Chapter 17: Instruction

Chapter 17: Instruction

“Teacher, these coffee beans are pretty good.”

Cheng Qianfan grabbed a small handful, sniffed them, and said.

“You’ve got lucky timing, brat.”

Xiu Gongshen laughed and scolded him.

“Old Miao died such a miserable death. Do you really think Qin Detai doesn’t harbor even a little resentment?”

Old Miao was Old Mo’s maternal uncle.

Old Mo had swindled away the old man’s life savings.

Rather than saying he died of illness, it would be more accurate to say he died of anger.

Pitifully, even before his death, the old man never stopped worrying about his nephew.

Using the last favor he had left, he had asked Qin Detai to secure a police position for Old Mo.

“I understand now.”

Cheng Qianfan thought for a moment and adopted a thoughtful expression.

“Chief Inspector Qin was furious about what happened to Old Miao, but because of Old Miao’s final request, he couldn’t personally do anything to Old Mo, so...”

“So what?”

“So I accidentally did the right thing.”

Cheng Qianfan laughed awkwardly.

“Crafty little devil.”

Xiu Gongshen laughed and scolded him.

Although he had previously been angry that Cheng Qianfan had acted without reporting to him first, he knew the young man’s intentions had indeed been to help him.

As a result, most of his anger had faded, and a trace of warmth appeared in his eyes.

“I was friends with your father for many years. Brother Wenzao had only one child, you. In these troubled times, I don’t seek fame and glory for you. If you can simply find a more stable job and live peacefully, then I will have fulfilled my promise to Brother Wenzao.”

Looking at Cheng Qianfan, Xiu Gongshen sighed.

“I never should have agreed to let you join the police force. You brat are bold beyond reason. I’m genuinely afraid you’ll cause some disaster one day.”

“But I have you, Teacher.”

Cheng Qianfan smiled and spoke sincerely.

“I lost my parents when I was young. Ever since meeting you two years ago, you’ve treated me like a nephew. You and Teacher’s Wife are the closest elders in my life. I know you’re worried about me. But just as you said, these are troubled times. No one can live a peaceful little life. I want to accomplish something. And I also want to help you.”

Xiu Gongshen looked deeply at Cheng Qianfan.

He could tell the young man was completely sincere.

The old man felt greatly comforted.

Xiu Gongshen was a translator for the Political Department and maintained close ties with the upper ranks of the French Concession.

He assisted his superior Xi Neng in overseeing the affairs of the Investigation Unit.

Although his position appeared prestigious, his situation was actually awkward.

More precisely, he lacked a power base of his own.

His rank was high, but his real authority was limited.

With the situation growing increasingly unstable, Xiu Gongshen could not remain unaffected.

At his current position, standing still meant falling behind.

Furthermore, Xiu Gongshen’s predecessor, and also his schoolmate, Luo Hanlin, had sympathized with the Communists and repeatedly provided them with assistance.

As a result, he had been dismissed from office.

This had caused the concession authorities to lose trust in the Translation Office.

To some extent, it also affected Xiu Gongshen and heightened his sense of crisis.

“I thought I heard the two of you arguing just now.”

At that moment, He Xuelin entered carrying a plate of sliced oranges and asked with a frown.

“He’s a stubborn mule. His wings have grown strong.”

Xiu Gongshen snorted.

“My arms and legs are still tiny. I can only hop around under Teacher’s protection.”

Taking the fruit plate, Cheng Qianfan handed Xiu Gongshen a slice of orange and grinned.

“You two, one old and one young, neither of you acts your age.”

After grumbling a few words, He Xuelin left.

They continued talking for a while.

Most of the conversation consisted of Xiu Gongshen asking about Cheng Qianfan’s work at the police station during this period.

Occasionally he would offer guidance, analyzing various matters concerning the middle and upper ranks of the police station that he could share with Cheng Qianfan, so that the young man would no longer remain ignorant of such affairs.

Cheng Qianfan listened attentively and felt he benefited greatly.

If one was not in that position, one could not enter that circle, and without entering that circle, one could not understand its realities.

These were indeed pieces of information he had previously been unable to obtain.

“Jin Kemu is hosting a banquet tonight. Before you leave, take a bottle of good liquor from me.”

Before Cheng Qianfan departed, Xiu Gongshen said this.

“Thank you, Teacher.”

Cheng Qianfan replied happily.

This amounted to Xiu Gongshen making his position explicit.

He was sending a message to Jin Kemu that Cheng Qianfan was someone he intended to cultivate within the grassroots ranks of the police force, specifically within the Central Police Station.

He hoped Jin Kemu would look after and promote him.

Last year, while serving as a temporary French-language instructor for a supplementary class at the French Concession Police Cadet School, Xiu Gongshen had formed teacher-student relationships with more than just Cheng Qianfan.

Across the various police stations of the French Concession, more than a dozen policemen were his former students.

Even within the Central Police Station alone, three policemen from the other two patrol divisions had also studied under him.

Of course, such teacher-student relationships were actually rather shallow.

They could not compare to the traditional teacher-disciple relationships of earlier times.

That was why Xiu Gongshen had always shown extra care toward Cheng Qianfan, the son of an old friend.

They came from the same hometown.

Their families had been longtime friends.

He was the son of an old friend and also his student.

Naturally, that made him much closer than the others.

“Becoming a policeman was your choice. This path was chosen by you.”

Xiu Gongshen spoke slowly.

“Teacher has a few words for you.”

“Yes, Teacher.”

“When dealing with matters, be more conscientious and more responsible. When dealing with yourself, demand more and remain more vigilant. Pride must not be allowed to grow, ambition must not become arrogance, pleasure must not become excess. Remain vigilant.”

Xiu Gongshen patted Cheng Qianfan on the shoulder.

“If you can do this, you will surely achieve something. If Brother Wenzao can see it from the afterlife, he too will be gratified.”

“Your nephew will remember these words.”

Cheng Qianfan’s voice choked with emotion.

His expression became solemn as he bowed deeply.

After leaving the study, Cheng Qianfan said farewell to Teacher’s Wife in the downstairs sitting room.

He collected a bottle of whisky from Aunt Wu and departed.

Alone in the study, Xiu Gongshen watched through the window as the young figure gradually disappeared beneath the streetlights.

Lighting a cigarette, his gaze flickered thoughtfully.

“Xuelin, do you think I’m hypocritical? Back when I agreed to let him become a policeman...”

He Xuelin came upstairs and began massaging Xiu Gongshen’s head.

With a soft sigh, she said,

“The path was chosen by Qianfan himself.”

Yes.

The path had been chosen by the child himself.

He had merely gone along with the current.

Xiu Gongshen comforted himself with that thought.

“Boys don’t want to live ordinary lives. Having aspirations and ambitions is perfectly normal.”

He Xuelin gently plucked a white hair from her husband’s head.

“Qianfan is a clever child.”

“Yes, a clever child.”

Xiu Gongshen nodded thoughtfully.

At a street corner, Cheng Qianfan hailed a rickshaw.

Lighting a cigarette, he fell into thought.

His greatest source of support within the police station came from Xiu Gongshen.

Only with Xiu Gongshen’s approval could he climb the ranks as quickly as possible.

Xiu Gongshen and his father, Cheng Wenzao, had been classmates and close family friends.

For the past two years, Xiu Gongshen had looked after him like a nephew.

However, no matter how close a relationship was, it still required shared interests to sustain it.

Now that Cheng Qianfan sought advancement and could in turn provide assistance to Xiu Gongshen, their relationship would become even stronger.

His claim that he wished to help Xiu Gongshen was by no means empty talk.

Xiu Gongshen possessed influence among the upper ranks of the French Concession, yet had little power at the grassroots level.

One could say his position rested on empty foundations.

Xiu Gongshen had likely realized this as well.

That was why he had begun paying attention to cultivating grassroots influence through teacher-student connections.

The better Cheng Qianfan performed and the higher he climbed, the more it would benefit Xiu Gongshen’s control over the police station’s lower ranks.

Naturally, the stronger and more secure Xiu Gongshen’s influence became, the more Cheng Qianfan himself would benefit as well.