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

With just a statement about making a decision on the spot and reporting to the provincial party committee, Secretary Chen distanced himself from the problem. It's clear that Secretary Chen didn't want to get involved in Yi Xuexi's affairs.

"This matter is most likely that Secretary Chen reported it to the Provincial Party Committee under the guise of my report, putting Governor Jianjun and Secretary Sha into a power struggle. The ball is only half played; the other half depends on how Governor Jianjun and Secretary Sha play their moves."

Hou Liangping silently gave Ji Changming a thumbs up. This was the first time someone had truly taught him how to handle such a problem. It seemed simple, but making the wrong decision could affect one's entire future.

"No need to praise me, Liangping. There is one thing that we are similar in now, which is that we are both cadres without any background or connections. If we want to move up to a higher position, we have to rely on our steady work style to make the leaders above remember us. At critical times and in key positions, cadres like us are needed. That is the opportunity."

Not seeking high-ranking official positions, but only retiring as a deputy provincial-level official—this is the greatest aspiration of cadres like us without connections.

What do you think?

Hou Liangping strongly agrees with this statement.

He is 42 years old now and has been in the deputy director-general position for less than a year. He will have to stay in this position for at least four or five years. He will be 46 or 47 years old before he can be promoted to the director-general level. The director-general level requires at least two positions and five or six years. He will be 52 or 53 years old before he has a slight chance of being promoted to the deputy provincial level.

He sounds young, but there's a specific position for each deputy provincial-level official, so how can things go so smoothly?

Hou Liangping was already grateful to have reached the level of Chief Prosecutor Ji Changming by the age of fifty-seven or fifty-eight; his generation had already achieved a tremendous leap in social class.

His children will have an even higher starting point in the future. Even without the support of the Zhong family, isn't he already a local bigwig?

Thinking of this, Hou Liangping suddenly understood.

"Thank you, quarterly inspection!"

Hou Liangping bowed directly to Ji Changming at a ninety-degree angle.

This made Ji Changming smile even more broadly.

"No need to thank me, Liangping. I actually disliked you when you came to Handong. You were reckless and caused trouble for me everywhere because you had some background. But you did help me. I have to thank you for Chen Yanshi's matter."

The Second Procuratorate… I haven’t had a good time these past few years! Of course, I’m not vying for power, but I’m the chief prosecutor! How can I stand it when everyone else doesn’t respect me?”

Even now, Ji Changming is very grateful that Hou Liangping taught Chen Yanshi a great lesson, allowing him to vent his anger and retire smoothly.

Hou Liangping remained silent. Had he stumbled upon a lucky break?

"Alright, stop standing there and get back to work. The higher-ups will give a response regarding Yi Xuexi's matter. Don't believe a word about 'decision on the sidelines.' Just wait for news from the provincial party committee."

Hou Liangping nodded and left the office.

The workday ended quickly.

Exhausted, Yi Xuexi finally returned home. When he opened the door, he saw Mao Ya already there, wearing an apron, with a sumptuous meal on the table.

"You're back, Lao Yi? Look, these are all your favorite foods. I haven't cooked for you for a while, and you've lost weight. I'll try to get you back to your pre-pregnancy weight in half a month."

Upon hearing this, Yi Xuexi showed no joy, only a feeling of being unable to breathe...

Chapter 254 Ruthless Mao Ya, Seventy-Two Million

After silently hanging his briefcase on the wall, Yi Xuexi finally sat down at the dining table.

At the same time, Mao Ya brought out the last dish and then sat down next to Yi Xuexi.

The two were very close, even closer than before their divorce.

Yi Xuexi could clearly smell the distinctive perfume on Mao Ya's body and feel the body temperature of the person next to him.

"Old Yi, these are all your favorite dishes. I have indeed made a lot of mistakes recently, but we have been married for more than 20 years. Our son is about to graduate with a master's degree. We can't just break up our good family like this."

As soon as Mao Ya opened her mouth, Yi Xuexi felt that her words were too hypocritical and disgusting, and even felt that the dishes in front of her were dirty. He frowned and took a deep breath, saying, "You don't need to pretend to say these useless things."

I came back for only one thing: to tell you that remarrying you is fine, but it's just a remarriage. From now on, we'll live our separate lives.

Upon hearing this, Mao Ya's smile vanished instantly.

He got up, dusted off non-existent dust, and sat down opposite Yi Xuexi. Then, he looked at Yi Xuexi with a mocking gaze and said, "So, our Secretary Yi has already figured out that his own future is more important?"

Since we've come this far, I'll be frank. I didn't originally plan to remarry you, since even without you, I, Mao Ya, have more wealth than I could ever spend.

However, a businessman from Luzhou got into trouble a couple of days ago!

This is one of my clients. He had his eye on a real estate development project in Luzhou, but just as he poured a lot of money into it, the Luzhou municipal government intervened to stabilize housing prices.

His cash flow is insufficient, he can't afford to wait, and he's on the verge of bankruptcy.

"What does this have to do with me?"

Yi Xuexi refused directly, knowing that Mao Ya must have had an ulterior motive for saying that.

"A relationship? A very important one!"

This person has bought tea from our family more than ten times, each time buying five or six catties at a time, totaling more than eight million yuan. Now he is almost bankrupt, and his last hope in life is that you, the district party secretary, can help him.

If he really can't hold on any longer, guess what he'll do? Oh, I forgot to tell you, this guy is very shrewd. I don't know how he managed to carry the equipment and film the entire transaction process clearly, more than ten times in total!

If he exposes this, we'll both be buried with him!

Yi Xuexi's face turned red with anger.

After Mao Ya finished speaking, he stood up abruptly, pointing his index finger at Mao Ya's forehead, trembling all over, and finally asked painfully, "Mao Ya! How dare you be so bold? I know you may have accepted some bribes by taking advantage of my position, but you actually dared to ask for eight million?"

Do you know how shrewd these businessmen are? If you take eight million from them, they will definitely want to get eighty million in profit from you. If they don't get it, they will definitely do anything to take you down with them.

You're too greedy!

Upon hearing this, Mao Ya showed no regret or fear, but calmly shook her head and said, "Eight million was just what this one businessman gave me. The total is about seventy-two million, and it's all in this card of mine."

Mao Ya took out the bank card and placed it on the table. When Yi Xuexi heard the amount of 72 million, he collapsed onto the sofa without even being able to stand.

"It's over, it's over..."

His gaze gradually became vacant, and Yi Xuexi could already imagine the prison life he would face after being taken away by the Discipline Inspection Commission.

"Ha! What are you afraid of? Yi Xuexi, tell me yourself, which official isn't corrupt? You've been a division-level cadre for over ten years, and the Party Secretary of the development zone, and you've only embezzled 72 million. Zhao Dehan from the Ministry of Energy, on the other hand, has only been a division chief for four years and has already embezzled hundreds of millions."

Compared to others, we still have a gap to close.

"Are you crazy, Mao Ya? Do you know that if the disciplinary committee finds out about this amount, I'll get at least ten years in prison, and you could very well get life imprisonment?"

Mao Ya took a deep breath and shook her head.

"What's the point of saying all this now?"

You think I want this 70 million?

Let me tell you, Yi Xuexi, my initial plan was simply to use your special status to earn ten or twenty thousand yuan a month.

But once you've accepted it, you can't refuse it anymore! Whether I accept it or not is no longer up to me..."

Silence, dead silence.

At this moment, even the usually intelligent Mao Ya was at a loss.

"Over the years, I haven't dared to spend a single penny of these 72 million! Old Yi, please help me this last time, just for the sake of the children."

Yi Xuexi neither agreed nor refused; he was simply in a daze.

He had a premonition that he might be completely ruined because of this incident—was it an undeserved disaster?

It's not really true, after all, this is the result of him turning a blind eye, and he sowed the seeds of his own suffering.

After a long while, Yi Xuexi took a deep breath.

"What are the businessman's demands now?"

Yi Xuexi's tone was unusually calm, while Mao Ya tearfully stated the other party's request.

"He wants the government to provide an interest-free loan of 500 million, with repayment only starting after three years..."

"He's insane!"

"Five hundred million? Why don't you just rob someone!"

Yi Xuexi was shocked. He knew that real estate was very expensive, but this guy was talking about 500 million yuan. Did he really think Yi Xuexi was Li Dakang? Could he just move hundreds of millions of yuan around without any obstacles?

Despite his complaints, Yi Xuexi shook his head in silence and said, "You should discuss it with him again. We can give him 500 million, but interest-free is not an option. Our Guangming District government can provide loans in the name of supporting enterprise development, but if it goes too far, we won't be able to explain it to the Municipal Party Committee. Guangming District is not my Guangming District!"

The loan is calculated at the bank's minimum interest rate, and interest and principal will be repaid starting after one year. He can accept this condition if he wants, or not if he doesn't.

If I really lend him the money interest-free, I'll be taken away by the disciplinary committee for investigation tomorrow.

"Then let me ask first..."

Mao Ya has already gotten what she wanted. Whether or not she remarries Yi Xuexi is not important. What matters is that Yi Xuexi can still solve her problems.

"Don't waste the money in your card. If, and I mean if, one day the Discipline Inspection Commission investigates and you turn yourself in, you might be able to get lenient treatment."

Yi Xuexi gave Mao Ya one last deep look, while Mao Ya gripped the bank card tightly in her hand, her eyes darting around, and Yi Xuexi had no idea what she was thinking.

The next morning, Mao Ya made contact with the businessman. It has to be said that businessmen are all profit-driven. He was naturally very happy about the loan. Since he couldn't repay it anyway, he might as well drag Yi Xuexi down with him.

At least the company was brought back to life; it's better than it is now.

Chapter 255 Chess Pieces Affect Chess Players!

After that, Mao Ya went to the Immigration Bureau again.

The purpose of coming here is to apply for a visa. Mao Ya is not stupid. She has already felt a strange unease. Rather than pinning her hopes on men like Yi Xuexi, she might as well take the 72 million and go abroad directly!

It takes about two weeks to get the visa.

Stepping out of the management bureau, Mao Ya took a deep breath.

"Hang in there! In about two weeks you'll be able to go abroad. Then you'll be free to roam the world, and 72 million will be enough to make your life comfortable!"

Mao Ya kept encouraging herself. Now that she had divorced Yi Xuexi and Chen Hai, the procedures for going abroad were theoretically quite simple, and there were no unexpected issues during the process.

Waiting is her only option now.

However, things sometimes don't go as planned.

On Friday, Chen Luo returned to Jingzhou from Lüzhou. Four days had passed since Mao Ya applied for her visa to go abroad. Chen Luo had two things to do in Jingzhou: one was to report on Yi Xuexi's progress, and the other was to discuss the enrollment arrangements for Yuehu University with Li Dakang, the secretary of the Jingzhou Municipal Party Committee.

At nine o'clock in the morning, Chen Luo returned to the Political and Legal Affairs Commission. His secretary, Liu Mingyu, came to ask for instructions, saying that Ji Changming would come over to report on his work immediately.

At 9:30 a.m. sharp, Ji Changming pushed open the door to Chen Luo's office.

"Comrade Changming is here? Sit down and let's talk."

Chen Luo pointed to the chair in front of him. Ji Changming smiled, placed the documents on Chen Luo's desk, thanked him, and sat down.

"Secretary Chen, this is the investigation report from our Anti-Corruption Bureau over the past few days. We conducted a brief investigation because we were worried about causing unnecessary trouble."