Nominal: Starting with an entrance exam for a PhD in Economics at Peking University

After thinking it over, he opened the "2016 Economic Work Report of Handong Province" on the table again.

Chapter 153 The Thread

Sha Ruijin heard about Hou Liangping's suspension on the morning of the sixth day.

That morning at nine o'clock, he was reviewing documents in his office when Bai Jingwen knocked on the door and came in, his expression somewhat solemn.

"Secretary Sha, there is something I need to report to you."

Sha Ruijin looked up: "What is it?"

Bai Jingwen hesitated for a moment: "Hou Liangping, the director of the Anti-Corruption Bureau of the Provincial Procuratorate, was suspended from his duties the day before yesterday."

Sha Ruijin's pen stopped in mid-air.

"Suspended from duty?" He put down his pen. "What's the reason?"

“They say they're under a lot of work pressure and need rest,” Bai Jingwen said, “but actually…”

He briefly recounted what had happened in the past few days: Hou Liangping opened an investigation into Handong Oil and Gas Group and discovered that the project had been approved by Liu Changsheng. The news spread throughout the province overnight. Liu Changsheng put pressure on them, and the Provincial Procuratorate held a meeting overnight. Hou Liangping was suspended from his post, and Chen Hai was transferred to the archives.

After listening, Sha Ruijin leaned back in his chair and remained silent for a moment.

"How long?" he asked.

"From the filing of the case to the suspension of his duties, it took less than 24 hours."

Sha Ruijin's expression changed.

24 hours.

The anti-corruption bureau chief, who was parachuted in from the Supreme People's Procuratorate, was taken down within 24 hours.

This speed is highly abnormal.

"How did Liu Changsheng exert pressure?" Sha Ruijin asked.

“I don’t know the specifics,” Bai Jingwen said, “but I heard that the Provincial Government Office, the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection, and the Provincial Procuratorate all received calls. Moreover, the Handong Daily published a commentary criticizing ‘some young cadres for not being politically aware.’”

Sha Ruijin nodded, but did not speak immediately.

He picked up the teacup on the table, took a sip, and found the tea had gone cold.

Bai Jingwen stood there, waiting for his instructions.

Sha Ruijin put down his teacup and looked out the window. Outside was the provincial party committee compound, where the leaves of early winter trees swayed in the wind; some had already fallen, leaving only bare branches.

"Xiao Bai," he began, "why do you think Liu Changsheng reacted so strongly?"

Bai Jingwen thought for a moment: "Perhaps... it's because I'm nearing retirement, so it's a sensitive topic?"

"Relatively sensitive?" Sha Ruijin smiled, but his smile was cold. "If it were just sensitivity, would such a drastic move be necessary? Suspension, reassignment, media hype—a whole series of blows, leaving no room for respite. Is this what normal work-related emotions look like?"

Bai Jingwen fell silent.

“Go,” Sha Ruijin said, “call Ji Changming over. I need to know the details.”

"Okay, Secretary Sha."

Bai Jingwen left and gently closed the door behind him.

Sha Ruijin sat alone in his office, his fingers tapping lightly on the desk.

Liu Changsheng.

This person has been in Handong for almost half a year, but we haven't had much contact with him.

In my memory, Liu Changsheng was a very gentle person. He was always amiable at the Standing Committee meetings, always saying "we can study it" or "we'll discuss it further" for everything. He never made a decision and never offended anyone. He seemed like a nice guy.

How could this happen...?

Sha Ruijin frowned.

Half an hour later, Ji Changming arrived.

“Secretary Sha.” Ji Changming sat down on the sofa.

"Comrade Changming," Sha Ruijin sat down opposite him, "tell me the details about Hou Liangping's suspension."

Ji Changming nodded and recounted the whole story from beginning to end.

"Hou Liangping and Chen Hai are preparing to investigate the case of the loss of state-owned assets of Handong Oil and Gas Group, and they have indeed obtained some evidence. The transfer of Qingshan Gas Field was valued at a significantly low price, and the background of the acquiring Shanshui Group is suspicious."

“Suspicious?” Sha Ruijin asked.

“It’s said to be related to the Zhao family,” Ji Changming said in a low voice. “The Shanshui Group has acquired many projects in Handong over the years, all of which are high-quality assets at very low prices.”

Upon hearing this, Sha Ruijin's eyes flickered.

“Go on.”

“After they filed the case, they went to the oil and gas group to investigate and found that the transfer of the Qingshan gas field was approved by Governor Liu,” Ji Changming said. “The approval document has Governor Liu’s signature on it.”

Is the approval document genuine?

"It's true, the timeline and procedures match up. It was approved in July 2014."

Sha Ruijin was silent for a moment: "And then?"

"Then the news spread," Ji Changming said. "And it wasn't 'the Anti-Corruption Bureau is investigating the oil and gas group,' but 'the Anti-Corruption Bureau is investigating Governor Liu.' The news spread extremely quickly, and by that very evening, the whole province knew about it."

Who sent it?

“I don’t know,” Ji Changming shook his head, “but the speed of its spread is very abnormal. I suspect that someone is stirring things up behind the scenes.”

Sha Ruijin nodded: "How did Liu Changsheng react after he found out?"

“Soon,” Ji Changming said, his tone tinged with helplessness, “I received a call from the Secretary-General of the Provincial Government at eight o’clock that evening, saying that Governor Liu was very dissatisfied with the matter and demanded that the Provincial Procuratorate handle it seriously. Immediately afterwards, someone from the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection also made a call.”

Who was it that greeted them?

Ji Changming hesitated for a moment: "Deputy Secretary Li."

Deputy Secretary Li is the Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection, and he works for Liu Changsheng.

Sha Ruijin understood.

"And then you have a meeting?"

“Yes, at 10 p.m. that night, the Party Group of the Provincial Procuratorate held an emergency meeting,” Ji Changming said. “It was chaired by Lao Lin, and I also attended. At the meeting, Lao Lin conveyed Governor Liu’s opinion: Hou Liangping investigated a project approved by provincial leaders without authorization, which shows a lack of political awareness and discipline; the investigation of the case was suspended, and Hou Liangping was suspended from his duties.”

"What's your attitude?" Sha Ruijin asked.

Ji Changming smiled wryly: "What attitude can I take? Governor Liu is the deputy secretary of the provincial party committee and also the governor. This case involves a project he approved. If I disagree, I'll be going against Governor Liu."

Sha Ruijin looked at him without saying a word.

Ji Changming continued, "And to be honest, Hou Liangping was indeed a bit rash this time. Such a big case, involving provincial leaders, should have been reported to and consulted first, not filed directly. He filed the case and then came to report to me, by which time the news had already spread, and I was in a very passive position."

"So you agree to be suspended?"

“I…” Ji Changming paused for a moment, “I didn’t express my opinion, but I didn’t object either. Moreover, I think this is also to protect him. Governor Liu’s attitude was very tough at the time, and if I stood my ground, Hou Liangping might be in more trouble.”

Sha Ruijin nodded, without blaming him.

He knew Ji Changming's predicament. Under those circumstances, there wasn't much Ji Changming could do.

“The next day, Hou Liangping was suspended from his post, and Chen Hai was transferred to the archives,” Ji Changming continued, “and their system accounts were blocked, their offices were sealed off, and their cars and secretaries were taken back.”

"So thorough?"

“Yes, everyone says that if it weren’t for Hou Liangping having connections in higher positions, he might have been completely stripped of his position.” Ji Changming shook his head. “Moreover, the provincial government secretary-general hinted that I should investigate the cases Chen Hai had handled before, to launch a counterattack, but I pretended to be stupid and changed the subject.”

Sha Ruijin leaned back on the sofa, his fingers tapping lightly on the armrest.

"Is there anything else?" he asked.

“Furthermore,” Ji Changming said, “Liu Changsheng’s actions were not only aimed at Hou Liangping; he also sent an audit team to the oil and gas group to conduct a comprehensive audit of Liu Xinjian.”

Sha Ruijin looked up: "Liu Xinjian? Chairman of the Oil and Gas Group?"

"Yes, Zhao Lichun's former secretary."

Why did Liu Changsheng want to audit him?

“On the surface, it’s supposed to be standardized management,” Ji Changming said, “but the audit team investigated very thoroughly, focusing on all the projects during Liu Xinjian’s tenure. I heard they’ve already uncovered quite a few problems, like the villa in Hainan and the money for his son’s studies in the United States.”

"Some people say that Liu Xinjian deliberately leaked this project to Chen Hai and Hou Liangping."

Sha Ruijin narrowed his eyes.

This is interesting.

While Liu Changsheng was attacking Hou Liangping, he was also dealing with Liu Xinjian.

Hou Liangping is an outsider, so it's understandable that he broke the rules.

But Liu Xinjian is a member of the Zhao family, and Liu Changsheng is nearing retirement. How could he easily take action against him on a whim?

unless……

“Comrade Changming,” Sha Ruijin began, his tone turning serious, “you’ve been in Handong for so many years, you should understand one thing: truly clean people are not afraid of being investigated.”

Ji Changming nodded.

“If Liu Changsheng was really just being misled, if his approval of the Qingshan gas field transfer was a normal work decision, he could have cooperated fully with the investigation,” Sha Ruijin continued, “bring out the accounts, explaining the procedures, and proving that he has done nothing wrong.”

“But he didn’t,” Sha Ruijin said, his tone becoming more serious. “He chose the most drastic method: to completely crush Hou Liangping within 24 hours, making everyone afraid to touch the case again. What does that mean?”

Ji Changming looked at Sha Ruijin without saying a word.

But he understood what Secretary Sha meant.

“This shows he has something to hide,” Sha Ruijin said, emphasizing each word. “It shows that there are indeed problems with the transfer of the Qingshan gas field, and there may even be something bigger behind it that needs to be covered up.”

The office was quiet for a moment.

Sha Ruijin saw his concerns: "Comrade Changming, let's put this matter aside for now and not concern ourselves with it."

"Okay, Secretary Sha." Ji Changming breathed a sigh of relief.

"Oh, right," Sha Ruijin remembered something, "how is Hou Liangping doing now?"

“I heard he’s resting at home,” Ji Changming said, “and not in a good mood.”

Sha Ruijin nodded: "Find an opportunity to talk to him and have him write a detailed report on the situation and submit it directly to me."