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

The silver-white chassis of the magnetic levitation vehicle emitted a low-frequency electromagnetic hum.

The car glided silently along the ground and finally came to a steady stop at the foot of Daqingshan Mountain.

Blocking the front of the car was a pale blue energy shield that stretched straight into the sky.

The surface of the light curtain rippled with a faint light, cutting the scorching sun outside and the world inside the mountains in two.

"Sizzle—"

The car's holographic screen emitted a faint crackling sound of electricity, and then instantly went dark.

Immediately afterwards, the cold air coming out of the vents stopped abruptly.

Yunxiao AI physically shut off the car's air conditioning system, locking Zhao Gang in the completely enclosed cabin.

The sun outside is scorching hot.

The scorching summer heat in Handong Province felt like it was melting the asphalt roads, and the air visibly distorted and churned.

In less than ten minutes, the temperature inside the carriage skyrocketed.

Zhao Gang sat in the back row, his hands gripping the edge of the leather seat tightly.

He dared not make a sound, dared not touch the car door handle, and dared not knock on the soundproof glass in front to make the AI ​​open the door.

The death order from the highest levels of government in the capital, "Come back alive as a blind man," was like a red-hot branding iron.

It was branded firmly on his heart, so hot that he didn't even dare to breathe loudly.

The temperature quickly approached forty degrees Celsius.

The carriage had completely turned into a stuffy, airtight oven.

Zhao Gang's expensive custom-made white shirt was completely soaked with sweat within ten minutes.

It was sticky and wet, clinging tightly to his fat back.

A strong, fermented, sour smell of sweat permeated the small space.

The smell assaulted his nostrils, causing waves of acid to rise in his stomach.

We're fighting tooth and nail for every second.

One hour. Two hours.

Because Zhao Gang maintained a stiff and upright sitting posture for a long time, the blood circulation in his lower body completely stopped.

The muscles in the groin area began to spasm uncontrollably and violently.

The sharp, cramping pain shot straight up his head from his nerve endings, making him clench his teeth tightly.

A soft, grinding sound came from inside his mouth, and his gums were bleeding from being bitten so hard.

Even more dangerous than muscle cramps is the bladder.

The high temperature combined with tense nerves caused the urge to urinate to surge forth like a floodgate opening.

Zhao Gang could only desperately squeeze his legs together.

The sphincter muscles are so sore from overuse that they are almost losing sensation.

My lower abdomen was bloated and painful, as if a hard stone had been inserted into it.

He was terrified that if he relaxed even slightly, he would urinate in the conglomerate's car and be shot dead on the spot by the security mechs outside.

It took a full three hours to finish.

Just as Zhao Gang's vision began to darken and he was about to suffocate in the car,

A light blue energy shield suddenly rippled outwards.

A figure strolled out slowly.

It's Li Dakang.

He no longer had the sorrow and tension he felt when he was the Party Secretary of the city.

He was wearing a well-tailored, high-end dark gold uniform from the Lingxiao Consortium, the fabric of which had a cool, icy feel.

His face was ruddy, and he was holding a titanium alloy thermos in his hand.

It was filled with mutated goji berries specially supplied by the conglomerate, steaming hot.

Li Dakang walked to the maglev car and bent his knuckles.

"Knock knock".

I tapped the bulletproof glass in the back seat twice, neither too hard nor too softly.

With trembling hands, Zhao Gang reached for the emergency switch on the door panel and pressed down the window.

With a loud "boom".

The scorching heat outside, mixed with the deafening chirping of cicadas, instantly poured in.

Li Dakang's eyelids drooped as he peered at Zhao Gang inside the car through the window.

That look in his eyes was like looking at a dehydrated stray dog ​​locked in a cage, revealing an undisguised mockery.

"Secretary Zhao, is the sauna in this car comfortable?"

Li Dakang unscrewed the lid of the thermos and slowly blew on the steam.

Zhao Gang's Adam's apple bobbed up and down twice, his throat dry.

His dry, cracked lips were so painful that speaking caused them to ache.

"Secretary Li... what are you doing here?"

His voice was hoarse and split, filled with disbelief and astonishment.

"Call him Supervisor Li."

Li Dakang took a sip of the goji berry water and smacked his lips.

"I'm now the development manager for the Bright District of the Lingxiao Consortium. As for that official facade, I threw it into the sewers to feed the rats long ago."

Zhao Gang froze, his ten fingers digging into the leather seat, his fingernails turning a bloodless, pale white.

Li Dakang looked at Zhao Gang's disheveled appearance, with his legs tucked between his legs and his face covered in oily sweat.

A sarcastic smirk curled at the corner of his mouth.

"I was just like you back then, putting on airs and spouting all sorts of rules and propriety."

Li Dakang tightened the lid of the thermos cup forcefully, producing a dry, metallic scraping sound.

"And the result? A fine from Mr. Yan's legal department, plus the shutdown of Yunxiao AI."

"My entire family almost died of thirst on the streets of Jingzhou."

He leaned down, bringing his face close to the car window, his eyes like two cold knives.

"Zhao Gang, stop pretending to be high and mighty here."

"In this region of Handong, our official dignity is pitiful, not even as good as the mud under Lord Yan's feet."

These words stripped Zhao Gang bare, leaving him with nothing but his underwear.

A sudden, violent contraction erupted in my stomach, and bile surged up my esophagus.

He was about to say something polite to save face.

Another tall, muscular figure, as strong as a bear, emerged from the energy shield.

Zhou Yuan was wearing military boots, with a half-smoked, cheap cigarette dangling from his mouth.

A rough, large hand yanked open the heavy car door.

The pungent smell of cheap e-cigarette oil mixed with the heat outside directly dispelled the fermented, sour smell of sweat in the carriage.

The stench made Zhao Gang sneeze twice in a row.

"This tastes fucking strong."

Zhou Yuan disgustedly waved his hand in front of his nose twice, looking down at Zhao Gang.

"Secretary Zhao, you have impressive willpower! You held it in the oven for three hours without uttering a single fart?"

Zhao Gang's legs trembled violently as he forcefully suppressed the urge to urinate that was about to burst forth.

He forced a fawning smile, his facial muscles twitching.

"Minister Zhou...Is President Yan willing to see me now?"

"Master Yan has spoken."

Zhou Yuan exhaled a puff of smoke and casually pointed his thumb behind him.

Following the direction he pointed, there was a steep mountain road winding deep into the Daqingshan Mountains.

"This car is covered in mud from outside; it's too dirty to enter the manor."

Zhou Yuan flicked the cigarette butt from his hand, and sparks exploded on the asphalt road.

"Master Yan wants you to walk in. Follow this path for ten kilometers, don't skip a single step."

A 10-kilometer winding mountain road!

Walking on it in this 40-degree heat would definitely kill you.

But to Zhao Gang, this was nothing short of a life-saving eulogy, a pardon from the death penalty.

He was overjoyed and nodded repeatedly, like a kowtowing worm.

Using both hands and feet, he stumbled and tumbled out of the carriage.

The moment my legs, which had been cramped and stiff for a long time, touched the ground, my kneecaps buckled.

"thump."

He almost fell flat on his knees on the scorching asphalt.

With barely managing to stretch out his trembling hands, he held on tightly to the scorching car door, preventing himself from collapsing completely into a puddle of mud.

Zhao Gang didn't even bother to wipe away the oily sweat that stung his eyes.

He kept his head down, like a lowly eunuch whose bones and blood had been completely drained.

With heavy, battle-worn steps, dragging two legs that were cramping.

Trembling, they moved toward the pale blue energy shield.

Just as I stepped across the boundary of the shield.

A bone-chilling cold air instantly hit us from inside the manor.

The alternating hot and cold sensations sent three violent shivers down his spine.

My stomach wall spasmed violently, and I almost gagged on the spot.

Zhou Yuan leaned against the car door, watching Zhao Gang's hunched and disheveled figure climbing up the mountain.

He spat a mouthful of spit mixed with tobacco on the ground.

"Old Li, do you think this spineless guy from Beijing would be panting like a madman after walking ten kilometers of mountain road?"

Zhou Yuan grinned, took out his lighter, and lit another cigarette with a "click".

Li Dakang unscrewed the thermos and slowly took a sip of the mutated goji berry water.

His eyes were fixed on the main building on the mountaintop, which emanated a dark, cold light.

"It doesn't matter how much you pant."

Li Dakang lowered his voice, his tone carrying a chilling undertone that sent shivers down one's spine.

"The important thing is that Minister Shen just stormed into the manor with a pungent smell of blood, saying that someone stole the blueprints."

"Master Yan is in a very bad mood right now."

Li Dakang sneered and turned to look at Zhou Yuan.

"If he goes up there now, he'll be asking for trouble. We'll see if his life is enough to satisfy Master Yan's anger."