Official Career Storm
Chapter 465

Chapter 465: Chapter 465

Provincial Committee Building.

Secretary Gao was engrossed in his work, holding a cigarette in his left hand while flipping through documents with his right.

His hair was no longer as thick as it had once been, revealing a shiny forehead through thin gaps.

A soft knock sounded, and the door opened slightly. The secretary poked half his body through and softly said, just loud enough for Secretary Gao but not enough to disturb him, "Secretary Gao, from Lingjiang City Government, a call from Mayor Jiang regarding Hou Wen’s corruption case."

Secretary Gao flicked the ash off his cigarette: "Put it through."

He put the cigarette in his mouth, only to find that it had burned down to the filter.

After extinguishing it, he lit another one.

Right then, the phone beside him also rang.

He took a deep drag before grabbing the handset.

"Hello Secretary Gao, this is Jiang Yuan."

"Hello, Mayor Jiang, what’s the matter?"

"Hou Wen is willing to surrender 7 billion that he moved out of the country."

Secretary Gao took another drag, "Go on."

Jiang Yuan said, "Hou Wen does not trust the current personnel handling the case, he hopes the city government can take over."

Secretary Gao asked, "How soon can he hand over the money?"

Jiang Yuan said, "If he cooperates fully, the money can be returned within three days."

Secretary Gao asked, "Can you handle this issue?"

"Yes!"

"Good, you handle it. Have the Lingjiang Judicial Bureau and the Procuratorate study Hou Wen’s case; decide on the charges and sentencing, and send a report up to the province."

"Alright."

Putting down the handset, Secretary Gao lit up a third cigarette.

There was no change in his expression before and after the call; nobody knew what the top official of the province was actually thinking.

When the third cigarette was done, he grabbed the handset, "Connect me with Lu Zhizhong from Lingjiang Municipal Committee."

...

Lu Zhizhong was surprised when he received the call.

He knew the provincial government was monitoring the situation, and he understood the significance of the case.

But Song Guanchao had taken the issue to the internet the day before, the impact was immense, and the province found itself in a passive position, unsure of how to respond, just watching.

A sudden call from the province must mean a decision had been made.

"Hello Secretary Gao, yes, yes, okay, I understand."

Secretary Lu was taken aback, but soon grasped the essence of it.

He felt a bit regretful.

Out of so many standing members in the city, Hou Wen had only approached Jiang Yuan.

But on further reflection, there seemed to be no one more suitable than Jiang Yuan.

He and Mayor Zheng didn’t have many local connections; even with many promises, Hou Wen wouldn’t trust them.

Minister Zhou was the minister of organization and couldn’t directly interfere with the administration of the government, only exerting influence indirectly, which obviously didn’t suit Hou Wen’s purpose.

The situation was similar for the other standing committee members.

It seemed Jiang Yuan was the only viable option; it had to be Jiang Yuan.

Wu Qiangwei saw that the call was from an internal line on the desk phone and knew the provincial government was handling official business.

After putting down the phone, Wu Qiangwei’s expression was slightly gloomy.

She and Song Guanchao had been too presumptuous.

They had oversimplified things.

Hou Wen, the old fox, was too cunning.

When planning, they had only thought of controlling everything but had overlooked one thing.

That is, Hou Wen could take the initiative to surrender.

She dialed Song Guanchao’s number, it took two tries before she got through.

A groggy, sleepy voice answered immediately.

Wu Qiangwei felt a pang of distress; she didn’t know what time he had gone to bed yesterday. He probably had been busy until early morning.

"Secretary, what is it?"

"Hou Wen is willingly cooperating, ready to hand over the embezzled funds."

"Oh, that’s good."

"He says your handling of the case is biased and has specifically asked for Jiang Yuan to take over."

"Ah." Song Guanchao remained calm, "Did Jiang Yuan contact the province?"

"I’ve made contact," Secretary Gao from the Provincial Committee just called me to instruct you to cooperate with Mayor Jiang in transferring the case."

Song Guanchao asked, "What if I don’t transfer it?"

Wu Qiangwei sighed, "This is an order from the provincial authorities."

Song Guanchao said, "If I promise the provincial authorities that the money will definitely be returned within three days, won’t they give me that time?"

"Yes," Wu Qiangwei replied, "The provincial authorities won’t trust you because Hou Wen is more dependable. They only care about results."

Song Guanchao remained silent.

Wu Qiangwei seemed to sense his inner turmoil and frustration and tried to reason, "Guan Chao..."

"Secretary," Song Guanchao said, "I’ve been working on cases for over 20 consecutive hours. I just went to bed at seven this morning. I’m really tired. My phone was on mute, and I missed all incoming calls, including this one from you, Secretary."

"Starting now, I’m going to sleep."

"If Mayor Jiang comes looking for me, could you, Secretary, please refuse him on my behalf and tell him I am responsible for this case?"

"Also, I have already recovered the 7 billion. It will be returned in full to the Dujiang City Treasury by eleven tonight."

"Secretary, can you hold them off until eleven?"

Wu Qiangwei asked, "Are you sure?"

"Yes."

Wu Qiangwei replied, "Go to sleep then, I’ll handle the rest."

"Okay."

...

It was ten in the morning.

Director Qin arrived at the detective squad.

Captain Hu and his team were catching up on sleep in the duty room, and they were still groggy when they received the notification.

"Is there something you need, Director Qin?"

Director Qin didn’t speak but handed over a document.

The content of the document was concise: starting now, Hou Wen’s case was to be transferred to the jurisdiction of the Municipal Government, led by Deputy Mayor Jiang Yuan.

The bottom of the document was stamped by the Provincial Committee Office.

Captain Hu’s brow immediately furrowed.

"Please wait a moment, Director Qin."

Captain Hu rushed to the duty room and woke up Liang Jianfeng and Wu Xinan.

After briefly explaining the situation, both of them quickly realized the severity of the issue.

Director Qin was here to snatch the fruits of their labor!

Hou Wen and Jiang Yuan had reached an understanding behind the scenes.

The case was nearing its final stage, and now you come to take over, trying to claim all the credit?

Liang Jianfeng said, "Director Qin, I haven’t been notified about this matter."

Director Qin, exasperated, banged the document on the table, "I’m notifying you now!"

Liang Jianfeng shook his head, "Sorry, this case is decided by the City Committee and Municipal Government and is under the supervision of Secretary Song. Per the decision of the City Committee and Municipal Government, my team and I will only follow Secretary Song’s orders for now. Director Qin, you were also at the committee meeting; you should understand this better than I do."

Director Qin was practically livid.

He was the chief of the Police Department, and his deputy dared to say that they wouldn’t follow his orders but would follow a junior secretary!

This was outright defiance!

The Provincial Committee’s document was practically slapped onto his face, and he still dared to say such things?

Who gave him the gall?

"Liang Jianfeng, do you realize what you’re saying?"

"This is the detective squad, and I am the chief!"

Director Qin glared at Captain Hu, "Captain Hu, get him out!"

Captain Hu, as if he heard nothing, didn’t move an inch.

Director Qin, corners of his mouth twitching in anger, exclaimed, "Good, good, good! So my words as the chief don’t matter now, right? I see you really want to revolt!"

Liang Jianfeng said, "Director Qin, allow me to call Secretary Wu."

"Call now!" Director Qin shouted, "Liang Jianfeng, don’t think that just because you’re connected to Wu Qiangwei, you can defy me! I warn you, the Police Department follows the Qin family, not the Wu family!"

Liang Jianfeng ignored him and dialed Wu Qiangwei’s number.

After briefly reporting, Wu Qiangwei said, "Pass the phone to Qin Yuejin."

Liang Jianfeng handed over the phone. Director Qin snatched it, his tone aggressive, "Secretary Wu, the provincial authorities should have informed you by now. I just showed the document to Liang Jianfeng, and he’s defying me! I think Comrade Liang Jianfeng lacks awareness and is unsuitable to lead the work of the Police Department. I suggest..."

Wu Qiangwei listened quietly until he finished and then asked a single question, "Qin Yuejin, are you trying to pressure me by using the provincial authorities?"

Director Qin’s fury suddenly vanished, quickly realizing who he was dealing with—Wu Qiangwei, the key figure sent by the province to reorganize Lingjiang.

"I...Secretary Wu, I was just conveying the provincial opinions to Liang Jianfeng."

Wu Qiangwei stated, "This case is to be led by Secretary Song. That is my opinion and the provincial authorities’ opinion. Give the phone back to Director Liang and then leave the detective squad."

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