The game of power begins with the police officers at the local police station.

The next day after arriving at work, Chen Shi called Ma Guoliang to his office and told him not to send Xu Ruqing and Xu Erdan to the Public Security Bureau for investigation yet.

Immediately afterwards, he called Chen Jianhua and asked him to come to the police station.

Li Mengjiang went to the police station and met with Xu Ruqing and Xu Erdan alone.

When Xu Ruqing saw her cousin arrive, she was overjoyed, knowing that she was saved. She quickly called out, "Cousin, please get us out of here!"

Li Mengjiang waved his hand, signaling him to keep his voice down.

Xu Erdan said with a forced smile, "Nephew, quickly get your uncle out of here! I'm going to sue them; the police are arresting people arbitrarily."

Li Mengjiang said irritably, "Did you hit a policeman with a hoe?"

Xu Erdan quickly replied, "No."

Li Mengjiang snorted coldly: "The police station has body cameras; they all recorded it."

Xu Erdan is a master liar who can lie without thinking and twist the truth. This time, he ran into a brick wall and lowered his head when he heard that he had been filmed by a body camera.

Still unwilling to give up, he argued, "I did smash it, but I didn't hit anyone."

"If you hit someone, your crime will be much more serious, at least five years in prison."

Xu Ruqing was terrified: "Cousin, are we going to jail?"

Li Mengjiang looked at Xu Ruqing. He didn't like this cousin. He wasn't very capable, but he was good at bullying others. He had offended people he shouldn't have, and in the same village, he had caused widespread resentment. Sooner or later, something bad would happen. This time, he would detain him for a few days to suppress his arrogant attitude.

Continuing like this will only drag you down with it.

When Li Mengjiang went to university, Xu Erdan gave him 5,000 yuan, so he owed him a favor and had to take care of many things, even if he didn't want to.

It's better to owe anything than to owe favors, especially family favors. Once you owe someone a favor, you can never repay it in your lifetime.

"Do you know how serious assaulting a police officer is? It's a criminal offense, and you'll go to jail."

Xu Erdan was terrified and quickly said, "Nephew, you have to help your uncle! We can't go to jail."

"You dare assault a police officer if you don't want to go to jail?"

Xu Erdan and Xu Ruqing had thought that once Li Mengjiang spoke to the police station chief, they could leave, but they never expected to go to jail, and they were terrified.

Xu Ruqing was a bully who preyed on the weak and feared the strong; she was a coward at heart and turned pale with fright.

Her voice trembled slightly: "Cousin, what should we do?"

Xu Erdan panicked and chimed in, "Nephew, don't you know Director Wang Jianming? We can just give him some money and have him release us."

Li Mengjiang asked, "How much money is your uncle prepared to contribute?"

"Two thousand," Xu Erdan blurted out, feeling that two thousand was quite a lot.

Li Mengjiang laughed in exasperation.

"Uncle, what were you thinking? Do you think they need your two thousand?"

Xu Ruqing shouted, "Five thousand!"

Li Mengjiang said in a low voice, "This is assaulting a police officer. Stealing chickens is a minor matter, at most a few days of detention, but assaulting a police officer is a different story. It's a criminal offense that will be investigated and prosecuted. If you want to get out, you'll have to add at least a zero to your record."

Xu Ruqing opened her mouth wide and shouted, "Fifty thousand!"

Li Mengjiang quickly said, "Keep your voices down. Think it over. It's your choice: pay 50,000 or go to jail."

Xu Erdan shook his head: "I'd rather go to jail than pay 50,000."

"I've thought it through. Even if you and your cousin go to jail, it won't cost you 50,000."

Xu Ruqing didn't want to go to jail; he'd rather pay 50,000.

"Dad, let's put together 50,000. Think about it, the two of us, father and son, definitely earn more than 50,000 a year."

"That's right, pay to avoid trouble."

After calming down and thinking it over, Xu Erdan realized that he hadn't expected to be charged 50,000 yuan even though he hadn't hit anyone with his hoe.

He wanted to try again: "Nephew, could you talk to Director Wang and see if 20,000 would be okay?"

Li Mengjiang's face darkened: "Do you think this is a vegetable market where you haggle? Fifty thousand, not a penny less. You have to pay it in the next couple of days."

Xu Erdan did have some savings, but he kept them for his retirement. Throughout his life, he was shrewd and calculating, never making a losing deal. He always made a profit and never suffered a loss. He saved 200,000 yuan and took out 150,000 yuan to build a house for his son.

He left 50,000 yuan for his retirement. No one knows a son better than his father. He knew what kind of person his son was. He ate everything and couldn't do anything right. He was already thirty years old and had never earned a single penny.

He had his daughter-in-law borrow 100,000 yuan from her parents to build the house, and he contributed 150,000 yuan to build it.

He had his own plans; his daughter-in-law borrowed 100,000 yuan from her parents and had no intention of paying it back.

Thinking that my son will take care of me when I get old is wishful thinking. I can't touch this 50,000 yuan.

He said with a troubled expression, "Nephew, we don't have any money on us. As you know, we owe your cousin's father-in-law 100,000 yuan for building a house a few years ago. We really can't come up with it."

"How about you lend us 50,000? We'll definitely pay you back by the end of the year."

Li Mengjiang's face darkened; the sheep had been fleeced to him instead.

"I only make a small monthly salary, and with such high expenses, I have no money left. You guys figure it out yourselves—either go to jail or pay up. The choice is yours."

Xu Ruqing knew his father was wealthy, so he called out, "Dad, what time is it? Why don't you take out the money in your savings account to tide you over?"

Li Mengjiang looked at Xu Erdan and said, "You're really good at scheming, trying to take advantage of me."

Xu Erdan glared at Xu Ruqing and explained, "I do have some money in my savings account, but it's a fixed deposit. If I withdraw it early, I'll lose a lot of interest."

"I need help urgently, I don't care about interest." Xu Ruqing said anxiously. He didn't want to stay in the police station for another day. It was too agonizing. There was only one table and two chairs in the interrogation room. He had been sitting on the chairs all night and was now extremely sleepy.

Li Mengjiang asked in a low voice, "You're rich now?"

Seeing Li Mengjiang's displeasure, Xu Erdan quickly smiled apologetically and said, "Nephew, I do have some money. This money is for your aunt and me to use in our old age."

Xu Ruqing exclaimed, "What time is it? Still talking about retirement? Who knows if we'll even live to old age?"

Xu Erdan slapped Xu Ruqing across the face: "You bastard, what are you saying? Do you want me to die sooner?"

Li Mengjiang didn't want to listen to their nonsense, so he interrupted, saying, "Alright, money is earned by people. Let's learn a lesson this time. When we get out of here, we'll know what we can and can't do."

Xu Erdan quickly said, "Nephew is right, I'll pay the 50,000."

"This money isn't for Director Wang, it's for Chen Jianhua."

Xu Ruqing shouted, "Why should I?"

Xu Erdan was unwilling, and his face darkened.

"Who does Chen Jianhua think he is? I'd give him 50,000? Dream on."

Li Mengjiang's gaze turned cold: "Why? Because his cousin is the deputy director. Chen Shi's background is not ordinary. He is appreciated by the county magistrate. At a young age, he is already a section-level cadre. In a few years, he will be promoted to deputy section chief."

Director Wang isn't in charge of this matter; it's Chen Shi who's in charge. He's the one who ordered your arrest.

"You guys are really something, handing them leverage over yourselves. Do you think you can just let it go?"

Xu Erdan looked indignant: "After I get out, I'll go to the police station and report him."

"Sue him for what?"

"Sue him for using his position to settle personal scores"

"You assaulted a police officer. No matter where you file a complaint, he will be in the right and will handle you according to the law and regulations. There will be no problem at all."

Furthermore, the land where you built your house is farmland, and it was built without approval, making it an illegal structure. Since no one from Chen Jianhua's family worked for the government before, naturally no one cared.

Things are different now. Chen Shi is a section-level cadre, and someone the county head appreciates. The Land and Resources Bureau has to give Chen Shi face. When the Land and Resources Bureau demolishes the house, don't blame us for not warning you.