Special forces soldier demobilization: Starting from the county government compound, a meteoric rise

The collapse of Dingsheng Group was like a depth charge detonating in the stagnant waters of Shanghai. Zhao Dehan's faction of local officials was completely stunned; they never expected Liu Ming's move to be so swift and ruthless.

But Liu Ming knew that taking down Wang Haiba was just like cutting off the appendix of this behemoth.

In Shanghai, what suffocates ordinary people even more than high housing prices are the deep-seated problems that affect people's livelihoods but are exploited layer by layer by interest groups.

It's difficult to see a doctor, and it's difficult to go to school.

These two mountains are weighing heavily on the tens of millions of ordinary citizens of Shanghai, making it hard for them to breathe.

That morning, the registration hall of Haishi First People's Hospital was bustling with people, resembling a train station during the Spring Festival travel rush. The air was filled with the mixed smell of disinfectant and sweat, along with anxious coughs and helpless sighs.

Standing in the line was a young couple who looked quite ordinary.

The man wore a faded gray jacket and black-rimmed glasses, clutching a stack of crumpled medical records. The woman wore a simple beige trench coat and a mask; though she tried to be discreet, her eyes, visible through the mask, still exuded an undeniable aloofness.

This "ordinary couple" are none other than Liu Ming, the number one figure in Haishi, and Xi Wanqing, who was just parachuted in by the central government to replace Zhao Dehan as the mayor of Haishi.

"This queue has been going on for two hours, and only five specialist appointments have been released, all of which were snapped up by scalpers." Xi Wanqing frowned slightly as she looked at the long line in front of her and lowered her voice, "It seems that the complaints we received from the public earlier were not exaggerated at all."

Liu Ming patted the back of her hand, her eyes calmly sweeping over several scalpers in the corner of the hall who were brazenly reselling expert appointments at exorbitant prices to patients' families.

"Don't worry, the water in this hospital is much deeper than the registration hall."

He took Xi Wanqing's hand and, instead of continuing to queue, turned and walked towards the cardiovascular surgery ward of the hospital.

As they turned the corner of the corridor, they heard a muffled sobbing sound.

A middle-aged woman wearing a tattered down jacket was kneeling outside the chief physician's office, desperately grabbing the trouser leg of a male doctor in a white coat who was bloated and had a large belly.

"Director Zhang! Please, please save my husband! This heart bypass surgery can't be delayed any longer!" The woman cried her heart out. "Our family really can't afford the 50,000 yuan 'flying surgeon fee'! We already gave the head nurse a 10,000 yuan bribe to get him into this ward, and we've sold everything we could!"

The director, Zhang, impatiently tried to pull his leg away, his tone icy: "Hey, family member, what kind of talk is that? What do you mean by 'flying knife fee'? That's called an expert consultation fee! That's the rule! If you don't pay this fee, why would a top expert from another province fly all the way here to perform surgery on your spouse? Isn't this moral blackmail?"

"But...but you said it would only cost 30,000..."

"That was the price two weeks ago!" Director Zhang scoffed. "Are specialist appointments so sought after now? You don't want this bed? There are plenty of people lining up outside with 100,000 yuan each willing to pay! Security! Security! Pull her away, don't disturb the other patients!"

Several burly security guards rushed over and roughly dragged the crying woman away.

"stop."

A low shout, devoid of any emotion, caused the security guards to instinctively stop what they were doing.

Liu Ming stepped forward and helped the woman, who had collapsed to the ground, to her feet. He looked at Director Zhang's oily face, his eyes behind his glasses sharp as knives.

"Director Zhang, right?" Liu Ming's voice wasn't loud, but it could be heard clearly in the empty corridor. "Shanghai First People's Hospital, a public tertiary hospital. Since when has the operating table, which saves lives, become an auction house with clearly marked prices? Are these 'flying knife fees' and 'red envelopes' written into the hospital's fee schedule, or did they end up in your personal pocket?"

Director Zhang sized up the poorly dressed young man in front of him and immediately flew into a rage.

"Who do you think you are? Do you even have the right to speak here? Trying to act important!" He pointed at Liu Ming's nose and cursed, "Let me tell you, in this cardiology department, I'm the one who rules! You want to stand up for someone? Fine, security, throw them both out!"

"rule?"

Liu Ming took off her black-rimmed glasses, the corners of her mouth curving into an icy smile.

He ignored the security guards who surrounded him, and instead pulled a black walkie-talkie out of his pocket and pressed the call button.

"Lei Tie, bring your men in. Cardiovascular department, clear the area."

Less than a minute.

The piercing sirens of police sirens blared outside the hospital building. Dozens of fully armed special police officers, along with staff from the Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection, appeared like divine intervention, quickly sealing off the entire inpatient building.

Before Director Zhang could react, two special police officers pinned him against the wall with his arms twisted behind his back.

"What...what are you doing? I'm the head of the department! I have orders from above..."

"Having someone above you doesn't matter."

Lei Tie strode over, slapped a search warrant onto Director Zhang's face, and sneered, "Your office safe was just pried open. Good heavens, there are over two million in cash red envelopes that you didn't have time to deposit. Director Zhang, you've really hit the jackpot this time."

Director Zhang looked at the head nurses who were also involved in reselling hospital beds and taking kickbacks being taken away, and then at Liu Ming and Xi Wanqing, who were standing there with a completely different aura. Suddenly, he collapsed to the ground like a deflated balloon.

He finally recognized who the "ordinary couple" in front of him were.

That's enough to make the world go round with them, the top two leaders!

After finishing their business at the hospital, the two did not rest and rushed to the most famous "elite primary school" in Haishi—the No. 1 Experimental Primary School.

This is the place that parents all over the city are desperate to send their children to.

It was lunchtime when school let out, and the school gate was filled with all kinds of luxury cars.

Liu Ming and Xi Wanqing stood on the roadside opposite the school gate, watching the children in their uniform British-style school uniforms being picked up by their parents.

"I've checked this school's admissions accounts." Xi Wanqing looked at the tablet in her hand, her face even more pale than when she was at the hospital. "Besides the 10% of students admitted through the normal catchment area system, the remaining spots have all been cashed out by Principal Li Decai under the guise of 'sponsorship fees' and 'special talent students.' A single admission spot has been inflated to 500,000 yuan."

"Not only that," Liu Ming pointed to a row of upscale tutoring centers across from the school, "Look at those tutoring centers with signs saying 'Top Teachers from Experimental Primary School in Charge.' Li Decai forces students to attend these designated tutoring centers after school, and he takes half of the centers' profits. This is how ordinary people's money is sucked dry by these parasites in the education sector."

As the two were talking, they saw a fat man wearing an expensive suit and with a slicked-back hairstyle walk out of the school gate, surrounded by several school leaders.

That was Principal Li Decai.

He was chatting and laughing with a nouveau riche who drove a Rolls-Royce.

"Don't worry, Mr. Wang, I've received your 'library construction sponsorship fee.' Leave your son's matter to me; I guarantee he'll be placed in the best advanced class!" Li Decai patted his chest and made a promise, his eyes crinkling with laughter.

"Thank you very much, Principal Li! Tonight, I'll treat you to a couple of drinks at 'Heaven on Earth'!" The nouveau riche got into the car with satisfaction.

Watching this ugly farce of power-money transactions, Xi Wanqing took a deep breath and shoved the tablet in her hand directly into Liu Ming's arms.

"Secretary Liu, you've arrested the scoundrels at the hospital."

This once-famous, aloof mayor of Jiangnan now had a cold look in her eyes and walked straight toward Li Decai in her high heels.

"It's time for me to clean up this mess at school."

Li Decai had just seen off the God of Wealth and was about to return to his office to count the money when he saw a young woman with an extraordinary demeanor blocking his way.

"Who are you looking for? Those picking up their children, go line up over there!" Li Decai waved his hand impatiently.

Without wasting any words, Xi Wanqing directly showed her work ID.

"I am Xi Wanqing, the newly appointed mayor of Hai City."

Li Decai's fat face twitched violently. Just as he was about to put on a smile, Xi Wanqing coldly interrupted him.

"The people from the Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection and the Audit Bureau are already in your office checking the accounts for 'sponsorship fees.' They're investigating everything, including the three villas under your wife's name and the accounts of the two mistresses you're keeping outside."

Li Decai's legs went weak, and he knelt down at the school gate with a thud.

"Mayor Xi...Mayor Xi! I'm innocent! That was all school construction funds!"

Xi Wanqing looked down at him, her eyes filled with disgust and contempt.

"Wronged? Aren't those ordinary parents who sold their hometown houses and took on huge high-interest loans to raise your 500,000 yuan 'sponsorship fee' wronged?"

She turned around and waved to the joint investigation team that had arrived behind her.

"Take him away and investigate thoroughly!"

The next morning.

The citizens of Haishi woke up to a deluge of news reports that left them speechless.

"Operation Thunder! Several directors at Shanghai First People's Hospital detained on suspicion of bribery!"

Principal Li Decai of the No. 1 Experimental Primary School in the city has been dismissed! Illegal sponsorship fees exceeding 100 million yuan have been seized!

Shanghai launches comprehensive self-inspection and rectification of its medical and education systems! A crackdown on "difficulty in accessing medical care and high costs of education" is underway!

The news article ended without publishing any photos of Liu Ming and Xi Wanqing, only a single sentence.

"The sky over Mirage is clearing up."

Inside the municipal party committee office building, Liu Ming looked out the window at the rising sun and took a sip of coffee that his wife had brewed.

"Where should we cut next?" Xi Wanqing asked softly, standing beside him.