Reborn as Zhao Ruilong of Handong, I will defy fate.

"Give way!"

"Excuse me! Excuse me!"

"Excuse me, we need to get home urgently!"

……

Hou Liangping and Zhong Xiaoai shouted as they led their father to break through the encirclement.

It's really difficult to get out of this crowded, densely packed street as quickly as possible.

The couple shouted themselves hoarse, but it was no use.

We could only move forward slowly with the crowd.

Zhong Zhengguo, who was being protected by the two behind him, was even more worried.

He just called around and found out that tickets from Yanjing to Jingzhou are sold out for today and tomorrow.

There are already few flights each day, and with the three-day New Year's Day holiday, it's naturally impossible to find tickets available.

Now he can only pray that there are still tickets available for flights from surrounding cities to Jingzhou.

But reason told him otherwise.

The hope is very slim!

The civil aviation industry in China is not prosperous and developed. There are only four or five flights a day from Yanjing to Jingzhou.

For surrounding cities, there might only be one trip a day, or none at all.

Moreover, it's currently a holiday period, and there are already quite a few people traveling.

"If all else fails, we'll catch the train!"

"If we can manage to snag a train ticket departing tonight, we can arrive in Jingzhou by noon tomorrow."

Zhong Zhengguo had just made up his mind to ask his secretary if there were any train tickets available.

My phone suddenly rang. I looked at the caller ID and quickly answered it.

"Hello, it's me. Are they all sold out? There aren't any left for tomorrow or the day after. Well... could you ask if there are any train tickets to Jingzhou left?"

"If you can't buy plane tickets, there should still be train tickets, right? The Spring Festival is still a long way off, just a short three-day holiday, so there shouldn't be that many people going back to their hometowns."

After hanging up the phone, Zhong Zhengguo looked up and glanced ahead.

It's so hopeless!

It stretches as far as the eye can see.

Did millions of people in Yanjing come to the market?

After walking with difficulty for a while, the phone rang again.

The secretary brought good news.

Half an hour later, the express train departed from Yanjing and went directly to Jingzhou. Although the tickets were sold out, the station could arrange a seat for the train attendant for Zhong Zhengguo.

however……

Departing in half an hour?

Looking at the crowded people in front of me, I'm afraid half an hour would only be enough to get me out of there, and I wouldn't have enough time to get to the train station.

At this moment, Zhong Xiaoai suddenly took Zhong Zhengguo's phone.

"I don't care what method you use, whether it's a sudden malfunction or bad weather, the train absolutely cannot depart until my dad gets on the train, do you hear me?"

Zhong Zhengguo looked at his daughter with a surprised expression.

"Make an entire trainload of thousands of people wait for me?"

"We'll make an exception for you. This is the only way to get you back to Handong as soon as possible. Otherwise, arranging a private plane would just make us a laughingstock."

Zhong Xiaoai's tone was resolute.

The petty whims of power were on full display at this moment.

however……

This is not the end.

Squeezing through the crowded throng, Zhong Xiaoai revealed her identity and had the police car take the three of them home to pack up.

Then they sped off towards the train station.

The train, which was supposed to depart on time, remained stationary on the platform.

Inside the hard-seat carriages.

The crowd was so dense that it resembled a sardine can.

Although it was freezing cold outside, the car was warm and cozy inside because of the many people inside.

Everyone waited anxiously for the bus to depart, eager to embark on their journey as soon as possible.

Some of them were on business trips, some were doing business, and some were visiting their families.

Some patients also bring family members suffering from rare and difficult-to-treat illnesses to Yanjing Hospital for treatment.

The train conductor, pushing a cart, shouted out his wares of sunflower seeds, cigarettes, and eight-treasure porridge as he struggled through the crowd.

Faced with the passengers' questions, he could only shake his head and laugh, saying it was probably due to bad weather or equipment failure on the line.

At other stations, trains come and go.

How could the weather be bad?

How could there possibly be a fault in the line equipment?

Time passes slowly.

The train was supposed to depart at 3:20 PM.

It was almost four o'clock, but there was still no movement.

More and more people are becoming anxious and restless.

A piercing alarm sounded, and a police car with flashing lights drove onto the platform.

"My goodness! So it turns out we were waiting for someone!"

"Who has such great power that they can make the train wait for them?"

"If you're so capable, why don't you just fly?"

"They brought it in a police car, could it be a criminal?"

"Who knows? Oh, the car has stopped."

"Two men, not handcuffed."

"Did you see the face clearly?"

"No, we're going straight to the sleeper car!"

……

Woo~

A long whistle blew.

The train, which was nearly forty minutes late, finally started moving slowly.

Knowing that it was Zhong Zhengguo, the clerk of the Han Dong Province, who had urgent business to attend to and needed to take a carriage back to Jingzhou.

The train conductor took the initiative to arrange for the crew to vacate their berths.

Because Zhong Xiaoai was worried about her father being alone, she specifically asked her husband, Hou Liangping, to go to Jingzhou with her.

"Thank you, I'm sorry to bother you."

Zhong Zhengguo thanked him very politely and warmly.

Hou Liangping, standing to the side, remained silent.

In his opinion.

The train conductor and his colleagues were extremely fortunate to have their father-in-law, who held a high position, given a place to them.

Is it really necessary to be so polite?

After everyone left, he immediately went to make a cup of hot tea for his father-in-law.

He closed the door and respectfully handed it to his father-in-law.

"Dad, drink some hot water to warm yourself up."

"Put it down first!"

Zhong Zhengguo stared out the window with a somber expression.

After putting his luggage away, Hou Liangping naturally sat down on the lower bunk opposite Zhong Zhengguo.

"Dad, don't worry. The train will arrive in Jingzhou at nine o'clock tomorrow morning. Secretary Li and the others will come to pick us up on the platform. Then we'll head straight to Lincheng and arrive at the mine disaster site by noon."

Zhong Zhengguo looked out the window and smiled sadly.

"But the General Affairs Department's task force will be on site tonight."

"And the leader who appeared at the scene first was Zhao Lichun."

"It was Zhao Lichun who organized the rescue and relief efforts despite the freezing cold and muddy conditions!"

"In front of countless people and the media, it was Zhao Lichun who truly captured everyone's attention!"

Speaking of which.

Zhong Zhengguo let out a long, melancholy sigh.

"The tide has turned! The tide has turned!"

Hou Liangping frowned and leaned forward.

"Dad, it's just a mining accident with a slightly higher death toll, isn't it? Aren't you worrying too much?"

Zhong Zhengguo glanced back at Hou Liangping.

With his jet-black hair and youthful, innocent face, he looked just like a college graduate who had just graduated.

"You, like Xiao Ai, are still too young and too naive."

"But this is also my fault. I created too good conditions for you, so that even though you have been in the system for many years, you have not grown."

"Your backgrounds are so strong that everything goes smoothly for you. You've never experienced a fierce struggle, so you don't know how brutal it can be!"

Zhong Zhengguo picked up his teacup and gently blew on it.

In his mind, he had already begun to predict the series of actions Zhao Lichun would take.

It successfully provoked the wrath of the top leadership and attracted nationwide attention.

Driven by a strong national will, countless rescue forces and machinery were deployed.

Even if it means digging a massive sinkhole from top to bottom, we must find all the remains of the miners who perished.

And this search...

It's likely that the discovery will not only be of the miners who perished in this collapse.

The victims of mining accidents that were previously successfully concealed will inevitably be discovered.

The death toll is so high.

They even went so far as to conceal the truth and cover for each other.

The public will inevitably be outraged, and the higher-ups will certainly order an investigation team to get to the bottom of it.

Once a thorough investigation is launched.

That would be far more than just a major political upheaval in Lincheng.

Like Zhao Lichun wielding the imperial sword, he is bound to bring about a major reshuffle of the entire officialdom in Handong.

He and Liang Qunfeng had painstakingly cultivated a group of people.

Do they all still want to improve?

Do they still want to hold onto real power?

It's already a miracle that we weren't implicated in this mining accident.

From Hou Liangping's perspective...

He certainly didn't care how many people died in the mining accident.

He didn't care whether the officialdom in Handong was about to undergo a major reshuffle.

His only concern was whether his father-in-law would be affected by this incident and unable to be transferred to the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection.

"Governor Zhao has made such a big fuss this time, won't it affect your transfer?"

Zhong Zhengguo took a sip of tea and chuckled.

"What do you think? If it doesn't have any impact, why would Old Ge be so furious? And why should I rush back in such a hurry?"

Setting down his teacup, Zhong Zhengguo took off his glasses and said in a low voice:

"Since your political awareness is still very low and your vision is not long-term enough, then let me be blunt!"

"Zhao Lichun's rise to power was just a formality, and sooner or later he would have to make personnel arrangements in Handong, but it was obviously not that easy."

"However, this sudden mining accident gave him an opportunity to take advantage of the situation, allowing him to legitimately fight corruption and make personnel changes, and I could not object."

"Because he has already stood on the moral high ground, stood among the people, received strong support from the top leadership, and raised the banner of anti-corruption. How many people can withstand an investigation?"

"The only thing I can do now is go back to my job and completely sever ties with the people Zhao Lichun wants to deal with, so as to ensure that I am not implicated. Do you understand?"

Having said that, Hou Liangping naturally understood.

The tide has turned; those people my father-in-law promoted and relied on in Handong cannot be protected, nor can they be protected.

It's already quite good that my father-in-law was able to keep himself out of trouble and ensure that his transfer wouldn't be affected.

As for those 'small fry' and 'crab generals', who cares about them?

"So, Liang Shuji shouldn't have any problems, right?"

"He won't, but his youngest son, Liang Wei, might be a different story!"