Me! A high-ranking official!

As he cursed, he turned to the surrounding villagers with a pained expression, loudly inciting them: "Fellow villagers, don't listen to his lies! Why is Zhao Jianguo, an outsider, so concerned about our village's land? It's because he's secretly colluding with that capital company and taking huge kickbacks!"

Luo Shuishan's eyes reddened as he acted, pounding his chest in righteous indignation: "550 yuan per mu? Our land to the west is right next to the main road; we could easily rent it for a much higher price! He's just doing this for his own political achievements, so he can get promoted and make a fortune back in the county town. He's holding back land prices so they won't rise! He's using our hard-earned money to curry favor with him!"

The surrounding villagers, already blinded by money, were swayed again by Luo Shuishan's tearful outburst, and their eyes once more filled with suspicion and hostility as they looked at Zhao Jianguo.

"Secretary Zhao, Luo Shuishan is turning the tables! That's exactly what he told me before!" Luo Ming, sweating profusely, testified loudly.

"Luo Ming! You traitor who betrays his own people!" Luo Shuishan glared at him fiercely, sneering repeatedly, "You were caught red-handed embezzling public funds, and now, to protect yourself, you're colluding with this Zhao fellow to implicate me? Do you think the villagers are fools who would believe the lies you two made up?!"

Just as the two were locked in fierce combat, Luo Maizi, who was lying on the ground pretending to be dead, let out a scream as pitiful as a pig being slaughtered.

"Ouch! It hurts so much! Officers, you have to help me!" Luo Maizi clung tightly to one of the officers' legs, rolling wildly in the mud. "This heartless secretary used excessive force and broke my leg! I need a medical examination! I need to go to the hospital! Arrest him and hold him accountable!"

The two policemen were acquaintances whom Luo Shuishan had brought to keep order. Upon seeing this, they immediately put on a stern face, took out handcuffs, and moved towards Zhao Jianguo.

"Comrade Zhao Jianguo, you are now accused of intentionally injuring someone, and you did indeed lay a hand on him. Please come back to the station with us immediately for investigation!" The lead policeman said coldly, reaching out to grab Zhao Jianguo's arm.

"Let's see who dares to touch him!" Li Gan roared, standing like an iron tower in front of Zhao Jianguo, pointing a broken steel pipe at the two policemen, his eyes bloodshot: "Anyone who dares to touch my Brother Zhao, I'll fight them to the death today!"

"Ganzi, step back."

Zhao Jianguo patted Li Gan on the shoulder and pulled him behind him. Facing the approaching police and the arrogant Luo Shuishan, a cold glint flashed in his eyes as he shouted, "Luo Shuishan, do you really think I dare to confront you here without evidence?!"

His voice, booming like a bell, echoed across the threshing ground: "I'm giving you one last chance today! Immediately disperse these villagers you've misled and obediently cooperate with the upcoming land requisition work! Otherwise, when the sky falls, you won't even have a chance to regret it!"

Upon hearing the word "evidence," Luo Shuishan's heart skipped a beat, and a hint of surprise and uncertainty flashed in his eyes.

But he quickly replayed the scene of stopping the car in his mind. It was on a deserted road outside the village, far from any other village or shop. There was no one else around, and certainly no surveillance cameras! That bastard Zhao Jianguo was definitely bluffing him! Did he think he could be convicted based on Luo Ming's testimony? He was dreaming!

Thinking of this, Luo Shuishan's courage suddenly grew. He straightened his back and angrily rebuked Zhao Jianguo, "Zhao Jianguo! Stop trying to fool me! I, Luo Shuishan, have always been upright and honest. I've been the village chief of Luo Family Village for over ten years, and everything I've done has been for the benefit of the villagers!"

He pointed at Zhao Jianguo's nose, spitting as he spoke: "On the contrary, you, this outsider, don't care about the interests of us villagers at all, and you're even violently injuring people here! Police officers, what are you all standing there for? This lawless and heartless cadre, handcuff him immediately and take him away!"

The two policemen exchanged a glance, then without further hesitation, pulled out their handcuffs and prepared to forcibly arrest the man.

"Wait!!!"

Just at this critical moment, a clear and stern shout suddenly came from the outer edge of the crowd!

Everyone turned around to look.

A man and a woman, carrying briefcases and sweating profusely, quickly pushed through the crowd and walked in. They were Zhou Min and Hu Zhiwei, the representatives of the Hotan Medicinal Herbs Company who had been in charge of liaising with Zhao Jianguo that day!

Upon seeing the two men suddenly appear, Luo Shuishan's arrogance instantly froze. A chilling premonition shot through him, and his face turned deathly pale. He frantically shouted at the police, "Quick! Arrest them! Don't listen to their nonsense! They're in cahoots!"

Zhou Min completely ignored Luo Shuishan's furious barking, strode over to Zhao Jianguo, turned to face all the villagers and police, sneered, and said loudly, "Village Chief Luo, didn't you just ask for evidence? When we left Luo Family Village, you stopped us on that wild road at the village entrance and said those shameless things. Did you really think they were foolproof?"

Hu Zhiwei then raised a tablet computer in his hand and looked coldly at Luo Shuishan: "Unfortunately, for safety reasons, our company's car not only had the engine running, but the dashcam also had 24-hour high-definition panoramic audio recording! Every word you said while standing in front of our car was recorded clearly!"

Upon hearing this, Luo Shuishan was struck dumb, frozen in place, his legs trembling uncontrollably.

"We've copied all the original videos onto this tablet, and they can serve as direct legal evidence!" Hu Zhiwei said, pressing the play button on the tablet and turning the volume up to maximum in front of hundreds of people.

The next second, Luo Shuishan's incredibly clear, greasy voice, brimming with extreme greed, came from the tablet: "Two leaders, that Zhao Jianguo doesn't understand the market and can't control these troublemakers at all! Listen to me, as long as the company is willing to let me lead the project, I guarantee I'll get it for you at 500 yuan per mu!"

"If the company is willing to hand over this project entirely to me, I'll negotiate 450! 450 per acre! That way, the company will save a lot of money, and we can all benefit privately... hehe!"

The sounds in the video, in this deathly silent threshing ground, were like thunderclaps, striking the top of every villager's head!

"ah!!!"

Luo Shuishan let out a desperate howl like a wild beast, his eyes bloodshot, and lunged forward like a mad dog, reaching out to snatch the tablet computer from Hu Zhiwei's hand to destroy the evidence.

"Fuck you!"

Having anticipated this, Li Gan reacted swiftly, stepping forward and delivering a powerful kick to Luo Shuishan's knee. Luo Shuishan fell to his knees with a thud, and Li Gan, with a swift backhand grappling move, slammed him face-first into the dusty mud!

The entire audience erupted in uproar!