Chapter 249: Facing Gao Peng Head-On

The reception room of the Qinghu Guesthouse.

Everyone had been waiting for over half an hour; now not only Gao Peng was fuming, but even the accompanying Secretary General Jiang Huailiang and others could hardly contain themselves.

Jiang Huailiang raised his wrist to check the time; it was already 7:36 p. m.

Today is his daughter's tenth birthday; he had promised his wife to go home and celebrate with her, but unexpectedly the time was taken up by Lin Dongfan here.

Just thinking about it makes him angry.

That brat Lin Dongfan is truly arrogant to an absurd degree; having just grasped power, he doesn't even put a deputy-ministerial-level Secretary Gao in his eyes, daring to put on airs in public.

Jiang Huailiang angrily asked Jian Sining: "Xiao Jian, what exactly is Section Chief Lin up to? Please go inform him again—Secretary Gao wants to see him!"

"Secretary Gao, Secretary Jiang, please don't rush."

After following Lin Dongfan for so long, Jian Sining has also become increasingly steady; even when facing a bigwig like Gao Peng of that level, she can remain calm in a crisis.

She gave an explanation without humility or arrogance: "Section Chief Lin is currently on a call with a leader; he'll come down after the call ends, so please wait a bit longer."

That explanation is fine.

Regardless of whether Chu Lingxi is Lin Dongfan's superior, the effect was good—Jiang Huailiang looked sullen and silent, and Gao Peng held his breath without uttering a sound.

Everyone waited another ten or so minutes, and Lin Dongfan finally walked into the reception room.

"Section Chief Lin, you're really a busy person, making us wait nearly an hour."

Jiang Huailiang, sharp-eyed, saw Lin Dongfan's messy hair and clean complexion and knew he had just taken a shower, a faint scent of shower gel still lingering on him.

However, Jiang Huailiang merely gave a scoffing laugh, not foolish enough to expose Lin Dongfan to his face.

What Jiang Huailiang did not expect was that

Lin Dongfan actually said with a smile: "Sorry, I just took a shower and kept everyone waiting."

As soon as those words left his mouth, Gao Peng's face instantly darkened like a storm cloud overhead; he gritted his teeth, and even his facial muscles twitched slightly.

Jiang Huailiang, adept at reading expressions, was also frightened into silence.

He thought, "This guy Lin Dongfan is really a troublemaker; I wasn't going to expose you, but you went and laid your cards on the table—this obviously puts Secretary Gao in an awkward spot."

Sure enough!

Secretary Gao opened his mouth with a smile laced with anger: "Section Chief Lin, you've got quite the airs! Even I, a deputy-ministerial official, have to wait here for you to finish your shower before we can discuss matters."

"Secretary Gao, what's my normal off-duty time? Anyway, I have to take a shower first—this is respect for you."

"Hehe, this kind of respect of yours really opens my eyes!"

If Lin Dongfan were a locally managed cadre of Nanzhou City, Gao Peng would have already slapped him; in the whole of Nanzhou, nobody would dare put on airs in front of Gao Peng.

The only thing to hate is that this guy Lin Dongfan is someone sent by the Anti-Corruption Bureau.

His rank is not high.

He relies on the status of an imperial envoy to flaunt his power.

This also reminded Gao Peng of an old saying: "Using a tiger's skin as a banner, give him a club and he thinks he's a needle (really)," showing he's rather clueless about his own limits.

Gao Peng suppressed his anger and spoke bluntly: "Cut the small talk; I came here today to ask about Zhao Lianyue."

"Secretary Gao, that's probably inappropriate," Lin Dongfan replied without humility or arrogance: "Although you're the top leader of Nanzhou, I suggest you try not to interfere in some matters."

"Have I interfered? Please watch your words and mind your bounds!"

Gao Peng put on a stern face.

He solemnly emphasized to Lin Dongfan: "The High-tech Zone just had an explosion accident; many things are being handled by Zhao Lianyue! You arrested people without notifying the city, directly taking them from the office! Now a big mess is left there unattended—I came to find out the situation, and that counts as interference?!"

"What situation do you want to know about?"

"If Zhao Lianyue really is a corrupt element, you arrest him—I have no objection, punish him as deserved! But I heard you arrested him without any evidence, not even a detention warrant; I want to hear your explanation!"

Gao Peng's deathly stare made the atmosphere turn icy to the extreme.

Such pressure from a deputy-ministerial official, if placed on an ordinary cadre's head, would likely make most people bow their heads on the spot, tense enough to break out in a cold sweat.

Unfortunately, this trick doesn't work on Lin Dongfan.

In Lin Dongfan's view:

This is just an old man urinating, making the little master laugh out loud; with that bit of kidney energy, he still wants to splash on others' faces? Not wetting his own shoes would already be not bad.

Lin Dongfan struggled to suppress the urge to laugh.

He put on a serious demeanor: "Secretary Gao, first, our task force handling the case apparently doesn't need to explain to you. Second, Li Zhong endured a downpour, kneeling at the gate of the Management Committee seeking to see Zhao Lianyue, only to almost be beaten to death by the Management Committee! Regarding this matter, do you have any explanation to offer?"

Gao Peng: "……!!!"

"What situation?"

"What do you mean Li Zhong almost got beaten to death?"

"I'm asking you for a reasonable explanation, yet you turn around and demand I give you one! Did the Management Committee's people assault Li Zhong? Is that your basis for acting without fear?"

This series of questions left Gao Peng angry with nowhere to vent.

Gao Peng turned his head and fixed his deathly stare on Municipal Party Committee Secretary General Jiang Huailiang: "Secretary Jiang, he said Li Zhong almost got beaten to death—is that really true?!"

"This matter…" Jiang Huailiang replied, steeling himself: "I'm not entirely clear either; no one has reported it to me…"

"It's not too late to know now." Lin Dongfan gave Jian Sining a glance: "Bring the evidence for them to see."

"Just a moment."

Jian Sining went back to the office and fetched the digital camera.

They played on the spot the video of Li Zhong being beaten.

Seeing this irrefutable evidence, Gao Peng could barely contain himself: "This is utterly lawless! Who is the bastard who did the beating? Hand him over to the public security organs for strict handling!"

Lin Dongfan said: "This person is Secretary Sun of the Management Committee's office; he has already been apprehended by our task force and cannot yet be transferred to the Public Security Bureau."

"Is this bastard involved in corruption?" Gao Peng asked in astonishment.

Lin Dongfan frowned, not relaxing: "Funny enough, after a casual interrogation, he immediately confessed his problems in full detail, so…"

"So what?" Gao Peng's face grew ever more shocked: "He implicated Zhao Lianyue?"

Seeing Gao Peng's tense appearance, Lin Dongfan could no longer keep up the act; he couldn't help but relax his brows and smile: "Secretary Gao, I'm sorry, I can't answer that question—it's against the rules."

"...!!!"

Gao Peng gritted his teeth and glared at Lin Dongfan.

Suddenly he forced out a strained smile: "Lin Dongfan, it seems I truly underestimated you. Did your father-in-law Chu Jinsong remind you? You need to consider the consequences of your actions."

Faced with this threatening aura that came rushing at him, Lin Dongfan shook his head and smiled: "My father-in-law follows the rules; he doesn't like to meddle in others' affairs."

The implication is that you're sticking your nose in too much—you're everywhere!

Gao Peng, who understood the implication, also had his smile tinged with anger.

Without further words.

Gao Peng directly ordered Jiang Huailiang: "Secretary Jiang, given the complexity of the explosion case, involving terrorism and organized crime! Notify Xu Liangyuan of the Faction to have him assign personnel to provide 24-hour protection for the members of the Anti-Corruption Bureau Special Task Force."

Upon hearing this, those around were somewhat shocked.

Even a fool could see that protecting Lin Dongfan and the others was a pretense; Gao Peng simply wanted to keep an eye on Lin Dongfan and the others, restricting their movements.

Lin Dongfan, however, kept his calm smile: "Thank you, Secretary Gao."

In his heart he was already sharpening his knives, ready to slaughter pigs and sheep.

He thought, "Gao Peng, Gao Peng, you're really a talent, coming up with such a crooked trick! Do you think keeping an eye on me will save your sister? Naive! This time, even if she grew wings, she couldn't fly away."