Official statement: Tongwei is dead! You chose Ruijin, didn't you?

The Provincial Party Committee Guesthouse, Room No. 7 (interview room).

The food here is two levels better than the guesthouse's main kitchen. It is said that Qin Yuanzhou specially approved it because "comrades need to be well-fed so they have the strength to explain their problems."

Hou Liangping hasn't seen the sun for two days, but he's eating well.

Breakfast consists of specially supplied fresh milk and free-range eggs, lunch is a standard meal of two meat dishes, one vegetable dish, and a soup, and dinner includes a small box of limited-edition yogurt purchased from Sam's Club.

The room had a bed and a private bathroom. On the table sat a brand-new copy of "Procedural Justice," its cover gleaming ironically under the light.

But Hou Liangping couldn't concentrate on reading a single word.

What he couldn't bear most was not losing his freedom, but losing his identity as "Director Hou".

Wherever he went before, he was always surrounded by a large entourage, with everyone asking, "Director Hou, would you like tea or coffee?"

Now, when the food delivery staff push open the door, they always say with a blank expression, "Hou Liangping, dinner is ready."

They're even stingy with the suffix "comrade".

This drop was even more disorienting to him than jumping from the sixth floor.

At that moment, the door opened.

Zhou Zhengming walked in, followed by a middle-aged man with a worried look on his face—Old Liu, a discipline inspection cadre from the Supreme People's Procuratorate.

Upon seeing Lao Liu, Hou Liangping sat up straight as if he were a drowning man grabbing a lifebuoy, and the grievances and resentment that had been building up for two days instantly found an outlet.

"Director Liu! You've come at the right time! I want to report this to the Supreme People's Procuratorate under my real name! This is illegal detention by the Handong Supervision Team!"

They presumed my guilt, completely disregarding the objective facts! I was acting under orders and performing my duties according to the law!

Old Liu pulled out a chair and sat down, but instead of responding, he let out a heavy sigh.

The sigh was heart-wrenching, as if his own cabbage had been eaten by a pig, only to discover that the pig was one he had raised himself.

Hou Liangping's heart skipped a beat.

In officialdom, a leader's sigh is more terrifying than slamming a table.

Zhou Zhengming sat down leisurely, without bringing any files. He simply placed a thermos on the table, then slowly unscrewed the lid and blew on the few goji berries floating on top.

"Today we won't talk about how you forced Gao Yuliang to sing 'I Believe' on the rooftop, nor will we talk about your performance art of unlicensed law enforcement at Guying Ridge."

Zhou Zhengming took a sip of water to moisten his throat. "Those materials are already thick enough to be bound into a book; they'd be too hard to use as a pillow. Today, we'll only talk about the Liang family."

Hou Liangping's face instantly tightened: "I have absolutely no business dealings with the Liang family!"

"Nobody said you took money from the Liang family; you're not worthy."

Zhou Zhengming laughed, a laugh tinged with three parts mockery and seven parts coldness. "What we're asking is, when you came to this grand show in Handong, did someone hand you the script, give you a heads-up, or even highlight the key points for you?"

Hou Liangping immediately switched to defensive mode, speaking fluent official jargon: "Investigating a case requires broadening the sources of clues. Whether it's a tip from the public or internal reports, as long as it's helpful to the case, we must pay attention to it."

"Don't lecture me, I graduated from the Party School many years ago."

Zhou Zhengming screwed the lid of the thermos onto the thermos with a soft click. "You're not giving new recruits a training session at the Supreme People's Procuratorate right now; you're answering questions. I'll ask you one more time: who gave you the first piece of incriminating material about Gao Yuliang's connection to the Shanshui Group?"

"The reporting channels are subject to confidentiality principles."

"Comrade Hou Liangping,"

Zhou Zhengming leaned forward slightly, his fingers interlaced on the table, his gaze piercing. "Your biggest problem right now is that you still think you're on this side of the table. The obligation of confidentiality is to protect whistleblowers, not to be a fig leaf for you."

Even if you don't tell us, we can still investigate. It's just that if you don't tell us, your status changes from "a hero who was misled while investigating" to "a political accomplice who aided and abetted evil." Can you afford to wear that label?

Hou Liangping was speechless, his face turning red. He abruptly stood up: "I didn't become an accomplice for anyone! I'm handling a corruption case! Gao Yuliang has problems, Qi Tongwei has problems, Gao Xiaoqin has problems—aren't these undeniable facts?"

"Facts and procedures are two different things."

Zhou Zhengming looked at him leisurely. "You've overturned the table of procedural justice, and you still want to use the leftovers on the table to prove your culinary skills. Hou Liangping, you're not a greenhorn fresh out of school anymore. Don't always use your enthusiasm as a magic glue; it can't patch up the huge hole you've created."

Old Liu sighed again, looking at Hou Liangping with disappointment and frustration.

Hou Liangping's chest heaved violently; he was unwilling to accept this.

He always saw himself as the embodiment of justice, a sharp sword that could pierce the iron curtain of Handong.

But these days, everyone is showing him through their actions: you are not a hero, you are just a useful knife, and now the knife is dull and the owner is going to throw you away.

This is even more upsetting to him than a ten-year sentence!

Just then, someone knocked on the door.

A staff member came in and handed Lao Liu a thick brown paper bag.

Zhou Zhengming glanced at it, said nothing, picked up his thermos and took another sip of water. This was clearly part of the plan.

Old Liu took the paper bag, his fingers tracing the seal, a troubled expression on his face. He looked at Hou Liangping, hesitant to speak:

"Liangping, before I came, Master Zhong asked me to pass on a message to you."

Hou Liangping's heart tightened.

"As Master Zhong said, hesitation when you should make a decision will only lead to trouble."

Old Liu's voice was very low.

"Your only way out now is to explain everything clearly, especially anything related to the Liang family. This is the last step the organization can take for you."

Hou Liangping sneered: "A way out? What way out do I need? I did nothing wrong!"

"You're not wrong?"

Old Liu's face also darkened. He weighed the brown paper bag in his hand. "You did nothing wrong. Why did Comrade Xiao Ai ask me to bring this?"

Hou Liangping's heart skipped a beat, and he stared intently at the brown paper bag: "What's this?"

"This is the last multiple-choice question that Comrade Xiao Ai asked me to give you."

Old Liu placed the paper bag on the table but didn't push it over. "She said, 'If you're willing to cooperate with the organization and explain the situation clearly, then I'll take this bag back unopened. You and your husband can discuss your issues privately at home. But if you remain obstinate...'"

Old Liu didn't say anything more, but his meaning was crystal clear.

Hou Liangping was struck dumb. He stared intently at the brown paper bag as if it contained a venomous snake.

He never imagined that his wife, who once looked at him with adoration and supported his fight against corruption to the end, would give him an ultimatum in this way!

"You...you're threatening me! You're using my family to force me to comply!"

Hou Liangping's voice began to tremble.

"This is not a threat, this is reality."

Zhou Zhengming finally put down his thermos, his tone eerily calm, "You've enjoyed the halo and convenience brought by the Zhong family's background. Now that something's happened, they need to cut their losses in time. That's called risk cut-off."

You think marriage is a fairy tale? In your social circle, marriage is first and foremost a partnership of shared interests. Now that you've become a liability, it's perfectly reasonable for them to want to liquidate their assets.

These words are more infuriating than any insult.

Hou Liangping slumped in his chair, his lips trembling, unable to utter a single word.

His proud love and the background he relied on for survival were stripped bare in Zhou Zhengming's mouth, reduced to a transaction.

"Last chance."

Zhou Zhengming looked at him as if he were a patient beyond saving. "Have you met Liang Qunfeng's secretary? Have any of Liang's protégés handed you any materials?"

Hou Liangping lowered his head, his shoulders trembling violently.

In his mind, there was the "justice" he upheld on one side, and the yellow brown paper bag on the other.

After a long silence, he raised his head, his eyes bloodshot, and squeezed out a few words through gritted teeth: "I...I did not cooperate with the Liang family."

Old Liu closed his eyes, his face full of disappointment.

Zhou Zhengming nodded, as if he had expected this outcome.

He said to Kobayashi:

"Record."