In name only, I, Gao Yuliang, will sink Handong at worst.

The Provincial Party Committee Building in Handong.

All nine members of the Standing Committee have gathered together. As for the missing member, it's because Secretary Lüzhou couldn't come. We can't expect someone to travel for several hours from Lüzhou to hold a meeting late at night!

Nine people are enough for them.

There are very few people like them who need to keep their phones on 24/7, constantly charging, and who can take sleeping pills and go to sleep without worrying about being disturbed!

I get disturbed once or twice almost every week, but it's rare for someone to come over for a meeting late at night.

"Mayor Dakang, do you know what this is about? What urgent matter requires a meeting?" Luo Mei couldn't help but look at Li Dakang. Li Dakang was the kind of person who could be considered a barometer of officialdom, always leaning towards the side most conducive to advancement.

Just like a certain country, although it has never won on the battlefield, it is always the winner in the final negotiation.

"If even the head of the propaganda department doesn't know, how would I know? You're the one with the best connections!"

"That's different. I only know about news online, and it has to be big news. Unlike you guys." Luo Mei is indeed the head of the propaganda department, but in terms of authority, she really doesn't have much power.

"Governor Wang works for the government, you should know that, right?"

"I don't know either." Wang Zheng quickly shook his head.

It's 10:30 p.m., which is normally the time for these Standing Committee members to go to sleep, but Liu Changsheng called them over for a meeting.

When everyone entered the conference room, there were nine people in total. Apart from the Luzhou Municipal Party Secretary who couldn't make it, the Secretary of the Discipline Inspection Commission, Tian Guofu, and the Secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission, Gao Yuliang, were also missing.

Gao Yuliang went to Jinghai City to handle matters there, and Tian Guofu led a team and the inspection group to invite He Liming for a talk.

"Now that everyone is here, let's get straight to the meeting! As for Secretary Yuliang and Secretary Guofu, they have important matters to attend to. Actually, this is more of a joint briefing on the actions of the Standing Committee members."

Liu Changsheng gave a direct account of the events in Jinghai City and Tazhai.

"Secretary Yuliang has now gone to Jinghai and stabilized the situation there. I estimate that the matter in Tazhai is also nearing its end. This matter is mainly just a routine briefing."

These people also understand that if someone wants to do something without reporting it, there are only two possibilities: either the matter is too small to be noticed by them, or the matter is too big, requiring them to communicate directly with the top leader and report it to higher authorities.

Everyone thought of the Central Inspection Team and Minister Hao; they must have come for this very reason. The previous confusion suddenly became clear.

"Now, regarding the crackdown on organized crime in Jinghai and the suspension of Mayor Zhao Lidong from his post, we invite your opinions and will vote on the matter."

Everyone raised their hands in agreement. These days, it's just a matter of informing them; people have already been sent over. What else could they possibly do? It's not like they're actually offering any opinions.

Except for Propaganda Minister Luo Mei, who had to work overtime, the rest of the group went home to sleep.

However, Gao Yuliang was indeed busy here in Jinghai. He led a team to arrest this group of people at 10 p.m. and convened a meeting of the Municipal Party Committee Standing Committee at 2 a.m. At the same time, Tian Guofu arrived and took people from Gao Yuliang. With two members of the Provincial Party Committee Standing Committee here to preside over the work, how could things be unstable?

Of course not!

No one had any intention of going back to sleep; instead, they continued to oversee the work of the municipal party committee.

For Gao Yuliang, is it difficult to stabilize Jinghai? Not really. Whether it's Gao Qiqiang and his group or Zhao Lidong, they are minor issues. If there is any trouble, it's his deputy, He Liming.

The other party has stepped down, and someone else will definitely be promoted, but everyone assumes that they are waiting for the new secretary to make the appointment, so nothing has been done during this period.

But it was really tiring! He was in his fifties and still had to stay up all night, and Gao Yuliang couldn't go back to catch up on sleep during the day; he had to continue to oversee the work.

Moreover, after He Liming's downfall, Gao Yuliang had even more work to do. Indeed, with his deputy arrested, he now had even more tasks to handle.

As for the Tazhai incident, it cannot be reported in the newspapers yet. We need to arrest as many people as possible. In fact, this kind of thing cannot be hidden for long. It is estimated that it will be reported next week, and there will be an awards ceremony and the like.

After learning that his cousin had been arrested, Zhao Lichun inquired about the situation and couldn't help but curse, "Idiot. A complete idiot."

He knew his cousin was dishonest, but unlike Li Dakang, he couldn't openly enjoy the money his wife earned and pretend he didn't know.

He kept a certain distance from his cousin, thinking that at most the cousin was embezzling money or keeping a few mistresses. He thought that if such things were discovered, the cousin would at most be sentenced to life imprisonment and be able to save his life.

He was able to get out again after more than 20 years, only to find out that the other party was a protector of the underworld.

Now a major case has emerged here, and countless people across the country are watching it closely. It will be very troublesome for Zhao Lichun to handle it.

Zhao Lidong was expected to die, and all he could do was help take care of the other party's family.

Moreover, the newly appointed secretary of Handong Province was definitely not Gao Yuliang. As for who it was, he didn't know yet. After thinking for a moment, Zhao Lichun still made a phone call to Gao Yuliang.

"Yuliang, this is Zhao Lichun."

"Hello, old secretary! How are you getting used to working in Beijing lately?" Gao Yuliang answered Zhao Lichun's call directly.

"The winters here are much colder than in Handong, so you should bring plenty of warm clothes."

"Handong would love to have you come back from there to provide guidance!"

"I've heard that there's been quite a commotion in Handong recently. The whole country is watching Handong and Hanhai. I came here to ask how my cousin is doing," Zhao Lichun asked directly.

"It's a bit of a pity. I looked at the case files to see if I could help, but Zhao Lidong is involved in multiple cases, and they're all unusual. I might not be able to help much. Besides, the higher-ups are watching." Gao Yuliang frankly admitted.

In China, when it comes to matters involving two people, almost no one is willing to pull strings to help them get things done; no one is willing to gamble their future with the other party.

"I saw on TV that this winter is going to be colder than usual. You need to make sure you keep warm!"

"Old Party Secretary, our Handong area is right on the dividing line between the Qinling Mountains and the Huai River. The snowstorms from Beijing can reach this area, and it's hard to say how much force they'll have left. Besides, don't we have the Huai River blocking our way?"

Zhao Lichun is now almost certain that Gao Yuliang has a powerful backer, most likely Hao Liang from the Ministry of Public Security, or even someone behind him. Otherwise, how could he have said such a thing?

"Yuliang, you will not be the next Party Secretary of Handong Province."

"Oh! I see. The person who came must be Sha Ruijin from Zhongjiang Province! The sun is strong in the north, but there is a lot of sunshine in the south. His methods may not be effective in Handong."

Zhao Lichun himself didn't know who the provincial party secretary of Handong was. He was very curious about how Gao Yuliang knew so quickly.

He was increasingly certain of this. Before, Gao Yuliang seemed to have no one to rely on, so he had to turn to him. Now that Gao Yuliang had found someone again, his relationship with Gao Yuliang was no longer the same as before; it was more like they were on equal footing.

He just wanted to see if the name matched.