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

three days later.

Gyeongju International Airport, VIP exit.

Li Dakang, wearing his signature dark blue collared jacket, stood alone outside the turnstile.

He did not bring any entourage; even his secretary, Jin Liqun, was sent back to the municipal party committee.

He rubbed his hands together incessantly in front of him, his leather shoes making a chaotic rhythm on the floor tiles.

The moment Li Jiajia walked out of the end of the passage with two plainclothes special agents.

The municipal party secretary, who usually had the final say in Jingzhou, simply pushed open the gate and rushed through.

Li Dakang pulled his terrified daughter into a tight embrace.

Hot tears streamed down his deeply lined face without restraint.

Li Jiajia leaned on her father's broad shoulders and burst into tears.

"It's alright, it's alright."

Li Dakang patted his daughter's back repeatedly with his rough, calloused hands.

"Go back to Handong, and even if the sky falls, Dad will hold it up for you."

Li Dakang straightened up, took out a handkerchief and vigorously wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes, then took his daughter's hand and walked towards the municipal party committee's special car parked by the roadside.

The moment he got into the car, the warmth on Li Dakang's face vanished completely.

The feigned and probing feeling that had been emanating from him had completely vanished.

Instead, there is an absolute toughness and fierceness after burning one's bridges.

That afternoon, the Standing Committee of the Handong Provincial Party Committee convened as scheduled.

The atmosphere around the large oval conference table was extremely oppressive.

Sha Ruijin sat in the main seat, his face ashen, his hands crossed on the table.

Before Chen Huai, the Secretary-General of the Provincial Party Committee, could finish the usual procedure of announcing the start of the meeting...

Li Dakang opened the black leather briefcase and pulled out a thick document.

He grabbed the document and slammed it heavily onto the solid wood table in front of him.

"Snapped!"

The loud noise echoed in the closed conference room, startling all the standing committee members present.

"Today's meeting, I'd like to start by raising a topic."

Li Dakang strode to his feet, his hands gripping the table like iron clamps, and surveyed the entire room from his elevated position.

"This is the report on severely cracking down on foreign organized crime forces interfering with local officials."

"Just a few days ago, those shady foreign forces reached out and targeted my family, Li Dakang's family!"

Li Dakang's words were forceful and resounding, each syllable landing squarely on the conference room floor, leaving no room for argument.

"Some people have abandoned even the most basic principles in order to achieve their ulterior political goals."

"Practicing collective punishment and carrying out assassinations—what's the difference between these actions and those of bandits!"

Li Dakang stared directly at Sha Ruijin in the main seat, leaning forward, exuding a strong sense of pressure.

The audience was silent.

Liu Changchun picked up his blue-and-white porcelain teacup and took a big gulp of water, using the lid to hide the smile that he could barely conceal on his face.

Tian Guofu lowered his head and quickly drew meaningless circles on his notebook with a fountain pen.

Sha Ruijin's face was ashen, and he gripped the armrests of the chair tightly with both hands, his knuckles turning white.

He was completely unable to have an attack.

Li Dakang now holds the victim's case in his hands, and behind him stands Shen Zhong, who can mobilize the army.

If Sha Ruijin were to refute this, it would be tantamount to admitting that the Zhong family had carried out the assassination plot.

This Standing Committee meeting, which was supposed to discuss economic indicators, turned into a one-man show by Li Dakang.

Meanwhile, at the General Hospital of the Military Region of Handong Province.

The long corridor outside the special care ward was filled with the pungent smell of soda water.

Liang Lu rushed out of the elevator in her high heels.

She was wearing an expensive light-colored trench coat, her hair was a little messy, and her face showed undisguised anxiety and anger.

At the end of the corridor, Qi Tongwei, now dressed in clean dark gray casual clothes, was leaning against the white wall smoking.

Liang Lu strode forward and slammed the designer bag she was holding onto the bench next to her.

"Qi Tongwei, where have you been for the past two weeks?!"

Liang Lu questioned loudly, her voice sharp.

"The police station can't find you, and we can't find you at home. Do you even consider me your wife anymore?!"

Qi Tongwei threw the half-smoked cigarette on the ground and stubbed it out with the sole of his shoe.

He didn't reply, but took out several neatly folded A4 sheets of paper from his pocket.

He raised his hand and slapped the papers directly onto Liang Lu's chest.

The papers scattered, and Liang Lu hurriedly caught them.

When Liang Lu saw the bold black text at the top of her head, she froze on the spot.

Divorce Agreement.

In the lower right corner of the agreement, Qi Tongwei's strong and powerful name was already signed.

"You want a divorce?"

Liang Lu raised her head, her voice trembling, and even the hand holding the paper was shaking.

"The car, the house, the savings—it's all yours. I'll leave with nothing."

Qi Tongwei put his hands in his pockets, speaking as casually as if he were discussing the weather.

"Chen Hai is in ward 318."

"He risked his life for you, go take care of him."

Qi Tongwei turned around and strode towards the exit at the other end of the corridor.

He took long strides, without the slightest hesitation, and didn't even bother to glance at her.

Liang Lu clutched the agreement, her mind reeling.

Qi Tongwei found out.

He knows everything.

Liang Lu turned her head to look at the half-closed wooden door of ward 318.

She stumbled and almost staggered as she pushed open the door to the ward, wearing high heels.

Chen Hai, lying in his hospital bed, has regained consciousness.

His face was as pale as paper, and he was lying face down on the pillow with an IV drip attached to the back of his right hand.

When Liang Lu saw the thick bandages wrapped around Chen Hai's back, she completely dropped all pretense.

She rushed to the bedside, clutching the white sheets tightly with both hands, and burst into tears.

"Chen Hai..."

Liang Lu was sobbing uncontrollably, unable to even string together a complete sentence.

Chen Hai struggled to raise his left hand, pausing for a moment in mid-air.

He finally placed his hand on Liang Lu's neat short hair, gently stroking it along the texture.

"Don't cry."

"They all survived, didn't they?"

In this hospital room filled with the ticking of medical equipment, the two's six-year-long secret relationship was finally brought into the open.

"Bang!"

A crisp sound of porcelain shattering suddenly rang out at the door of the ward.

Lu Yike stood stiffly at the door of the ward.

The red double-walled insulated bucket she was carrying had already fallen to the ground.

The rich angelica and black chicken soup was spilled all over the floor, and several pieces of tender stewed chicken rolled onto the anti-slip strip of the door frame.

Lu Yike was wearing a dark blue prosecutor's uniform, with the badge on her chest polished to a shine.

She covered her mouth tightly with both hands, gasping for breath.

She happily simmered chicken soup in the kitchen for four whole hours, wanting to help Chen Hai, who had just escaped danger, recover properly.

But what did she see?

Her old boss, whom she had always secretly admired, was the upright and righteous anti-corruption bureau chief.

He was holding an old woman in his arms with tender eyes.

That woman is the daughter of the Secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission of Handong Province, and Qi Tongwei's legal wife!

Lu Yike's worldview completely collapsed at this moment.

She couldn't even utter a question; she just felt a churning in her stomach.

Tears welled up like a burst dam. Lu Yike turned around, wading through the soup, and desperately fled down the corridor toward the stairwell.

Outside the window, the autumn rain was falling steadily.

The rain in Handong was extremely cold and biting.

In the open-air garden of the military hospital, withered yellow leaves were scattered all over the ground by the rain.

Lu Yike rushed into the rain, squatted under an old locust tree, hugged her knees and cried loudly.

The cold rain quickly soaked her short hair and uniform, making her look particularly thin and pitiful.

A black double umbrella was silently placed over her head, shielding her from the torrential rain.

Zhao Donglai was wearing a crisp police uniform, holding an umbrella in one hand and with the other hand in his pocket.

He had actually been driving behind Lu Yike the whole time, secretly watching her every move.

Seeing Lu Yike run away after her mental breakdown, he felt this was a perfect opportunity to take advantage of her vulnerability.

"That's fine, but why are you getting soaked in the rain?"

Zhao Donglai tilted the umbrella forward and took out a clean white handkerchief from the pocket of his police uniform and handed it over.

"The early autumn rain is chilly, don't catch a cold."

Lu Yike didn't take the handkerchief; she just buried her head in her knees and continued to cry.

A black Hongqi sedan slowly pulled up on the driveway next to the garden.

The car door opened, and Judge Wu stepped out, holding a plain-colored folding umbrella.

She had received a call from her daughter in advance to let her know she was safe, so she came over to pick her up.

Judge Wu waded through the puddles to the two of them and pulled Lu Yike under his umbrella.

She turned her head and looked Zhao Donglai up and down.

"Director Zhao."

Judge Wu's voice carried a condescending scrutiny and undisguised disgust.

"Since you're divorced, you should stay away from my house from now on."