Courtyard House: I, the eldest son of the Jia family, have returned from the battlefield.

With a thud, Zhou Xudong's jaw drooped softly, all the harsh words he hadn't uttered and the resolute determination hidden between his teeth were swallowed back.

Wang Dapao released his grip, wiped his hands expressionlessly on his trouser leg, and said indifferently, "Little devil, I've seen more tricks than you've eaten meals."

Want to die? Did you even ask me?

Yang Weimin, who had been standing behind his desk with his expression constantly shifting, finally pieced together the scattered fragments of Jia Dongming's words into a horrifying and complete picture.

He characterized last year's incident in Workshop 2 as a "responsibility accident".

The incident, which was ultimately dismissed as a mechanical malfunction, turned out to be a meticulously planned sabotage operation from beginning to end! And the mastermind behind it all was none other than his trusted deputy, Zhou Xudong!

Cold sweat silently soaked Yang Weimin's back.

He suddenly remembered that he had once gone to a high-ranking official in the ministry to lobby for Jia Dongming's intention to plant people in the security section because he was dissatisfied with Jia's intention. He was about to gain the upper hand... At this moment, these political maneuverings were being undermined by "enemy agents."

These four weighty words seemed both ridiculous and dangerous before my eyes.

If Jia Dongming were to investigate further, he, as the top leader, would be found guilty of "oversight."

Even "indulgent"

The leadership responsibility absolutely cannot be shirked.

Jia Dongming glanced at Zhou Xudong's dislocated jaw and his resentful yet helpless eyes, and then stopped wasting time.

He turned to the distracted Yang Weimin, his tone returning to its usual businesslike efficiency: "Director Yang, the commotion just now was quite significant; the news of Zhou Xudong's arrest can't be kept secret for long."

Time is of the essence. Please immediately dispatch absolutely reliable personnel to cooperate with our public security comrades in carrying out the operation to round up other hidden enemy agents.

We must capture them all completely and eliminate any future troubles.

Yang Weimin always harbored resentment towards Jia Dongming's arrival.

He neither greeted the new section chief nor arranged any ceremony, intending only to make the new section chief run into obstacles and be ignored everywhere in the steel rolling mill.

But who could have predicted that Jia Dongming, after only a few days in office, would uncover the enemy agents lurking in the factory, protect the special workshop, and indirectly safeguard Yang Weimin's own future?

At this moment, faced with Jia Dongming's request, Yang Weimin no longer dared to maintain any of the factory director's demeanor. Almost subconsciously, he nodded and replied, "Don't worry, Section Chief Jia, I will immediately arrange for someone to take you into the workshop to carry out the secret arrest."

When Li Xidong rushed to the factory director's office, Jia Dongming had already led Wang Dapao and his group, who had changed into their new clothes, straight toward the security department.

As the group entered the security office, Jia Dongming's gaze swept across the room and landed on a young officer: "Wang Shaopeng, go and inform the three captains to come to my office for a meeting immediately."

Wang Shaopeng looked up, hesitatingly asking, "Section Chief, what if Captain Zhao and the others ask about the meeting's content...?"

"I told them that I had received a tip from the public that there was a suspicious hideout in the woods near the factory, so I asked the police officers to come over and prepare for a joint operation."

Jia Dongming spoke calmly, stepping aside to indicate, "This is Chief Wang of Jiaodaokou Police Station."

Wang Shaopeng's eyes lit up, and he nodded repeatedly: "Mingbai, I'll go and inform them right away!"

After Jia Dongming left with the police officers, Wang Shaopeng strode towards the office of the First Brigade of the Security Department.

Team leader Guo Jianguo was holding a teacup, sipping his tea at a leisurely pace.

Wang Shaopeng pushed open the door and said, "Team Leader Guo, the section chief wants you to go to his office for a meeting right away."

Guo Jianguo assumed it was just another routine departmental task and casually replied, "Okay, you can go ahead with your work."

After notifying the First Brigade, Wang Shaopeng turned and walked towards the Second Brigade.

Captain Chen Jianfei sat behind his desk, carefully wiping his pistol.

Hearing footsteps, he lifted his eyelids.

"Team Leader Chen, the section chief has called a meeting."

Chen Jianfei paused slightly, a fleeting, almost imperceptible scrutiny crossing his eyes, but his tone was teasing: "Didn't we just have one yesterday? Is our new section chief just bored and looking for us to kill time?"

Wang Shaopeng explained truthfully: "No, Captain Chen."

The section chief received a tip that there was a hideout in the grove. He had already invited Chief Wang from Jiaodaokou Police Station over to plan a joint operation, which is why he urgently summoned all the team leaders.

After hearing this, Chen Jianfei's lips curved into an almost imperceptible smile.

He slowly put down the gun cleaning cloth and replied, "Okay, I got it. I'll pack the gun and head over."

"Then hurry, I still need to inform Captain Li."

After Wang Shaopeng finished speaking, he turned and left.

A short while later, Chen Jianfei pushed open the door to Jia Dongming's office.

Several people were already sitting inside—besides the two captains, there were three unfamiliar faces in police uniforms.

Chen Jianfei immediately put on a smile and asked Jia Dongming, "Section Chief, what urgent task have you called us all here for?"

When Jia Dongming saw him come in, he stood up and warmly introduced him: "Comrade Jianfei, you've come at the perfect time."

This is Wang Dapao, the director of Jiaodaokou Police Station, and these two are Comrade Xue Wu and Comrade Zhang Jing.

"Zhao Dongfang from your second team provided an important clue: a hideout is hidden in the grove."

I specifically invited Director Wang and his team over to discuss a concrete plan to take it down.

Chen Jianfei's smile widened, and he walked a few steps to Wang Dapao, extending his hand: "Director Wang, welcome to our work!"

"Chen Jianfei, don't move! You're under arrest!"

Wang Dapao suddenly grabbed the outstretched hand, and before Chen Jianfei could react, he twisted and snapped his arm behind his back.

Two police officers rushed at him and pinned him to the ground.

Startled by this sudden turn of events, Chen Jianfei froze, then struggled violently, turning his head to roar, "Jia Dongming! What do you mean by this?!"

The sudden turn of events caught Chen Jianfei off guard, while Guo Jianguo and Li Aijun, who were standing nearby, were also stunned.

Guo Jianguo looked at Chen Jianfei, who was being pinned to the ground and writhing in vain, then turned to Jia Dongming, his eyes full of confusion: "Section Chief, what... what's going on?"

Jia Dongming did not answer immediately. His gaze swept over the bewildered faces of Guo and Li, but he first sneered at Chen Jianfei: "Chen Jianfei, Zhou Xudong was already captured before we made our move."

"Why don't you tell us yourself why we're arresting you?"

Upon hearing the news of Zhou Xudong's arrest, Chen Jianfei's heart sank—their identities had been completely exposed.

At this moment, his only remaining hope lay with Zhao Dongfang and Wang Defa, so he shouted at the top of his lungs, "Jia Dongming! What does Zhou Xudong's arrest have to do with me! You're using your position for personal revenge! I'm going to report this to my superiors!"

Seeing him deliberately shouting loudly, Jia Dongming knew exactly what he was up to.

Recalling the arrangements he had made with Wang Dapao beforehand, he laughed instead: "Chen Jianfei, you were planning to send a message to Wang Defa and the others, hoping they would come to rescue you, weren't you?"

"Let's be frank, the explosives you buried under the special workshop have already been dug up by us."

As for your accomplices, they should all have been caught by now.

In his struggle, Chen Jianfei heard "Zhou Xudong".

"Special Workshop"

Wang Defa

These words came out of Jia Dongming's mouth one after another, and his last bit of hope was extinguished.

He raised his bloodshot eyes and stared intently at Jia Dongming: "You've only been at the steel mill for three days... how did you find out about our plans?"

Jia Dongming stared expressionlessly at Chen Jianfei's incredulous face, his voice as cold as iron: "Chen Jianfei, there's an old Chinese saying, 'If you don't want others to know, don't do it in the first place.'"

As for why you were able to discover this—it's all because you were too arrogant, thinking you had Zhang Yi figured out, but you forgot one thing: the people on this land, their hearts are never just about their own gains and losses.

"Zhang Yi?"

Chen Jianfei muttered to himself, as if he had heard the most absurd joke, "That cowardly good-for-nothing... how could he possibly risk his job to expose me?"

"waste?"

A sneer appeared on Jia Dongming's lips. "If Zhang Yi were truly a good-for-nothing, he wouldn't have volunteered to join the army back then, much less set foot on the northern battlefield."

"After the accident in Workshop 2 last year, Zhang Yi didn't suspect you. It wasn't because he was afraid of losing his job, but because he trusted you—trusted you, his comrade-in-arms who had fought alongside him, that you would never betray the country."

"But what about you? In order to clear yourselves of suspicion, you used the accident in Workshop 2 to blackmail him and force him to be a scapegoat."

It was this move that finally aroused his suspicion.

So he contacted me immediately and told me all the details.

Following his lead, I worked with the police to investigate further—and what we found was truly shocking.

"Who would have thought that you secretly dug a tunnel leading to the special workshop using that abandoned hut, and even buried explosives under the workshop's foundation, attempting to blow the entire workshop into the sky."

What I didn't expect was that you and Zhou Xudong were actually enemy agents sent by the local spies who had been lying in wait for a long time.

Not long after Jia Dongming was transferred here, Chen Jianfei couldn't understand how he had been targeted.

Upon hearing that Zhang Yi had once carried a gun on the battlefield, he felt a surge of absurdity rise in his throat—he had actually regarded a veteran who had been on the battlefield as a coward who could be manipulated at will.

Thinking of the fate of falling into the hands of the police, Chen Jianfei suddenly stopped struggling. A ferocious smile slowly spread across his face, and he squeezed out a low and hoarse voice from between his teeth: "Baka... Jia Dongming, I admit you're powerful."

But don't even think about getting a single word out of me!

Before he could finish speaking, he suddenly exerted force with his cheek, about to bite open the poison sac hidden between his teeth.

However, a sudden, sharp pain shot through his jaw, causing the entire jaw to become weak and limp, making it impossible to close.

Wang Dapao deftly dislocated his jaw, curled his lip, and sneered, "You little brat, if you want to die, just do it already. Stop talking nonsense. You don't have the chance now."

Just then, a policeman strode into the office and saluted Wang Dapao:

"Reporting to the director! All the enemy agents hiding inside the steel rolling mill have been captured."

Director Li instructed, "Please immediately escort the three enemy agents from the Security Section to the front of the administration building!"

Guo Jianguo and Li Aijun stood there, watching as the police officers led Chen Jianfei away from the office.

That scene was like a blow to the head, leaving the two of them in a daze.

Only when the footsteps in the corridor faded into the distance did Li Aijun take a deep breath, turn to Jia Dongming who was about to leave, and ask in a trembling voice, "Section Chief... Chen Jianfei, is he really someone sent from over there?"

Guo Jianguo also came to his senses, and images of working shifts, eating, and laughing with Chen Jianfei over the years flashed before his eyes. His throat tightened: "We've been going in and out together for five or six years, and I've never noticed anything unusual... How... how is this possible?"

Jia Dongming stopped at the door, not turning around, but only turning half of his face to the side.

The sunlight streaming in from the window slanted across his cheekbones, making his expression appear exceptionally cold and hard. "The confession I signed is still warm. Do you really think I, Jia Dongming, would casually label a comrade as an enemy spy just to secure this position?"

Li Aijun's face flushed, and he quickly waved his hands: "Section Chief, I absolutely didn't mean that! I just hate myself for being so blind... all these years I didn't realize there was a venomous snake lurking beside me!"

As he spoke, his fists clenched so tightly that his nails almost dug into his palms.

Guo Jianguo recalled the day Jia Dongming first arrived at the security department, when he had deliberately embarrassed Jia Dongming during a meeting after being instigated by Chen Jianfei.

A belated sense of regret welled up inside me, burning like fire in my very being.

He lowered his eyes, staring at the crooked crack in the cement floor, his mind a jumble of thoughts about how to fix it.

***

Just as Jia Dongming was leading his men toward the administration building, at the other end of the corridor, a young figure stumbled and rushed into an office.

The door slammed against the wall with a bang, startling Secretary Zhang, who was reviewing documents, so much so that his pen slipped from his grasp.

"Secretary! Something terrible has happened!"

Xiao Wang's chest heaved violently, and he could barely speak coherently.

Secretary Zhang's face darkened, and he slammed his pen down on the document: "How many times have I told you? Even if the sky is falling, you have to knock first! What kind of behavior is this, all flustered and panicked!"