Binjiang Police Affairs
Chapter 294 - 209: To Each Their Own Ambition

Chapter 294: Chapter 209: To Each Their Own Ambition

Others get transferred to the Provincial Department and often come to their old unit for various issues.

Maybe because he wasn’t very well-liked in his old unit and now he doesn’t have much authority, ever since Yu Xiangqian was transferred to the Provincial Department years ago, nobody from his old unit had ever looked for him.

He was truly happy that Salted Fish and Han Xiangning could come.

He arrived early at Xia Guan Pier and, after greeting the public security police of the Changhang Bureau, he headed straight to the dunship where the passenger liner was docked to meet them.

"Why bring anything at all if you’re coming over!"

"It’s just some fruits, for Sister-in-law."

"Alright then, let me carry that."

Yu Xiangqian took the fruits and, looking at the familiar yet somewhat strange Han Yu, laughed and said, "You’ve grown taller, really grown up now, like a real man!"

Han Yu felt a little embarrassed as he followed and laughed, "President Yu, I’m already twenty-one."

"As long as you’re not married, you’re still a child."

Yu Xiangqian laughed, turned around, and playfully said, "Ningning has also become a big girl, prettier than before. Time flies so fast, in the blink of an eye, both of you are about to settle down and start a career."

Han Xiangning giggled and said, "President Yu, my changes shouldn’t be as big as San’er’s, right?"

"Who says so? I see quite a big change."

"Really?"

"Don’t believe me? Ask your sister-in-law later."

The floating pier of Jiangcheng Water Police Station was just to the east. Yu Xiangqian stopped and pointed at a law enforcement boat docked at the floating pier of the water police station, "Salted Fish, that’s the law enforcement boat I told you about last time, newly equipped this year, it cost over a million."

Han Yu followed his pointing direction and asked, "The one docked outside?"

"Yeah, that’s the one."

"It’s so small."

"Indeed, it’s not big. We can’t afford the big ones."

Yu Xiangqian looked back with resignation and said, "Keeping up security on the river is challenging, and the maritime situation is even more complex. The superiors required us from the Provincial Fishery Administration Bureau to equip two 500-ton class Fishery Administration Ships, but the Fishery Administration’s budget mainly comes from the Fishery Resource Value-added Protection Fee and Fishery Administration Fines.

Last year, the province collected less than twenty million in Fishery Resource Value-added Protection Fees and less than ten million in fines, with only two million allocated from the financial budget.

But to build a 500-ton class Fishery Administration Ship, we need twenty million, and the entire year’s budget for the province would only be enough to build one and a half ships, and in reality, it’s impossible to allocate all the budget for shipbuilding."

Four years ago, Han Yu thought Fishery Administration work was just about checking for illegal fishing at sea.

Later on, he learned that Fishery Administration at sea is not just about enforcing fishery laws, but also involves upholding national maritime sovereignty, expelling foreign fishing vessels that enter our exclusive economic zones, and even confronting foreign naval ships and aircraft.

If the Fishery Administration doesn’t have the money to build law enforcement ships, let alone the police.

Thinking back to the times when they encountered foreign naval ships at sea that were not only larger than the Chinese Navy’s but also more advanced, he felt quite discontented.

Yu Xiangqian didn’t know what he was thinking and laughed, "I heard now you can hold your own, already made squad leader."

"Acting position, not an official one."

"An acting squad leader is still a squad leader, besides, your master only had a few public security police under him, how many do you have now?"

If it’s about leading police numbers, he indeed has more authority than his master now.

Han Yu said with a slightly embarrassed face, "One must know oneself; if not for President Yu, Director Zhou, and Political Commissioner Wang, I wouldn’t have had the chance to act as squad leader."

"I didn’t help much. If you really want to thank someone, you should thank your master."

Yu Xiangqian thought for a moment, then smiled again, "On second thought, I still owe you. Back then, I boasted that if I could become a real director, I’d get you a Santana. But I wasn’t a director for long, so I couldn’t fulfill my promise."

Han Yu didn’t expect him to remember all that, not knowing how to proceed, when Han Xiangning laughed, "Getting San’er a Santana, President Yu, you really have a sense of humor. Director Zhou and Political Commissioner Wang to this day haven’t even sat in a Santana."

"I haven’t either, this Santana is borrowed from a friend."

Yu Xiangqian took out a car key with a remote, raised it, and pressed, and a white Santana car nearby lit up its lights.

Han Yu reacted, surprised he asked, "President Yu, you can drive?"

"I just learned last year, your master was right. Driving is something everyone will need to learn in the future. Drivers will become less in demand, driving will become a basic skill."

Yu Xiangqian opened the car door, invited the two to get in, and then got into the driver’s seat and fastened his seat belt.

Han Yu dared not sit in the back, or else he’d treat the formidable Deputy Chief as a driver, so he quickly went around the front of the car, opened the door, and got into the co-driver’s seat.

Four years without seeing each other, there was so much to talk about.

From the leadership of the Marine Police Bureau discussing the Special Commissioner Xiao of the Changxiu Passenger Liner, to the several cargo ships he later served on, to his work after returning to China...

San’er, resting his hand on the steering wheel, asked with a smile, "Has your squad’s responsibilities been defined yet?"

"Affirmed."

If the Yanjiang Police Station is Director Xu’s lifeline, then the Water Police Station is what the Deputy Chief beside me cares about the most.

Han Yu quickly said: "Our squad is responsible for the security management of water areas and docks along the Yangtze River Yingchuan Port Section, Kuzi Port River, Bin Qi River Development Zone, as well as internal units, ships, and various types of market transactions;

Preventing and combating water-related criminal offenses, addressing various water security events and disasters. Protecting the safety of water conservancy and important water facilities within our jurisdiction.

Assisting Port Supervision departments in water rescue, assisting Fishery Administration departments in protecting fishery resources, managing the household registration of shipmen in our jurisdiction, organizing and implementing water firefighting supervision, and guiding and supervising the security and mass prevention work of water units in our area."

Discussing his work responsibilities as if he knew them like the back of his hand, it seems this squad leader is quite competent.

Yan Xiang Qian nodded with satisfaction and then said with a laugh, "Looking at the job responsibilities, you say it’s a squad, but it’s actually pretty much like a Water Police Station. As long as you do well as a squad leader, you can be a chief one day."

Han Xiangning could feel that Scholar Yu truly cared for his junior and couldn’t help but smile, "President Yu, you and Director Xu have always regarded San’er as the Prince Yanjiang. Years ago, you’ve been grooming him as the future Yanjiang Police Station Chief."

Yu Xiangqian laughed heartily, "That’s true, Salted Fish, not only will you be a director in the future, you’ll have to be a bureau chief too!"

Han Yu had thought more than once about what he might do in the future.

In his younger days, he thought that whatever his mentor said was right, and he should listen to his mentor and strive in the direction his mentor hoped for.

But now, no longer a child, he had his own ideas.

He hesitated for a moment, then said in a low voice, "President Yu, there’s something I don’t know if I should say, I dare not even mention it to Director Xu."

"What is it? What shouldn’t be said? If you dare not tell your mentor, you can tell me."

"I don’t want to be an official; I don’t want to be a police station chief."

Yu Xiangqian was taken aback for a moment and asked instinctively, "Then, what do you want to do?"

Han Yu looked back at his senior sister, and with a mix of nervousness and guilt, said: "I just want to be a regular policeman who steers and repairs ships, let me be a captain, let me manage a ship, I think I should be capable. But to be a leader, having to manage not just the ships but also so many people and affairs... I... I..."

Yu Xiangqian suddenly realized that he had graduated from Shipping School and had been busy repairing and steering ships right after starting work, later even studying to helm large ships, and is still learning ship navigation up to now, having just obtained his Assistant Pilot certification, and in another year he’d be a Third-level Pilot.

Although he never left the police system, in reality, he had been trained as a captain all these years!

One can imagine that steering ships was all he ever thought about; it seems a bit inappropriate to make someone who aspires to be a captain or even a pilot take on the role of a squad leader, let alone a police station chief.

Moreover, human energy is limited. No matter how smart he is or how hard he studies, it’s not possible to be top-notch in both ship navigation skills and police work.

Han Xiangning also realized how exhausting these years had been for his junior and felt a pang of heartache.

To know that others need at least ten years to go from graduating from a shipping school to becoming a Chief Officer of an unlimited navigation area cargo ship of tens of thousands of tons, and yet he had completed what others took a decade to achieve in just a mere four years.

And during that time, he had to self-learn marine engineering technology and complete tasks assigned by the Marine Police Bureau.

"Salted Fish, we probably set our expectations a bit too high for you. Before, we only knew that you were very bright, ranking sixth in the county in the middle school exams, and you pick up on anything quickly, yet we never considered your feelings."

Yu Xiangqian took a deep breath and continued, "You don’t have to feel guilty, in fact, you haven’t let us down. Your mentor and I hope you become the most skilled policeman at steering, and you have achieved that."

Han Xiangning recovered and leaned forward to pat his shoulder, "San’er, don’t put too much pressure on yourself. If it really doesn’t work out, I will talk to Chen Zikun about not attending the self-study exam for the police management specialty at Public University."

"It’s fine to attend the bachelor’s level self-study exam, and I can also serve as this squad leader for two years, but I really can’t be a chief. There’s attending meetings and liaising with other units, I really don’t think I can handle that; just thinking about it scares me."

Yu Xiangqian could understand his feelings.

Because during the years Yu Xiangqian was transferred to the Provincial Department, he had also been quite unaccustomed to various aspects, although he was promoted to deputy director, he wasn’t as happy as when he was the head of Binjiang’s Water Police Department combined with the Water Police Station Chief.

Yu Xiangqian was silent for a moment, then with a smile, said: "Salted Fish, I’m glad you can speak your mind to me. If you don’t want to be a chief, then don’t be; being straightforward is quite good."

Han Yu cautiously asked, "Really?"

"If your mentor doesn’t understand, I’ll talk him around later. Besides, being a police station chief is a matter for the future, and it’s not something you can achieve just because you want it."

"That’s true, it’s already a big deal that I can be the current squad leader, let alone a chief. I say these things, just because... just because..."

"I understand."

Yu Xiangqian looked up through the rear-view mirror at Han Xiangning seated in the back row, half-jokingly said, "We can’t arrange a marriage, nor can we force a person to do something they don’t like. Just stick with being the squad leader for now, and also focus on learning piloting techniques. Trust me, one day you will have the opportunity to steer a ship."

Han Yu quickly said, "President Yu, don’t get me wrong, I’m not very concerned about whether I pilot a ship or not, it’s just that I don’t like being an official."

"I know, what I meant is that our police force needs officers who understand and can steer ships."

"Really needed?"

"Why would I lie to you? For example, in the event of a major criminal incident on the water, we definitely need knowledgeable officers to be involved in the investigation; or in case of major water safety accidents, the superiors will definitely require our police intervention, and then you can still play a role."

Yu Xiangqian paused, then continued, "Not to mention the Grand Canal. For many years, water security still remains an issue, and the superiors won’t allow those water bandits to continue their wrongful acts unchecked. Trust me, you will have plenty of opportunities to make a difference!"