184: Chapter 184 The Arrogant Shangguan Bao

Seeing the leader insist on checking the gold panning situation, Director Hu Bing could only smile bitterly in his heart, praying that no trouble would break out.

They first had lunch in the township. Even though the Jinshi Township Government Compound was not far away diagonally, they didn't go to disturb them.

After lunch, Qin Chuan arrived at the gold panning site in Jinshi Township.

There was a river here; it wasn't very wide, and there were hills on both sides. There were some sheds by the river, but they were clearly empty, appearing abandoned.

There were large pits in and along the river, as well as piles of excavated sand and gravel—all traces left by gold panning.

Qin Chuan was slightly puzzled and asked, "How come I don't see many people? When I was studying at County No. 1 High School, I heard that gold panning was prevalent here. At its peak, thousands of people panned for gold in this area every day."

Director Hu Bing gave a bitter smile.

As the Director of the County Committee Office, he was quite clear about the situation here and knew it couldn't be hidden.

Sure enough, Qin Chuan had good eyesight. He pointed into the distance and said, "Look there, there are quite a few people and several large sheds. The scale isn't small. Let's go take a look."

Since things had come to this and the leader had seen it, Director Hu Bing could only tell the truth. "Secretary, this is the only gold panning operation in all of Jinshi Township. It's run by Shangguan Bao. Originally, there were dozens of operations of all sizes, but he drove them all away."

"Those who didn't leave were either locked up or beaten and maimed. Everyone is afraid and doesn't dare to pan for gold here anymore."

Such a situation actually existed!

It was that Shangguan Bao again!

Qin Chuan's expression became solemn. He didn't say another word. A few minutes later, they finally approached; a gold panning site was not far away.

He estimated there were over a hundred people panning for gold there. The scale was large, and they were even using some machinery; it wasn't purely manual labor.

Getting closer, the river water's color was darker—clearly heavily polluted, likely due to the illegal use of large quantities of certain chemicals.

"Stop! Who are you people?"

A bald man with a ferocious face and tattoos on his arms blocked Qin Chuan and the others with a large machete.

One look and it was clear these people were up to no good.

Qin Chuan shouted, "Get lost!"

With a low shout, he completely ignored the burly men and continued walking forward.

Yo-ho!

The bald man was stunned, then became enraged. He extended his machete to block Qin Chuan and threatened, "Take one more step and see if I don't hack you to death."

Qin Chuan wouldn't show mercy to such a person; he directly kicked him to the ground.

Director Hu Bing was incredibly shocked. He never expected Secretary Qin to be so formidable. That bald man clearly had decent fighting prowess, yet he was kicked over in one move.

Seeing this, the other burly men prepared to charge. Director Hu Bing shouted, "Stop! This is Secretary Qin of our County Party Committee, and I am Director Hu Bing of the County Committee Office. Let's see who dares to lay a hand on us!"

Once their identities were revealed, these people didn't dare to make a move.

One of them watched Qin Chuan and Director Hu Bing continue forward and took out his phone to make a call, likely reporting to his superiors.

Soon, Qin Chuan and the others reached the gold panning site.

The first impression was that it was lifeless.

Many of the people working here had hollow gazes and expressionless faces. Many wore filthy, tattered clothes, and there were even disabled people among them.

Seeing a slightly more normal-looking middle-aged man, Qin Chuan took out a Chunghwa Cigarette and handed it over. "Master, how long have you been working here?"

Seeing it was a Chunghwa Cigarette, the middle-aged man carefully took it and put it in his pocket, then warned, "You should leave quickly, or you won't be able to get away. They'll beat you to death."

Qin Chuan certainly wouldn't leave without understanding the situation. "Master, don't be afraid. We are from the government, here specifically to look into things. Why are there even disabled people here? And many look like they've lost all hope."

Perhaps the words 'from the government' worked. The middle-aged man looked around first before whispering.

"Leader, this is a Black Factory. I was tricked into coming here too, and now I can't escape. I have to work over ten hours a day without receiving a penny in wages. A few days ago, I tried to quit and leave, but I was severely beaten."

"Many people here were tricked. Some are undocumented, some have intellectual disabilities, and some are deaf-mutes—all forced to labor here. Leader, if you have the power, you must save us. I want to go home..."

Before he could finish, he suddenly shut his mouth and pretended to work diligently.

Qin Chuan saw it too. At least a dozen people were approaching. The leader was a man in his thirties, followed by what were clearly his lackeys and thugs.

Director Hu Bing quickly whispered a reminder, "Secretary Qin, the one leading them is Shangguan Bao, one of Master Wang's disciples. This factory belongs to him."

Qin Chuan nodded and ordered, "Call the Public Security Bureau and tell Director Zhu Huabing to bring police forces. Today, I am going to shut down this Black Factory."

Director Hu Bing also knew the situation was serious. With over a dozen opponents, it would be dangerous if things turned violent. It was a small matter if he got beaten, but Secretary Qin couldn't come to any harm.

He took out his phone and hurriedly made the call.

Shangguan Bao walked over with an arrogant expression, not taking Qin Chuan seriously at all. He spoke in a condescending tone.

"This must be Secretary Qin!"

"Secretary Qin is truly impressive, injuring my man as soon as you arrive. I'd like an explanation from Secretary Qin."

Qin Chuan glanced at him and gave a cold smile. "You must be Shangguan Bao. From what I know, this is an illegal gold panning operation without any legal permits. I have only one purpose in coming today: to shut this factory down completely."

"Secretary Qin talks big. However, I don't think you can close it. If you don't believe me, you can try."

A lackey behind him brandished a machete and shouted, "Brother Leopard, why waste words with him? Let me go up and give him a few slashes first."

Truly arrogant!

Knowing he was the County Party Secretary, they still dared to try and hack him.

They were truly audacious, showing no respect for a state official and having no concept of the law.

Shangguan Bao nodded slightly. "Just teach him a lesson; don't kill him."

He was confident that as long as no one died, he could settle it. Even if he couldn't, his master could easily handle it.

Director Hu Bing had finished the call. Seeing this, he immediately stood in front of Qin Chuan and said sternly, "This is the County Party Secretary of our Wanshun County. Let's see who among you dares!"

"Get lost!"

A burly man stepped forward and shoved Director Hu Bing aside. Poor man, a civil servant was no match for this brute; he was pushed several meters back and nearly fell on his backside.

After pushing Director Hu Bing away, the burly man swung his large machete. However, he used the back of the blade, likely also a bit worried about causing a fatality.

Seeing the machete swinging toward him, Qin Chuan's gaze sharpened.

Before he could act, a figure rushed forward at high speed and collided heavily with the man wielding the blade.