In name only: I will break the chess game in Handong!

Taking a deep breath, Zhong Xiaoai was about to step forward and greet Chen Luo, after all, he was a provincial leader and she couldn't pretend she didn't see him.

As soon as he got up, he saw Chen Hai walk in with Tang Chuchu and two little kids at the door.

In an instant, Zhong Xiaoai completely forgot about the matter of greeting him.

He nudged Hou Liangping beside him, and Hou Liangping looked up and their eyes met.

Their eyes blazed with fury. Chen Hai's smile vanished abruptly; he was still unaware that Hou Liangping had been released by the Discipline Inspection Commission.

"Chen Hai! You're pretty ruthless!"

Hou Liangping's face was somewhat ferocious, and Chen Hai was no less so, gritting his teeth, both of them seemingly on the verge of stabbing each other in the back.

This scene was naturally witnessed by Chen Luo and his group at their table. Feeling like a bystander, Chen Luo suddenly found the tender beef in his mouth no longer appealing.

"Liangping, calm down, Secretary Chen is still watching!"

At the critical moment, with Zhong Xiaoai's reminder, Hou Liangping turned around in confusion and looked at Chen Luo. Chen Luo just smiled faintly, and Hou Liangping's anger was instantly suppressed.

At this point, Chen Hai also discovered the blind spot.

He saw Lu Yike, Liu Mingyu, Lin Huahua, and finally his gaze fell on Chen Luo and Zhang Nian.

The anger that had almost ignited cooled down immediately.

"Liangping, I remember you were taken away for investigation by the Discipline Inspection Commission not long ago. How come you've been out for only a month? Tsk tsk tsk, your Xiao Ai is really capable. I have to say, you married a good wife."

"Brother Hai, are you saying he's a kept man?"

Tang Chuchu didn't know Hou Liangping; after all, Cai Chenggong wouldn't introduce people to each other so casually.

At this moment, Tang Chuchu's brilliant finishing touch made Hou Liangping's expression extremely unpleasant.

"I guess so. But our Director Hou has lost weight since he was taken away for investigation by the Discipline Inspection Commission. It's normal for his wife to bring him here for some hot pot to help him recover."

The conflict has become completely public.

Hou Liangping couldn't hold back any longer.

"Ha, who do we have here? Aren't you Cai Chenggong's wife? Chen Hai, you've got some nerve! Is this how you take care of Cai Chenggong's family? Dressed all flashy, aren't you afraid of draining your body?"

Tang Chuchu was not happy to hear this.

"Hey Director Hou, I haven't done anything to you, have I? Saying I'm a femme fatale? Tsk, to be honest, I'm only thirty, and my skin and figure are pretty good. Your wife might be able to make you live off her, but she looks like she's in her forties or fifties. You're really not doing a good job!"

A critical hit, definitely a critical hit.

"Shut up!"

As soon as Zhong Xiaoai spoke, the entire hot pot restaurant fell silent, startling some customers.

At this moment, Chen Luo spoke with a smile.

"Hey, you lot, if you're not going to eat, don't stand here making a scene and disturbing the owner's business. That's not the attitude of serving the people!"

Chen Luo's words were like a terminator. Although he still wanted to watch the drama unfold, the impact was ultimately negative, and Chen Luo had an obligation to protect the image of the cadres in Handong.

After calming down, Chen Hai directly led Tang Chuchu to sit down. At this point, it would be awkward for anyone to leave, and anyone who left would be considered trash.

The same applies to Zhong Xiaoai and Hou Liangping.

What appeared to be a meal was actually a tense standoff between the two sides, with even the waiters feeling immense pressure.

Chen Luo and his group were the first to finish eating.

As Chen Luo paid the bill and left, he glanced at Hou Liangping and Chen Hai with amusement. It seemed that something had happened between these two college best friends that Chen Luo was unaware of.

After leaving the hot pot restaurant, Chen Luo and his family parted ways with Lu Yike and her group, since it was a date for young people.

Just as Chen Luo and the others left, Chen Hai, who had been eating quietly in the hot pot restaurant, spoke up first.

"I'm telling you, Hou Liangping, are you starving at the Discipline Inspection Commission?"

Now you're wolfing down your food, not even leaving a single grain of rice in your bowl? Tsk, is this some kind of training regimen from the Discipline Inspection Commission?

Hou Liangping trembled with anger.

"I certainly won't waste a single grain of food. I'm not like some people's fathers who claim to be heroes and honest, people-loving cadres, but secretly engage in bribery. When I kindly offered to carry two boxes of milk, they were thrown on the ground. I think the sons raised by such old men are just like them, rotten to the core!"

Otherwise, you wouldn't have been demoted from the head of the Anti-Corruption Bureau to the deputy head, and then directly dismissed. I heard that some old guy begged and pleaded with everyone to get you reassigned to the Guangming District. Tsk tsk tsk, let's see how long you can last.

"Don't let the old man be alive before you're dismissed and investigated."

Hou Liangping said that Chen Hai could remain calm about everything else, but he couldn't stand it when his father was mentioned or when he was suspended or dismissed from his post.

"Hou Liangping! How dare you mention that! If you hadn't framed me time and time again, and even plotted against my father, I wouldn't have fought you to the death! It's all your fault!"

"Chen Hai, don't get agitated. Isn't it because you're stupid?"

Do you know why I was able to get out? To tell you the truth, Cai Chenggong already knows about your affair with Tang Chuchu, and he wishes he could kill you!

Just pray you outlive that old man in your family.

"you!"

Unable to bear it any longer, Chen Hai stood up and threw the tea in his cup at Hou Liangping. Hou Liangping was equally defiant and threw his drink back at Chen Hai. By this point, neither of them was in the mood for the meal.

Without saying a word, he got up to pay the bill.

As they were leaving, Zhong Xiaoai, who had been silent the whole time, finally spoke.

"Chen Hai, you are foolish. Your actions will come at a price, a price your family cannot afford!"

There was no hysteria, only Zhong Xiaoai's calm eyes, which was even more terrifying than Hou Liangping's cursing.

Chen Hai's expression was extremely solemn.

In the car, Tang Chuchu, who was next to Chen Hai, cautiously asked him a question.

"Brother Hai, is it that our family can't afford to offend them? Why did you stop talking at the end?"

Chen Hai didn't notice the change in Tang Chuchu's expression, and calmly explained, "Hou Liangping is nothing, he's just the director of the Anti-Corruption Bureau of the Procuratorate."

I am not greedy or corrupt, so there's nothing you can do about it.

But his wife is now the deputy secretary of the Discipline Inspection Commission of Handong Province, which is one rank higher than me.

The key point is that Zhong Xiaoai's father holds a very high position!

Tang Chuchu, who had been clinging to Chen Hai, vanished without a trace upon hearing these words.

Even the body that had been leaning against Chen Hai quietly detached, and she sat upright in the passenger seat.

His eyes flickered between light and shadow.

Finally, out of curiosity, he asked, "By the way, Brother Hai, who was the one in the hot pot restaurant who told you not to make noise?"

It seems even Zhong Xiaoai is afraid of him.

"You mean Secretary Chen? Don't let his young age fool you, he's only thirty-eight. He's a member of the Standing Committee of the Handong Provincial Party Committee, Secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission, and Secretary of the Luzhou Municipal Party Committee. He has a powerful background, so it's normal for us to remain restrained and not cause any trouble."

"Understood……"

At this moment, Tang Chuchu had already made her own decision.