Chapter 794: The Secret in the Fish Pond

Flat Mountain County, the Zhou family's old residence.

Before the vehicle had come to a complete stop, Zhou Hongwei impatiently pushed the door open and stepped out.

The family home was a two-and-a-half-story self-built house, its walls somewhat mottled, but the yard was kept clean. Hearing the engine, the septuagenarian mother stepped out from inside, leaning on her cane.

The old woman looked surprised: "Hongwei? Why have you come back so early in the morning?"

"Mom, it's nothing; I just came back to pick up something."

Zhou Hongwei forced a smile, his eyes involuntarily glancing toward the front-yard fish pond: "Mom, has everything been all right at home lately? No strangers have come by, have they?"

"Strangers? Where would strangers come from." The old lady shook her head: "Just you, when you came back last weekend."

"That's good."

Zhou Hongwei nodded, went into the main room, drank a bowl of water, then came back out.

The half-mu fish pond in front of the courtyard, though its water was murky and even dotted with duckweed, was Zhou Hongwei's treasure for guarding the home.

As the feng shui master would say—a half-moon pond before the door brings wealth and grain to the household!

This half-mu fish pond is precisely the 'qi-gathering pool' spoken of in feng shui lore, with the wonderful function of sheltering wind and gathering qi, symbolizing that wealth does not leak away and flows like a steady stream.

By the pond's edge a modest little pavilion had been erected, a place where Zhou Hongwei would come to feed the fish and sit idly.

But today.

He stood in the pavilion, not looking at the fish, nor admiring the chaotic duckweed on the water's surface, but his thoughts were fixed on something hidden beneath the water.

Having struggled in officialdom for most of his life, he could not afford to let his efforts come to nothing.

Zhou Hongwei thought about it, and his heartstrings grew tight.

"Brother, what are you doing?"

His sister Zhou Hongying came out from the house, still holding an unharvested bunch of leeks: "Every time you come back you just stare at the fish pond, as if you could dig up gold from it."

!!!

Zhou Hongwei's heart gave a jolt at her words; he forced himself to stay calm: "What nonsense are you talking? I'm just checking whether the fish are still alive."

"If they die, they'll float to the surface."

Zhou Hongying laughed: "Big brother, have you gone stupid from being an official? You don't even know such basic common sense—why keep staring at the fish pond?"

"This is a feng shui pond—you don't know the first thing about it."

Like many corrupt officials, the more storms and trials Zhou Hongwei had weathered in his official career, the more he believed in fate; and feng shui arrangements were a key to defying heaven and changing one's destiny.

However……

His true purpose for coming back today was obviously not to check whether the feng shui had been sabotaged.

He then pressed Zhou Hongying: "Recently, has anyone come to fish in the pond?"

"Who would dare come to fish in our family's pond?"

Zhou Hongying wore an expression of pride, with not a hint of boasting; even if she weren't home, the village cadres would help keep an eye on things.

Zhou Hongwei asked again: "Or has anyone gone swimming in the pond?"

"Swimming?"

Zhou Hongying blinked in surprise, then laughed: "Brother, are you feeling ill?"

She pointed at the murky, greenish water in the pond.

She added: "This water is filthy beyond description—just looking at it makes you nauseous. Who would go swimming in it? Even washing one's feet feels dirty."

"That's true."

Since no one was fishing and no one was swimming, Zhou Hongwei's anxious heart eased by half. He let out a slow breath, and his tense expression relaxed considerably.

He thought:

"Perhaps I'm overthinking it; the Discipline Inspection Commission people probably haven't come to investigate."

"Lin Dongfan, that bastard, as a newly appointed official throwing his weight around, had already once carried out a 'kill one to warn a hundred' stunt, offending many people; now he likely wants to smooth things over, which is why he's praising me……"

Having thought this through, Zhou Hongwei exhaled completely and turned to walk back.

"There's still some business at the office; I'll head back first—take good care of Mom."

"You're leaving just like that? Won't you eat before you go?"

"No, I won't."

Zhou Hongwei couldn't be bothered to argue further with his sister; upon getting in the car he told the driver to return to the office.

On the way back to the city.

Zhou Hongwei leaned back in the rear seat, eyes closed, reflecting all the way—he was still not calm enough, nearly thrown into disarray by that Lin fellow!

A newly parachuted-in mayor, with an unsteady base—just how big a wave could he stir up?

Secretary Wang had been operating in Wuzhou for over three years, and now the key posts holding real power were essentially all his people!

With just Lin Dongfan acting alone, does he really think he can overturn the situation single-handedly?

Dream on!

As he mused, a faint smirk curled Zhou Hongwei's lips; he immediately pulled out his phone and dialed the number of Tang Yuchao, director of the Environmental Protection Bureau.

"Old Tang, where are you?"

"In the bureau, where else could I be? You didn't go this morning to hand in a report to Mayor Lin, did you? How was it—did you get chewed out?"

"Scolded?"

Zhou Hongwei snorted derisively, his tone full of smugness: "What scolding? Mayor Lin's three axes probably can't even swing anymore—today he actually praised me to the skies."

On the other end of the line, there was a noticeable pause: "Praised you? Really?"

"Why would I lie to you?"

Zhou Hongwei leaned back, legs crossed, smug: "He said our Housing and Urban-Rural Development Bureau's work is completely by the book, no faults. He also told me not to harbor any ideological burdens and just get on with the job. In my view, any special crackdown is just going through the motions; as long as we follow Secretary Wang's line, even if Mayor Lin blusters a bit, he'll eventually have to yield."

The more Zhou Hongwei spoke, the more fired up he became.

He lit a cigarette in the car, then spoke while puffing clouds: "Don't be afraid of him. He, surnamed Lin, is just a nose and two eyes, with no three heads and six arms. We should do what we need to do; if the sky falls, there'll be a tall person to hold it up."

Tang Yuchao on the other end of the phone fell silent for a few seconds.

Then he gave a dry laugh twice: "All good, all good……"

"Alright, let's leave it here for now; I'm almost at the bureau, we'll talk later." After hanging up, Zhou Hongwei was in high spirits, even humming the old indecent eighteen touches.

The driver must have long been used to it, merely smiling without speaking.

The car entered the urban area.

Zhou Hongwei, however, didn't notice that a black Santana had been tailing him. The person leading the team in the car was none other than Sun Yongwen, who had led the team that arrested Li Chuan-gen last time.

As Zhou Hongwei's car drove into the Housing and Urban-Rural Development Bureau.

Section Chief Sun took out his phone to report to his superior: "Secretary Shi, Zhou Hongwei went back to his hometown, just took a look at the hometown fish pond, did nothing, and has now returned to the unit."

Soon came Shi Liantang's instruction over the phone:

"Mayor Lin has instructed: first, don't startle the snake. Split forces into two routes: one stays to watch Zhou Hongwei; the other returns to Zhou Hongwei's hometown, brings a metal detector, and first probes the bottom."

Upon hearing that.

Section Chief Sun was slightly startled: "You mean, probe the bottom of the fish pond?"

"Yes."

Shi Liantang's voice came over the phone, chuckling: "Mayor Lin is right here beside me. He said, back when he worked at the anti-corruption bureau, he demolished houses, dug up graves, and even excavated stinking cesspits—all that's left is to probe a fish pond. You go first to probe the bottom for Mayor Lin; if you confirm there's something in the pond, we'll pull the net and catch the fish tonight."

"Understood, I'll go myself to probe the bottom."

Upon learning that Mayor Lin himself was personally directing from behind the scenes, Section Chief Sun's blood boiled; saying he wasn't excited would be a lie! Given the current situation in Wuzhou, not everyone gets the chance to be placed on Mayor Lin's trust list.