The little star from the Gobi Desert, handed over to the state, is hailed as a national treasure.

Ignoring the flailing Tie Jieshan, Liang Zhe pulled out his identification from his pocket and showed it to everyone: "I am an officer from the military stationed here to assist in construction. Maintaining local order and combating crime are also my duties. I suspect that Tie Jieshan is abusing his position as director of the supply and marketing cooperative to hoard scarce supplies, inflate prices, and engage in speculation, harming the interests of the people and the country. I demand an immediate inspection of the second-floor warehouse! I would appreciate it if a few villagers would come with me upstairs to take a look!"

The crowd responded enthusiastically, their spirits high. Yao Guilian screamed, spreading her arms to block the stairwell: "How dare you! Is there no law anymore! Buddy, call the police! Call the police now!"

Tie Jieshan broke out in a cold sweat. How could he dare to actually call the police? But in the current situation, he couldn't stop Liang Zhe at all.

He steeled himself, deciding to go all in and use his last trump card: "Fine! I'll show you! But let me make this clear first, what if there's nothing in the warehouse? What will you say then?"

"No, that won't happen." Sweetie understood what he meant and spoke earnestly in her childish voice, "Uncle is mean. He hid the apple and won't let us eat it. He's bullying us."

"You little brat, what nonsense are you spouting!" Yao Guilian was so angry that she jumped up and down, rushing forward to scratch Tian Tian's little face with her fingernails.

With lightning speed, Liang Zhe grabbed her wrist. Yao Guilian winced in pain and struggled desperately, but Liang Zhe's hand was like an iron clamp, completely immovable.

"Let me go! You bastard!" Yao Guilian screamed like a pig being slaughtered.

"Try moving it again!"

Liang Zhe's face darkened abruptly, and with a forceful jerk, Yao Guilian stumbled back several steps, her back slamming against the counter, nearly shattering the glass display case.

"Murder! The soldiers are killing someone!" Yao Guilian cried and screamed, rolling on the ground in a rage, yelling at Tie Jieshan, "Are you dead? This soldier beat your wife!"

Tie Jieshan quickly seized the opportunity, pointing at Liang Zhe and shouting, "You call yourself a lieutenant colonel! Beating people in broad daylight! I'm going to report you to the military region! I'll charge you with bullying the people! I'll make you compensate my family for emotional distress and damages to our reputation!"

A cold glint flashed in Liang Zhe's eyes, the ruthless edge of a soldier on the battlefield. He said coldly, "If there's no fruit in the warehouse, I'll willingly go to the police station to accept the consequences. But if we do find hidden supplies, Director Tie, what will your punishment be?"

"Me? I'm completely innocent. These things could never have happened. On the contrary, it's you who, in front of so many villagers, ruined my reputation, interfered with my business, and framed officials! This isn't over! You must bear all the consequences!"

"Alright, Director Tie!" Zhang Fang sneered, her words hitting the nail on the head. "You'd better think about how to explain the contents of the warehouse to everyone first! Open the door now and let us see what kind of trickery is hidden inside!"

Tie Jieshan swallowed hard; the die was cast. He gritted his teeth and shouted into the crowd, "Warehouse manager! Where's the key to the second-floor warehouse?"

The warehouse clerk hesitated before stepping forward: "Manager, I have the key to the main warehouse. But that small warehouse you mentioned... hasn't the key always been with you and Sister Yao?"

"I don't have the key!" Yao Guilian slumped to the ground, slapping her thigh and wailing, "This is outrageous! They're trying to force us to our deaths! Is there no leader who will stand up for us?! Trying to take the key? No way!"

"Tie Jieshan, Yao Guilian, now that things have come to this, do you think delaying will solve the problem?" Liang Zhe's voice was icy.

Helpless, Tie Jieshan gestured with his chin towards Yao Guilian: "Give it to him."

"No!" Yao Guilian cried out.

"Give it to him!" Tie Jieshan shouted sharply, almost spitting it out from between his teeth.

Having exhausted all other options, Yao Guilian reluctantly untied a bunch of keys from her belt and threw them angrily on the ground. Seeing her like this, everyone's suspicions deepened—it would be strange if this couple weren't up to something!

Liang Zhe bent down to pick up the keys, and Zhang Fang, Zhao Xiulan, and several strong young men immediately stepped forward to follow him upstairs. Tie Jieshan, his legs aching, followed behind, still clinging to a sliver of hope—maybe the secret room was hidden deep enough that they wouldn't find it.

The door to the small warehouse on the second floor was opened, and everyone rushed in. Inside, as expected, there were some grains, farm tools, and fabrics piled up. At first glance, there was nothing unusual. Only in the corner were there a few locked wooden boxes.

"Huh? What's going on?" Zhang Fang and the others exchanged bewildered glances, their eyes filled with suspicion as they looked at Liang Zhe. "Comrade, could it be... a mistake?"

A smug, sinister smile finally flashed across Tie Jieshan's tense face: "You all saw it, didn't you? There's no fruit inside at all! Now, what do you have to say?"

Sweetie reached out her little hand, hugged Liang Zhe's neck, and whispered in his ear, "Daddy, Guoguo is behind the wooden box... there's a hole."

Liang Zhe's eyes flashed, and he raised his hand, pointing to the wooden crates, and said in a deep voice, "Move the crates away."

Several young men immediately responded and stepped forward to move the box. Tie Jieshan's face turned deathly pale, and he cried out, "Don't move! Don't move it!"

He was about to rush forward to stop them, but Zhang Fang and the others held him back. The group hurriedly moved the box aside, revealing a dark cellar entrance in the corner of the floor!

Someone mustered their courage and reached out to pull open the cellar door. A rich, sweet fruity aroma instantly wafted out, filling the entire room.

With a thud, Tie Jieshan's legs went weak, and he collapsed heavily to the ground, his face ashen.

Overjoyed, everyone crowded around. Some jumped down to investigate and discovered that the cellar was connected to the downstairs floor, with a hidden chamber partitioned inside. Inside, the chamber was crammed with expensive cigarettes and alcohol, boxes of sugar, and milk powder. Beside it, bamboo baskets held bright red apples, golden pears, and even several bunches of purple grapes carefully lined with soft hay! Each grape was plump and fresh, clearly recently hidden there.

"Tie Jieshan! What else do you have to say!" Zhang Fang was furious and was the first to rush up and point her finger at his nose to curse.

The crowd erupted in a frenzy! Shouts of anger, condemnation, and demands for severe punishment rose and fell, nearly lifting the roof off the supply and marketing cooperative. Tie Jieshan collapsed to the ground, trembling uncontrollably, unable to utter a single word. Yao Guilian was terrified, covering her face and sobbing uncontrollably, collapsing into a limp, lifeless state.

Some quick-footed citizens had already rushed to contact the Public Security Bureau and the Market Management Committee. Before long, uniformed police officers and staff from the Market Management Committee hurriedly arrived at the scene and took Tie Jieshan and Yao Guilian away for investigation.

Subsequent investigations confirmed that Tie Jieshan had abused his power for a long period of time, engaging in hoarding and speculation, reselling planned materials, embezzling public funds, and accepting bribes—all of which were supported by irrefutable evidence. The case also implicated several other town officials, who were subsequently dismissed and punished according to Party discipline and the law, thus restoring justice to the town's residents.

The fruit and other scarce supplies that had been hoarded in the supply and marketing cooperative were all inventoried. Fruit, with its short shelf life, was put on the shelves and sold at the planned price. Liang Zhe approached the responsible leader and explained the plight of the veteran experts at the base. After gaining the understanding of the people present, Liang Zhe used all the money he had to buy most of the fruit. He wrote an IOU for the remaining amount, promising to send someone to deliver the money as soon as he returned to the base.

Kind-hearted people offered to help Liang Zhe carry his things and escorted the father and daughter all the way to the town's hospital.

Before Liang Zhe even reached the door of Professor Qian's hospital room, the news had already spread. Song Dazhuang, Dr. Sun, and others came to greet him, and when they saw the apples, pears, and grapes Liang Zhe was carrying, they were all astonished and could hardly believe it.

"My God..." Song Dazhuang's voice trembled with excitement. "Commander Liang! You're amazing! You even managed to bring back fruit?"

"Stop talking nonsense!" Liang Zhe didn't bother to explain and handed over the fruit in his hand. "Quickly wash an apple for Old Qian, and save some other fruit for him. I need to send the rest back to the base tonight!"

Song Dazhuang nodded emphatically: "Don't worry, Commander Liang! The soldiers will stay and guard the hospital. I'll go with you to escort this batch of fruit back! We'll make sure it reaches the experts safely!"

Looking at the fresh, plump fruit, Dr. Sun's eyes instantly welled up with tears. His voice choked with emotion as he said, "With this fruit, at least our veteran experts can hold on a little longer!"