Chapter 1359: Chapter 172: Ulterior Motives! (Part 2)

"And this is...?"

Seeing that none of them recognized him, Wang Yan could only smile and introduce, "This is Niu Bin. By seniority you should call him Salted Fish and Xiao Yu’s martial uncle."

"Niu Bin!" Xiao Yu brightened up, went over and looked up and down at the former youngest officer in the Criminal Investigation Fourth Squad, and laughed as he sized him up, "Niu Bin, where’ve you been all these years, when did you come back, and where are you making your fortune now?"

Han Yu also reacted, and couldn’t help laughing, "Niu Bin, you say Xiao Yu and I have changed a lot, but you’re the one who’s really changed. If Captain Wang hadn’t brought you over, I really wouldn’t believe it was you. I’d have to drag you off to compare fingerprints to verify your identity, hahaha."

After so many years apart, meeting again, Niu Bin was filled with emotion.

He took out his cigarettes, getting ready to hand them around as he sighed, "Salted Fish, Xiao Yu, I haven’t come back these years, I didn’t expect you two to change so much, and Bailong Port has changed even more. Just now Brother Wang said this is Bailong Port, I still can’t wrap my head around it."

When he resigned, Bailong Port was thriving, especially during the Spring Festival travel rush, people everywhere outside.

Han Yu could understand how he felt, and asked with a wry smile, "Hard to believe Bailong Port’s become this run-down, huh?"

"Kind of." Seeing Han Yu and Xiao Yu both politely decline the cigarette he offered, Niu Bin realized they were still the same as when they were young and didn’t smoke. He turned to look around and said with deep regret, "Such a good passenger route, how can they just stop it like that? With no passenger ships to East Sea, it’s so inconvenient."

"Water passenger transport can’t compete with road passenger transport. Nothing to be done about that."

"So it is you, Niu Bin!" Zhang Jiangkun also remembered, and couldn’t help asking, "Did you used to work under Ming Yuan?"

Niu Bin hurriedly replied, "Yes, back then Captain Xu was my master, Zhang Lan was my master’s wife, but she wouldn’t let me call her that, told me to call her Sister."

"It’s cold out here. Salted Fish, take Niu Bin inside to chat, I’ll go boil some tea for you."

"Let’s go to my office, I’ve got an electric heater in there."

"That works too."

...

They followed Xiao Yu into the Changhang Branch Linghai Police Station Bailong Port Police Station and sat around the electric heater, catching up.

Niu Bin had originally come back with the mentality of "returning home in glory," planning to look up his old master and his wife first, and then have them help find Han Yu and Xiao Yu to hang out.

But after being away from home for almost ten years, the personnel changes at his old work unit were even greater.

He came back from Shenzhen, but his master and his wife had been transferred to Shenzhen. The former deputy instructor was now a Deputy Director–rank Criminal Police Big Commander.

Han Yu and Xiao Yu were doing even better—one had become a "Binjiang Water Army Commander" straddling both the military and the police world with countless honors, the other had not only become the Deputy Director of the Changhang Branch Linghai Police Station and concurrently the Changhang Branch Linghai Water Police Patrol Captain at Deputy Director rank, but had even married a boss as his wife!

As for his former dream girl, Han Xiangning, not only had she really married Han Yu, she had even become the Changzhou Maritime Director.

That bit of superiority he’d felt earlier had been completely wiped away on the way over by Wang Yan’s introductions.

Seeing Xiao Yu keep pressing about where he was making money, Niu Bin said with an embarrassed look, "The first few years after I resigned, I did construction projects with my father-in-law."

"And later?" Xiao Yu pressed.

"All the projects my father-in-law took were on South Sea Island. You should have heard about real estate on South Sea Island—at first it was really hot, then it crashed. No idea how many bosses went bankrupt. My father-in-law lost money too, so I went to Shenzhen with some friends."

"The Special Zone is good. Everyone who goes there gets rich!"

"The Shenzhen Special Zone has developed very well, but making money there isn’t that easy." Niu Bin lit a cigarette and said with a smile, "At first I could only work for others. Later I borrowed some start-up money from relatives and friends, rented a counter in the electronics market to sell mobile phones and pagers. After a few years I finally turned things around."

Same going out to do projects with their fathers-in-law, but Chen Zikun had been luckier than him.

That probably had a lot to do with where they chose to do construction. Chen Zikun’s father-in-law used East Sea as his base and had always worked there.

Real estate in East Sea hadn’t crashed, and commercial housing prices there had even gone up in recent years.

Han Yu hadn’t expected his "little junior nephew" to have hit such big bumps after resigning from the force and going into business. He said with feeling, "As long as you’ve turned things around, it’s all good—sweetness after bitterness."

To Xiao Yu, Niu Bin had been a "deserter," and he’d also heard from Yu Zhen that Niu Bin had once secretly liked Sister Xiang Ning. He didn’t have much goodwill toward Niu Bin, who’d driven back in a sedan showing off, and couldn’t help asking, "What about your wife, did she come back this time?"

Niu Bin smiled, "She’s back, the kid’s back too."

"Boy or girl?" Han Yu asked curiously.

"Girl."

"Mine’s a girl too. How old is your little girl this year?"

"Five." Niu Bin smiled, then went on, "We’re not planning to go back to Shenzhen. We want to open a mobile phone store here in Linghai."

Can selling mobile phones make money?

There are so many places selling mobile phones in Linghai!

Xiao Yu didn’t think much of the idea, but still couldn’t help asking, "Where are you planning to open it?"

"On People Road, next to Hualian Mall. The place is already rented, for three years. We’ll start renovating after the Spring Festival, try to open as early as possible. I’ll have you come support us then."

Opening in the city center, the rent probably wasn’t cheap.

Thinking of him driving back in a sedan, Xiao Yu realized he must have made quite a bit flipping mobile phones in Shenzhen. But no matter how much he’d made, there was no way he had more money than Yu Zhen—nothing to brag about.

While Xiao Yu was grumbling inwardly, Han Yu looked up and asked with a smile, "Does my senior brother know you’re back?"

"He just found out." Niu Bin said, embarrassed, "I haven’t been in touch for years. Brother Wang gave me his number. I called him on my way to find you. He said Sister Zhang Lan will also be coming back for the New Year in a few days."

Wang Yan suggested, "When Zhang Lan comes back, let’s get a few families together for a meal."

What’s the point of getting together with him? It’s not like we were that close.

But Xiao Yu could only keep that to himself. At almost thirty, he now knew some things couldn’t be said carelessly, or you’d offend people.

Han Yu, on the other hand, felt they could meet up. After all, he had once been that senior brother’s apprentice.

Niu Bin had no idea what Han Yu and Xiao Yu were thinking. He hesitated for a moment and said, "Salted Fish, you’re an anti-smuggling police officer now?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"I... I walked around a few mobile phone shops yesterday and found that a lot of the phones they’re selling are ’water goods.’"

"’Water goods’?"

"As in, smuggled in."

This kid is no easy character!

Back then he’d dared to covet his senior, and now he’d come back planning to sell phones, already thinking about "killing with a borrowed knife" to go after his competitors.

Han Yu was silent for a moment, then smiled, "I may be an anti-smuggling police officer, but we have divisions of labor in the bureau. You should have met Brother Haoran before—he’s my master’s son. He transferred out of the army and is now my colleague, currently the head of our branch’s Intelligence Department. I’ll have him contact you later, he’ll definitely be interested."

Xiao Yu also felt that Niu Bin wasn’t exactly a straightforward person, and suddenly tossed out, "Those phones are ten to one from East Guang. Our senior brother’s at the Shenzhen Smuggling Crime Investigation Bureau. You can contact my senior brother too."

Wang Yan hadn’t expected Niu Bin to bring this up.

As public security police, of course they hoped the public would report clues about illegal activities. But this kind of highly purpose-driven reporting from Niu Bin really didn’t leave a good impression.

Wang Yan kind of regretted bringing him to see Salted Fish and Xiao Yu. He hurriedly said, "We’re meeting again after so long, why talk work? Tonight I’ll host, call up the brothers from the Fourth Squad and have a proper get-together."

"Brother Wang, let me arrange tonight!"

"Fine, you’re the deep-pocketed Boss, I won’t fight you for it."

"Brother Wang, Niu Bin, I don’t have time tonight. You guys go ahead and get together. Besides, I wasn’t from the Fourth Squad."

As soon as Xiao Yu finished, Han Yu also said apologetically, "My brother-in-law and I have to go back to the city tonight, I can’t make it either."

Niu Bin could feel he wasn’t very welcome here. After chatting a bit more, he left, carrying a trace of awkwardness.

As soon as he stepped out, Xiao Yu muttered, "So their phones are water goods—what about his? Salted Fish, the more I look, the more I feel that kid Niu Bin isn’t walking a straight line."

"You can’t talk nonsense without evidence."

"He actually wants to kill with a borrowed knife, wants to use you to deal with the other phone sellers. Good thing he resigned. Otherwise, being colleagues with him you wouldn’t even sleep soundly—who knows if he’d play tricks behind your back, who knows if he’d stab you in the back."

Reading people’s expressions and body language was a basic skill a police officer had to have.

Han Yu had already felt that something was off about Niu Bin. The way he’d talked just now carried a hint of caution, his eyes were strange, like he was asking for a favor.

"Even if he hadn’t resigned, it wouldn’t have much to do with us."

"True. I’m with Changhang navigation police, you’re in the Customs system, nothing to do with him."

"He has nothing to do with us, but Wang Yan is our comrade-in-arms." Han Yu thought for a bit, then said quietly, "We should find a chance to give Wang Yan a reminder, tell him to be careful."

Xiao Yu strongly agreed, stood up and said, "Salted Fish, you’re too embarrassed to say it, I’ll talk to Wang Yan."

"That’s fine, just don’t say it in front of Niu Bin."

"I know, I’m not a three-year-old."