Madmen don't keep diaries

Chapter 272, Section 271: The Details of the Rope, Mike's Connections

Where can we find the details?

Of course, it's the government office.

But Feng Xiuhu didn't let Gu Zhili come with him today; instead, he sent Mike along.

The two left their home and headed straight for the port area.

Strangely, Feng Xiuhu walked a distance but did not find any rental carriages—usually at this time, there would be carriages waiting for customers by the roadside.

Just as I was wondering, a carriage came from the street corner, its curtains open, clearly indicating that it had no passengers.

Feng Xiuhu quickly waved: "Over here!"

Hearing the shouts, the coachman instinctively pulled the reins to bring the carriage closer. But when he got closer and saw Feng Xiuhu's face clearly, he panicked and whipped the horse's rump, yelling, "Giddy up! Giddy up! Giddy up!"

The carriage sped past the two of them, the wind it stirred up making Feng Xiuhu's overcoat flutter loudly.

Feng Xiuhu looked at Mike beside him: "Did you not pay for the ride? Why did the carriage run away as soon as it saw you?"

Mike was both amused and exasperated: "I don't have that kind of face—didn't you read today's newspaper?"

Feng Xiuhu's eyes immediately turned wary: "What?"

Mike stepped back and said cautiously, "Today's front page says that you caused a scene at the nightclub last night, using sorcery to bewitch a bunch of people in the bathroom, and even seduced the most popular girl, Liu Ying'er, and brought her to drink with you."

Feng Xiuhu was so angry that he jumped up and down: "Your newspaper is only targeting me, is that it!"

Mike added in a low voice, "That's the mild part. Some people have combined this with the rumors about your previous resurrection and said that you are possessed by an evil spirit, so you have to eat people regularly—the walls covered in minced meat in the toilet stall last night are evidence. Quite a few people believe this, so now everyone is terrified of 'Tiger,' and even rickshaw drivers dare not solicit customers in front of your house."

Feng Xiuhu turned and left.

Mike was taken aback: "That's not the way out of the city. Where are you going?"

Feng Xiuhu strode forward angrily: "I'm going to burn your newspaper office down first."

……

After much persuasion, Mike finally managed to stop Feng Xiuhu.

It wasn't that Mike had a lot of influence, but rather that he gave Feng Xiuhu a convincing reason: "If you set the newspaper office on fire now, wouldn't that just confirm those rumors? Why don't you find an opportunity to do a few good deeds, and I'll get a few of my familiar journalist friends to interview you? Wouldn't that improve your public image?"

Feng Xiuhu thought it made sense, so he reluctantly gave up.

Without the carriage, the two had no choice but to proceed on foot.

The good news is that these rumors are currently only circulating in the upper town and have not yet reached the lower town.

So after leaving the city, the two finally managed to get a rickshaw.

Without further delay, the two went straight to the government building in the port area.

When the police officers guarding the large iron gate saw that it was Feng Xiuhu, they didn't dare to stop them and obediently let them in. Only after Feng Xiuhu had gone far away did they hurry to run and inform the police.

News of Feng Xiuhu's ill intentions quickly spread throughout the entire government office, and the building immediately became lively.

Feng Xiuhu was unaware of these matters and did not care.

Mike was still confused. He didn't understand what Feng Xiuhu was going to do, nor did he understand why he had to be taken along.

"Who exactly is in charge of the details?"

Walking down the corridor, Mike asked in a low voice.

Feng Xiuhu replied, "Whoever is most worried is concerned with the smallest details."

Mike thought for a moment and then asked, "I'm still wearing my butler's robes. It might not be appropriate for the two of us to just barge in like this." Seeing that Mike was having second thoughts, Feng Xiuhu put his arm around his shoulder and said, "It's perfect! You're the star of the show today."

Mike was taken aback, then pointed at himself and said, "Who do you think I am?"

Feng Xiuhu waved his hand: "It doesn't count from before, but from today onwards, you are the number one person in Fancheng. I'm here today to help you build your network."

Mike couldn't help but smile wryly.

Connections? He's just a lowly steward, what connections could he possibly have? Which of these officials would deign to associate with him?

But Feng Xiuhu was adamant. He grabbed someone at random, asked for directions, and led Mike into Zheng Muwen's office.

Zheng Muwen was sitting behind his desk with a worried expression when he heard the noise. Just when he was bursting with anger, he immediately yelled, "You have no manners! Go knock on the door!"

Upon closer inspection, I was dumbfounded.

Without saying a word, Feng Xiuhu walked over and slapped him across the face: "Director Zheng, may I come in?"

Zheng Muwen covered his face and nodded, then pointed to the sofa and said, "Father Feng, please sit down."

After saying that, he rang the bell again, summoning his secretary from the adjacent cubicle, and asked her to make tea.

After the secretary closed the door, Zheng Muwen turned around and looked at him with a stern, businesslike expression: "What does Father Feng want with me?"

Feng Xiuhu said with a smile, "I was afraid that Director Zheng would worry himself sick, so I came here to help."

Zheng Muwen said seriously, "Father Feng is too kind. It is my duty to devote myself to education. I would not hesitate to do anything, even if it means pouring my heart and soul into it, let alone worrying about trivial matters."

Feng Xiuhu nodded slightly: "If you don't speak like a human being, I'll slap you."

Zheng Muwen instinctively shrank his neck, then glanced at the door and said in a low voice, "What else do you want? I've already agreed to go and am trying my best to persuade my colleagues. Do you really want to push me to my death?"

Feng Xiuhu waved his hand: "Don't be so resistant. Everyone says I'm here to help you. I don't care who you've already won over. Just tell me directly, besides you, who in the neutral faction has the most influence and is the most resolute in their opposition?"

Zheng Muwen was taken aback at first, then a look of joy appeared on his face—wasn't this a perfect opportunity to deal with his rivals?
Without the slightest hesitation, he blurted out: "Du Shiqin! Director of the Sanitation Department!"

Feng Xiuhu nodded and said, "Find an excuse to call him over, and I'll talk to him myself."

Just then, the secretary brought in tea, and Zheng Muwen quickly told him to go and call someone.

While waiting, Zheng Muwen took the opportunity to exaggerate Feng Xiuhu's story.

“Du Shiqin is different from me; he is by no means a gentleman. As far as I know, he not only takes bribes by abusing his position, but he is also a womanizer. It’s only because the Sanitation Department is not an important department that no one has targeted him specifically; otherwise, given his tainted background, he would have been dealt with long ago.”

Seeing that Feng Xiuhu was not very interested, Zheng Muwen changed the subject: "That guy surnamed Du is extremely arrogant and doesn't take you seriously at all. Yesterday, he even came here to mock me, saying that Crazy Tiger can only bully weak people like me. As long as the government is united and refuses him with a strong attitude, Crazy Tiger will be helpless."

How much of the truth was in that conversation remains to be seen, and Feng Xiuhu didn't take it to heart.

Not long after, there was a knock on the door.

Zheng Muwen was overjoyed, his old face beaming with excitement: "Please come in quickly!"

The door was pushed open, and the secretary led Du Shiqin in.

Compared to Zheng Muwen, Du Shiqin is much younger and looks to be in his prime, although he already has quite a large beer belly.

He entered with an arrogant attitude and said, "Director Zheng, are you trying to persuade me? I made it clear enough yesterday that we officials should draw a clear line between ourselves and the church..."

Before he could finish speaking, Du Shiqin saw Feng Xiuhu on the sofa. His voice stopped abruptly, and his eyes slowly widened.

P.S.: Mr. Feng keeps his word; Mike will definitely become a prominent figure.

(End of this chapter)