Reborn Cat Sheriff

Chapter 464 Test
Lin Ge originally thought that after arriving in Chu City, he would first visit the Municipal Bureau or something, but he did not expect to come directly to the police dog training base.

All the athletes' registration and subsequent schedules will be conducted at this base.

how to say?

This formal event, unlike the lively and open entertainment competitions, was more of a professional setting, a place to showcase skills, much like an exam. According to the schedule he saw at the registration point, Lin Ge didn't see any song or dance performances. Of course, he'd expected that from the start. The first morning's itinerary included speeches from the National People's Congress, studying the spirit of the speeches, and learning about the new ideas and viewpoints of national leaders regarding the reform of the judicial system and administrative law enforcement system. After that, there were speeches from provincial and municipal leaders, and finally, a demonstration of the police dog team…

After completing these procedures, the morning was over. The police dog competition officially began in the afternoon, starting with the mountain tracking event. All participating police dogs, with the assistance of their handlers, performed practical demonstrations, and professional judges scored their performances. Four events were completed every two days, with all competitions officially concluded on the morning of the third day. Awards and certificates were presented in the afternoon, after which everyone could go home.

To be honest... it's very rough and simple!
Lin Ge didn't even see any related publicity from the outside world; there was just a welcome banner at the entrance of the training base, nothing more.

But this is precisely in line with the style of police competitions: low-key yet rigorous. All competitions have fixed standards for determining victory or defeat; a win is a win, and a loss is a loss! In addition to the champion, runner-up, and third-place winners, there are no participation awards, merit awards, or other miscellaneous things; victory, defeat, and honors are strictly enforced.

With over 130 police dogs participating, only 21 will ultimately receive honors. There are six individual events and one all-around competition, with champions, runners-up, and third-place winners. Even some individual event champions are strong contenders for the all-around title, so it's possible that only a dozen or so dogs will ultimately win honors, while the rest will have to return home and try again next year.

"To be honest, just looking at the competition introduction makes me feel like I can't breathe."

Sun Chang unbuttoned his shirt collar, as if that would make him feel more comfortable.

Competing head-on with elite police dogs from across the province and even other provinces—the thought of that difficulty makes me incredibly nervous. Is Beibei's training really sufficient? What if she comes in last place in the six-event competition? Wouldn't that be incredibly embarrassing? Leaders from various police departments across the province and city are watching; if she makes a mistake, will it cause them to misunderstand the capabilities of the Zhangzhou police force? Besides, Beibei has trained so hard for so long; what if she gets discouraged after being defeated? What if my command causes Beibei to make a mistake? How can I face Beibei, how can I face everyone at the police station who cheered me on? If something really goes wrong, will I be able to go back?
Sun Chang kept having wild thoughts, and Yu Rong, who was standing next to her, couldn't stand it and patted her on the shoulder.

"Don't overthink it, it's not that complicated! Let's not even talk about friendship first and competition second. You've seen how hard Beibei has worked these past few days, you should have confidence in it."

"But I lack confidence in myself!"

Sun Chang muttered helplessly.

However, with Yu Rong involved, Sun Chang no longer had time to think wildly. He quickly calmed himself down and saw Zhou Bo and Yuan Qu pulling a staff member aside to ask about the specific procedures.

Zhou Bo walked over with a smile, holding two cards in his hand: "The formalities are all done. We'll be staying at this Hanting Hotel for the next four days. Two people per room, or you'll have to pay extra for a single room. However, the police dogs must be kept at the training base and are not allowed to be taken out of the base at any time. Oh! Mimi was originally going to be locked up too. I had to plead with them to let us take her. It was such a waste of my breath."

"Thank you very much."

Lin Ge glared at Zhou Bo, who was trying to take credit, with displeasure.

"After checking into the hotel, we can come back here to familiarize ourselves with the competition venue. To be honest, we've never seen a professional police dog training base in Zhangzhou, and we don't know what the specific competition track is like. So this afternoon we must make the most of our time to understand the situation, especially for Beibei and An'an. The track they're going to compete on is definitely completely different from the one in Zhangzhou. If we don't make the most of our time to familiarize ourselves with it, there will be problems."

Zhou Bo recounted all the information he had gathered, and Yuan Qu then added to it.

"Furthermore, according to information gathered, this year's competition content has changed significantly compared to last year. Overall, it's more combat-oriented, which places higher demands on the police dogs' abilities. For example, drug and explosives detection and evidence searching are no longer about secretly stuffing a target into ten boxes side by side. This time, they've set up three simulated abandoned two-story buildings with complex environments, where the targets to be searched will be hidden in various secret places. In any case, according to them, the entire process is monitored by cameras, leaving no possibility of cheating. Then there's bloodstain tracking and mountain tracking, which are also combat-oriented ways to find escape targets. However, bloodstain tracking involves sniffing blood samples left by the person, while mountain tracking involves navigating a full set of obstacles. The subsequent process is similar, involving climbing mountains and sliding down slopes to catch people. Only the public security and riot control remains similar to before, with scores determined by the location and number of bites."

Yuan Qu spoke at length, causing Sun Chang and the other two to adopt serious expressions.

Is it close to real combat? This means that half of the previous specialized training has already lost its effectiveness. Especially in drug and explosives detection and evidence search, this time it will not only test the police dogs' abilities, but also the handlers' judgment. There are things that could be hidden on both the first and second floors. In this situation, whether to go directly to the second floor or search the first floor first requires making choices and requires the handlers' comprehensive judgment, which involves a bit of luck.

Before, at least if you put ten boxes together, you could still guess if all else failed. But now, who knows where the target might be hidden! If it happens to be placed in a disgusting spot like a ceiling drain, it will be difficult to score quickly.

"Luck is also part of strength! Moreover, this kind of combat type requires police dogs to have a stronger sense of smell, requiring them to be able to smell the target from a distance, instead of getting close to it one by one as before."

Yu Rong shook her head.

It can only be said that with the development of the policing system and technology, police agencies have increasingly higher requirements for police dogs. While the sniffing boxes of the past were indeed somewhat performative, the current practice, which is closer to real-world scenarios, means that police dogs must also be able to perform these actions in real-world situations.

"..."

Yuan Qu's expression was somewhat unpleasant. Of the four police dogs, only Bei Bei needed to participate in all six tasks. The only remaining task was the physical evidence search project, which was many times more difficult than last year.

Can Yingying do it?
Even Yuan Qu himself was starting to lose confidence.

"Actually... it's not that difficult, is it?"

Lingo flicked his tail, then looked back at the four police dogs squatting obediently in a row. He didn't think this kind of realistic competition could stump them. It's just a sense of smell; finding a target a few meters or a dozen meters away is quite simple, isn't it?

"Woo~"

Yingying lowered her head guiltily, not knowing what she was feeling guilty about.

"We're having a tough time here too!"

Seeing Yuan Qu's unpleasant expression, Yu Rong quickly steered the conversation towards herself: "The previous mountain tracking was just imitating the terrain, climbing and jumping around, all the same as what An'an trained in Zhang City. But this time, with real combat involved... I haven't taken An'an into real combat yet! Heaven knows what kind of terrain he'll arrange for her. If it's the kind that's really physically demanding, I'm afraid I'll hold An'an back..."

The female instructor's inherent disadvantage in physical strength and athletic ability made Yu Rong feel somewhat nervous.

"Is this some kind of show of force to the specially invited police dogs from other provinces? That's why they made it so difficult and unique, afraid that they'd be too strong in the usual challenges and eliminate all our own people?"

Zhou Bo couldn't help but curse aloud.

"Stop talking nonsense!"

Yu Rong looked around and quickly kicked Zhou Bo.

But even so, it was too late, because Zhou Bo's words, spoken without any regard for decorum or hushed tone, had already been heard by someone who had just come out of the training area. He was holding a particularly robust German Shepherd on a leash, the dog's fierce eyes clearly indicating it was not to be trifled with.

"Don't blame others for your own incompetence! Only the weak worry about being eliminated and hope that the organizers will lower the difficulty to narrow the gap with the winners, so that they can lose more gracefully."

The young policeman spoke arrogantly, glancing disdainfully at Sun Chang and his group of four, then glancing at the four dogs behind them out of the corner of his eye. He shook his head and sneered, "The organizers invited police dogs from other provinces to show them the strength of our Chu Province police dog team. To think others are so strong from the start and then back down—how did these people even get selected as contestants? Or is it that you don't even have a single qualified police dog or handler over there?"

"What did you say!" Zhou Bo glared and was about to rush out.

The young policeman's words were infuriating. And Zhou Bo himself hadn't intended to admit defeat; he only said those things to comfort Yu Rong and ease her tension and anxiety. Why was he being ridiculed?
"Do not impulse!"

Yuan Qu quickly grabbed Zhou Bo and then looked at the policeman with a cold face.

Just as I was about to say something, I suddenly realized that the dog this guy was walking looked increasingly familiar. I couldn't help but stop talking and take a closer look, then stared at the man in astonishment and said, "Isn't this Hadogen? I remember Hadogen's trainer was Officer Ge Hui, how come it's you this year?"

"Humph!"

The young policeman grunted and frowned, saying, "Teacher Ge retired at the end of last year due to injury. I'm his student, Geng Yuxiang, and I used to train Hadogen with Teacher Ge. When Teacher Ge retired, he handed Hadogen over to me, and starting this year, I'm Hadogen's official trainer. By the way, you don't underestimate Hadogen just because its trainer has changed, do you? To be honest, given this year's competition events, even if Teacher Ge hadn't retired, my physical fitness and athletic ability would have been more suitable for training Hadogen. In short, as I just said, with Hadogen here, the difficulty of the competition and the presence of out-of-province competitors are irrelevant!"

With that, Geng Yuxiang lost interest in the trainers from out of town who were making him unhappy. He snorted again, grabbed Hado, and turned to leave.

"Wow~"

Hado had just taken a liking to Beibei, since they were both standard German Shepherds. But just as he was about to greet Beibei, Geng Yuxiang tugged at his leash, and Hado could only whimper and obediently follow him away.

Watching Geng Yuxiang's retreating figure, Zhou Bo suppressed the urge to spit and glared at him fiercely.

"What the hell is he! Just because he inherited a good dog, he acts arrogantly here. He even took advantage of his status as a Chu City police officer to get used to the environment and venue in advance. Where does this guy get the nerve to think he's so great? What do you mean by 'meaningless'? Does he even deserve to say that?"

Zhou Bo spoke indignantly, and his words made Yu Rong, Sun Chang, and Li Siyu nod in agreement.

But Yuan Qu, being the spoilsport, shook his head and said, "That's not how it works. After all, it's a police dog competition, and it's about the dogs' skills. Hado is undoubtedly a very strong opponent. It has proven its strength in several competitions. What's the point of us mocking its handler?"

"..."

The group was speechless, completely baffled as to whose side Yuan Qu was on.

Lin Ge even looked at Yu Rong and Zhou Bo with pity. Working with such a straightforward person who was so frustrating, these two must have a very hard time.
The group lost interest in chatting and didn't want to waste time leaving the police dogs at the hotel, dropping off their luggage, and then coming back.

Seeing several suitcases piled up in the corner of the lobby rest area, the five of them followed suit and placed their luggage there first. Then, the group, leading the police dog and carrying the cat, entered the training ground and immediately saw three old, dilapidated houses that had clearly been built not long ago.

Before I could even see what the facilities for the other attractions were like, I first saw the training ground teeming with dogs and their handlers!

It seems everyone arrived on time, and some may have even come yesterday. In any case, police dogs are busy familiarizing themselves with all the equipment on the training field.

The trainers were whistling, clapping, and running around, while others were being led around by their own dogs. The whole scene was incredibly lively; it was the first time anyone had ever seen so many dogs in one place—a dazzling array of colors, breeds, heights, and builds.

Most police dogs are very obedient, following their handlers' commands quietly. However, some are timid or shy, or perhaps feel superior and are hostile towards other dogs; in any case, their barking never stops. Especially the dogs training for riot control and their handlers in the corner—they bark louder than anyone else. The barking of the dogs and the barking of the handlers create a lively scene that attracts everyone's attention.

Then... soon Sun Chang and his group became the focus of everyone's attention.

It all started when a husky, being led around on a leash by its trainer, suddenly fixed its gaze on Lin Ge, who was in Li Siyu's arms. It was rather strange to see a husky in this place, but a cat was undoubtedly even stranger. The curious husky stared at Lin Ge in astonishment, refusing to budge even as the trainer pulled on its leash. When Lin Ge finally got annoyed by the staring and glared at it, the husky immediately started barking excitedly, jumping and leaping about.

The distinctive bark attracted the attention of the other police dogs, who in turn spotted Ringo. This was a rare breed indeed, and the police dogs immediately gave him a look, drawing the attention of his handlers as well.

"How come... I'm suddenly surrounded by onlookers?"

Zhou Bo's lips twitched slightly. Being stared at by so many dogs was a little creepy.

"Did you see Mimi?"

Sun Chang wasn't surprised. Wherever Mimi went, she was always the center of attention in the animal kingdom. Cats, dogs, even leopards and lynxes all inexplicably showed her affection; there were never any exceptions.

"What are you looking at? One by one. Do you think you can scare me like this? Back in the Southern Province, I used to run rampant with my gang of thugs, you know?"

Lin Ge wasn't afraid at all, since none of the dogs' eyes were filled with malice. Putting aside their status as police dogs, based on Lin Ge's own experience, he was at the MAX level when it came to friendliness towards all animals.

"Wang~"

Suddenly, a police dog broke free from its handler's leash in the distance and ran towards Lin Ge like a shooting star.

This guy looked somewhat familiar to Lin Ge. Upon closer inspection, wasn't he the police dog he had led in Zhuzhou City, Nan Province? Even the trainer it had shaken off looked familiar; if he remembered correctly, his name was Chen Song?

"Hey? Sun Chang? Mimi? Oh, Beibei's here too!"

Chen Song chased after his dog and quickly recognized Sun Chang.

After all, they were comrades who had worked together on cases, rolled in pig manure together, and even ended up in the hospital together while apprehending suspects! Chen Song had a wife, so he certainly wouldn't remember other women; but Sun Chang, this special policewoman, was someone Chen Song would probably never forget for the rest of his life. The scene of the two of them covered in the smell of pig manure would forever remain in his memory.

"Chen Song?"

Sun Chang also recognized Chen Song; the reason was the same—the camaraderie forged through shared experiences of rolling in pig manure and staying in hospitals.

"You guys are here too! I've been thinking for a long time that you, Sun Chang, and your police dog Beibei would definitely be there for the Chu Province police dog competition. Oh right, and Mimi too! The special guest mentioned in the document is you, right? There's no other possibility but you."

Chen Song spoke with a cheerful smile, his attitude very enthusiastic.

The Kunming dog, who had run over a step ahead of him, squatted down in front of Lin Ge without hesitation, obediently adopting the posture of a subordinate.

"Wang!"

It barked excitedly at Ringo, as if to say... Boss, long time no see!
(End of this chapter)