"The Lishui Sub-Department holds an annual assessment. For those who fail, I will personally report to my superiors and have them transferred. All of you must strive to do your best."

Ji Jingbei then briefly went over the Lishui Sub-Department’s rules before calling a constable over to show Wang Xiongjie around his new jurisdiction.

"You are all dismissed. Chief Chen, you stay behind."

"What are your orders, Lord Ji?" Chen Cheng asked, slightly puzzled at being kept behind by Ji Jingbei.

Ji Jingbei smiled, appearing quite amiable. "Lately, the Qingshui Pier area has seen an influx of refugees and various Jianghu figures, making it difficult to maintain order. Furthermore, with more and more Jianghu figures heading to the Cold Crow Village Black Market at night, murders have become a frequent occurrence.

You only just arrived at the Lishui Sub-Department, yet you were assigned to manage such a chaotic jurisdiction. It’s been tough on you."

Among the twelve jurisdictions managed by the Lishui Sub-Department, the one covering Qingshui Pier was indeed the worst.

Of course, "worst" didn’t mean most chaotic. Rather, it meant the jurisdiction was mostly populated by commoners with only minor gangs. Being a Chief Constable there wasn’t very lucrative. If not for this, Chen Cheng wouldn’t be so short on funds after several months in the position.

As the Chief Constable, Ji Jingbei naturally knew this. Assigning Chen Cheng to this jurisdiction either meant he didn’t think much of him, or it was because Chen Cheng was the last to take up his post and this was the only jurisdiction left.

Whatever the reason, Chen Cheng could sense that Ji Jingbei wasn’t as fair and impartial as he appeared, and he certainly wasn’t receiving any preferential treatment.

For him to suddenly approach Chen Cheng and say all this was very confusing. After a moment of thought, Chen Cheng cupped his hands and said, "Thank you for your concern, my lord. The Qingshui Pier area is indeed complex. Are you thinking of assigning me to a new jurisdiction?"

A muscle in Ji Jingbei’s cheek twitched. That was certainly not what he meant.

"As officials of the City Guard Department, our duty is to protect the peace and serve the people. It’s the same in any jurisdiction.

Considering the difficulty of managing the Qingshui Pier area, I intend to assign a capable assistant to you."

Ji Jingbei’s expression turned serious again. He pointed to Yang Xingyao beside him and said, "Yang Xingyao’s Martial Arts Power is quite good. Let him join your team and work under you.

The Lishui Sub-Department’s assessment is in two or three months. With Yang Xingyao’s help, I imagine it will go more smoothly for you."

Before Chen Cheng could reply, Ji Jingbei turned and shot Yang Xingyao a look. "Xingyao, what are you waiting for? Greet Mr. Chen."

Yang Xingyao quickly cupped his hands toward Chen Cheng, saying respectfully, "Greetings, Mr. Chen."

Chen Cheng finally understood. Ji Jingbei had beaten around the bush just to plant Yang Xingyao on his team.

"No need for formalities, Constable Yang." Chen Cheng smiled, then turned to Ji Jingbei. "Thank you, Lord Ji. With a Perfect Martial Artist of the Skin Grinding Realm like Constable Yang joining us, my team is stronger than ever. I’ll have no worries about the Lishui Sub-Department’s assessment."

Ji Jingbei also smiled. "I certainly hope so. If Chief Chen passes the assessment smoothly, it will be easier for me to answer to Lord Shen."

...

Leaving Ji Jingbei’s Government Office Hall, Chen Cheng’s brow furrowed slightly.

He had been at the Lishui Sub-Department for some time now. Although he spent his days focused on Cultivating Martial Dao, he had still gained some sense of how deep the waters ran here.

Chief Constable Ji Jingbei was known for his stern demeanor, demanding that the Chief Constables under him take their duties seriously and obey the rules.

But aside from the three Chief Constables backed by the Jiang Family, the rest only feigned compliance. They were polite to the Chief Constable’s face, but behind his back, they slacked off and coasted through their days, no different from the Chief Constables in other Sub-Departments.

Sometimes, when Ji Jingbei called a meeting during duty hours, he would have to wait half the day for everyone to show up.

Faced with this situation, all Ji Jingbei could do was reprimand the overly lazy Chief Constables in his capacity as their superior, but these scoldings never had any effect. The Chief Constables continued to do as they pleased.

After all, anyone who could become a Chief Constable in the Lishui District had powerful backing. It wasn’t easy for him, the Chief Constable, to make things difficult for his subordinates.

All this time, Chen Cheng had been able to secretly cultivate his Martial Dao while on duty, so his diligent work ethic made him an anomaly among the other Chief Constables.

Recently, however, Chen Cheng had started to slack off too. Because he had been too conscientious, he had earned the praise of the common people in his jurisdiction, who called him the Iron Hand Chief Constable.

But at the Lishui Sub-Department, the other Chief Constables mostly ignored him, secretly giving him the nickname "Street Patrol Chief Constable."

Even Sun Xinyang, the other Chief Constable backed by the Shen Family, deliberately kept his distance from Chen Cheng.

One could say that in the entire Lishui Sub-Department, besides Yan Jian and the constables under his command, Chen Cheng had no allies.

All sorts of unfavorable rumors about Chen Cheng circulated wildly among the officials of the Lishui Sub-Department. For instance, that Chen Cheng was from a Humble Family with no backing, and had only gotten his position by sucking up to Shen Qingshuang, the Chief of the South City Guard. Or that he was merely a Perfect Martial Artist of the Skin Grinding Realm with low Martial Arts Power, unworthy of being a Chief Constable in the Lishui Sub-Department.

Many Chief Constables and constables, both openly and secretly, ostracized Chen Cheng.

In recent days, Chief Constable Ji Jingbei had also stopped praising Chen Cheng. Every time they met, he maintained a strictly business-like attitude.

Ji Jingbei’s attitude had changed so quickly, partly due to pressure from the other Chief Constables and constables in the Lishui Sub-Department. Gossip was a powerful force. Even if he, as the Chief Constable, wanted to set an example of a diligent officer, he wouldn’t choose someone disliked by everyone, like Chen Cheng.

On the other hand, it seemed Ji Jingbei had other plans. At the year-end assessment, according to the Lishui Sub-Department’s custom, he, as the Chief Constable, could report to his superiors and have the lowest-ranking Chief Constable transferred to another Sub-Department.

Almost every Chief Constable and constable in the Lishui Sub-Department could see that the person implicitly being set up to rank last in the assessment was Chen Cheng.

Now that Ji Jingbei had planted Yang Xingyao on Chen Cheng’s team, his intentions were glaringly obvious.

’However, for Ji Jingbei to think he could get me transferred just to let Yang Xingyao take my place is nothing but wishful thinking.’

There were still two or three months until the year-end assessment, which was enough time for Chen Cheng to raise his strength to a new level.

Chen Cheng wasn’t afraid of people stirring up trouble in the Qingshui Pier area at all.

That day, Chen Cheng didn’t patrol the streets. He simply went home to focus on Cultivating Martial Dao.

After joining Chen Cheng’s team, Yang Xingyao was clearly trying to make a name for himself. He spared no effort on his patrols, and in just three days, he solved several street theft cases, earning a personal commendation from Chief Constable Ji Jingbei.

Not only that, but Yang Xingyao also personally led his men to confront the Tiger and Leopard Gang, forcing them to reduce the fees they charged commoners by twenty percent.

Over at Qingshui Pier, the Celestial Dog Gang also lowered their tolls by ten percent at Yang Xingyao’s request.

In a short time, Yang Xingyao won universal praise from the people in the Qingshui Pier area.

Rumor among the common folk had it that although Constable Yang wasn’t a Chief Constable, he was far more competent than Chen Cheng, the "Iron Hand Chief Constable" who only knew how to patrol the streets.

Chen Cheng paid this no mind and continued to focus on Cultivating Martial Dao every day.

「Time flew by.」

In the blink of an eye, more than half a month had passed. It was now early winter, and the weather had turned cold.

During this period, Chen Cheng was on the night shift. With Yang Xingyao around, Chen Cheng still just checked in at the Lishui Sub-Department once before heading home to focus on Cultivating Martial Dao.

Though he was on the night shift, his schedule was no different from when he worked during the day.

On this particular morning, Chen Cheng woke up early to cultivate as usual. After finishing his Cultivation of the Dragon Eagle Muscle Strengthening Technique, he summoned his panel to check it.

[Name: Chen Cheng

Realm: Muscle Strengthening (Great Success)

Skills: Iron Armor Skill • Muscle Strengthening (Small Success 426/1000)

Dragon Eagle Muscle Strengthening Technique (Great Success 1190/10000)

Powerful Eagle Claw Skill (Perfection, Powerful Eagle Claw Stance 46502/100000)

Wind Chasing Saber Technique (Perfection, Wind Chasing Saber Stance) (Cultivation Technique deduction in progress. Current progress: 15/100. Upon completion, the technique can be advanced to a Superior Technique.)]

’The Cultivation Progress for the Iron Armor Skill is a little slow, but the Dragon Eagle Muscle Strengthening Technique and Powerful Eagle Claw Skill are progressing extremely quickly.’

Over the past few days, Chen Cheng had cultivated the Dragon Eagle Muscle Strengthening Technique four more times, increasing the amount of Muscle Strengthening Elixir he used with each session.

In this most recent session, he had used a full third of a Low Grade Muscle Strengthening Pill. Of the two pills he started with, only two-thirds of one remained—enough for just two more cultivation sessions.

’Muscle Strengthening Pills are truly scarce,’ Chen Cheng thought. ’Considering that my cultivation speed will slow down as my Major Tendons get stronger and absorb the potency of Low Grade Muscle Strengthening Pills less effectively, I’ll probably need about ten more Low Grade Muscle Strengthening Pills to reach Muscle Strengthening Realm Perfection.

The Shen Family can still give me two more, but the one from the Lishui Sub-Department... that seems uncertain!’

Chen Cheng murmured, looking at the Low Grade Muscle Strengthening Pill in his hand, which was now noticeably smaller.

A Chief Constable of the Lishui Sub-Department was allotted one Low Grade Muscle Strengthening Pill per year, but only if they passed the year-end assessment.

If they ranked last in the assessment, they would forfeit their allotment of the pill.

Of course, if they ranked first, they would be rewarded with an additional Low Grade Muscle Strengthening Pill.