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

Lu Yike took a deep breath, trying to steady her trembling legs, and walked over to open the security door.

Three people stood outside the door, a standard "disciplinary committee case-handling blind box set": one showed his identification with a blank expression, one held a law enforcement recorder with a flashing red light, and the other stood behind like a gatekeeper, controlling the scene.

The person leading the team spoke calmly, yet with an undeniable air of authority: "Comrade Lu Yike, given the unexpected situation, please come with us to the Provincial Party Committee Guesthouse now to cooperate with the investigation."

"Now? Wasn't it supposed to be tomorrow? Is this how you do procedures?!"

Seeing this, Wu Xinyi's old-school political and legal temper flared up instantly. She rushed over, ready to protect her own, "Who is your leader? I'll call the old leader at the High Court right now and find out!"

The team leader didn't even lift his eyelids, and uttered a decisive statement in a businesslike manner:

"Comrade Wu Xinyi, please remain calm. Comrade Lu Yike is currently only cooperating with the investigation. Also, a friendly reminder: every phone call you make now, every person you contact, will be used as evidence in court for 'interfering with the investigation and colluding with others.' Are you sure you want to make these calls?"

Wu Xinyi instantly froze on the spot, like a screaming chicken being choked, holding her phone, unable to utter a single word.

This statement is more effective than any legal education.

Lu Yike turned to look at her mother, feeling both angry and heartbroken.

This is called a dimensional reduction attack. In the face of the real state machinery, the so-called "old relationships" and "old faces" in the political and legal circles of Handong are as fragile as a window paper that can be torn with a single puncture.

"Mom, I'm begging you."

Lu Yike's voice trembled, her eyes filled with pleading, "From now on, lock your phone in the drawer and don't make any more calls. Please, don't make any more."

Wu Xinyi's lips trembled twice, and finally she let her hand fall limply.

Lu Yike picked up her coat from the sofa and followed the staff downstairs.

The carriage was eerily quiet.

As Lu Yike watched the night view of Jingzhou rushing past the window, she repeatedly replayed the cases she had handled over the years in her mind.

She always considered herself a pure anti-corruption fighter, forever standing on the side of justice.

But once justice is freed from the constraints of procedural compliance, will it become a weapon in someone else's hand, used to attack at will?

She was unwilling to admit it before, but Hou Liangping is already a bloody example.

That so-called "Imperial Sword" slayed other people's demons, but it was the blood of Handong that flowed from its veins.

Upon arriving at the provincial party committee guesthouse, Lu Yike was led directly into a dimly lit conversation room.

Zhou Zhengming was already sitting behind the table, with his ever-present thermos of goji berries beside him.

There was no tea, no formalities, only a thick stack of documents on the table.

As soon as Lu Yike sat down, Zhou Zhengming went straight to the point without beating around the bush:

"Comrade Lu Yike, we've asked you to come early tonight because your mother, Comrade Wu Xinyi, secretly passed on the case files you were keeping to the retired Judge Zhang. Were you aware of this?"

Lu Yike took a breath, forcing herself into a state of resilience: "I didn't know. I only discovered the missing materials when I got home."

What are the contents of the materials?

"A two-page handwritten draft outlining the external relationships of the Shanshui Group, not part of the official case file."

"Why isn't it included in the exam?"

This question is extremely pointed, directly piercing the hidden corners of the investigation.

Lu Yike paused for a moment, trying to evade the question with professional terminology: "At that time, it was only a preliminary investigation and analysis, and the chain of evidence was not yet mature."

Zhou Zhengming stared at her, a cold smile playing on his lips: "Is it because you're immature, or is it 'inconvenient' to include you in the draft?"

Lu Yike suddenly looked up, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on: "Team Leader Zhou, I don't accept this kind of leading questioning that presumes guilt!"

Zhou Zhengming wasn't annoyed and calmly nodded: "Alright, then I'll ask it another way. Do those two pages involve Chen Yanshi's family?"

Lu Yike had no choice but to say: "It involves speculation about some peripheral relationships."

"Does this involve the Liang family?"

"Involved".

Does this involve the Lingang old city redevelopment project from over twenty years ago?

Lu Yike's heart skipped a beat.

She had always thought that the supervisory team hadn't yet reached her level regarding the name "Lingang."

Now it seems that not only do they know everything, but they also have more cards up their sleeve than she imagined.

She paused for a few seconds, then gritted her teeth and said, "There's a note. We discovered that one of the early cash flows of the Shanshui Group overlapped with the timeline of an old project in Lingang from over twenty years ago. I wrote a note saying, 'Old accounts in Lingang need to be carefully investigated.'"

Zhou Zhengming leaned forward slightly, his gaze piercing: "Why 'careful investigation' instead of 'thorough investigation'? With just one word difference, where has Director Lu's determination to fight corruption to the bitter end gone?"

Lu Yike opened her mouth, but no sound came out.

Because Liangping once said, "Don't touch Old Chen's side lightly, it's easy to cause unnecessary political misunderstandings."

She remembered those words very clearly.

At the time, she didn't think there was a problem. Chen Yanshi was an old comrade, and Dafeng Factory was a sensitive matter concerning people's livelihood, so it was right to be cautious.

Looking back now, it's clear that beneath that so-called "caution" lay a forbidden zone of unspeakable interests!

Zhou Zhengming pressed on: "Who set the tone for this statement?"

Lu Yike remained silent, her inherent sense of chivalry still at play.

Zhou Zhengming shook his head and directly opened the file at hand:

"Lu Yike, you don't need to take the blame for him anymore. Hou Liangping has clearly stated in his confession that before he went to Handong, his father-in-law Zhong Jia had clearly reminded him to 'consider the overall situation' when it came to the Chen family and the old Lingang project."

You wrote "Investigate carefully" in the materials surrounding the Shanshui Group, exactly the day after your private conversation with Hou Liangping.

Zhou Zhengming paused, his tone tinged with mockery: "Hou Liangping has already laid his bare hands, and you're still here keeping it a secret for this 'high-class son-in-law'?"

Lu Yike felt a sudden tightness in her chest, as if she had been punched hard.

Hou Liangping confessed everything!

She suddenly felt an indescribable sense of absurdity and loss.

It wasn't that she resented Hou Liangping for betraying her, but rather that her last bit of perseverance and faith was shattered by the hammer of reality.

She's still trying to find plausible reasons for past friendships, while the other person has already laid their cards on the table and become a tainted witness.

"...It was Hou Liangping who instructed him to do it." She lowered her head, her voice hoarse.

The recorder next to him was typing away rapidly on his keyboard.

Zhou Zhengming pressed further: "Did you, based on Hou Liangping's suggestion, stop investigating the peripheral clues surrounding the Chen family?"

"I didn't officially stop it, because that line of work was never officially filed in the first place."

"But you didn't move forward."

"Yes."

"Did you provide Hou Liangping with these materials that were not included in the case file?"

"Provided."

"Are you aware that some of Hou Liangping's case-handling actions were seriously lacking in legal procedures?"

Lu Yike fell silent again.

This is the real fatal flaw.

she knows.

I know at least part of it.

For example, some inquiries were made first, and the formalities were completed later; some external accounts were investigated first, and the approval forms were completed later.

At the time, she felt that anti-corruption cases were difficult to handle, and opportunities were fleeting. Grabbing clues first and then completing the procedures later was an unspoken "gray area" in case handling.

But now things have changed in Handong, and these former gray areas have all become black spots that the Discipline Inspection Commission cannot wash away under its microscope.

"I know part of the situation," Lu Yike managed to utter.

"As a prosecutor, why didn't you raise a clear objection?"

Lu Yike suddenly raised her head, her eyes full of grievance: "I did mention it!"

"And the result?"

Hou Liangping said that Secretary Sha fully supports the matter, and the province will coordinate and handle it as a special case.

Zhou Zhengming pressed further, "You believed it?"

Lu Yike gave a bitter laugh, more painful than crying: "Back then... I believed it."

Why believe?

She thought for a long time before finally speaking the truth: "Because he is Hou Liangping. Because he represents the will of the Supreme People's Procuratorate. Because I believe that someone of his status wouldn't joke about anti-corruption!"

Zhou Zhengming stared at her intently for a while, his eyes devoid of sympathy, only revealing the cold-blooded nature of officialdom: "Comrade Lu Yike, your problem isn't just gullibility. You've placed blind obedience to power, a cult of faith in the 'imperial envoy' title, and personal favors above legal procedures!"

Lu Yike did not refute.

These words were extremely hurtful, but she had no way to refute them.

Zhou Zhengming closed the materials about Hou Liangping and changed the subject: "Let's ask about your mother. Over the years, has Comrade Wu Xinyi frequently used her old connections in the political and legal circles to put in a good word for you or others?"

Lu Yike's expression changed instantly, and she hurriedly defended herself: "My mother has been retired for many years. She does sometimes like to care about the younger generation, and her way of speaking may not be very tactful, but she absolutely has no malicious intent, and she has never sought personal gain!"

Zhou Zhengming casually picked up his thermos and took a sip of water: "Director Lu, the transfer of benefits and the weaving of privilege networks in officialdom often begin with 'harmless' concern."

Lu Yike clenched her fists tightly, her nails digging into her flesh.

Zhou Zhengming continued, "Was your father's military background ever used to influence personnel arrangements within the local judicial and prosecutorial systems?"

"No!"

Are you sure?

Lu Yike gritted her teeth, cold sweat sliding down her forehead: "...I don't know."

"In the disciplinary committee's dictionary, 'I don't know' and 'I don't have' are two completely different concepts."

A deathly silence fell over the interview room.

Lu Yike felt a chill run through her.

She finally understood that the supervisory team was investigating her not just for procedural flaws in Hou Liangping's case, but for the deep-rooted, invisible influence of the Lu and Wu families in the political and legal circles of Handong!

She used to take this convenience for granted, but rarely paid attention to it.

When others give her face, she thinks it's because she's capable at work; when others take care of her feelings, she thinks it's because her colleagues respect female cadres; when others are polite to her mother, she thinks it's because the older comrade is highly respected.

Now that this fig leaf has been ruthlessly torn off by the supervisory team, and all these things have been placed on the trial table, she is horrified to discover that every bit of "face" she was once proud of could potentially become a clue to conviction.

The conversation continued until late at night.

Zhou Zhengming did not announce on the spot that coercive measures would be taken against her, but simply instructed her in a businesslike manner: "You are required to be available whenever summoned in the near future, and you are not allowed to contact any relevant personnel involved in the case, nor are you allowed to destroy or transfer any materials."

Lu Yike stood up, her legs feeling weak. She looked at Zhou Zhengming, her voice trembling, and asked, "What will happen to my mother?"

Zhou Zhengming sorted through the files without looking up, his tone so calm it was despair-inducing.

"That depends on whether she continues to make those 'harmless' calls."

Lu Yike felt as if she had fallen into an ice cave.

Stepping out of the interview room, the window at the end of the corridor was open, letting in the biting autumn night wind.

She retrieved her temporarily confiscated phone from the storage area and turned it on.

The moment the screen lit up, a summary notification of missed calls popped up.

Seventeen.

All of them were calls from Wu Xinyi.

Lu Yike closed her eyes, leaned against the cold wall, and only two words remained in her mind:

It’s over.