The meeting room of the Overwatch Council fell into an awkward silence. No one had expected Commissioner Fan's first appearance in the Overwatch Council to be in such a situation. It was completely at odds with the usual somber atmosphere of the Overwatch Council. After a while, someone finally couldn't help but laugh.
Fan Xian smiled, cupped his hands, and walked inside. Of the seven powerful figures present, he only recognized Yan Ruohai. The others were all unfamiliar. Fortunately, Fei Jie had been by his side all day, otherwise he would have been afraid to face the most sinister and terrifying spies in the Kingdom of Qing alone.
At the end of the long table, there was an old man sitting in a wheelchair. His eyes were cold, but they were very gentle as he looked at Fan Xian. For no reason, Fan Xian sighed in his heart and slowly walked forward. He had recognized him long ago. After all, he had seen him 16 years ago when he first came to this world. In those 16 years, the old cripple's face did not seem to have changed much.
Chen Pingping looked at the young man who was getting closer and closer to him, and a strange but satisfied expression appeared on his face. Fan Xian had already reached his side. Chen Pingping opened his arms and said softly, "Child, come here."
Fan Xian slowly lowered his body and put his head gently on the old man's shoulder. He put his body into the other man's not very wide chest and hugged him lightly.
Chen Pingping was very thin, and the contact between their bodies was gentle, but Fan Xian felt very warm.
The old man and the young man hugged each other as if the spies of the Kingdom of Qing did not exist. Let them be presumptuous for a while. After a long time, the two slowly separated. Fan Xian bowed respectfully. "I finally meet you."
Chen Pingping suddenly let out two extremely sharp laughs. His laughter seemed to be extremely happy.
Other than Fei Jie, the other seven spies, who did not know the inside story, maintained a polite silence. But deep down, they were shocked. No one knew what kind of relationship this commissioner had with the director, who had always lived in seclusion.
Today was Fan Xian's first official day in the Overwatch Council as a commissioner, so the members of the eight bureaus were waiting here. After a simple self-introduction, Fan Xian quietly sat in the chair to Chen Pingping's left. Fei Jie sat to Chen Pingping's right.
"He is Fan Xian." Chen Pingping looked at his subordinates and quietly said, "In the future, I will be the commissioner of the Overwatch Council. Everyone, please support me."
When Dean Chen introduced the new members, he had never been as serious as he was today, and he had never said so many words. The seven leaders all knew the weight of these words. They stood and bowed formally to Fan Xian without saying anything more.
From the time Fei Jie began teaching Fan Xian at the age of five, Fan Xian knew that something must have happened between him and the secret service organization that the world feared and the common people avoided. Especially after learning of his mother's relationship with the Council, he knew that one day, he would also have a very strange relationship with the Council.
When he was young, he had learned a lot about the Overwatch Council's organizational setup and workflow from Fei Jie. After entering the capital, he had done a lot of things and cooperated with the Overwatch Council. He had also independently formed the Qinian Unit outside the Council. Now that he had formally heard this explanation, his understanding of the Overwatch Council had naturally deepened.
The Overwatch Council was a secret service organization directly under the Emperor. Its power was outside of the six ministries, and it was not limited by Qing law. It only acted according to imperial edict. It was divided into eight bureaus. The First Bureau was responsible for monitoring the officials in the capital, and many spies were placed in important departments. It was the most important department of the Overwatch Council. Its previous leader was Zhu Ge, who had secretly sided with the Eldest Princess and had died a few months ago. The Second Bureau was responsible for gathering and analyzing information from various departments, as well as making plans for the Emperor and the military.
The Third Bureau was the department that Fan Xian felt closest to. Before his teacher, Fei Jie, retired, he had always been the head of the Third Bureau. The Third Bureau was responsible for developing drugs and all kinds of unorthodox weapons. The drugs, poisons, and aphrodisiacs that Fan Xian had on him were basically the results of the Third Bureau's research.
The Fourth Bureau was Yan Ruohai's department. It was responsible for monitoring the officials of the various provinces outside of the capital, as well as collecting relevant intelligence. Its scope of power extended far beyond the borders of the country, including parts of Northern Qi and Dongyi. In terms of authority, it was the most powerful department in the Overwatch Council, aside from the First Bureau.
The Fifth Bureau of the Overwatch Council had always been stationed outside the capital. It was established by His Majesty himself, and was responsible for protecting Chen Pingping's safety. When necessary, it could also carry out thousand-mile raids by cavalry. Years ago, when they penetrated deep into Northern Wei and captured the spy leader Xiao En, that was the most glorious achievement of the Fifth Bureau. It could be said that this department was the most powerful in the Overwatch Council.
The Sixth Bureau was the least famous, but also the most terrifying department. Even though Fan Xian had been in the capital for so long, he had not had much contact with it. This was because the Sixth Bureau was responsible for dealing with assassinations. Of course, on the other hand, the Sixth Bureau was also responsible for protecting the people chosen by the Emperor.
The Seventh Bureau was responsible for interrogating and imprisoning enemies. It was a more professional existence than the 13 yamens of the Ministry of Justice. The inconspicuous head of the prison that Fan Xian had seen in the Overwatch Council's prison was the former head of the Seventh Bureau.
The Eighth Bureau, the Eighth Bureau. Fan Xian wanted to laugh when he saw the middle-aged official. This was probably the department that he had dealt with the most in the Overwatch Council. The Danbo Bookstore did not skimp on paying tribute to the Eighth Bureau. Although he had connections, Seventh Ye shopkeeper still carefully paid tribute to the Eighth Bureau every month. This department, in Fan Xian's opinion, was similar to the yamen of his previous life, except that it had more power and was more independent.
After the brief introductions, the seven leaders of the Overwatch Council did not need Fan Xian to introduce himself. Fan Xian's background was too clear, too clear, too glorious. Everyone in the Qing Kingdom knew about it. Furthermore, these seven were as cunning as foxes, as vicious as wolves, and as fierce as tigers.
Of these seven leaders, Fan Xian only recognized Yan Ruohai. He was more interested in the leaders of the Sixth and Third Bureau. During the introductions, the leader of the Sixth Bureau, who was responsible for assassinations, added the word "representative." Fan Xian was a bit curious. Where was the most powerful assassin in the Qing Kingdom?
As for why he was curious about the leader of the Third Bureau, it was because Fei Jie had been talking about him out of boredom. This leader, whose surname was Leng, was actually Fei Jie's head disciple. Fan Xian should have called him "elder brother" instead.
After the meeting ended, Leng of the Third Bureau and Yan Ruohai of the Fourth Bureau stayed behind. Fan Xian and Leng huddled together and whispered for a while. When it came to poisons and hidden weapons, they couldn't help but be exuberant. Yan Ruohai watched from the side and felt his hair stand on end. Only then did he remember that this commissioner was Fei Jie's last disciple, and also a little monster who grew up with poisons. In the future, it would be best if he didn't get too close to him.
Seeing the two of them talking happily, Fei Jie frowned. Fei Jie frowned. "What kind of person is Xiao En? He has already calculated all of this. I reckon that after the diplomatic mission enters Northern Qi, he will request to stay at Wuduhe for a month. Under the protection of Northern Qing, he will confirm that there is no remaining poison in his body, and only then will he go to the capital to exchange hostages. Even I can't concoct a poison that can last for a month and take effect at a fixed time. What's the point of you whispering about it for so long? "
Fan Xian and this big brother, whom he had met for the first time, looked at each other and sighed dejectedly. They cupped their hands and bid farewell, knowing that Fei Jie was right.
Chen Pingping gently clapped his hands, gathering the attention of those who remained in the room. "On this trip to Northern Qi," he said quietly, "there are four missions."
Fan Xian sat down and listened intently.
"First, ensure that Yan Bingyun returns safely and takes over his post in the First Bureau. Second, after the exchange of hostages is complete and the agreement between the two countries is made, immediately kill Xiao En. " Chen Pingping seemed to be speaking of a very ordinary matter. "Third, carry out the Red Sleeve plan. The details of this plan will be given to you in a moment. Fourth, on the basis of completing the first three missions, consolidate the spy network in Northern Qi. Ensure that intelligence work will not be delayed because of Yan Bingyun's departure. "
Each of the four missions was more difficult than the last. Fan Xian's face was calm, but in his heart he felt a faint excitement and unease. Chen Pingping expressionlessly turned to Yan Ruohai and said, "Prepare the relevant information. Then, before Fan Xian leaves, give him an explanation."
Yan Ruohai nodded and left the room.
At this moment, only Fan Xian, Chen Pingping, and Fei Jie were left in the room. After a long period of silence, Chen Pingping's hands gently smoothed out the creases in the blanket on his knees. A smile appeared on his face as he looked at Fan Xian. "I believe that when you saw the name outside the courtyard, you should have learned many things."
"Uncle Wu Zhu said a bit." Fan Xian smiled as he looked at the crippled old man in front of him. A very complicated feeling welled up in his heart. Although a large part of his life had been arranged by this old man, for some reason, Fan Xian could not feel the kind of conflict that most people would have. Instead, he felt a strange kind of trust, as if this most terrifying official in the Kingdom of Qing was worthy of his trust.
This was intuition, and Fan Xian had always trusted and respected his intuition.
"Lao Wu?" Chen Pingping closed his eyes and frowned, as if lost in some kind of memory. Suddenly, he said, "Has his memory gotten better?"
Fan Xian said quietly, "Perhaps he remembers what he should remember, and forgets what he doesn't want to remember."
Fei Jie coughed twice and glared at the student. He thought that there was really no need to say such mysterious words in front of the principal. It was very annoying.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
