Hou Liangping arrested a hawkish general, and his father-in-law panicked

It’s Gao Yuliang’s private call.

The three people's eyes were instantly focused on the vibrating cell phone on the mahogany table.

At this time, the person who can get through to his private phone is definitely not an ordinary person.

Gao Yuliang looked at the name jumping on the screen and his pupils suddenly shrank.

A muscle twitched uncontrollably on his face, which always remained calm.

He picked up the phone, his finger hovering over the answer button for two full seconds before slowly swiping it open.

"Hello, old secretary."

Gao Yuliang's voice unconsciously carried a hint of respect, even a little humble.

No one knew what was said on the other end of the phone. Gao Yuliang just kept responding: "Yes... yes, we are together... the situation... the situation is very complicated."

Fine beads of sweat oozed out of his forehead and slid down his temples.

The meeting room was so quiet that you could hear each other's heartbeats.

Sha Ruijin and Liu Kaijiang both held their breath and looked at Gao Yuliang.

Zhao Lichun, the one whose influence never faded even after leaving Handong.

"I understand... I understand."

Gao Yuliang held the phone, his back straightened unconsciously, as if he was listening to instructions in person.

After a moment, he raised his head and looked at Sha Ruijin with complicated eyes, then made a move that no one expected.

He covered the microphone and handed the phone to Sha Ruijin.

"Secretary Sha,"

Gao Yuliang's voice was dry. "Secretary Zhao Lichun, he wants to say a few words to you."

This move was really "brilliant".

He made it clear to Sha Ruijin that he did not want to answer the call and was forced to do so; he also cleverly threw this hot potato to the nominal head of Handong Province.

Sha Ruijin's eyes suddenly turned cold.

He stared at Gao Yuliang for three full seconds.

The look in his eyes was like a knife, as if he wanted to cut through Gao Yuliang's gentle mask to see how many calculations were hidden inside.

In the end, he didn't refuse.

Sha Ruijin reached out and took the phone, which was already a little hot.

"Comrade Lichun, I am Sha Ruijin."

His voice was calm, without any emotion, as if the eye contact just now had never happened.

On the other end of the line came an old but full-bodied voice, with unquestionable authority: "Comrade Ruijin, let me cut to the chase. I'll be in Handong in three hours. Before I get there, you, the provincial party committee, must stabilize the situation in Handong!"

Stabilize the overall situation?

The corners of Sha Ruijin's mouth curled up in an almost imperceptible, cold arc.

He could even imagine what Zhao Lichun looked like at the moment, sitting in an office in the capital, pointing at the map and giving orders.

He might still think that Handong is still the Handong that he can control with one hand.

"Comrade Lichun,"

Sha Ruijin's tone was terrifyingly calm. "I'm afraid I'm going to disappoint you."

There was silence on the other end of the phone.

Obviously, he didn't expect Sha Ruijin to react like this.

Sha Ruijin continued, "The current situation in Jinghai City is completely out of the control of the Provincial Party Committee and the Provincial Government. A force beyond our jurisdiction is carrying out its mission there. We can't even find the connection. We don't even know where their headquarters is or who is in charge."

He paused, then spoke clearly, word by word, "Therefore, our Handong Provincial Committee cannot take on the task of stabilizing the overall situation. Right now, we can't even see the situation in Jinghai clearly, let alone the overall situation in the province."

After saying that, he didn't give Zhao Lichun any chance to refute and directly handed the phone back to Gao Yuliang, whose face had turned pale.

"your phone."

Gao Yuliang took the phone with trembling hands and said "Hello" twice into the receiver, but the other party had already hung up.

Dead silence fell again in the conference room.

But this time, it was even more suffocating than before.

"Secretary Sha, you..."

Gao Yuliang opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but didn't know where to start.

He didn't expect Sha Ruijin to be so tough, and he pushed back directly.

This is not solving the problem, this is exacerbating the conflict!

"how do I?"

Sha Ruijin looked at him coldly. "Do you want me to promise him that I can stabilize the situation within three hours? How can I guarantee that? Are you trying to reason with soldiers armed with real guns using your mouth as a member of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission?"

"We're like meat on the chopping block right now, and we don't even know who's doing the butchering! Zhao Lichun got himself into this mess, and now he wants us to clean up after him? What gives him the right?"

Sha Ruijin's voice was not loud, but every word was like a nail, hitting Gao Yuliang and Liu Kaijiang's hearts hard.

Liu Kaijiang sighed deeply and slumped down in his chair.

"Yeah... stable? How can it be stable? The Jinghai City Public Security Bureau Chief has been detained, the Executive Vice Mayor has been taken away, Chen Tai from the Construction Group, and Zhao Lidong, all of them have been taken down. This news is only circulating among the top brass right now. If it leaks out, the entire Handong area will be shaken!"

He looked at the vague report on the table that had just been sent from a special channel, and his scalp tingled.

The report contained no arresting unit or reason, only a series of names and the simple words "under control".

This style of doing things is overbearing, tough, and completely disregards all local rules.

Gao Yuliang's expression kept changing. He lit a cigarette, took a deep puff, and started coughing.

"Zhao Lichun...what is he doing in Handong?"

He muttered to himself.

No one can answer this question.

Are you here to put out the fire?

Or come...

Destroy evidence?

Sha Ruijin stood up, walked to the window, and looked at the city outside that was completely immersed in the night.

Neon lights light up one after another, outlining the prosperous outline of Jingzhou.

But beneath this prosperous scene, there are undercurrents and murderous intentions lurking everywhere.

He knew very well that Zhao Lichun's call seemed to be an order, but in fact it was a test.

To test the provincial party committee's ability to control the situation.

Test them to see if they have the courage to take on this task.

Sha Ruijin's answer has already made his attitude clear - I won't take this offer.

It's not just me who can't take over, the root of this mess lies with you, Zhao Lichun.

"Now is not the time to consider what he is here for."

Sha Ruijin turned around and swept his eyes over Gao Yuliang and Liu Kaijiang.

"What we have to think about now is ourselves."

"First, from now on, no orders from the Provincial Party Committee, Provincial Government, Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection, and Provincial Political and Legal Affairs Commission will be issued to the city level without my personal signature. Anyone who dares to make such a move will be immediately dismissed from their post and imprisoned first!"

"Secondly, Comrade Kaijiang, you must immediately return to the Discipline Inspection Commission and seal all files you have on the Zhao Lichun family's projects in Handong. Keep them under your personal custody. No one, including me, may access them without legal procedures."

"Third, Comrade Yuliang..."

Sha Ruijin's gaze rested on Gao Yuliang, with a scrutinizing look in his eyes. "Manage your people, especially those in the political and legal fields. Don't produce another Hou Liangping, and don't let certain people have any ulterior motives at this critical juncture, trying to collude with the insiders."

Each of these three orders is bloody.

This is a declaration that Handong Province is about to enter a wartime state.

What we are guarding against is not the mysterious force outside, but the possible collapse and betrayal within.

Gao Yuliang's Adam's apple rolled, and he felt Sha Ruijin's unquestionable determination.

He knew that Sha Ruijin was protecting himself and also protecting the dignity of their last provincial party committee team.

If Handong's power system collapses from within under external pressure, then every one of them will become a laughing stock in history.

"I understand."

Gao Yuxing responded in a deep voice.

Liu Kaijiang also stood up: "I'll do it right away."

Looking at the two people's backs as they left, Sha Ruijin sat back in his chair, feeling exhausted like a tide.

He picked up the cigarette that had never been lit, lit it, and took a deep puff.

Stabilize the overall situation?

He gave a wry smile.

The storm that Zhao Yuanchao's troops created in Jinghai was just the beginning.

Zhao Lichun’s upcoming arrival will be another big drama.

What these so-called provincial governors can do now is not to stabilize the overall situation, but to find a way to save the broken ship of Handong from falling apart and sinking in the upcoming huge waves.

It was completely dark outside.

The night was as dark as ink, engulfing the building of the Handong Provincial Public Security Department.

Several dazzling searchlight beams crossed over the building, stretching the figures of the soldiers standing solemnly at the door into long and strange shapes.

The air was filled with a cold smell mixed with gunpowder and steel. The usual flashing police lights were completely suppressed, replaced by the silent deterrence of several dark green armored vehicles.

Zhong Xiaoai's car slowly stopped outside the cordon.