a moment then asked, "There are no onboard police teams on the cargo ships. If you really get on one, wouldn’t all of Director Zhang’s efforts be wasted? Your record would then indicate a few years of no connection with police work."

"No, it won’t."

Han Yu looked around, then whispered into his ear: "Though there’s no onboard police team or Police Special Envoy on the cargo ship, security is still essential, especially for ships traversing the Southern Ocean via Taiwan Strait."

Security is important, especially for ships traversing the Southern Ocean route.

It’s said that once passenger ships entering Taiwan Strait, the onboard police team will be fully armed around the cockpit to prevent any hijacking.

As for cargo ships, the main concern is that crew members might take the opportunity to smuggle.

This is not the first time such incidents have happened. Some people are truly bold, making a fortune along the Southern Ocean route.

Shao Lei realized that the Marine Police Bureau wouldn’t arrange Salted Fish on cargo ships without good reason and was quite certain that he would serve on various cargo ships over the next three years, as not many know his true identity.

Previously, due to his young age and short stature, he was particularly suitable for close docking operations because of his deceptive appearance. Now, transformed into a certified Senior Seaman, who would think of him as police.

"Understood."

Shao Lei patted his arm, reminding, "Ship life is different from shore life. Be careful in everything you do."

Han Yu understood the implied meaning and chuckled, "I know. Besides, even though there are no public security officers or onboard police, there’s still the Political Commissioner."

"That makes sense. The Marine Police Bureau’s Criminal Investigation team certainly won’t let you fight alone."

"I’m mainly there to learn how to navigate."

"Study well. When you become the captain in the future, I’ll come work as your onboard police."

"Brother Shao, stop joking. I’m just learning a skill. Unless I switch professions, I’ll never have the chance to pilot a large ship."

...

Meanwhile, having just seen off Zhang Lan and Han Xiangning, Xu Sanye received a fax from Director Yu sent from Binjiang.

"Notice on stopping the recruitment of contracted police officers," just issued by the Ministry of Police.

Zhang Mingyuan, who had just replaced Li Weiguo as instructor, was shocked and said with tight frowns, "Stop recruiting, what about those previously recruited? So many contracted police have worked for years, without recognition but with hardship, how can we dismiss them!"

Policy changes too quickly.

Li Weiguo also found it abrupt and pondered, "Even if dismissing work is feasible and we manage to dismiss all contracted police, can the permanently-employed officers alone handle the workload?"

This sudden notification didn’t impact Yanjiang Police Station much as it had no contracted police.

However, it deeply affected the Water Police Station since it primarily consists of contracted police.

Xu Sanye was contemplating countermeasures when Scholar Yu’s phone call came through.

"Director Xu, I just inquired about it. It seems some regions haven’t strictly followed the Ministry of Police’s requirements in recruiting contracted police officers, launching mass recruitment without trials or experience."

Scholar Yu took a deep breath and continued, "Their financing resorts to levying farmers or from various fees and forfeitures, violating central policies against increasing farmers’ burdens and random levying or fining."

Xu Sanye took a cigarette offered by Old Zhang and asked in a low voice, "So you’re saying it’s a one-size-fits-all measure?"

"The notification is issued, definitely a one-size-fits-all."

"Do Ma Jintao and the others know?"

"They all know. It’s causing panic; difficult to manage the squad."

"Director Yu, the more it’s this moment, the more you need to find ways to stabilize morale."

Xu Sanye read the notice again, then said, "Speaking of contracted police, the number is greater across the river. The notice only requests a stop to recruitment, there are no detailed rules for dismissal. In fact, each place’s situation differs, and the superiors cannot issue detailed implementation rules."

Scholar Yu asked with a rueful smile, "Director Xu, are you saying to delay it?"

"Maritime police strength is already insufficient, we shouldn’t lead in dismissing contracted police. I bet the district county police departments are more anxious than us. Start by working on our comrades’ mindset, first stabilize the morale. As for future matters, we’ll deal with them later."

"Director Xu, do you think there’s a chance for a shift?"

"What kind of shift?"

"Promotion to regular status."

"Policy matters are unpredictable, but I think the superiors should consider it, given the work needs. The security situation has drastically changed now; if we don’t expand our force, how can we maintain social order and ensure stability?"

Scholar Yu intended to wait until the convoy mission was over, after the city bureau confirmed the new chief of the Water Police Station and after completing the handover to take up his position at the Provincial Department.

He never expected the superiors to essentially pull the rug from under them; if they really dismiss all contracted police as required, the Water Police Station would again become a shell department.

Plans always fall behind changes.

Scholar Yu took several deep breaths and murmured, "Alright, I’ll start working on our comrades’ mindset."