Name: My father is Zhao Dehan, and I hope he will become a dragon!

Qi Tongwei is now in a real dilemma: he can't leave, and he can't stay.

From inside the house came Sha Ruijin's voice: "Old Chen, why don't you and Aunt Wang pack up and move to the Provincial Party Committee Guesthouse for a few days? It's quiet there, and medical care is convenient."

"Nonsense!" Chen Yanshi laughed and scolded, "These old bones of mine can't live without the soil!"

Qi Tongwei lowered his head and continued turning the soil, but his movements slowed down.

He heard Sha Ruijin say, "I'll come often from now on!"

"Okay!" Chen Yanshi replied.

The door opened.

Sha Ruijin helped the two elderly people out and walked towards the black car parked outside the courtyard.

Qi Tongwei threw down his shovel and strode forward: "Secretary Sha! I am Qi Tongwei, from Jingzhou Public Security Bureau—"

Chen Yanshi suddenly turned around and said coldly, "Xiao Qi, it's getting late, you should go home early."

Sha Ruijin didn't stop walking, only slightly turning his head, his gaze sweeping over Qi Tongwei's sweaty forehead, then moving away—like brushing away a speck of dust.

The car door closed, and the engine hummed softly.

As Qi Tongwei watched Sha Ruijin leave, he felt as if his internal organs had been poisoned.

A feeling of being ignored, a feeling of being oppressed.

It's been so many years since I've felt this humiliated.

Provincial Party Committee Small Auditorium

This was after Sha Ruijin returned to Jingzhou, a city he had always been loyal to.

The first enlarged meeting of the Provincial Party Committee was held.

Because of Zhao Chongming, Qi Tongwei also attended this expanded meeting.

Sha Ruijin sat at the head of the long table, with a thin document spread out in front of him—"Preliminary Investigation Report on the '116' Dafeng Factory Incident".

Everyone knows the purpose of today's meeting.

Sha Ruijin's gaze was sharp as a knife, sweeping across every face present.

Comrades.

After everyone quieted down, Sha Ruijin spoke, his voice not loud, but very authoritative: "I've been in Handong for less than a month and I've already encountered the '116' incident at Dafeng Factory. To be honest—I'm ashamed and my heart is burning."

Li Dakang immediately stood up, his back ramrod straight: "Secretary Sha, as the Secretary of the Jingzhou Municipal Party Committee, I bear an unshirkable responsibility! At that time..."

"Please sit down."

Sha Ruijin raised his hand, his tone calm but authoritative: "This is not a self-criticism meeting, but a reflection meeting."

Li Dakang stood frozen in place for a moment, then silently sat down.

Sha Ruijin continued, "My initial assessment is that the '116' incident was by no means a simple labor dispute. It was a violent conflict escalated by rampant corruption among officials. How much did Ding Yizhen actually embezzle? How much did those who colluded with him take? Without embezzlement, there would be no injustice; without systemic decay, workers wouldn't have been forced to take to the streets carrying gasoline cans!"

He paused, tapping his fingers lightly on the table: "If Comrade Zhao Dehan hadn't arrived at the scene in time to stop the forced demolition and calm the workers—we'd probably be sitting here today not discussing development, but cleaning up the mess."

All eyes turned to Zhao Dehan.

He nodded slightly, his expression calm: "This is what I should do."

Sha Ruijin looked at him, a hint of approval flashing in his eyes: "At this critical moment, Comrade Zhao Dehan chose to stand with the people. This clear-headedness deserves recognition."

Zhao Dehan lowered his eyes: "Secretary Sha, this is a matter of principle. We should always stand on the side of the people!"

It doesn't matter whether I praise myself or not.

According to Zhao Chongming's analysis last night, Sha Ruijin cannot decide his own fate.

The one who truly determines one's fate is the capital city, and the real Heavenly Official.

As for Handong Province.

One is the Han University faction, and the other is the secretary faction.

There is no place for Zhao Dehan in the Han University gang.

Basically, the entire Hantong University clique was formed through Gao Yuliang's teacher-student relationship. They were all graduates of the Department of Political Science and Law at Handong University and were related by blood or marriage. Zhao Dehan couldn't fit into this group.

The other one is the secretaries' gang.

That is, Li Dakang.

We can collaborate with Li Dakang.

However, be wary of Li Dakang making you take the blame.

Li Dakang's principle in hiring people is that as long as you can endure hardship, you will be made to suffer endlessly, and when it comes to taking the blame, he will show no mercy whatsoever.

However, this applies to subordinates. Currently, Zhao Dehan and Li Dakang are barely considered to be on the same level.

Li Dakang is a member of the Provincial Party Committee Standing Committee, while Zhao Dehan is not a member of the Standing Committee but is also the Vice Governor. They are rescue cadres sent down from Beijing, so they are considered to be at the same level.

Both sides have common ground in promoting economic development.

We can cooperate, but we need to be careful.

In short...

In Handong, don't think about this faction or that faction; just do things officially.

Next, Li Dakang felt extremely uneasy, as if he were sitting on pins and needles, with a thorn in his side and a fishbone stuck in his throat.

My whole body is itchy and I feel uncomfortable.

I feel like everyone around me is criticizing me.

Li Dakang tried to speak several times, but was interrupted each time.

However, Sha Ruijin quickly turned his gun around.

Sha Ruijin suddenly changed the subject, his tone becoming more relaxed: "By the way, yesterday I went to former Party Secretary Chen Yanshi's house and saw Comrade Qi Tongwei tilling the vegetable garden, working up a sweat. I think we could consider awarding him the 'May Day Labor Medal' this year!"

Laugh out loud.

Gao Yuliang picked up his teacup, glanced at Qi Tongwei, and looked at him with a complicated expression.

Qi Tongwei made a fool of himself, especially in front of Sha Ruijin.

At that moment, Gao Yuliang truly felt that there was no hope, and that destruction was the only option.

I'm such a disgrace to myself as a student.

Qi Tongwei's face turned ugly, and he subconsciously clenched his fists.

Li Dakang suddenly looked up, his eyes like ignited gunpowder.

Finally, finally, the target wasn't directed at me anymore.

"Secretary Sha!"

Li Dakang immediately interjected, "I have no personal grudge against Comrade Qi Tongwei. But I must say—he rose to power through flattery and groveling!"

The entire room fell silent.

Qi Tongwei's expression also changed. That damned Li Dakang, he slapped him in the face in front of a group of people.

Sha Ruijin didn't interrupt, but just watched him quietly.

Li Dakang took a deep breath: "That was in 2001, when I was working in the Secretariat of the Municipal Party Committee—"

"Who was the municipal party secretary at the time?" Gao Yuliang suddenly interjected, his voice gentle but leaving no room for evasion.

Li Dakang replied without hesitation: "Comrade Zhao Lichun, there's nothing to hide."

Gao Yuliang nodded and said nothing more.

Li Dakang continued, his pace quickening: "That year during the Qingming Festival, Secretary Zhao returned to his hometown to pay respects to his ancestors, and Qi Tongwei and I accompanied him. When we arrived at the cemetery, just as Secretary Zhao lit the incense, Qi Tongwei suddenly knelt down! He burst into tears, his face covered in snot and tears..."

Zhao Dehan lowered his head to drink tea, but his shoulders shrugged slightly—he was smiling, a silent smile.

It's like watching an absurd play finally reach its climax.

Qi Tongwei sat in the corner, his face ashen.

He gripped the pen tightly, and the nib snapped with a "crack," splashing blue ink onto the meeting minutes like a drop of congealed blood.

Sha Ruijin didn't laugh; instead, he looked at Qi Tongwei with a mocking gaze.

Gao Yuliang sighed.

He knew that at this point, he had to step in.

Who could blame him when Qi Tongwei was his student?