Hearing Qiu Tu's words, Yan Chen gave him a deep look. Then, with the report in hand, his eyelids drooped as he fell into deep thought.
With Yan Chen not speaking, the office fell quiet for a time.
Qiu Tu took the opportunity to recall the preliminary plan he had just concocted.
Having just learned about the state of the United Front Special Warfare Squad from Guan Xiao, Qiu Tu realized that holding command authority over the United Front Special Task Force was not just an ace up his sleeve, but also a ticking time bomb ready to explode at any moment.
The longer he held this card, the deeper he would be involved, and the more dangerous it would become!
Moreover, since others were unaware that he had this card, it held no deterrent power whatsoever.
So, after much thought, Qiu Tu decided: since the spy department had already unearthed this special squad, he might as well take advantage of the situation and play his card outright.
And his method of activation was quite simple: a double bind.
Now that he had command of the United Front Special Warfare Squad in his grasp, he naturally held an unbeatable position.
He had considered that, once he found Yan Chen, he would hand over this thorny issue to Yan Chen.
Yan Chen would have two choices:
1, take the command authority for this mission from Qiu Tu's hands, then mobilize his own people to encircle and suppress the special squad.
In that case, the bulk of the credit would undoubtedly go to Yan Chen's direct subordinates. Qiu Tu could only hope for some minor benefits.
2, Yan Chen senses the dangerous nature of this mission and entrusts Qiu Tu with full responsibility, allowing Qiu Tu to exhaust his own confidants and power.
But regardless of which of these two options Yan Chen chose, because Qiu Tu held the command of the United Front Special Warfare Squad, he could easily handle either situation.
For the former... he could command the special squad to fight back with full force. Eliminate the high-level members of Yan Chen's faction, or even... Yan Chen himself. A borrowed knife to kill.
For the latter... he could fool the United Front squad into surrendering.
In this way, he would both earn credit and not have to pay much of a price. It was like picking up a bargain.
So, Yan Chen might make a small profit, but Qiu Tu was certain not to lose!
Thinking this, Qiu Tu also patiently waited for Yan Chen to make his decision.
Yet, after a long minute of contemplation, Yan Chen finally began to speak.
He did not discuss this matter, but slowly shifted to another topic.
He said, "Qiu Tu... you should know about the establishment of Dongye State, right?"
Upon hearing Yan Chen's words, Qiu Tu snapped back to reality. He glanced at Yan Chen's wrinkled face, then nodded his head, saying, "This is the biggest event recently among the 16 cities near us, so of course I know."
As he spoke, Qiu Tu paused, then added in an even tone, "I haven't congratulated the Bureau Chief on becoming a member of the Dongye State Council yet."
At these words, Yan Chen "hehe" laughed twice, his murky eyes showing neither joy nor sorrow as they regarded Qiu Tu.
As if trying to discern whether Qiu Tu was genuinely congratulating him or mocking him.
But Qiu Tu's acting skills had long since reached perfection, so after looking for a while, he could not find any flaws.
Therefore, Yan Chen did not dwell on whether he was a councillor or deputy speaker, but spoke again, "After the establishment of Dongye State, the four speakers will divide their forces and inspect different areas (except for Dai Yukang), then visit each city for inspection."
"The purpose is to review the current state of each city, as well as to integrate the three major institutions of each city."
Having said that, he looked towards Qiu Tu and continued, "And Deputy Chairman Liu Xiongyuan, his first stop on the inspection tour is the Xinjie City Investigation Bureau."
Yan Chen picked up the teacup on the table, sipping lightly before he finally commented, "I think this is a good opportunity."
"According to the contents of your report, the United Front Special Warfare Squad has 1 Third-Order Catastropher, 4 Second-Order Catastrophers, and 15 First-Order Catastrophers."
"Such strong forces are beyond the capabilities of our city's Investigation Bureau to handle."
"So I think... we can totally wait for Deputy Chairman Liu to arrive, then report this matter to him."
"By that time, Deputy Chairman Liu will surely consider helping you handle it..."
Seeing that Yan Chen did not follow the usual pattern, neither supporting nor refusing but instead tossing the problem to a third party: Director Liu...
Qiu Tu furrowed his brows slightly for a moment.
Yan Chen's suggestion seemed light, but it was clearly filled with traps.
Qiu Tu was now a part of Liu Xiongyuan's faction, supporting each other.
And Liu Xiongyuan had begun inspecting the cities right after the council's establishment, obviously treating this inspection as very important.
So... at such a time, if Qiu Tu passed the problem to Liu Xiongyuan,
Liu Xiongyuan would immediately be caught in a dilemma: whether to stay or go...
In the end, it could likely delay his inspection process or even affect his future power in Dongye State.
Moreover, since it was Qiu Tu who put Liu Xiongyuan in this difficult situation, Liu Xiongyuan would surely harbor resentment towards Qiu Tu, causing a rift in their relationship.
Further considering that both Liu Xiongyuan and Yan Chen had reached positions from which they could no longer rise,
if Liu Xiongyuan solved this case:
Even if he succeeded, there wouldn't be much room for promotion, and the impact on Liu Xiongyuan would be minimal.
But for Qiu Tu it was different: having such a significant achievement snatched away would mean a heavy loss.
With a simple move, Yan Chen not only suppressed Qiu Tu but also set a trap for Liu Xiongyuan.
Qiu Tu felt Yan Chen was truly a master, a seemingly mundane new option not only allowed him to leap out of Qiu Tu's trap but also buried Qiu Tu in one fell swoop.