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

The air conditioner in the conference room was humming.

Zhu Jichang felt as if he were being roasted on a stove.

Shen Zhong twirled the fountain pen in his hand, again and again.

With each turn, Zhu Jichang's heart would leap into his throat.

"Choose." Shen Zhong repeated again.

There's no earth-shattering roar, it's just that this calm tone, like asking you what you've had for breakfast, that's the most deadly.

Zhu Jichang did not want to choose the first option.

Once you go into a military tribunal, you're unlikely to get out.

Moreover, every single thing written in that black notebook could land him in jail for life.

Even if Zhao Lichun were sitting in the main seat right now, it wouldn't give him any sense of security.

Faced with absolute military deterrence and the heavy stick of the law, all the unspoken rules of officialdom become worthless.

"I...I choose option two."

Zhu Jichang's voice was weak, as if it were being squeezed out of his throat.

"I can't hear you." Shen Zhong stopped writing. "Speak louder."

Zhu Jichang gritted his teeth, closed his eyes, and roared, "I choose option two! We'll demolish it as soon as we get back! Immediately! Develop a demolition plan!"

After saying this, he seemed to have all his strength drained away, and he slumped into the chair.

My shirt was soaked with sweat and stuck to my back, which was very uncomfortable.

Shen Zhong nodded in satisfaction.

"very good."

He shifted his gaze from Zhu Jichang to Zhou Guichun beside him.

Zhou Guichun listened intently the whole time.

He almost jumped up when he felt Shen Zhong's gaze sweep over him.

Before Shen Zhong could speak, Zhou Guichun hurriedly declared, "Standing Committee Member Shen, I will personally oversee the matter of the military fiber optic cable! Three days... no, two days! Within two days, all the illegally constructed structures will be demolished, and the municipal government will cover all the costs!"

joke.

Even Zhu Jichang's close confidant, the provincial party secretary, knelt down; how could he possibly remain upright?

If Shen Zhong were to flip through those black notebook a couple more times, who knows what deadly things he might reveal next.

Shen Zhong didn't say anything, but simply put the pen back in his shirt pocket and picked up his teacup again.

That aggressive demeanor subsided somewhat.

But even sitting there, he still seemed like a mountain, pressing down on people and making it hard to breathe.

An eerie silence fell over the conference room.

Zhao Lichun's face was so dark it looked like it could drip water.

This "Feast at Hongmen," which was originally a meticulously planned trap to annihilate Shen Zhong, has now completely turned into Shen Zhong's personal show.

Two capable henchmen, one was terrified, and the other surrendered voluntarily.

That was a huge slap in the face.

Zhao Lichun wanted to say something to salvage the situation, such as emphasizing the procedures or criticizing Shen Zhong's methods.

But he couldn't open his mouth.

That's a military restricted area; it's about safety, about righteousness, and it's a red line.

He couldn't find a starting point for the time being.

Just then, a soft knocking sound broke the silence.

"Tap, tap."

Governor Liu Changchun, sitting to Zhao Lichun's left, held a pen in his hand and gently tapped the edge of the table.

Everyone looked over.

Liu Changchun's face was expressionless, but his eyes were bright.

"The question that Comrade Shen Zhong just raised was very sharp and very timely."

Liu Changchun speaks slowly and clearly.

"Some of our comrades have indeed stayed in the local areas for too long, and have come to regard the land as their own backyard."

"For the sake of GDP and so-called political achievements, they have disregarded national security."

"What kind of problem is this? This is a problem of political stance!"

The moment Liu Changchun said that, the atmosphere in the conference room completely changed.

If Shen Zhong was stabbing someone with a knife, then Liu Changchun was rubbing salt into the wound.

Zhao Lichun clenched his fist tightly under the table.

He knew that Liu Changchun had long been dissatisfied with his one-man rule, but had been enduring it.

Unexpectedly, taking advantage of Shen Zhong's momentum, they launched an attack today.

Before Zhao Lichun could figure out how to retaliate, Tian Guofu, the secretary of the Discipline Inspection Commission who had been silent until now, saw Liu Changchun's signal to attack. A hint of excitement flashed in his eyes, and he made his move.

He took a red notebook out of his briefcase.

It wasn't a heavy-duty black military notebook, but a notebook used by the Discipline Inspection Commission.

He turned to a page, picked up a pen, and began to write and talk.

"The clues that Comrade Shen Zhong just provided are very valuable."

Tian Guofu's voice was somewhat hoarse, but to Zhu Jichang it sounded like a death knell.

"It seems that there are indeed blind spots in the work of our provincial discipline inspection commission. Some problems even require the help of comrades from the military region to discover them."

Tian Guofu raised his head, his gaze sweeping coldly over Zhu Jichang and Zhou Guichun through his glasses.

"Now that the problem has been exposed, we can't ignore it."

"The Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection has set up a special task force to conduct an in-depth investigation into the so-called 'intermediary fees' and the issue of nominee shareholding."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Jichang's face turned completely ashen.

Verification.

Once the disciplinary committee intervenes in the investigation, they will strip down your clothes and take a look.

The mess he and Zhou Guichun made can't stand up to scrutiny.

The two instinctively looked at Zhao Lichun, who was their last straw.

But Zhao Lichun kept his head down, drinking tea, without even lifting his eyelids.

It's beyond saving.

At this point, stubbornly defending your position will only backfire.

Shen Zhong's reasons were sound, and with the combined efforts of Liu Changchun and Tian Guofu, he had already lost ground in the meeting.

"Let me say a few words too."

Li Dakang slammed his notebook onto the table.

Since everyone is kicking him while he's down, he doesn't mind giving him another kick.

He was planning that if the two municipal party secretaries of the neighboring city were removed from their posts, he could take the opportunity to win over some businesses.

"Comrade Ji Chang just said something about damaging the investment environment."

Li Dakang sneered.

"If an investment is obtained through illegal and unethical means that sacrifice national security, it's better to lose it!"

"I, Li Dakang, am the first to oppose this kind of GDP tainted by blood, this kind of project that plants time bombs for national security!"

"If this is what you call managing the economy, then it's utter nonsense! It's playing the piano haphazardly!"

Li Dakang's loud voice echoed in the conference room.

Zhao Lichun placed the teacup on the table with a crisp sound.

Today's Standing Committee meeting was a complete defeat for the Zhao family faction.

Shen Zhong sat in his seat, watching these scenes unfold.

He nodded slightly to Liu Changchun and Tian Guofu.

This is a tacit understanding.

In this battlefield without gunfire, the enemy of my enemy is my temporary ally.

As long as the interests align, this weapon can be borrowed and used.

Zhao Lichun knew he couldn't let these people continue talking; if they did, the entire officialdom of Handong would be shaken to its core.

"Now that the problem has been identified, let's proceed according to procedure."

Zhao Lichun sounded tired, wanting to summarize and put the matter behind him.

That concludes today's meeting...

"Wait a minute."

Tian Guofu closed the red notebook.

He ignored Zhao Lichun's intention to adjourn the meeting and instead looked directly at Zhu Jichang, whose face had turned ashen.

"Secretary Zhu, don't rush back to Luzhou after the meeting."

Tian Guofu stood up and straightened his clothes.

"Come to my office. There are some things I'd like you to explain in person."