Official Career Storm
Chapter 467

Chapter 467: Chapter 467

Song Guanchao leaned against the headboard and said, "Send it to the Provincial Department."

He really didn’t want to deal with this mess.

Liang Jianfeng asked, "What about the recorder? Should it be handed over as well?"

"Don’t hand that over, keep it, it might come in handy later."

"Alright."

...

At half past one in the afternoon.

The captain of the criminal police in the Provincial Public Security Department, Xue He Ping, personally led a team and arrived secretly at the Lingjiang City Public Security Bureau.

Besides a few people, including Liang Jianfeng, nobody knew they were there.

Liang Jianfeng briefly explained the situation, then handed over Yao Jinsheng to them.

Xiao Wu was shot several times last night and was in the hospital; he too was taken away by Xue’s team.

...

After Director Qin arrived in Dujiang City, he greeted Zhang Meilin, then stayed in the Financial Bureau and did not come out.

Zhang Meilin initially wondered what the purpose of his visit was but, after a phone call with Song Guanchao, learned that the money would arrive by 11 p.m. tonight.

Connecting various pieces of information, Zhang Meilin understood why Director Qin had come.

At the same time, several standing committee members in the city were also aware of the specific progress of the case.

Hou Wen and Jiang Yuan reached some agreement to change a death sentence to life imprisonment in exchange for 7 billion, and aimed to target Song Guanchao.

Song Guanchao openly claimed the money was on its way and would arrive by 11 p.m. tonight.

They all thought that Song Guanchao was just buying time.

However, this was pointless.

Not only was it pointless, but it could also provoke dissatisfaction from the provincial authorities.

If his stalling led to subsequent complications, it would truly be ruining a good hand of cards.

Moreover, with the Provincial Disciplinary Inspection Committee involved, even if he wanted to coerce or bribe Hou Wen to switch sides, he had no chance to implement it.

Everyone was watching now; any illegal tactics were impossible to play.

In this round, ultimately, Hou Wen had the upper hand.

Mayor Jiang leaned back in his office chair and dialed Tu Zhaorui’s number.

"Mayor Tu, how are things going in Guangyue City?"

"The leaders have all been very supportive."

"Hehe, that’s good. The first few months are about adaptation, it gets a lot easier later."

Pleasantries exchanged, Mayor Jiang said, "Hou Wen is willing to cooperate and turn in the money, but he has also made some requests. I know there are some tensions between you and County Magistrate Hou. I hope Mayor Tu will think of the bigger picture and set aside personal grievances for now."

Seeing the call from Mayor Jiang, Tu Zhaorui had guessed his purpose.

Hearing this, he said, "Mayor Jiang’s words are too heavy, there are no personal grievances between me and Hou Wen, as long as he is willing to turn in the money, I’m willing to do whatever is needed."

Mayor Jiang said, "Mayor Tu truly understands the greater good, actually, you don’t need to do much. As you know, his voluntary cooperation will be considered by the court when sentencing, and the final verdict should be life imprisonment."

"If his future behavior is good, a change to a fixed-term is also very likely."

Tu Zhaorui replied, "Yes, I understand, as long as the money arrives, all these are not an issue."

"It’s good that Mayor Tu understands. You should come home more often when you have the time, I’ll host a welcome for you."

Mayor Jiang felt much relieved, as he hadn’t interacted much with Tu Zhaorui and didn’t know him well; he was worried he might refuse.

And although he didn’t understand the specifics of their conflict, the fact that they’ve held it in for over a decade meant that it was at least as serious as the vendetta for the murder of a father.

Luckily, Tu Zhaorui was still conscious of the bigger picture.

But Tu Zhaorui wasn’t just playing ball—he knew that Song Guanchao could solve it.

With that, he didn’t mind doing a favor for Mayor Jiang.

Regardless of whether it was Song Guanchao or Mayor Jiang who settled it, the favor was sold from the moment the phone call ended.

This time, Mayor Jiang made a losing deal.

...

When Song Guanchao woke up, it was already five in the evening.

After eating at the buffet, he went to the detective unit.

"Secretary Song,"

Passing detectives greeted him.

Hearing the commotion, Liang Jianfeng and others, who were having their meal, looked up.

As Song Guanchao approached, he asked, "Besides Director Qin, who else saw Hou Wen today?"

"Gone."

"I’ll go talk to him."

"The comrades from the Provincial Disciplinary Inspection Committee are also here."

"I know."

Song Guanchao entered the interrogation room where Hou Wen was still leaning back in his chair, drinking tea, reading a book, and occasionally smoking a cigarette.

The two members from the Provincial Disciplinary Inspection Committee glanced at him and nodded as a greeting.

"Have the two of you not eaten yet?"

"We have eaten, Captain Hu ordered takeout."

Song Guanchao pulled out a chair and sat down, saying, "I want to talk to Hou Wen for a moment."

The two made a grunt of acknowledgment; they were only responsible for supervision.

What Song Guanchao discussed with him was not their concern, as long as it did not escalate to violence.

"County Magistrate Hou, I’m offering you a chance."

This opening line was peculiar but did not catch Hou Wen’s attention.

He did not even change his posture.

Song Guanchao said, "The money, it will be in the account of Dujiang City’s finance bureau by eleven tonight."

He took off his wristwatch and placed it on the interrogation table: "It’s six twenty-one now, so, before seven o’clock, if you are willing to cooperate, the money transferred before eleven will count in your favor."

"This way, you can earn a merit for proactive cooperation."

"You have surely studied law, you should know how big the difference is between cooperating and not cooperating."

"Just nod your head, it’s the difference between a death sentence and a life imprisonment."

Hou Wen remained silent and unresponsive.

Song Guanchao lit a cigarette and did not rush him.

The two members from the Disciplinary Committee were also curious about what Song Guanchao’s so-called eleven o’clock meant—was it merely a delay tactic?

From his composed expression, he seemed to have confidence.

But then, if he was indeed confident, there seemed to be no need for Hou Wen’s cooperation, right?

A contradiction.

As time ticked away, Hou Wen silently turned the pages, sipping his tea occasionally.

When the tea was nearly gone, Song Guanchao decisively reached for the kettle to refill his cup.

This action solidified the belief of the two members that Song Guanchao was indeed delaying.

Unfortunately, Hou Wen was not cooperative at all.

They shook their heads in secrecy.

They felt it was a pity in their hearts.

However, Song Guanchao was ultimately too young; he really did not understand how many cards these veteran politicians held.

If he had started by offering a sentence reduction in exchange for Hou Wen’s cooperation, perhaps the unexpected intrusion by Mayor Jiang would not have occurred.

"It’s eight o’clock."

Song Guanchao picked up his watch, glanced at it, and put it down again: "I actually have a good impression of Secretary Hou, so let’s extend the time a bit, till nine."

Hou Wen’s lips slightly curled up, and he caught Song Guanchao’s subtle change.

From Hou Wen to County Magistrate Hou, and now to Secretary Hou.

The change in address highlighted his inner tension right now.

Eleven o’clock?

He scoffed, such delay tactics were child’s play to him.

He was fortunate that he reacted quickly and had Mayor Jiang request the Provincial Disciplinary Inspection Committee to come over.

Otherwise, by now, Song Guanchao might have already turned to torture.

Could a person endure torture?

The answer is negative.

A person upholding procedural justice just needs to employ a bit of illegality to ensure justice.

Would he resort to illegal means that violate procedural justice at this moment?

The answer is affirmative.

To him, the current Song Guanchao was nothing but a monkey.

A monkey that almost had the peach in hand but saw it snatched away by another monkey, helplessly scurrying around in frustration!

He was quite curious to see Song Guanchao pushed to the limit, to witness his emotional breakdown.

That scene would certainly be very interesting.

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