Nominal: Hou Liangping blocking the door? He was slapped away!

The next morning, in the auditorium of the Handong Provincial Military Region.

Inside the spacious military compound, rows of dark green military jeeps and wheeled armored vehicles were parked.

Two rows of fully armed Dragon Fang special forces soldiers stood on either side of the gate.

A black assault rifle hung on his chest, and the visor under his tactical helmet covered most of his face, revealing only the cold, hard goggles.

The top officials of prefectures and cities who used to wield great power in their localities are now lining up for security checks.

Several municipal party secretaries, who were used to living a life of luxury, took tiny steps, looking at the dark gun barrels beside them, as if afraid of stepping too hard on the carpet and causing some trouble.

Li Dakang and Gao Yuliang walked side by side up the steps of the auditorium.

"Secretary Dakang, I'm afraid today's trap is not going to be pleasant."

Gao Yuliang straightened his collar and lowered his voice.

"As long as we can get rid of Chu Pingshan's harmful last-place elimination system, it's worth it for me, Li Dakang, even if I get scolded here."

Li Dakang had a stern face and walked very quickly.

The two passed through the security gate and entered the auditorium.

The interior of the auditorium was decorated very simply, without any flowers or even a red banner.

On the front row leather seats.

Sha Ruijin sat upright in the middle, his hands crossed over his abdomen, his thumbs rubbing back and forth.

The newly appointed acting governor, Chu Pingshan, sat next to him, flipping through an economic data report in his hand, seemingly oblivious to the oppressive atmosphere around him.

Li Dakang and Gao Yuliang sat down across an aisle.

The two nodded to each other, but neither of them spoke.

It's exactly eight o'clock.

Shen Zhong was dressed in a crisp pine-green military uniform, the gold epaulets on his shoulders reflecting the light under the incandescent bulbs.

He strode onto the podium.

There were no polite opening remarks, nor were there any people offering tea or water.

He pressed the red button on the center console in front of him.

The huge projection screen behind them descended.

The screen lights up.

That was a video recording taken by Qi Tongwei and his men during a surprise reconnaissance last night.

On National Highway 104, which borders Lincheng and Guzhou, local thugs dressed in uniforms set up roadblocks to intercept trucks.

The crisp sound of a rubber baton shattering the windshield echoed throughout the auditorium's surround sound system.

Everything in the picture.

Outside a local industrial factory in Iwata City, several bulldozers crashed into and collapsed the factory gate.

A group of debt collectors pinned the factory owner to the muddy ground, punching and kicking him, forcing him to sign a low-price transfer agreement.

Then switch the screen.

Staff members from the investment promotion bureau of a certain city, along with a group of unemployed individuals, cornered out-of-town investors in their hotel rooms and forcibly confiscated their communication devices.

The video clips played in succession.

Shen Zhong placed his hands on the podium and surveyed the entire audience.

"Is this the high-quality development your Handong Province has achieved?"

"This is called inciting a public disturbance!"

"This is called disrupting local stability!"

These words struck so hard that no one in the entire auditorium dared to respond.

The Party secretaries of Yantai and Guzhou, whose names were called, sat in their seats and took out a handkerchief to wipe the sweat from their foreheads, not daring to lift their heads.

"Last night, the military region's special operations brigade arrested more than 400 criminals who were impersonating law enforcement officers throughout the province."

Shen Zhong picked up a document from the podium and threw it directly on the ground.

"The ledgers clearly record that all the stolen money and acquired assets were ultimately included in the GDP figures you reported to the provincial government!"

Chu Pingshan put the economic report in his hand into his briefcase and stood up from the front row.

He straightened the hem of his suit jacket and looked directly at Shen Zhong on the stage.

"Political Commissar Shen, the growing pains of local economic transformation are inevitable."

"The bottom-ranking elimination mechanism issued by the provincial government was originally intended to stimulate economic vitality in various regions. As for the deviations and excessive measures taken by some grassroots cadres in implementing the policy, this falls under the scope of administrative management."

Chu Pingshan's words were very organized and completely businesslike.

"The overall economic situation in Handong requires the overall planning of the Provincial Party Committee and the Provincial Government."

"If any official violates discipline, the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection will immediately intervene in the investigation, and the Provincial Government will also set up a special task force to severely punish the personnel involved internally. Those who should be dismissed will be dismissed, and those who should be investigated will be investigated."

"The military summoned the top officials of all the prefectures and cities in the province here for a lecture, which is against the rules."

"The military shouldn't overstep its bounds and interfere in these local economic disputes."

Chu Pingshan's words were watertight, directly characterizing the matter as "growing pains of development" and "implementation deviations," attempting to pull the initiative back into the provincial government's procedures.

Sha Ruijin sat down beside him, picked up his teacup, took a sip of water, and was extremely satisfied with Chu Pingshan's response.

Shen Zhong slammed his hand heavily on the solid wood lectern.

"Buzz—"

The microphone emitted a sharp, piercing shriek, causing several officials in the front row to cover their ears.

"Shouldn't I take the liberty of doing this for you?"

Shen Zhong pointed to the frozen image behind him.

"That tollbooth in Lincheng is located on the route that the military must take during their combat readiness training exercises!"

"Last night, three military vehicles from the military region's logistics department, fully loaded with combat readiness building materials, were stopped on the road by this group of uniformed thugs from your local area who demanded a toll!"

"Who will take responsibility for the seizure of combat supplies that delayed military operations?"

His words were blunt and merciless, each sentence hitting the nail on the head.

"During that forced demolition in Guzhou, the bulldozer tracks were less than ten centimeters away from the underground defense fiber optic cables!"

"If a single shovel were to be used, the communication networks of three combined arms battalions in the Handong Military Region would be severely paralyzed!"

"Governor Chu, are you talking to me about procedures?"

"You call this an economic dispute?"

"In the eyes of the military region, this is considered a threat to national security!"

Chu Pingshan's face darkened completely, and his hand holding the teacup froze in mid-air.

He did not expect that Shen Zhong would not follow the usual administrative procedures and would directly use the highest standards of the military to define the matter as a capital offense.

Once labeled as endangering national security, any compliance procedures of the provincial government become worthless.

Sha Ruijin put down his teacup, leaned back, and his prepared rebuttal was abruptly stuck in his throat.

The top officials at the local and prefectural levels dared not utter a sound.

This involves national defense and combat readiness, and it's no longer a matter of losing one's official position; it's a major case that could lead to a military court hearing and even death.

Shen Zhong stared down at Chu Pingshan and Sha Ruijin, who were sitting in the front row.

He drew his sidearm from his waist with a backhand motion.

With a "snap".

The black pistol was slammed heavily onto the podium.

"Today, as the political commissar of the Handong Military Region, I'm establishing some ironclad rules for this chaotic GDP war you're in!"