In name only: The land of Handong, I shall rule its fate.

morning.

Zhou, a familiar face from the higher-level organization department, came from Beijing and announced Tong Li's appointment as a member of the Standing Committee of the Handong Provincial Party Committee and Secretary-General of the Handong Provincial Party Committee at the inauguration ceremony.

They came in haste and left in haste, waving their sleeves without taking away a single cloud.

"Secretary Sha, you wanted to see me?"

Hou Liangping received a notification from Bai Ping'an and rushed to the provincial party committee building.

In front of Sha Ruijin, the Marquis of Zhongjiaxin seemed to instantly lose his haughty demeanor, taking his seat properly and taking out a notebook and pen from his pocket and placing them on his lap, just like a model student listening attentively in class.

"Comrade Hou Liangping, there's no need to deliberately memorize it; just keep it in your heart."

Sha Ruijin smiled gently, but his words carried weight: "As you probably know, before I even arrived in Handong, a series of events had already occurred there, including the Dafeng Factory incident and the Miners' New Village incident, which involved the downfall of a large number of Jingzhou cadres and political and legal officials."

"So as soon as I arrived in Handong, I didn't dare to delay. I immediately went to the grassroots level with Comrade Guofu to investigate. We visited and conducted research in various districts and counties throughout the province. I didn't dare to make any decisions without understanding the real situation."

"These are all gifts from Handong to welcome me, the newly appointed provincial party secretary. I have no choice but to accept them all."

Hou Liangping smiled in agreement but didn't say anything.

Sha Ruijin continued, "Your Director Qin from the Supreme People's Procuratorate communicated with me in advance and finalized the appointment of you as the Director of the Provincial Anti-Corruption Bureau in Handong. This is a timely help for our anti-corruption efforts in Handong."

"The Provincial Party Committee and I have three clear and ironclad rules for the work of your Anti-Corruption Bureau."

Article 1: There is no upper limit to the number of anti-corruption cases handled.

Regardless of the rank or position of those involved, whoever is investigated will be prosecuted, and the investigation will be carried out to the end without any compromise.

Article 2: No guarantee of minimum living standards under the anti-corruption campaign.

We must crack down hard on both high-ranking and low-level corrupt officials. Although the number of low-level corrupt officials may not be large, they erode the interests of the people and corrupt the social atmosphere. No corruption, big or small, will be tolerated, with no lower limit or exemption.

Article 3: Current and existing corruption cases will be investigated and dealt with together.

Those who continue to commit crimes despite the warnings and refuse to stop must be given priority for thorough investigation; historical corruption cases and existing cases will still be investigated and prosecuted in accordance with the law as long as the evidence is conclusive.

There is no such thing as a safe landing for corrupt officials in Handong. Regardless of which faction or power they are affiliated with, all those involved in the case will be investigated.

"Comrade Liangping, do you understand?"

"Sha Ruijin asked."

"Please rest assured, Secretary Sha, I will definitely handle the case in accordance with the law and regulations, and based solely on evidence."

Hou Liangping assured, "This is something Secretary Gao told me yesterday. The laws and regulations are ruthless, but they protect the compassionate masses, not personal interests."

"Comrade Yuliang has taught you very well."

Sha Ruijin smiled enigmatically, "Go ahead and investigate. As long as it's within the rules, you can come to Secretary Gao or me no matter what obstacles you encounter!"

"It's getting late."

"Comrade Tong Li just arrived today, and there's another Standing Committee meeting to attend. For the subsequent specific case handling, your Anti-Corruption Bureau and the Procuratorate can handle the details and implementation internally."

Sha Ruijin glanced at his watch and dismissed the guest.

"Thank you for your support, Secretary Sha!"

Hou Liangping nodded his thanks and brushed past Tian Guofu, who had just arrived, as he left the office.

"Secretary Sha!"

"I've found the person you asked me to find. Qian Bingzheng is the current secretary-general of the association. Twenty-two years ago, he served as the secretary of the Linzhou Municipal Party Committee. Later, due to disagreements with Zhao Lichun's camp, he was transferred to the provincial association, where he has been working for more than twenty years."

"He has a deep understanding of Handong and harbors deep resentment towards the Zhao family gang."

Tian Guofu glanced at the Marquis of Changxin indifferently, then quickly approached Sha Ruijin.

"good!"

Sha Ruijin nodded in satisfaction. This unreliable, talkative secretary had finally done something practical.

"What about EasyLearning?"

Sha Ruijin then asked, "What is the progress of the investigations by the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection and the Luzhou Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection?"

"Nothing was found to be amiss."

Tian Guofu said, "We rigorously examined the bank statements of Yi Xuexi and his wife, as well as their relatives and friends, and compared them with Mao Ya's tea sales receipts."

"That tea is just ordinary tea that costs a little over 200 yuan per kilogram."

"It's not expensive at all!"

"The only problem might be that the provincial government faction will be very concerned about the fact that the tea sales location is in the area under Yi Xuexi's jurisdiction."

Ha ha!

Sha Ruijin sneered, "Does the provincial government faction dare to hold onto this point? If they dare, they'll arrest Zhao Lichun and his children first, regardless of anything else."

Although it is an explicit rule that the spouses and immediate family members of organizational officers are not allowed to operate businesses in the jurisdiction, in reality, it is just an unspoken rule.

It's like trying to bring down Zhao Lichun.

The crime of embezzlement and bribery can be written into the judgment, increasing the sentence and fines, but it cannot be the decisive evidence that brings him down.

Tian Guofu nodded silently.

Because he knew this, he was not flustered at all.

"Think carefully, are there any other loopholes?"

Sha Ruijin warned.

Those bastards from the provincial government faction, they failed to take down Yi Xuexi, whom he recommended, last time, they'll definitely come back for a comeback this time.

"Okay, Secretary Sha."

The two of them, along with Tong Li, walked towards the conference room, only to bump into a large group of people from the provincial government faction at the door.

Sha Ruijin felt heartbroken seeing this.

In particular, Wu Chunlin from the Organization Department, Pan Lin from the Publicity Department, and Wen Yiyan from the United Front Work Department—these three should have followed his lead, but now they've all gone to the other side.

"Secretary Sha, please go first."

Liu Changsheng took a half-step back. He still had to maintain the class monitor's face in public, but once the meeting room door was closed, it was up to him whether the rat poison knew what was good for it.

I never knew being a class monitor felt so wonderful.

No wonder Zhao Lichun always held onto the provincial party committee and government so firmly in the past.

The conference room doors were open.

Only Gao Zhiwu and Shen Shanhe, like two honest men, arrived early, one in front of the other, making it difficult for them to even speak, which made them seem somewhat lonely.

Of course, we have to ignore the sound of Shen Shanhe cracking sunflower seeds.

"Today is a good day!"

Sha Ruijin took his seat and began the proceedings of this Standing Committee meeting. "Secretary Wanli successfully brought back investment project proposals from Europe, and Minister Chunlin has also recruited a large number of fresh talents from major universities in Beijing."

"On the same day, Comrade Tong Li was appointed by his superiors to take up the post of Secretary-General of the Provincial Party Committee and became the thirteenth member of the Standing Committee of Handong Province."

"Comrade Tong Li, on behalf of the leadership of Handong, I would like to extend my sincere welcome to you."

Applause erupted from the audience.

"Thank you to the organization, Secretary Sha, and Governor Liu for their support. I will live up to the trust placed in me by the organization, leaders, and comrades, and make my own contribution to the development of Handong."

Applause erupted again.

Everyone wore a refined and gentle smile, making it impossible to discern their true thoughts.

"At the last meeting, Standing Committee Member Fang mentioned that displaying administrative blueprints in Yi Xuexi's home could easily lead to a power-for-money transaction with Mao Ya's tea business."

"The Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection took this very seriously and immediately cooperated with the Luzhou Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection in conducting an investigation."

"We cannot let a corrupt and evil person go unpunished, but we also cannot wrong an honest and hardworking person."

Sha Ruijin turned to Tian Guofu and said, "Comrade Guofu, please explain this matter to the Standing Committee members."