In the name of supernatural powers

Chapter 225 Criminal Detention
Cangwu City, Confederate District.

Beyond the endless factories lie countless slums, like a skin disease, with shacks made of corrugated iron and rags piled up one on top of another, leaning against each other as if they would collapse with a gust of wind.

The air was filled with haphazardly connected wires, illegally branched off from the main line, of varying thicknesses.

They coiled around window frames, railings, and eaves, densely intertwining in the alleyways, each utility pole resembling a giant hornet's nest.

Due to frequent electricity theft, residential electricity is only available for two hours a day.

Every year, thousands of people die because of haphazardly connected electrical wires.

The social status of a citizen can be simply determined by the duration of electricity supply in their residential area; the longer the electricity supply, the wealthier they are.

The area with 24-hour electricity is no longer for ordinary citizens; even gang members cannot enter at will, lest they offend the esteemed person.

The Confederate District consists of twelve districts, covering a total area of ​​3,000 square kilometers, and is home to a large number of labor-intensive industries.

This area is home to 80% of the federal government's low-end labor industry, and many inexpensive light industrial goods are manufactured here.

Ping Khai State is the region most rife with the medical industry, human trafficking, and organ trading.

It is only ten kilometers away from the southern railway district of Cangwu City.

A young man in a leather jacket got out of an SUV. The moment the doorman saw the vehicle, he used his walkie-talkie to notify his supervisor.

Immediately afterwards, a man in a suit and tie ran out.

At that moment, the young man had just handed the keys to the doorman to park the car.

The man in the suit said, "Mr. Tao, why didn't you let us know you were coming?"

The young man retorted, "Do I need to notify you before I come?"

The man in the suit immediately shook his head and said, "No, no, I just couldn't come out to greet you earlier."

As he spoke, he took out a pack of Green Label cigarettes.

"This is a high-end product I recently acquired; it's the kind of green-label, gold-label cigarettes that only officials at the rank of chief clerk can smoke."

The young man laughed and scolded, "You rascal, you think even a fart from a Chinese person smells good."

Despite saying that, he still took the cigarette and asked the other person to light it for him.

Green Label cigarettes are specially supplied to the government and are indeed the best quality cigarettes in society today.

Ordinary people don't have the means to get them. Even though you can buy anything in the state with money, they're not printing money.

The offices of senior federal officials are supplied with cigarettes every month, and a pack can sell for several hundred dollars, which is equivalent to a citizen's monthly salary.

Ordinary people smoke cigarettes.

The man in the suit chuckled and said, "I have another box inside. I'll get you one later."

The young man took a puff, thought it was good, and held up two fingers, saying, "Give me two."

"Hahaha, since you've asked, how could I possibly refuse?"

"I need to go to your office; I have something to do."

The young man and the man in the suit walked into the noisy bar, past the booths where people were using illegal drugs, and everyone who knew him bowed and called him "Master Tao".

The federal government has police stations and municipalities in the states, which are only administrative bodies for a district. The actual management at the grassroots level is left to gangs.

To put it nicely, it's about governing the country according to the people's will, which saves people from constantly using independence to incite public opinion and also reduces management costs.

Ping Kai Bang has four districts, each managed by one of three gangs. Apart from collecting protection money, all grassroots management falls to the gangs.

The Kyoto district, located in the Kabuki district, was the most powerful.

This is a gang formed by the old Japanese samurai group, which is said to date back to before the Great Cataclysm, and was founded by the Japanese shogun.

He led a group of Japanese nobles to flee to Baldong Province, where they launched a rebellion in Xuanshui County. After the rebellion was suppressed, his remaining forces fled to Nankai Province.

They eventually settled down and became one of the top gangs in the Confederate District.

It has fourth-tier extraordinary individuals and multiple third-tier extraordinary individuals.

The young man's name is Hori Kita-Tao, a second-tier transcendent being, the young master of the Kyoto State, and he handles the daily affairs of the Kyoto State.

Enter the bar office.

The man in the suit brought over a glass of water.

The cheapest water in the area is water that tastes like disinfectant and rust, while the most expensive is a glass of plain water.

Horikita Tao took a sip and said, "Wuhou has a mission."

The man in the suit immediately became serious, straightened his back slightly, and adopted a listening posture.

All profitable industries in the state require the guarantor of a federal official.

Their ability to make money is entirely due to Chen Wuhou.

Horikita Tao said, "Wuhou needs us to burn down the beauty salon when necessary, but we can't affect the beauty salon's business at this stage, and we can't let the news leak out."

The man in the suit immediately guessed, "Is the beauty salon going to be investigated?"

Horikita Tao said, "Brother Li has been arrested by a special operations team leader named Lu Zhao."

Saying this name brings back distant memories.

At the age of twelve, he fled to Shenzhou with his parents. Because his father volunteered to join the federal army to fight against the ancient gods, Hori Beitao was allowed to enter the federal orphanage.

As a nobleman from Japan, he learned the elegant language from a young age, and apart from his stuttering speech, he was quite good in other aspects.

There he received the best education and the best resources; the federal government even gave him his lifeline.

At that time, there was a boy in the class named Lu Zhao who was outstanding in appearance, ability and intelligence. He was like an adult mixed in with the students and was appointed as a 'life teacher' by the director of the orphanage.

He relayed and directed students to handle many daily tasks, such as sweeping the floor.

He was Lu Zhao's classmate in front of him. Their relationship wasn't particularly close, but they had known each other for a year and a half.

At that time, Horikita Tao truly believed that everything would be alright.

Then a rebellion disrupted everything. He was first removed from the orphanage and then placed in a special orphanage along with other citizens of the same age.

Then the treatment got worse year by year, until the year he turned seventeen, when the Federation abolished the Special College Entrance Examination Law passed in 3231.

People without citizenship cannot take the college entrance exam through this law, and the path to becoming a citizen is completely eliminated.

"Brother Tao, Brother Tao."

The man in the suit's shouts brought him back to reality.

"If you're going to be investigated anyway, why not move out now?"

Horikita replied, "I guess they're afraid of disturbing the customers. Beauty salons aren't for ordinary people; customers are quite concerned about safety. If bad rumors spread, many people won't come anymore."

"Wu Hou will not give up the beauty salon unless absolutely necessary."

The man in the suit said, "Then how do we determine when it's necessary? We can't just wait until the cops come knocking before we burn it, can we?"

Horikita said, "We can wait for Wuhou's notification, but we also need to make our own judgment. Go and make the arrangements and prepare for the transfer."

"Empty the warehouse inventory, find a truck to load up the daily necessities, and drive it away if there is an accident."
-
Nantie District.

Five hours after Li Mufeng's arrest, the major newspapers, having received permission, quickly processed and printed the photos, then compiled the latest gossip they had collected, packaged it, and sent it to various parts of Cangwu City.

"Breaking news! Huge news! Li Mufeng has been arrested on suspicion of illegal and criminal activities!"

"Li Mufeng has been framed and is now in jail!"

"Li Mufeng is being subjected to severe torture and forced confession at the Nantie District Public Security Bureau!"

At the busiest intersection in Cangwu City, shouts rang out from newsstands. At least half of the people who heard the content stopped and quickly gathered around, snapping up the booklets that still smelled strongly of ink.

Inside were various celebrity gossip stories. The front page headlines were poorly printed, as if rushed, but the content was extremely sensational. The story involved Li Mufeng, a popular star in the Federation, being pinned to the ground.

This photo alone makes it hard not to want to see what's inside.

As countless pamphlets sold, public opinion exploded instantly. Students in schools, white-collar workers in companies, and even workers on factory assembly lines all learned about the event through word of mouth.

Most people were surprised, while a small number took action. Students were the most proactive, with students from several universities in the South Rail District skipping classes and going to the police station.

The number of people on the periphery suddenly reached several hundred.

This number already meets the minimum standard for a riot, and they are all Chinese citizens, so they can't be attacked as easily as ordinary citizens.

The special counter-terrorism squadron leader at the scene quickly called for reinforcements, and another squadron arrived with riot control forks.

Fortunately, the villagers did not seem to have learned the local martial arts, and no conflict occurred until 8 p.m.

Rather than being outraged, there were more onlookers than people who were simply enjoying the spectacle.

Some of the female comrades went up to argue with the special agents, but it was all just talk.

Women are physiologically more docile; a group of women gathering won't attract the police, but a group of men gathering together will likely be shot after a few words.

Both sides exercised restraint.

The people will treat the federal government the way the federal government treats its citizens. There have been very few riots involving the Chinese community, and law enforcement agencies have rarely used such tactics against their fellow citizens.

The second floor of the Public Security Bureau.

Lu Zhao went to the corridor to smoke, and Zhou Wanhua followed him out.

He saw the scene outside, where someone had unfurled a banner and laughed, "People in Fangbang District are already throwing bricks and fighting with water pipes."

"The villagers are generally more civilized than the locals."

Lu Zhao laughed and said, "In today's world, even if you earned two thousand a month, you wouldn't complain."

The root of all conflicts lies in resources.

If the Federation had an unlimited supply of rice, then there would be no distinction between Chinese and barbarians.

Discontent exists at all times, but as long as the basic living standards of the people are guaranteed, no one will rebel.

Historically, it is always officials who force the people to rebel, but never have the people, who have nothing better to do than rebel.

Zhou Wanhua understood the implied meaning in Lu Zhao's words and felt somewhat surprised.

Lu Ge's consistent behavior led him to believe that he was a hardliner, but he didn't expect him to be quite conciliatory on the issue of the people.

Ring ring ring.

Lu Zhao's phone rang, and he glanced at the number; it was Secretary Liu.

He said, "I'm going to take this call."

Zhou Wanhua understood immediately and turned back to the interrogation room.

The call connected, and Liu Hao's voice came through.

"Xiao Lu, why did you arrest Li Mufeng?"

Lu Zhao replied, "He was involved in an illegal organ smuggling case. He happened to be filming a program in my camp, so I just arrested him."

Liu Hao said helplessly, "Then you also need to be mindful of the impact. Right now, the entire Cangwu is discussing this matter."

Lu Zhao feigned confusion and asked, "I've only been arrested for a few hours, and it's just a forced summons. It hasn't escalated to a criminal case yet. Why was it summoned so quickly?"

On the other end of the phone, Liu Hao was slightly taken aback.

Yes, why does the news spread so fast?
I haven't received any information because I'm still in the stage of being summoned for investigation. There are no results yet, and there's no need to go through any procedures, so naturally I won't report it to my superiors.

Unless Li Mufeng is a senior official, whose summons would require procedures from multiple departments, he is legally just an ordinary person.

Even though paparazzi have been following them, the news should have been released tomorrow.

I didn't receive any news myself; instead, gossip news came out first.

Liu Hao only found out about the matter when his subordinates saw the gossip and discussed it in the office.

As the person in charge of personnel matters, he generally wouldn't interfere in or inquire about criminal investigations, but since Lu Zhao was involved, he needed to pay attention.

This is the son-in-law of the Lin family, the son-in-law of his own boss.

Liu Hao deduced, "Someone is stirring up public opinion, trying to get you to release the person. It's probably Chen Wuhou's side. Don't act rashly now. I'll go ask my superiors for instructions."

Lu Zhao said, "Okay."

He hung up the phone and turned to walk into the interrogation room.

Zhou Wanhua asked, "How is the situation?"

Lu Zhao patted him on the shoulder and said, "The leader said we should maintain the status quo."

After he finished speaking, he looked up at Li Mufeng, who had been sitting for five hours.

At this moment, he no longer had the composure he had when he first came in; he was extremely tired and his mind was unusually tense.

It's not quite a confession, but it's easy to let something slip.

Lu Zhao glanced at the transcript.

Li Mufeng explicitly stated that he had been to a beauty salon.

This alone is enough to define it as a major suspicion and lead to criminal detention.

Before a large amount of evidence is gathered, most cases proceed in this way: first, arrest the person, then change the forced summons to criminal detention.

Zhou Wanhua took the statement and pulled Lu Zhao out the door, saying, "Brother Lu, to change this to criminal detention, we need the director's signature, or the deputy director in charge will also do. I need to get some connections, so you'd better find me someone quickly."

Lu Zhao said: "Liu Hao, the head of the South China Sea Taoist Organization Department."

The top person in charge of personnel matters.

Zhou Wanhua patted his chest and said, "Within three hours, I will definitely transfer him to criminal detention."

He then went directly to the deputy director in charge and slammed his statement on the desk.

The deputy director in charge rubbed his temples and said, "Xiao Zhou, haven't I treated you well these past few months?"

This is clearly not a routine case. They dared to arrest the son-in-law of the Marquis of Wu, and so far no one from above has called to inquire about the situation.

No relevant department came down to demand that they release the people.

Zhou Wanhua said, "Director Zhao, I'm just trying to help you out. Chen Wuhou doesn't need you, but our leaders do."

Upon hearing this, the deputy director in charge hesitated for a moment and asked, "Can you tell me which leader it is?"

Zhou Wanhua said, "Liu Hao is the chief secretary and the head of the personnel department."

Three minutes later, Zhou Wanhua left the office with the signed documents, and through the procedures, Li Mufeng was changed to criminal detention.

At this point, Lu Zhao had no room for maneuver left.

All that's left is to wait for time to unfold; it doesn't matter if Li Mufeng suddenly disappears.

at the same time.

Liu Hao ran to report to Liu Hanwen and briefly explained the situation.

He said, "The Chen faction is stirring up public opinion in an attempt to attack Lu Zhao."

Liu Hanwen smiled slightly and said, "What attack? I think it's just a reaction to being provoked by that brat Lu Zhao."

(End of this chapter)