As I stepped out of the library, a man immediately lunged forward and grabbed my arm. I didn't react, allowing him to hold on, but after exerting every ounce of his strength, he couldn't budge me an inch. Finally, wiping the cold sweat from his brow, he quietly backed away.

Not long after, another man materialized behind me, launching a sweeping leg kick aimed at my lower body. Still, I offered no resistance, letting his foot connect with my calf.

Bang! The man let out a muffled grunt; his foot bone was likely injured. To strike an object harder than steel with that much force and not have it snap instantly was lucky for him. Though my calf ached, I gritted my teeth and endured it. Once the pain subsided, it would be fine, unlike his inevitable hospital stay.

Walking further, the area grew quite deserted, when suddenly a dagger stabbed toward my thigh. Again, I showed no reaction. Whirrr—the dagger snapped. I continued walking forward without pausing.

Nearing the school gate, just as Li Qi’s spell seemed about to expire, and with plenty of students around, a man suddenly appeared behind me. This time, I didn't let him act arbitrarily. I spun around, grabbing his arm: "This is a school. If you dare pull a gun, I'll take your life right here!"

The man showed no fear on his face. He murmured low, "The young lady ordered me. Whether I kill or not is your affair."

This kid seemed to have some backbone. Having served in the military, I naturally respected such people. I reached through his clothes and gripped the gun tucked in his chest. "Go back and report. Tell Li Qi I don't want to be her enemy. We are students; don't bring that foreign terrorism nonsense here."

With that, I walked away, leaving the man and the handgun, which was now completely misshapen.

Li Qi's disruption meant I didn't need to look at the books anymore. I might as well check out the Rectification Office—I'd already drawn a month's salary and hadn't even visited. It felt a bit disrespectful to the Chairman.

First, I went to the Chairman’s office to clarify the exact location of my own office. Then, I slipped over alone. The surrounding offices were buzzing with activity, but my domain was eerily silent. Pushing the door open, I saw only two people in the large room: a man and a woman.

The man sat behind an office desk reading a newspaper, while the woman surfed the internet near the inner office entrance, chatting occasionally with him. They both looked up curiously when I entered.

Finally, the girl spoke first, "Excuse me, who are you looking for?"

I replied, "I'm not looking for anyone in particular; I'm just here to start work."

The girl blinked, "We weren't notified that we were getting new staff. Did you perhaps mistake the door? This is the Central Rectification Office."

"Yes, that’s right, this is where I'm assigned. My name is Zhao Qian. And you two are?"

"The Director! The Director is here! The Director has arrived! Everyone come out quickly!" the girl suddenly shouted.

The man reading the paper immediately dropped it and sprang up from his chair. Being caught reading the paper and chatting during work hours was certainly not good news.

What surprised me even more was when two men tumbled out of the adjoining room. Judging by their disheveled clothes and sleepy expressions, they had likely been sleeping in there. What kind of operation was this? It seemed if I didn't instill some discipline soon, this place would turn into an overgrown field.

The three men and one woman lined up before me. I addressed the four of them, "Introduce yourselves first."

The girl said, "My name is Liu Ying."

The man who was reading the paper said, "I'm Leng Feng."

The two who had been sleeping inside spoke up: "I'm Guan Yue, and I'm Tian Qing."

I looked at the four and stated, "I never want to see today’s situation repeated. Do you understand?" Liu Ying stuck her tongue out and led the response, "Understood, Director."

I waved them to dismiss. Though I am young, I needed to establish authority first; otherwise, how could I expect them to follow my orders later?

Liu Ying followed close behind me, whispering, "Director, your office is inside. I am your secretary. Please feel free to command me on anything from now on."

I had been busy all morning and felt a bit thirsty. I asked, "Would asking you to brew me a cup of tea be too much to ask?"

Liu Ying paused, "Not at all, Director. That is precisely what I should be doing. Please take a seat inside while I prepare the tea for you."

Perhaps I really wasn't cut out to be an official. It wasn't just tea; if I wanted coffee, it wouldn't be an outlandish request either. I wasn't used to it. If I’d said something like that to my mother at home, she would have certainly chased me out of the house.

The inner office was noticeably more luxurious than the outer one, and it even had a lounge. Judging by the messy state of the bedding, Guan Yue and Tian Qing must have been occupied in there just now. Unacceptable. I’d have to have Liu Ying change the linens soon—what if those two were romantically involved?

"Director, I never expected you to be so young," Liu Ying said softly as she placed the teacup gently on my desk.

I took a sip. "Indeed. None of us are very old. We're quite the young team, wouldn't you say?"

Liu Ying continued, "We actually expected you to be an old man."

I asked curiously, "Why would you think that?"

Liu Ying lowered her voice, "We assumed some senior leader, unwilling to retire quietly, was given this place as a comfortable retreat, and we were just here to make up the numbers."

"So you all became somewhat lethargic, feeling looked down upon by colleagues in other departments, believing yourselves to be freeloaders?"

Liu Ying blushed deeply. "That was before we met you, Director. Now, we don't feel that way at all. Since you are so young, Director, you can surely lead us to achieve something great and show those people!"

I appreciated Liu Ying’s words greatly. "Exactly. We must make a name for ourselves. Do we have any major cases on file? Find the biggest one first, something that will establish our spirit and resolve."

Liu Ying became excited. "Director, just wait! I'll bring you the case files."

Liu Ying carried over a stack of folders, and together we picked out a high-level file. It detailed a situation in a neighboring province involving the Prefectural Party Secretary of District P. His daughter had taken a strong liking to a young man who was already in a committed relationship, and the couple was quite happy. The Secretary's daughter, however, ruthlessly stole him away. First, she secretly instructed thugs to sexually assault the young man's girlfriend. When the young man still refused to abandon her, she then ordered the thugs to disfigure the girl’s face. Unable to bear the trauma, the girlfriend threw herself into a lake and committed suicide. The young man, still loving her, followed suit shortly after.

Two deaths—a major case—and the two sets of parents jointly sued the Secretary's daughter. However, since the thugs had vanished, necessary witness testimony was missing. Furthermore, the Prefectural Party Secretary held considerable administrative power, and under his influence, his daughter was acquitted.

The grieving parents naturally disagreed, and the case became a widely publicized scandal that dragged on for a year and a half. The situation was reported all the way to the Central Letters and Visits Bureau, but no one dared to touch it. Firstly, without the thugs' testimony, the Secretary's daughter could not be convicted. Secondly, the Prefectural Secretary had influential relatives in Beijing; nobody wanted to offend these powerful figures over the sake of two deceased individuals.

I slapped the file folder. "How about we make this our first battle, Liu Ying?"