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

The piercing siren of the ambulance gradually faded into the distance.

The office of the president on the second floor of the Jingzhou City Bank headquarters was deathly silent.

Vice President Wang Qiang leaned on his desk with both hands, staring intently at the computer screen like a lump of mud.

On the blue liquidation system page, the glaring red text seemed to mock his incompetence.

"The funds were legally transferred to the offshore account and the head office in another province at 23:59 p.m. last night."

Transferor: Lingxiao Consortium and its 372 holding companies.

Wang Qiang's hands trembled as he clicked on the total amount.

513 billion!

This represents 60% of the liquidity of Jingzhou City Commercial Bank! It's also the largest reservoir of liquidity in the entire Handong financial system!

He felt a chill run down his spine, and even his breath felt like it was carrying icy shards.

That's it. The lifeblood of Jingzhou's financial system has been completely drained.

At the same time, on the top floor of Lingxiao Financial Center in Jingzhou CBD.

Outside the panoramic floor-to-ceiling windows are city streets paralyzed.

Shin, wearing a floral shirt, crossed his legs and took a big sip of his iced Americano.

The ice cubes rattled and popped inside the plastic cup.

"President Su, this move to strike at the heart of the problem is brilliant."

Chief trader Xiao Zhao came over, giving a thumbs-up with a face full of excitement.

"Last night, Li Dakang even sent people to keep a close eye on our stock market holdings, to prevent us from dumping our shares."

Xiao Zhao's eyes shone like searchlights.

"He never dreamed that you would bypass the stock market and empty all the money from the physical accounts!"

Su Jianxin bit into a piece of ice, making a crunching sound as he chewed.

He casually tossed the empty cup into the trash can and let out a sneer.

"That old bastard Li Dakang thinks he can understand capital just by staring at a few candlestick charts?"

Su Jianxin stood up and straightened the collar of his floral shirt.

"Master Yan's feint was brilliantly executed."

He walked to the window and pointed in the direction of the municipal party committee compound in the distance.

"Li Dakang thought that the 40 billion yuan in breach of contract penalty was our trump card, and he was fixated on that piece of meat."

Su Jianxin spread his hands, smiling like a refined scoundrel.

"But he forgot that our Lingxiao Group headquarters has been relocated, and our business focus has shifted out of the province."

"These hundreds of upstream and downstream companies took away their working capital and prepaid deposits. What do you call that?"

He patted Xiao Zhao on the shoulder.

"This is called a normal asset transfer. We don't launder money or evade taxes; our procedures are cleaner than Li Dakang's face."

Xiao Zhao nodded repeatedly and handed over a tablet.

"The China Banking Regulatory Commission reviewed our transfer application overnight last night and couldn't find a single fault with it, so they had to stamp it and approve it."

Xiao Zhao was overjoyed.

"Rats would probably have to leave the vaults of major banks in Handong in tears if they went in now."

Su Jianxin looked down at the congested street below, his eyes suddenly turning cold.

"Master Yan said that the authorities like to talk about the big picture, so let's show them the real big picture."

His tone revealed a ruthless cruelty that would devour people without spitting out their bones.

"Drain the pool, let's see how these landlubbers struggle!"

At this point, the lobby on the first floor of the Jingzhou City Merchants' Hall was completely out of control.

The riot police's shield wall was pushed to the brink of collapse by the elderly people.

At counter number one, Aunt Zhang, wearing a red headscarf, clung tightly to the bulletproof glass.

"Girl! Can I withdraw my two thousand yuan pension fund?!"

Aunt Zhang slammed the passbook down with a deafening roar, her voice shrill.

"My grandson needs to pay for his tutoring tomorrow. Your bank has such a big signboard, are you trying to renege on your debt?"

The young female teller inside was sweating profusely and had red eyes.

The computer system's reserve fund account showed insufficient balance, unable to dispense even a single banknote.

"Auntie, it's not that I don't want to get it for you, it's just that the system... the system is upgrading."

The female clerk's voice was trembling as she tried to fob her off with nonsense that even she herself didn't believe.

"Bullshit! You guys said it was an upgrade when that old man withdrew 50,000, but it's an upgrade when I withdrew 2,000?"

Aunt Zhang got anxious and turned around to shout at the crowd.

"Listen up, everyone! The banks are out of money! The municipal government is really using our money to fill in those unfinished construction projects!"

That shout was like a torch thrown into a powder keg.

The hall erupted instantly, with hundreds of people rushing towards the counter like madmen.

"Give us our money back!"

"Heartless government! Give me back my hard-earned money!"

The heavy glass doors were rattling and creaking as they were pushed, and the riot police officer was so anxious that his voice became hoarse, but he couldn't control the situation at all.

In his office on the second floor, Wang Qiang heard the roaring from downstairs and his legs went weak.

He slumped onto the carpet, his face ashen.

That's it, the defense line has completely collapsed.

Just as he was about to jump out of a window in despair, the red landline on the table started ringing frantically.

The caller ID showed it was from the Municipal Finance Bureau.

Wang Qiang grabbed the microphone with trembling hands, as if he were holding a red-hot branding iron.

"Hey... I'm Wang Qiang."

The voice of the city finance bureau chief, hoarse with anxiety, came from the other end of the phone.

"Vice President Wang! Where's Lao Qian? I've been calling his cell phone, but no one's answering!"

The finance bureau chief was so anxious on the other end of the line that he kept slamming his fist on the table, making the microphone vibrate loudly.

"Old Qian... he had a heart attack and is in the emergency room." Wang Qiang swallowed hard, his voice trembling.

"What?! He's in the emergency room at this critical moment?!"

The finance bureau chief nearly fainted on the phone.

"I don't care if he's dead or not! Wang Qiang, immediately unfreeze the special account in the municipal finance department!"

The finance bureau chief's voice was filled with deep fear.

"It's fine if Ling Xiao's money is withdrawn, but the reserve fund in the treasury must be transferred to me immediately!"

Wang Qiang's hand holding the microphone trembled violently, and tears almost welled up in his eyes.

"Director Liu, we really have no money left!"

"Most of the money in your special fiscal account is the project deposit prepaid by the Lingxiao Consortium."

Wang Qiang shouted, his voice trembling with tears.

"Last night, they went through the compliance procedures and transferred the funds along with the withdrawal application!"

"What?!" the finance bureau chief roared hysterically on the phone, his voice completely cracking.

"Are you out of your mind?! How could you let them transfer the money away?!"

Wang Qiang's eardrums ached from the shock, and he shrank his neck in grievance.

"Director Liu, the streets are full of ordinary people desperate to get even two thousand yuan. Even if you kill me, I can't conjure up any money!"

"Two thousand yuan is nothing!"

The finance bureau chief roared like a mad dog, accompanied by the sound of things being smashed.

"Today is the 10th! It's payday for all civil servants and employees of public institutions in Handong Province!"

"Right now, none of the city's police officers, teachers, or government officials have any money deposited into their paychecks!"

"If you don't squeeze the money out of me today, our municipal party committee compound will be torn down by our own people!"