Era: Starting with the struggle to refuse being taken advantage of

Chapter 186 Tragic Ending
Wang Fucheng was away because he was busy with matters at the sugar factory.

Nevertheless, thanks to the warm hospitality of Wang Tieshan and Liu Chunhua, everyone enjoyed the meal in a relaxed and pleasant manner.

Along with bringing him food, Wang Chengpeng's family also brought him some intellectual nourishment—a bundle of books wrapped up tightly.

Upon seeing these books, Wang Chengpeng breathed a sigh of relief.

It's really hard to sit idly in the ward without reading some books to pass the time.

Since Wang Zhong had nothing serious to begin with, and had also received a huge benefit, the group chatted quite happily.

In particular, Cheng Xiuying called him "brother" and "sister-in-law" repeatedly, which made the two people who were originally reserved relax a little.

It seems that Captain Wang's family isn't as easy to talk to as the rumors suggested. Not only are they willing to help me selflessly, but they also don't have any airs of being a leader.

……

Pain doesn't disappear; it only moves on.

While Wang Chengpeng was living a comfortable and happy life, some people were living extremely miserable lives.

Inside the police station, Fang Weimin frantically pounded on the iron bars in front of him, roaring:

"Let me out! How dare you arrest me?"

"I'm the manager of the town's scrap metal recycling station, a legitimate employee of a company. You can't treat me like this!"

For Fang Weimin, the fall from heaven to hell may have only taken a moment.

If he hadn't heard about a highly profitable business opportunity here, he wouldn't have spent so much money to come to this remote and impoverished place.

However, things seemed to be completely different from what he had imagined.

The business that used to make money effortlessly suddenly became unsustainable for some reason.

Not only that, he was also inexplicably reported by a villain and is now facing imprisonment.

Fang Weimin really couldn't understand why he, an honest and upright businessman, had fallen into his current predicament.

He had only relaxed his vigilance a little because business had been slow lately, and had reduced the number of people patrolling the perimeter, but he never expected to be caught red-handed.

Thinking of this, Fang Weimin cursed inwardly, realizing that his men were all useless. Despite having so many men and weapons, they still couldn't protect him from escaping.

Fang Weimin's unrestrained shouts and loud banging finally attracted the attention of the police.

The person who came was none other than Fan Guocheng, who had previously had contact with Fang Weimin.

The moment Fang Weimin saw Fan Guocheng, it was as if he had seen a savior, and he cried out for help:
"Comrade Fan, please let me explain. This is all a misunderstanding. I am innocent."

“I did nothing, this has nothing to do with me.”

Fang Wenming, who was only focused on escaping, did not see the injuries on Fan Guocheng's face, which were caused by his men.

With a cold snort, Fan Guocheng said disdainfully:
"Innocent? It has nothing to do with you? Then why are my investigation results completely different from what you said?"

"Be lenient with confession, strict with resistance!"

The same words, however, sounded like a thunderclap to Fang Weimin, who was feeling guilty, gradually eroding his defenses.

Even so, Fang Weimin knew he couldn't admit anything, otherwise he would face an abyss of no return. He immediately retorted defiantly:
"Confess? Of course I will confess."

"I did nothing, that's my honesty."

Do you know what you're doing right now?

"Think carefully about the consequences if you mess with someone you shouldn't have!"

They won't shed a tear until they see the coffin!
This was Fan Guocheng's assessment of Fang Weimin. He even dared to threaten Fan Guocheng in return, which was incredibly audacious.

Faced with such a significant event, Fan Guocheng was initially worried that he might not be able to handle it.

After all, there aren't many people who dare to do such a thing just because they have audacity.

But things are so strange; they had captured Fang Weimin and the others for most of the day, yet there was still no sign of them making a move.

It's as if Fang Weimin in front of us is just a clown who can't be brought to the stage; at best, he only does petty theft.

But the items they had seized, the identities of the other party, and the large number of people involved... all these signs indicated that this matter was far from simple.

For no apparent reason, Fan Guocheng suddenly remembered Wang Chengpeng's incredibly calm face.

They assumed that the information provided by the other party was misleading or hiding some unknown trap.

Little did he expect that a casual net would catch such a huge fish.

With this achievement, he could not only be the deputy director of the police station, but even compete for the position of director.

It was precisely because of this that Fan Guocheng had the confidence to tell Wang Zhong that his net profit margin was almost a done deal.

Why would the other party provide me with such information?
Having such important information, he could clearly have secured more benefits for himself.

Reflecting on what happened yesterday, Fan Guocheng suddenly came to an unbelievable conclusion.

For no other reason than that Fang Weimin had offended Wang Chengpeng by acting recklessly.

If it weren't for his report, which tricked him into bringing Wang Chengpeng over, the other party might not have told him such explosive news.

This personality is truly terrifying—it's incredibly vengeful.

Recalling his interactions with the other party, it seemed that apart from conducting business formalities, nothing out of line had been done, and Fan Guocheng breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Since Wang Chengpeng was willing to help him out because Wang Zhong had helped him, he must be a grateful person.

He actually enjoys dealing with people who have such strong likes and dislikes.

As for people like Fang Weimin who enrich themselves at the expense of the public? Fan Guocheng hates them the most.

Pointing to the scars on his face, he said angrily:
"Your subordinates dared to lay a hand on the police, and you still dare to say you're innocent?"

"You've been arrested for so long without any news. I'm sure you already know what's going on."

"Shi Ren has already told us everything about you. We already know the truth of the matter."

"With enough evidence, your testimony isn't actually that important to us."

"The sooner you speak up, the sooner you can atone for your crime and perform good deeds, the easier your punishment might be."

He slumped back into his chair, his eyes devoid of light.

If Shi Ren, that good-for-nothing who betrays his own side, were to switch sides, given his useless nature, he would probably reveal everything that he should and shouldn't have said.

Having been in the business longer than I have, he knows many of the inside stories, leaving me with no room for denial.

However, this wasn't what terrified Fang Weimin the most. Fan Guocheng was right; the fact that no one had paid any attention to him for so long after his arrest was a very serious problem. If someone had protected him, many things could have been easily resolved peacefully.

If no one pays attention to him, he'll probably have a hard time getting away unscathed.

Thinking this, Fang Weimin said angrily:
"These bastards! All I did was not connect with them for a while, and they just abandoned me and left me to my fate."

Fan Guocheng: ...? ? ?
He suddenly understood why Wang Chengpeng refused to cooperate with Fang Shimin. With a lunatic like that, let alone cooperation, even getting involved with him could cause endless harm.

Finally, as if accepting the cruel reality before him, Fang Weimin said unwillingly:
“Tell me who betrayed me, and I will tell you everything.”

"Is it Fang Dongguo, Liu Weidong, or Zhou Yuanping?"

"These bastards are quicker than anyone else to collect money, and they're just as ruthless when it comes to kicking someone when they're down."

Hearing Fang Weimin's cursing and swearing, Fan Guocheng found it all quite amusing.

Some people boast of their great abilities and are extremely arrogant, yet they don't even know why they have fallen to such a state.

Recalling Wang Chengpeng's seemingly harmless appearance, Fan Guocheng felt it was only natural that Fang Weimin would be deceived.

He probably never dreamed that the person responsible for all of this was Wang Chengpeng, whom he had never taken seriously.

Even without receiving favors from Wang Chengpeng, based solely on police professional ethics, Fan Guocheng would not have told Fang Weimin about the matter, saying:

"Sorry, no comment."

"I'll say it again: leniency for those who confess, severity for those who resist."

Seeing that Fan Guocheng was completely unmoved, Fang Weimin took a deep breath and said:

"Okay, I'll confess."

"However, I have one more small request that I hope you can grant."

"I need paper and pen to write a letter. This small request shouldn't be too difficult for you."

Fan Guocheng did not refuse Fang Weimin's request.

Before long, he received a series of tightly sealed letters, as well as a confession filled with Fang Weimin's crimes.

Fang Weimin's fate was largely his own doing; he didn't make much money, but ultimately became the scapegoat for this business.

This business involves too many people, so ending it with him is the best option.

……

Having settled things at the police station, Fan Guocheng finally had time to visit Wang Zhong.

Fan Guocheng also took a great liking to the young man who was injured because of him, and brought him a large bag of things.

It was nighttime, and only Wang Zhong and Wang Chengpeng remained in the ward.

With Wang Chengpeng in charge of keeping watch, Cheng Xiuying ultimately couldn't refuse and went to the guesthouse as arranged by the two.

After all, it's a bit inconvenient for a woman to share a hospital room with two men.

Fan Guocheng glanced at Wang Chengpeng, who was reading a book in the ward, with surprise, and said with a smile:
"I didn't expect you to still be here. You're quite a kind and loyal person."

Having said that, Fan Guocheng raised the letter in his hand high and said:
"This is a letter Fang Weimin wrote to someone else. It may contain some news that you might be interested in. Would you like to read it?"

Although they were some distance apart, Wang Chengpeng could still see the character "跃" (yue, meaning leap) from one corner of the envelope.

Given that the letter was written by Fang Weimin, one can imagine what the contents of the letter were like.

Wang Chengpeng shook his head slightly and said with a smile:
"It is Comrade Gu's duty to review the contents of this letter, but it would be too presumptuous of him to ask me to do so."

"They're just spreading baseless rumors about how bad I am. Whether I read them or not makes no difference to me."

"Comrade Gu must be here to visit my cousin. I'm just an insignificant person, so it's best if I don't steal the spotlight."

"I'm getting a little tired from standing for so long, so I'll go stand in the corridor for a bit. You don't need to worry about me."

After saying that, Wang Chengpeng left without waiting for Fan Guocheng to speak.

It's rare to gain a favor from someone, so you must cherish it and not waste it on something so trivial.

Wang Chengpeng planned to venture out into the world, but someone still needed to guard the base camp, since his family would continue to live there.

Watching Wang Chengpeng turn and leave, Fan Guocheng hesitated, but ultimately remained silent. Instead, he turned to Wang Zhong and said:
"Your cousin is quite interesting; he guessed the contents of the letter pretty accurately."

"Fang Weimin is quite vindictive. He can't beat others, but he treats your cousin like an easy target and tries to trick him at the last minute."

"It's a pity he didn't know that it was because he made a huge mistake and offended your cousin that he ended up with such a miserable fate."

"But it's also thanks to Fang Weimin's reckless actions that I was able to catch such a big fish."

"Since you saved me and, thanks to your cousin, got involved in this operation and gained some credit, it seems like getting a job at the police station is a done deal."

"Once you recover, make proper preparations, and we should be able to finalize this matter by September at the latest."

Faced with Fan Guocheng's congratulations, Wang Zhong remained neither pleased nor saddened, saying:
“My cousin is always very thoughtful and is no ordinary person.”

"I just happened to be there this time. Anyone else would have done better than me. There's nothing to be proud of."

Wang Zhong sighed deeply, feeling extremely distressed despite the congratulations from everyone.

He always felt that he had simply won by following Wang Chengpeng, and that anyone else in his place would not have done any worse.

Under such circumstances, how could he possibly be complacent, given his personality?

Seemingly aware of Wang Zhong's thoughts, Fan Guocheng smiled and said, "There's no need to belittle yourself."

"Putting aside your actual ability, it's clear that you haven't neglected your militia training, otherwise you wouldn't have been able to perform so well at this crucial moment."

"Opportunities are rare, and few people are able to seize them perfectly."

"Moreover, opportunity is also a part of strength."

Listening to Wang Zhong's words, Fan Guocheng grew to like the young man in front of him even more.

He is humble, neither arrogant nor servile, and given the kindness he showed in saving me, he is someone I could cultivate well.

……

Due to his busy schedule, Fan Guocheng did not stay in Wang Zhong's ward for long, leaving after about half an hour.

After spending another three or four days in the hospital, waiting for Wang Zhong to be able to go home and recuperate, Wang Chengpeng returned to Wangjia Village.

However, in just a few days, Wangjia Village has undergone tremendous changes.

(End of this chapter)