Handong: Sha Li wants political achievements? I'll shut down the entire province.

"Bang!"

The two metal doors of the Changming Road Police Station, whose green paint had peeled off, were kicked open violently.

The door hinges were dry, producing a long, harsh metallic scraping sound.

Several clumps of mud, reeking of the stench of sewers, spurted through the crack in the door and flew directly into the emergency call center.

The smooth tile floor was instantly smeared with black water.

"Go inside, you old spy!"

The bald, fat butcher swung his arm, revealing two bulging veins on his wrist.

Tian Guofu, who was tied up like a big rice dumpling, was used as a broken sandbag and slammed straight down onto the floor tiles in front of the police station.

"Ouch--"

The old bones slammed against the hard tiles, making a dull thud.

The gray jacket was chafed, revealing a dirty white shirt underneath.

Zhao Donglai was holding a stainless steel thermos and leaning against the police station, giving instructions to the station chief.

The aroma of red dates and goji berries steeping in the cup filled my nostrils.

He lifted his eyelids, about to scold these peasants.

His gaze swept over the old face on the ground, smeared with pig's blood and black mud, and his throat suddenly tightened.

"Pfft—cough cough cough!"

A mouthful of scalding hot tea sprayed directly onto his crotch, making his legs tremble.

The teacup almost slipped from my hand and hit my foot.

"Officer! Arrest him right now!"

The plump middle-aged woman frying dough sticks was squeezed at the front, clutching half a rolling pin covered in oil droplets in her hand.

She spat out a long wad of saliva as she pointed at Tian Guofu, who was groaning on the ground.

"That old man...yes, he was acting suspiciously, coming to our farmers' market to ask about Master Yan!"

The woman was breathing heavily, her chest heaving.

"They're trying to trick us into revealing information, like whether we've paid protection money! They're definitely one of those...the kind of corporate spies you see on TV, sent by Wall Street!"

"Yes! A spy! Definitely a spy!"

The bald, fat man wiped the sweat from his face, his thick lips moving up and down repeatedly.

"We're eating and wearing Lord Yan's things now, and he comes to ask us if we can survive. Isn't that just sowing discord?"

Zhao Donglai's head was buzzing.

The man lying on the ground is none other than Tian Guofu, the former secretary of the provincial discipline inspection commission.

These elderly folks are really daring.

The hemp rope had tightened so much that Tian Guofu's neck turned purple, and he still had half a rotten cabbage stalk stuffed in his mouth.

"Quickly, close the door!"

Zhao Donglai quickly winked at the police officer next to him.

The iron gate slammed shut, completely blocking the view of passersby who were watching the commotion.

The hall instantly darkened, leaving only the blinding white light from the overhead lamps.

Tian Guofu writhed on the ground like a worm.

The tip of my nose was scraped and blood was seeping out.

He stared intently at Zhao Donglai's police leather shoes, letting out a mournful "ooh-ooh" sound.

Those cloudy eyes were bulging out of their sockets, screaming for help.

That means: Zhao Donglai, are you blind? Untie me right now!

Zhao Donglai did not move.

He placed the thermos on the table, the bottom of the cup making a crisp sound as it hit the glass.

He slowly squatted down, his knees bent, the fabric of his trousers making a soft rustling sound as it rubbed against each other.

He leaned close to Tian Guofu's face, which reeked of swill, and reached out to shovel the rotten vegetable leaf out of his mouth.

"Secretary Tian...?"

Zhao Donglai spoke in a very low voice, close to Tian Guofu's ear.

A chilling sneer curled at the corner of his lips.

Tian Guofu was panting heavily, his chest emitting a hissing sound like a broken bellows.

"Zhao Donglai...you, why aren't you arresting these troublemakers right now!"

He gritted his teeth, bloody saliva dripping from his chin onto the floor tiles.

"I'm here undercover! They're rebelling!"

Zhao Donglai let out a cold laugh.

He reached out and patted Tian Guofu's old face, which was covered in mud.

He wiped the mud off his fingers on Tian Guofu's collar.

"Secretary Tian, ​​times have changed."

Zhao Donglai poked the rope marks on Tian Guofu's shoulder with his finger.

The pain made Tian Guofu gasp for breath.

"If you go and touch Lord Yan now, you're jeopardizing the livelihoods of 60 million people in Handong."

Tian Guofu's body stiffened abruptly, and his eyelids twitched wildly.

"Those middle-aged women outside, and that fat guy."

Zhao Donglai glanced at the crowd still blocking the door out of the corner of his eye.

"They only recognize the meat given by Master Yan now. Even if they beat you to death in the street, your ashes will be scattered in the sewers."

He paused for a moment, his tone carrying a chilling undertone.

"Even within the province, including Secretary Sha, no one dares to stand up for you."

Tian Guofu's eyes instantly lost focus, like a dead fish that had been drained of water.

The last shred of bureaucratic confidence was shattered by Zhao Donglai's words.

His throat was making a gurgling sound, and he couldn't utter a single word.

Zhao Donglai stood up and patted the wrinkles on his trouser legs.

He turned to face the crowd of people, his expression instantly transforming into one of righteous indignation.

He put his feet together, his leather shoes making a crisp sound, and raised his hand in a standard salute.

"Thank you to all the kind citizens who reported this!"

Zhao Donglai's loud voice made the glass of the emergency call hall vibrate.

"Our police will not tolerate such suspects who attempt to sabotage the economic development of Handong!"

He pointed at Tian Guofu on the ground and waved his hand.

"Guards! Drag him into the interrogation room and interrogate him thoroughly!"

Two young police officers rushed over and grabbed Tian Guofu's arms from both sides.

"Let me go... I am..."

Tian Guofu managed to squeeze out a mumbled murmur before his vision went black and he collapsed completely.

"Well done! Director Zhao is awesome!"

The plump woman clapped her hands with delight and cheered repeatedly, her rolling pin waving wildly up and down in her hand.

"Down with the spy! Support Lord Yan!"

The bald, fat man waved his oily arms and led the chanting of slogans, his voice deafening.

Amid the fervent clamor of the people, Tian Guofu was forcibly dragged away like a tattered rag.

The heels of the leather shoes rubbed against the tiles, leaving two long black marks.

With a loud "bang".

The iron doors to the detention cell at the end of the corridor were locked tightly.

The metallic clanging of the door lock extinguished the last spark of the old system in Handong.

After seeing the people off, Zhao Donglai returned to his desk.

He took out his phone, his palms still a little sweaty, and it took him two tries to unlock the fingerprint lock.

He dialed Zhou Yuan's number directly at Lingxiao Building.

The phone rang twice.

"Feed? Director Zhao."

Zhou Yuan was shouting at the top of his lungs on the other end, with the background noise filled with the deafening roar of airplane engines.

"Is everything taken care of? No loose ends, right?"

"It's completely sealed off; not even a fly can get in."

Zhao Donglai lowered his voice and wiped the sweat from his forehead. "President Zhou, where is Master Yan? Those foreign devils aren't as easy to deal with as Tian Guofu."

Zhou Yuan chuckled on the other end of the line.

The lighter clicked once, revealing the sound of a flame being lit to light a cigarette.

"Whether they are easy to deal with or not depends on how tough they are."

Zhou Yuan took a drag of his cigarette, exhaled a smoke ring, and spoke with a hint of contempt.

"We'll be landing in New York in ten minutes. Tell Sha Ruijin to keep an eye on Handong's house."

He lowered his voice, gritting his teeth as he spat out the words, which carried a bloody, cannibalistic quality.

"Master Yan said that if those old dogs on Wall Street dare to bare their teeth tonight... we'll blow up their doghouse too."