I created Qin Tianjian in modern times

Then, he called Zhuge Qing's father. He did not mention anything about the 788 Exploration Team, but during the conversation, he implicitly advised Zhuge Gong, although he knew that such persuasion might have little effect.

After finishing these matters, Shang Hui sat in his office chair, made a cup of hot tea, and picked up a newspaper on the table.

However, after just a quick glance, his brows furrowed and he immediately called his assistant Zhou Tiantian.

"Xiao Zhou, what's going on? Why is the Forbidden City recruiting night patrolmen again?" Shang Hui asked puzzledly, his eyes fixed on a recruitment information in the newspaper.

The outer perimeter of the Forbidden City is guarded by troops from the Beijing Military Region, while internal patrols and shift work are mainly recruited from the public.

The work of this position is relatively simple, mainly involving guarding the door and basic night patrols to ensure that no one stays in the scenic area open to the public, while also doing chores such as hygiene.

Although this position seems ordinary, the salary is quite generous and is second to none in the capital.

Although the salary is not high, the benefits are generous, the job does not require high professional skills, and food and accommodation are provided. It is undoubtedly a good job.

However, what puzzled Shang Hui was that the recruitment information had been posted more than four times within this month.

Facing Shang Hui's question, Zhou Tiantian also showed a puzzled look, shook his head and said:

"Director, we were just discussing this. For some unknown reason, a night patrol officer who had just taken up his post a few days ago resigned.

Hundreds of people have applied for this position this month. After all, everyone wants this well-paid job.

But the strange thing is that every time someone is selected who meets the requirements and successfully takes the job, they almost always resign after just a few days.

Including the one who just left, this is the fourth person. On average, each person leaves the company within less than three days.

No one knows the reason..."

After hearing Zhou Tiantian's words, Shang Hui originally just asked casually, but at this moment he couldn't help but frowned.

In the past, he might not have taken such things to heart.

But after returning from Zhao Qi, he inexplicably felt that there was something strange about this matter.

"Xiao Zhou, what else do you know? Tell me in detail..." Shang Hui asked.

Although Zhou Tiantian was somewhat puzzled as to why the director was so concerned about this matter, he still nodded and continued:

"I heard some of these things from my neighbors. It seems that among these people who resigned, two were transferred from the day shift to the night shift.

Both of them had been working there for several years, but after switching to the night shift, they only worked one night shift and quit immediately the next day.

The Security Department has always been in charge of this matter, so when they saw that someone had resigned, they immediately published the recruitment information in the newspaper.

As a result, hundreds of people applied for the job at once, and the security department conscientiously selected the most qualified people.

But this person resigned after only working the night shift for two days.

No matter how I asked him the reason, he refused to tell me...

Neighbors are also discussing this matter, but no one knows much, and these are just speculations passed around..."

Zhou Tiantian said this, but he didn't notice that Shang Hui's expression had gradually become solemn...

Shang Hui fell into deep thought and remained silent for a long time.

Zhou Tiantian quickly noticed something was wrong, looked at Shang Hui curiously, and asked with concern:

"Chief, are you feeling tired? Why do you look unwell?"

After hearing Zhou Tiantian's words, Shang Hui came back to his senses and shook his head gently to indicate that it was okay.

"I'm fine..." He stood up and walked out the door. "I have to go out for something. You can handle the things that can be handled first, and I can deal with the things that cannot be handled when I come back."

"Hey, Director..." Zhou Tiantian wanted to say something, but Shang Hui had already left in a hurry, leaving him standing there blankly, very surprised by Shang Hui's sudden departure. After all, Shang Hui had just returned to the bureau and there were still many things that needed his decision, so why was he leaving so soon?

Zhou Tiantian didn't know that Shang Hui already had different speculations about the events in the Forbidden City.

Soon, Shang Hui drove to the building of the Beijing National Security Bureau. This building only claimed to be a government department, but its specific duties were unknown. There was no conspicuous sign hanging at the door, and the word "national security" was not mentioned at all.

When Shang Hui arrived by car, he was immediately stopped by tight security. Although he and Shang Qiu were good friends, he still had to go through strict inspection to enter the National Security Building. Five minutes later, Shang Hui was finally able to enter the building and went straight to Shang Qiu's office.

At this time, Shang Qiu had just returned to the bureau and was dealing with the backlog of work. Hearing the knock on the door, he responded, "Come in."

Seeing Shang Hui coming in, Shang Qiu was a little puzzled: "Old Shang, we just separated, why are you back again?"

Shang Hui did not answer directly, but handed the newspaper in his hand to Shang Qiu: "Take a look at this first."

Shang Qiu took the newspaper suspiciously, looked at it and asked blankly: "What's wrong? Is there any problem?"

Shang Hui pointed to the recruitment column in the newspaper: "The Forbidden City Night Patrol is recruiting again. As far as I know, this is the fourth time this month. Don't you find it strange? The work of the Forbidden City Night Patrol is easy and the salary is good. How many people in Beijing dream of such a job, but why do these people quit after only a few days?"

Shang Qiu frowned solemnly: "I've heard of this before, but I never paid much attention to it. Why are you suddenly so concerned about it?"

Shang Hui looked back and confirmed that no one was outside the door, then he carefully closed the door. Shang Qiu also looked at him intently, waiting for his explanation. "Lao Liu, we have seen a lot of strange things since we came back from the Kunlun Mountain Garrison. I might not have cared about this before, but now it seems that you think something is wrong?" Shang Hui said seriously.

Shang Qiu frowned at first, then his eyes lit up and he asked, "You mean there might be something strange going on?"

Shang Hui pushed his glasses and nodded gently: "The Forbidden City is the royal palace of the Ming and Qing dynasties. It has more than 70 palaces of various sizes, more than 9000 houses, and a history of more than years. But only a few are truly open to the public, and most palaces are closed. The work of the night patrol is just to conduct routine night patrols of open areas. This job is so easy, why do these people leave in a hurry after only a few days, and they don't even mention the reason for their resignation. Is this a coincidence? I don't think it's right."

Shang Qiu thought about Shang Hui's words and quickly agreed. They had just returned from the Kunlun Mountain Garrison Area, and what they saw and heard there was still vivid in their minds. These experiences had changed their original ideas.

"Old Shang, what you said makes sense, but..." Shang Qiu said with some embarrassment, "Even if we know there is something strange, what's the use? The security of the Forbidden City is the sole responsibility of the Security Department. Your Cultural Relics Bureau and my National Security Branch have no right to get involved in such matters. Even if there is something strange, can we still tell the Security Department? They will definitely not believe it. Although we can forcibly intervene in the investigation, it seems inappropriate."

Shang Hui nodded, as if he had already made a decision: "Indeed, this matter does not affect our two bureaus at present, and it is not good to intervene directly. But there is no need to involve the Cultural Relics Bureau and the National Security Bureau. Perhaps the two of us can find out some truth."

Hearing this, Shang Qiu suddenly became interested: "You mean, the two of us should go check it out?"

Shang Hui nodded gently: "I had thought about it when I came here. We can first find the person who just resigned recently and ask him to see if we can find out anything. Then we can decide whether to investigate the matter in depth."

Shang Qiu thought for a moment and finally nodded in agreement. The two immediately got in the car and drove to the local police station.

In the car, Shang Qiu couldn't help but ask curiously: "Old Shang, why are you so concerned about these things all of a sudden? Could it be that you are influenced by the Kunlun Mountain Security District?"

Shang Hui smiled and nodded: "You agreed so readily, isn't it the case? We all know that if this matter is really strange, I'm afraid no one can figure it out. Before something more serious happens, it's better for us to figure it out."

As they were talking, the car stopped at the door of the police station. Upon learning that the two directors were coming in person, the director hurried out to greet them, thinking that something big had happened.

Shang Qiu did not beat around the bush and directly asked the police station chief for the information of the person who had recently resigned. After all, the position of the night patrol in the Forbidden City was not a trivial matter. For all the newcomers, the security department would conduct identity verification and information record at the nearest police station. Others might not be able to come out, but Shang Qiu, as the director of the National Security Bureau, asked for it personally, so the chief naturally did not dare to delay.

After checking the records, Shang Qiu and Shang Hui quickly locked onto the middle-aged man named Sun Qing. The two drove to the address recorded in the file without stopping. The police station chief was left with a bewildered look on his face, not knowing what the two chiefs were doing.

Shang Hui drove the car himself and turned into a remote alley according to the address. The alley was so narrow that vehicles could not pass through, so the two had to get out of the car and walk. The houses on both sides were low and dilapidated, with wires exposed on the walls. The old city in the 70s had not yet been renovated, and it was all large courtyards, compact and messy. The two had to lower their heads and walk carefully.

Soon, Shang Hui stopped in front of a yard: "This is it."

Shang Qiu nodded and was about to knock on the door, but suddenly he sniffed and asked in confusion, "Do you smell something burning?"

Shang Hui nodded and moved closer to the door, looking inside through the crack. He saw a brazier in the small yard, and a middle-aged man muttering something, with trembling hands constantly adding yellow paper to the brazier.

"What's going on?" Shang Hui frowned. This scene was indeed a bit strange. In broad daylight, and not for any festival, who would burn paper in their own yard? And this person looked flustered and uneasy.

Shang Qiu looked at the photo in the file and recognized him at a glance: "He is the Sun Qing we are looking for."

As he spoke, Shang Qiu pushed open the unlocked door. A loud bang startled Sun Qing, and the yellow paper in his hand fell to the ground.

"Who... who are you?" Sun Qing asked nervously.

Shang Qiu and Shang Hui walked in solemnly. As the two had such a strong aura, it was obvious that they were not ordinary people, which made Sun Qing feel uneasy.

Shang Qiu didn't waste any words and directly waved his ID in front of Sun Qing: "Hello comrade, we are from the National Security Bureau. We have something to verify with you."

Sun Qing obviously didn't expect that the National Security Bureau would come to his door. He was so scared that his lips turned pale: "Leader, I haven't done anything wrong..."

Shang Hui pushed his glasses up and smiled amiably, "Sun Qing, don't be nervous. We just want to check some work matters with you. Why did you quit your job as the night patroller in the Forbidden City?"

"Why did you resign from your position as the night patroller in the Forbidden City?" Shang Hui asked.

However, Sun Qing's reaction was beyond Shang Hui's expectations. A flash of fear flashed across his face, and then he quickly waved his hand to deny it.

"I don't know anything!" Sun Qing said as he tried to escape back into the house.

The two looked at each other, confused by Sun Qing's attitude, and at the same time realized that things were not simple.

Shang Qiu quickly stepped forward, grabbed Sun Qing by the collar, and asked sternly, "What are you afraid of, kid?"

Although Shang Qiu was nearly fifty, he was still very agile. After all, he was a former national security agent. No matter how hard Sun Qing struggled, he could not get rid of Shang Qiu's hand. In the end, he seemed exhausted and his resistance gradually weakened.

"Government, I really don't know anything. Please let me go. Although this job pays well, I have to live to spend it!" Sun Qing pleaded.

Shang Hui immediately asked: "What happened to you? Who is threatening your life? Tell us and the government will take care of it for you!"

Sun Qing sighed with a bitter face: "Even if I told you, you wouldn't believe it, and you might even arrest me as if I were a lunatic. I don't want to cause trouble, and I don't want to deal with the government. I'm just an ordinary citizen who just wants to live a stable life. Two leaders, please let me go..."

Hearing this, Shang Hui and Shang Qiu realized that things were indeed not simple, otherwise Sun Qing would not have reacted like this. They noticed that there were a lot of yellow papers scattered on the ground, and the brazier was full of ashes from burning paper. Combined with the scene they saw through the crack in the door before, they inferred that Sun Qing might be using this method to eliminate the fear in his heart.

But what exactly is he afraid of?

Shang Qiu was silent for a moment, then slowly let go of his hand, looked at Sun Qing and said, "We came to you, which means we really want to get to the bottom of this matter. If you don't want to talk, I can understand. But in order to find out the truth, if you are unwilling to speak here, I can only take you back to the National Security Bureau and ask slowly. It's okay if you don't say anything now, because we are here in a private capacity. But if you still don't say anything when you get to the Public Security Bureau, it means you are refusing to cooperate with official duties!"

Shang Qiu's words were obviously a bit intimidating, but Sun Qing was frightened. He hesitated for a while, looked at the two of them tentatively and said, "If I tell you, will you leave?"

Shang Hui pushed his glasses and said, "What else? Are you still staying for dinner?"