Chapter 278: The Commissioner's Fury

Li Ya cast a cold, sidelong glance at Hong Zhiyou:

"Brother, are you certain we can't finish off Lu Qiao Shan this time?"

"Trading a mansion for his life—I just feel like I'm getting the short end of the stick."

It was certain he couldn't be finished off; Zheng Jiemin would surely protect his man after taking the money... Hong Zhiyou deliberated for a moment, organizing his words:

"The possibility is slim."

"If you were to finish him off, you could indeed rid yourself of a thorn in your side."

"But if you don't, wouldn't you just be out a luxury mansion?"

"Lu Qiao Shan spent no small amount of money fixing up that property, and it's in a prime location; if you flipped it, you'd get at least ten gold bars."

"That's enough for you to eat at the restaurants in Jinmen for decades."

"Besides."

"If he falls hard this time, are you afraid you won't find another chance to finish him off later?"

As Hong Zhiyou spoke, he swirled his wine glass and took a sip.

"Fine."

"For your sake, brother, I'll spare his dog life."

"I want to see the deed to the mansion tonight."

"He only has this one night to maneuver; whether he lives or dies depends entirely on his own fate."

Li Ya raised his glass and clinked it with Hong Zhiyou's.

Lu Qiao Shan returned to his office, and just as he sat down, the phone rang:

"It's me."

"Alright, thank you, brother."

"Rest assured, as long as he hands the person over to me, I know what to do."

"I've already had Guifen board a plane to Beiping; I can certainly give him the deed tonight."

"Thank you."

"See you later."

After hanging up, he quickly dialed Wang Puchen's direct line:

"Inspector Wang, Ye Tianhua is with you, right?"

"I've already spoken with Captain Li; I'm sending someone over to pick him up now."

"Understood."

After finishing the call.

He took a slight, deep breath.

"Li Zhong, come in," he shouted toward the door.

Li Zhong, who was on duty at the door, walked in: "Section Chief, you called for me?"

"Were all the men who carried out the operation last night yours?" Lu Qiao Shan asked.

"Yes," Li Zhong said.

"Besides you, who else knows the identity of the person in the Caoqiao warehouse?" Lu Qiao Shan asked again.

"No one else," Li Zhong said.

"Very good."

"Do not mention Ye Tianhua's identity to anyone."

"You go now and tell Deputy Section Chief Li to go to the Inspection Office to pick up the person; I have to go out to handle some business."

"The situation in Beiping is very grave right now."

"If anything happens to me, have Li Chuntang handle all matters with full authority."

Lu Qiao Shan instructed.

"Understood, Section Chief Lu," Li Zhong acknowledged the order.

Lu Qiao Shan glanced at his watch.

It was nearly dark.

Due to certain considerations, he did not drive, but instead took a rickshaw straight to the hospital to see Ma Hansan, who was recovering from his injuries.

"Director Ma," Lu Qiao Shan gestured, and the medical staff inside withdrew.

Ma Hansan played dead.

Only after Lu Qiao Shan called out several times did he leisurely open his eyes: "Oh, isn't this Section Chief Lu?"

"What, are you here to interrogate me again?"

"No, Old Ma, you've misunderstood; I came here specifically to visit you," Lu Qiao Shan said with a smile.

"Visit me?"

"I can't afford such an honor; you are a Section Chief, and I am a man with a guilty record," Ma Hansan said.

"You can afford it."

"You are a trusted confidant of Boss Dai and a veteran of the same generation as Station Chief Wu; in front of you, Qiao Shan is merely a junior and a student."

Lu Qiao Shan said humbly.

"Section Chief Lu."

"You've beaten me, and you've reported me."

"You didn't come here just to try and build a friendship with me, did you?"

Ma Hansan grinned, which pulled at his injuries and made him wince in pain.

"Director Ma, you are the true power in Beiping."

"Qiao Shan is only here this time acting under orders."

"Right now, your case remains unresolved, which is no way to go."

"Why don't you listen to this proposal of mine?"

Lu Qiao Shan spoke in a soft, gentle voice, relaying what Hong Zhiyou had taught him.

After listening, Ma Hansan pointed at him and sighed:

"Take someone's money, resolve someone's trouble."

"If you can clean this matter up, I can give you money; not only that, I can give you an extra ten percent."

"Gold, US dollars, antiques."

"Whatever you want, you shall have!"

"Oh my, Director Ma is generous, Qiao Shan thanks you!" Lu Qiao Shan was overjoyed upon hearing this.

"Don't be so polite."

"The matter of Kawashima Yoshiko ends with you, brother," Ma Hansan reminded him, bobbing his chin.

"It must end here."

"I have already destroyed all relevant materials."

"You can rest assured."

"Besides, I have already sentenced Kawashima Yoshiko to death; it will be carried out within a year at most, won't that also resolve a worry for you, old brother?"

While making his solemn vow, Lu Qiao Shan did not forget to claim credit.

"Hmm."

"That's more like a member of the Military Statistics Bureau; you, a junior, come in here throwing your weight around and getting physical—don't I, Old Ma, have any face?"

"If you had talked like this earlier, we could have been friends, wouldn't that have been great?"

Ma Hansan laughed.

"Yes."

"It was Qiao Shan who was reckless; I was truly in a position where I had no choice."

"From now on, we are friends."

Lu Qiao Shan reached out to shake his hand.

"Hmm."

"For the money, call Secretary Liu Yuzhu; she will arrange it for you."

Ma Hansan said.

"Alright, then I'll be going."

"Old brother, you get some rest."

Lu Qiao Shan walked a few steps toward the exit, then turned back, looking troubled.

"Does my brother have something else?" Ma Hansan asked.

"I do."

"I have encountered a troublesome matter; you, old brother, are experienced in the world, so please give Qiao Shan some advice."

Lu Qiao Shan explained his predicament.

He had already guessed that it was a trap set by Ma Hansan and Li Ya together.

Since they had already made peace, he might as well let Ma Hansan untie this Gordian knot.

"The matter is simple, you just need to..."

Ma Han knew it was time to wrap things up, so he whispered a few words.

"Thank you, Director Ma."

"You must ensure your people handle this properly."

"If Lu Qiao can escape this calamity, I will thank you in person later."

Lu Qiao said gratefully.

"Rest assured, my subordinates are professionals at this kind of work." Ma Han nodded.

Five-thirty in the afternoon.

It was exactly the time when all the major offices were getting off work.

The members of the inspection team were leaving the temporary office building one after another.

Lu Qiao stepped down from a rickshaw.

"Team Leader Lu."

Across the street, a sensible female team member waved from afar.

Lu Qiao smiled and was just about to wave back.

A Beetle sedan drove straight toward him.

Bang!

Lu Qiao was like a kite with a broken string; his whole body flew up, rolled several times in the air, slammed heavily onto the ground, twitched a few times, and fell unconscious.

"Team Leader Lu!"

The inspection team members rushed over immediately, shouting in alarm, and called a car to send Lu Qiao to the hospital.

Li Chuntang had skipped work early today.

It was rare that old Lu wasn't around, so he went to the bathhouse for a satisfying scrub.

You couldn't enjoy this in the south.

Soaking in the pool, scrubbing off a couple of pounds of dirt, and then drinking a glass of red wine while feeling that slightly stinging, refreshed sensation on the skin—that was the life.

"Old Li, how should we handle that fellow named Ye Tianhua?" another member, Peng Faxiang, asked.

"Handle him, my foot."

"Old Lu is so desperate for merit right now that he's gone bloodthirsty."

"He wants the person, so he can handle it himself."

"Whether he's a red-ticket agent or someone else's man, we just won't get involved."

After finishing the wine in his glass, Li Chuntang slid down the pool, leaned back, and covered his face with a steaming hot towel.

Satisfying!

"Indeed."

"Old Zhang was such a formidable person; just this morning he was 'Brother Zhang' this and 'Brother Zhang' that, and now he's been taken out just like that."

"A smiling tiger—he eats people with a smile."

Peng Faxiang shook his head with a sigh.

As they were talking, a team member ran in quickly: "Deputy Team Leader Li, something has happened."

"With someone surnamed Lu holding the fort at the inspection team, what could possibly happen?"

Li Chuntang said sarcastically.

"Team Leader Lu was just hit by a car outside the office building," the team member said.

"What!"

Li Chuntang flipped off his towel and sat up in shock.

"Isn't this something that was bound to happen sooner or later?"

"Even Ma Han and Boss Dai couldn't handle him, yet he dared to use torture; it would be a miracle if he didn't get himself killed."

Peng Faxiang said with schadenfreude.

"How is he?" Li Chuntang asked.

"Unconscious on the spot, currently being rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment," the team member said.

"Damn it."

"We're in trouble this time."

Li Chuntang jumped out of the pool, quickly changed his clothes, and called for them to head to the hospital.

Once they arrived at the hospital.

Upon asking the physician, he learned it was a concussion resulting in a coma, and it was unclear when he would wake up.

Li Chuntang felt completely numb.

Beiping was just a mess.

Whoever touched it had bad luck.

The key was that with Lu Qiao down, Ke Shufen would force him to step up and blackmail Ma Han; this was a bitter task.

"Li Zhong, you stay here and keep watch," he ordered.

"Deputy Team Leader Li, when Team Leader Lu went out today, he repeatedly instructed that if anything were to happen to him, the work of the inspection team would depend entirely on you to shoulder," Li Zhong reminded him.

"Sigh."

"I know."

Li Chuntang walked out.

That night, the strong wind did not cease.

The air was filled with the fishy smell of dust.

Xi'an Pacification Commissioner's Office.

Hu Zongnan returned to his residence after just finishing a military meeting.

At the thought of his gentle and moving wife, Ye Xiadi, who had studied abroad, the exhaustion on his face vanished.

As soon as he entered the door.

He noticed his wife was not playing the piano, nor did she come to greet him like a bird, so he couldn't help but frown and ask the servant:

"Where is the Lady?"

"I don't know. After she returned today, she locked herself in her room and didn't even eat dinner," the servant said.

"Understood."

Hu Zongnan changed his clothes, washed his face, and walked into the bedroom.

Ye Xiadi was sitting on the edge of the bed with a face full of frost and displeasure.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"My cousin went to Beiping last night to buy pearl hairpins for me, but he was arrested by the Beiping inspection team, who claimed he was a red-ticket agent specifically selling military supplies for you to make dirty money."

"The man was beaten to the point of being on the verge of death."

"You, you tell me what kind of situation this is."

Ye Xiadi said, wiping away tears.

"Selling military supplies?"

"The Beiping inspection team belongs to Zheng Jiemin's people."

"Very well."

"This is because they are jealous that I am about to achieve military merit, so they've come to stir up trouble for me."

"My dear, don't be anxious."

"This matter is aimed directly at me."

"I will call the Principal right now to see what kind of intentions that Zheng Jiemin has."

Hu Zongnan's thick brows sank, and he said coldly.

As he spoke, he strode out, went to the study, picked up the phone, and dialed the Principal's private line.

Soon the call was connected.

"Principal, I am truly uneasy to disturb you so late."

"It is just that with a great battle imminent, someone is deliberately disturbing the morale of my troops, and Zongnan cannot help but speak out."

As he spoke, he explained the situation in Beiping.

"Yes."

"Yes, Principal."

"I will definitely march on Yancheng as soon as possible and wipe out the bandits!"

He hung up the phone.

Hu Zongnan returned to his wife's bedroom and comforted her thoroughly:

"My dear, the Principal has intervened; Zheng Jiemin will definitely have to release him, so rest assured."

"It's getting late, let's get some rest."

Jingling.

Zheng Jiemin stood in the grand hall, trembling with fear.

Ever since he was summoned by the Leader.

He had already been standing there for over two hours.

In the past, the Leader had never treated him with such neglect; a foreboding premonition lingered in his heart.

Finally, Chen Bulei walked out.

"Mr. Yanjie, why did the Leader summon me here..." Zheng Jiemin stepped forward and asked in a low voice.

"Tingbing.

"You are so foolish."

Chen Bulei sighed as he walked out.

"Mr. Chen, what do you mean?" Zheng Jiemin was even more confused.

"You were doing just fine, why did you have to go and offend Hu Zongnan?

"Right now, an army of 230, 00 is poised for action; you went and provoked him at a time like this, delaying military affairs and affecting the grand plan to suppress the Reds—can you bear the responsibility for this?"

Chen Bulei said with displeasure.

"Mr. Chen, Tingbing is completely unaware, please enlighten me," Zheng Jiemin said.

"You truly don't know?" Chen Bulei asked.

"I truly don't know," Zheng Jiemin said.

"That Beiping inspection team you sent arrested Hu Zongnan's quartermaster and even subjected him to severe torture.

"Now Hu Zongnan has come to the Leader to demand an explanation.

"The Leader is very angry.

"He has always valued your maturity and prudence; how could you make such a mistake?"

Chen Bulei said, quite disappointed.

"Mr. Yanjie, please convey to the Leader that Tingbing knows nothing of this matter.

"Rest assured, I will immediately telegraph Beiping and order them to release the person.

"As for the relevant personnel in charge of this inspection team, I will punish them all severely."

Zheng Jiemin stated his position immediately.

"Tingbing.

"Govern yourself before you govern others.

"These are the Leader's exact words for you.

"Keep your wife in check!"

Chen Bulei glanced at him, turned around, and headed back into the residence.

"This Lu Qiaoshan, what on earth is he playing at!

"I told him to arrest Ma Hansan.

"How did he end up messing with Hu Zongnan?"

Zheng Jiemin was furious.

Because Lu Qiaoshan's progress had been slow, and furthermore, his wife was stationed in Beiping, he had recently been attending back-to-back meetings at the Ministry of National Defense and rarely inquired about affairs in Beiping.

Who would have thought these idiots would stir up such a massive disaster.

He returned home.

Ke Shufen was sitting on the sofa eating fruit.

"Quick, I have good news for you," she said, rising to greet him.

"What good news? Beiping is in total chaos, and you haven't leaked a single word," Zheng Jiemin glared at her and sat down.

"How is Beiping in chaos? Isn't it just that Lu Qiaoshan shot a Zhang Zhiping?" Ke Shufen said.

"That's not the important part.

"He arrested Hu Zongnan's man, and now the Leader has come knocking.

"He even specifically named you.

"At this rate, my time as Vice Minister is coming to an end."

Zheng Jiemin said irritably.

"Arrested Hu Zongnan's man? I haven't heard of that," Ke Shufen said in surprise.

As they were speaking, the phone rang:

"Good, I understand."

He hung up the phone, his face grim, and said: "Lu Qiaoshan has had an accident; they say he was hit by a car and is now in the hospital."

"That can't be.

"This afternoon..."

Ke Shufen sat closer and whispered: "He just had a truckload of things delivered to me—just the antiques alone were over a dozen pieces, there must be over a dozen catties of gold, and quite a bit of US dollars too.

"It even included candies popular in North America and so on.

"Lu Qiaoshan really pried things out of Ma Hansan's mouth.

"Let's put the affairs of the Party-State aside for now.

"To the Zheng family, he is a great contributor.

"Old Zheng, you must protect him no matter what. Isn't it just that he hit one of Hu Zongnan's men? It might not even have been his order; perhaps it was done by the people below him.

"You promoted him to Deputy Division Chief, and all those old-timers in the Sixth Division like Han Guoqing are targeting him.

"Who knows how much is going on behind the scenes."

Ke Shufen was speaking because she had taken the money, and she immediately began to put in a good word for Lu Qiaoshan.

"Enough.

"Political matters are not for a woman like you to meddle in."

Zheng Jiemin snorted coldly, put his hands behind his back, and went upstairs.

The next day.

Under Li Ya's orchestration, aside from the cautious Central Daily News and Beiping Daily which dared not report it, other small newspapers published photos of Ye Tianhua reselling supplies and the scene at the warehouse.

The accompanying text was also very explosive.

Hu Zongnan's quartermaster resells civilian supplies; Beiping inspection team secretly protects military corruptors.

For a time, public opinion was in an uproar.

Over the next few days, students, workers, and commoners took to the streets one after another, denouncing the military corruptors and the inspection team, as well as expressing their dissatisfaction with Hu Zongnan.

Hospital.

Hong Zhiyou walked into the ward carrying a fruit basket.

"Trouble you two to step out for a moment," he casually slipped the nurse and doctor a few ten-dollar US bills.

This was more effective than an order; the two walked out, full of gratitude.

"Old Lu, stop pretending, it's me," Hong Zhiyou whispered.

Only then did Lu Qiaoshan open his eyes, glance around, and say:

"Hey, you finally came.

"These past three days, people have been coming to see me in droves, and that devil Li Chuntang even secretly poked me with needles and pinched me. If it weren't for the fact that I, Brother Shan, have trained before, I wouldn't have been able to keep up the act."

Hong Zhiyou smiled: "You fainted at the right time. Li Ya used the newspapers to blow the matter up.

"Now the inspection team building is surrounded.

"On one side, Hu Zongnan wants his man.

"On the other, the students won't let them release him; they insist on severely punishing Ye Tianhua.

"The situation is deadlocked.

"I reckon Li Chuntang's head is spinning right now; it's no wonder he's poking you."

"How many days do you think it's appropriate for me to stay fainted? You don't know, pretending like this every day is too unbearable," Lu Qiaoshan said.

"Faint until you return to the Jingling hospital, preferably when Zheng Jiemin comes to see you.

"Remember.

"You know nothing about Ye Tianhua's affairs; you only took the person from Li Ya's hands. Whether he is a military corruptor or a Red, it was all interrogated by Li Chuntang," Hong Zhiyou instructed.

"Understood.

"Brother, if I can survive this time..."

Lu Qiaoshan was filled with gratitude, but Hong Zhiyou stopped him: "Don't say anything more, we are brothers!"

"Right.

"We are brothers!"

Lu Qiaoshan nodded forcefully.

"I estimate this matter won't be allowed to drag on.

"The inspection team will be disbanded soon.

"Besides, with the protest movement so large now, I reckon Hu Zongnan won't dare to protect Ye Tianhua anymore.

"In the end, it will be reduced to a minor matter."

"After you go back, you can mention Li Ya to Chief Zheng."

Hong Zhiyou exhorted.

"That goes without saying."

"If I can't have it good, he shouldn't think about having it good either."

"At worst, we'll just embrace and die together."

Lu Qiao said.

"Alright, I have to go."

"The business here in Beiping should be about finished; I must return to Jinhai tonight."

Hong Zhiyou said as he stood up.

"Alright, see you in Jinhai later," Lu Qiao said.

"No, you still want to go back to Jinhai?" Hong Zhiyou said.

"Of course."

"Li Ya screwed me over so miserably this time; if I don't kill him, wouldn't I have lived in vain?"

"Just wait."

"This matter isn't over."

Lu Qiao said coldly.

……

Jingling.

Zheng Jiemin and Jiang Jianfeng personally went to Xi'an to hold a closed-door secret meeting with Hu Zongnan.

In the end, the three reached a consensus.

Dissolve the Beiping Inspection Group and severely punish the main group leader responsible for this matter, Li Chuntang.

As for Lu Qiao.

Because he did not directly participate in the matter of Ye Tianhua, he was given a disciplinary warning within the party.

At the same time, publicly execute Ye Tianhua for disregarding military discipline and regulations by reselling supplies, to give the people of Beiping an explanation.

Finally.

Hu Zongnan was to reorganize his troops immediately and march on Yancheng!

The originally clamorous inspection affair ultimately ended in a mess.

……

Jinhai.

Li Ya arrived outside the station chief's office, feeling refreshed and invigorated.

He had gotten rid of Lu Qiao and protected Ma Han.

At the same time, by dealing with Ye Tianhua, it could be considered a wave of publicity for the public regarding Jiang Jianfeng's determination to fight corruption.

He felt that perhaps it was time to claim some credit from his superiors.

……

(End of chapter)