Anti-gang campaign: Female bureau chief

Inside was a photo of Chen Yonggui being taken to the hospital. The man's face was so badly disfigured that his features were unrecognizable. His face looked like melted wax, with the skin and flesh rolled up, revealing the scarlet tissue underneath.

Her finger paused on the photo for a moment, then continued scrolling down.

The second case file details an incident that occurred in October 2024. A truck driver named Li Changhe had both legs broken in the Fengmao Logistics Park in the eastern part of Yi'an City. The complainant claimed that it was because he refused to register his truck under the name of Fengmao Logistics.

The case has been classified as "mutual fighting arising from a dispute," and the suspect has been released on bail pending trial.

The third case file states that in September 2024, a fire broke out at the largest building materials market in Yian City, destroying the warehouses of three merchants.

The fire department determined the incident to be an "accident caused by aging wiring," but three merchants jointly reported that someone had threatened them beforehand, demanding they move out of the building materials market to make room for merchants under the Fengmao Group. The municipal bureau did not file a case due to "insufficient evidence."

The fourth, the fifth, the sixth...

Jiang Ruolan flipped through the files one by one, examining each one carefully, and marking some places with a pen.

Of the 47 case files, 19 directly or indirectly pointed to the Fengmao Group as the core of the forces, while the other 11 involved several other local forces in Yian City.

But all these cases have one thing in common—either they are filed but not investigated, or they are investigated but not concluded, or they are downplayed as "disputes" or "accidents," or the suspects remain at large and are never caught.

When the time was up, Jiang Ruolan closed the file, stood up, straightened her police uniform, and walked out of the office.

The small conference room was on the third floor. When she walked to the door, there were already five people sitting inside.

Upon seeing her enter, all five people stood up simultaneously.

"Please sit down."

Jiang Ruolan walked to the head seat of the conference table and sat down, her gaze sweeping over everyone's faces.

The five people had different expressions—Qin Chuan's face held a scrutinizing look, as if he were sizing up an uninvited guest; Fang Xuewen was all smiles, looking the most enthusiastic; Zheng Yuanchao was expressionless, his eyes lowered; Liao Yuhua adjusted his glasses, seemingly observing her; Sun Ping was the only female cadre, looking to be in her early forties, and her expression was somewhat reserved.

"My name is Jiang Ruolan, and I will be serving as the Director of the Yi'an City Public Security Bureau starting today."

Her opening remarks were brief and direct, without any formalities: "Before I came here, the leaders of the department spoke with me and said that the security situation in Yi'an was severe, with rampant organized crime and strong public complaints."

On my way here today, I witnessed a group of people vandalizing a shop in the city and threatening the owner to move out. The whole thing lasted over three minutes, and not a single passerby dared to intervene, nor did any police arrive.

The meeting room was so quiet that you could hear the ticking of the clock on the wall.

Fang Xuewen's smile froze on his face, and Qin Chuan's brows furrowed slightly.

"Deputy Director Qin."

Jiang Ruolan turned to him, "You're in charge of criminal investigations, I'd like to hear your thoughts."

Qin Chuan leaned back in his chair, placed his hands on the table, and remained silent for a few seconds before speaking:

"Director Jiang, the situation in Yi'an is indeed quite complicated. The demolition disputes you saw today happen several times a month in Yi'an."

Our municipal criminal investigation division only has about forty people, covering an area of ​​nearly three million people in two districts and four counties. We handle thousands of criminal cases a year, and our manpower and funding are extremely tight. There are some cases, it's not that we don't want to investigate them, it's just that we genuinely can't handle them all.

His tone sounded like an explanation, but there was something more subtle hidden in it—a subtle probing and deflection.

"It's one thing to be unable to investigate, it's another to not investigate at all."

Jiang Ruolan looked into his eyes. "I just went through nearly three months' worth of case files, forty-seven unsolved criminal cases, and at least nineteen of them have leads that directly point to Fengmao Group and its related forces."

Of these nineteen cases, twelve have the statement "Under further investigation" in the investigation progress column. I would like to ask Deputy Director Qin, what does the phrase "Under further investigation" generally mean in the working practice of the Yi'an City Public Security Bureau?

Qin Chuan's eye twitched.

He clearly didn't expect that the new young female director would directly confront him with questions on their first meeting, and that she could readily provide data, indicating that she had clearly done her homework beforehand.

"this....."

He carefully considered his words, "Director Jiang, Fengmao Group is the largest private enterprise in Yi'an, with a wide reach and thousands of employees. Some cases are indeed related to certain individuals under them, but that doesn't mean Fengmao Group itself has any problems."

We must rely on evidence when handling cases. We can't implicate the entire Fengmao Group just because one suspect worked there. Furthermore, Shen Wangshan, the chairman of Fengmao Group, is a member of the Municipal People's Political Consultative Conference. Investigating him or his companies requires following certain procedures—”

"Deputy Director Qin."

Jiang Ruolan interrupted him, her voice soft but every word clear, "What I just said was that the clues in the nineteen case files point to Fengmao Group and its related forces. I didn't mention Shen Wangshan at all. Why did you deliberately steer the conversation towards Shen Wangshan?"

The air in the conference room seemed to have been suddenly sucked out.

Fang Xuewen's hand holding the teacup froze in mid-air. Zheng Yuanchao finally raised his eyes. Liao Yuhua's glasses reflected the light, obscuring his expression, while Sun Ping subconsciously held her breath.

Qin Chuan opened his mouth, but for a moment he didn't know how to respond.

He realized he had made a mistake—he thought Jiang Ruolan was just a young cadre parachuted in from the provincial department to gain experience, who came to Yi'an, this quagmire, to go through the motions, accumulate seniority for two years, and then leave.

So, following his usual approach, he first presented the difficulties and then revealed the procedures, hoping to discourage the other party.

But he didn't expect this young woman to be so sharp-minded. She caught the flaw in his words in just a few words and cut right into it in front of everyone in the room.

"Director Jiang, that's not what I meant..."

Qin Chuan tried to explain.

I know that's not what you meant.

Jiang Ruolan didn't give him a chance to explain, but she didn't press the matter either. Instead, she smoothly changed the subject, "Deputy Director Fang, you're in charge of public security and economic crime investigation. I'd like to know, how many demolition companies are currently registered in Yi'an? What were the crime rates for each of these companies last year?"

.....................