The game of power begins with the police officers at the local police station.

Wang Tao left with Liu Feng. As they walked out of the office, the two exchanged a glance. It was both an opportunity and a challenge. They were betting that Chen Shi would have the last laugh.

Without connections, if they want a promotion, they have to gamble in advance. If all else fails, they can start over. Once the situation becomes clear, it won't be their turn to gamble.

The two quickly left.

Liu Feng found Zhang Hu, took the briefcase to the apartment, and brought Zhang Hu to Chen Shi's office.

"Captain Chen, your briefcase has been placed in the apartment."

"Okay, you can go ahead and get busy."

Liu Feng left, closing the door behind him.

Chen Shi pointed to the sofa: "Sit."

Zhang Hu sat down and waited for Chen Shi's instructions.

"Go back soon. Don't stay at the police station for long. Go back and focus on your work, and wait for your transfer order."

"Yes"

Zhang Hu really wanted to ask how long it would take, but he swallowed the words back and decided to wait patiently instead of being impatient.

"Team Leader Chen, if there are no further instructions, I'll head back now."

Chen Shi thought for a moment and realized he had nothing to say.

"Go back now, drive carefully."

Chen Shi was very busy. His first priority was to find out the personnel arrangements of the public security management brigade, who could be used, who could not be used, and who needed to be guarded against. He didn't have time to worry about Zhang Hu.

It was lunchtime, but Chen Shi was still busy when there was a gentle knock on the door.

"Come in"

Liu Feng pushed open the door and respectfully placed the key on the desk: "Captain Chen, I went to the apartment earlier, but there were no household items there, so I took the liberty of preparing a set for you. Take a look this afternoon when you rest. If you don't like it, I'll change it."

Chen Shi only brought clothes with him; he didn't bring any other personal items, planning to buy them after get off work.

Seeing Liu Feng's meticulousness, he nodded in satisfaction: "Liu Feng, how much did you spend on the daily necessities? I'll give it to you now."

"Team Leader Chen, you're a leader. How can I let you spend money on things? It can be reimbursed."

Chen Shi realized that he was now the captain of the public security management team, and he still had this privilege.

Liu Feng continued, "It's lunchtime, Captain Chen. Do you want to eat in a private room in the cafeteria, or should I bring it up for you?"

Chen Shi had a lot of things to do and didn't want to waste time eating in the cafeteria.

"Could you please print out a copy for me?"

"Captain Chen, do you have any dietary restrictions?"

"Don't make it too bland, I prefer stronger flavors."

"Understood, I'll go call right away."

As Liu Feng left his office, he ran into Wang Tao, who was about to come over and asked Chen Shi if he wanted to go to the cafeteria for lunch.

"Wang Tao, you're late. Captain Chen asked me to get him some food."

"You little rascal, you run really fast."

The two smiled at each other.

Soon the food arrived, and Wang Tao and Liu Feng also brought their own food to eat with Chen Shi.

Liu Feng smiled and said, "Captain Chen, bring the food out. Eat it while it's hot, or it won't taste good when it gets cold."

Chen Shi came over, looked at the food—a balanced mix of meat and vegetables, all spicy—it looked appetizing, and there was also a soup. He picked up his chopsticks: "Eat with us, don't just look."

The three of them started eating. After finishing their meal, Wang Tao and Liu Feng quickly cleaned up and took the trash with them.

Chen Shi went back to his work, while Xu Ping'an gently knocked on the door.

Chen Shi looked up and saw it was Xu Ping'an. He quickly stood up to greet him, saying, "Ping'an, come in and sit down."

Xu Ping'an suddenly realized that his and Chen Shi's positions had completely reversed. Chen Shi was now a deputy section-level head of the public security management team, while Xu Ping'an was still a deputy section-level cadre, a significant difference.

A steady, methodical approach leads to slow progress, while rapid, aggressive advancement involves taking risks. Perhaps Chen Shi was right: the bigger the storm, the more expensive the fish. If you don't want to take risks, the returns will definitely be low.

"Captain Chen, congratulations!"

"Don't call me Captain Chen. In private, I prefer you to call me old classmate. It's more friendly."

"I used to call you my old classmate, but I can't do that now, you're my boss."

"What kind of superior are you? The Public Security Management Brigade has no jurisdiction over your Political Work Section. It's me who might need your help."

"I will do what I can without hesitation."

Xu Ping'an changed his mind. He also wanted to take a risk and didn't want to play it safe and wait for his uncle's arrangements.

If you have the confidence to lose, even if you lose, you can move on to another place and start over. If you don't dare to take risks when you're young, you'll have even less of a chance when you get older.

After hesitating for a long time, he decided to confront Chen Shi.

Xu Pingan asked, "I didn't see you go to the cafeteria for lunch. Have you eaten?"

"We ate it, and they packed it up to bring up."

Xu Pingan looked at Chen Shi with a sincere expression and said, "Captain Chen, I'd like to report to you on some work tonight. Do you have time?"

Both were intelligent people, and Chen Shi understood Xu Ping'an's meaning: to seek refuge with him and take a risk.

He was quite surprised. He had no choice. If he couldn't be promoted to section chief, his uncle Wang Mingzhang wouldn't pay any attention to him.

With Li Nan's help, he could at most reach the deputy section chief level; there was no way he could advance further.

Xu Ping'an didn't need to take any risks. His uncle was the secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission, and he still had room for advancement. If he followed the established procedures step by step, he could be promoted to section chief before he was even forty years old, without any problem.

Suddenly he realized that seeing himself promoted to deputy section chief, he couldn't wait any longer and wanted to prove himself through his own abilities.

Young and competitive, able to afford to lose.

Chen Shi grinned, reached out and shook Xu Ping'an's hand, and had gained another great general.

"I'll treat you to dinner tonight, let's have a couple of drinks."

Xu Pingan smiled and nodded. From this moment on, the two would advance and retreat together.

Xu Pingan sat for a while and then left, not wanting to disturb Chen Shi's afternoon nap.

Chen Shi didn't go back for a lunch break; instead, he was busy with other things.

At 3 p.m., the Public Security Management Brigade held its first plenary meeting in two or three months.

Deputy Captains Li Zhi and Zhao Fanglin also rushed back, and they led a team to investigate potential security risks.

Chen Shi walked into the conference room with a solemn and dignified expression.

Everyone stood up, including Li Zhi and Zhao Fanglin.

Chen Shi arrived at the podium and waved, "Please sit down, everyone."

Chen Shi looked at Wang Tao sitting in the back: "Wang Tao, come sit in the first row and check the number of people. Is everyone here?"

Everyone looked at Wang Tao, realizing that he was one of Chen Shi's men.

Wang Tao quickly stood up, walked to the first row, and counted the number of people. After the count was completed, he said loudly, "Team Leader Chen, the count is complete. The Public Security Management Brigade is all present except for two who asked for leave."

Please sit down.

Chen Shi glanced at Li Zhi and Zhao Fanglin. Li Zhi remained calm, showing no respect whatsoever for him as the captain.

Li Zhi is in his forties this year. After the former captain Qin Qiang retired, he was the most likely to succeed him as captain and be promoted to deputy section chief. Unexpectedly, Chen Shi came out of nowhere. How could he be happy? He would be lucky if he didn't kill him on the spot.

When there are no vested interests involved, everyone is friendly; when there are vested interests involved, it becomes a life-or-death struggle.

It is certain that Li Zhi is one of Deputy Director Song Youming's men. After Qin Qiang retired, Song Youming, as the deputy director in charge of the public security management brigade and the criminal investigation brigade, recommended Li Zhi to the bureau immediately.

Zhang Xiangdong rejected the proposal, and Chen Shi made a great contribution, gaining overwhelming advantage and taking power.

Zhao Fanglin now has more respect for Chen Shi. Whether he is friend or foe remains to be seen. Within the system, everyone is a master of deception; one cannot be fooled by appearances.

Li Zhi's actions showed that there was no need to pretend anymore; everyone knew that he was going to get rid of Li Zhi so that he could take over the position of brigade leader.

There are 26-year-old security management captains, and Chen Shi is the youngest security management captain in Chunyang County Public Security Bureau.