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

In front of the No. 3 compound of the Provincial Party Committee, a Land Cruiser Prado with police license plates came to a steady stop.

Qi Tongwei got out of the back seat, holding a beautifully packaged bouquet of lilies in his left hand and a bottle of red wine in his right.

The navy blue police uniform was ironed without a single wrinkle, and the epaulets and rank insignia gleamed under the streetlights.

He was incredibly energetic.

"Ding-dong—"

The doorbell rang twice, and the sound of slippers stepping on the floor came from inside. The wooden door was pulled open from the inside, revealing half of Ms. Wu's body wearing an apron.

"Hey, Tongwei's here, come in quickly."

"Teacher Wu, it's been so long since I've had your braised pork. I'm really craving it, so I brought a bottle of good wine with me today."

Qi Tongwei handed over the flowers and wine together, leaning forward slightly, his smile revealing the respect that students always show when meeting their mentor.

Teacher Wu took the item, bent down, and smelled the lilies.

"Your teacher, Mr. Gao, is in the study. Please go in. I'm going to the kitchen to get busy."

Footsteps echoed down the hallway toward the kitchen, followed by the hum of the range hood starting up.

Qi Tongwei straightened the hem of his police uniform and walked down the corridor to the door of the study.

The door was ajar.

He pushed the door open, stepped inside, and strode in with large strides. His leather shoes landed on the solid wood floor with two soft "tap-tap" sounds, exuding a calm yet slightly smug air.

Gao Yuliang stood by the window, his back to the door, holding a pair of gardening shears in his hand, gesturing at a black pine bonsai.

The branches and leaves were already trimmed very neatly, but the old man was still picking and choosing, opening and closing the scissors slowly and methodically.

Qi Tongwei didn't stand on ceremony. He pulled out a chair in front of the desk, sat down, and casually took off the peaked cap with the national emblem on his head, placing it neatly on Gao Yuliang's desk.

The hat took up almost half the table, the police badge facing up, shiny and bright.

Gao Yuliang did not turn around.

With a "snip," a spare needle fell onto the newspaper under the windowsill.

"Professor Gao, I've come today because I have something important to tell you."

Qi Tongwei leaned back in his chair, crossed his right leg over his left, and tapped his fingertips lightly twice on the edge of the table.

"Secretary Zhao spoke with me personally, privately, at No. 17 Cuihu Road."

The scissors didn't stop, and another needle-like leaf fell.

"The target is Ouyang Jing, the vice president of Jingzhou City Bank and Li Dakang's wife."

Qi Tongwei took a folded piece of paper out of his pocket, unfolded it, and slapped it on the table.

"The evidence of bribery, bank statements, transfer vouchers, and signed approval forms are all complete. I personally interrogated the person in charge of the company involved in the case early this morning, and I have obtained their confession. The summons procedures from the Anti-Corruption Bureau are being processed."

"Click—"

The scissors paused for a moment.

Then, a branch about the thickness of a little finger was cut off at the base, fell off the bonsai, and rolled to the edge of the windowsill before coming to a stop.

"Secretary Zhao's exact words were: 'Act first, report later; if something goes wrong, I'll take the blame.'"

Qi Tongwei crossed his hands on his knees and leaned forward.

"Professor Gao, Secretary Zhao summoned us a few days ago. What do you think was the purpose of that meeting?"

Before anyone could answer, he took over the conversation himself.

"In my opinion, it's because Secretary Zhao still cherishes old friendships and wants to give you another chance to express your opinion."

"If we don't follow Secretary Zhao's lead, what position will the political and legal system have in Handong in the future?"

Gao Yuliang's back remained completely still.

Qi Tongwei seemed to take this silence as tacit agreement and continued speaking.

"Secretary Zhao gave me a heads-up—Secretary Su in Kyoto has already expressed his full support."

He lowered his voice slightly when he said this, but the excitement in his tone was impossible to hide.

"Secretary Zhao's connections in Kyoto are far beyond what Shen Zhong can match."

Qi Tongwei stood up and placed his hands on the edge of the table.

"Teacher Gao, think about it. Once Ouyang Jing is taken down, how can Li Dakang stay in Handong? If the news of a provincial party committee member's wife being corrupt and accepting bribes gets out, his political life will be over."

"With Li Dakang gone and Shen Zhong transferred, the situation at the Standing Committee will return to Secretary Zhao's control."

"The sky over Handong still belongs to the Zhao family."

As he uttered those last words, Qi Tongwei raised his chin slightly, straightened his back, and exuded an aura of "great things are about to be accomplished" from the inside out.

The study was quiet for a few seconds.

Gao Yuliang placed the scissors on the windowsill, grabbed a towel from the shelf next to him, and slowly wiped his fingers one by one.

He folded the towel and put it back in its place, then turned around and sat down on the sofa.

The leather surface of the sofa made a slight "creaking" sound.

Gao Yuliang sized up the student opposite him, who was dressed in a crisp police uniform and had a smug look on his face, but he didn't say anything.

Qi Tongwei's posture, his gestures, his deliberately low but barely suppressed voice, and the wide-brimmed hat casually placed on his desk—every detail exudes the same thing.

swell.

Feeling elated by the few promises Zhao Lichun made, he thought he was about to rise to prominence.

Department head? Vice governor?

Zhao Lichun's promises were more beautiful than the black pine bonsai in this study, but at least the bonsai was real.

Su Zhenhai expressed his support in Kyoto?

Regardless of whether this is true or not, even if it is true, if Zhao Lichun really has this card in his hand, the most important thing to do now is to stabilize the situation, plan ahead, and wait for Shen Zhong to show a weakness before making a move.

Instead of rushing to make a move on the wife of a provincial party committee member.

Moving Ouyang Jing could hurt Li Dakang, but at the same time it would completely force Li Dakang to Shen Zhong's side.

A provincial standing committee member cornered and a standing committee member in military uniform wielding military power—this combination is a true nightmare for the Zhao family.

Zhao Lichun couldn't possibly be unaware of this.

Therefore, there is only one explanation—Zhao Lichun has no longer cared about the bigger picture and only wants to drag someone down with him.

Qi Tongwei was just a cannon fodder who was pushed out.

Once the matter was settled, Zhao Lichun reaped the rewards.

The scheme failed. A deputy director-general arrested the wife of a provincial party committee member without authorization. Who will take the blame? Will Zhao Lichun admit it?

"I'll act first and report later, and I'll take the blame if anything goes wrong"—you actually believe that kind of talk?

Gao Yuliang looked at Qi Tongwei sitting opposite him and felt a tightness in his chest.

This is my most prized student, whom I personally mentored. From a university student majoring in political science and law to a drug enforcement hero to a department-level cadre, every step of his career has been the result of my hard work.

The results of it?

In the end, when someone offered him a position as a department head, he acted like a cat smelling fish, losing even his basic judgment.

Gao Yuliang slapped his palm on the coffee table.

"Snap—"

The teacup lid was jolted and bounced up, spinning twice around the rim of the cup before coming to a stop.

"What teacher? How many times have I told you, when you're at work, you use your job title!"

Qi Tongwei's smile froze.

Gao Yuliang leaned up from the sofa and pointed vaguely in the direction of Qi Tongwei.

"Since you won't listen to me and are determined to follow Zhao Lichun, what are you reporting to me for!"

"You think I'm in your way because I'm a teacher? You think you're all grown up now?"