The entire courtyard is full of villains

The daughter-in-law poked her head out from the kitchen: "What's wrong?"

"Didn't I buy tickets for you and the kids tonight? It's for the latest movie. Let's hurry up and leave so we don't get stuck in traffic."

Yu Fen looked up at the wall clock and exclaimed, "Oh, it's almost eight o'clock! We have to hurry." As she packed her things, she scolded Zhao Dehan, "You know, why didn't you buy three tickets? It would have been so much better for the three of us to have some fun together."

Zhao Dehan, holding his bowl, made up an excuse: "Hey, I still have some work to do tonight."

"Work, work, all you ever think about is work!" Yu Fen rolled her eyes at him. "I thought you'd finally figured things out when you came home early the other day, but you're still so clueless."

Zhao Dehan suppressed the bitterness in his heart and forced a smile: "Just this once. After I finish this busy period, I'll take a vacation and we'll go on a trip together, to that Disneyland that the kids always talk about, and have a go."

Hearing the commotion, the son ran out from the inner room and said happily, "Thank you, Dad! Don't worry, Dad, I will definitely study hard."

"That's good." Zhao Dehan patted his son's shoulder and then instructed him, "Go out and stay close to your mother. Keep a close eye on her and don't let bad people kidnap her."

Yu Fen, who had already reached the door, turned around and glared at him: "How old are you? You still can't speak properly."

Zhao Dehan turned his head away so that Yu Fen wouldn't see his reddened eyes.

After seeing his wife and children off, he returned to the dining table alone, sat down, ate a clove of garlic and a bowl of noodles, and listened to Hebei opera on his phone, swaying his head as he did so. Halfway through his noodles, there was a knock at the door.

"Who is it?" Zhao Dehan asked.

"The property management said your apartment is leaking water."

"Leaking? We've lived here for so many years and it's never leaked a drop of water. How come it's leaking today?" Zhao Dehan got up suspiciously and opened the door.

The man standing outside the door was wearing a leather jacket and flashed his badge—Hou Liangping, Anti-Corruption Bureau.

"Director Zhao, please cooperate with the investigation."

Zhao Dehan's heart tightened, but he forced a straight face: "The Anti-Corruption Bureau? What do you want with a lowly official like me?"

"A junior cadre?" Hou Liangping chuckled. "Not so junior at all. Director Zhao, it's all over the place. Someone offered you the position of department head in exchange, but you refused."

"Who said that? Who spread this rumor!" Zhao Dehan raised his voice. "I'm just a minor section chief. If you throw a brick down in Beijing, eight out of ten people will be section chiefs. What am I?"

"Oh, really?" Hou Liangping didn't reply, walked to the dining table, looked at the bowl of noodles with soybean paste, and said, "Oh, noodles with soybean paste."

“I really like this,” Zhao Dehan said, popping a clove of garlic into his mouth, then added, “Director Hou, would you like some?”

Hou Liangping fanned the air in front of him and wrinkled his nose: "Never mind, I'm afraid it will smell too strong."

Zhao Dehan didn't care at all, chewing on garlic and smacking his lips: "Director Hou is obviously from a big city. For someone like me from the countryside, being able to eat meat is already a luxury, and with a bite of fresh garlic—I wouldn't trade it for anything!"

Chapter 560 No Time to Worry About Tomorrow

The two of them, one standing and the other sitting, ate noodles and chatted casually.

About ten minutes later, the people inside came out one after another. Those who came out of the bedroom were carrying two bank cards and a passbook; those who came out of the kitchen were also holding a card.

Upon seeing the card found in the kitchen, Zhao Dehan was slightly taken aback—he clearly hadn't expected there to be anything hidden in the kitchen, and couldn't help but wonder: Who put this card there? Could it be that Hou Liangping deliberately planted it?

Hou Liangping noticed the strange look on his face, but without saying anything, he simply waved his hand and said, "Check the balance in Director Zhao's card."

The results came back quickly. The card in the kitchen refrigerator had over six thousand yuan; the two cards in the bedroom had seventeen thousand yuan and fifty-four thousand yuan respectively; the savings account had more money, over one hundred and twenty thousand yuan. The total was less than two hundred thousand yuan.

Hou Liangping frowned slightly, and his subordinates exchanged glances.

After finishing the last bite of noodles, Zhao Dehan wiped his mouth with a tissue and calmly asked, "Director Hou, I don't think I can't even have this little bit of money, can I?"

"Of course it is," Hou Liang said calmly.

Zhao Dehan threw the tissue into the trash can and straightened his expression: "Since you've come to investigate, let me make things clear to you—the two cards in the bedroom, the 17,000 yuan one is an overtime bonus issued by the department. I just gave it to my wife for her birthday a couple of days ago."

The card with 54,000 yuan is my wife's salary from the first half of the year; she's been saving it because she doesn't want to spend it. The savings account has over 120,000 yuan, which is for our child's tuition. As for the card with over 6,000 yuan in the kitchen, I really don't know anything about it, but it's most likely my son's New Year's money that he saved up.”

He paused, then looked directly at Hou Liangping: "Director Hou, have I explained myself clearly?"

"Director Zhao has a very good memory," Hou Liangping replied casually.

Zhao Dehan sighed, his tone becoming earnest: "Director Hou, I understand your determination to combat corruption, which is a good thing. But you also need to pay attention to your methods. Running into comrades' homes late at night and ransacking them like it's a house raid—look at the state of their homes! This will discourage our comrades."

Hou Liangping didn't reply, but simply tapped his left hand's web between his thumb and forefinger with his right hand, looking at him with a half-smile.

Zhao Dehan felt a tightness in his chest under his gaze, but he didn't mince words: "I've worked in this position for a full twelve years. Every year I've received an excellent performance evaluation, and the public opinion score has never been lower than ninety points since it started."

"I understand you're investigating me; after all, my position makes me susceptible to temptation. But couldn't you at least be objective? I've lived in this house for over eight years; I know the place inside and out. Frankly, the kids are growing up, and the house feels too small, but unfortunately, I can't afford to move. And yet you still accuse me of corruption? What have I embezzled?"

After saying this, Hou Liangping suddenly laughed, but there was something else in his laughter.

He slowly pulled a second search warrant from his leather jacket and slammed it on the table: "Director Zhao, let's go to your office."

Zhao Dehan's expression changed drastically: "Go to the workplace? It's already past eight o'clock, and many colleagues are still working overtime! Isn't it going too far to search now!"

"Director Zhao, please cooperate."

"Director Hou, it's not that I'm uncooperative, it's that you've gone too far! I'm a cadre, after all, and you're treating me like this—"

"please."

A smile crept across Hou Liangping's face, radiating an air of triumphant confidence. Two officers immediately stepped forward, flanking Zhao Dehan on either side.

"Hou Liangping, let me tell you, if you can't find anything out, I'm not done with you!"

Hou Liangping didn't even turn his head. In his eyes, Zhao Dehan was already a dead man.

The car quickly arrived at the Ministry of Energy. The ministry was brightly lit, and many people were still working overtime. As soon as the elevator doors opened, the group headed straight for the main entrance. Just as the security guard was about to step forward to register them, Hou Liangping swaggered up his badge: "Anti-Corruption Bureau, investigating a case. Open the door."

Before the security guard could ask a question, Hou Liangping snapped, "What are you dawdling for? Are you planning to tip someone off?"

Upon hearing this, the security guard dared not say another word and quickly opened the door. Hou Liangping waved his hand, and the van drove directly to the Ministry of Energy building. The group then helped Zhao Dehan into the building.

The elevator reached the eighth floor. As soon as the doors opened, people in the corridor looked up and saw Zhao Dehan, the director of the planning department, being escorted towards his office. Immediately, whispers rippled through the room.

"Director Zhao is in trouble too?"

"Really? Director Zhao is one of the few honest officials in our department."

"Who knows if an official is honest or not? Didn't you see the show of force they're putting on? I bet Director Zhao was just faking it all along..."

The voice was very soft, but every word pierced Zhao Dehan's ears. He stared fiercely at the back of Hou Liangping's head, gritting his teeth: "You just wait, you surnamed Hou."

The office was small, with a liver-colored desk and a national flag ornament on the corner. Hou Liangping walked in and sat down next to the ornament, but Zhao Dehan suddenly broke free from the people on either side and pounced on him: "Hou Liangping, that's enough! This ornament was made by my son and given to me by hand!"

"Then take it." Hou Liangping grabbed the ornament and casually tossed it into Zhao Dehan's arms.

The others began searching the office. Filing cabinets were opened, drawers were pulled out one by one, and even the computer towers were dismantled. Twenty minutes later, the leader shook his head: "Director Hou, there's nothing here."

Hou Liangping's gaze, however, was fixed on the safe in the corner.

"Zhao Dehan, open the safe."

"No way!" Zhao Dehan's face turned bright red. "There are confidential documents in the safe; you have no right to look at them!"

"I'm asking you to open the safe."

Zhao Dehan instinctively hid the key behind his back, but Hou Liangping gestured with his chin, and several people went up and pressed Zhao Dehan down on the table, forcibly taking the key away.

"What are you doing? What are you doing!" Zhao Dehan struggled desperately, his voice trembling, "Bandits! You're all bandits!"

With a "click," the safe was opened, and Hou Liangping was the first to peek out. Inside, there were several neatly stacked piles of documents, nothing else.

Unwilling to accept this, he roughly threw all the documents out, only to find the bottom of the cabinet completely empty—no banknotes, gold bars, or bank cards as he had imagined.

"Where did you hide it, Zhao Dehan?"

Zhao Dehan abruptly broke free from the person holding him down, rushed over and frantically picked up the documents from the ground, his voice urgent and angry: "Hou Liangping! These are all classified documents, you've gone too far!"

"Insolence?" Hou Liangping grabbed his collar and pulled him up, his eyes fierce. "Zhao Dehan, you better tell me honestly where you hid the thing!"

"Clap clap-"

Applause suddenly erupted at the door.

Hou Liangping was taken aback, turned his head, and his expression changed drastically. Zhou Yuanzheng clapped his hands and strolled in from outside the door, a cryptic smile on his face.

Zhao Dehan's eyes widened, his voice trembling: "Minister..."

Hou Liangping immediately suppressed his previous fierceness, became restrained, and subconsciously straightened his body.

Zhou Yuan didn't even glance at him, and turned to his secretary behind him, asking, "Is there any CCTV footage in Director Zhao's office?"

The secretary jogged forward: "Yes, Minister."

"Make a copy of the surveillance footage and send it to the Anti-Corruption Bureau tomorrow." Zhou Yuan's tone was not heavy, but every word was clear. "Let them see how brutally they treat their own comrades."

After saying that, he turned and walked out.

Zhao Dehan panicked and shouted at his retreating figure, "Minister! I'm innocent!"

Zhou Yuan stopped and turned his head slightly: "Director Zhao, since the Anti-Corruption Bureau has taken over, let's wait until they have investigated thoroughly before deciding whether it's a case of injustice or not. The ministry will make a decision after they have finished their investigation."

Throughout the entire process, Zhou Yuan did not look at Hou Liangping once, nor did he say a single word to him.

Hou Liangping stood there, feeling a burning sensation on his face, as if he had been slapped in public. The humiliation burned from his chest to his throat. He gritted his teeth, his cheeks taut.

A subordinate leaned over and whispered, "Director Hou... tomorrow..."

"Tomorrow?" Hou Liangping gasped for breath, pointing at Zhao Dehan, almost shouting, "We can't worry about tomorrow! Take him to the last place!"

Chapter 561 I'll Take Your Surname

Inside the van, Hou Liangping's eyes were red, and he felt a surge of anger burning in his chest.

He miscalculated tonight. He never expected that Zhou Yuan, a minister, would still be at the ministry so late. If that surveillance video is really sent to the Anti-Corruption Bureau tomorrow, Hou Liangping will at least be punished—not to mention that he will be scolded by Zhong Xiaoai when he gets home.

Now, there's no other way but to go down this path to the bitter end. As long as the evidence of Zhao Dehan's bribery is found, and the video is handed over to the bureau tomorrow, he can use "being a bit too harsh on criminals" as an excuse to get away with it.

As soon as the car arrived at Dijingyuan, before it had even come to a complete stop, Hou Liangping jumped out. Zhao Dehan was pulled out of the car by two men. When he looked up and saw the familiar neighborhood in front of him, his heart skipped a beat. His first reaction was fear—he didn't know if Third Master had finished things yet.

Seeing his expression, Hou Liangping assumed he was feeling guilty and his smugness grew even stronger: "Director Zhao, are you familiar with this place?"

Zhao Dehan forced a smile and asked, "Director Hou, why did you bring me here? Do you have a search warrant?"

"A search warrant?" Hou Liangping's expression paused slightly.

Tonight, only two search warrants were signed, one for Zhao Dehan's house and one for his office, both of which have already been used. Hou Liangping's hesitation immediately gave Zhao Dehan a clue, and his voice rose sharply: "Hou Liangping! You can't search without a warrant! If you dare to search recklessly, I'll report you to the Anti-Corruption Bureau for abusing investigative procedures!"

Hou Liangping stared at Zhao Dehan's smug expression, his teeth grinding together, and then slammed his fist into the car door with a dull thud. He then turned and walked a few steps, took out his phone, found a number, and dialed it.

"Old Qin."

"What's wrong, Liangping? Why are you calling so late at night?" Qin Siyuan's sleepy voice came from the other end of the phone.