In the name of supernatural powers

Chapter 221 Reaction and Gift

General Office of Finance, Taxation and Household Registration.

Chen Yunming arrived an hour later, after the Director-General of the Dali Division was arrested and detained, the entire South China Sea region and the Dali Division were under control, and some rumors were released. Only then did he belatedly realize that something had happened.

Secretary Wang looked somewhat flustered and said, "Sir, is the Martial Virtue Hall planning to crack down on financial supplements?"

According to some rumors he had heard, the Martial Marquis who was parachuted from the Imperial Capital to the South China Sea was Xu Zhigao, the Federal Supervisory Director, and one of the twelve Martial Marquises of the Martial Virtue Hall.

He has the right to oversee all federal officials, including Wu Hou, who are all within his purview.

The sudden arrival of such a high-ranking figure without any prior warning makes it hard not to suspect that it might be aimed at financial supplements.

After all, in the past year, internal meetings of the Martial Virtue Hall and documents released to the public have consistently emphasized the issue of black market supplements.

Upon hearing this, Chen Yunming's heart skipped a beat for a moment.

No one in the world is completely fearless; even the Marquis of Wu has moments of fear. Although federal power has been decentralized, the Hall of Martial Virtue still maintains a very high level of deterrence.

The Federation has five publicly known holders of Heavenly Divine Powers, all of whom reside in the Martial Virtue Hall. The remaining seven are Martial Marquises, and their Earthly Fiend Divine Powers are also among the best.

Chen Yunming's former boss was among them.

If the Martial Virtue Hall wants to punish them, then there is only one way: to surrender.

The higher the official rank, the less likely violent resistance will occur. This is partly due to guaranteed treatment after sentencing, and partly due to a deeper understanding of the federal system.

A national machine that can simultaneously confront multiple ancient god circles and has become increasingly stable is simply impossible for a single powerful individual to contend with.

The panic lasted only a few breaths before Chen Yunming quickly regained his composure, his mind racing with thoughts as he rapidly pieced together the current situation.

He was certain that it wasn't aimed at him.

Otherwise, the Martial Virtue Hall wouldn't let them hear any rumors, even if it only implicated them. To ensure the smooth progress of the case, they would first try to control them.

It's about giving yourself time to hear the wind and react.

Liu Hanwen wanted to oust the Director of the Dali Division, and Chief Wang wanted to use this opportunity to make an example of him.

Chen Yunming gradually calmed down and said, "Don't panic. If they were after us, they would have been arrested by the time we found out."

He suddenly remembered the incident at the beauty salon a while ago and asked, "The policeman who was released after investigating the beauty salon a while ago, are you sure he didn't see anything he shouldn't have?"

After calming down a bit, Secretary Wang replied, "He only managed to sneak into one of the clinics affiliated with the beauty salon before he was immediately apprehended. He probably didn't see anything else."

Otherwise, even if Liu Hao called to demand the person back, they wouldn't let them go.

"What kind of supernatural powers does this policeman possess?"

"It belongs to the Earth element in the Five Elements theory. Should I use my connections to check his information with the Extraordinary Personnel Appraisal Agency in the South China Sea later?"

"No need. Even if his supernatural powers have other uses, and he saw things he shouldn't have seen, it's pointless to investigate now."

Chen Yunming shook his head and said, "The deed is done. The more important thing is to deal with the immediate issues. Go and shut down all the clinics under the beauty salon. The beauty salon should prepare a scapegoat."

"And don't let Li Mufeng get involved."

If this situation had reached a point of no return in the past, then the Li family would have been the perfect scapegoat.

White gloves should naturally be thrown away when they get dirty.

But since he's now his daughter's fiancé, Chen Yunming has to protect him. Otherwise, if his daughter causes trouble later, it will be enough to give him a headache.

Within his capabilities, Chen Yunming still wanted to fulfill his responsibilities as a father.

Unless the fire has already spread to oneself.

Secretary Wang asked, "Sir, shouldn't we protect Lü Da?"

"There's no need. The Federal Inspector General has come down; no one can protect him now."

Chen Yunming shook his head. In fact, even if the Federal Inspector General hadn't come, he didn't intend to protect him.

This person is a fence-sitter, an unpredictable factor. Although he frequently sides with me due to his corruption and bribery issues, it's only because of self-interest.

Today he can side with me, and tomorrow he can side with Liu Hanwen.

Why not take it down and work things out from the capital? Maybe the person we can plant there is one of our own.

Secretary Wang turned and left the office.

Chen Yunming did not stop there. Instead, he took out his personal cell phone and dialed a number that he only called during holidays.

About a minute later, an old voice came from the phone, sounding somewhat lazy.

His old commander was already eighty years old, and even a Martial Marquis would experience a decline in physical function at that age. In addition, Federation Martial Marquises generally sealed their life force, and their daily lives were no different from those of ordinary elderly people.

"Yunming, why did you suddenly decide to call me?"

"Old Chief, I've run into trouble. This morning, Xu Zhigao went to Nankaido and arrested the Chief of the Dali Division. He's currently being held for questioning."

On the other end of the phone, after a brief silence, the voice immediately became strong and energetic, as if it were a completely different person.

Tell me the details.

The fact that the old leader was unaware suggests that this was indeed a personal act by the chief executive, and the target was probably not financial supplements.

If we want to crack down on financial supplements, we must obtain the consent of all the Martial Virtue Hall Marquises; otherwise, it will all come to nothing.

Wang Shouzhen alone could not wield absolute power.

Chen Yunming felt more at ease and then briefly explained the situation.

After a brief pause on the phone, he said, "This matter shouldn't involve you. The position of Director-General of the Dali Division of the South China Sea is vacant, which is a good opportunity to place one of our people in that position."

"However, you still need to be careful. The chief recently flew into a rage at a meeting over the issue of official corruption."

Chen Yunming asked curiously, "What exactly happened?"

He watches the news every day, but he didn't see any reports about official corruption, so this must have been a private meeting.

These informal meetings often determine future development trends and better reflect the current contradictions within the federation.

The old leader's voice gradually loosened, and he replied weakly, "Something happened in Liangjiang Circuit. Chief Wang wanted to remove two-thirds of the city executives in the entire circuit, but it was stopped because of the impact."

"Wang Shouzhen wanted to reform, but he was too ambitious. No matter what kind of reform we implement, we must always prioritize stability. Throughout history, countless people have tried to make sweeping changes, but they all ended up making a mess of things."

"Now that the Federation has finally stabilized, he wants to kick out many veteran comrades who have shed blood and sweat for the country. After taking office, he does nothing but discard those who have served their purpose."

On the phone, the old chief bluntly criticized the current federal chief.

Chen Yunming listened quietly, gleaning insights into the current power struggle at the top of the federal government.

Many kinds of information are difficult to obtain locally, such as the closed-door meetings at the Wude Hall.

The national policy of relocating industries inland was discussed as early as two years ago, but it was only recently that it began to be discussed.

Knowing these things a day in advance could allow one to reap huge profits or run away after hearing rumors.

He asked, "Old Chief, is there really no way to stop this industrial relocation?"

The old leader said, "We can hold them off for a year, but not for six. Many heavy industries have to be moved. Every year, a lot of resources are transported to the South China Sea, resulting in significant losses. If all the steel is moved back to the northern Youping Prefecture, we can save one-third of the cost."

"Yunming, you can delay this matter a little, but you can't obstruct it."

Chen Yunming said, "Can't we retain some industries? At least we can't destroy the complete industrial system of Nankaido. The Federation's industries didn't all move to Nankaido; they also retain some industrial base locally."

The old leader said, "That depends on how you handle it, but you need to understand that after the industrial relocation, the market economy will recover. Can you compete with Daohe County, which has a geographical advantage?"

Chen Yunming was speechless.

Nankaido's core advantage is security. As the Federation gradually gains a foothold in various ancient god circles and no longer needs to face the threat of national annihilation, then Nankaido, this industrial cluster, becomes a burden.

Nankaido alone accounts for 45% of the Federation's total electricity consumption, almost half, but it cannot support half of the Federation's industrial production. If these industries were redeployed back to ten years ago, industrial capacity could increase by one-third.

To be precise, it's an increase in industrial production capacity.

He doesn't expect the relocation of industry to the interior to stop; he just wants to preserve a complete industrial chain for Nankaido.

Liu Hanwen is almost eighty years old, and he might retire in a few years. At that time, Nankaido will be his base.

Even if Liu Hanwen persists in not retiring, an aging military commander will gradually lose his voice as his physical strength declines.

Unless he doesn't want to live anymore, he won't suppress his life force and will keep forcing himself to stay alive.

The primary duty of Zhuge Liang was to fight against giant beasts; if he could not fulfill this duty, he would have to retire.
-
Meanwhile, in a remote prison area in Nanling District.

This is a unit specifically for detaining officers of the rank of adjutant or above. In Nankaido, officers of the rank of adjutant or above who commit crimes are generally sent here.

Officials at the provincial level enjoy high-level detention treatment.

The rooms are typically between 20 and 30 square meters in size and feature a fully upholstered design. The walls, floors, tables, and chairs are all covered with flame-retardant nano-cotton or silicone materials, and the edges and corners are rounded to prevent suicide among those detained.

Those who check in will also be injected with a drug that can temporarily suppress supernatural powers.

A fifty-year-old man sat in a chair, facing a fourth-rank supervisor who had been urgently transferred from Liangjiang Province.

He stared blankly at the table, like a puppet on strings.

At this time, his hair was still jet black and shiny.

The director of the Ryokan Province smiled and said, "Comrade Lü, your hair is in pretty good condition. It seems you take good care of it. I've heard that the physiotherapy clinics in Nankai Province are quite good."

Lu Da remained silent, not uttering a single word since his arrest.

The members of the Imperial Capital Special Task Force were already used to this.

Many people think they can keep quiet, but they usually confess everything within two days.

This isn't a test of willpower, but rather about confessing early to secure leniency.

The fact that the capital authorities dispatched a special task force to the local area indicates they must have obtained significant evidence. It's impossible that they would directly arrest a "Deputy Military Commander" level official based solely on suspicion.
-
Thursday, April 10th.

Lu Zhao handled official business as usual, inspected various companies as usual, and cooperated with the program crew for filming tasks.

At his request, the filming tasks were very simple. They usually involved reading out the guests' training results, having meals with the guests in the company canteen, or coming over in the morning to read out the new training content.

Each activity only takes ten minutes.

The arrival of the program crew also added some vitality to the dull camp, and a large group of soldiers would come to watch after training every day.

Lu Zhao felt that the special operations forces should enrich the soldiers' cultural and artistic life and organize more cultural and artistic activities.

So, he wrote a report and submitted it to the brigade that same day.

The headquarters reviewed the report and responded positively, suggesting that more similar cultural and artistic activities could be organized.

Special operations forces have such a notorious reputation that they need programs like this to improve their public image.

Lu Zhao also learned a lot from this, and understood the difference between a clerk and an official.

While he only needed to manage the Ninth Detachment, Tu Bin was responsible to his superiors and to public opinion.

It's true that the military is responsible for maintaining social stability, but that doesn't mean they don't need to manage their own image.

Just because they are in the military doesn't mean they don't need to concern themselves with anything other than their mission.

in the afternoon.

Ring ring ring.

The phone rang in Lu Zhao's office; it was from the Nantie District Public Security Bureau.

The call connected, and Zhou Wanhua's voice came through.

"Brother Lu, is your phone bill overdue?"

"I will silence my phone during work hours."

"..."

Zhou Wanhua was speechless and got to the point, saying, "The supervisory department just came to me to ask about the situation regarding the whistleblower report. I suspect that the Chief Supervisor of Dali has been arrested."

Upon hearing this, Lu Zhao sat up slightly and said, "I'll find someone to inquire about the situation later. You get ready. We arrested Li Mufeng while he was recording the show."

I will inform you of the specific timing of the operation.

"clear."

After hanging up, Lu Zhao dialed Ding Shoujin's number again.

He cut to the chase and asked, "Aunt Ding, has the Chief of the Dali Prefecture been arrested?"

"You're quite well-informed. Who told you?"

"Zhou Wanhua, the comrade in charge of the investigation, was my classmate at the cadre academy."

"Disclosing the contents of the supervisory interrogation is a violation of discipline."

Ding Shoujin said, "Lu Da was arrested yesterday, and he probably won't be able to escape this time. I heard that this guy is suspected of violating regulations in thousands of judicial cases, involving a total amount of hundreds of billions."

Upon hearing this number, Lu Zhao exclaimed in surprise, "So many? How did he manage to produce that many?"

With over a thousand judicial cases, and assuming an average term of six years, this would mean 166 cases of irregularities each year.

On average, there is one every two or three days.

"An old saying goes: 'A clean prefect for three years can amass 100,000 taels of silver.'"

Ding Shoujin said, "These cases were definitely not handled by him alone; he was just acting as a protector. Even if the 100 billion involved was not all of it, he didn't get it all. If a case involved 3 billion, that would also be counted in the total."

Lu Zhao understood.

Although it wasn't caused by him alone, it did indeed cause significant losses to the Federation.

The fact that the capital city has set up a special task force shows that they attach great importance to this matter, and it shouldn't be difficult to drag Li Mufeng down with them.

The difficulty lies in how to implicate pharmaceutical companies, especially since these giants may have connections and protection within the capital. Like the Bangqu district, it's essentially a front for certain individuals.

Industries with huge profits cannot exist without the protection of power.

He changed the subject, saying, "Aunt Ding, Zhiyan's birthday is coming up, what gift should I give her?"

Ding Shoujin teased, "Oh ho, you've even called Zhiyan (a court official) now. Your relationship is heating up pretty fast. It's true that having a formal title makes a difference."

"..."

"Gifts are fine as long as they reflect the sentiment."

"what does she like?"

"Are you really clueless, or are you just pretending? Here's what we'll do: you don't need to bring anything, just stay overnight."

Ding Shoujin remembered that he had given Lin Zhiyan a condom before, and wondered if the girl had lost it.

It doesn't matter if it's lost, we're already married anyway, we'll have a wedding when the baby is pregnant.

Lu Zhao wasn't stupid; he understood the implication in the other person's words and said, "I'd better go buy a necklace myself."

"Xiao Yan has been pampered since she was a child. With your meager wealth, what kind of necklace could you possibly buy for her? Just listen to Aunt Ding and don't bother."

(End of this chapter)