Binjiang Police Affairs

Zhang Asheng and Shen Rulan left; they really went to Canada.

Upon arrival abroad, they took a family photo in front of a beautiful villa, together with several postcards, and sent them to the branch through international express delivery.

Jiang Xiaojun, Liu Guixiang, Han Yu, and other police who had once arrested them, each received one, even Zhang Junyan who had earlier been transferred to Jiangcheng Branch. They also wrote on the postcards in both Chinese and English, wishing the officers a Merry Christmas from the beautiful Maple Leaf Country and inviting them to Canada for a visit, promising to show hospitality.

It was an outright show-off. Jiang Xiaojun glanced at it and threw it into the trash can.

Liu Guixiang, who became a Deputy Director of the Criminal Investigation Team a few months later than Han Yu, felt as if he had swallowed a fly looking at the photo and the postcard; he couldn't be more depressed.

Han Yu thought the postcard was pretty nice, so she kept it along with the photo for her senior to collect.

As for the clue that Zhang Asheng provided during his last visit to Binjiang, it was handed over to the Criminal Investigation Team according to the regulations, and even without the handover, they couldn't care for it now.

It was deep into the cold winter, and as the weather warmed up, the eel fry would begin their migration in the Yangtze River. The law enforcement departments by the river would once again face the "eel catching battle."

001 was the main law enforcement vessel at this stage to assist Port Supervision in ensuring unobstructed water transportation and help the Fishery Administration in protecting fishery resources. It had to be maintained in the best condition before the eel catching battle started. Two 6135 main engines had been ordered a month ago.

The day before yesterday morning, 001 was taken to Boss Wu's shipyard dockyard for major repairs.

The dock repair plan had been set earlier. After staying in the shipyard for two days and confirming everything was proceeding smoothly, he let Captain Fan, Zhu Baogen, and Xiao Gong keep an eye on the shipyard, while he packed up his clothes, took three days off, and headed back downtown.

The expected delivery date for senior sister was these few days!

He was about to become a father and had to stay by his senior sister's side.

His mother also came along and didn't plan to leave this time.

They temporarily stayed in the "new house" by the Hao River because it was close to the People's Hospital. If his senior sister's water broke or if her belly began to hurt, they could go to the hospital nearby.

Once the baby was born, and mother and child or possibly mother and daughter were discharged from the hospital, they would then go to her father-in-law's house for the post-natal care period. As for where to go after the full moon, the three elders had not yet discussed it.

Father-in-law and mother-in-law hoped they would stay with them, but senior sister wanted to go to Bailong Port.

And the reasons were very compelling. The baby can't always be without seeing her father, and there is plenty of space in the Bailong Port Passenger Pier residential area. Mother-in-law wouldn't have to worry about not having a place to stay.

Father-in-law and mother-in-law wanted to see the baby every day, while senior sister didn't want to be separated from her. It really was a troublesome issue. Han Yu didn't dare and couldn't express an opinion, so he simply pretended to be confused.

This morning at half-past ten, his senior sister's belly began to hurt.

According to the "emergency plan" made before, she was rushed to the maternity department of the People's Hospital, and then the tense and lengthy wait began.

For other pregnant women in labor, the maternity nurses often came out to ask relatives if they had brought this or that.

His family was not only well-prepared, but mother-in-law instantly transformed into a maternity nurse and was accompanying her inside.

Han Yu and his mother sat outside, unasked and unsummoned, feeling even more anxious than other families' relatives.

"Mom, Ningning has been in pain for five hours now!"

"Childbirth is painful for anyone."

"How much longer will she be in pain?"

"I don't know." Luo Yanfeng peeked at the closed door of the maternity department and then added: "When your sister was giving birth to Dongdong, she was in pain for thirteen hours."

Female comrades really have it tough.

It's hard enough to be pregnant, let alone giving birth.

Now the medical conditions are better, but in the past, women had to endure excruciating pain, and sometimes, it could even be life-threatening.

The more Han Yu thought about it, the worse he felt, full of remorse and guilt for his senior sister, just when his sister and brother-in-law came with Xiao Dongdong.

"Mom, San'er, how is Ningning?"

"She's inside; I don't know how it's going."

"What time did her water break?" Han Ning sat down and asked.

Luo Yanfeng looked up and said, "I think it was around eleven."

"It's been over five hours. Is she a candidate for a natural birth or does she need a C-section?"

"If she needed a Cesarean, her mom would have taken her for it already."

While speaking, father-in-law also hurried over.

Master Han was worried about his daughter, but there's not much a guy can do in this situation. Instead, he called Zhang Jiangkun over to have a smoke at the stairway corner.

Perhaps nervous to the point of anxiousness, Han Yu suddenly wanted a cigarette as well and went to ask for one.

Zhang Jiangkun saw his brother-in-law smoking for the first time and could understand his feelings at the moment. He smiled and said, "Don't worry, Ningning will be fine."

"I know it's not dangerous, but she's already been in pain for over five hours; that's almost like having surgery without anesthesia. No one can bear it or endure it."

"San'er, Ningning is strong, she can handle it."

Son-in-law worried for his daughter; Master Han was relieved and changed the subject to relieve his son-in-law's tension: "I've thought of two names for the child, I'll tell you and then you can ask your mother which one is better."

"Dad, whatever you think is fine. My mom has no objections; neither do I."

"You can't make such a big decision without discussing it with your dad and mom."

"Alright, tell me."

"The first one is Han Han, with the 'grass' radical on top and the 'Han' from 'Han' as the bottom part, an alternative name for the lotus. The lotus rises unstained from the mud, bathes pure and aloof from the mire; the word has meaning and artistic conception, and it's a play on 'Han' as it sounds. Your surname is Han, Ningning's is Han, both parents are Han, and if the child is named Han Han, how great that would be."

Han Han, an alternative name for the lotus... that means it's a girl…

A girl would be great. Girls are not only less troublesome but also affectionate.

Han Yu came to his senses, ready to agree, but Old Comrade Han laughed and said, "The second one is Han Yihan, 'Yi' meaning mutual, and the 'Han' from the 'surname Han.' It signifies both you and Ningning's 'Han,' and when read forward it's Han Yihan, and backward as well. It fits with our big family and is quite original."

Zhang Jiangkun also realized that the baby about to be born was a girl and couldn't help laughing: "Han Yihan is a good name; interesting. Han Han is actually not bad either, but your sister is called Han Ning, your brother is Han Shen, you are Han Yu, and if the child is called Han Han, that would mess up the seniority."

Han Yihan is interesting indeed, but such a name doesn't suit a girl.

Han Yu didn't want his daughter to be the subject of jokes when she grew up, so he asked: "Dad, how about Han Yihan, where 'Yi' is still mutual and 'Han' is changed to the lotus 'Han'?"

"Sure, the name was chosen for its homophonic value anyway."

"Then let's name her Han Yihan."

Han Yu broke into a smile, ready to go back and tell his mother, when his phone suddenly rang.

Worried about her son-in-law's promising future, Master Han urged, "Answer it quickly, it might be a call from your office."

"Oh."

Without even checking the caller ID, Han Yu pressed the answer button and raised the phone to his ear, "Hello, may I ask who's calling?"

"Salted Fish, it's Liu Guixiang. How's Ningning doing, when are you going to the hospital?"

"We've been here since morning. She's in the delivery room now, and I'm waiting outside."

"You're at the hospital?"

"Yes."

"Ningning giving birth is important. I'll call you back later. Remember to call me when the baby is born, Director He, Political Commissioner Jiang, and Director Li were still talking about when you're going to be a dad during lunch at the cafeteria."

"Brother Liu, I'm not busy right now; whatever it is, you can tell me."

"Now?"

"Hurry up and say it. If you don't, I'll be even more anxious."

Master Han, realizing that the call was from her son-in-law's colleague, worried that there might be too many people for her son-in-law to talk freely and promptly stubbed out his cigarette, calling over Zhang Jiangkun to go back and wait with the mother-in-law.

Han Yu turned his head subconsciously and heard Liu Guixiang on the other end of the call bitterly laugh, "Salted Fish, the human smuggling lead you passed to us last time is tough to investigate. In the meeting this morning, Branch Director Du reported to the higher-ups, who instructed to report it to the Changhang Police Bureau."

Zhang Asheng provided a phone number when he came to Binjiang, but that phone number was from Japan.

In other words, if the lead is accurate, then this smuggling organization operates transnationally, making it indeed more difficult to counteract.

And yet, for that lead, he had apologized with bowed head to two former convicts and even fawned over them.

Han Yu didn't want his efforts to be in vain and asked in a low voice, "Brother Liu, let's not talk about how hard it is to investigate for now. Have you checked it out?"

"We tried calling the number you gave us. The first few attempts failed, but on the fourth try, we got through. It was indeed a Chinese person, and judging by the accent, likely from Jianfu. He immediately asked if I would need a job arranged after arriving, and the price differed depending on whether I needed a job arrangement or not."

"And then?"

"Of course, I said I needed a job arranged. He gave me a bank account number and told me to transfer one hundred thousand yuan, call him back after the transfer, and wait for further notice."

"The bank account number is a lead!"

Just because you are rolling in money doesn't mean others are too...

Liu Guixiang sighed silently, expressing his helplessness, "Bro, they gave an account from a major bank, which is networked! There are ATMs everywhere these days; if the money is transferred, they can withdraw it from ATMs in many cities."

"Are you worried the money might go down the drain once transferred?"

"Why should I worry, it's not my money. It's the leaders who are worried!"

"The guy hiding in Japan didn't say anything else?"

"No, I wanted to talk to him, but he didn't give me a chance."

"This means the lead provided by Zhang Asheng has value."

"The moment the call connected he went straight to the point about the money, it felt very professional, likely a habitual offender, not a scammer. The problem is he asked for one hundred thousand right off the bat, who'd dare to risk such an amount."

Worried that his old friend and colleague might not understand the Criminal Investigation Team's dilemma, Liu Guixiang emphasized again, "And by accent, the guy seems to be from Jianfu. We have no idea how they arrange the smuggling, whether by plane or by ship, where to board or embark—we are completely in the dark, they hold all the initiative."

"It is indeed quite troublesome," Han Yu murmured.

Liu Guixiang added, "There's more trouble; his accomplices in the country are likely not Binjiang people, and it's improbable they would arrange for those attempting to smuggle to Japan to leave from Binjiang Port, meaning we have no jurisdiction."

The risk of investigation was too great, and without jurisdiction.

The leadership didn't want to gamble with one hundred thousand yuan, nor did they want to spend that much just to help someone else.

Han Yu didn't want to impose, and after a moment of silence, said helplessly, "Alright then."

"Sorry, we really want to crack a big case and take down a smuggling gang, but we just don't have the means."

"I understand, Brother Liu. It's nothing to be sorry about. Regarding leads, we're swamped with them. If we chased every single one, we couldn't manage."

"Good to hear. I gotta hang up now."

Han Yu had just set down the phone, thinking it was a pity not to investigate, perhaps after the baby was born he could go across the river to see if the Coast Guard was interested, when suddenly behind him came the joyful shouting of his mother and sister.

"San'er, Ningning has given birth!"

"San'er, Ningning has given birth, it's a baby girl!"

"Has she come? Where's the baby?"

"She's not out yet. Your mom knew we were anxious and just came out to tell us."

"Oh, a baby girl is good, she's thoughtful. I really wanted a baby girl anyway!"

"Yes, these days boys and girls are all the same."

At last, my senior had given birth to the baby, and Han Yu finally breathed a sigh of relief.

After another ten or so minutes of waiting at the door, his mother-in-law came out holding the baby with a beaming smile.

Han Yu carefully took the baby and looking at the adorable little one, he asked eagerly, "Mom, how is Ningning?"

"She'll be out later."

Xiang Fan, seeing the joy on her son-in-law's face, and the mother-in-law's complicit smile, was relieved; not upset her daughter had a baby girl, she smiled as she instructed, "San'er, there are too many people here, some are smoking, it's not good for the baby. Let your mom hold her, and take the baby to the ward first."

"Okay."

"Mother-in-law, Han Ning, the baby is hungry; go to the ward and prepare some formula, no need for too much, just a few sips."

Xiang Fan gestured and thought for a moment, then said with a smile, "San'er, don't you leave. When Ningning comes out, let's all take her to the ward together."