212: Chapter 212 Lu Guoliang's Questioning, Zhu Wenhao's Response

"Secretary Zhu."

Secretary Lu Guoliang gestured vaguely with his finger toward those white cloth banners.

"The banners down there are quite an eyesore."

"Now that the disturbance has subsided, the loose ends must be tied up. How exactly should these rioting villagers be dealt with? Furthermore, with so many eyes present at today's restitution meeting, and blood shed and violence erupting right in front of the Town Government, how do you intend to handle the ensuing public opinion?"

This was a task that should have been coordinated by Secretary Qiu Dehai. Secretary Lu Guoliang bypassed Secretary Qiu Dehai and dumped the burden directly onto Zhu Wenhao.

This was an act of pressure.

If Zhu Wenhao took full responsibility, it would be an overreach, giving others a pretext to accuse him of being arbitrary and dictatorial later on; if he shirked responsibility, it would be seen as retreating in the face of battle, and the prestige he had built up would vanish completely.

Secretary Qiu Dehai stepped back half a pace, stuffing his hands into his overcoat pockets, keeping his eyes on his nose and his nose on his heart.

The stage was set perfectly; he was happy to see it happen and couldn't wait for this fire to burn Zhu Wenhao to the ground.

Facing this challenge from the County Party Committee Secretary, Zhu Wenhao spoke, his voice steady.

"The great affairs of the state lie in sacrifice and warfare."

"At the local level, this 'warfare' represents laws and regulations. Secretary Lu Guoliang, doesn't every matter require a thorough investigation of the facts before a final conclusion can be reached? Listening to only one side easily leads to unjust, false, or wrong cases."

He shifted the tone of his conversation slightly, "Investigating cadres for disciplinary and legal violations is the specialized duty of the Discipline Inspection Commission. As it happens, Director Li Qiang from the First Office of the County Commission for Discipline Inspection is stationed right here in the town."

"How about we call Director Li Qiang over? In the presence of the County Party Committee, let's see what exactly is going on with this accusation and siege against a cadre."

This statement left Secretary Lu Guoliang with no room to retort.

He was, of course, well aware of Director Li Qiang's current situation in Heishi Town.

A discarded pawn of Deputy Secretary Tian Wenguang, and a blade in the hands of Secretary Pang Jianguo.

Without a conclusion from the Discipline Inspection Commission, he, as the Secretary of the County Party Committee, could not easily define the nature of this riot based solely on subjective impressions.

Secretary Lu Guoliang pondered for a long time: "Listening to both sides leads to enlightenment, while listening to only one side leads to darkness. Call Director Li Qiang over; I want to hear what the Discipline Inspection Commission has to say."

"Very well." Zhu Wenhao agreed.

He turned his head and looked at Director Xu Jie, who was standing to the side.

"Director Xu, please trouble yourself to go and invite Director Li Qiang over."

Zhu Wenhao added, "Just as the riot broke out earlier, I already called Director Li Qiang. By my estimation, he should be arriving at the perimeter by now."

Anticipating the enemy's moves.

The corner of Secretary Lu Guoliang's eye twitched almost imperceptibly.

This twenty-four-year-old young man's methods were overly sophisticated. He had not only anticipated the riot but had even arranged the endorsement for how to end it in advance.

Director Xu Jie always handled matters efficiently; before long, she led Director Li Qiang through the police cordon and arrived here.

On the way here, Director Li Qiang had clearly seen the situation outside. Those dozens of rioters being trampled under the feet of the special police made him completely clear-headed. In today's situation, the only way to survive was to cling tightly to the coattails of Secretary Pang Jianguo and Zhu Wenhao.

"Secretary Lu Guoliang." Director Li Qiang stood to attention and pulled a thick folder from his briefcase.

"I have already understood the general situation outside on my way here." Director Li Qiang flipped open the case file, "Actually, some time ago, the working group of the County Commission for Discipline Inspection stationed in Heishi Town received a joint letter of accusation against Comrade Deputy Secretary Zhu Wenhao in the suggestion box at the town guesthouse."

"We reported the contents of this letter to Secretary Pang Jianguo of the County Commission for Discipline Inspection immediately." Director Li Qiang stated, "Secretary Pang Jianguo attached great importance to this and specially convened a standing committee meeting of the County Commission for Discipline Inspection. The meeting resolved to require our First Office to conduct a secret investigation on the spot without making any noise."

Hearing the words "Standing Committee," a flash of insight struck Secretary Lu Guoliang.

A few days ago, the circulated materials from the standing committee meeting of the County Commission for Discipline Inspection had been on his desk as a routine copy. However, at the time, his mind was entirely focused on how to balance the personnel of the government office and the power struggle with County Mayor Gu Mingchuan, so he had not deeply investigated a report concerning a township-level deputy position.

Director Li Qiang handed the first set of materials to Secretary Lu Guoliang with both hands.

"Please take a look, Secretary Lu Guoliang. This is the case file of our preliminary investigation during this period."

"After retrieving the household registration records from the Town Police Station and conducting a cross-comparison one by one, this so-called joint letter is full of flaws." Director Li Qiang analyzed, "Among them, more than thirty names are not local villagers at all, and some are even deceased persons whose household registrations were cancelled years ago; there is also a portion that, after interviews and handwriting analysis, were not signed by the individuals themselves."

Director Li Qiang raised his tone: "The vast majority of the remaining ones who actually signed are concentrated within the interest circle of the Zhang Clan's eldest branch. It is worth noting that we also retrieved the recipient list for this compensation restitution meeting and conducted a deep comparison. None of the villagers from the second branch, third branch, or other surnames who received money participated in this joint petition."

"This kind of blatant fabrication, forging public opinion, has a sinister intent that is self-evident."

Secretary Lu Guoliang flipped through the comparison table attached with household registration proofs, his face turning cold inch by inch.

Director Li Qiang continued to pull out the second document and handed it over.

"It is not just the list that is forged. We have also verified the so-called 'crimes' listed in the accusation letter one by one."

"Regarding the issue in the letter accusing Deputy Police Chief Li Sanqiang of the Town Police Station of violent law enforcement and firing his weapon in violation of regulations." Director Li Qiang pointed to the bright red official seal on the document, "This is the internal investigation report issued by the Linjiang Municipal Public Security Bureau. The report explicitly states that Comrade Deputy Police Chief Li Sanqiang firing his weapon and injuring Zhang Xing was an act of legitimate self-defense when facing resistance to arrest and an attack on police by organized crime forces, which fully complies with the regulations on the use of police equipment. The Municipal Public Security Bureau is even preparing to recommend him for a personal third-class merit for this matter."

"As for the economic accusations mentioned in the letter that Secretary Zhu Wenhao forcibly seized the people's hard-earned money and accepted bribes." Director Li Qiang spread out the last few bank statements, "In the past few days, through the special channels of the Discipline Inspection Commission, we have conducted a full audit of all of Zhu Wenhao's personal bank accounts. There are no large-sum capital flows, and the amount of savings under his name is fully consistent with his legal salary standards since he took office. It is clean and clear."

Three heavy blows landed.

Director Li Qiang clasped his hands and gave his concluding statement: "Secretary Lu Guoliang. Synthesizing the above physical evidence, documentary evidence, and household registration comparisons, this is by no means a mass petition."

"All of this looks more like a premeditated and organized act of retaliation. It is an intentional frame-up and smear campaign by organized crime forces and their protective umbrellas against Comrade Zhu Wenhao, who is investigating the case, in order to prevent the Town Government from settling old accounts!"

Only the uneven breathing of the few people remained in the room.

Secretary Qiu Dehai sat on the side, his cold sweat already soaking his inner shirt.

These three sets of materials not only cleared Zhu Wenhao's name but also completely cut off the escape route of the Zhang Clan.

Secretary Lu Guoliang looked at the pieces of irrefutable evidence on the table.

For a long time, he gently closed the report issued by the Municipal Public Security Bureau.

This top leader of Qingjiang County, a veteran of many battles, could not help but feel a sense of wariness toward the young man sitting quietly beside him.

He did not claim credit, did not argue, but only borrowed a knife to kill, using strict laws to protect himself completely.

"A skilled general is neither too rigid to be broken nor too soft to be rolled up; thus, he uses weakness to control strength, and softness to control rigidity." Secretary Lu Guoliang crossed his hands and cast his gaze back to Zhu Wenhao.

This sentence had a double meaning.

It was both a commentary on Zhu Wenhao's method of leveraging force to strike back and a warning.

"Secretary Zhu Yuntong, you really are a..."

Secretary Lu Guoliang paused, not fully revealing that evaluation.