Chapter 453 Follow the Guidance

"Commander Qi, you don’t need to know who I am, all you have to do is answer my question with yes or no."

As Qi Taiguo was deep in thought, the voice rang out again from the other end of the phone.

Qi Taiguo’s face darkened, "Why should I tell you!"

There was silence on the other end of the line, and suddenly Qi Taiguo felt a rush of relief. Yes, why should I tell you, when you haven’t told me anything!

"Alright, then what does Commander Qi plan to do with that piece of paper?" The voice in the receiver didn’t continue inquiring but affirmed its own guess.

"That’s none of your business!"

"If I were you, Commander, I would hand over that piece of paper to your commander. After all, you disobeyed operational commands and deserted your post, leading to casualties on your side, and the person you were chasing is dead, without any value." The voice spoke slowly, "Since you deserted your post, you ought to retrieve some sort of value, which will help you clear the trouble you’re in now."

Without a word, Qi Taiguo’s face went through several changes.

"Commander Qi, your most important duty is to protect your country and do right by your family. There are public security forces for investigating and relevant departments for inspecting discipline and conduct. You don’t have to shoulder everything; otherwise, you’ll gain nothing but bring trouble upon yourself."

Upon hearing this, Qi Taiguo’s expression turned extremely ugly, because he knew the person was right.

"I’m really thinking of your best interest, Commander Qi. Hand over what you’ve got and act as if you know nothing. Commander Qi, possessing the jade leads to guilt—think of your family!" The mysterious caller left this sentence hanging before abruptly hanging up the phone.

Qi Taiguo, expressionless, handed the receiver back to the receptionist and headed to the temporary office of his commander, reflecting on the mysterious person’s advice as he went.

Upon arriving at the commander’s office, he was immediately bombarded with criticism for desertion, disobeying orders, negligence in combat, and so on.

"The higher-ups are furious, you need to submit a self-criticism report!" The commander went on a tirade before sitting down and then asked, "How did you know Zhao Wei would attempt to flee to Aozi Bay? And about the three crime scenes?"

Seeing doubt in his eyes, Qi Taiguo felt deeply humiliated.

Was it suggesting he was colluding secretly?

Suppressing the anger in his heart, Qi Taiguo recounted the anonymous tip-off call he had received.

The commander was clearly not expecting this, exclaiming in surprise, "Such important information, why didn’t you report it immediately?"

"It was just a phone call with no evidence; how could I report it?" Qi Taiguo replied, "Even I can hardly believe it myself."

The commander was taken aback and his expression turned somewhat unpleasant, saying, "Even so, you should have reported it immediately, we could have discussed its authenticity."

"Yes, I was wrong!" Qi Taiguo said, "I was too presumptuous, I am willing to write a self-criticism."

Seeing his attitude, the commander said, "Comrade Qi Taiguo, you must come to terms with your behavior."

"Yes, sir!"

After a moment’s thought, Qi Taiguo decided to follow the mysterious person’s suggestion and handed over the paper he had kept in his pocket.

"What’s this?" The commander asked with a puzzled look as he took it.

"It’s what I found in Zhao Wei’s boots, I thought it best for you to make the final judgment," Qi Taiguo replied unfazed.

After reading the message on the paper, the commander’s face changed several times, and he gave Qi Taiguo a long, hard look.

"What’s your take on it?"

"Report to the commander, I’m just a soldier; my duty is to defend my country. Investigating the case is beyond me," Qi Taiguo said, chin up.

The commander, looking displeased, said, "Alright, go back and write a thorough report and submit it." He paused, then added, "Rest assured, I will defend what should be defended."

"Thank you!" Qi Taiguo saluted and walked out of the office. As he stood by the door, he overheard the commander making a report over the phone and couldn’t help but curl his lips into a sarcastic smile.