The Overlord Flower's Guide to Intercepting a Woman's Wife's Death and the Male Lead&

A study in a courtyard house in Beijing.

Fang Mingyuan put down the copy of the emergency report submitted by Ma Xirong and rang the copper bell on the table.

Secretary Xiao Chen pushed the door open and came in.

"Commander."

Fang Mingyuan pushed the report forward a bit.

"Take these and make three copies."

"Under the guise of 'internal reference materials' from the General Office of the Central Committee, send people to deliver them separately. One copy to the Institute of Geophysics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, one copy to the Monitoring Department of the Ministry of Geology, and the last copy to the Technology Security Division of the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense."

Xiao Chen quickly stepped forward, took the document, and asked for instructions.

"Do we need to get the head of their unit to sign off on this?"

"Need not."

Fang Mingyuan leaned back in his chair.

"Send it over to their confidential office and tell them it's routine data, just to inform them to keep it on file."

He doesn't expect these authoritative institutions to stand up for Zhou Bingheng; that would be asking too much.

All he needs to do is let these institutions "know that such a thing exists."

As long as these departments have stored the data in the filing cabinet and kept a record.

So when the earth shakes and the world trembles, these three ministries will automatically become the most irrefutable historical witnesses.

After completing this step, Fang Mingyuan changed into a plain navy blue outfit and asked the driver to prepare the car.

Half an hour later, at an old teahouse near Dong'an Market.

The innermost private room on the second floor was already occupied by four elderly people with white hair.

These four are all retired veterans of extremely high rank, and more importantly...

They were on par with the Gong, Qiao, and Qian families in terms of seniority, yet they maintained an absolutely neutral stance and never participated in factional infighting.

As soon as Fang Mingyuan entered, he smiled and clasped his hands in apology.

"I'm late, and I've kept you all waiting. I'll punish myself with three cups of tea."

Several elderly people smiled and gave him pointers, creating a harmonious atmosphere.

After a few rounds of tea, the conversation shifted from health and wellness to the recent weather.

Fang Mingyuan put down his teacup, and as if he had suddenly remembered something, casually mentioned it.

"Speaking of this sweltering weather, recently a young man from a seismic station in Hebei Province submitted a report saying that there were major anomalies in the geological data these past few days. I took a look at it, and the data was quite solid."

As soon as he finished speaking, the four elderly people paused in unison as they were serving tea.

One of the elderly men, wearing a gray cloth jacket, looked up and spoke.

"Oh? It was reported by the local authorities? Is there any confirmation?"

Fang Mingyuan smiled and waved his hand, then picked up the purple clay teapot to pour tea for the guests.

"Who knows? It's a good thing that young technicians these days are energetic. But when it comes to things underground, even the gods can't predict the future, can they?"

He casually brushed aside the topic and turned to ask about another elderly man's leg ailment.

Fang Mingyuan didn't mention the earthquake again until the tea party ended.

But he has achieved the effect he wanted.

These four neutral elders each have a vast network of connections behind them.

After this tea session, the news that "Hebei Province has a solid earthquake report" will spread like wildfire through various high-level circles in Beijing.

Three days later, in the afternoon, the encrypted fax machine in the confidential room began to work.

A report of the investigation was transmitted directly back to the Gong family's study via a top-secret passage.

The three strongly worded inquiry letters demanding immediate legal action against Zhou Bingheng received no formal response from the highest levels of government.

Only the original copy led by Mr. Gong was sent back.

In the most conspicuous blank space on the paper, someone wrote three words with a red pencil.

Let's discuss this further.

The heavy curtains were drawn in the Gong family's study, making the air feel stifling.

Old Gong held the fax document, which still smelled of ink, in his hand.

For a full five minutes, he remained completely still.

"To discuss again" is not a rejection.

But in the current political context, it is more chilling than a direct veto.

I've seen your accusations, but I'm not going to prosecute him right now. I'm not closing the door; you can decide for yourself.

"Snapped!"

Old Gong patted the paper onto the mahogany desk.

He is certainly not a fool.

Since the top leadership has jointly suppressed the issue, they must have seen some crucial information that is enough to offset the serious accusation of "paralyzing 36 heavy industry enterprises."

Old Master Gong turned his head and looked at his personal secretary standing next to the desk.

"Go check."

His voice was a little hoarse.

"Immediately investigate all relevant ministries. In the last 48 hours, have any reports related to Hebei Province or geological disasters circulated in the system? Find them even if you have to dig three feet into the ground."

The secretary accepted the order and quickly left the study.

Just two hours later.

The secretary, covered in sweat, ran back, holding a thin mimeographed copy in her hand, and handed it to Mr. Gong with both hands.

The secretary was panting heavily.

"The confidential offices of the Ministry of Geology and the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense received an internal reference file just three days ago. It was a report written by an engineer from the Tang City local seismic station, with an early warning level... extremely high."

Mr. Gong grabbed the report and quickly flipped through it.

When he saw the rigorous geostress data and the conclusion at the end that "a strong earthquake may occur in the short term," he was deeply moved.

He leaned back heavily into the back of his wheelchair.

If a major earthquake really does occur in Tang City at the end of this month, and these three families happen to join forces to obstruct Zhou Bingheng's evacuation at that very moment...

Once millions of people are buried under the rubble.

The overwhelming blood debt and the enraged public resentment will instantly engulf the Gong, Qiao, and Qian families.

Not even a bone fragment will be left.

"That was close..."

Gong Laoqian swallowed hard, immediately picked up the secure phone on the table, and dialed the Qiao family patriarch's private line.

"Old Joe, it's me."

Before the other side could even speak, Old Gong set the tone.

"Stop. All actions targeting Zhou Bingheng and Mayor Tang must cease."

Grandpa Qiao on the other end of the phone had obviously heard the news as well, and his tone was grave.

"That kid's lucky. Now that this earthquake report is out, whether it's true or not, if we go and touch him now, we'll just be getting ourselves into trouble."

"Hmm. I suppose Old Qian has received the news as well. The three of us have reached an agreement: not to send a single word up the chain of command."

"Are we just going to stand by and watch that Zhou guy cause trouble?"

Old Qiao was clearly unwilling to accept this.

"Watching him make a mess of things."

Old Gong gave a cold laugh.

"Evacuating a million people and paralyzing an industrial city. Does Zhou Bingheng really think he can handle such a huge undertaking?"

"We don't need to do anything now, just wait."

Old Gong stared at the letter of inquiry on the table.

"Wait until the end of July. If more than half a month has passed and not even a clod of dirt has fallen in Tang City."

"We won't even need to lift a finger. The economic collapse caused by the shutdown of thirty-six companies, along with the hundreds of thousands of resentful people who have been tormented, will be enough to tear Zhou Bingheng apart."

The phone hangs up.

The study fell silent once more.

On the surface, the three giants backed down overnight and strategically retreated.

But as Mr. Gong sat alone in his wheelchair, the light in his eyes grew colder and colder.

He can certainly wait.

But what if?

What if that prodigy Zhou Bingheng wins the gamble again this time?

If a strong earthquake had indeed struck Tang City, and Zhou Bingheng had single-handedly managed to evacuate a million people unharmed in just over twenty days...

What kind of incredible feat would that be?

That's a full million lives!

When that day comes, Zhou Bingheng will ascend to the top, carrying with him the supreme popular hope of saving the people.

As long as the old leader doesn't die before he passes away, Zhou Bingheng can rightfully take over this enormous political legacy in its entirety.

At that time, who in the entire capital would be able to lay a finger on him?

Who would dare to touch him?

Thinking of this, Old Gong's breathing became rapid.

He absolutely could not stand by and watch Zhou Bingheng complete this battle to become a god.

The evacuation could not be stopped.

The political risks of obstructing the rescue were too great for him to bear.

But what if this evacuation turns into a completely out-of-control disaster?

Zhou Bingheng's merits would instantly become a hot potato, a fuse that could ignite a popular uprising.

Old Gong slowly leaned out and picked up another red dedicated telephone on the table.