Chapter 967: Truth Slowly Rises to the Surface

Su Yang immediately became interested; he also recalled that Zhang Lei is a local, the development is ready-made, but in fact he is the son‑in‑law of Guantan Gou Zhen, so it is reasonable that he knows some inside information.

"Oh, you know some details; then why didn't you report them to Secretary Zhang earlier?"

Zhang Lei said awkwardly, "Because when the incident happened I happened to be in Guantan Gou Zhen visiting relatives; to be frank, my wife is from Guantan Gou Zhen, and the side that took part in the brawl was her own family."

"It was their family's nephew who first accidentally killed a member of the opposing Yao family, and then Yao's people came back and killed that very nephew of his own family."

"This incident didn't happen at a normal pace; it was a premeditated action. I don't know whether the deaths were planned from the start, but Yao's people gathered extremely quickly— from the start of the incident to the Public Security Bureau's involvement, and then to Yao's people assembling, it took no more than three hours inside and out."

"If you say no one organized it, I don't believe it. My wife's side is the Miao family; they reacted swiftly, yet still couldn't protect that nephew of theirs."

"The key is, after the fact I saw that nephew; he wasn't drunk at all, just had a few drinks. So we can be sure the wine was problematic, and that nephew's condition was decent enough not to resort to theft."

"I can confirm the Miao side was reacting passively, while the Yao side was organized in advance. The reason I didn't dare report to Secretary Jiang is that he sealed off the information, preventing anyone outside our county seat from knowing; moreover, I was in Guantan Gou Zhen, and if I had reported directly, given Secretary Zhang's current behavior, I might have become the one held accountable."

Su Yang asked, "Before the incident, did that Miao nephew show any abnormal behavior? Did anyone give him money or anything else?"

Zhang Lei said, "When you talk about it, the whole thing is full of stories; perhaps someone exploited this, and some of it is just family shame."

"The Miao person and the Yao person originally had a very good relationship, but later, after both fell for the same woman, they became so‑called love rivals."

"The Miao side had better conditions, so the woman married into the Miao family, while the Yao side remained a perpetual bachelor. Though he idles daily, he never dared to steal or cheat; in recent years the two have not gotten along privately and have had no contact."

"Just a few days earlier, on the day of the incident, a respected member of the Yao family—Yao Daya's cousin—arranged for the two to have a meal together, saying that during the New Year any grudges should be set aside, and since everyone lives in the same village, they can't stay like this forever."

"They were already decent friends, and this emotional issue could be resolved with this opportunity, which would be ideal. So, under the arrangement, they ate together, drank a bit, and the Miao family's daughter‑in‑law was also present."

"After drinking, they went to play mahjong; while playing, each person took a few more sips, the wine being loose white wine that others had brought. Then the incident occurred."

"At that moment, Yao Daya's cousin said he was going elsewhere to visit relatives and never showed up again. So if the wine was the problem, I think it was that loose white wine, which was supplied by the Yao family."

Su Yang, after listening, roughly understood the situation and said, "What you described is important; later, contact Bureau Chief Sun Chengjun of the Public Security Bureau and tell him this matter privately, saying I asked you to speak to him."

Zhang Lei said, "Alright, I'll go to the County Public Security Bureau right away."

After Zhang Lei left, Su Yang called Lao Mo. The phone rang once, and Lao Mo answered, "County Magistrate Su, I was just about to call you; your call just came through."

Su Yang laughed, "Isn't this a case of hearts syncing? So, do you have time, are you free? If so, shall we meet somewhere for lunch together? Oh, and I'll also invite Old Hou, that is Secretary Hou. Mainly it's his place; if I go there, they might not even host me."

Mao Tai said, "Sure I have time; I also have some work matters to report to you, and was thinking of going to your office—does that work? If so, that's even better."

Su Yang said, "I'll send you an address later; just come to that location, and I'll arrange to meet Secretary Hou."

After Zhang Lei finished speaking, the first person he thought of was Mao Tai, and the second was to rely on the Discipline Inspection Commission's power and methods to resolve it.

There are many matters he can't charge ahead on, yet they must be solved; thus the Public Security Bureau and the Discipline Inspection Commission are two sharp knives. Fortunately, those knives are still in his grasp for now.

The Public Security Bureau needs no explanation; as long as Sun Chengjun is the bureau chief, it's basically stable. On the Discipline Inspection Commission side, at least now we can guarantee that this incident is definitely linked to some local officials, or at least connected.

Having the Discipline Inspection Commission intervene secretly is ideal. Moreover, for ordinary cadres, the Commission's deterrent power is unparalleled. They can endure a lifetime without a talk from the Organization Department, but they absolutely dread being summoned by the Discipline Inspection Commission. In short, they may not strive upward, but they certainly cannot end up in prison.

He called Secretary Hou and said a word; Hou Junlai naturally replied, "Do you still need to discuss this with me? Just arrange it, I'm on call. By the way, what do you want to eat? I'll have them prepare early. Let's skip the big fish and meat; after all it's New Year and everyone's tired of it—maybe I'll just order something light?"

Su Yang said, "We've indeed been eating a lot of meat these days; a bit of vegetables would balance it. Here's the plan: I'll go first, you come later; if we go out together, we won't attract the eyes of schemers. If we pin this down, we might be labeled as a small‑scale gang."

Secretary Hou replied, "You're indeed thorough; the situation now is different from before. Our Secretary Zhang is being overbearing, and today he lost face at the standing committee meeting, eager to pick at our little hair."

After speaking, the two burst into simultaneous hearty laughter. If they were in Zhang Jiangbo's position this morning, they'd be fuming to the point of steam from all seven apertures. What was supposed to be a smooth victory turned into a reverse‑wind defeat, leaving them battered and bruised—who could stand that?