Desperate people, accept the seed of my soul!

Guo Jin paused, then said with difficulty, "Procedurally, we have to take action. According to disciplinary regulations, this level of formal complaint, coupled with the pressure of official letters from the court system, means that if we don't bring Li Rui under control, even if it's just a formality..."

"If things get out of hand at the court and public opinion gets out of control, accusing us of protecting a murderer, our entire bureau will be in serious trouble."

Zheng Guofeng did not turn around.

He looked at his haggard face reflected in the windowpane, but the image of Li Rui's resolute and lonely figure at the hearing entrance a few days earlier flashed through his mind.

He still remembers telling Li Rui confidently before the hearing, "We all stand by your side."

But the result?

Zhang Ziqian's compulsory medical treatment has not been lifted.

Now, Li Rui himself has been drawn into this huge vortex.

Zheng Guofeng is a veteran criminal investigator; how could he not see the trickery behind this?

Where did Zhou Mingyuan, a doctoral student, get the power to get those seasoned veterans in the court to put pressure on him?

This is a hunt.

Someone was forcing Zheng Guofeng to swing his knife and slash at his own soldiers.

"Director Zheng?" Guo Jin called out tentatively.

"Expulsion is impossible."

Zheng Guofeng slowly began, "That's pushing people to their deaths, and it's also a slap in the face to our police station. Insufficient evidence is insufficient evidence; we can't wrong innocent people just to settle things."

Guo Jin breathed a sigh of relief, but then immediately asked, "How do we reply to the court?"

"The procedure must be followed."

Zheng Guofeng closed his eyes briefly and said, "Temporarily... suspend him from duty. Make him hand over his service weapon and identification, and accept an internal investigation."

"Suspended from duty?" Guo Jin was taken aback.

"Yes, suspended." Zheng Guofeng's tone became more firm. "I will personally vouch for him. His salary will continue to be paid during the investigation, and it will not be recorded in his personnel file."

"We'll tell the public that this is the most serious approach we can take before we find out the truth. We want the court to not go too far; if they really overturn the table, it won't look good for anyone."

This is actually a form of indirect protection.

Zheng Guofeng knew that Li Rui's current state was very strange.

Perhaps temporarily removing him from his police uniform and taking him away from the eye of the storm would actually make him safer.

……

Noon, Municipal Public Security Bureau Criminal Investigation Brigade.

"Bang!"

The office door was flung open, and Liao Zhengfeng stormed in like an enraged lion, clutching the newly issued "suspension notice" in his hand.

"Director Zheng! What does this mean?!"

Liao Zhengfeng slammed the paper on Zheng Guofeng's desk, shouting with spittle flying, "That bullshit evidence is a complete frame-up! Anyone with eyes can see that! Li Rui has been on the verge of a breakdown these past few days because of his wife's situation. He just took the day off to rest at home, and you still won't let him go? You want to suspend him at this time?!"

"Are they trying to drive him to his death?!"

Zheng Guofeng sat in his chair, not getting angry, but quietly looking at his old subordinate who had followed him for many years.

"Zhengfeng".

Zheng Guofeng's voice was soft, "I know you're anxious, and so am I. But the court has already sent a letter; if we don't give them a response, the provincial department will intervene. If they take Li Rui away for questioning, do you think he'll come back unscathed?"

Liao Zhengfeng's roar stopped abruptly. He opened his mouth, his face turning bright red.

"His suspension is to protect him," Zheng Guofeng sighed. "It's a temporary measure to let him lay low for a while. As long as we're here, and as long as the bureau is still investigating, no one can touch him easily. This is a stopgap measure."

Liao Zhengfeng stood there, stunned, his chest heaving violently.

After a long while, he slammed his fist hard against the door frame, making a dull thud.

"Hold!"

He cursed, turned around, and strode away.

In the shadows of the corridor, Li Ming, the head of the criminal investigation department, leaned against the wall, an unlit cigarette between his fingers.

He watched Liao Zhengfeng's angry back as he walked away, then glanced at the closed door of the bureau chief's office, remaining silent the entire time.

He heard about the court's "letter of concern" and guessed the power struggle behind it.

He knew that this was the limit of what Zheng Guofeng could do.

In the face of this colossal machine, individual anger seems so pale and powerless.

……

12:30 PM, Special Investigation Bureau.

Wang Shiwei sat at her desk in the corner, already aware that Li Rui had been suspended from his duties and was under investigation.

Further investigation revealed that she saw several familiar signatures on a photocopy of the "Court's Letter of Concern".

Those names are all within the Wang family's network of connections.

Zhou Mingyuan, as a student, could not possibly have such great power.

It's brother.

Wang Shiwei felt her hands and feet were ice cold.

Her brother was more astute and ruthless than she had imagined.

He not only noticed Li Rui's unusual behavior, but had also quietly completed his plan.

They planned to use Zhou Shouzhen's death to kick Li Rui out of the police force.

Without the protection of his police uniform, Li Rui is just an ordinary person.

For the Five Mountains Alliance and the Wang family, making an ordinary person "disappear" or turn them into a "sample" in a laboratory is far too easy.

Wang Shiwei bit her lip until she tasted a hint of blood.

At this moment, kinship and conscience, family interests and past friendships were violently tearing at her heart.

She remembered the figure running on the police academy's training ground, and those eyes that had once been as bright as fire.

If nothing is done, Li Rui might really die.

It's even worse than death.

Wang Shiwei took a deep breath, her fingers trembling, and opened that long-forgotten private email account—the one she used when she was in police academy, and very few people knew about it.

She quickly typed a line of text, each word sounding like a betrayal of her family:

[Zhou Mingyuan has filed a formal complaint against you, and you have been suspended from your duties. Someone is pulling the strings behind the scenes. Be careful.]

There was no signature, no explanation, and no mention of any information about the Wang family or the Five Mountains Society.

This was the limit of what she could do.

She stared at the "send" button, hesitating for a full three seconds.

Those three seconds felt like an eternity.

Finally, she closed her eyes and pressed the mouse.

"Sent successfully".

The pop-up box on the screen disappeared in a flash.

Wang Shiwei quickly emptied her outbox, logged out of her account, and then used specialized software to thoroughly clean up her browsing history.

After doing all this, she realized that her back was soaked with cold sweat.

Beneath this glamorous city, an invisible net has been cast, waiting for its prey to fall into its trap.

And she was one of those who wove the net.

Even if she had just secretly opened a tiny window for her prey.