Let them offer their loyalty!

Chapter 237 Revealing the True Identity (10,000 Words for Monthly Ticket)

Hearing Qiu Tu's words, Secretary Bai lost his composure and let out a laugh.

He shook his head and countered, "Defected to the Evil God? What nonsense are you spouting now?"

As they talked, they had just arrived in the living room.

Secretary Bai's villa was decorated with elegance and grandeur. The overall color scheme was primarily grey and white, with cashmere carpets on the floor and impressionist murals on the walls, topped off with simple, stylish ceiling lights. It had a postmodern decorative style that reminded Qiu Tu of his previous life.

Compared to Yan Chen's "ghastly" style and Tang Feifei's simplistic style, Secretary Bai's decorating style was what Qiu Tu liked best and felt most comfortable in.

Gesturing towards the light grey fabric sofa, Secretary Bai said to Qiu Tu, "Have a seat first, I'll get you a cup of tea."

With that, he turned to fetch a kettle of water from the kitchen and began rinsing the tea set in front of Qiu Tu.

Qiu Tu tentatively sat down on the sofa and, seeing that his "Crisis Intuition" gave no indications, he relaxed and naturally watched Secretary Bai preparing the tea.

While Secretary Bai was making tea, Qiu Tu simultaneously watched and couldn't help but bring the conversation back to the previous topic. He said, "Since you're not an Evil God Cultist, why did you say that I should have come earlier?"

"Does this mean you were waiting for me? And for what reason were you waiting…?"

Hearing Qiu Tu's words, Secretary Bai, while pouring tea with his head lowered and gentle demeanor, replied with a smile, "Ever since we visibly fell out, for the most part, our actions have been based on understanding each other's unspoken thoughts."

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

"Don't you think it's about time we met and had a proper conversation?"

"So when I say you should have come to see me sooner, is there a problem with that?"

At Secretary Bai's words, Qiu Tu's expression involuntarily stiffened.

Secretary Bai was not wrong in what he said.

The two hadn't spoken since Secretary Bai tipped off Qiu Tu, raising suspicions from Yan Chen and Jia Shu.

They only occasionally communicated through glances when they bumped into each other.

So, Secretary Bai's statement was indeed reasonable.

However... Qiu Tu didn't understand. Was Secretary Bai really unaware of the investigation he was currently conducting, and did he not realize his words and demeanor were ambiguous?

With these thoughts, Qiu Tu recalled their conversation upon meeting and asked further, "Fine, I misinterpreted that sentence. But what about when you said your house was full of ambushes, what was that about?"

"If we have no conflict, why would you ask if I was afraid of an ambush in your home?"

Hearing Qiu Tu's words, a broader smile spread across Secretary Bai's face.

After rinsing the tea set and brewing the tea, he placed a cup of the poured tea in front of Qiu Tu, gestured with his hand, and then began to say,

"Don't you know how many people you've offended lately? Don't you know there are many who want to see you dead?"

"When you go to an unfamiliar place now, aren't you worried about ambushes?"

"This... It's really just a joke."

Qiu Tu: ...

Honestly, Secretary Bai's explanation was perfect, seemingly without any flaw.

But both were shrewd individuals well-versed in the bureaucratic world.

A misinterpretation caused by one statement could be put down to a slip of the tongue on Secretary Bai's part, or maybe Qiu Tu was overthinking and misunderstood.

But the chances of two consecutive statements being slips of the tongue or misunderstandings were indeed very slim…

With this thought, Qiu Tu took a deep look at Secretary Bai, mentally prepared: It seems... tonight will be a tough fight.

With that in mind, Qiu Tu also abandoned the blunt, swift approach he had initially taken, and began a probing battle of wits with Secretary Bai.

He picked up the tea, drank it boldly in one gulp, and then asked, "Brother Bai, you say many want me dead, who might they be?"

As Qiu Tu drank his tea, Secretary Bai also picked up his cup, took a genteel sip, and then said, "For instance... Commissioner Huang, oh, I mean, Chairman Huang."

Pausing, Secretary Bai seemed to remember something suddenly, looking at Qiu Tu, he asked, "Oh, by the way, Qiu Tu, did you know that Chairman Huang's man has arrived in Xinjie City?"

At these words, Qiu Tu frowned slightly.

If his memory served him right, this secret news was something he had just learned from his "Crisis Intuition" the night before.

To his surprise, Brother Bai also had this information, and he chose this moment to throw it into the mix.

Reflecting on the past fifteen minutes he had spent with Brother Bai, Qiu Tu realized that the entire conversation was almost entirely under Brother Bai's control.

This was not good news for Qiu Tu, who always liked to control the flow of the conversation for probing and psychological warfare.

With this in mind, Qiu Tu silently resolved: I can't let this continue. It's imperative to break this pattern!

So, with a quick thought, he threw out a bombshell to test Secretary Bai's mettle.

"Wu Zhi, isn't it?"

"The Advisor from Huang Shangzong's Attendant's Office."

"I'm aware of it."

Indeed, at Qiu Tu's bombshell, Secretary Bai visibly startled.

Clearly, he had not expected Qiu Tu to also be privy to this secret information, and even the enemy's position and name had been figured out.

Such surprise directly caused a breach in the conversational front he had maintained since entering the room.

Qiu Tu keenly captured all of Secretary Bai's expressions, roughly formulating his plan.

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

Upon hearing this, Secretary Bai came to his senses, then laughed and shook his head, "How could I possibly know any inside information?"

"I just happened to hear that Commissioner Wang entertained a distinguished guest last night, and the two enjoyed a long and pleasant conversation."

"Oh, right, I believe Commissioner Wang is also quite familiar with Deputy Section Chief Ji from the Political Department."

"So, halfway through, he called Deputy Section Chief Ji over, and they talked for a long time."

"Deputy Section Chief Ji..." Qiu Tu muttered solemnly, knowing that Secretary Bai was referring to Ji Chen, a confidant of Yan Chen.

Ji Chen had been placed in the Political Department by Yan Chen half a month ago. He was first promoted to become a First Level Detective.

Then, a few days ago, after Zheng Tao was promoted to Deputy Division Chief, the vacant position of Chief of the Interrogation Section was taken over by one of its Deputy Section Chiefs, and Ji Chen smoothly assumed that Deputy Section Chief's position.

It can be said that Ji Chen is the detective with the fastest promotions in the Investigation Bureau besides Qiu Tu in the past year.

His rapid three-position jump has left many legends in the Investigation Bureau.

What's more important is that even though he has now entered the roster of the Political Department, he still serves at Yan Chen's side, acting as a semi-secretary.

Thus, his every word and action to the outside world represent, to some extent, the stance of Yan Chen.

Upon hearing this, Qiu Tu's gaze flickered involuntarily.

Huang Shangzong, City Hall, and Yan Chen, were these three coming together?

This was indeed news that made Qiu Tu somewhat uneasy.

Fortunately, he had thought of a way to deal with this crisis after learning about it last night. Otherwise, he might already be in a state of chaos...

While Qiu Tu was silently contemplating this crisis, Secretary Bai was also quietly observing him.

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

After a few seconds of silent contemplation, Qiu Tu collected his thoughts and then looked deeply at Secretary Bai before saying, "Thanks, Brother Bai."

When Secretary Bai heard this, he laughed heartily. Pointing at Qiu Tu, he said, "You, you. You're really slick. You call me Old Bai when you suspect me, but once I've helped you, you call me Brother Bai."

"You're way too pragmatic!"

Upon hearing this, Qiu Tu also laughed "Hehe" a couple of times, then found an excuse, "I've just taken over the Supervisors Department, so I have a bit of an occupational disease. I'm suspicious of everyone I meet."

"I ask Brother Bai to forgive me."

Saying this, Qiu Tu seemed to suddenly remember something, then casually asked, "By the way, Brother Bai, when can my secretary be arranged?"

Qiu Tu added, "I recall that secretaries of Deputy Division Chief level and above are arranged by the Administrative Office. And usually, they are arranged either on the same day or the next day."

"What about my secretary?"

Hearing Qiu Tu's words, Secretary Bai let out an "Oh," then while picking up Qiu Tu's tea cup, he said, "I was just about to talk to you about that."

"Minister Shi said that your position is rather sensitive and special, so the choice of secretary needs to be cautious, so he asked me to postpone it a few days for you. He wants to choose carefully."

"Minister Shi from the Organizational Department...?" Qiu Tu looked deeply at Secretary Bai upon hearing this.

Then he smiled and asked, "By the way, Brother Bai. Who decided on Zheng Tao's promotion to the position of Deputy Division Chief of the Public Security Bureau? Was it Minister Shi?"

Secretary Bai thought carefully for a moment, then slowly replied, "It seems like it was Deputy Director Yu who decided, right?"

"I've forgotten the specifics. But I don't think it was Minister Shi."

"Deputy Director Yu..." Qiu Tu was visibly stunned, then he looked deeply at Secretary Bai once again. Following up, he asked, "By the way, Brother Bai. On the day Director Yan's daughter, Yanyan, came to Xinjie City from the Sanctuary, did you personally go to receive her?"

Listening to Qiu Tu's relentless questioning, Secretary Bai laughed and shook his head, then he poured a cup of tea for Qiu Tu and joked, "You really do have an occupational disease."

"You're treating me as your suspect, interrogating non-stop."

"Come on, drink up, drink up."

Seeing this, Qiu Tu knew he was being a bit too eager, so he wisely picked up his tea cup, tilted his head back, and downed it in one gulp.

And just as that cup of tea went down, Secretary Bai's low voice suddenly resounded in Qiu Tu's ear, "I wasn't the one who went to receive her that day; it was Ji Chen. I waited for the two of them to reach the villa before I went out to welcome Miss Yanyan."

"I recall that day was rainy, and just by walking a few steps, half of my sleeve got wet."

"So, it left a deep impression..."

Hearing Secretary Bai's account, Qiu Tu's hand trembled involuntarily, and his eyes widened. He suddenly understood what Secretary Bai was really doing by saying so much tonight...

'Is he intentionally revealing his identity to me?'

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3 chapter update of 10,000 words haha, seeking Monthly Tickets!