[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-i-m-the-cleanup-crew":3,"chapter-i-m-the-cleanup-crew-i-m-the-cleanup-crew-chapter-85":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","I'm the Cleanup Crew!",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2285921,4472,"Chapter 85: 84 Truth and Promotion","i-m-the-cleanup-crew-chapter-85",85,"\u003Cp>84 Truth and Promotion\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re right—the young man with the crying face is indeed a director.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After hearing Li Ang’s account of the situation, the Red-haired Director paused, then explained:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Since I thought you unlikely to encounter other directors, I hadn’t mentioned this yet: to become a Clearance Bureau director, you need not only sufficient strength, but also the innate aptitude to master the corresponding secret art.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Taurus Director who delivered the anomaly before mastered a secret art tied to forging, capable of producing anomalies beyond material limits, while the Aquarius Director’s art is said to allow direct creation of anomalies under certain conditions.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So if I’m not mistaken, the elderly couple in Happy Apartment encountered… this generation’s Aquarius Director… or possibly the previous one, given their age.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It really is a Clearance Bureau director!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After confirming his suspicion with the Red-haired Director, and considering her deep respect for the Taurus Director, Li Ang hesitated slightly, then asked as gently as he could:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Director, may I ask… what’s the Aquarius Director’s reputation like?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Red-haired Director met his eyes, instantly understood his meaning, and frowned in reply:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You suspect… the Aquarius Director had ulterior motives in creating Happy Apartment?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“There’s some doubt—I think the Aquarius Director’s actions defy logic.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing she wasn’t angered by his “insolence” toward a director, Li Ang openly admitted his suspicion, his expression grave:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Let’s suppose he’s the type who meddles out of compassion. Upon learning of the couple’s plight, he should’ve helped them apply for welfare aid—something trivial for a director, wouldn’t you agree?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, he might also be rigidly bound by Clearance Bureau rules, refusing to interfere with ordinary people unless absolutely necessary, and never misusing bureau privileges—but if so, why didn’t he report the anomaly as required after creating it?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After laying out his reasoning, Li Ang glanced at the Red-haired Director’s increasingly furrowed brow, paused briefly, then took a deep breath, clenched his fist, and continued:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Moreover, I find his act of placing the couple’s souls inside the apartment the most suspicious.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the couple died, their hearts were surely filled with resentment. Placing their souls inside the apartment, forcing them to witness welfare recipients being evicted, freezing and starving to death due to municipal neglect—this would only deepen their hatred.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With such intense hatred within them, and given the Aquarius Director’s provision of the potential to become anomalies, once their rage and resentment reached their peak, they’d likely ‘awaken’ as anomalies and hunt down their ‘enemies’ in a bloody massacre.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And since what caused this wasn’t merely one person’s action, but the collective apathy and negligence of an entire system, their killing range would expand endlessly, accumulating and absorbing more dangerous concepts until they became utterly uncontrollable!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re right—this possibility does exist. But alone, it’s insufficient to prove the Aquarius Director is at fault.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After nodding slightly in agreement with Li Ang’s judgment, the Red-haired Director frowned in deep thought:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Though I find your reasoning sound, the fact that the couple ultimately became a positive anomaly alone is enough for him to defend himself.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I believe the couple’s outcome was an accident.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Recalling the manager’s words, Li Ang spoke softly, his gaze complex:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“When the Aquarius Director decided to ‘create’ the anomaly, he likely considered only human evil.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He noticed the couple’s anger and hatred, but perhaps failed to see they weren’t enraged over their own suffering—they suffered because of others’ pain.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nor were they inherently extreme or mad. Even with immense hatred born of injustice, their souls’ core remained kind.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for what followed, it likely diverged from his design—he probably never imagined that the couple’s decades of kindness had earned them gratitude and remembrance from those they helped.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The hundred-plus people who died smiling near Happy Apartment… and countless others who felt happiness knowing they were still ‘there.’”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their thoughts and blessings converged, not only diluting the couple’s hatred, but forming a wall between them and the abyss, preventing their souls from being fully consumed.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It might truly be like that…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nodding in agreement with Li Ang’s judgment, the Red-haired Director sighed with quiet emotion:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“One part fury and hatred toward evil, the other part compassion and blessing toward the weak? These two emotions directly correspond to evil-eradication and accident-prevention.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No wonder Happy Apartment’s two abilities are so vastly different and seemingly unrelated—these two abilities, though appearing disconnected, arose from entirely different causes… Ah…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shaking his head with another sigh, the Red-haired Director sat up straight, her expression unusually serious as she praised:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Li Ang, you’ve done well!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’d sensed something odd about that apartment, but since no one else was harmed and its power level wasn’t high, I didn’t dig deeper.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Had you not been cautious enough to ask these questions, the Aquarius Director’s actions might have been buried!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After speaking these words with clear approval, the Red-haired Director’s expression grew grave.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“As for the Aquarius Director’s issue, we must wait a while longer.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unlike the Taurus Director, their true identities are almost always secret—even whether they’ve been replaced is undisclosed. I can’t confirm if he’s the same person as the current Aquarius Director.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But I’ll arrange to speak with several other directors, and push for an immediate review of him! If the review reveals he’s truly at fault… this matter will be settled!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though the Red-haired Director didn’t specify what “settled” meant, the chilling cold in her narrowed fox-like eyes made the answer obvious.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Who would’ve thought… that drunkard had such a fearsome side…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m glad you have a plan.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Glancing at the Red-haired Director with a mix of surprise and admiration, Li Ang nodded slightly, then prepared to take his leave:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I came only because this case seemed suspicious, to report it to you. If there’s nothing else, I’ll…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Don’t go yet—there’s more.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Calling out to stop him, the Red-haired Director gestured, and the red hairs on Li Ang’s neck slithered into his chest, retrieving his credentials.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Don’t worry—it’s good news.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Taking a seal from her drawer, she stamped his credentials, then smiled warmly:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“After returning yesterday, the Taurus Director thought your strength and other qualities were impressive, so she used her recommendation slot to elevate your file… Congratulations—you’ve been promoted ahead of schedule.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So… I’m no longer a ‘probationary’?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though Li Ang had always believed promotion was inevitable given his contributions, hearing the news still brought a surge of joy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now that I’m promoted, my Iron-rank ‘Probationary’ badge should upgrade to ‘Worker,’ right?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Zii…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As expected, as the Red-haired Director returned his credentials, the piercing hum sounded again in Li Ang’s ears.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Under the recommendation of Clearance Bureau Director Olivia, you successfully leveraged the Taurus Director’s connections, earned her favor, and completed your promotion one month early.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Your Iron-rank badge ‘Probationary’ has successfully upgraded to Bronze-rank hidden badge ‘Connection.’】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...”?!!\u003C\u002Fp>",1137,"2026-06-20T03:18:28.556Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","708b2cd6e94ff778bf898057358f1abef0e87515315679d1055e530427587bf7","i-m-the-cleanup-crew-chapter-86","i-m-the-cleanup-crew-chapter-84",1000,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fi-m-the-cleanup-crew-cover.jpg"]