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Late at night, in a coffee shop not far from the Lake District Police Station Branch.
A white male sat in the corner of the coffee shop.
His cheeks were gaunt, his cheekbones prominent, giving him a shrewd and tough impression. His gaze, focused and profound, seemed absorbed in pondering some important matter.
When the waiter brought his coffee, he ceased his thoughtful motions, gently stirring the beverage and savoring the rich fragrance and flavor, his expression gaining a touch of tranquility.
After about seven or eight minutes, two people entered the café—it was none other than Wade and Balk, coming from the repair shop.
"Chief Smith..."
"Let's hear it!"
"Yes..."
Wade organized his thoughts and briefly relayed the recent events. After finishing, he stood to one side, daring not to take a deep breath.
Having heard the tale, Smith's gaze slowly darkened.
After a moment of thought, he asked, "Are you saying that Inspector David, knows like the back of his hand, every single transaction you've received in the past month?"
"Yes, I suspect that the IRS has already started a covert investigation on us, or they wouldn't have such detailed information!"
"Impossible!"
Without even thinking, Smith immediately dismissed the idea.
As someone at the level of a police chief, he naturally had his own connections. If the IRS were really about to move against them, it was impossible that he hadn't caught wind of it.
After all, if the IRS really wanted to investigate them, they couldn't have gathered so much information in just a day or two.
Wade clenched his teeth and said, "But Chief Smith, he has such detailed information about us..."
"That just means he did his own research, unrelated to the IRS!"
Smith interjected sharply before Wade could finish.
"His own research..."
Wade Balk was taken aback. If it were as Smith said, then they could breathe a sigh of relief.
The IRS was like a massive weight, leaving them gasping for air.
But if the IRS had no intention of taking action against them and all the information came from David's own investigation, that would be much easier to handle.
But then again.
Without the vast resources of the IRS, how did David manage to investigate and obtain such detailed information about them?
This was something the two of them could not fathom.
Smith sipped his coffee and continued to inquire, "What else did he say?"
"He also said that we must pay the taxes, or he'll personally come talk to you..."
"To come talk to me, he's got nerve!"
Smith, already with a cold demeanor, seemed to grow even more ice-cold upon hearing this.
"So what do we do, Chief Smith?"
After another period of thought, Smith finally responded, "You don't have to worry about this matter for now; I'll handle it!"
Wade and Balk exchanged looks but said nothing further.
After all, David gave them a break and, unlike the car thieves, did not demand they pay taxes by tomorrow, so there was no need to rush.
...
The next morning.
Since the case involving the car thieves had taken him to deal with it the night before, David arrived bright and early at the office to clock in.
And when he got there, Nisen had already arrived much earlier, even offering him a hot dog from the old town with eager diligence.
```
To be honest, although the Encar robbery case was perfectly solved, David still harbored some resentment towards it.
After all, even though they were partners, they could also be competitors.
Especially since Lewis was about to be transferred soon.
But after the robbery case, the Zero Purchase case, and last night's car theft, he had come to terms with it.
With David's outstanding abilities, he knew he just couldn't match up.
This was clear to many people at the office, and their boss, Lewis, was even more aware of it.
When the time came and Lewis was transferred, the likelihood was that David would be the one recommended.
Therefore, it was better for him to just play the role of a good partner. By sticking with the partner system, not only could he share in the credit for solving cases,
but once David got promoted, based on their relationship, he would inevitably help him out as well.
With the added credit from the cases they solved, the position of Chief Tax Officer would be his before long,
it was just a matter of sooner or later!
This morning, the third-floor Inspector's office space was still bustling, with people forced to come in to pay taxes, and criminals just brought in for interrogation.
Overall, all the Inspectors were working as hard as they could, hoping to improve their performance figures before the assessment period arrived tomorrow.
However, David and Nisen seemed out of sync with the atmosphere on the scene.
While the other Inspectors were working themselves to the bone, these two were different: one was playing solitaire on the computer, and the other was leisurely sipping coffee.
In other words, they were slacking off!
Soon, someone who couldn't stand it any longer came over.
Bucky, who had just dealt with some criminals, came over and asked puzzled, "David, didn't Lewis give you the car theft gang case yesterday?"
"Yeah,"
David replied without looking up from his card game.
"Then you're still so... leisurely."
"Just killing time, the taxes won't run away!"
"The taxes won't run away, but if you don't go collect them, do you think people will come forward to pay on their own?"
Bucky muttered to himself, about to go back to his business, when he saw a group of people coming down the corridor, led by Debbie.
The car theft gang, including their boss Miyano Masho, consisted of more than twenty people. Though not as many as the Zero Purchase Participants from yesterday, they still made quite an imposing sight.
Such a scene quickly drew the attention of many Inspectors, who all stopped what they were doing, curious to see whose 'masterpiece' it was.
But soon, they showed expressions of surprise.
Because the direction the group was heading in was towards David's office.
Could it be...
After yesterday's Zero Purchase case, had David solved another case?
But how was that possible!
It had only been one night, you can't travel that fast even by plane!
Many Inspectors on the scene began to question their life choices.
They all stopped what they were doing and slowly moved towards David, wanting to figure out if things were as they suspected.
"Inspector David, they say they're looking for you!"
Receptionist Debbie had already come to David's side, pointing at Miyano Masho and the others behind her.
"Alright, Debbie, leave it to me to handle!"
David turned to look at Miyano Masho with interest and asked, "So, Mr. Miyano?"