114: Chapter 114 Li Zhenguo's Shock, Li Kai's End

Pages turned, and the ink pad fell.

The bright red seal was fixed on the white paper.

Secretary Zhu Tianhe put down his fountain pen and exhaled a long, heavy breath.

Several pages of paper, written in detail, completely exposed the full story behind the signing and approval of the New City District project in the south of the city back then.

At this moment, Li Juan walked over holding her phone.

"Zhu Wenhao, it's a call from your grandfather; he wants to touch base with you."

Zhu Wenhao took it and pressed the speaker button with his thumb.

"Grandfather."

Li Zhenguo's voice came from the other end of the line.

"Zhu Wenhao, your mother just told me the general situation over the phone. What are your thoughts now, and what other plans do you have?"

Zhu Wenhao leaned back in his chair. "Grandfather, my method is very simple."

"Strike first and confess proactively."

"Submit this explanation from my father, along with the photos of that ledger, and frame the matter as a lack of supervisory responsibility, rather than complicity in embezzlement."

There was silence on the line for two seconds.

"Sigh." Li Zhenguo sighed. "Zhu Wenhao, your idea is correct. I will talk to Secretary Chen about this matter later. Speaking of which, we should also thank Mayor Su. If he hadn't raised this issue, we wouldn't have thought of it."

"Grandfather, I plan to have my father go to the Provincial Inspection Team to explain the situation now."

Li Zhenguo asked with doubt, "Has the matter reached this point?"

"Police Chief Li Jianguo of the Municipal Public Security Bureau has already started the arrest operation." Zhu Wenhao tapped his fingers on the armrest. "We don't know exactly how much information the Provincial Inspection Team has grasped after staying in Linjiang for such a period of time. It's better to prepare for the worst."

"Or, Secretary Chen of the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection already has certain clues. However, when he wanted to initiate the inquiry procedure, he was held back by someone who controlled the situation."

"How could that be?" Li Zhenguo asked back. "The Discipline Inspection Commission has its own independence in handling cases."

"Don't forget, although the Discipline Inspection Commission has independence, it also has to be responsible to the organization at its own level." Zhu Wenhao peeled back the rules layer by layer. "If Secretary Lao intends to suppress it, just delaying the inquiry, requesting to supplement and substantiate relevant evidence, or arranging for the relevant departments of the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection to conduct supplementary investigations—all of these can be done."

Li Juan's heart jumped wildly as she listened from the side, and Secretary Zhu Tianhe was even more stunned.

"Moreover, he also needs us to charge for him, and he also needs Director Qi's Public Security Department to fight against Secretary Lei for him. He also needs Minister Xiao's vote of support in the Standing Committee and the Five-Person Group meeting, as well as the right to speak to help him complete the personnel reshuffle."

"In the eyes of big figures, there is an order of priority."

"In fact, in Secretary Lao's eyes, we are no different from Old Liu; both are representatives of the local faction in Jiangnan Province. It's just that winning us over serves his immediate interests. We must take advantage of the fact that we are still useful to him to resolve this old case proactively, so as to avoid further complications."

On the other end of the phone, Li Zhenguo was silent for a long time.

He has experienced the ups and downs of life for most of his life; what kind of power struggles hasn't he seen? But his grandson's insight, which was clear as day, still made him feel shocked.

"Okay, you go." Li Zhenguo's voice returned to decisiveness. "Let your father and mother come to the house tomorrow. I still have some friendship with Secretary Guo of the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection."

The call was cut off.

Secretary Zhu Tianhe looked at Zhu Wenhao, his mind unable to process it all for a moment. Li Juan sat on the side, still calculating the pros and cons of the analysis just now.

Zhu Wenhao stood up, picked up the situation explanation, and put it into a file bag.

"Father, there are some things you don't understand, let's take it slowly, and I will analyze them for you later."

He picked up the file bag and handed it to Secretary Zhu Tianhe.

"Now, let's go to the Municipal Party Committee Guest House."

Afterwards, he turned his head and looked at Li Juan.

"Mother, you wait for my call at home and be a temporary messenger." Zhu Wenhao assigned the task. "If Father hasn't returned in three hours, and I haven't called you, you must call Grandfather again."

Li Juan nodded solemnly and noted it.

"Also." Zhu Wenhao walked to the door, looking at Secretary Zhu Tianhe who was putting on his shoes. "Father, when you go there, submit the photos first, then talk to Team Leader Qiu Rui of the Inspection Team, and ask for a record to be made. When you finally sign, you must look clearly before signing."

"Okay, let's act separately." Zhu Wenhao pushed open the villa's security door, and the two disappeared into the night.

...

Linjiang City, north of the city, in the abandoned mechanical warehouse of an auto repair factory.

Several riot SUVs with their police lights off were parked there silently.

The SWAT captain held a submachine gun and made a tactical gesture.

Several SWAT team members stuck to the wall like ghosts, and hydraulic cutters cut the rusty iron lock.

The gate was kicked open.

"Police! Don't move!"

The high-intensity flashlight instantly illuminated the empty warehouse, making it as bright as day.

There was no expected resistance, and no trace of Huzi was found.

In the center of the warehouse, a little boy was tied to an old iron chair.

It was Zheng Jianguo's illegitimate son.

The boy's mouth was sealed with tape, and his eyes were filled with extreme terror. A bomb was tied to his chest, with a simple timer connected to it.

The SWAT team members were just about to step forward to rescue him.

"Don't move! If you move again, I will press the switch!"

In the dark corner, a man in a black jacket walked out.

He held a remote detonator in his hand, and his thumb was hovering above the red button.

The captain raised his hand to signal the team members to stop advancing.

The surroundings of the warehouse were empty; there was no suitable cover at all, and it was extremely unsuitable for a strong attack. Once a firefight broke out, it would easily lead to the other party detonating the bomb. No one could afford to bet on the little boy's life.

A standoff ensued.

At a high vantage point on the periphery, the sniper lay in the cold wind, locking onto the man's upper body through the night vision scope.

"Dong Yao reporting: The target is holding the detonator in his right hand, with his finger pressed on the edge of the button. A forced kill might cause muscle spasms and trigger the switch."

The crosshairs of the scope were fine-tuned.

"Also, I found a scorpion tattoo on the man's hand."

The report from the headset made Captain Chen Gang's hand tighten.

Scorpion tattoo. This was the mastermind who paid the hospital, the upstream contact confessed by the mole, Deputy Captain Qiao An — Li Kai.

Captain Chen Gang did not dare to make a decision on his own, so he could only call Police Chief Li Jianguo to ask for instructions.

Just in the gap of his request, the man had already taken the little boy hostage and was preparing to leave the warehouse. Outside the back door, a car was parked.

Once he let him take the hostage into the car and run to a crowded place, the consequences would be unimaginable.

In the command center, Police Chief Li Jianguo listened to Captain Chen Gang's report, gritted his teeth, and finally issued the order to kill.

Captain Chen Gang received the order, and a layer of cold sweat oozed from his forehead. How could he make a desperado's finger leave that button for even a tenth of a second?

Watching Li Kai push open the back door, with half his body leaning out.

Captain Chen Gang took a gamble.

He suddenly concentrated his energy and shouted.

"Li Kai!"

This sudden shout was like a thunderclap in the silent, abandoned warehouse.

The man was stunned for a moment, his gaze subconsciously following the sound to find the source. It was a conditioned reflex of having his real name called out.

The thumb holding the detonator showed a trace of extremely slight relaxation at this moment.

"Bang!"

The dull gunshot broke through the night sky.

The sniper seized this fleeting opportunity and killed him with one shot.

The large-caliber bullet instantly penetrated Li Kai's skull. The powerful kinetic energy carried him backward, and his body collapsed to the ground. The detonator slipped from his loosened fingers and fell into the mud.

The captain took the lead and rushed over, kicking the detonator far away.

...

Suburban villa, study.

Wang Juan sat on the leather sofa, and the tablet screen in front of her was playing the surveillance footage inside the warehouse.

Li Kai, this bait used to attract attention, died for a worthy cause.

The satellite phone on the side rang.

Wang Juan connected, and Wang Lili's voice came out: "Sister, I have taken Huzi and the others and left."

"Call me when you arrive." Wang Juan's tone had no ups and downs. "Keep the digital key safe. The encrypted currency inside is your rations for the road. I have already arranged everything over there."

Hanging up the phone, Wang Juan walked to the desk and put away the satellite phone.

...

The night was deep and the cold was piercing.

At the entrance of the Municipal Party Committee Guest House, two street lamps cast dim halos of light. This building was now completely taken over by the Provincial Inspection Team, with special personnel on duty on the periphery.

The black Audi stopped steadily at the street corner.

Zhu Wenhao sat in the driver's seat, turned his head, and looked at Secretary Zhu Tianhe in the passenger seat.

"Go, Father."

Secretary Zhu Tianhe straightened his suit tie and pushed open the car door.

The night wind blew up the hem of his coat; he carried his briefcase and stepped onto the steps.

Zhu Wenhao leaned back in his seat, his eyes following his father's back until he disappeared into the revolving glass door.