My cousin-in-law helped me achieve my ambitions.

Upon hearing this, the burly man who was trying to extort money raised his face defiantly and said righteously, "So what if you pay 10,000? In the city, if a dog dies, people have to pay hundreds of thousands. I heard that in Shenzhen, a woman had her dog hit by a car and she paid more than 300,000. I didn't ask for 100,000 or 200,000 from you; that's already showing mercy. You killed two dogs, so paying 10,000 is perfectly reasonable."

Hearing this, Director Gu gritted his teeth in anger and couldn't help but shout at him again, "Enough! Stop talking! You're getting more and more outrageous!"

Director Liang glared at him fiercely, his voice as cold as ice: "Shut up! Say it again, you have no right to speak here."

Director Gu had no choice but to shut his mouth again, his face ashen, like a defeated rooster.

Seeing that Director Liang not only didn't stop him but even interrupted his uncle, the burly man's misconception became even stronger. He thought that Director Liang was definitely backing him up. He became increasingly smug, cleared his throat, puffed out his chest, and spoke confidently to Director Liang: "Director Liang, I've raised these two dogs for over three years, and I've grown attached to them; they're like family. Asking for some compensation for emotional distress isn't unreasonable, is it? What's wrong with that? Is ten thousand yuan too much? They only offered five thousand yuan; I'll definitely have people block them and not let them leave."

Director Liang nodded, not answering directly, but subtly changing the subject, asking calmly, "So, you did indeed receive five thousand yuan from someone, and then asked for another five thousand, is that right?"

The burly man who was trying to extort money nodded without hesitation: "That's right. At first, I asked them to pay me five thousand. But then I thought about it. Five thousand for two dogs is a bit too much. Besides, they're not short of money. Look at their clothes and watches. They're obviously rich. I believe they can come up with that amount. Five thousand is just a meal for them."

Su Ming pointed to the two mongrels lying on the ground, still covered in blood, swarming with flies. He sneered, "These two mongrels aren't worth ten thousand at all. They're worth at most two or three hundred each on the market. You want ten thousand? Isn't that extortion? And if you're talking about compensation for emotional distress, that dog bit my brother-in-law, and we haven't even asked you for that yet!"

Upon hearing this, the burly man's temper flared again. He stiffened his neck and sneered, "Ten thousand wouldn't be too much for me. I decide how much this dog is worth. You killed my dog. Since you killed my dog, I set the price. If you think it's too expensive, then don't kill it!"

Hearing this, Director Liang didn't press further. Instead, he glanced around, his gaze lingering on the eaves of a house. He noticed a security camera mounted under the eaves of a brick house, its black lens pointing directly at the village entrance, its red indicator light flashing. He asked the burly man trying to extort money, "Is this your camera?"

The burly man who was trying to extort money turned his head and glanced at the footage. As if he had discovered a new continent, he excitedly shouted, his eyes lighting up: "Yes, yes, there's a security camera here! Come on, let's go to my house and watch the video. Let's see how this bastard beat my dog ​​to death. The video shows it all clearly. We need an explanation for this today. You'll know who's right and who's wrong once you watch the video."

As he said this, a smug look flashed across his face. He thought to himself, "The only two families in the whole village that have installed security cameras are my family and my uncle's family. Now they're finally coming in handy!"

Director Liang nodded, then immediately suggested going to his home to review the surveillance footage, his tone as calm as if he were discussing something completely ordinary. After speaking, he turned and waved to two men in police uniforms behind him. Two officers immediately followed, a man and a woman; the woman held a folder, and the man held a walkie-talkie.

Director Liang, accompanied by two police officers, followed the burly man who was trying to extort money into the dilapidated, 70% new bungalow.

Seeing this, Director Gu's legs went weak, and he almost couldn't stand. His face completely fell, his lips trembled, and he couldn't help but mutter to himself, "Idiot, what an idiot!"

He knew that the camera had captured not only the scene of Su Ming beating the dog, but also the scene of him handcuffing the person, the whole process of his nephew extorting money, and the scene of him favoring his nephew without asking any questions after he arrived... All of these were captured clearly.

Deputy Director Guo, standing to the side, nodded with a smile to Dr. Hou and said in a gentle tone, "Dr. Hou, don't worry, we will give you justice today. Director Liang is very experienced in investigating cases. He will personally review the surveillance footage and will definitely get to the bottom of this."

Dr. Hou sighed calmly, sat back down on the rock, and said in a calm but meaningful tone, "Just investigate thoroughly according to the normal procedures. Restoring a good public security environment to this area is far more important than giving me justice. What this village needs is a fair and just environment, not a place where people can run rampant just because of connections."

Deputy Director Guo nodded repeatedly, took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, took one out and handed it to Dr. Hou. Dr. Hou took it, and the two lit it. They then sat on the rock and waited in silence.

Twenty minutes later, Director Liang emerged from the room. His expression was completely different from when he went in. He had been relatively calm when he went in, but when he came out, his face was ashen, and his brows were furrowed with barely suppressed anger.

Two policemen escorted the burly man who had been trying to extort money out of him. The man's wrists were handcuffed, the gleaming silver handcuffs tightly binding his thick wrists.

The burly man, bewildered, stared wide-eyed, struggling desperately and shouting his grievances at the top of his lungs, his shrill voice echoing throughout the village entrance: "Hey, why are you handcuffing me? They killed my dog! Director Liang, didn't you say you wouldn't wrong an innocent person? You broke your promise! I'm the victim, why are you handcuffing me!"

Director Liang glanced at him, sneered, and said with a hint of mockery and coldness, "That's right, I said I wouldn't wrong an innocent person. But there's a next part to that: I won't let a bad person go unpunished. You kept a dog off-leash that bit someone, and not only did you not repent, you also tried to extort money from them. Someone gave you five thousand yuan, but you thought it wasn't enough and demanded another five thousand. If they didn't give it to you, you wouldn't let them leave and even called in villagers to block them. It's all clearly captured on the surveillance footage. You're suspected of extortion. Come on, let's take you back to the police station for questioning."

With that, he waved to the two policemen, who then escorted the burly man, who had been trying to extort money, towards the police car. The man desperately turned back and shouted at Chief Gu, who was standing not far away, his voice filled with despair and pleading, tears and snot streaming down his face: "Uncle, please save me! I don't want to go to jail! Uncle, please save me! Didn't you say you had really strong connections? Didn't you say you knew everyone in the county bureau? Say something!"