Ruiz didn't get into his own car but got into Jimmy's car, "Let's grab a drink."

Without saying much, Jimmy drove straight home. If they were going to have a drink, they might as well head over to Woody's place.

Woody greeted Jimmy. It was still early, and there weren't many people in the bar yet. Jimmy and Ruiz sat down at a corner table. Ruiz looked at Jimmy, "Jimmy, you're not having much luck this time."

Jimmy picked up his glass and took a sip, "Have you investigated?"

Ruiz: "Yeah, I even dug into some extra stuff."

Jimmy: "Cut to the chase, I'm not surprised by any bad news now."

Ruiz: "Alexander Macro, a senior agent from the Chicago office, diligent and promising. After retiring from the military, he joined the FBI. He's clever, efficient, brave, and despises evil, with a high case-solving rate, at least that's what his records suggest.

Do these adjectives sound familiar? Your file contains similar descriptions. You and he are quite alike."

Jimmy grimaced. All that could be argued, but from how Macro had been handling cases these past few days, he didn't seem to fit that praise.

Ruiz noticed Jimmy's grimace and gave a chuckle before taking a sip of whiskey and continuing, "Those are just the records. I've learned some other things through a friend. Macro's been acting a bit off lately, suspected to have bipolar disorder, which isn't mentioned in the files. That friend just happens to know the psychiatrist Macro had seen."

Oh, and one more thing I forgot to mention, he got divorced six months ago. He has an ex-wife and a child; the child lives with the ex-wife. His suspected bipolar disorder might be related to that."

Jimmy furrowed his brow. Bipolar disorder is a major red flag for case operatives. It is essentially a combination of manic and depressive episodes where manic episodes cause one to be euphoric and energetic, while depressive episodes result in low moods and fatigue among other symptoms.

This alternating psychological state is extremely unstable. For regular people, it merely affects their life for shorter or longer periods, but for police officers and law enforcement, it's an unstable factor because you never know what state they're in. Whether during investigations or backing up colleagues, it's tough to rely on him.

Jimmy: "Are you sure? This is very serious."

Ruiz shrugged: "It's just a suspicion and quite subtle. In fact, no signs were noticed in his daily behavior; Macro seems entirely normal. If I hadn't asked specifically, my friend would not have even realized it."

Jimmy: "That complicates things. A middle-aged man, divorced for half a year, mood instability is normal; it might not be bipolar disorder, maybe just unhappiness from being separated from his ex-wife and child. I don't have much experience with this kind of situation. Guess I'll need to put up with his temperament for a while."

Ruiz: "That's why I said you're not very lucky. He agreed to transfer to Manhattan, which I think has partly to do with wanting to leave behind Chicago, a place of sad memories. Although it's just a guess, it's highly probable, especially since he brought his old subordinates with him."

Jimmy: "Yeah, I'll be more careful, and I won't rock the boat at this time. By the way, in such a situation, is it necessary for a psychologist to perform psychological adjustments?"

Ruiz: "Of course, but I think he wouldn't want to make this public knowledge, so a psychologist consultation is off the table for him."

Jimmy took a sip of his drink and suddenly laughed, "No problem, if he won't go see the psychologist, can't I just invite the psychologist to the office for tea? It's a small matter, I'll handle it."

Jimmy suddenly thought of Mary, whom he hadn't seen for months and had no proper chance to visit her openly.

Because Jimmy was now under close surveillance, the Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR), equivalent to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, had already had several disputes with Hughes because of Jimmy's shooting incident.

Normally, Jimmy should have been given at least ten to fifteen days off by now, followed by some psychological intervention. However, since Hughes hadn't appointed a head for the Homicide Team, and Jimmy was just a tender shoot, he had effectively been outside OPR's strict control since the explosion case. As long as he acted reasonably and legally without causing any trouble, Hughes and OPR didn't enforce administrative leave on him; just reviewing the case was considered sufficient process.

Speaking of which, finding an excuse to have Mary visit the office should be feasible, right? Or maybe, should he first go buy some quality tea leaves? Inviting a beautiful woman to drink tea at the FBI office, wasn't that a bit frivolous?

Jimmy was so bored it was painful, just feeling that something was off with his new boss. His thoughts whirred chaotically, resulting in such an unreliable plan, yet he was thoroughly enjoying it, completely unaware of how much his plan was impacting others.

Ruiz observed Jimmy pondering, his facial expressions subtly shifting, and knew this kid must be up to no good, "Hey! Hey! Jimmy!"

Only then did Jimmy realize he wasn't at home, daydreaming whimsically, "Drink up, drink up."

Ruiz: "Don't stir up trouble, he's just arrived in Manhattan, don't create problems for yourself."

Jimmy waved his hand: "Relax, I won't mess around. Cheers!"

Ruiz took a sip from his glass, looked towards the bar, and noticed Woody watching them. Ruiz smiled and waved at Woody, who came over with a bottle of whiskey and a glass, "Woody, your friend Teddy has been released, you know that right?"

Woody thanked Ruiz with a smile: "I've already seen him, thanks, if it weren't for you all, he might have been gone."

Woody poured drinks for Jimmy and Ruiz, raised his glass to both, and Ruiz said, "He's lucky; if you don't want him dead, keep him away from that stuff."

Woody: "I understand." Woody nodded at them, left the whiskey, and returned to the bar with his glass.

This was Ruiz's first visit here since he took the unfortunate Teddy, Woody had told Jimmy he wanted to thank Ruiz and didn't have the chance until now, so he brought a bottle as a thank you.

Woody was actually a decent guy; Jimmy had been to this bar several times, and although they weren't particularly close, he could still tell Woody was a good person.

Ruiz: "By the way, the high-purity stuff Teddy got last time isn't from the same batch as the Azte gang's goods that Razor snagged. There's some issue here. If it's not because they have multiple types of goods supplied at the same time, there could be another group that produced high-quality stuff. I've already given Hughes a heads up, DEA will take over this case, but only after the stuff with Razor wraps up."

Jimmy: "That works. Speaking of which, I also know people in Texas, both DEA and FBI offices."

Ruiz speechlessly said, "Aren't you in Arkansas?"

Jimmy: "Oh, I know people at the FBI and DEA in Arkansas too; it's good to have some connections at headquarters."

Ruiz: "You really do have a wide network, what else?"

Jimmy stretched out his left hand, bending each finger: "Besides the DEA and FBI, there's the Anti-Terrorism Bureau, USSS Special Service Bureau, and court police? I've collaborated with all of them, and I've even received awards, which I keep on my desk." Jimmy's expression was one of pride; as a rookie FBI agent, his achievements definitely surpassed most.

Ruiz jokingly asked Jimmy to recount his great achievements. The two of them drank, chatted, and snacked on some nibbles from Woody's bar as they whittled away the time.

When it was time to part, Jimmy didn't drive Ruiz home. Both had had a fair bit to drink, and in such cases, taking a taxi was a bit more reliable.

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