Chapter 609 - 446 Stakeout at the Command Center_4

"Yes!"

Fang Huai’s face lit up with a smile as he hastily left the office and hurried to the Command Center on the rooftop.

Generally, Command Centers are located on rooftops or near the top of buildings.

This is because rooftops typically have dedicated network base stations to ensure the Command Center’s network connectivity.

If the network goes down at this location, the Command Center would have to call each Squadron to dispatch the police, and the transfer system would be useless.

As long as he kept a close watch here, Li Zhi would definitely know before dispatching the police. The Duty Officers, officers on duty, and team leaders on duty were all notified by the Command Center. Even if the reinforcement order were given directly to Li Zhi, getting the Duty Officers together would still depend on this place.

With that thought, Fang Huai wore a smile.

Hey, after hanging around a government agency for two years in his previous life and having spent time in a Command Center, he had accumulated quite a bit of special experience. He knew what the leaders were up to every day, how police dispatch worked, how duty officers and officers on duty relayed orders, and how the government agency operated. Many procedures that grassroots soldiers couldn’t even perceive were crystal clear to him.

These experiences also provided a foundation for his thinking when devising plans.

Arriving at the top floor in high spirits, Fang Huai ran into Second Mao making a phone call at the elevator entrance. After explaining that he had the Political Commissar’s permission, he entered smoothly.

The Command Center had only six seats, and there were just three people present, a male soldier, a female soldier, and a female clerk.

This was the fixed posting for Firefighting female soldiers, who, in these times, couldn’t do much aside from answering calls.

In his previous life, Fang Huai knew a female soldier with a strong sense of self-awareness who said with a smile, "When we female soldiers join firefighting, we’re just little wastes, mascots."

However, at this moment, a Firefighting military camp without female soldiers at the grassroots Squadron level would, for them, truly be paradise.

These computer workstations, manned by call attendants, would only receive calls when someone activated the reception system on their computer.

All three of them weren’t particularly busy. Seeing Fang Huai come in and sit down at a computer near the door, they might have thought he was a new Duty Officer and showed no surprise. The male soldier, holding a copy of "Mercenaries Under Heaven," continued reading with rapt attention, occasionally tapping his foot in time with the novel’s climax. The female soldier scratched her head as she worked on some problem, and the female clerk was texting on her cell phone, laughing gleefully.

As soon as Fang Huai sat down, he didn’t waste time and began earnestly studying the police dispatch command system he hadn’t seen in years.

Within half an hour, only eight calls came into the three seats. The operators simply said "Hello, 119 Command Center" before hanging up.

Some calls would end after a single ring before they could be answered.

Most of the calls, either silent from the get-go or filled with a child’s giggling, were obviously harassment. Sometimes, if a cautious operator heard background noise, they would listen closely and repeat "Hello" a few times, giving the caller a chance to speak.

Harassment calls were numerous and often beyond imagination. Calls persisting with harassment two or three times would be met with curses of "f*ck" and added to a blacklist by the operators, preventing that number from calling in again.

This mechanism was in place to ensure that the limited number of available phone lines could receive real emergency calls so that genuine emergency callers wouldn’t be waiting in line behind countless pranksters.

Harassing 119 intentionally or repeatedly calling without speaking might, at some crucial moment, cost someone their chance at survival.

A full hour passed, and things were peaceful.

Other than Director Yan coming in to berate the male soldier, "Reading novels all day, not cherishing the opportunity to study. Next year’s academy exam will have you crying again," there was no excitement to be seen.

Working here entailed tedious waiting, which is why soldiers on duty were encouraged to use the time between calls to improve themselves, in the hopes that it would inspire an upward striving appearance.

It wasn’t until the female soldier walked by Fang Huai on her way to the restroom that she gasped and stared wide-eyed when she saw his shoulder insignia.

"You are..."

Fang Huai turned and smiled, "Yin... right? You sang ’Blue Lotus’ pretty well during the earthquake exercise."

In truth, he remembered that the female soldier’s name was Yin Wei, but using her full name might lead her to overthink things.

Why do you remember my name?

Do you have a crush on me?

The female soldier, however, reacted loudly, covering her mouth and saying, "Fang Huai! Fang Huai! You’re the Fang Huai that Zhang Dan fancied! Are you a cadet now?"

At that, the other two in the room also looked up.

The male soldier stopped reading his novel and stared at Fang Huai, his eyes filled with a conflicted emotion of loss and the desire not to lose face.

Fang Huai felt quite awkward.

"I’ve enrolled, but I have a girlfriend, and I don’t know any Zhang Dan."

The female soldier bristled at his response.

"Wow, she hasn’t even dated anyone, still waiting for you to go to the Military Academy, calling her ’senior’! Her dad is from Tianjin..."

Fang Huai coughed, "There’s a call coming in."

Kids these days, their thoughts are too whimsical, acting like fancying me means I have to pursue them as a matter of course.

Tianjin... if her dad turns out to be the Tianjin Detachment commander, I might be somewhat interested.

But even then, isn’t it too early?

Seven years to go, leadership could change twice in that time.

The female soldier begrudgingly returned to her workstation to answer the call. After listening briefly, she hung up with exasperation and was about to continue her ’battle’ with Fang Huai.

But then, a distinct red phone placed separately on a forward-facing workstation rang, its tone unlike that of the workstation phones.

That phone was an internal line, typically used by leadership when calling in.

"Hello?"

The female soldier cautiously answered. Within two seconds, she was taking notes with pen and paper.

"Okay."

"Where?"

"Anshun Pingba, right? Okay, go on."

Fang Huai heard this and stood up abruptly.

It was time.

He swiftly walked up behind the female soldier and noted down the address she’d jotted down.

After she hung up the phone, Fang Huai immediately asked:

"What’s the situation?"

The female soldier, seemingly disinterested in dealing with him, called out:

"Director Yan! A call from the whole corps! There’s been a freeway accident in Anshun Pingba, a tanker overturned, and there are secondary collisions with other vehicles. People are injured, at least three dead! They want us to assist!"

As soon as he heard this, Fang Huai wasted no time and rushed out.