Official Career Storm
Chapter 608

Chapter 608: Chapter 608

Wu Qiangwei pondered back and forth but still didn’t contact Secretary Lu.

This matter didn’t necessitate informing Secretary Lu procedurally.

Besides, Song Guanchao was her secretary; all she needed to do was to give a heads-up to Yining City, and then leave the rest to Liang Jianfeng to handle.

But while it was okay not to contact Secretary Lu, by rights, she should have contacted Jiang Yuan.

Because the Police Department was mainly under the direct control of the municipal government.

Theoretically, she should reach out to Mayor Zheng Bihui.

But considering that her relationship with Zheng Bihui was in a phase of direct confrontation, she decided to just have a word with Jiang Yuan.

After briefly informing Jiang Yuan, she immediately contacted the Xuning County Committee Office.

...

Upon receiving the phone call, Jiang Yuan seemed quite surprised.

Song Guanchao had been in a car accident.

However, Wu Qiangwei hadn’t shared any details with him. He was completely in the dark about the specific cause and circumstances of the accident.

But intuitively, he felt that there might be something worth investigating in this incident.

He couldn’t be bothered to delve into it; he merely called Liang Jianfeng, instructing him to clarify the case process and then report back to him.

...

Zhang Meilin sought out Song Guanchao because Mayor Zheng Bihui had informed him that Xu Wenchang, the newly appointed Vice Mayor who had served in Panlong Town, was suspected of defrauding state subsidies.

Last night, Zheng Bihui had notified him to arrange immediately for police to take control of Xu Wenchang.

The issue with Xu Wenchang had been previously mentioned to him by Song Guanchao, and he had already arranged for police to secretly surveil Xu Wenchang.

However, this call came from Zheng Bihui.

That was just too odd.

According to protocol, either Secretary Wang of the Disciplinary Committee, Director Qin, Secretary Lu, or Wu Qiangwei herself should be making the call.

No matter how you sliced it, it was not Zheng Bihui’s place to make the call.

Thus, he wanted to clue in Song Guanchao and ask him what the situation was.

But Song Guanchao’s phone had been off the prior evening.

When he tried again in the morning, he suddenly learned that Song Guanchao had been in a car accident.

After informing Wu Qiangwei, he didn’t immediately have the Disciplinary Committee go after Xu Wenchang, but instead called Minister Zhou to inform him of the situation and to seek his opinion.

"Song Guanchao was in a car accident?"

"Yes."

"How is the situation now?"

"The person is unaccounted for; only his cell phone was found, and the car was burnt down to nothing but a frame."

"Where did the accident happen?"

"In the Mountain Road section of Furong Town, Xuning County."

Minister Zhou immediately opened the map on his phone and asked, "Was it the Xuning County Public Security Bureau that answered Song Guanchao’s phone?"

"Yes."

"Did Song Guanchao ask you to monitor Xu Wenchang beforehand?"

"Yes."

"Did he mention anything else?"

"He said that the Party Secretary of Panlong Town, Li Zhuang, had issues too."

"Did he go to Panlong Town?"

"Yes."

"When did he go?"

"The day before yesterday."

"Who went with him?"

"The team leader from the Disciplinary Inspection Committee assigned to the City Committee Office, Wu Yun, and the TV presenter Zhou Qian."

"Did he tell you why he was looking into this case?"

"He didn’t say."

"Now, contact Secretary Wu and ask her to reach out to Secretary Wang. Have Secretary Wang take people to Dujiang City to inquire with Xu Wenchang."

"Remember, this case shouldn’t involve the Dujiang City Disciplinary Inspection Committee. If Mayor Zheng asks later, just tell him that Secretary Wu had been paying attention to this matter for a while."

Zhang Meilin seemed to understand but didn’t ask further, "Okay."

After hanging up, Minister Zhou reopened the map.

The Mountain Road section near Furong Town was very close to Panlong Town when looking at the map.

This car accident had too many suspicious points.

And some seemingly trivial details just couldn’t be pried into deeply.

Like how, for instance, the car was burnt down to its frame, yet the cell phone survived undamaged.

And his phone was turned off yesterday.

He guessed that this was not an ordinary car accident.

Song Guanchao might have been set up for murder.

It was highly likely that he was already dead!

Minister Zhou closed his eyes in deep thought, suddenly recalling an incident.

A large amount of cash and gold had been found in the trunk of Song Guanchao’s car, after which Song Guanchao had located the relevant surveillance footage.

Moreover, he had mentioned that the car driven by the person who framed him had often appeared in An County.

This meant that Zheng Bihui had people in An County.

Additionally, Xu Wenchang was recommended by Zheng Bihui as well.

The situation had basically become clear.

Xu Wenchang and that Li Zhuang were both Zheng Bihui’s men.

Song Guanchao’s trip there was not covert enough, or perhaps, he had never intended to be discreet at all.

After all, it was just a township.

And he was a big secretary of the City Committee.

But now it seemed that he had capsized in this small town.

As for whether Zheng Bihui was involved in this matter, he could not yet be certain.

However, since Zheng Bihui had proactively called Zhang Meilin to make an arrest, it seemed unlikely that it was his setup.

It was very possible that the town party committee secretary named Li Zhuang had planned it all by himself.

As for why Song Guanchao went to investigate Li Zhuang, it was quite understandable.

Wu Qiangwei had repeatedly expressed a desire to get involved in the old city renovation project and had been rejected by Zheng Bihui.

Song Guanchao’s sudden visit to Panlong Town was clearly to catch Zheng Bihui in a vulnerable position and to force him to divert a share of the benefits from the old city renovation project.

For them, it was a game of strategy.

But for Li Zhuang, it directly implicated his official career and even risked imprisonment.

When people are driven to the edge, they are capable of anything.

Especially people from small places, who often act completely irrationally.

The set of rules that apply in the officialdom often fail to exert their influence in power-concentrated rural areas.

Minister Zhou sighed softly.

He genuinely admired the young man, Song Guanchao.

He had also anticipated that Song Guanchao would offend many people, and although his career might shine brightly, it would surely not be too smooth.

Yet he never expected him to fall in a small place like Panlong Town.

Such a pity.

At present, not many people in the city knew about this incident, but it wouldn’t be long before it exploded.

When that time came, it would trigger a chain reaction.

In this case of the City Committee secretary’s car accident death, both Wu Qiangwei and Zheng Bihui were losers.

The only winner was Li Zhuang.

This small party committee secretary, daring to kill outright, must have made thorough preparations.

Even if everyone knew afterward that he had arranged the car accident, no evidence could be found against him.

At most, he would be dismissed from his public position, without even criminal punishment.

Click!

He lit a cigarette, watching the flickering ember, suddenly feeling a bit out of place, as if he had overlooked something.

He stared at the slowly burning cigarette, somewhat absent-minded.

He was thinking, replaying the analysis he had just made.

Suddenly, his pupils shrank.

He knew what he had missed.

Song Guanchao might still be alive!

His attention had been drawn to the section of the road where the accident had occurred and to Song Guanchao notifying Zhang Meilin beforehand to make an arrest, but he had overlooked the most crucial detail—the body!

If his analysis was correct, Li Zhuang had only one goal: to kill Song Guanchao.

But where was the body?

Burning them to death in the car was the simplest method.

Yet there was no body in the car!

Minister Zhou suddenly revealed a smile, unable to help but laugh out loud.

When he caught this detail, his mood improved.

The kid had indeed capsized in the gutter, but not completely.

"Song Guanchao, you owe me a life."

Minister Zhou smiled faintly, picked up his phone, and immediately called Zhang Meilin.

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