Chapter 26: More Money, More Problems

"I graduated last year."

Aunt Liu remembered the jokes she used to make, but the child she watched grow up had changed so much now. They came from different backgrounds, and those jokes she made with his parents could only ever be just jokes.

She glanced at her daughter, who was blushing with embarrassment, and said with a mix of regret and disappointment, "She did pass the exam, got into high school, but it wasn't a technical or teacher's college, so it's not very useful."

She was the same age, but her grades weren't as good as his, and on top of that, she was two grades lower...

Facing Salted Fish, Lin Xiaohui already felt somewhat ashamed. Hearing her mother say this made her even more embarrassed, and she quickly interjected, "Mom, why are you saying all this."

"Alright, alright, I won't say anymore."

"Aunt Liu, isn't Xiaohui trying to go to East Sea? Weren't you worried about not being able to get a boat ticket? San'er works at Bailong Port, he can definitely get a ticket when others can't, why not ask San'er to buy one?"

A middle-aged woman squeezed in and reminded her while wiping her hands.

Aunt Liu was startled, then suddenly slapped her forehead, "Right, how could I have not thought of that? San'er, could you get me a ticket to East Sea?"

"When do you need it?"

"The day after tomorrow, or even the day after that is fine."

Curious, Han Yu asked, "Xiaohui is going to East Sea?"

This wasn't something to be embarrassed about, Aunt Liu said excitedly, "My cousin opened a tailor shop in East Sea, specializing in making clothes and selling fabric. Xiaohui went to learn sewing from them after graduating last year, I even asked someone to buy a sewing machine. She's pretty much learned enough now, and just in time, my cousin's shop is in need of help..."

In Linghai, there were many textile and weaving factories, and many people were in the sewing trade.

Not only were there many girls learning to sew, but even some males stepped on sewing machines.

If you grew up on a boat, everyone thought of going ashore. Han Yu wasn't surprised at all that Lin Xiaohui wanted to be a tailor in East Sea, and he readily agreed, "Ok, I will get it for you when I go back."

"Thank you."

"We're not strangers, no need to thank me. By the way, how should I contact you after getting the ticket?"

"Call the shipping company, do you know the office number?"

"I know, I'll call the office as soon as I get it."

Han Yu was pleased to be able to help a neighbor, and on second thought, turned to say, "Xiaohui, I'm at the station every day, I'll walk past our Police Station on my way to Bailong Port Passenger Pier. When it's time, come to the station to find me and get it."

"Oh," Lin Xiaohui looked up at him, then quickly lowered her head again.

The old neighbors started asking him chattering questions about him and his family's recent condition, and Han Yu realized that if they kept chatting it could go on until nightfall. He quickly started inquiring on behalf of Huang Jiangsheng about who owned a boat that sailed to East Sea.

For shipping operations, no one could ever be certain about where the next trip would be headed.

Having figured out the situation, the old neighbors jotted down Boss Wu's boat factory office number, promising that every time they would go to East Sea in the future, they would call Boss Huang there first to check if there were any eggs or rice to be sent over.

It was mealtime, and Aunt Liu insisted on taking Han Yu to eat on the boat.

With her face blushing red with shyness, Lin Xiaohui felt embarrassed, and so did Han Yu. He excused himself by saying there was work to be done at the unit, and bid everyone farewell.

On the way back to Bailong Port, his mind was filled with images of Lin Xiaohui, both her current self and her as a child. It was like watching a movie, clear and vivid before his eyes.

Today, there were too many people, and he didn't get a chance to talk to her.

When she comes to pick up the ticket, he would definitely have the chance to see her, possibly even send her off on the boat and catch up with old times.

Her aunt in East Sea has a public phone, but it's not proper to make personal calls at the station, and it's too expensive to make long-distance calls at the post office. Perhaps he should ask for her address instead. With an address, he could write letters...

While Han Yu was struck by youthful emotions upon seeing his childhood playmate, Director Yang sat in the cafeteria, eating while listening to Vice Director Chen, who was in charge of Criminal Investigation, reporting on the work.

Director Wang from the Political Work Office, with his freshly served meal, sat down near them.

Director Chen turned to look and then continued, "Wu Ren Guang insists that those travelers who bought overpriced tickets should be reimbursed for the extra money taken by the scalpers. I've estimated it, and with over four thousand travelers, even if we refund ten yuan per person, it will amount to fifty thousand yuans."

Director Yang looked up and asked, "How does he plan to refund them?"

"They took statements from the travelers when boarding for evidence before, and those have the contact information. He plans to wire the money to them."

"To wire over four thousand transfers, he isn't bothered by the hassle."

"Wu Ren Guang has asked around, and he says he doesn't mind the trouble."

What the Police Bureau lacked most was funds; fifty thousand yuans gone just like that.

Director Chen truly felt reluctant, but forced a smile and said, "If all those travelers were in Linghai, then the refund would be one thing. At least we could hold a big meeting and have a refund ceremony. Even if it's a loss, we could still make some noise. But these people are from all over, wiring them money is like throwing it into the water."

Director Wang was always the most well-informed, understanding the whole story, and unexpectedly chimed in, "It won't be throwing money into the water."

"What do you mean?" asked Director Yang softly.

Director Wang glanced around, then said, "This morning, Xu Sanye asked Salted Fish to go to the logistics department to inquire where to print envelopes, planning to write letters to the travelers while wiring the money."

"What letter is he writing?"

"It's supposed to be a letter explaining why the money was transferred, but the signature will definitely be Xu Sanye's; otherwise, he wouldn't need to use the Yanjiang Police Station's envelope to mail it."

Director Yang felt both amused and exasperated, putting down his chopsticks with a smile and rebuking, "Would you believe the nerve of him!"

Director Wang gave a wry smile, "He just loves to show off. Not only can he think of it, but he can also do it."

Unorganized, indiscipline, and lacking a sense of collective honor.

Anyone else would definitely be in for a serious reprimand.

However, that's Xu Sanye, not just anyone.

Director Yang fell silent for a moment, then turned and asked, "Old Chen, how much illegal money has Wu Ren Guang recovered?"

"As of this morning, a total of 3,257,740 Yuan has been recovered."

"How much should have been recovered?"

"It should be more than 4.6 million. Some of it was squandered by suspects, some was used to build houses, and buy home appliances, or even motorcycles."

Linghai's township enterprises are numerous, and the economy is doing well.

Linghai Police Bureau has reaped the benefits, with both formal police officers and contract police officers receiving guaranteed salaries, and although funding for case handling isn't abundant, it's still available. Unlike the police bureaus of the Northern Three Counties, which can't even pay the police officers' salaries on time.

The county finance guarantees the funds reasonably well, so the return ratio of confiscated and forfeited money is not as high as the Northern Three Counties. One million deposited into the finance bureau's account will only see a return of half a million.

The bureau then returns the money to the Criminal Investigation Team and various police stations at a fifty-fifty ratio, colloquially known as the "twice fifty-fifty split."

Xu Sanye again took it upon himself to divide the forfeiture returns equally among the Criminal Investigation Team, Bailong Port Police Station, and his own.

Director Yang did some mental calculations and mused, "If it's returned by proportion, Yanjiang Police Station should receive at least 270,000 yuan. This is just from criminal cases, without even considering the security penalties."

Two or three hundred thousand would be enough to build a building or buy five vans.

Handing so much money over to Xu Sanye would be like throwing it away.

Director Wang urgently said, "Director Yang, we can't return it at the previous rate; why does he need so much money?"

Five thousand isn't an issue, but this is a substantial sum. Returning it to a police station is unprecedented.

Director Chen strongly agreed, looking up and saying, "Indeed, two or three hundred thousand could accomplish so much. Giving it all to him, he'll certainly spend it all for you."

Director Yang doesn't want to give it either, but it's Xu Sanye. He closely watches and asks, "The key question is, who should do this ideological work?"

Director Chen lowered his head, at a loss for words.

Director Wang rested his chin in his hand, his brow furrowed with worry.

Seeing that neither of them dared to provoke Xu Sanye, after weighing it up, Director Yang said expressionlessly, "Later, ask the logistics department to open a separate account for Yanjiang Police Station. Once the return comes through, deposit the money into the account; he must apply before using it."

"Director Yang, seeing but not being able to touch it, he will definitely create a fuss."

"As long as he spends it on necessity, the Party committee will surely agree," Director Yang thought for a moment and continued, "Also give him an additional five thousand for contingency, which must be used and reimbursed according to normal procedures."

"Different treatment makes this a difficult job."

"Then let's hasten to improve the financial system, and have the logistics department open dedicated accounts for all the police stations."

Director Yang picked up his chopsticks, emphasizing, "The superiors are becoming increasingly strict on our police system's financial management. Otherwise, the Ministry of Finance wouldn't have specially formulated the management methods for confiscated and recovered property this year. Strengthening our financial management is also in response to the superior's call."

Though Xu Sanye likes to be unruly, he never discounts following the spirit of the superiors' instructions.

In past years when funds were tight, some police stations didn't issue receipts for fines; they operated on cash handles. Some stations still maintain "little treasuries" to this day.

Xu Sanye, probably aware that he isn't favored by the superiors due to historical reasons, doesn't want to give anyone a handle on him. Whether serving as the Criminal Investigation Team leader or Xin Hai Police Station director, he has never indulged in cash handles or "little treasuries", instead ensuring everything is handled officially.

If the "sound" financial system is established and equally applied, Xu Sanye really can't complain.

Moreover, in doing so, the bureau can not only take back financial authority but also isolate Xu Sanye.

Director Wang can even imagine, after the financial system becomes "sound," those department heads and police station chiefs will certainly curse, but they will only curse Xu Sanye.

Because anyone who's not a fool can see this is due to Xu Sanye's crackdown on scalping boat tickets and bringing in too much money, returning such a large amount of money to him would make anyone anxious—the financial system can almost be said to be tailored for him, with others simply getting dragged down as collateral.

Thinking of this, Director Wang said with a laugh, "Equal treatment, this method is good."

Director Chen also couldn't help but laugh, "Director Yang, we can't delay on this, we must act quickly."

"We'll have a Party committee meeting this afternoon to study this matter thoroughly."

The dignified Director of the Police Bureau, actually having to engage in a battle of wits with a police station chief...

The more Director Yang thought about it, the more stifled he felt, and he stepped out only to turn back:

"As for him wanting to print envelopes, let him print. If he wants to show off, let him. The Yanjiang Police Station belongs to our Linghai Police Bureau, not Xu Sanye's private enterprise. No matter how he jumps around, it won't change the fact that he is a Linghai Police Bureau officer!"