Chapter 1346: Chapter 164: Breakthrough Progress!

Waking up, it was already evening.

Han Yu opened his eyes and was startled to find himself lying in his own big bed.

With a terrible headache and a parched mouth, he got up and opened the door, seeing his father-in-law sitting at the dining table watching Little Han Han draw, while his mother-in-law busied herself in the kitchen, seemingly cleaning fish.

"Daddy, Daddy!"

Little Han Han noticed her dad waking up and dropped her crayons, eager to jump off the chair.

No matter what you do, you must see it through to the end; don’t give up halfway.

Master Han pulled his granddaughter close and habitually coaxed, "Han Han’s drawing is really nice. Keep drawing, and when you’re done, show it to Daddy. Once you’re done, you can play with Daddy."

"I want Daddy to watch me draw."

"Daddy just got up, so Daddy will wash his face first." Han Yu walked over, complimented her just like his father-in-law did, and sheepishly went to wash up.

Kids really thrive on encouragement.

Praised, Little Han Han continued drawing, focusing intently and seriously.

Kindergarten is different from primary school; there are no assignments in language or math; drawing is the homework.

Han Yu didn’t want to disrupt his daughter’s homework, so after washing up, he entered the kitchen, and seeing many fish in the wash basin, he curiously asked, "Mom, why did you buy so many fish?"

"They weren’t bought; Old Qian caught them using a net."

"Uncle Qian came to Binjiang?"

"He didn’t come; he let Salted Fish deliver them by motorcycle. He sent us about ten pounds, sent Ge Diao another ten pounds, and also sent some to Haoran. Altogether, three portions."

Fish isn’t worth much money; it’s mainly the thought that counts.

Han Yu sighed, "It’s almost New Year, and Ningning and I haven’t sent him any gifts yet, and he let Salted Fish send us the fish first, making me feel quite embarrassed."

"He’s watched you grow up and probably misses you. You should go back to Bailong Port to see him when you have time." As Director Xiang scaled the fish, he remarked nostalgically, "Whether or not you give him a New Year’s gift, he doesn’t mind. He has his pension, Old Liang and his wife are so devoted to him, Yu Zhen even more so; he lacks nothing."

"Just visit him?" Han Yu asked softly.

"Older folks crave companionship more; the song ’Visit Home Often’ has some truth to it."

"Alright, once we’re not so busy, we’ll take Han Han to Bailong Port to visit."

The son-in-law getting drunk is nothing new.

Though he was heavily drunk, he didn’t drink much, and he had already vomited.

As a seasoned nurse, Director Xiang wasn’t too worried about his son-in-law’s health, looking up with a smile, "Ningning is working tonight, she won’t be back. She called this afternoon, saying your brother-in-law will be coming back in a few days."

"Why is my brother-in-law coming back, when it’s still more than ten days before New Year?"

"Didn’t he transfer to become a teacher at school? As a teacher, he gets winter and summer breaks; his break starts earlier than yours!"

Han Yu suddenly realized, with a hint of envy, "I almost forgot, being a teacher is really nice; pity I wasn’t eligible to stay and teach back then, otherwise I’d have those breaks too."

If you don’t have connections as a vocational school graduate, how could you have a chance to stay on as a teacher?

When the son-in-law graduated from vocational school, it wasn’t like now; he was extremely unlucky, even having his job allocation to Linghai Transportation Bureau taken!

But disaster could be a blessing in disguise.

If he hadn’t been assigned to Linghai Police Bureau and then to Yanjiang Police Station, how could the son-in-law have had the series of opportunities later, and how would he have what he has today?

Director Xiang pondered deeply for a moment before saying, "Your brother-in-law is coming back this time to help your dad buy a house."

Han Yu asked in astonishment, "My dad wants to buy a commercial house?"

"What commercial house, he’s buying an old house in Bailong Port."

"Seems like I drank too much, reacting slowly." Han Yu chuckled and pursued, "Those old houses are starting to sell?"

"They’ve started selling a while ago, but no one is buying. Ningning said those two rows of dorms you used to live in initially were priced at twenty thousand, then dropped to ten thousand, then to eight thousand, and now at five thousand with no interest!"

With no passenger pier, no ferry, and no passenger route, Bailong Port is merely a remote riverside village.

Bailong Port Health Center closed long ago, with medical staff all relocated to Four Factory Health Center. Bailong Port Primary School also closed, with teachers and students moving to Four Factory Town Central Primary School; those previous homes lay idle for years without interest.

Neither could they sell nor rent, leading to overgrown weeds, practically suitable for shooting horror films.

In terms of location, Bailong Port Health Center and Bailong Port Primary School’s spots are better than the passenger pier, and even they can’t sell their old houses, let alone the old houses on the riverside passenger pier.

The Han family is different; the Han family runs boats!

The family’s boats need a place to dock; they can completely use the former Bailong Port Passenger Pier as the "Mother Port" for their family’s cargo ships.

Thinking of this, Han Yu couldn’t help but smile, "Looks like my dad is striking a great deal!"

"It’s not necessarily that great a deal. Your parents need a place to stay ashore, your family’s boats need a place to dock, your parents, including your sister and brother-in-law, are very familiar with Bailong Port, so your parents feel it’s suitable. But thinking the other way, if your parents didn’t think it suitable and didn’t want to buy, I guess those two rows of old dorms might never be sold, eventually becoming a dilapidated ruin."

You have to admit, the mother-in-law’s words have some truth.

But what Mom and Dad did makes one feel a bit uncomfortable; knowing that I’m in Binjiang with my senior, they still went out of their way to ask my brother-in-law to help buy a house!

Han Yu was secretly lamenting that he has no "status" in any family when the phone in the living room suddenly rang.

"Hello, who is this... so it’s Xiao Guo. He’s awake, no worries, I’ll call him to the phone." Master Han covered the phone and turned to shout, "San’er, Xiao Guo is looking for you."

"Coming." Han Yu disregarded the casual chat with his mother-in-law, walked out, picked up the phone, and put it to his ear, "Wei Tao, it’s Han Yu, what’s up?"

"Secretary Han, through cross-checking, we’ve found a white Changhe van with Zhehai plates that’s very suspicious!"

"Where are you?"

"I’m with Brother Haoran at the Water Police Station, Director Qi, Major General Jiang, and Old Li are here too."

"I’ll head over right now."

"You drank a lot at noon, better stay home and rest; I’m just calling to report."

"No worries, I feel much better after a nap."

...

The case that had the Binjiang Water Police running in circles finally had some direction; how could Han Yu just sit at home and wait for news?

It’s cold in winter; the senior took the company shuttle bus to work in the morning, and the light motorcycle was conveniently parked downstairs.

Han Yu intended to ride the light motorcycle, but Master Han was worried and insisted he ride a bicycle instead.

Director Xiang knew his son-in-law vomited everything he ate at noon, leaving his stomach empty, so he hurriedly warmed up some leftover porridge and insisted he drink a big bowl before leaving.

With a full stomach, he rode his bicycle to the Water Police Station.

Several police cars were parked in the yard, and the Water Anti-Smuggling Department’s Santana was there too.

The lights in the second-floor meeting room were on; he climbed the stairs and knocked open the door to see the room filled with smoke, the result of who knows how many cigarettes smoked by a bunch of old smokers.

"Salted Fish, drank too much again at noon?"

"What’s this ’drank too much again,’ Director Qi? You might not believe it, but it’s the first time I’ve drunk this whole year!"

"And yet you got drunk after drinking once!" The case had direction, and Director Qi was relaxed, playfully teasing him.

Director Wang was similarly cheerful; he snuffed out his cigarette and chuckled, "Xu Debao and Cui Hongwei went too far, knowing you couldn’t handle alcohol but insisted on making you drink. They did us a big favor though; otherwise, I’d definitely have gone to settle scores with them!"

Han Yu didn’t think Director Wang was joking because Director Wang is a true old leader and elder, genuinely concerned for him.

Sensing Jiang Hechun, Xu Haoran, and others sneaking laughter, Han Yu said awkwardly, "I can’t blame Director Xu and Political Commissioner Cui; it’s my fault for not knowing how to refuse, not being firm enough in position at the crucial moment."

"It’s not that you don’t know how to refuse; I can imagine you were overwhelmed by the attention, with no choice but to drink out of courtesy."

"I won’t drink anymore in the future."

Han Yu scratched his neck and, after thinking for a moment, added, "Not only will I not drink, but I also won’t attend similar banquets. Only by not attending such banquets can the problem be fundamentally solved."

The situation had long been clarified; he had drunk less than two liang in total at noon.

Chief of Staff Li Jun from the Border Inspection Station couldn’t help laughing, "This is like once bitten by a snake, ten years afraid of the rope; isn’t it overreacting to avoid attending such activities because of this?"

"Let’s not talk about that; let’s discuss the case."

"Yes, yes, let’s get back to business."

Director Wang turned around and looked at the large blackboard covered in photos of traffic violations, laughing, "Wei Tao, you start the introduction."

"Okay."

Director Wang, being Wei Tao’s old leader, prompted Guo Weitao to quickly point at the blackboard and say, "Secretary Han, based on the timeframe we provided, the Traffic Police Brigade helped us check the traffic violation records captured by cameras at twelve main intersections on Yanjiang Road and found 27 white vans with violations."

Han Yu asked in surprise, "So many, even after narrowing down the timeframe!"

"Due to the connections with the main city, Binjiang Development Zone, Changzhou Development Zone, and Linghai Development Zone, roads like Yuelong South Road, Binfu South Road, Shipping Road, Binsheng Avenue, Changyang Road, Diegang Road, and others intersect with Yanjiang Road, resulting in heavy traffic and many vehicles violating rules."

Guo Weitao paused and added, "Moreover, the number of vans far exceeds that of cars and mid-sized buses; so 27 vans violating rules in those time slots isn’t much. In the main city area, the number of violating vehicles might exceed 500 over two months."

Vans were abundant, especially in Four Factory Town and Sanhe Street, where more than half the black cars are vans.

Han Yu nodded, signaling for him to continue.

"Among these 27 vans, these four have the highest frequency of violations during those times."

Guo Weitao handed Han Yu a handwritten piece of information and continued, "While Political Commissioner Ma arranged for Ma Jintao and others to team up with the Traffic Police First Team in searching for the owners of these four vans, Director Wang and Director Qi successively found two crucial clues."

"What crucial clues?"

Before Guo Weitao could speak, Wang Wenhong took out a copy of lodging records and laughed, saying, "We asked the Development Zone Branch, Changzhou Police Bureau, and Linghai Police Bureau to assist in investigating the lodging records of inns and hotels along the Yangtze River during those times.

We found a man named Liu Jie, originating from Yangzhou, who frequently checked into hotels in Jiangwan, Changyang, and other riverside towns using his driver’s license. According to hotel owners’ recollections, this Yang Jie drove there, and it was in a white Changhe van!"

Director Qi smiled and added, "He came from the opposite shore; we retrieved records from the Bisha Ferry Security Inspection Station showing this white Changhe van had crossed the river multiple times, coinciding precisely with the river thief’s crime timings!"