Nominal: Hou Liangping blocking the door? He was slapped away!

The sunlight streaming through the window slanted into Office No. 2, casting a shadow on the dark solid wood desk.

The elderly man with completely white hair, wearing a faded gray Zhongshan suit with the top button fastened, was none other than the dignified former leader, Old Xu.

He was wearing a pair of black-rimmed reading glasses and was looking down at the stack of documents that was half a foot high in front of him.

The pen nib scratched across the paper with a steady, unhurried rhythm.

Liu Qigang was standing two meters directly in front of the desk.

stand at attention.

With his feet together and arms pressed against his trouser seams, he placed the red-covered report folder flat on the edge of his desk.

Old Xu didn't even glance at it; he just continued approving documents, turning a page, marking a line, and then turning the page again.

Five minutes passed.

ten minutes.

twenty minutes.

Liu Qigang felt a chill run down his spine.

The military green shirt clung to his back, and cold sweat seeped out layer by layer, soaking from the collar all the way down to his waist.

The only sound in the office was the clatter of pens on paper.

There were no questions, no reprimands, not even a glance.

This kind of cold treatment is even harder to bear than being slapped twice in the face.

half an hour.

The old leader finally put down his pen.

He took off his reading glasses, placed them on the table, and reached for the red report folder.

Open the cover.

The first page displays system lock information.

Page 2 contains the code logs for unauthorized access.

Page 3, Automatic log upload after the "Iron Curtain" protocol is triggered.

The old leader's gaze lingered on each line of text for two or three seconds, and he read it from beginning to end.

Then close it.

He raised his eyes and looked at Liu Qigang.

"Who gave you permission to investigate?"

The sound wasn't loud, but Liu Qigang's knees almost buckled.

"Reporting to the commander."

Liu Qigang's throat was dry, but his speech was clear.

"Su Zhenhai, deputy director of the Supervisory Commission, contacted me directly via a secure phone this morning."

"He asked me to access Comrade Shen Zhong's personnel file within the military system."

"His exact words were, 'I'm asking you in a private capacity to take a look at the basic information.'"

The old leader didn't interrupt, and Liu Qigang continued speaking.

"Director Su stated that Shen Zhong, the deputy secretary of the Handong Provincial Military Region, openly interfered with the Party Committee's personnel appointments at the local level, making it impossible for the Provincial Party Committee to function normally."

"His exact words were—'A major general is running rampant in Handong; he should be dealt with, and it would be best to transfer him directly.'"

That's all I have to say.

Liu Qigang shut his mouth and waited to be struck by lightning.

The office was quiet for a few seconds, but Old Xu's expression remained largely unchanged throughout.

But when Liu Qigang uttered the name "Su Zhenhai," his right hand, which was resting on the table, clenched silently.

"Su Zhenhai".

The old leader read the name aloud in a flat tone, revealing no emotion.

His gaze shifted from Liu Qigang's face to the cover of the red report folder on the table.

"Does he know who Shen Zhong is?"

Liu Qigang didn't dare to respond.

"Does he know how many bullets Shen Zhong has taken for this country on the border?"

The old leader's voice was still not loud.

"Does he know what level of meritorious officials the Iron Curtain Protocol protects?"

Liu Qigang lowered his head even further.

"He doesn't know."

The former leader answered the question himself.

"He only knows that Handong is his territory, and he will get rid of anyone who touches his people."

The old leader reached out and pulled a red and blue pencil from the pen holder.

He opened the report folder and made a heavy underline under Su Zhenhai's name.

"Click."

The pencil tip broke.

The debris bounced onto the table with a soft sound.

Liu Qigang's body trembled slightly.

Old Xu threw the broken pencil on the table, braced himself against the edge of the table with both hands, and stood up from his chair.

He walked around the large desk and went to the window.

The clivia plants in the yard are lined up in a row, their leaves gleaming with a glossy green light in the sunlight.

Old Xu stood with his hands behind his back, looking out the window without saying a word.

Half a minute.

Liu Qigang could feel the air getting heavier and heavier.

Breathing has become difficult.

The old leader turned around, but instead of returning to his desk, he walked straight to a military walkie-talkie hanging on the right wall of the office.

There are two buttons on the bottom of the walkie-talkie, one white and one red.

The white button connects to the floor duty room.

The red button leads directly to the Internal Security Bureau.

The old leader pressed the red button.

"Sizzle—"

The walkie-talkie is connected.

"Internal Security Bureau".

"First squad, assemble downstairs and stand by within ten minutes."

There was a pause of less than a second on the other end of the walkie-talkie.

"yes!"

Mr. Xu released the button, turned around, and walked back to his desk.

He bent down and pulled a safe embedded in the floor from under the table.

The combination lock turned three times, and the cabinet door popped open.

Inside, several documents with dark blue covers were neatly stacked.

A heavy, top-level battle report.

Each document was stamped with a red seal that read "Top Secret".

The old leader took out the battle reports and put them one by one into a black leather briefcase.

Zip up the zipper and fasten the buckle.

He straightened up, walked to the coat rack by the door, took down the military overcoat that had been hanging there all morning, and draped it over his shoulders.

The briefcase was tucked under his left arm.

He strode toward the office door, pausing briefly as he passed Liu Qigang.

"I'll deal with your problems when I get back."

Liu Qigang's face paled even more.

"Yes."

He didn't ask a single question, and turned to follow closely behind his old leader.

The office door was pushed open.

The two guards outside the door stood at attention, their leather boots clicking together.

"Greetings, sir!"

The old leader didn't even look at them before issuing the order.

"Prepare the car."

He had already stepped towards the end of the corridor.

"I'm going to find Su Zhenhai."