Anti-gang campaign: Female bureau chief

In the corridor, several staff members saw her walking over with her entourage and quickly moved aside, giving the female director, who had already turned Yi'an upside down in less than a week, a complicated look.

The door to the executive vice mayor's office was closed. Jiang Ruolan knocked twice, and Gu Changhe's steady voice came from inside:

"Please come in."

She pushed open the door. Gu Changhe was sitting behind his desk, a document spread out in front of him, and a pen in his hand.

He was wearing a sharp dark blue suit, his hair was neatly combed, and his expression was calm and composed, as if today was just an ordinary workday.

But Jiang Ruolan noticed that there wasn't a single punctuation mark on the document in front of him.

The pen tip remained suspended above the paper, hesitant to fall.

"Vice Mayor Gu." Jiang Ruolan walked to the desk, her voice calm and clear.

"In accordance with the decision of the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection, you are now being placed under detention in accordance with the law. Please cooperate."

Gu Changhe slowly put down his pen and looked up at her.

This man, who had been navigating the political landscape of Yi'an for thirty years, showed no intense emotions in his eyes at this moment—no fear, no anger, no resentment.

Only one person who was shrewd his whole life made the shrewdest choice at the last moment.

He didn't ask why, didn't protest his innocence, and didn't make any phone calls. He simply stood up, straightened his suit collar, and then extended his hand.

"Director Jiang, I will cooperate with the investigation."

The moment the handcuffs were put on his wrists, the office was so quiet that only the soft clanging of metal could be heard.

Jiang Ruolan noticed that Gu Changhe's wrists were thinner than she had imagined, with pale, loose skin and no calluses—these were hands that had never done any physical labor in their lives, only holding pens and signing documents.

These were the same hands that signed Shen Wangshan's first demolition project, Zhou Peiwen's transfer documents, and countless approvals to give the green light to Fengmao Group. They also sealed their own fate in the phone call Shen Wangshan made to report Xu Guangfa's death.

When Gu Changhe was led out of the office, the corridor was crowded with onlookers.

They watched as the executive vice mayor, who had wielded considerable influence in Yi An's political arena for over a decade, was escorted into the elevator, their faces filled with shock.

Some people were whispering, some were secretly taking pictures, and others stood motionless, their faces as white as a sheet.

Jiang Ruolan was the last to enter the elevator.

As the elevator doors closed, she glanced at the anxious faces in the corridor and thought of Qin Chuan, Fang Xuewen, and the nine officials on Qian Shouyi's list who were about to be investigated.

The fate of these people was sealed the moment the hard drive data was recovered and Gu Changhe was detained.

But one person has not yet been caught.

Shen Wangshan.

At 10:30 a.m., plainclothes police officers who were staking out the old shantytown in the east of the city brought news that smoke was coming out of the chimney of an old house.

Someone was cooking in that old, abandoned house. Target confirmed.

Jiang Ruolan personally led the team to the east of the city.

Five police cars silently crossed Shengli Road and stopped outside the fenced-off area.

More than 30 fully armed special police officers were divided into three groups and silently surrounded the crooked old locust tree from three directions.

Jiang Ruolan walked at the front of the group, her boots making a soft rustling sound as they stepped on the broken bricks and weeds.

A faint smell of smoke wafted through the air, coming from the direction of the old house.

When she reached the locust tree, she finally saw the house clearly—it was a low, old, single-story house with blue bricks, the walls covered with withered vines, and the windowpane was half broken and covered with old newspapers.

If it weren't for the wisp of smoke rising from the chimney, no one would guess that people still lived in this dilapidated house that looked like it had been abandoned for decades.

Jiang Ruolan raised her hand, and the group behind her stopped in their tracks.

She gave Lu Zheng a wink, and the two of them crept along the wall to the door.

The door was ajar, and through the crack, one could see the dim light and flickering flames inside.

Something was bubbling away in the iron pot on the stove, and a faint aroma of rice filled the air.

Jiang Ruolan raised her foot and kicked the door open.

The wooden door groaned as it finally burst open under the strain.

She drew her pistol, pointing it into the room. The SWAT officers behind her filed in, filling every corner of the room, their gun beams flashing and crisscrossing in the dim light.

Shen Wangshan sat on a small stool in front of the stove, holding a fire poker in his hand, adding firewood into the firebox.

He heard the noise behind him, but he didn't turn around or stand up. He simply pushed the last piece of firewood into the stove, then leaned the fire poker against the stove and patted the ashes off his hands.

"You're here," he said, his voice as calm as if he were greeting a neighbor.

"The porridge is freshly cooked, would you like a bowl? It's plain porridge, nothing fancy, but the rice is freshly harvested this year, it smells quite good."

Jiang Ruolan did not lower her hand holding the gun.

She watched the man's back—he was wearing a faded old shirt, his hair was gray and messy, and his back was slightly hunched. He looked no different from any other ordinary middle-aged man who had toiled in this city for most of his life.

If you didn't know him, you would never guess that this man is the biggest triad boss in Yi An, a man with several lives on his hands who has held a city in his hands for thirty years.

"Shen Wangshan, you are hereby arrested in accordance with the law on suspicion of organizing and leading a mafia-style organization, intentional homicide, bribery, and other crimes."

Jiang Ruolan's voice echoed in the small space, clear and powerful.

"Please cooperate."

Shen Wangshan slowly stood up, turned around, and faced the room full of police officers and the dark muzzles of guns.

His gaze passed over the gun barrels and landed on Jiang Ruolan's face.

He scrutinized her for a few seconds, as if he were carefully examining a formidable opponent.

"Jiang Ruolan." He called her name, his tone devoid of hatred, only containing an indescribable complexity.

"You've been in Yi'an for five days, and you've sent Gu Changhe to jail, dragged Fang Xuewen and Qin Chuan down, and arrested every single one of my men."

Everyone says I, Shen Wangshan, am the local tyrant of Yi'an, but I think you are the real tyrant.

"Hand." Jiang Ruolan remained unmoved.

Shen Wangshan slowly stretched out his hands and clasped them together.

Lu Zheng stepped forward and handcuffed the cold handcuffs to his wrists.

The moment the handcuffs were fastened, everyone in the room heard a clear "click," like the last sound of some massive machine finally stopping.

Two special police officers escorted Shen Wangshan out. As they passed Jiang Ruolan, Shen Wangshan suddenly stopped and turned to look at her.

"Director Jiang, may I ask you a question?"

"explain."

"How did you convince Zhao Biao to open up? He's been with me for nineteen years, I know him better than anyone. He's not someone who would betray me easily."

Jiang Ruolan looked into his eyes:

"I didn't convince him. You did."

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