After ten years undercover, I'm giving up.

accurate!

Very upset!

The Grand Commander ignored Charles's frustration and continued, "Charles, whether it's the Wu Shaoxiong case or the Johnny Wang case, it was Ma Zhichao who ultimately cleaned up the mess. Since such a person has ability, he should be given a bigger stage. What is his specific position now?"

Charles suppressed his emotions and replied, "Currently, I am the Deputy Commissioner of the West Kowloon Department, with the police rank of Chief Superintendent."

The Grand Commander pondered for a moment, then said, "Then let's promote him and appoint him as the Director. We can announce this appointment on the day of the investiture ceremony, which will also serve as a demonstration of Her Majesty's appreciation for him."

Charles's expression changed, and he quickly reminded him, "If he's officially appointed as the Regional Commissioner, according to the system, his rank would probably be promoted to Assistant Commissioner. But he's only thirty years old this year, isn't that age... a bit too much?"

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone.

The Grand Commander then said calmly, "Then let him serve as acting director for now. Charles, we must understand Her Majesty's intentions. How can an award of honor demonstrate the Queen's favor without a corresponding change in position?"

Upon hearing this, Charles immediately dared not argue any further.

The words have been made so clearly; if he still objects, it would be tantamount to not understanding Her Majesty's thoughts.

This made him even more furious.

That bastard Ma Zhichao is incredibly lucky to have caught the Queen's attention.

Once he takes the position of acting director, the entire West Kowloon Headquarters, plus all the branch offices below it, will nominally have to listen to him.

At that time, he will become the most powerful person in West Kowloon.

The only thing that made Charles feel a little more comfortable was that Ma Zhichao was still the Chief Superintendent for the time being and would not be promoted to Assistant Commissioner of Police immediately.

"no……"

"We can't let this guy get his medal so easily; we have to make things difficult for him."

Charles pondered for a moment, then quickly dialed the phone number of the old butler at Swire.

"Mr. Will, there is something I think I need to tell you."

The old butler's calm voice came from the other end of the phone: "What is it?"

Charles lowered his voice: "I was just informed by the Governor's Office that Her Majesty the Queen is preparing to award the Order of Ma Zhichao."

"What?" The old butler was clearly taken aback. "That Ma Zhichao has actually caught Her Majesty's eye?"

Charles said calmly, "That's all I can remind you of."

The old butler was silent for a moment, then said, "I will remember this kindness."

After hanging up the phone, the old butler immediately called Victoria to report the matter to Baron John.

Subsequently, he contacted a department within Swire and instructed them to begin a full investigation into Ma Zhichao.

……

……

Around noon.

Ma Zhichao finally left Fang Siwei's home and returned to the West Kowloon Headquarters.

As soon as I entered the police station, officers along the way stood at attention and greeted me.

"Officer Ma!"

"Officer Ma!"

"Officer Ma!"

After Johnny Wong's execution yesterday, Ma Chi-chiu's status among West Kowloon police officers has been completely relegated to the brink of godhood.

Now, the way the police officers look at him is almost entirely filled with heartfelt admiration.

When Ma Zhichao arrived at the elevator, he happened to meet Deputy Director Philip, who was also waiting for the elevator.

"Director Ma, congratulations," Philip said with a smile, his tone sounding genuine.

Ma Zhichao raised an eyebrow: "Congratulations on what?"

Philip lowered his voice and chuckled, "I just heard a bit of a rumor. Her Majesty the Queen is very pleased with your performance lately and seems to be preparing to award you a medal."

"Awarding medals?"

Ma Zhichao's expression suddenly became somewhat subtle.

How could someone like me, who's always thinking about flipping the table, actually get the Victoria Medal?

He grinned.

Oh.

interesting.

It seems the Queen wants to bring someone like him over as a figurehead.

The next second, Ma Zhichao's face lit up with gratitude, and his tone became incredibly sincere: "Really? That's such an honor! Thank you for your appreciation, Your Majesty!"

Philip's smile remained unchanged, and he added, "I'm afraid it's not just an award. Traditionally, when public officials like us receive this kind of recognition, we usually get a promotion. In other words, Director Ma, you'll most likely be promoted again."

Ma Zhichao was slightly taken aback: "Another promotion? Wouldn't that mean I'd be made the regional director?"

However, he then felt that this possibility was unlikely.

How many people are at the Assistant Commissioner level in the entire Police Force?

There are eight headquarters departments and six regional offices, which together only amount to a dozen or so positions.

I'm too young now.

Besides, that foreigner Charles wouldn't just stand by and watch me go up there so easily.

"Thank you for the reminder, Director Philip," Ma Zhichao said with a smile.

He could naturally tell that Philip was taking the initiative to show goodwill and try to smooth over the previous minor friction.

Philip waved his hand and said in a friendly tone, "We're all colleagues, no need to be so polite."

But he couldn't help but feel a sense of感慨 (gǎnkǎi, mixed feelings) in his heart.

This Ma Zhichao is truly bizarre.

Their luck was ridiculously good.

He actually managed to get Her Majesty the Queen's personal attention!

But on second thought, it seems quite reasonable.

The commotion caused by Wu Shaoxiong and Johnny Wang was so great that it even alarmed Victoria's side.

Unfortunately, both of them ended up falling victim to Ma Zhichao.

All I can say is that this guy's fate is truly unpredictable.

The elevator stopped on the second floor.

Ma Zhichao stepped out of the elevator and went directly to the PTU office.

"Hey, boss!"

"Hey, boss!"

In the office, a group of PTU officers stood up to greet him, their faces full of excitement and gratitude.

Last night's operation allowed each of them to reap credit.

A promotion or a raise is just around the corner for them.

And all of this was brought about by Ma Zhichao.

Liang Xiaorou walked over quickly, carrying a thick document.

"Boss, here is the full report on last night's operation."

Judging from the dark circles under her eyes, she probably stayed up all night again last night.

Ma Zhichao took the report, nodded, and said, "Thank you for your hard work."

Back in his office, he sat down and carefully looked through the documents.

After confirming that there were no problems with the contents, Ma Zhichao signed his name.

Then, he also took out the report on the previous operation to clean up Dongxing.

Both reports were sent to the police department.

……

Three hours later.

Police Department, Chief Commissioner's office.

Charles saw the two action reports handed over by West Kowloon.

The details of the operation, the distribution of credits, and the relevant police officers' commendations and promotion applications are all clearly written in the document.

Charles glanced at it and readily signed it.

Since the higher-ups have already decided to appoint Ma Zhichao as acting director, there's no need for him to obstruct people over these minor details.

Otherwise, it would make you appear narrow-minded, which would be unsightly.

……

Victoria.

At the same time, a minor incident also occurred.

Sir John personally drove to Buckingham Palace to request an audience with Her Majesty the Queen.

Unfortunately, the Queen was preparing to depart for her summer retreat, and Sir John was ultimately unable to meet her.

Not long after, another problem suddenly arose at the American port.

Sir John had no choice but to change his flight and leave Victoria that same day.

In the end, he was unable to bring the matter to the Queen's attention.

He had originally intended to write a letter to them.

But once he picked up the pen, he found that the letter was not easy to write at all.

Should we write: "My grandson was beaten by Ma Zhichao, so the Queen shouldn't award Ma Zhichao a medal?"

Isn't this blatantly embarrassing for the Queen?

In the end, the matter had to be temporarily suppressed.

……

Soon, news that Ma Chi-chiu was about to be awarded an honor began to circulate among various departments of the Hong Kong government.

The news was then relayed to the police department.

Then, the entire West Kowloon Headquarters heard about it.

Congratulations, Director Ma!

"Congratulations, Boss!"

Congratulations!

The entrance to Ma Zhichao's office was almost trampled by wave after wave of people coming to offer their congratulations.

Even Raymond made the trip himself, his tone full of envy.

Edmund, the former Director of the Department of Internal Affairs who has been transferred to East Kowloon, also called to offer his congratulations.

Over the next two days, the media caught wind of this rumor again.

Major newspapers devoted sections to reporting on it.

"Ma Zhichao, Inspector Ma, may receive a Queen's Medal!"

Hong Kong's heroic police officer is suspected of being favored by Her Majesty the Queen!

Is the youngest regional executive about to enter the Hall of Fame?

When Hong Kong citizens saw these news reports, most of them were shocked.

Immediately afterwards, a variety of emotions, including envy, blessings, and jealousy, emerged.

It was only at this moment that Ma Zhichao realized that he had underestimated the value of the word "honor" in Hong Kong society.

In many people's eyes, this is almost the ultimate honor.

Even though the so-called Knight's Medal is mostly just a nominal honor with little real power.

This is precisely why we can see how profound Victoria's cultural influence was on Hong Kong Island.

Many young people, in particular, identify with this value system very thoroughly.

Unlike Ma Zhichao.

When he saw these things, he felt only sneer, disdain, and an indescribable disgust.

At that moment, Ma Zhichao suddenly had a strange feeling.

It felt as if I had truly infiltrated the enemy camp.

Looking around, enemies were everywhere.

……

three days later.

The Police Force held a press conference to formally conduct the commendation and award ceremony.

TVB, ATV, and major newspapers on Hong Kong Island all sent reporters to the scene.

The entire venue was packed with people, and it was incredibly lively.

"Chief Superintendent Ma Zhichao performed exceptionally well in the operation to capture the notorious gangster Johnny Wang, fully demonstrating..."

"..."

The ceremony was presided over by a foreigner.

He stood on the stage and rattled off a long string of English words, but Ma Zhichao barely listened to a word.

Finally, the foreigner announced that Ma Zhichao had officially received the medal.

When receiving the medal, Ma Zhichao's expression was solemn, but he was seriously considering a question in his mind.

Should I punch this bald foreigner's head right now?

After the awarding ceremony, the entire audience erupted in applause.

Subsequently, Commissioner of Police Charles took the stage and formally announced:

In view of Chief Superintendent Ma Chi-chiu’s outstanding performance in solving major cases, he is promoted to Acting Commissioner of the West Kowloon Department, effective immediately.

This is the end.

The West Kowloon Police Station has officially entered the Ma Chi-Chiu era!

……

On the evening of the day the medal was awarded.

Both TVB and ATV devoted considerable coverage to Ma Zhichao, praising him to the skies.

—The youngest director in Hong Kong!

—A police hero personally recognized by Her Majesty the Queen!

—The Crime Buster Reaches New Heights!