Official Career Storm
Chapter 410

Chapter 410: Chapter 410

County Magistrate Hou’s heart raced with alarm.

He had known the matter was serious, but he had not imagined that the other party had such clout.

But he was a county magistrate after all and quickly regained his composure.

"Minister Qi, thank you for the warning."

County Magistrate Hou nodded his head and turned to walk towards the interrogation room.

Director Yao stood frozen, his legs as if filled with lead.

At this moment, he was completely stunned, muttering "it’s over" non-stop.

When County Magistrate Hou arrived at the interrogation room, he immediately fixed his gaze on Political Commissioner Zhong and Zeng Yingrong.

These two were clearly leaders.

He walked over, not with a frivolous smile.

He knew that they had come to solve the problem.

As long as the matter was resolved, the previous misunderstandings wouldn’t count for much.

"Hello, I am the County Magistrate of Dujiang County, Hou Wen, how may I address the two of you?"

"My surname is Zhong."

Political Commissioner Zhong’s tone was even, and although his expression was cool, the fact that he was willing to communicate indicated that he was a reasonable person.

County Magistrate Hou slightly relaxed and said, "Mr. Zhong, I assure you that you will receive a satisfactory explanation for today’s incident."

He didn’t mention anything about misunderstandings.

To satisfy the other party, he needed to show sincerity.

Political Commissioner Zhong’s expression softened a bit.

County Magistrate Hou immediately said, "I have learned the full details of the incident."

"There are issues with the management at the County Police Department, and the attitude of the front-line police officers involved in the case is particularly problematic."

"First thing tomorrow morning, I will inform the Disciplinary Committee to supervise an internal review of the Police Department."

"Tonight, the police officers involved will be immediately handed over to the Disciplinary Committee."

"The head of the County Police Department will also be temporarily relieved of his duties."

"Mr. Zhong, could I have your phone number? I will provide you with a daily report on the internal proceedings at the Police Department."

Listening to County Magistrate Hou’s orderly process, Political Commissioner Zhong nodded slightly.

It was evident that the County Magistrate was indeed intent on resolving the issue.

Regardless, this attitude made him quite comfortable.

Tonight’s incident wasn’t big, nor was it small.

In the end, it was only an issue with a few grassroots police officers.

If the higher-ups had tried to shield and protect those involved, Political Commissioner Zhong would have taken the matter to the provincial authorities to teach County Magistrate Hou a profound lesson.

But County Magistrate Hou’s attitude was satisfactory.

No sheltering, no covering up, no bureaucratic nonsense.

The response was prompt, decisive, and he assumed a humble posture.

He, of course, understood that the other party must have gotten a clear read on his background, hence this attitude.

However, they did their superficial duties so well that you couldn’t fault them.

"Cell phone," Political Commissioner Zhong said flatly.

County Magistrate Hou was taken aback for a moment, then quickly directed a police officer standing by, "Bring their phones over."

"Yes."

The police hurried to retrieve the confiscated phones.

Political Commissioner Zhong dialed a number, "Xiao Yun, did you contact the Military District?"

"Yes."

"Good, I’m aware now."

He hung up and dialed another number.

"Commander Zhu, this is Zhong Qingshan."

"Yes, there was a minor incident, but it’s resolved now, thank you for making the trip, Commander Zhu. No need to come over anymore, I’ll come to Lingjiang later and treat Commander Zhu to a drink."

County Magistrate Hou, listening on the side, felt a heavy weight lift from his heart.

He knew that the Military District would no longer be involved.

If the Military District had come, no matter what he did, the issue would have spread from Dujiang County to Lingjiang City.

Now, as they were returning, the matter remained within the boundaries of Dujiang County, within his capacity to resolve.

County Magistrate Hou felt some relief.

He was clear that this phone call was the result of his earlier performance, which had conveyed respect to the other party.

It was fortunate that he hadn’t put on airs, otherwise he might not have been able to conclude the matter tonight.

After hanging up, Political Commissioner Zhong stood up.

County Magistrate Hou quickly moved aside, "Mr. Zhong, this way."

Throughout, Zeng Yingrong had not said a word.

Dealing with local officials wasn’t his strong suit; Political Commissioner Zhong was better at handling such matters and could take care of every aspect.

A group of people emerged from the interrogation room.

The confiscated handguns were all returned.

Once the handguns were in hand, the soldiers immediately ejected the magazines and checked the bullets.

Watching their skilled handling of the firearms, County Magistrate Hou couldn’t help but feel a surge of relief.

Fortunately, the other party remained calm.

Had it been some hot-headed leader, they might have opened fire the moment the police confiscated the weapons.

"Political Commissioner Zhong, there’s no issue with the handguns," the soldiers reported one after another.

"Mm."

Political Commissioner Zhong nodded and headed outside.

Xiao Yun saw this from the hall but didn’t order the soldiers to stand down.

With the Political Commissioner still in the Police Department, in his eyes, the danger had not passed.

Political Commissioner Zhong glanced at the armed soldiers and nodded in satisfaction: "Alright, stow your weapons and get on the truck."

"Yes!"

Xiao Yun turned his head: "Stow your guns, get on the truck!"

The sound of weapons being stowed rang out.

A group of soldiers efficiently stowed their guns and boarded the truck in an orderly fashion.

Watching this well-trained team, Director Yao inwardly exclaimed that these were proper instruments of war.

As a director at the county level, he had never experienced such a display.

It was a good thing County Magistrate Hou arrived in time; if it had been up to him, he wouldn’t have been able to resolve the situation.

As soon as Political Commissioner Zhong emerged, Minister Qi from the Military District approached: "Greetings, Political Commissioner Zhong, I’m the minister from the county Military District, my name is Qi."

"Hello, Minister Qi."

The two shook hands firmly, and Minister Qi said, "Political Commissioner Zhong, regarding tonight’s incident, how would you like to handle it?"

"I want to make this clear here and now: whatever decision Political Commissioner Zhong makes, the Military District will support unconditionally."

Political Commissioner Zhong smiled and replied, "It was just a little misunderstanding, already resolved."

Minister Qi felt a sense of relief.

He had to make this stance clear.

On the surface, he was a member of the county committee, but in essence, he belonged to the military system.

Should anything go wrong, he must and could only side with the military.

Some local Military District officials, having spent too much time in the county, had forged ties of interest with county leaders and couldn’t think straight when it mattered.

But Minister Qi had clarity—he knew what was more important.

If Political Commissioner Zhong had truly decided to take action against the Police Department that evening, he wouldn’t have blinked an eye before dispatching troops to suppress the county office.

"It’s quite late to be asking you over, Minister Qi; I have troubled you. Let’s have a drink another day."

"We are all family here," Minister Qi said with a smile: "I’ll head back now. Political Commissioner Zhong, just call me if you need anything."

"Alright."

After Minister Qi left, County Magistrate Hou finally spoke: "Political Commissioner Zhong, I looked at Mr. Bai’s complaint. Did you come tonight to deal with the factory matter?"

Political Commissioner Zhong looked at him: "County Magistrate Hou, didn’t you find the content of the complaint familiar?"

County Magistrate Hou paused; he had only glanced through the complaint and hadn’t thought it looked familiar.

"Wait just a moment, Political Commissioner Zhong."

He rushed over and picked up the complaint to read it again.

"Yueji Clothing Factory..."

The name of the clothing factory did sound familiar, but he couldn’t recall where he had seen it.

Not until he saw the compensation demands of Bai Ruyi did he have his eureka moment.

The Yueji Clothing Factory had been invaded by a group of hoodlums half a month ago, looking to force a purchase.

She refused, and they set the factory ablaze.

That was the case!

But he distinctly remembered this issue had already been resolved.

Moreover, it was specifically addressed before Secretary Tu’s transfer.

County Magistrate Hou’s thoughts raced as he quickly grasped the crux of the issue.

Before his transfer, Secretary Tu had requested the relevant departments to expedite the compensation process for the factory.

But now, the factory owner had come looking for help.

It seemed there was a problem with the compensation process.

He suspected that someone had skimmed off the compensation funds allocated by county finances.

Such incidents were common, but he hadn’t expected the factory owner to have such strong backing.

County Magistrate Hou said, "Political Commissioner Zhong, I am aware of this matter, and the county has initiated the compensation process. Here’s what we’ll do: I’ll make some phone calls right now to check how far along the process is. Rest assured, Political Commissioner Zhong, the compensation payment will be finalized by tomorrow at the latest!"

"Compensation payment?" Political Commissioner Zhong said with a hint of a smile, "Does County Magistrate Hou think I came here tonight for the compensation payment?"

This response left County Magistrate Hou a bit stupefied; if not for compensation, then what for?

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