Chapter 100

Su Xinghui nodded and said, "Yes, I heard. I also saw you enter Township Head Jin's office this morning. How did it go? What did Township Head Jin say?"

Lei Ming shook his head and said, "What else could he say? He told me to release the people, return the money to them, and write a self-criticism. He claimed the county leaders already know about this matter."

Su Xinghui said with some indignation, "Did you do anything wrong by cracking down on gambling? Why should you release them and return the money? And why write a self-criticism?"

Lei Ming said helplessly, "Why? He said they were planning to invest in Shangjun County and the county leaders know about it. He said my actions were destroying the county's investment environment!"

Su Xinghui almost laughed out loud. They were clearly there to gamble, yet they claimed to be there for investment—this excuse was too far-fetched. But then again, in China, whatever the leaders say goes.

It was clear that Jin Taihe had ulterior motives in ordering Lei Ming to release the people and return the money, as the gambling den was run by his nephew. If Lei Ming released the people and returned the money, wouldn't Luo Ming'an be released as well? Wouldn't his money be returned to him too?

Su Xinghui asked, "So, what do you plan to do?"

Lei Ming shook his head in distress and said, "I don't know."

"Then what are your own thoughts on this?"

Lei Ming fell silent. What were his thoughts? Did he even need to ask? He didn't feel he had done anything wrong by cracking down on gambling. What was wrong with that? Setting aside the fact that the township encouraged such crackdowns to increase revenue, in his heart, he felt these thugs and hoodlums running gambling dens should be brought to justice; they were too harmful.

Although they mainly lured business owners from out of town to gamble, they didn't turn away locals with no money either—after all, even a mosquito is meat. Once the locals were broke, they would offer usury, and no one knew how many families had been ruined by these high-interest loans.

Lei Ming was a man with a strong sense of justice; how could he stand by and watch such things happen? This time, he had received a tip-off at three in the morning and immediately went to raid the den, only to find himself in such a predicament. The helplessness in his heart was imaginable.

Even so, he didn't want to compromise. He knew exactly what Jin Taihe was thinking, and he held Jin Taihe's character in utter contempt. He had even considered that he would rather quit as the police station chief than do as Jin Taihe said.

However, Lei Ming was no longer a hot-headed youth. He had a family, and his wife and children were still in Shangjun County. If he didn't follow Jin Taihe's orders and that man surnamed Duan really decided to cause trouble for him, it would be a significant problem indeed.

Before Su Xinghui arrived, Lei Ming had been struggling with a painful internal conflict. He didn't want to follow Jin Taihe's orders, but he was worried about his wife and children. He truly didn't know what to do.

Hearing Su Xinghui ask about his thoughts, he remained silent for a moment before saying, "Of course I don't want to let these brats go, let alone return their money! But..."

Su Xinghui said, "Chief Lei, as long as you don't want to release them or return the money in your heart, then just proceed. I believe the county leaders will not criticize you."

Lei Ming's eyes lit up. He looked at Su Xinghui and saw a confident smile on his face.

Lei Ming couldn't help but recall the times when County Party Secretary Ji Tao and Vice County Magistrate Zhang Kaishan came to inspect Menghuling. Lei Ming had been present during those visits as the police station chief to command the officers and maintain order. He had seen with his own eyes how cordially they treated Su Xinghui.

Su Xinghui had only been in Menghuling for a few months, yet how much had he already accomplished? If he didn't have backing behind him, could he have done it?

If Su Xinghui helped him speak to the county leaders this time, what did he have to fear?

If he handled Luo Ming'an and his gang according to the law, he was fulfilling his duty as a police officer and could have a clear conscience. If he really released them, he would be derelict in his duty—not only would he feel guilty, but if someone used this against him later, he would be in a very passive position.

Lei Ming asked, "Will the county leaders really not criticize me?"

Su Xinghui smiled and shook his head.

Lei Ming made up his mind and said, "Fine, then we will proceed as the law dictates. Even if he came to our county to invest, he still cannot break the law!"

Su Xinghui nodded, and the two looked at each other and smiled.

Returning to the township government, Su Xinghui went to Chen Hongfu's office to inform him of the matter.

After hearing this, Chen Hongfu sensed the thorniness of the situation. It didn't just involve Luo Ming'an; the arrogant attitude of that man surnamed Duan suggested his claim of being close to Qian Hongye wasn't a lie. If things went poorly, it would involve Xu Shixie, and eventually, Shan Guozhi.

Many things were linked like this; as long as the matter involved people with backers, it would always end up being swept under the rug.

To Chen Hongfu, had Lei Ming done anything wrong? Of course not. What was wrong with cracking down on gambling? That was the police station's primary duty.

In the past, the gambling culture in Menghuling Township was famous throughout the county, especially at the end of the year during the agricultural off-season. With nothing to do, what else would the common folk do but gamble?

Even the township cadres played mahjong. Of course, their stakes were small, and it was considered leisure; the police station usually didn't bother with such small games.

But the act of running a gambling den was extremely harmful; it not only hurt people but also corrupted the township's atmosphere.

In the last two years, people from the county seat had even driven to Menghuling to gamble because it was remote and hard to catch. This time, people even came from Hongshan County. This was unacceptable. If this continued, Menghuling would become a gambling den.

To be honest, the current situation in Menghuling had to do with Jin Taihe. As the vice township head in charge of political and legal affairs, he was derelict in his duties and engaged in favoritism and malpractice. Some thugs who ran gambling dens would send him gifts, allowing them to openly gather crowds to gamble.

Since Chen Hongfu took office, he had cracked down hard on running gambling dens, which had some effect; the phenomenon wasn't as rampant as before. This time, Luo Ming'an was acting in defiance of the crackdown. If this evil trend wasn't stopped, the gambling culture in Menghuling would likely resurge.

In his heart, Chen Hongfu wanted to support Lei Ming, but he also had to consider the consequences of doing so—he might end up offending county leaders.

In the past, if such a matter involved county leaders, Chen Hongfu would likely have played dumb. He knew that even if he wanted to resist, he likely couldn't. But now, he had to think carefully about this.

Chen Hongfu had been disillusioned with his career in the past, but now Menghuling was no longer what it used to be, and he had regained hope. However, he also saw the situation in Shangjun County; the struggle between county leaders was an undercurrent. If he wanted to advance, he couldn't play dumb or try to please everyone like before, as that would only leave him caught in the middle.

If he truly wanted to advance, he had to pick a side now.

Chen Hongfu hesitated about which side to stand on. In his heart, he despised Shan Guozhi and his gang; some of the things they did were too base. But Shan Guozhi was powerful, and Chen Hongfu was timid about standing against him. Yet, he was unwilling to follow Shan Guozhi closely either; he wasn't that base.

He had been hesitating, but now that he encountered this, he couldn't hesitate anymore. He had to state his position on Lei Ming's matter, otherwise, how could the police station continue its work?

Looking at Su Xinghui, Chen Hongfu made up his mind. He said to Su Xinghui, "Tell Lei Ming that the township supports his work."

Su Xinghui nodded and immediately went to the police station to convey Chen Hongfu's stance. This gave Lei Ming great peace of mind. A small chief like him couldn't stand up to county leaders, but he had the township government supporting him, not to mention the people behind Su Xinghui.