92: Chapter 91 Almsgiving

Police Chief Zhao Gang parked the police car steadily in the shadows of the plane trees on the back street of the Provincial Party School.

The night was heavy, and the autumn wind swept up withered leaves, rustling against the windshield.

"Zhu Wenhao, the Provincial Public Security Department will be working through the night to solidify the statements and physical evidence."

Police Chief Zhao Gang kept his hands on the steering wheel, the car window rolled down just a crack.

"You're injured, so get some rest. As soon as there's any movement from the Provincial Public Security Department, I'll message you immediately."

Zhu Wenhao nodded and pushed the door open to get out.

Returning to the dormitory.

He pushed open the wooden door to find his roommate, Zhou Xu, sitting in front of a laptop, his fingers hovering over the keyboard. Hearing the lock turn, he turned his head to look over.

"Where are you hurt?"

They had lived together for over a month, but aside from routine class committee business, they rarely spoke privately in the dorm. Today, however, Zhou Xu was acting uncharacteristically, carrying a hint of scrutiny.

Zhu Wenhao changed out of his coat and answered casually, "I went to Red Star Machinery Factory for research. The road conditions in the factory area were poor, and I took a fall."

"You fell?"

Zhou Xu pushed up the black-rimmed glasses on the bridge of his nose. "You just came from the Jingjiang City Judicial Appraisal Center. Can that forensic report stating 'minor injury, second degree' really be from a fall on flat ground?"

Zhu Wenhao turned around, looking squarely at this roommate who usually kept such a low profile.

Being able to track his movements at the Judicial Appraisal Center so clearly was something no ordinary staff member of the Provincial Party Committee could achieve.

Zhou Xu leaned half his body out from behind the computer screen.

"Do you have time to hear my story?"

"That is exactly what I intended."

On a cold night, a guest arrives; tea serves as wine, while the bamboo stove boils water over a glowing fire.

Zhu Wenhao took a small purple clay jar from the storage cabinet, along with a set of Ru ware celadon tea set, and placed them on the small square table by the window.

Selecting water, warming the cups, adding tea leaves, rinsing the tea.

Simplifying the complex and pointing directly to the source—that is the Great Way.

Zhou Xu watched Zhu Wenhao's hands manipulating the tea set, picked up the small celadon cup placed before him, and took a shallow sip.

"Good tea, good technique."

He set down the teacup, the porcelain base making a light sound as it touched the wooden table.

Then, he played his first trump card.

"Zhu Wenhao, my name is Zhou Xu."

His gaze bore down on him, carrying an innate sense of scrutiny.

"Governor Zhou Zhiwen of Jiangnan Province is my third uncle. We both come from the Zhou family in The Capital. I refused the arrangements made by my family and voluntarily applied to come to the local level."

After a slight pause, he uttered another name.

A name that had once held a high position in the Cabinet Elders Council.

"That is my grandfather."

If it were an ordinary staff member, they would likely be unable to hold their teacup steady upon hearing this background.

Zhu Wenhao simply held the teapot and refilled his empty cup.

His wrist was steady, without the slightest tremor.

Zhou Xu's heart skipped a beat.

He had originally thought that by bringing up his family background, he would at least see some trepidation on the other person's face.

But Zhu Wenhao's face was as calm as an ancient well, without a ripple of emotion.

"I have read your file and observed you for a month," Zhou Xu said, collecting his thoughts and shifting to a serious tone. "You're not bad. You have strategy, you have methods, you can keep the disorganized Spark Class firmly under your thumb, and you are a ruthless character with nerves of steel."

Zhou Xu crossed his hands and rested them under his chin.

"This bitter ruse you performed at Red Star Machinery Factory—if I'm not mistaken, the next target for you and the forces behind you is Secretary Lei Zhen of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission."

"That is the case." Zhu Wenhao picked up his teacup and admitted it frankly.

The matter was already out in the open; unnecessary concealment was meaningless.

He intended to use the situation to his advantage, and Secretary Lei Zhen would inevitably strike back.

This was an open conspiracy.

Zhou Xu frowned, his tone deepening. "You don't understand Secretary Lei Zhen. You don't understand how deep his roots go in the Political and Legal Affairs Commission, nor how formidable the forces behind him are. Relying solely on the newly established Anti-Gang Office of Director Qi Shan to shake him is no different from an ant trying to shake a tree."

Zhu Wenhao placed his teacup on the table.

"Zhou Xu, if you are standing in your third uncle's position and want to persuade me to stop, I advise you to save your breath."

Zhu Wenhao leaned forward, an invisible pressure enveloping him.

"Once momentum is built, it cannot be shifted by individual will. Now that things have reached this point, there are invisible hands pushing it forward."

"Of course I didn't come to persuade you," Zhou Xu clarified, adding a remark to justify his own side. "My third uncle has also long been unable to stand that man surnamed Lei making a mess of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission."

Zhu Wenhao held his teacup, his heart devoid of ripples.

Unable to stand it?

It was simply that the wind had changed in The Capital. As soon as Secretary Lao made a move, that Governor Zhou immediately cut ties with his former ally.

The "unable to stand it" on their lips had always been a fig leaf for their interests.

Zhou Xu cleared his throat and finally got to the core of the night.

"I want to recruit you."

Zhou Xu stared at Zhu Wenhao, throwing out his price.

"Become part of my team. With the resources of my Zhou family in The Capital and Jiangnan Province, not only you, but also your father, Secretary Zhu Tianhe, can break through the ceiling of provincial-level officials and take another step up. You are a smart man; you should know what it means to have the Zhou family's protection in Jiangnan Province."

This was a rare and direct recruitment.

Using the threshold of provincial-level officialdom as a bargaining chip on the table—looking across the entire province, only such a top-tier scion would dare to say this.

"Think about it carefully. Also, I'll give you a piece of news." Zhou Xu picked up his teacup and stood up. "In this confrontation between you and Secretary Lei Zhen, our Zhou family will not take sides. Consider this an entrance examination for you."

He tilted his head and drank the tea in his cup.

"Good tea. The tea-brewing technique is also good. I hope to have it again next time."

After speaking, he turned around, put on his noise-canceling headphones, and sat back down in front of the computer.

Zhu Wenhao ignored him and walked straight back to his own desk.

He opened his computer.

The research report on Red Star Machinery Factory was not yet finished.

He opened the document.

The original, steady report titled "Research on the Asset Restructuring of Red Star Machinery Factory" was selected and deleted by him.

His fingers fell onto the keyboard, the sound of typing crisp and sharp in the night.

A new title formed at the top of the screen: "On the Loss of Assets and the Breeding Ground for Protective Umbrellas During the Intrusion of Gangster Forces into SOE Restructuring—Taking Jiangnan Red Star Machinery Factory as an Example."

It was a sprawling piece of over a thousand words, every word drawing blood.

The article did not talk about vague theories but focused on dissecting the underlying logic of capital penetration. The operational model used by Shengyuan Holdings to transfer residual equipment value through white gloves was presented on paper as if peeling back layers of a cocoon.

From the loopholes in industrial and commercial changes to The Capital flow-back from selling assets at a low price, every node was detailed and accurate.

Furthermore, the spearhead pointed directly at those gang-related groups acting as thugs at the grassroots level.

The writing shifted, directly questioning:

"Who is providing shelter for these thugs and hooligans?"

"Who is turning state-owned assets into private property under the cover of SOE restructuring?"

This was not an assignment to just get by.

This was a manifesto to denounce rebels, enough to trigger a major earthquake in the political circles of Jiangnan Province.

After checking that there were no errors, he clicked save.

Zhu Wenhao closed the computer and lay down on the single bed, still fully clothed.

Staring at the patterns on the ceiling, he reviewed Zhou Xu's words from tonight in his mind.

Very interesting.

The grandson of a Cabinet scholar ran to the Party School in Jiangnan Province to extend an olive branch to him.

In the two hundred years of the Great Ming, the Chief Grand Secretary of the Cabinet changed generation after generation.

No matter how great the Chief Grand Secretary is, being under one person but above ten thousand, they are ultimately a subject.

Asking him, Zhu Wenhao, to be part of a subject's team?

Aristocratic families have existed since ancient times. Relying on the shade of their ancestors, they view the world's resources as their own and are accustomed to dispensing handouts from on high.