Working as a police officer in Mexico.

Chapter 714 Mexican Famous Dishes!
The bus bumped along the dilapidated national highway for nearly ten hours. Deputy Police Minister Hernandez leaned back in his uncomfortable seat, closing his eyes to rest.

Mexico’s transportation infrastructure, especially the land transportation connecting the states, is a disaster.

Such a large country doesn't even have a decent railway line that can efficiently connect the capital with the state capitals. People either have to rely on airplanes or long-distance buses that can shake their internal organs out of their seats.

Of course, infrastructure construction has begun, but there will certainly be no results in the short term.

It will take at least three to five years.

When the bus finally came off the highway exit, Hernandez looked through the dusty windows and saw the governor of Michoacán, the police minister, and a large group of well-dressed, bloated officials who had been "waiting" at the exit for quite some time.

Several police cars with flashing lights were parked nearby, making a very impressive display.

Hernandez sneered inwardly. They were certainly well-informed, but if they had even half the ability to gather information, the case wouldn't be so poorly solved by now.

He straightened his suit and got off the bus.

"Minister Hernandez, you must be tired from your journey!" The governor was the first to greet him, his face beaming with a warm smile. He grasped Hernandez's hands tightly and shook them vigorously. "Your personal visit to guide our work is truly an honor for Michoacán!"

The police chief, a man named Nelson Gutierrez, quickly stepped forward, "Minister, you've traveled a long way and must be tired. We've arranged a welcome dinner for you..."

"no."

Hernandez interrupted him directly, "I'm not here for dinner and drinks. The Prime Minister and Minister Robert are still waiting for my report in the capital. Go directly to the state police headquarters. I want to hear a detailed report on the case."

There's absolutely no need to be polite. What's there to be polite about? Do you still think this is the federal era?

Is your governor all awesome?
Do you know what centralized power is?
If you don't cooperate, we'll find someone else tomorrow.

The governor's smile froze for a moment, but he quickly recovered and nodded repeatedly.

The group quickly got into the cars, and with police cars leading the way, the convoy sped towards the city center of the capital, Morelia.

Hernandez and Director Nelson Gutierrez rode in the same car, after all, they belonged to the same system.

As soon as the car started, Hernandez asked directly, "Chief Nelson Gutierrez, tell me, what's the situation now? Have the bodies of the three French backpackers been found? Have the main suspects been apprehended? Has that corrupt sheriff been arrested?"

A barrage of questions made Nelson Gutierrez's forehead instantly bead with sweat. He pulled out a handkerchief to wipe it, and stammered, "Minister, the situation is a bit complicated. The river's current is quite strong. We organized a search party downstream, but haven't found any bodies yet. As for those people, we sent people to their homes and places they frequent, but they weren't there. They probably heard the news and ran away. We've suspended the local sheriff for investigation, but he insists he was just following procedure and didn't accept any bribes..."

"They ran away? They're gone?"

"Chief Nelson Gutierrez, are you trying to tell me that almost forty hours have passed, and the Michoacán State Police, apart from suspending a sheriff who has clearly committed dereliction of duty—a decision made on my way here—have made absolutely no progress on the two most crucial tasks: finding the victims' remains and apprehending the main suspect?"

"Minister, please let me explain..."

"The locals in that small town are quite tough and closed off. They're very xenophobic and uncooperative with our police work, even somewhat resistant. When our people go down to investigate, they say they don't know anything and didn't see anything. It's incredibly difficult!"

"A fierce local culture? Xenophobic? Uncooperative?"

Hernandez repeated these words, then sat bolt upright, his finger almost poking Nelson Gutierrez's nose. "Is this what a state police chief should say?! Are they criminals? Are they enemies? They are Mexican citizens! What are you police officers for? Upholding the law! Fighting crime! Now criminals are killing and raping right under your noses, and you're telling me your job is difficult?!"

“Let me tell you, Prime Minister Casare is personally overseeing this Nelson matter, and Minister Robert has given me a direct order! Do you know what that means?”

“I am extremely dissatisfied with the efficiency and work style of our subordinates! I've heard that a new, extremely strict performance evaluation and accountability system for officials is being developed. Given your current slackness and perfunctory attitude…”

He paused, pointed to the desolate scenery outside the car window, and said, word by word, "You fucking just wait to be stripped of your title and sent to the Rio Grande border to feed the mosquitoes!!"

Assessment method...

This thing has finally arrived on North American soil.

Nelson Gutierrez turned pale, his lips trembling, and he tried to explain, "Minister, I..."

"Shut up!" Hernandez snapped. "I don't want to hear any more excuses! I only want results! I want to see the person alive or dead! The murderer must be brought to justice! The corrupt local police must be severely punished! This is a death order! There is no room for negotiation!"

Just then, the convoy entered the city of Morelia.

With sirens blaring, police cars cleared the road ahead to make way for the convoy. Citizens on both sides of the street stopped and watched the convoy with curiosity.

However, accidents always happen at times like these.

Just as the convoy was about to pass through an intersection, suddenly, a white sedan with almost all its paint peeling off sped out from a side alley!

Instead of charging towards the bus at the heart of the convoy or Hernandez's vehicle, it cut directly in front of the police car leading the way at the very front of the convoy in a near-suicidal manner!

“Squeak——!!!”

The screeching sound of brakes echoed through the street!
The lead police car slammed on its brakes, nearly colliding with the white sedan. The driver of the car following closely behind, carrying Hernandez, also reacted quickly, slamming on the brakes!

"boom!"

Despite being wearing a seatbelt, the immense inertia lurched Hernandez forward, nearly slamming his forehead against the back of the front seat. His stomach churned, and he almost vomited up all the water he had drunk. His secretary frantically tried to support him.

"What the hell?! What's going on?!"

Chief Nelson Gutierrez clutched his chest, which ached from the seatbelt, still shaken, a surge of anger rising in his head.

He suddenly rolled down the car window, leaned half his body out, and was about to start cursing at the person in front of him.

However, before he could utter the curse, it got stuck in his throat.

The door of the white sedan was suddenly pushed open, and a middle-aged man in an old-fashioned police uniform jumped out of the car, pulling a little boy who looked only seven or eight years old and was dressed in tattered clothes.

The middle-aged man looked haggard with sunken eyes. He even wore several slightly worn medals, suggesting that he might have been a meritorious veteran policeman.

As soon as he got out of the car, he raised his hands high, not to surrender, but to attract attention. Then, with all his might, he shouted hoarsely at the convoy, his voice distorted by excitement and despair:
"Injustice!! Minister Hernandez! You must do justice for us!!"

"Officials in Michoacán are lawless!! They traffic children!! They protect criminals!! They embezzle and accept bribes!! They evade taxes!! They abuse their power, and murderers go unpunished!"

His voice was extremely loud, echoing through the suddenly quiet street and clearly reaching the ears of everyone in the car.

The police officers accompanying the vehicle then realized what was happening and rushed forward like hungry tigers pouncing on their prey, forcefully pinning the shouting man to the ground and trying to gag him.

The little boy was so frightened that he burst into tears.

But, it's too late.

Hernandez sat in the car and heard every single word clearly.

His facial muscles twitched, then slowly, he grinned, revealing a set of white teeth, and laughed in exasperation.

"You guys really gave me a big surprise!"

……

In a hotel suite.

Hernandez sat on the sofa, looking at the middle-aged man sitting opposite him, and then at the little boy who was clinging to him with a timid look in his eyes.

He picked up an apple from the fruit plate on the table, grabbed a few pieces of beautifully packaged chocolates, and handed them to the little boy, forcing a gentle smile on his face: "Child, are you hungry? Eat something first."

The little boy hesitated to take it and looked up at the middle-aged man.

"Take it, it's fine." Hernandez's voice softened as he reached out and touched the little boy's messy hair.

The man nodded, and the little boy carefully took the apple and chocolate, whispered "thank you," and then ate them in small bites, clearly very hungry.

Hernandez's gaze returned to the man, his tone tinged with reproach, but more so with lingering fear: "Don't drive so recklessly in the future, it's too dangerous. If the police car hadn't braked in time, or if my driver had reacted a little slower, you might be dead by now. Couldn't you have said something in a safer way?" Hearing this, the man's eyes instantly reddened. This weathered-looking man's voice choked with emotion and helplessness: "Minister, I have no choice, I really have no other way. I've tried the normal reporting channels, but letters went unanswered, phone calls were met with perfunctory responses, and I even feel like someone is watching me. I'm afraid that one day this child and I will die unexpectedly at home or on the street. I knew you were here today, this was my only chance, I could only use this method to get your attention..."

He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself, and began to introduce himself: "My name is Alfonso Morales, and I am the deputy chief of the Santa Maria Police Department."

He pointed to the child beside him, “This is Camarena, the son of my comrade-in-arms. His father was my best brother. Last year, he was ambushed while chasing a group of robbers and died from his injuries. His mother passed away a long time ago, so I took him in and raised him myself. My salary is not high, but if we tighten our belts, we can manage to support the two of us.”

"But my conscience won't allow it!"

Alfonso became agitated, his fists clenched. "I discovered that our bureau chief, along with several prominent figures in town, are all in cahoots. They're systematically trafficking children from other areas. I don't even want to think about where those children are being sold!"

He grew increasingly angry, his speech quickening: "Just last month, the deputy governor's youngest son and the tax official's nephew got into a fight at a bar, pulled out guns, and shot two people dead in public. We responded and arrested them; the evidence was conclusive, there was CCTV footage! But that very night, the chief personally ordered their release! The reason given was 'insufficient evidence.' What's even more infuriating is that within two days, the main unit storing the CCTV footage and its backups were all corrupted! Isn't this utter nonsense?!"

Alfonso gasped for breath, “They used their parents’ power and connections to issue false invoices for construction projects and embezzle national infrastructure subsidies and poverty alleviation funds! Just from what I know, the amount of money they evaded and defrauded from the country is probably in the tens of millions. They used that money to buy luxury houses and sports cars in the city and live a life of debauchery! Meanwhile, the school in our town is leaking and they don’t even have the money to fix it!”

Alfonso spoke at length, pouring out all the darkness he knew, each and every one of it shocking.

Hernandez listened expressionlessly, while his secretary beside him took notes rapidly, her eyes gleaming. This was no longer just a backpacker's case; it was practically a gold mine of corruption waiting to be unearthed!

Meanwhile, inside a luxurious villa in Morelia, the atmosphere was like an icebox.

The deputy governor and police chief, Nelson Gutierrez, who had previously welcomed Hernandez, along with several local businessmen and officials, were all gathered here.

Anxiety and fear were written all over everyone's face.

"Damn it! Alfonso, that madman! How dare he?!" A bloated, wealthy businessman slammed his wine glass to the ground, splattering crimson liquor everywhere. "He actually tried to stop the minister's car! Does he want to die?!"

"We're the ones who don't want to live!"

Nelson Gutierrez, his face ashen, paced restlessly around the room. "Hernandez came with a silver spoon in his mouth, and now Alfonso, who knows the inside story, has walked right into his line of fire. If he spills all the beans, we're all doomed!"

The deputy governor sat on the sofa in the main seat, saying nothing, but his constantly trembling fingers betrayed the turmoil in his heart.

He originally thought that only the backpacker's case was troublesome, but he did not expect that the situation under his jurisdiction had deteriorated to this extent and was about to be eradicated.

“Alfonso must shut up!” a man in a tax officer’s uniform said menacingly. “He knows too much!”

“Shut up? How do we shut him up? He’s in a hotel in Hernandez right now, and it’s full of police from the capital! Our men can’t get close at all!” another official shouted in despair.

The room fell into a deathly silence, broken only by heavy breathing.

Just then, a local construction company owner, who had been silent and taciturn with a fierce look in his eyes, suddenly lowered his voice and said in an almost frantic tone:

"Since we can't get close, let's make sure he never has a chance to speak."

He glanced around, taking in the bewildered looks on everyone's faces, a sinister grin spreading across his lips. "A hotel that big, accidents are bound to happen. Let's go all the way and set that floor of the hotel, or even the whole building, on fire! Create chaos, and in the confusion, take Alfonso and that little brat..."

He made a motion of wiping his neck.

"Once they're dead, there's no way to prove anything! Even if Hernandez wanted to investigate, it wouldn't be so easy for him to find a breakthrough!"

This insane plan left everyone speechless.

Arson? Burning down the hotel where the minister was staying? That's insane!

The deputy governor stood up abruptly. "You're insane! You're absolutely insane! Burning down the hotel where the minister is staying?! Don't take me with you if you're going to die! Idiot! Do you know what the consequences will be?!"

The construction company owner, Diego Rojas, now resembled a mad dog driven to the brink. He abruptly stood up, glaring fearlessly at the lieutenant governor, his eyes bloodshot.
"Am I crazy? You're the ones who're fucking finished, the consequences? This is the biggest consequence for us right now!" He spat as he spoke, his finger almost poking the deputy governor's nose. "Run? You think you can run away? You took 1300 million of my 'bonuses' last year, have you forgotten? Your son ran over that mother and daughter with his car, who found someone to take the blame, and who crippled that family's husband to shut them up, have you forgotten all of that?! And your son gang-raped that female classmate at school, who stepped in to smooth things over, scaring the whole family into moving out overnight, have you fucking forgotten that too?!"

The deputy governor was speechless, swayed, and slumped back onto the sofa, covering his face with his hands.

Director Nelson Gutierrez's lips trembled; he wanted to say something, but no sound came out.

Other officials were even more ashen-faced, and some even began to tremble uncontrollably.

Diego Rojas looked at his group of "allies" who were usually so domineering but were now as cowardly as mice, his face showing extreme contempt. He spat a thick wad of phlegm onto the expensive Persian carpet: "Pah! A bunch of cowards! A living person can't be held back by their own piss! If you won't do it, I will! When Hernandez finds out about you, you can all rot in prison together!"

After saying that, he ignored the group of officials who were in despair, turned around abruptly, and left with two bodyguards, slamming the door behind him.

He had to race against time and make this "accident" happen before Hernandez could extract more information from Alfonso.

……

That night, the Morelia downtown hotel where Hernandez was staying was completely silent.

Just after 1 a.m., two men dressed as electricians, wearing hats and masks, carrying tool bags, entered the electrical distribution room and storage area on the hotel's basement floor.

Their movements were practiced and skillful, clearly indicating they had been prepared. A few minutes later, he quietly slipped out and disappeared into the night.

Less than ten minutes later.

"Crackling——"

First, a short circuit and a burning smell came from the electrical box. Then, flames suddenly shot up from the warehouse where a large number of bed sheets, towels and cleaning supplies were stored.

When dry flammable material comes into contact with an open flame and sparks from a short circuit, the fire erupts as if it had been doused with gasoline, spreading wildly along the walls and ventilation ducts!

The thick smoke triggered the fire alarm first, and the piercing ringtone broke the silence of the night.

"Fire! Run!!"

No one knows who shouted first, but instantly, panic exploded in the hotel like a virus.

Hernandez was awakened by the urgent knocking of his secretary and bodyguards. As soon as he opened the door, thick smoke rushed in, choking him and causing him to cough repeatedly.

"Minister! Fire! Run!" The secretary's face was ashen, and his voice was urgent.

Although Hernandez was startled awake, his years of professional experience allowed him to quickly regain his composure. He covered his mouth and nose with a damp towel and immediately ordered, "Alfonso and the boy! Find them immediately, ensure their safety as a priority, and move them to a completely safe place! Quickly!"

A bodyguard immediately obeyed the order and rushed towards Alfonso's room through the thick smoke.

Meanwhile, the hotel was in complete chaos.

Panicked guests poured out of the room, screams, cries, and crashes filling the air.

Some people were running barefoot down the corridor in their pajamas or even underwear; others tried to return to their rooms to retrieve valuables but were blocked by thick smoke and crowds; still others were so dizzy from the smoke that they desperately cried for help from their windows.

The elevator had long since stopped working, and the emergency exit was crowded with people trying to escape, pushing and shoving each other, with the cries of children being particularly piercing.

"Where is the minister?"

The police officers who ran out didn't see Hernandez staring at each other with disdain.

"minister!"

"Where's the minister?!"

boom!
A corner on the west side of the hotel was burned through and collapsed, kicking up dust.

The fire was huge.

……

(End of this chapter)