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

The blinding xenon searchlights were so bright they made it impossible to open one's eyes.

The machete in Wang Daoba's hand slammed onto the cement ground with a clang, making his hand go numb.

He raised the back of his hand to block the bright light, squeezed his sore eyes, and looked ahead.

Fifty meters away, there stood a dark wall of people.

Five hundred burly men wearing matching tactical vests held riot forks and stun batons in their hands.

No one spoke, no one moved, and even their breathing was perfectly synchronized.

The chilling aura that seemed to have rolled out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood made Wang Daoba's spine tremble.

"Boss, what... what do we do?" The blond guy shrank his neck, his teeth chattering.

Wang Daoba swallowed hard, forcing himself to bend down and pick up the machete.

Now that the gate is welded shut, there's no way to retreat; we can only bite the bullet and pretend to be a big shot.

"What are you pretending to be, trying to scare me?"

He pointed the tip of his knife at the black-clad formation opposite him and howled in a hoarse voice.

"I've brought over three hundred brothers tonight; one spit from each of them could drown you all!"

Wang Daoba swaggered forward two steps, slapping his thigh with the back of his knife.

"Bring the person in charge out right now! Hand over this month's protection money, and I might spare your lives!"

On the opposing side, Shen Pojun's lips curled into a cold, mocking smile.

He couldn't be bothered to waste his breath on such vile creatures, so he turned his head away.

The deputy, Xiao Chen, immediately pulled out a megaphone and held it to his mouth.

With his other hand, he unfolded an A4 sheet of paper stamped with a bright red official seal.

"Listen up! This is based on the self-defense authorization letter for protecting company assets issued by Lingxiao Logistics headquarters!"

Xiao Chen's voice boomed through the loudspeaker across the empty square.

"You are now illegally entering the premises with weapons, which seriously threatens the safety of the company's property."

He brandished the documents in his hand, speaking rapidly and sternly.

"All security personnel have the right to take all necessary physical means of self-defense."

"If someone is crippled or injured, the Ministry of Justice will be fully responsible!"

Wang Daoba was stunned for a moment, then burst into wild laughter, laughing so hard that tears were almost streaming down his face.

"The Ministry of Justice is covering for me? You think you can get rid of me with a few scraps of paper?"

He suddenly turned around and yelled at the group of underlings behind him whose legs were cramping.

"Brothers, they only have a few broken steel pipes, but we have watermelon knives!"

"Charge! Whoever grabs the best stuff gets to keep it, and I'll reward them handsomely!"

Under the reward, there must be a brave man.

Hundreds of thugs, howling and brandishing iron bars and machetes, charged forward like a pack of mad dogs.

Shen Pojun looked at the surging crowd and slowly raised his right hand.

"Three minutes." He parted his thin lips slightly and uttered three cold words.

He swung his right hand down suddenly.

Five hundred security personnel instantly changed formation.

The first row of burly men stood in unison, erecting riot shields as tall as a person, forming an impenetrable wall.

"Bang bang bang!"

The watermelon knife and iron bar struck the special shield, sparks flying, but not even a white mark was left.

The thugs were so shaken that their hands split open, and they howled and shook their hands.

"Prepare for electric shock."

A cold command came from the rear of the formation.

Hundreds of crescent-shaped riot control forks instantly emerged from between the shields.

The steel fork was incredibly accurate, grabbing the neck of the thug in front and pulling him sharply backward.

Immediately afterwards, a crackling blue-white arc of electricity exploded in the night.

The high-voltage stun gun was pressed directly into the thugs' lower backs.

The screams soared into the sky.

The first hundred or so thugs didn't utter a sound, foaming at the mouth, and collapsed to the ground, convulsing.

This is not a gang fight at all.

This is a one-sided, legal and compliant massacre!

The people behind were terrified and threw down their knives, trying to run back.

The security guards marched in unison, shields in hand, pressing forward relentlessly, leaving no gaps.

In less than two minutes, more than three hundred thugs were lying on the ground, rolling around and howling in pain.

Wang Daoba stood alone in place, holding his machete, his legs trembling like a leaf.

He watched helplessly as his prized team was wiped out like weeds being harvested.

Shen Pojun, carrying the pure steel baton, stepped over the watermelon knives scattered on the ground and slowly walked up to him.

"Didn't you want protection money?" Shen Pojun tilted his head, his eyes cold and sharp.

"I...I'll fight you to the death!"

With bloodshot eyes, Wang Daoba roared and swung his knife at Shen Pojun's forehead.

Shen Pojun didn't even budge.

His left hand shot out like lightning, grabbing Wang Daoba's right wrist and snapping it downwards.

"Snap!"

The cracking sound of wrist bones breaking was particularly jarring in the night wind.

The machete slipped from his hand and fell to the ground.

Before Wang Daoba could even cry out, Shen Pojun delivered a sweeping kick to the back of his knee.

Wang Daoba fell to his knees with a thud.

Shen Pojun's large hand pressed down on the back of his head and slammed him hard onto the rough cement ground.

Another dull cracking sound of bone breaking.

Wang Daoba's face was covered in blood, his nasal bone was completely shattered, and he fainted without even uttering a sound.

Xiao Chen walked over, glanced at the horrific scene on the ground, and stopped the stopwatch.

"Mr. Shen, exactly two minutes and fifty seconds, down to the last second."

"Take some black cable ties and tie all these bastards up securely." Shen Pojun put away his baton and casually grabbed a tissue to wipe his hands.

"By the way, pack up the collected evidence and deliver it as a big gift to Director Zhao of the Municipal Public Security Bureau before dawn."

The next morning.

The sky over Jingzhou was overcast, and a cold rain began to fall.

Zhao Donglai, sporting two enormous dark circles under his eyes, drove his wife's secondhand Buick to work.

There was no other way; all the city bureau's vehicles were out of gas, so even as the bureau chief, he had to pay for the gas himself.

As soon as the car turned onto the straight lane in front of the Municipal Bureau, Zhao Donglai slammed on the brakes.

The Buick fishtailed on the slippery road and barely came to a stop.

Zhao Donglai pushed open the car door, not even opening an umbrella, and stared blankly at the scene outside the gate.

On the square in front of the Municipal Public Security Bureau.

More than three hundred thugs, stripped down to their underwear, had their hands tied behind their backs with black industrial cable ties.

They were neatly arranged in a square formation, like rows of worms.

The cold rain poured down on them, making their lips turn purple and causing them to shiver.

He couldn't even utter a single word of begging for mercy.

The person at the very front had a face swollen like a purple pig's head, and the bridge of his nose was completely sunken in.

When Zhao Donglai took a closer look, his eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

Isn't this Wang Daoba, the most troublesome local bully in the south of the city?

Wang Daoba had a white cardboard sign hanging around his neck.

Several lines of large characters were written on it in bold black ink.

"Outlaws break into private enterprises at night."

In the very center of the cardboard, a silver USB flash drive is attached with transparent tape.

The accompanying text also included the statement: "The order that the authorities can't control, Lingxiao will."

Zhao Donglai's face instantly turned bright red, and his fists clenched so tightly they cracked.

This is hardly a generous gift.

This was clearly a case of someone swinging their arm wide and slapping the Municipal Bureau in the face with both hands in front of everyone!

The officers on duty all rushed out, and when they saw the scene on the ground, they all gasped in shock.

"Director Zhao, what... what should we do?" A junior police officer swallowed hard and pointed to the USB drive on the ground.

"What else can we do? Get them inside first!"

Zhao Donglai ripped the USB drive off his hand, turned around, and strode into the building.

Five minutes later, in the director's office.

Zhao Donglai stared intently at the computer screen, his breathing becoming increasingly heavy.

The USB drive contained all the evidence of extortion, fighting, and brawling committed by Wang Daoba and his gang over the past three years.

The ledger photos, victim recordings, and even bank statements were organized more professionally than those of the criminal investigation team.

Even the 30 high-definition surveillance videos of the vandalism at the logistics park last night were edited out clearly.

The chain of evidence is perfectly closed, which could send these 300 people to jail for several years.

"How ruthless Yan Qingfeng is..."

Zhao Donglai slumped back in his chair, feeling as if all his strength had been drained away.

Half an hour later, at the Hantong Provincial Party Committee compound.

Sha Ruijin's eyes twitched violently as he looked at the on-site photos and reports sent by Zhao Donglai.

The ashtray on the table was overflowing with cigarette butts, and the room was filled with smoke.

Li Dakang sat on the opposite sofa, too exhausted to even drink water.

The events of the past few days have been more traumatic than he has ever experienced in his entire life.

"Secretary Sha, Yan Qingfeng's actions are hardly a crackdown on organized crime."

Li Dakang's voice was weak, as if he had a mouthful of phlegm stuck in his throat.

"He's declaring to the entire province that the government is paralyzed, and that his Lingxiao Consortium is the true protector of Jingzhou!"

Sha Ruijin stubbed out the half-smoked cigarette, closed his eyes, and let out a long sigh.

That sigh revealed a complete surrender, a surrender that had utterly shattered one's dignity.

The economic lifeline has been drained, and people's livelihoods have come to a standstill.

Now even the power to maintain social order has been taken over by others in an arrogant manner.

The authorities have lost even their last fig leaf.

"Get the car ready." Sha Ruijin slowly opened his eyes, his tone as calm as still water.

Li Dakang was stunned for a moment, then suddenly raised his head.

"Secretary Sha, where are we going?"

Sha Ruijin stood up, straightened the collar of his trench coat, and stared blankly out the window.

"Go to Lingxiao Manor. Go sign the treaty."

"Sign a treaty?" Li Dakang swallowed hard, his hand trembling slightly. "Sign what treaty?"

Sha Ruijin turned his head and looked at the once spirited municipal party secretary, a smile that was more like a grimace tugging at the corners of his mouth.

"Go and sell all of Handong's livelihood, franchise rights, and even our official hats to Yan Qingfeng."