Chapter 690: The

April 26, at six in the morning, many people received phone notices and, unable to wash up or have breakfast, rushed to their posts.

The Provincial Office, the Provincial Discipline Inspection Committee, the Provincial Public Security Department, the Provincial Health and Family Planning Commission, and the Provincial Medical Insurance Bureau urgently formed twelve task forces, each heading to one of twelve target hospitals to carry out stabilization work.

Chen Hangjia, director of the eighth supervision office of the Provincial Discipline Inspection Committee, led a team to the Qing City Government, lying in wait.

Hundreds of medical staff, following the leaders' orders, gathered near the Provincial Government; the overwhelming majority were hospital contract workers and labor dispatches.

What these people did not expect was that numerous security checkpoints sprang up at every intersection within five kilometres of the Provincial Government; Yang Minghao and Liu Jin Zhu personally deployed them, and the police conducted simple "screenings" of passing pedestrians, casually asking, "Where do you work?" "Where are you heading?"

If a "suspicious" person was found, they would promptly, very politely, "invite" him into a police car and take him back to the Public Security Bureau to "understand the situation."

A battle without gunpowder had already begun; Yun Shuo arrived early at the office to command, Lu Fan responded calmly, the Provincial Government was suffused with tension, Gu Yunhao and others watched coolly, waiting for the "mass petition" incident to ferment.

Around seven o'clock, a man and a woman carrying a video camera walked down the street and were stopped by a checkpoint police officer, who politely asked, "Comrade, where are you going with that camera? On a mission?"

The woman, a bit uneasy, replied, "We're shooting short videos, just out to gather footage."

The officer smiled and said, "Sorry, the Provincial Government has an important event today; filming is not allowed. Please understand."

"Oh, fine then, we'll go elsewhere." The two hurriedly turned and left.

At a temporary security checkpoint on Government West Road, a police officer stopped a passerby and asked, "Comrade, could you please register which unit you work for?"

The person asked puzzledly, "Why are you asking me out of the blue? I haven't done anything wrong, have I?"

The officer hurried to explain, "Comrade, you've misunderstood. The Provincial Government has an important reception today; we're just asking casually."

"Oh, I'm from Dongcheng Hospital, going over there to handle something."

The officer's eyes lit up, stepped forward, put an arm around the person's shoulder, and smiled, "Please cooperate; we need to understand the situation, it'll only take a minute or two." With that, he "hugged" him into the nearby police car.

Such scenes played out at every intersection: a large batch of "suspects" were taken away, while only a few "fish that slipped through the net" escaped the police's "sharp eyes"; the police could not screen everyone, so they relied on their "eagle‑eyed" judgment to lock onto targets.

At 7:20, the director of the City Dental Hospital, sporting dark circles under his eyes, arrived early at the office; his mood was uneasy, as anyone who does wrong feels guilty.

People are like that—what they fear comes to them. One minute after the director entered the office, Wang Dong, director of the Provincial Health and Family Planning Commission, pushed the door open.

As a director, he naturally knew his "immediate superior," so he hurriedly rose to greet him, already harboring a bad premonition.

Sure enough, Wang Dong's gaze was like two cold rays, fixed on the director, his face so grim it seemed it could drip water, and in a low yet authoritative voice he demanded, "Have all your hospital staff reported for duty?"

Hearing this, the director's heart tightened, a fine sheen of sweat instantly appeared on his forehead, and he hurriedly replied, "Director Wang, it's not work time yet, I… I don't know whether the staff have arrived…"

Wang Dong cut the director off without mercy, loudly demanding, "I've heard your hospital secretly took part in the 'mass petition'; as director, have you been fanning the flames, abetting wrongdoing? Deliberately sabotaging the province's medical reform plan?"

The words struck the director like a heavy hammer to his heart, terrifying him to the point of panic; he froze, his speech stammering, and he blurted, "This… this is the City Bureau's directive, I… I was forced, had no choice…"

Wang Dong interrupted again, his tone fierce, ordering, "No more nonsense. Call immediately and summon all your people back, use the desk phone right here. I warn you, if even one person from your hospital participates in the petition, I'll send you to prison, so take care of it!"

"Director Wang… I… I was wrong, I'll call them back right away!" The director was completely panicked, his mind only focused on carrying out the order.

At this point the director was so frightened he was disoriented, his mind a blank; aside from hurriedly obeying Wang Dong's command, he could think of no other response. So he trembled, reached for the desk phone, flipped through the address book, and began dialing numbers one by one…

Such scenes played out in twelve medium‑ and large‑sized hospitals across the city.

At 7:30, dawn streamed through the windows of the Qing City Government building; Vice Mayor Nian Jiang, his body exhausted, slowly pushed open the door to his office. He had stayed up all night without sleep, and at his age he simply couldn't endure it.

Just as he was about to brew a cup of hot tea to relieve his fatigue, someone pushed the door in. Nian Jiang stared and saw it was Chen Hangjia! His heart instantly raced, sinking to the bottom of a valley, a sense of impending disaster engulfing him.

The cunning Nian Jiang quickly steadied himself, forced out a smile, and warmly said, "So Director Chen graces us with his presence; my office is in full bloom! What brings you here, Director Chen?"

Chen Hangjia stared at him expressionlessly, said no small talk, and announced directly, "Mayor Nian, because you are suspected of serious violations of duty and criminal conduct, and with the Provincial Party Committee's approval, the Provincial Discipline Inspection Committee and Supervision Commission have decided to conduct disciplinary review and supervisory investigation on you! According to the relevant regulations, we are now taking a detention measure; please cooperate!"

Hearing this, Nian Jiang stood there as if struck by lightning, his whole being seeming to lose its support, his body trembling uncontrollably. He tried to steady himself, but his legs felt as if all strength had been drained, soft and weak.

Summoning his resolve, Nian Jiang asked, "Does Secretary Yun know?"

Chen Hangjia, solemn and cold, replied, "This is the Provincial Party Committee's decision; I will report the situation to the Qing City Municipal Party Committee and City Government, please come with us!" With that, several staff behind him stepped forward, one on each side, lifted Nian Jiang, and forcibly escorted him out of the office.

The staff who had arrived early at the City Government, upon seeing this, were terrified, unable to believe their eyes, completely at a loss, no one dared to approach or ask, but soon someone went to inform the Party Secretary and the Mayor.

At the same time, the same scene unfolded in the offices of the City Medical Insurance Bureau director and the Health and Family Planning Commission director.

By now it was work time, and cadres and staff of the two units had arrived on duty; everyone witnessed a thrilling scene— their own director being openly taken away by the Provincial Discipline Inspection Committee!

The shock was unparalleled; the visual and psychological impact was almost indescribable. The units were shrouded in an invisible fear, the atmosphere so oppressive it was suffocating, aptly described as everyone being anxious and on edge.

After finishing his work, Chen Hangjia went straight to Municipal Party Secretary Yun Shuo's office to report today's Provincial Discipline Inspection Committee action.

After hearing Chen Hangjia's unreasonable conduct, Yun Shuo completely lost his composure and roared, "For such a massive operation, I, the Municipal Party Secretary, knew nothing about it. You're basically ignoring the Qing City Municipal Party Committee!"

Chen Hangjia responded without fear, "Secretary Yun, please calm down; this is the decision of the Provincial Party Committee and Provincial Discipline Inspection Committee. I'm merely a 'runner'; your anger at me achieves nothing. Here is the Provincial Discipline Inspection Committee document; please review it, Sir. I have official duties, so I won't disturb you further!" With that, Chen Hangjia turned and left the office.

Yun Shuo, furious, smashed everything on his desk that could be broken; he never expected Lu Fan's counterattack to be so swift.

Suddenly, he realized the carefully plotted "mass petition" might be in jeopardy, so he hurriedly dialed a director's phone on his mobile to contact him directly.

But when the call connected, it was a voice from the Provincial Discipline Inspection Committee; terrified, Yun Shuo quickly hung up and destroyed the backup phone.

At 8:20, more than twenty "unexpected guests" entered the Provincial Petition Reception Hall; these "fish that slipped through the net" gathered and unfurled a rights‑protection banner—"We want food, we want to survive!"

Lu Fan closely monitored the Provincial Petition Bureau; secretary Cheng Haohao stayed in the reception hall to observe, daring not to relax at all. Yet only a little over twenty people arrived; the bureau deals with petition groups from dawn to dusk, and such a small number could not stir any wave at all.

After receiving the petitions, the Provincial Petition Bureau, following procedure, immediately notified the Qing City Municipal Party Committee and City Government to come for the reception.

Thus the "farce" ended hastily, leaving Executive Deputy Provincial Governor Gu Yunhao deep in thought, as he began to reassess Lu Fan's control over the grassland.

For this "mass petition," everyone pooled ideas and forces, mobilizing over 500 people, yet only a little over twenty showed up. What does that indicate? Lu Fan has already seized the grassland situation! So where should everyone go from here? That is a practical issue that must be considered!

Lu Fan and Du Wenlong were chatting casually in the office; Du Wenlong said, "We thought they had great abilities, but they turned out to be this weak?"

Lu Fan smiled faintly and said, "We must not be careless, nor complacent. Wenlong, vigilance is essential; in matters of life and death, I reckon they won't settle peacefully, so we must act cautiously."

Du Wenlong replied with a laugh, "Don't worry, Brother Fan, we disdain it strategically but must take it seriously tactically. I plan to launch a major operation against Qing City in the next few days, and eliminate some of Yun Shuo's 'minions'!"

Lu Fan nodded slightly and said, "You handle it yourself; decide who to target, submit the report, and I'll approve."