Chapter 579

Lin Dongfan closed the Bureau Director's office door, shutting out the outside world.

The soundproofing was excellent; the noisy hall's sound vanished instantly. Li Mingtang's smile also instantly faded, replaced by the suppressed anger and fatigue he had been holding back.

He sat down rudely in the main seat sofa, massaging his still faintly aching right hand.

He glared at Lin Dongfan without good grace: "You brat, you're talking more and more nonsense, spouting bullshit, not a word of truth. You dare drink 9.9 mail tea? You're fooling ghosts. Speak honestly, how much is this tea per tael? Want ten thousand taels? Speak boldly, I won't suspect you of being a corrupt official."

As he spoke, Li Mingtang glanced at the cup of green tea before him, its fragrance filling the air.

Pure tea through and through!

The tea liquor is clear!

Just sniffing that rich tea aroma gives a refreshing, ethereal feeling; this could absolutely not be the junk of 9.9 mail tea.

Lin Dongfan smiled, gesturing please have tea: "It really is 9.9 mail tea, please, don't disdain its modesty."

I don't believe you.

Li Mingtang lifted the tea cup, first bringing it to his nose to smell carefully, then slowly sipped.

That refreshed, comfortable posture was like drinking jade nectar, every pore exuding an intoxicating aura where the tea doesn't intoxicate but you become intoxicated by it.

He set down the tea cup.

Li Mingtang shook his head and sighed: "What kind of life is this? Too damn luxurious. If I could drink this tea every day, I wouldn't bother being an official at all. I'd just go home, lie flat, and enjoy my twilight years—wouldn't that be nice?"

"You make it sound like I haven't brought you wealth." Lin Dongfan crossed his legs leisurely, lit a free cigarette: "At my age, stop acting like a resentful woman all day, killing the mood."

Speaking of wealth, Li Mingtang still felt a bit uneasy.

He doubted and asked Lin Dongfan: "You said earlier the bull market's rhythm had already begun, but these past few days I see the stock trend and feel no bullishness at all. You're not messing with me, are you? I've now put all my family's assets into the stock market, even with leverage. If I lose everything, it could be fatal."

"Hold stocks patiently, wait until next year, when the index exceeds five thousand points then sell." Lin Dongfan said confidently: "As long as you follow my advice, any losses are on me."

"If you say that, then I can relax."

Li Mingtang put aside his dreams of wealth, lifted the tea and sipped slowly, not uttering a sound; this tea is truly damn top-notch, I don't know what variety it is, can't tell.

After finishing this cup, Li Mingtang poured himself another: "Do you still have stock? Let me take some back to Jing."

"9.9 mail tea, pay up, and I'll send it to you later." Lin Dongfan blew a smoke ring, smiling: "We're upstanding folks; we can't leave room for suspicion of bribery."

That's no problem.

Li Mingtang immediately pulled out a hundred-yuan bill from his pocket.

He slapped it on the table.

Speaking wealthily and generously: "No need for change, the extra is tip."

"Bureau Chief is generous, but I'm not stingy either." Talking and laughing, Lin Dongfan rested his right leg on the table, rolled up his pant leg, exposing a leg of hair: "Let me test your eyesight—are my thighs thick or not?"

Li Mingtang glanced, then responded righteously: "I'm here to help you wipe your ass, yet you make me look at your thighs—what's the point? No need for me to wipe your ass?"

Mainly, he refuses to admit to clinging to thighs.

Lin Dongfan smiled, withdrawing his right leg: "Strictly speaking, you're here to help Old Peng wipe his ass, because the one who stirred the pot is Old Peng, not me."

"Cut the crap, if you didn't give the order, would he dare move against Lv Yizhi?"

Li Bai Tang rolled his eyes.

He continued to complain: "It's not me saying this, you guys—your investigative methods this time are really somewhat rough. What kind of person is Lv Yizhi? He's the Executive Vice Governor of Baiyue Province, deeply entrenched. You, on the other hand, with the evidence chain not yet fully closed, dare to play tricks to detain people, all while flying the flag of the Anti-Corruption Bureau. Now the Z Discipline Inspection Commission and the Supreme Procuratorate have received Lv Yizhi's accusations, causing me to be called up by the leadership and given a thorough dressing-down."

As expected.

What's the point? You must have known I'd get scolded.

Nonsense, we handle stirring the pot, you handle wiping ass—this has always been our tacit understanding. Don't look at me like that; in my heart, you're the handsomest Bureau Chief in the country.

If it weren't for this tea being too expensive, I'd really want to splash this tea water on your face.

Really? Is it really that big a grievance?

What do you mean 'not really'? You're using the pretense of a talks invitation to impose soft detention on a provincial-level high-ranking official! What kind of nature is this? The higher-ups have ordered me to immediately rectify conduct and enforce discipline.

Going by what you say, Old Peng indeed went a bit overboard this time.

Stop passing the buck; without your order, Peng Tianhua wouldn't dare do this even if he had the courage of a bear and leopard.

Bureau Chief, I'm wronged.

You're not wronged at all—listen up: I can't cover this for long either; you must obtain Lv Zhi Yi's corruption evidence within 24 hours, otherwise you'll have to release him.

I estimate it won't take 24 hours.

Are you confident?

Jiang Lin has already loosened up; she's specifically requested to see me. Now, as long as I personally interrogate her, many things will become clear.

Then why aren't you hurrying to interrogate her? Stop spouting nonsense here.

Look at what you're saying—you came all the way from Jingcheng just to criticize me; shouldn't I treat you to good tea and wine? I'm a polite person.

In the midst of chatting and laughing, Lin Dongfan picked up the teapot and personally refilled Li Mingtang's cup of tea.

With no outsiders present, the two joked and cursed freely; Lin Dongfan didn't treat Li Mingtang as a superior, and Li Mingtang didn't treat Lin Dongfan as a powerful patron.

Li Mingtang raised his wrist to check his watch: "Later I still need to go see your leader—Chen Gang. He hasn't taken a stance in this operation; what do you think of this?"

"According to my observation, he just wants to stay out of trouble and safely make it to retirement." Lin Dongfan said while brewing tea: "As long as he doesn't hold us back, I don't want to make things difficult for him."

"Since you have it figured out, I can relax."

Li Mingtang picked up the steaming hot tea; this tea really gets stronger the more you drink.

The ancients said tea can brighten the eyes and also calm the mind.

But Li Mingtang's heart hadn't truly calmed down; he still felt a bit emotional: "The last time you were attacked by assassins, fortunately you didn't report it. If your old master knew about this, who knows how many people would be punished. You Lin Family's third generation, you are the sole heir. Your old master often calls me, concerned about your safety at work. To be honest, I'm also walking on thin ice, more worried about your safety than anyone."

"Knowing you can't withstand your old master's beatings, I didn't tell the family." Lin Dongfan laughed: "How's my stature? Is it big enough?"

Not bad.

Li Mingtang substituted tea for wine and clinked cups with a smile.

After finishing this cup of clear tea, Li Mingtang asked again: "By the way, how is your bodyguard, Lao Ba? Is he out of mortal danger now?"

"The bullet missed the heart by one centimeter, he didn't die." Lin Dongfan set down his cup and rose: "No more bullshit with you, I'll go interrogate Jiang Lin first, and tonight I'll give you a welcome feast to wash away the dust."