Chapter 59: Old Jiao¹

Awkward. The atmosphere instantly became incredibly awkward.

Jiao Xingjian looked up at the sky. Oh, wait—it was a ceiling. There was no sky.

He looked at the walls. Ah, yes, these walls were certainly made of wall.

He looked down at his toes. Ah, the leather shoes issued by the unit were due for a polish.

After looking up, down, left, and right, he finally ran out of places to look. Jiao Xingjian lifted his head and met Xia Mi’s eyes.

Xia Mi remained still, holding up her phone. She stared at Jiao Xingjian without blinking, her gaze so focused and intense that he didn’t dare look her in the eye.

“A Second-Class Merit, Deputy Director Jiao,” Xia Mi repeated, her voice like a broken record.

Jiao Xingjian couldn’t help but take a step back.

Xia Mi pressed forward a step.

Jiao Xingjian retreated again.

Xia Mi closed in once more.

She backed her leader all the way into a corner. Knowing there was no escape, Jiao Xingjian took a deep breath, summoned every ounce of courage in his body, and said, “Little Xia…”

“Mm, I’m listening. I won’t miss a single word. I’ve even started a recording,” Xia Mi said.

Jiao Xingjian: “…”

He knew he was trapped.

Resigning himself to his fate, Jiao Xingjian said, “Little Xia, about this Second-Class Merit… it’s not that I don’t want to give it to you. It’s that the higher-ups feel you’re being promoted too quickly. You completed your probation and were assigned a rank in just three months. You became a Second-class Police Sergeant the moment you went permanent. Giving you a Second-Class Merit on top of that right now would be a bit hard to justify.”

“Every unit has a limited quota for Second-Class Merits. The higher-ups feel that since you’re already a Second-class Police Sergeant, it wouldn’t look right when veteran cadres like Captain Liao, Captain Qiu, or even Group Leader Mi haven’t received one yet!”

“The leadership has already decided to give this year’s Second-Class Merit quota to a police officer who was disabled in the line of duty. As for you, strictly speaking, you haven’t even worked for a full year, so you don’t technically meet the criteria.

“But don’t worry! Your achievements are all on the record. If we don’t give it to you this year, we’ll give it next year. If not next year, then the year after… In short, you will definitely get it!

“Of course, if you can crush the Immortal Foundation’s conspiracy, never mind a Second-Class Merit—we could even give you a First-Class Merit!”

Xia Mi let out a sigh.

She had heard long ago that First-Class Merits were usually for those who died, and Second-Class Merits were for those who ended up disabled. These honors weren’t easy to come by.

Hearing that her quota had gone to a disabled officer, Xia Mi looked at herself. She had all her limbs, she was physically fit, and she didn’t even have nearsightedness. It seemed she really didn’t fit the standard for a Second-Class Merit.

Xia Mi lowered her phone and said dejectedly, “Then you should at least give me a Third-Class Merit.”

Jiao Xingjian explained, “If we had only applied for a Third-Class Merit, there would indeed have been hope. But every year, the Second and Third-Class Merits are reported together at the end of the year. Each unit submits one or two extra names, and the Party Committee deliberates on who gets what. The list is already finalized now, and we didn’t prepare a Third-Class Merit application form for you, so…”

“Besides, your performance this time was truly outstanding, and the changes you’ve brought to the Disposal Bureau are immense. If we just gave you a Third-Class Merit for this, we wouldn’t be able to use these same achievements to apply for a Second-Class Merit later. Wouldn’t that be doing you an injustice?”

Xia Mi had calmed down and was no longer angry. She picked at her ear, thinking Jiao Xingjian was getting a bit long-winded.

Seeing that Jiao Xingjian wanted to continue his “ideological work²” on her, Xia Mi raised a hand toward the unremarkable middle-aged man before her. “Don’t worry, I accept the organization’s arrangements. The organization let me become a captain directly with the salary of a section chief. I’ll keep the organization’s high regard in mind and harbor no resentment. Besides, I’m young and capable; there’s no need for me to fight a disabled officer for a merit.”

“Alright, we’re still inside the Nest, and danger lurks everywhere. Let’s stop mentioning this for now and focus on resolving the crisis.

“In the upcoming actions, you must follow my orders completely. Otherwise, I can’t guarantee I’ll be able to save your life. Do you understand?”

“That’s only natural. You’re more experienced. I’ll do my best not to hold you back,” Jiao Xingjian said.

After speaking, Jiao Xingjian suddenly felt that the dialogue between them was a bit strange.

Xia Mi was still the same Xia Mi, still very polite, but it felt as if their status had undergone a total reversal. It was all very confusing.

At this moment, Jiao Xingjian hadn’t realized that in Xia Mi’s heart, he had transformed from the elegant, cultured, and infinitely charming Deputy Director Jiao into an unremarkable, balding, middle-aged man on the verge of retirement. Not only that, he had no superpowers and was a total liability.

Xia Mi said to Jiao Xingjian, “I can’t go looking for the Fake Old Jiao directly. I need to find a deserted, safe place to play the game so I can scout the dungeon’s situation in advance and regroup with the other three as soon as possible. There are people everywhere here, and the Bureau is full of surveillance. The Fake Old Jiao called the moment I walked through the door; I suspect he can monitor the situation inside the Nest at any time.

“I suspect there are two possibilities for how the Fake Old Jiao monitors the Nest. One is that he can access the Bureau’s surveillance at will. The other is through these ‘fakes’—the Fake Old Jiao might be able to see through their eyes.”

“In this situation, if the Fake Old Jiao can see the content of my game, he might make corresponding changes based on it. I want to find a safe place with no people and no surveillance. I don’t know the Bureau’s layout well enough to know which office belongs to whom. Do you know a place like that?”

When Xia Mi stopped being obsessed with her leader’s charm and no longer cared about following in his footsteps, but instead treated him like a subordinate, her rigidness vanished. She became a flexible combatant with extremely sharp analytical skills.

Jiao Xingjian followed Xia Mi’s train of thought. After a brief moment of reflection, he said, “The Bureau does have such a place. The Confidential Archives Room. It requires my iris, a password, and a fingerprint—a triple-lock system—to enter. Let’s try there.”

The Confidential Archives Room was in the basement. The two of them took the stairs and arrived at the door.

Outside the room was a layer of bulletproof glass. Jiao Xingjian used his fingerprint to open it.

Once they were inside, Jiao Xingjian remarked, “It really is exactly the same as the Disposal Bureau’s layout. How did the master of the Nest do it? Could they have replicated the Bureau building one-to-one? If that’s the case, even if we hide in the Confidential Archives Room, we won’t be able to escape their eyes, will we?”

Xia Mi recalled the two Domains at the Pharmaceutical Factory. One of them had been constructed based on reality, existing as different time periods within the same physical space.

She gave Jiao Xingjian a brief explanation of the situation at the factory before adding, “I believe this is a different dimension of the Disposal Bureau. It’s impossible for the opponent to create such a massive fake space out of thin air, so let’s proceed under the assumption that this is the original site of the Bureau.”

“What if it isn’t? What if this really is a one-to-one replica space created by the enemy, and he has absolute control over it? What do you plan to do then?” Jiao Xingjian asked.

Xia Mi glanced at Jiao Xingjian and shook her head slightly. “Old Jiao, has your past experience made you habituated to always planning for the worst-case scenario?”

Jiao Xingjian replied, “It’s not exactly a habit from the past. It’s just that when facing a situation, one should consider it from multiple angles and have several plans… Did you just call me Old Jiao?”

It wasn’t that Jiao Xingjian minded the nickname; many people called him that. He just wasn’t used to Xia Mi calling him “Deputy Director Jiao” with such enthusiasm one moment and then casually switching to “Old Jiao” the next.

Xia Mi offered a casual explanation. “It’s like this. Given that ‘Deputy Director Jiao’ is four syllables and ‘Old Jiao’ is only two, saying the former takes too long. If I have critical intel to tell you, shouting ‘Deputy Director Jiao’ wastes the time of two extra syllables. It’s too inefficient. I recall that during special operations, criminal investigators use codenames rather than titles.

“To ensure convenient and effective communication, I suggest I call you ‘Old Jiao’. As for me, you can use Xia Mi, Xiao Xia, or Captain Xia. Whatever you like.”

“Alright, Xiao Xia,” Jiao Xingjian conceded.

Xia Mi continued, “Old Jiao, I understand your concerns. However, I just tested it. I can’t find any Zhuo Energy in the building itself, yet the people walking around the halls possess energy. This indicates that this building is either an illusion or it truly exists.

“If the building were a mere illusion, would the scanning system be this functional?”

Xia Mi pointed to the first security door that Old Jiao had just swiped open.

“Fair point,” Old Jiao nodded.

“Come on, keep opening doors,” Xia Mi commanded.

Unknowingly, their roles had flipped. Xia Mi had become the commander, while Old Jiao was the veteran team member who relied a bit too much on his seniority.

They reached the Confidential Archives Room without incident. Xia Mi looked around and asked, “Are there weapons here?”

“Yes.” Jiao Xingjian opened a hidden compartment and pulled out a light machine gun along with one magazine and a hundred rounds of ammunition.

Seeing the machine gun, Xia Mi couldn’t help but think of her own Zhuo machine gun that had been absorbed by the Auntie.

She took the weapon and inspected it. Seeing that it wasn’t a Zhuo Weapon, she handed it back to Jiao Xingjian in disappointment.

She looked Jiao Xingjian over carefully and said with a hint of letdown, “How have you not turned into a Zhuo yet?”

Jiao Xingjian replied, “Perhaps because I’ve been in contact with a lot of ‘Zhuo’ before, so my resistance is higher. Isn’t it a good thing that I haven’t turned? Why do you sound disappointed?”

Xia Mi said, “If you turned, I could use you to make a Zhuo Weapon. A machine gun can hurt Zhuo-humans, but the ones in this building don’t seem to have physical bodies. I’m afraid a regular machine gun will be useless, whereas a Zhuo Weapon would be more effective.”

Jiao Xingjian: “…”

He felt like Xia Mi was eyeing his life, wanting to refine him into a weapon.

Jiao Xingjian took a step back and said, “Play your game in the Confidential Archives Room, but don’t touch these files. I’ll stand guard outside. If anyone comes, I’ll call you.”

Xia Mi said, “You must call me. I’m afraid you won’t be able to beat a Zhuo-human on your own.”

With the tasks assigned, Xia Mi opened the “Queen Bee Game.”

This time, the newly unlocked game finally had a title: “The Cuckoo Occupying the Magpie’s Nest³.”

“Interesting name. It implies someone wants to replace someone else, or someone already has,” Xia Mi analyzed silently.

The phrase could certainly describe the Fake Old Jiao, but Xia Mi felt there was a deeper meaning hidden within.

She decided to meet this Fake Old Jiao.

“Xiao Mi” didn’t hesitate, heading straight for the Director’s office. The moment she opened the door, she was greeted by a face full of roses covering the floor.

The game’s chibi-style graphics weren’t very detailed, but Xia Mi could clearly see the Fake Old Jiao inside the office. He was wearing a flamboyant purple suit with a deep V-neck. His face seemed to be caked in thick layers of powder, his eyeshadow was multicolored, and his eyes were a full size larger than the real Old Jiao’s.

A middle-aged man in heavy makeup holding a rose appeared vividly on Xia Mi’s phone screen.

This was a triple-fold phone that a group of people had pooled their money to buy!

With such a large face shoved right in front of her, Xia Mi felt she had suffered actual mental trauma.

She controlled “Xiao Mi” to say, “Sorry, wrong room,” and slowly backed out of the room.

“Xiao Mi” crouched in the hallway outside the office, trying hard to process the damage she had just taken.

Xia Mi also quickly folded her phone back to its normal size; she didn’t want to look at that face anymore.

Unexpectedly, just as she finished folding the phone, the Fake Old Jiao walked out of the office with a waltz-like step, rose in hand, approaching “Xiao Mi.”

The heroic and invincible “Xiao Mi,” the “Xiao Mi” who feared no death, actually felt stage fright in front of an enemy for the first time.

She retreated a few steps while Xia Mi typed frantically on the phone.

Xiao Mi: [Don’t come any closer! If you come any closer, I’ll kill you!]

The Fake Old Jiao wore a hurt expression. His large eyes, weighed down by fake eyelashes, blinked, and tears began to fall.

Fake Old Jiao: [Why is it that no matter what, you can never fall in love with me?]

Suddenly, the entire nest began to shake as if an earthquake were hitting. Xia Mi’s phone screen went black.

Xia Mi was stunned. She hadn’t even done anything yet; she’d only said one sentence. Had she just used up her first chance at an ending?

Did the Fake Old Jiao’s heartbreak cause her to die?

A line of pink text appeared on the screen: [Your attitude severely wounded the boss’s fragile feelings. He lost all confidence and hope, eventually self-destructing. Caught in the blast, Jiao Xingjian died, Mi Xiangyan died, and Qiu Hailan became a vegetable. Only Liao Tianhua, possessing healing abilities, narrowly escaped. However, for unknown reasons, his mind was damaged, and he has forgotten you.]

[You survived, but in doing so, you lost all leads on the Immortal Foundation, caused the deaths of your direct supervisor and teammates, and completely lost a gentle, virtuous boyfriend who was an essential companion for both home life and travel.

In the future, you go on frequent blind dates, but you never find another boyfriend as virtuous as The Lost Boyfriend. No one else can ever get the windows quite as crystal clear as he did.

You received a demotion for dereliction of duty, dropping from a Second-class Police Sergent to a Second-class Police Officer. You lost eight years of promotion seniority, and your future prospects are hopeless.]

Xia Mi: “…”

With a trash ending like this, she would have been better off dying in the line of duty with Old Jiao! At least she would have died a Second-class Police Sergent!

If she had died on the job, the higher-ups might have even awarded her a First-Class Merit.

Translator’s Notes