123: Chapter 123 Holiday Paused

She turned to the scenery rapidly receding outside the window, "I wonder if Zhang Qimin has confessed yet?"

"Partially."

Xiao Bei turned the steering wheel, "Director Zhao Ming found out that he only admitted to framing you, but he insists that the 'VIP list' was fabricated by Secretary Wang Chunlin."

"Hah,"

Qin Ruoxi sneered, "Dead men tell no tales, how convenient. But his large sums of unexplained assets and the fact that he slept with female cadres are facts; there's nothing he can do even if he doesn't admit it."

The car drove onto the highway, and the setting sun had completely sunk below the horizon.

Team Leader Zhang Yining handed over two bottles of water from the back seat: "Mayor Qin, what are your plans next?"

Qin Ruoxi took the water, unscrewed the cap, and took a big gulp: "First, a hot shower, then sleep for three days and three nights."

She paused, "What about you two? Didn't Secretary Ma approve your annual leave?"

Xiao Bei exchanged a glance with Team Leader Zhang Yining in the rearview mirror: "We plan to go to the Qingfeng Mountain Resort. We came to the provincial capital for a vacation in the first place, so I had Su Yun go ahead and wait for us."

Qin Ruoxi raised an eyebrow: "Not bad, excellent mindset."

"After being busy for so long, it's time to take the opportunity to relax. Anyway, we aren't allowed to touch the case when we go back."

Xiao Bei shrugged, his tone relaxed, but his eyes still scanned the rearview mirror vigilantly, confirming that no vehicles were following them.

Two hours later, they checked into a hot spring hotel at the foot of Qingfeng Mountain.

Qin Ruoxi insisted on having four adjacent rooms, citing "security considerations" as the reason.

Xiao Bei did not object; they were still unsure if all the people behind this had been caught.

"Meet in the lobby at nine tomorrow morning?"

Team Leader Zhang Yining asked while holding the room cards.

Qin Ruoxi shook her head: "You two go have fun, I need to deal with some work emails."

Xiao Bei was just about to speak when Team Leader Zhang Yining's phone suddenly rang.

She glanced at the caller ID, her expression becoming complex: "My dad."

After walking aside to finish the call, Team Leader Zhang Yining returned with her brows tightly locked: "He asked if we needed help… it seems he has already heard about some things."

"What did you say?" Xiao Bei asked.

"I said we had already solved it."

Team Leader Zhang Yining curled her lips: "He's always like this, only asking after things are over."

Qin Ruoxi looked at Team Leader Zhang Yining thoughtfully but said nothing.

After returning to their respective rooms, Xiao Bei stood by the window, looking at the pitch-black mountain shadows in the distance.

His phone vibrated; it was a message from the secretary of Secretary Ma of Jinhe County: [County Magistrate Xuan Lingyu is emotionally stable, and Dai Lümau has confessed more details and has been handed over to the Provincial Party Committee. Secretary Ma says to take a good rest, you'll have to keep working when you get back.]

Xiao Bei replied with a "Received" and tossed his phone onto the bed.

Hot water gushed from the showerhead, washing away his nerves that had been tense for days.

He closed his eyes, but the image of Qin Ruoxi walking out of the Discipline Inspection Commission building surfaced in his mind—exhausted yet still standing tall, like a bamboo that had weathered a storm without breaking… but the figure of Su Yun also quickly entered his mind.

In the room next door, Qin Ruoxi was soaking in the bathtub, the hot water covering the bruises on her shoulders—the result of being roughly pushed into the interrogation room three days ago.

She picked up the bath salts provided by the hotel and found they were lavender-scented, which couldn't help but remind her of the faint pine scent in Xiao Bei's car.

She shook her head, shaking off this untimely thought.

The phone screen lit up, and work messages came one after another.

Looking at the dozens of work groups, Qin Ruoxi flipped her phone face down on the counter and took a deep breath, submerging herself in the water.

The hot water enveloped her, like a gentle suffocation.

The next morning, Xiao Bei got up early and went jogging with Su Yun in the hotel garden.

Turning a corner, he unexpectedly saw Qin Ruoxi sitting in a gazebo with a laptop spread out in front of her.

"Morning."

"Good morning, Mayor Qin." Su Yun also greeted her.

He stopped, his breathing slightly rapid from running, "Did you sleep well?"

Qin Ruoxi closed the laptop: "Better than the chairs at the Discipline Inspection Commission."

Xiao Bei nodded and continued to ask: "Where is Team Leader Zhang Yining?"

"She went to the mountain top cable car, said she wanted to take pictures of the sunrise."

Qin Ruoxi smiled and continued, "It's good to be young."

Sunlight spilled onto the stone table through the gaps in the leaves, forming mottled light and shadows.

Xiao Bei noticed that Qin Ruoxi was wearing a light blue casual shirt today, much softer than her usual formal attire, with her hair casually tucked behind her ears, revealing her small earlobes.

"Ahem, Su Yun, you look really nice today." Qin Ruoxi keenly noticed his gaze.

Xiao Bei shifted his gaze somewhat awkwardly, and Su Yun replied: "Mayor Qin, you look very beautiful today too."

Qin Ruoxi chuckled, and just as she was about to speak, her phone suddenly rang.

After finishing the call, her expression became serious: "The higher-ups want to hold a separate trial for the case of County Magistrate Xuan Lingyu, because they have received many letters of denunciation against County Magistrate Xuan Lingyu from school teachers in the past few days. Do you need to go back to attend the trial?"

Xiao Bei whistled: "It seems our vacation has ended early."

Qin Ruoxi packed up her computer, and as she passed by him, she gently patted his shoulder: "Thank you for coming to save me."

Her voice was very light, like a feather brushing past his ear, until her back disappeared at the end of the garden path.

...

Qin Ruoxi returned to the Municipal Government one step earlier. She stood in front of the Canglan Municipal Government building, the sunlight making the glass curtain wall dazzlingly bright.

Having not been here for three days, this building, which she was so familiar with that it felt like a second home, now seemed somewhat strange.

"Mayor Qin is back!"

The guard, Old Fu, shouted in surprise, then lowered his voice, "Are you okay now?"

"What could be wrong with me?"

Qin Ruoxi smiled slightly, her gaze sweeping over the staff in the lobby who were pretending to be busy but occasionally stealing glances at her.

The air was filled with a strange atmosphere—like a welcome, yet also like observation, as if they didn't dare to easily take sides.

The elevator door had just closed when the phone call from Office Director Li Yan came in: "Mayor Qin, Deputy Mayor Zhang is waiting for you in your office, saying he has an urgent work report."

Qin Ruoxi's finger paused on the elevator button for a second.

Zhang Mingyuan, Zhang Qimin's distant cousin; during the few days she had "the incident," he must have been quite active.

Pushing open the office door, Zhang Mingyuan was sitting in her chair flipping through files. Seeing her enter, he didn't get up, just raised his eyelids: "Yo, Mayor Qin, back so soon? Has the Discipline Inspection Commission's investigation ended?"

"Deputy Mayor Zhang, you are sitting in the wrong seat."

Qin Ruoxi walked straight to the desk and looked down at him.

Zhang Mingyuan smirked and stood up, but handed over the file in his hand: "These are several resolutions passed by the Municipal Party Committee Standing Committee during your absence that require your signature. Especially the old city renovation project, it has already been re-tendered."

Qin Ruoxi took the file and browsed it quickly, her brows furrowing tighter and tighter.

These resolutions not only overturned the plans she had presided over, but actually handed over several key projects to an obscure new company...