Chapter 3: 3. Resign?
Xiao Shan District Renmin Hospital.
When Lin Qing rushed to the ward, his cousin Chen Yanan had already come out of the operating room and was now lying on the hospital bed.
The once tall and powerful, physically fit woman was now clearly weak. Not only was her face pale, but her usually neat and tidy short hair was also messy and sticky, giving off an unkempt feeling, and her body was wrapped in thick bandages everywhere.
Auntie sat beside the bed, her eyes still swollen from crying, peeling an apple in her hands.
Cousin Chen Ruizhe stood with his back to the door, staring silently at the distant urban circle through the window into the night. His suit was still on, obviously having come straight from the company.
The atmosphere in the room was silent and somewhat oppressive.
...
“Sis.”
Lin Qing closed the door and walked to the bed, frowning, “How are you feeling? How did you get so badly hurt?”
Cousin Chen Ruizhe turned around, glanced at Lin Qing, sighed silently, and didn’t speak.
“It’s nothing,” Chen Yanan frowned slightly and said, “But what about you? Why did you come here all alone in the middle of the night?”
“Enough,” Auntie, with reddened eyes, said, “You’re in this condition and still worrying about Lin Qing?”
Lin Qing knew that Chen Yanan had always looked after him like a younger brother, and these words were merely meant to divert the topic, so he didn’t take them to heart.
His frown deepened as he asked, “Sis, you’re so skilled and even trained in ‘Combat Skill,’ not to mention armed with a gun. It was just a temporary task tonight, how could this have happened?”
Chaoyang Martial Arts Hall’s Sunrise Training Method, as a martial arts foundation for physical conditioning, had spread far and wide, almost becoming something everyone would learn.
The truly combat-oriented ‘Combat Skill,’ however, was rarely shared.
There were strict regulations—non-students of martial arts halls, law enforcement systems, military, and other legally permitted personnel were not allowed to learn ‘Combat Skill.’
Otherwise, they’d end up sewing machine treadles in prison.
Mainly because Combat Skill was too powerful and could easily threaten public order.
As a Patrol Team Captain trained in Combat Skill, Chen Yanan could take on a hundred armed thugs on her own.
And yet now she was injured like this?
Chen Yanan fell silent for a moment, then said, “Tonight’s inspection task was going smoothly, but unexpectedly, we stumbled upon an escapee from Qinghu Island Prison.”
“An escapee from Qinghu Island Prison?” Lin Qing’s expression changed slightly.
Qinghu Island Prison, one of the top three prisons with the highest security levels in the country, had high walls and electric security, with countless armed forces and high-tech facilities.
In this era, unlike a hundred years ago, escape from prison had become an absurdity only seen in movies and television dramas.
It was practically impossible for unarmed prisoners to escape from even the lower security prisons, not to mention Qinghu Island Prison.
That someone had actually managed to escape from there?
“It’s not what you think; the escapee didn’t break out on his own.”
Chen Yanan propped herself up on the hospital bed and shook her head slightly, “But he was indeed formidable; I was no match for him. If it weren’t for the team’s firepower support, my injuries would have been much worse.”
Lin Qing knew that certain matters within the public security system were confidential and his cousin couldn’t discuss them freely.
Moreover, the 0.3 Order Level also indicated that the world was far more dangerous than he had witnessed.
“These injuries?”
But Auntie couldn’t help but look at her daughter, her expression becoming emotional, she said tearfully, “You were so badly hurt last night, the doctors said if you were brought in any later, it might have been too late to save you. We don’t even know if your leg can recover now, yet you’re acting so nonchalant?”
“Mum.” Chen Yanan was somewhat helpless and had nothing to say.
Only now did Lin Qing notice that Chen Yanan’s white bedsheet was smoothly covering the area where her right leg should be, without a single wrinkle, completely obscuring the shape of her leg. The empty bedsheet seemed to want to hide that non-existent limb.
“Sis, your leg…” Lin Qing couldn’t help but ask.
Although he had only inherited the memories of his predecessor, after the complete integration of those memories, they naturally had an impact on him.
His predecessor had deep feelings for Chen Yanan; even breaking down into tears on the spot would have been normal.
“This leg got kicked to pieces by that escapee, but he took two of my bullets; he’s not going to have an easy time if he didn’t die,” Chen Yanan shook her head. “I’ll just get a mechanical leg in the future.”
Lin Qing furrowed his brow tighter, “The technology for prosthetics isn’t mature yet, right? The neuron connection rate is generally not high, this…”
His cousin was very passionate about martial arts; how much of her strength would remain after getting a mechanical leg was uncertain, but it was unlikely she could continue to improve.
“What are you thinking about? Even standing on one leg, I could still beat you to a pulp.”
Chen Yanan looked at him, a smile resurfacing, “But Lin Qing has really grown up, more steady now, huh? I thought you’d be crying your eyes out.”
“…Sis,” Lin Qing replied, somewhat helplessly, “You should be more concerned about your leg.”
“Try to get a better set of mechanical prosthetics.”
At this moment, cousin Chen Ruizhe, with a furrowed brow, spoke up, “I have a classmate who works in the Coastal Metropolitan Circle Third Renmin Hospital. I can ask him about the situation.”
He glanced at his sister’s severed leg and spoke in a deep voice, “And this time you got hurt on a mission. I just checked, and your work-related injury insurance has a cap of eight hundred thousand, plus the Patrol system’s disability allowance subsidies can go up to sixty months of salary. If we pool our resources together, we should be able to get you a top-grade mechanical prosthetic.”
Lin Qing seemed contemplative.
His cousin’s salary was twelve thousand a month, and if she could get the highest disability allowance, that would be seventy-two thousand for sixty months. Along with the work-injury insurance, they really could afford a better mechanical prosthetic.
However, it was said that the truly high-end mechanical prosthetics started at several millions, or even tens of millions.
Still, his cousin’s family couldn’t come up with that much money. Their financial situation had only recently improved over the past few years because his cousin had been promoted to Patrol Team Captain.
“That settles it then.”
Chen Yanan smiled, “Relax everyone, with how technology is advancing day by day, in a few more years, mechanical prosthetics might be indistinguishable from the real thing, and regenerating limbs like a newt might not be impossible.”
“Stop being so careless…” His aunt wiped away her tears, shooting her daughter a helpless glance.
“You do need to be careful.”
Chen Ruizhe also said solemnly, “Changing mechanical prosthetics is a hassle, and I’ve heard that re-adapting could potentially cause neurological disorders, so try to get a good one from the start. Lucky for us, I have over three hundred thousand in savings that we can use.”
“Brother, that money was for your marriage, wasn’t it?” Chen Yanan furrowed her brows, “Just get a decent one for me.”
“You see how high the divorce rates are these days? Who’s getting married?” Chen Ruizhe glanced at her, “Shut up and listen to me.”
Chen Yanan scratched her head helplessly.
Lin Qing stood by quietly, realizing that his few thousand yuan couldn’t really help.
“Oh right, Xiao Qing.”
Chen Yanan suddenly turned to him, “The day after tomorrow… Oh, it’s already early Sunday morning now, so it’s Monday morning. Remember to go to the Inspection Bureau and resign.”
“Resign?” Lin Qing was slightly startled.
“I can’t act as the captain for the time being,” Chen Yanan said. “There’s also no suitable candidate for the captain in the team, so it’s most likely they’ll parachute someone new in to temporarily take over the position.”
She sized up Lin Qing and continued, “You know, even as an auxiliary, temporary Patrol Officer, you’re not qualified. While I was here, I could let you hang around with the team, but once the new acting captain arrives, they’ll probably want to secure the position for themselves, and they might look into my work mistakes. You understand?”
Lin Qing nodded thoughtfully.
Chen Yanan was injured and temporarily unable to fulfill the captain’s duties. Even if she recovered well with the mechanical prosthetic, that would be at a minimum several months away.
In that time, if the acting captain performed well, it wouldn’t be unusual for them to become permanent.
In a way, they were competitors.
The acting captain establishing their own merit or finding faults with Chen Yanan’s leadership would benefit their chances for official appointment.
And for him, this temporary Patrol Officer who had been shoehorned into the Patrol Team, he was a mistake.
“But I’ve already joined the Patrol Team, even if I’m an auxiliary, resigning would still leave a record, right?” Lin Qing couldn’t help but ask.
“There will be a record,”
Chen Yanan nodded, “But you were only temporary, so it’s not a big issue. As long as you resign before the new captain takes office, and they don’t catch you in the act, there won’t be any problem, and it will prevent the acting captain from making things difficult for you.”
Lin Qing suddenly understood.
But he was clear that this was already a recorded issue; it couldn’t be avoided.
So, his cousin mainly wanted to stop the new captain from troubling him.
It’s just that…
He had already decided to follow the path of a Patrol Officer.
“…I understand.”
Lin Qing nodded slightly but didn’t refuse.
Even if he now said he could make it officially and was confident in progressing to the level of Patrol Department, with his cousin in her current state, her family would only persuade him to give up.
He couldn’t possibly reveal the existence of the Entropy, so there was no point in objecting.
“Oh right…”
Chen Yanan suddenly spoke again, “A new black market gang called the Blue Scarf Gang has shown up on Iron Stone Street lately, and they’ve been quite active. Both the Inspection Bureau and the police have taken notice. I’ve heard that the gang’s leader is actually quite skilled. Try not to go out alone at night.”
Lin Qing nodded slightly.
He asked again, “Sis, given your current situation, if someone from your past work…”
“No need to worry.”
Before he could finish, Chen Yanan interrupted him, gesturing upwards with a meaningful glance, “I’m already under protection.”
Lin Qing didn’t quite understand her implication, but it must involve secrets of the Patrol system that he wasn’t cleared to know.
“Alright, go back now.”
Chen Yanan closed her eyes, “I just had surgery and need to rest. You don’t overthink things; focus on your studies.”