Chapter 862: Who Has the Final Say!

Tuesday morning, nine o'clock.

The Provincial Department special case team entered the Municipal Public Security Bureau, with team leader Yang Qing at the helm, followed by three plainclothes criminal investigation backbone officers.

Yang Qing looked up at this dull office building, recalling the days when he used to come here to mooch meals.

Back then Zhou Zheng was still around; the two walked to the canteen with arms around each other's shoulders, chatting about the case all the way, complaining.

Now one could say things have changed, people are different; in the eyes of those at the City Bureau, today he Yang Qing isn't here to serve the people, but to pluck peaches,

"Director Yang, can you smell a hint of killing intent?" a young police officer teased.

Yang Qing strode forward and went inside: "Scared of nothing!" The second half of the sentence was "We have people above us," but Yang Qing didn't say it out loud.

The group entered the office building and headed straight to the third-floor meeting room.

Yesterday we had already notified the City Bureau people; this morning we were to hand over the case-related materials, and the Provincial Department special case team officially took up residence.

The meeting room door was open, but there was no one inside.

Yang Qing stood at the doorway, looked for three seconds, then bellowed: "Where is everyone? You City Bureau, is this your reception attitude?!"

It startled a passing junior officer.

He recognized it was Yang Qing.

The junior officer hurriedly greeted: "Director Yang, you've arrived? The leader is in a meeting; I'll go let you know."

"No need, I'll go myself."

Pretending to be in a meeting was a ruse; Yang Qing saw through it at a glance and turned straight for the Political Commissar's office.

The Political Commissar Zheng's office door was ajar.

Yang Qing pushed the door open and entered.

The Zheng government sat at the desk drinking tea, and as soon as he spoke he criticized: "Who are you? You don't even knock! No manners at all…

He didn't finish his sentence.

Looking up and seeing Yang Qing and company, Political Commissar Zheng immediately put on a smile: "Oh dear, Director Yang, why did you come in person? Please, have a seat, please have a seat."

Yang Qing didn't sit; he just stood in the doorway looking at him.

"Old Zheng." Yang Qing said in a neutral tone, a hint of a harmonious smile on his face: "Have you received the Provincial Department's documents? We're here today to hand over the materials."

"Received, received."

Political Commissar Zheng's smile turned a bit stiff: "Director Yang, rest assured, we will certainly cooperate fully. However…"

"However what?" Yang Qing stared at him.

Political Commissar Zheng set down his teacup.

He spoke slowly and deliberately: "The handover of these materials must follow procedure. We've studied it in the bureau; for such a big case, the transfer of materials needs to be prudent. Why don't you go back first? We'll notify you once we're ready."

Playing Tai Chi, pulling an old man's leg?

Yang Qing laughed: "Old Zheng, you say that, and I'm a bit confused—could it be that you City Bureau want to teach the Provincial Department how to do things?"

"No misunderstanding, our City Bureau has no qualifications to teach the Provincial Department how to do things."

Political Commissar Zheng squeezed out a dry smile: "Director Yang, you also know, this case involves a wide scope and a lot of materials; sorting them out takes time…"

"How long do you need?" Yang Qing asked.

Political Commissar Zheng said: "That's hard to say. This case was originally handled by Zhou Zheng; now Zhou Zheng is injured and lying in the hospital, we can't just drag him out of the hospital to hand over the case. Our City Bureau has always been case-specific; some key materials are in Zhou Zheng's hands. We need to wait until he's discharged before we can smoothly complete the handover."

Yang Qing smiled meaningfully: "Old Zheng, going by what you're saying, as long as Zhou Zheng doesn't leave the hospital, this case can't be transferred?"

"Director Yang, we really aren't trying to make things difficult for you." Political Commissar Zheng put on a troubled expression: "The core materials are in Zhou Zheng's hands; we must respect investigative procedures, right? We can't just bypass him because he's injured. If something goes missing or leaks during the handover, who will be held responsible?"

"As for Zhou Zheng, I just went to see him yesterday. He has a few stitches on his head, but he's clear-headed and speaks with vigor." Yang Qing countered: "Now you're telling me his condition is bad and the materials can't be handed over?"

Political Commissar Zheng froze for a moment, his smile freezing on his face: "This… you went to see him?"

"I did." Yang Qing said: "We chatted for half an hour, and he told me to rest easy, that he has a clear conscience regarding the case. Old Zheng, do you think his condition allows the handover to proceed?"

"Just because he said a couple of reassuring words doesn't mean he's fine. His injury is to the brain; the brain might not work well. The fact remains that he's still lying in the hospital."

By this point in the conversation, Political Commissar Zheng was already stubbornly making excuses.

Yang Qing gave Political Commissar Zheng's shoulder a firm pat, smiling as he threw out: "Old Zheng, you're a warrior!" Before the other could react from his bewilderment, he turned and walked away.

Political Commissar Zheng, already a bit dazed from the pat,

this time he's even more dazed!

He muttered to himself, puzzled: "Warrior? What the hell does that mean? How did I become a warrior? It's utterly baffling…"

Before he could sort out his thoughts, Yang Qing had already disappeared at the doorway.

Yang Qing returned to the car and lit a cigarette.

The young officer in the passenger seat turned and asked: "Director Yang, the City Bureau people aren't cooperating—what should we do now?"

Yang Qing took a drag of his cigarette, not rushing to answer.

Three solutions popped into his mind.

First, turn around and charge back!

Political Commissar Zheng's butt is sitting askew, fearless! Director Luo's butt wouldn't dare sit crooked, would it? Old Luo is single-mindedly thinking about self-preservation. As long as I put on the airs of a Deputy Director and apply direct pressure, Luo Zhiwei shouldn't dare to meet force with force; given his personality, he'll weigh the pros and cons.

The second solution is to give that pretentious Fan a call.

Fan Ye, after all, is also a city head; if he personally steps in to pressure the City Bureau, those jumping clowns should rein in a bit.

After thinking it over for a while, Yang Qing directly abandoned those two solutions.

He decided on the third solution—report to the superiors and have Director Qi step forward, which would also be a good chance to probe Director Qi's stance, to see if he really dares to stir up this muddy water.

After making up his mind, Yang Qing's mouth corner also curled up with a faintly mischievous smile.

He pulled out his phone and dialed Director Qi's number: "Director Qi, the City Bureau doesn't put our Provincial Department in its eyes at all; even the documents you personally signed are useless."

"What's the situation?"

The voice coming through the phone sounded somewhat surprised.

Yang Qing briefly said: "The bureau chief Luo of the City Bureau is hiding and not showing up. Political Commissar Zheng is wrangling with me, refusing to hand over the case to us. In this situation, they simply don't put you, the director, in their eyes at all."

"Is it that they don't put you in their eyes, or that they don't put me in theirs? After all, you're also a deputy director." Director Qi chuckled, seemingly instantly seeing through Yang Qing's scheme to sow discord.

Yang Qing wasn't in a hurry either.

He calmly took a puff of his cigarette and said slowly: "In short, they just don't put our Provincial Department in their eyes; I can't settle this; they have a Standing Committee member backing them."

"Are you sure they have someone backing them?" Director Qi questioned.

Yang Qing replied without hesitation: "This is obvious. If there were no one giving orders behind the scenes, Old Zheng wouldn't dare to oppose the Provincial Department even if he had the gall of a bear and a leopard."

"Then go find Lin Dongfan and ask him to help you resolve this." Director Qi said.

Yang Qing forced back a laugh and put on a reproachful tone: "He's not a good person. If he laughs at me, saying our Provincial Department can't even suppress a City Bureau, I couldn't afford to lose face with him."

"That's not the case; Mayor Lin isn't that kind of person." Director Qi said.

Yang Qing feigned a sigh: "Oh Director Qi, it seems you really don't understand him. If he doesn't give me a hard time for a day, he feels uncomfortable all over. As for Provincial Department matters, we should handle them ourselves; this not only concerns our face, but also the authority of the Provincial Department. If we set this precedent, who will still listen to the Provincial Department's orders in the future?"