Chapter 497: Asked for Nothing

"Dad, Fourth Uncle, there is one more thing."

"Lin Sicheng's Partner entered through customs from Hong Kong, bringing a batch of antiques, and they were detained at the port..."

Ye Anqi kept her head down, recalling the expressions of Wang Qizhi and Zhao Xiuneng at the customs hall—their eyes gleaming, secretly excited.

"This batch of antiques must be very important to Lin Sicheng, and it is very likely that they were his to begin with... I helped him ask around: it's his bad luck, he ran right into the muzzle of the General Administration's Supervision Division..."

Antiques, porcelain?

Isn't that just Return-flow Porcelain?

Ye Xingchi's eyelids twitched: "He's also dealing in this?"

Ye Anqi hurriedly explained: "Not dealing, it's for Artifact Research!"

"And he is very certain that this batch of antiques are all replicas and are not on the restricted list. Wang Sanshu said the same thing..."

Ye Xingchi frowned: Law enforcement departments care about evidence, not what you say and how they believe it.

If it had been detained by local Customs, he could still think of some ways. But this time, it was discovered by the General Administration's Supervision Division.

Even if it were true as Lin Sicheng said, that these antiques are replicas, this matter is not easy to handle.

To put it bluntly, the machinery of the bureaucracy has its own procedures; once started, it cannot be stopped. Often, it has nothing to do with right or wrong.

Therefore, failing to get it done is no big deal; it is nothing more than the loss of a few items. What Ye Xingchi was thinking was: Does Lin Sicheng know the ropes of this? After all, he is still young and lacks experience. And at this level, it is no longer a problem that can be solved by how strong one's personal ability is.

Not to mention the thankless effort, if things go wrong, one might step into a huge pit...

Ye Xingchi looked up and glanced at his second brother.

Ye Xingguo thought for a moment: "What did Wang Qizhi say?"

"Wang Sanshu said that Lin Sicheng can handle it!" Ye Anqi looked worried, "That's why I'm worried!"

It really is Old Three Wang.

If he didn't do something like this, he wouldn't be living up to his reputation.

Ye Xingchi sighed and gave another look.

Ye Xingguo laughed: "I'll ask Old Three first!"

No sooner said than done, he took out his phone and dialed Ye Xing'an's number.

It was nearly ten o'clock, but Ye Xing'an hadn't slept yet; he seemed to still be working, and the sound of flipping through documents came over the phone.

The two had been in contact yesterday, and Ye Xingguo had asked why Wang Qizhi and Ye Anning were in Guangzhou and why they weren't allowed to stay at home.

Ye Xing'an said there was no need to worry about it.

He answered the call casually: "Second Brother!"

Ye Xingguo got straight to the point: "Did Anning call?"

She did call, but she called Wang Qiguang; as soon as the phone was handed to him, that stubborn girl hung up.

Recalling it, her tone seemed quite normal, saying she was going to Hong Kong in a few days.

Ye Xing'an was indifferent: "Second Brother, what's wrong with Anning?"

"It's not Anning, it's Wang Qizhi's student..."

Ye Xingguo explained the situation in a few words. Finally, he gave a reminder: "After all, Qi Zhi has no experience!"

This was said very tactfully; what Ye Xingguo wanted to say was: Wang Qizhi is unreliable and too impulsive.

Sometimes it is clearly just a matter the size of a Needle tip, but if given to Wang Qizhi, he can cause a disaster the size of a water vat.

After asking roughly, Ye Xing'an had a general idea: "Second Brother, Lin Sicheng will find a way to handle this himself; Qi Zhi will not intervene." To tell the truth, Wang Qizhi couldn't intervene in this matter, and he wouldn't dare to.

His brother-in-law is sometimes quite stubborn and acts foolishly, but he is not an idiot. He knows very well: if he dares to show his face this time, he will ruin everything one hundred percent... "Huh?"

Let Lin Sicheng handle it?

Why is Ye Xing'an saying this too?

Ye Xingguo didn't understand, "Lin Sicheng handles it, how does he handle it?"

Ye Xing'an was exceptionally firm: "I don't know exactly how he will handle it, but he definitely has a way!"

Ye Xingguo understood even less; the methods are nothing more than that: pulling strings and making calls.

The key is, who is he relying on to handle it?

If his younger brother doesn't help and Wang Qizhi doesn't intervene, where else would he have connections?

Relying on the public security departments in Xijing or Beijing?

Although public security departments often cooperate with Customs and even have areas of overlapping management, they are, after all, not in the same system.

And the thing law enforcement units fear most is being told what to do by outside units. Moreover, isn't this the critical moment of policy adjustment and internal self-inspection? What's more, this case was discovered by a spot check from the General Administration's Supervision Division; whether it's Xijing or Beijing, they are a Level One lower.

If a lower-level unit tries to pull strings with a higher-level unit, do you think they'll even pay you any mind?

That was exactly what Ye Xingchi was thinking just now: don't end up offending people without getting the matter done.

Not to mention Lin Sicheng, Ye Xing'an and his wife haven't mentioned this matter, so let's treat it as if that connection doesn't exist, but Wang Qizhi is Old Three's own brother-in-law. "I know, but it should be no problem!" Ye Xing'an was unconcerned, "Even if it's botched, it doesn't matter!"

Ye Xingguo frowned: "Aren't you going to ask?"

That brother-in-law of yours is not a simple character.

Ye Xing'an smiled: "Second Brother, don't worry, it won't happen."

Wang Qizhi is indeed not very reliable, but that student of his is more than reliable.

Let's count, how long has it been since Wang Qizhi caused trouble?

Almost a year and a half.

So, with Lin Sicheng there, he couldn't stir up trouble even if he wanted to.

Ye Xingguo was half-believing, but he didn't ask any more questions.

He had always been in the provinces; although he didn't know much about Beijing, he had great faith in his cousin.

If Xing'an said there was no problem, then there was definitely no problem.

After chatting for a few more sentences, he hung up the phone.

Ye Anqi was impatient: "Dad, what did Third Uncle say?"

"Your Third Uncle said that Lin Sicheng will handle it well!" Ye Xingguo paused, "Even if he messes it up, it doesn't matter!"

It truly wouldn't matter if it were messed up, but it would offend people.

Sometimes, connections are not a universal Talisman. If someone blocks you at a critical point, they can make you feel miserable to death.

Therefore, Ye Anqi could not figure it out: Why was Third Uncle so at ease?

"Dad, should I keep an eye on it?"

With your level, what could you watch, and what use would it be if you did?

The words were on the tip of his tongue, but Ye Xingguo suddenly paused: Don't say that; it might actually be useful.

Ye Xingguo thought for a moment: "I'll ask around first..."

It was a coincidence that there happened to be an opening. With this inquiry from Ye Xingguo, Ye Anqi entered the Supervision Division team.

On Monday, at 7:30 in the morning, Ye Anqi arrived at the Provincial Branch on time.

After going up to the third floor, he arrived at the door of an office at the very end of the hall.

This floor was the office area for the Port Supervision Division; other doors had department nameplates, roughly indicating which section or office they were. But this one did not; it only had a number: 319.

However, Ye Anqi knew that this was the temporary office of Deputy Group Leader Wei Ziyu of the Supervision Division.

After waiting for a while, people arrived upstairs one after another. Occasionally, he would encounter someone he knew and exchange greetings with Ye Anqi.

Ten minutes before eight, two people came up the stairs, both wearing casual clothes. Ye Anqi had watched the footage of Luohu Port and knew that these two were the Group Leader and Deputy Group Leader of the Supervision Division.

While they were still quite far away, Ye Anqi saluted: "Leaders, Ye Anqi from the Anti-Smuggling Bureau of the Provincial Branch reports for duty as ordered."

The two exchanged a glance: Oh, the person has arrived?

This inspection was not a "inspect and leave" mission, but rather one that required waiting for policies to be implemented and put into place. Therefore, it could take as little as half a year, or as long as two or three years.

A fish dies without water; even if dispatched by the General Manager, one cannot truly play the "imperial envoy holding the Shangfang Sword" routine. Otherwise, you wouldn't be able to get anything done.

Local government support is indispensable, and the cooperation of local peer departments is even more so. Naturally, one needs a capable assistant who is familiar with local government departments, can coordinate with various units at any time, and can act as a mediator and lubricant at critical moments.

After arriving, the Provincial Branch and the City Customs did send a few people, but either their personal abilities were lacking, or their coordination and communication were not smooth; it always felt like something was missing.

Later, two more were swapped in, but it felt even worse than the previous two. They just made do like this for a month, until yesterday, when the Provincial Branch drew up a new list.

The two saw Ye Anqi on the list immediately: they didn't know about his ability yet, but his connections were definitely sufficient.

Therefore, the two group leaders were very polite; Song Jingqiu nodded and said, "Little Ye is here."

Wei Ziyu returned the salute.

"Come in, come in and talk!"

Song Jingqiu opened the door and had the secretary pour tea.

Afterwards, they chatted as if making small talk.

Along with Ye Anqi, there was also a Deputy Section Chief from the Provincial Branch and a Deputy Director from the City Customs Office responsible for this area. These two were the ones who basically handled matters, while Ye Anqi's work was relatively simple: internal and external communication.

If they encountered any obstacles, or even disputes, it was naturally best if they could be resolved through the power within the system. If they couldn't be resolved, he had to play his part: at the very least, he had to know where the problem lay, where it was stuck, and the reason why.

To put it bluntly: he wasn't there to solve the problems, but to untangle the threads.

Once he had untangled them, the Deputy Section Chief and Deputy Director would then step in.

In the group, his rank of Section Chief was not high—better than a leader's secretary, but worse than the Deputy Director in the group. However, his role was very significant, and the leaders valued him highly: he reported directly to Deputy Group Leader Wei Ziyu.

When necessary, he could report directly to Song Jingqiu.

The two leaders specifically arranged an office for him, right next to Wei Ziyu's.

After chatting generally, the two group leaders could see: this one was stronger than the previous two.

He responded appropriately, neither servile nor overbearing.

As for his specific abilities, they would only know after testing him.

After about half an hour, the secretary knocked on the door, saying it was time for the meeting, and the three of them went into the conference room together.

The meeting didn't last long, about an hour, mostly consisting of summaries and arrangements.

Ye Anqi kept his ears pricked, and it wasn't until the meeting was almost over that Hu Hai's case was brought up.

The content was extremely brief: this week, it would officially enter the disposal procedure.

Counting the time, there were only three days in between, and two of those were Saturday and Sunday; this speed was not slow.

After the meeting ended, Ye Anqi got to know his new colleagues in the group. Returning to the office, he turned his phone volume to the maximum, ready to wait for the leaders' instructions at any time. To put it bluntly, there was no way for him to exercise subjective initiative in this job. So, when he was free, he was very free, and when he was busy, he probably wasn't that busy either. But the role he played was very critical.

Taking out another phone, Ye Anqi prepared to call Lin Sicheng.

He had asked yesterday, but it was the weekend, and Customs and the port were not working; Lin Sicheng only said to wait until Monday.

Ye Anqi was very curious about how Lin Sicheng would do it.

The call went out, and the prompt indicated the line was busy; Ye Anqi waited for a while.

After about ten minutes, he dialed again, and it was still busy.

He called Wang Qizhi, and it went through. Wang Qizhi said Lin Sicheng was on another call; he didn't say anything else, and Ye Anqi didn't ask.

With nothing to do, Ye Anqi opened his computer and started playing solitaire.

Separated by a wall, Song Jingqiu and Wei Ziyu were flipping through several documents.

"Application for Release of Detention," "Hu Hai's Declaration for Entry, Sources of Forty-nine Cultural Relics including the Douli Cup," "Malaysia Customs Cultural Relics Export Permit," "Purchase Proof for Forty-nine Cultural Relics including the Douli Cup"...

The items were sent by the City Customs during the meeting. And even earlier, last Friday, someone had delivered this document to Luohu Port. The document was fine, and it was roughly these things; what Hu Hai provided when declaring at customs was also roughly these.

The procedure was also fine: first apply to the detaining unit, then the port unit reviews or reports it. If technical support is needed, then apply to the higher level. There was no problem with this application being sent here:

Because the items were seized during a spot check by the Supervision Division, and the relevant report was also issued by the Supervision Division. If the holder or the holding unit had objections, they would certainly apply to them for a review.

But the problem was: why was it so fast?

The items were seized last Thursday; the next day, Friday morning, the appeal document was delivered to the port. Then by Monday, it was sent to the Supervision Division. If it weren't for the weekend, would they have seen this document on Friday afternoon?

At a glance, it was clear this had gone through special channels.

Therefore, the matter was not significant. By convention, it would not even be their place to intervene; any clerk in the department could handle it.

Yet, the director still came to report to the two leaders the very moment the documents were received.

After flipping through them roughly, Wei Ziyu revealed a hint of suspicion: "Why is it stamped with the Forbidden City's seal?"

The director was stumped by the question: he did not know either.

The documents did contain an explanation: this batch of antiques was research material ordered from overseas by the Palace Museum Porcelain Research Institute through Hu Hai.

But to be honest, anyone who believed that was an idiot.

If it was an order, why was there no Contract in the customs declaration documents?

If it really had anything to do with the Forbidden City, why didn't Hu Hai mention it when it was seized by Customs?

Having spent half a lifetime in anti-smuggling, Wei Ziyu could see the trickery here with his eyes closed: nine times out of ten, it was a Cultural Relic returned from overseas, smuggled back by some well-connected person.

It was an excuse thought up at the last minute only after they knew the items had been seized by Customs.

He flipped through it again: "This person has quite a bit of influence, don't they?"

The director nodded vigorously: wasn't that obvious?

The Forbidden City is not just any Tom, Dick, or Harry; it is not a name that just anyone can use whenever they want to.

The key point is, from start to finish, it only took three days?

Song Jingqiu was noncommittal: "Have Director Xu contact the deputy director of the Municipal Customs Office."

Contact them about what?

Naturally, to ask through what channel these documents were submitted.

The director understood instantly, gathered the documents, and left the office.

In less than half an hour, Deputy Director Xu had a reply: the reason the speed at Luohu Port and the Municipal Customs was so fast was because the appealing entity was the Forbidden City—although it is a public institution, it is different from ordinary units, and since these were materials for archaeological research, they naturally had to handle the matter as a special case.

But Song Jingqiu frowned: was it a wasted question?

What he wanted to ask was, why would the Forbidden City be the one to step forward?