Chapter 96 Three Consecutive Countdowns? (7k)

Words : 2332 Updated : Sep 17th, 2025

When Yan Chen asked this question, Qiu Tu felt a stir in his heart, knowing that the most crucial step had come.He stealthily glanced at Jia Shu from the corner of his eye. Perhaps Jia Shu had not expected Qiu Tu to have actually uncovered so many clues, or perhaps he had not expected Qiu Tu to dare defy the covert signals he had given earlier and seriously investigate the case. Finally, Jia Shu was no longer composed and untroubled as before but was looking at Qiu Tu with a smile that was not quite a smile. Feeling the gaze of the two powerful figures on him, Qiu Tu did not feel much pressure. The reason he dared to disclose so many clues and developments was because he had already thought of a plan to cope with this crisis— So, looking at Yan Chen, he took a deep breath and suddenly pointed at Jia Shu, "Bureau Chief, I suspect it was Minister Jia who made the move!" [14:58] Upon hearing Qiu Tu's words, the entire office fell silent in an instant. Let alone Yan Chen, even Jia Shu, who had been maintaining a forced smile, showed a trace of astonishment on his face. He probably had really not expected that after all Qiu Tu had said and all the evidence he had presented, the suspicion would fall on himself: The problem was... the clues Qiu Tu had just mentioned hadn't pointed to him, had they? This is ridiculous! But then remembering that Qiu Tu was not one to make baseless assertions, Jia Shu couldn't help but race through his thoughts, pondering Qiu Tu's intentions... And while Jia Shu was deep in thought, Yan Chen's brow also furrowed significantly, his gaze fluctuating: he was clearly also considering why Qiu Tu would accuse Jia Shu. During this time, Qiu Tu had already left a very deep impression on him. So, he also did not believe that Qiu Tu genuinely thought Jia Shu was the murderer, and to point it out in front of Jia Shu himself... At this moment, seeing both powerful figures lost in thought, Qiu Tu also held his breath, staring straight ahead without speaking. He was waiting, waiting for the feedback from "Loyalty Game" and "Crisis Intuition." Time passed by, each second stretching into an eternity. Finally... two seconds later, two prompts popped up in front of Qiu Tu, [Yan Chen's suspicion -3, satisfaction +4] [Jia Shu's satisfaction +12] Qiu Tu took a furtive glance at the two of them. Yan Chen had returned to his previous unfathomable composure, while the forced smile on Jia Shu's face was replaced by a radiant genuine smile. What was more important was that the [Countdown Hourglass] in the upper left corner of Qiu Tu's field of vision had stopped after jumping to [14:28], no longer ticking down. Qiu Tu breathed a sigh of relief in his heart, knowing his gamble had paid off. In fact, while he was tasking Cao Dabiao and the others, Qiu Tu had been pondering something. Could the reason why "Crisis Intuition" had not indicated the source of the crisis mean that the crisis came from both Yan Chen and Jia Shu? That is to say, no matter which side he chose, he could potentially become the target of resentment from the other side, thus becoming incredibly dangerous? Upon analyzing the situation to this point, Qiu Tu suddenly had an even bolder guess, which was... no matter which side he chose, it was not about offending one person, but two! You see, Jia Shu was not just Yan Chen's right-hand man but also one of the nine high-ranking officials of the Investigation Bureau, with voting rights at the Bureau's senior meetings. Further considering that he controlled the powerful Political Department of the Investigation Bureau, even if Yan Chen felt dissatisfied with him, would he really give up on Jia Shu over such a trivial matter? Qiu Tu felt he would not. Qiu Tu also had subordinates, so he put himself in their shoes. If Cao Dabiao or Chen Feng did something against his wishes, would he immediately give up on them? No. At most, Qiu Tu would sternly rebuke and warn them both, then continue to observe. After all, cultivating a subordinate with good skills, loyalty, and position is not a simple matter. Having thought all of this through, Qiu Tu finally understood his predicament. Plainly speaking, his first reaction after seeing the "Crisis Warning" was not wrong: he was a pawn being played by both Yan Chen and Jia Shu. So, choosing either side was incorrect. Only by standing with both of them, satisfying them both, could he survive this crisis. With this realization, Qiu Tu quickly analyzed the "demands" of Yan Chen and Jia Shu. Yan Chen's were simple. He was clearly angry and dissatisfied with Jia Shu's loss of control. Therefore, Qiu Tu had to agree with him and not let him continue to feel things were slipping out of control. Adding the several increases in "satisfaction" from Yan Chen and the hints from "Crisis Intuition," Qiu Tu knew that Yan Chen must have begun to trust him again, considering him a confidant. Therefore, to satisfy Yan Chen, Qiu Tu had to cut ties with Jia Shu, remaining unwaveringly on Yan Chen's side. He had to use "concrete actions" to tell Yan Chen: Jia Shu, that villain, deceived and manipulated others, but he did not fool me! I am still working as per your intentions, Bureau Chief. As for Jia Shu's "demands," after analyzing them for a long time on the road, Qiu Tu also found an answer. The reason Jia Shu was risking Yan Chen's displeasure to calm down this case was 100% because of Vice President Tian. As to whether he had some private relationship with Vice President Tian or because of the communication surveillance system "donated" that covered the entire city, with too little information, Qiu Tu was not clear at the moment. But whatever the reason, what he valued most now was that this case could not be related to Vice President Tian! As long as this condition was met, with his personality, everything else probably didn't matter. So, having guessed the demands of both parties, Qiu Tu's answer to dealing with this crisis emerged: He could not be perfunctory, could not find a scapegoat, he had to honestly report the truth he found—but this truth could not involve Vice President Tian. Not involving Vice President Tian also meant that the Qin Family and Shun Yun Communications couldn't be mentioned. After all, once mentioned, given Yan Chen and Jia Shu's cunning and ability to take advantage of the situation, they could guess the role Vice President Tian played. It would still affect Vice President Tian and anger Jia Shu. So... after thinking it over, Qiu Tu simply threw the blame on Jia Shu. This was a hint that killed two birds with one stone: it told Yan Chen that Qiu Tu had no relationship with Jia Shu whatsoever, even daring to challenge his authority to his face; it also told Jia Shu that Qiu Tu had indeed found out about Vice President Tian but had followed his orders and not reported it. Qiu Tu admitted that his method of resolving the situation indeed involved gambling. But... he only had a brief 2 minutes from receiving the orders to meeting Yan Chen, and he had no time to think of a more perfect solution. Fortunately, the plan worked.... Meanwhile, as Qiu Tu was recalling his whole strategic thought process for the plan, Yan Chen also "hehe" laughed a couple of times. He might have smoked too much; his laugh was very hoarse and raspy, like an ominous night owl. "Qiu Tu, your speculation is quite interesting," As he said this, he glanced at Jia Shu with interest. The chilly atmosphere that had permeated when he first entered the office seemed to have dissipated quite a bit, replaced by a more lively one. His hoarse voice asked, "Minister Jia, what do you think about your subordinate's speculation?" Clearly, he was using Qiu's conjecture to take a dig at Jia Shu. But at this moment, Jia Shu didn't seem to care at all. The fact that Vice President Tian had not been exposed already proved that Qiu Tu was "on his side." Thus, with a radiant smile, he leaned slightly toward Yan Chen and said, "Bureau Chief, I think Agent Qiu is just joking." Yan Chen turned to Qiu Tu and uttered an "Oh?" before asking, "Is that so?" Of course, Qiu Tu had to firmly stand with Yan Chen at this point. So he quickly shook his head, "Bureau Chief, I am not joking." He said, "Minister Jia is indeed at the top of my list of suspects." "For three main reasons," "1. The murder weapon, the book-like cataclysmic treasure, was specially approved by Minister Jia for the deceased to bring into the guard room." "2. Last night, when I was using the 'Mist Index Book' for the investigation, my boss, the head of the Interrogation Section, Zheng Tao, deliberately came to the morgue." "But the only person who knew I would go to the morgue last night to investigate was Minister Jia. I suspect Zheng Tao was sent by Minister Jia to gather information." "3. And the most important..." At this point, Qiu Tu looked deeply at Jia Shu and said in a subdued voice, "When Minister Jia handed the case over to me, he hinted several times that I should find a scapegoat to muddle through this case." [Yan Chen Satisfaction +5] Hearing Qiu Tu's words, Yan Chen actually burst into hearty laughter. He seemed utterly pleased, as if he had regained control of the situation and was reveling in his victory. And more importantly... Qiu Tu had been covertly observing Jia Shu's expression. There was not a hint of murderous intent or malice in Jia Shu's eyes, only a dense "interest" that seemed almost tangible... Clearly... for Jia Shu, as long as Qiu Tu did not drag Vice President Tian into the matter, he did not care how much dirt was splashed on him. After all, Yan Chen wouldn't really believe it... With this thought, Qiu Tu felt even more at ease. [Jia Shu Satisfaction +3] At that moment, after laughing twice, Yan Chen also withdrew his smile. He reverted to the Bureau Chief of the Investigation Bureau who was powerful and impassive. He looked at Qiu Tu and criticized softly, "Qiu Tu, I recognize your investigative abilities. But... your thinking is completely wrong!" "This time, I will forgive you on behalf of Minister Jia. But there won't be a next time!" He paused and then said, with a hint of indirect scolding, "At any time, you must not question or oppose your superior!" "It would throw the entire Investigation Bureau into chaos!" Listening to Yan Chen's stern but actually... rather feeble criticism, Qiu Tu also knew it was time to steer the conversation back. So he obediently bowed his head and replied, "Yes, Bureau Chief. It's my lack of experience that led me astray." Yan Chen nodded with satisfaction, then said, "Good. It's great that you have this understanding." He spoke with a deep look in his eyes, "I originally thought that with your abilities, handling this case might be too difficult, so I was prepared to have someone else take over." "But now seeing that you have already done a pretty good job, I'll leave this case in your hands." "However, the Municipal Committee is watching this case closely, so you need to solve it quickly and close it!" After speaking, he pondered for a moment and gave a deadline, "By next Wednesday at the latest, I want to see results!" As Yan Chen spoke, the first countdown hourglass on the top left corner of Qiu Tu's vision slowly turned into a little treasure chest. Then... a second countdown hourglass gradually appeared. Qiu Tu: ?? Qiu Tu glanced at Jia Shu and saw that Jia was giving him a smile that was not quite a smile. Then he looked at Yan Chen, who had a stern expression. Qiu Tu: ... At that moment, Qiu Tu really felt like a million alpacas were thundering through his heart! Fuck, why are you torturing me, a small fry, with this love-hate drama between you two?! Wasn't once enough, and now you want a second round? I was able to satisfy both of your demands this time by exploiting the information gap, but how am I supposed to meet both of your requirements next time? With that thought, Qiu Tu was inclined to refuse. Sёarᴄh the Novёlƒire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. But before he could say anything, in the next second, a countdown hourglass quickly moved next to the two in front. Simultaneously, the third countdown hourglass's hint also popped up: [With your brilliant performance, Yan Chen has regained his trust in you.] [And with your "help", he has also successfully intimidated Jia Shu and reclaimed the feeling of having great power in his grasp.] [So, don't oppose him or anger him when he is happiest.] [You wouldn't want to find out what he would do to you in a towering rage...] Qiu Tu: ??? Fine, fine, fine. This is how you want to play it? Then don't blame me! With that thought, Qiu Tu took a deep breath and then looked at Yan Chen, saying seriously, "Chief, I believe I can complete the task!" "But... the time is a bit tight, so I request authorization to use special measures without restriction!" ------

Chapter 96 Three Consecutive Countdowns? (7k)

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