Free Web NovelChapter 245: Chapter 242 Startling the Snake in the Grass_1
February 1, 2012
Zhou Ning woke up, and it was already past eight o’clock. Mr. Zhao had cooked wontons, so he quickly washed up and then sat down at the dining table.
"Has Xiaoyu left?"
Mr. Zhao pursed his lips and responded with a grunt through his nose.
"These two really are something, constantly showing off their affection. Do they not realize there are two single dogs right here? Mr. He came over early in the morning to pick up Xiaoyu and even brought breakfast for her. The audacity of having me warm it up, can you believe it?"
Zhou Ning laughed, Mr. He was definitely doing it on purpose.
"Don’t be mad. Have you prepared the gift money?"
Mr. Zhao rolled his eyes.
"It shows that you’re a real brother. Don’t worry, I’ve prepared it well in advance. But I’m going to play the role of the bride’s family, so all the tasks like giving the groom a hard time at the door, I’ll take care of. I’ll have a good time teasing Mr. He!"
"Don’t be mad. We got up late as it is, hurry up and eat. We still have to go to the station."
Without any further discussion, the two quickly finished their meal and rushed to the technical division. Upon entering the office, they saw Xu Dayuan sitting in Zhou Ning’s seat.
Xu Dayuan didn’t speak, his expression looked a bit strange, glancing at Zhou Ning from time to time.
"What’s wrong, leader? With that expression, if I hadn’t stayed with Zhou Xiaozhou last night, I would have thought Zhou Xiaozhou did something to offend you."
Xu Dayuan raised his hand, and Mr. Zhao quickly dodged, as the expression was somewhat frightening.
"Zhou Xiaozhou, do you know any high-ranking leaders? I don’t mean those from the city, but leaders from the provincial department or even higher up, like the Ministry of Public Security?"
Zhou Ning was puzzled and shook his head instinctively.
"I don’t know any. What happened, leader? Is there a problem?"
Xu Dayuan nodded then shook his head again.
Mr. Zhao couldn’t stand it anymore.
"Leader, you’re shaking and nodding your head, making us guess blindly here. Just tell us what happened. Did Mr. Hu encounter resistance when he went to report to the provincial department?"
"On the contrary, before Mr. Hu had a chance to report at the provincial office, he received a call telling him to stay put. An hour later, about a dozen people went straight to his room, listened to his report, and then sent Mr. Hu back.
They instructed us to proceed as usual, monitor the movements of Ren Guangzhi and his son, and Wang Guanli, and be ready to arrest them at any time. Of course, we also need to control Wu Chuanju, the President of Guanghai Pharmaceutical Group who is currently hospitalized, along with other related individuals on the list."
As Xu Dayuan spoke, he pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket and unfolded it. It listed almost thirty people. These were not high-level executives from Guanghai Pharmaceuticals, but all were city leaders and key department heads. Several were recognizable from TV appearances.
The most notable was the current city police chief, Ren Fangliang. Seeing his name listed alongside the others, Zhou Ning had a revelation; after all, from the surname, one could guess that Ren Fangliang seemed to be related to Ren Guangzhi.
But this was all just overnight. How did this list come about?
Mr. Zhao was no fool, immediately scrutinizing the list closely. There was no Xia Shouchang on it, which gave him some relief.
"Leader, you’ve got me confused. This case has clearly caught the attention of the Ministry of Public Security and they must have already begun a secret investigation, or else these names would not have come out. But you just asked Zhou Xiaozhou if he knows any high-ranking officials on the list. What’s that supposed to mean?"
Xu Dayuan lit a cigarette, looked at the two, and then slapped another piece of paper on the table, which turned out to be a red-headed document dated today.
Seeing Zhou Ning’s slightly shocked expression, Xu Dayuan sighed and continued:
"Because the notice mentioned Zhou Xiaozhou’s name, it ordered Mr. Hu to establish a special investigation team to work with the Ministry of Public Security. The station’s first squad and the second group of the forensic department, with Zhou Ning included, are to actively investigate the causes of death of Fang Wenjie, Qin Xuejin, and Zhang Yinan, starting today."
Zhou Ning pondered for a moment, then looked at Xu Dayuan and asked:
"Has Mr. Hu returned?" freewёbn૦νeɭ.com
Xu Dayuan nodded.
"Leader, I don’t know any high-ranking officials. If I did, some things I would have started investigating long ago. Last night, I only wanted to analyze the case with my mentor, Professor Li Chengbin, since he also knows Mr. Hu, so I told him about Mr. Hu’s trip to the provincial office.
I know I should keep the case details confidential and should not disclose them to non-special case group personnel. But it was an urgent matter, and I didn’t want more cases like Zhang Yinan’s. I accept any disciplinary action from the station."
Xu Dayuan’s face brightened with understanding as he listened to Zhou Ning’s words and rolled his eyes at him.
"Who said anything about pursuing responsibility or disciplinary action? Mr. Hu left last night all gung-ho as if ready to face death, but today, upon his return, the entire narrative changed, and the department seemed to have been investigating for a while already. Besides, I had forgotten about Professor Li Chengbin. If he steps in, everything makes sense."
Just as he was speaking, the door sounded, and Hu Guangjian walked in.
His eyes were bloodshot, but his whole demeanor was different.
"What are you talking about behind my back? Righteous indignation? Ready to face death?"
Xu Dayuan chuckled a couple of times and didn’t dare to continue the topic. freeweɓnovēl.coɱ
Hu Guangjian walked up to the group, looked around, patted Zhou Ning on the shoulder, and didn’t continue the conversation.
"Alright, since we’ve received orders, let’s promptly deploy. To prevent information leaks, I’ve brought a team from the sub-bureau. Before coming here, all their communication devices were handed over, and they’re all downstairs. The internal announcement said it was special training. Mr. Xu, you’ll arrange the tasks.
As for Guanghai Pharmaceutical Group, in accordance with higher-level directives, we will make direct contact, investigating on the premise of Zhang Yinan’s suicide case. The second team of the forensic department will go directly to the scene for examination, and Xu Dayuan, arrange for capable people to follow. As for Ren Jingmin and Wang Guanli, if they hinder the investigation, arrest them immediately."
"Yes."
Xu Dayuan stood at attention and saluted, and Hu Guangjian quickly left.
Mr. Zhao blinked, this early morning, one shock after another. He peeked out the window and sure enough, there were many people standing below, and he recognized many familiar faces.
"Boss, the people are indeed downstairs. What did Mr. Hu mean just now? Are we to make a feint with the detailed investigation into Zhang Yinan’s cause of death, to scope things out first?"
Xu Dayuan nodded and glanced at Zhou Ning.
"Zhou Xiaozhou, get ready. Those two financial investigation experts and Mr. Qu are temporarily part of your team. Follow the second team to Guanghai Pharmaceuticals, we’ll go directly to inspect the site, and then meet this Mr. Ren. I’m going downstairs to arrange things, we’ll depart in ten minutes."
Zhou Ning was somewhat worried. Such arrangements were naturally fine, but Wang Guanli was no ordinary person—a desperate criminal who currently held the title of a military attaché at the Sapporo Country Embassy. His whereabouts were not confirmed. Was this really the right move...?
"Boss, Wang Guanli is no pushover. I severely suspect that the death of these three may have been his doing. If we go over there rashly and he’s not at Guanghai Pharmaceuticals, might he not escape?"
Xu Dayuan smiled mysteriously.
"Oh, you knew to call for reinforcements last night, and you think I can’t do something too? I won’t tell you guys. Hurry downstairs, I’m worried about information leaks if we delay too long—after all, you’ve all seen the list."
Zhou Ning nodded, and Xu Dayuan quickly left.
Without being told, Mr. Zhao was already dialing the phone, looking for Yang Xuetong and the other two, while Zhou Ning called Mr. Qu directly.
Soon, three individuals not officially part of the force, followed the second team downstairs, each wearing police uniforms, coats, masks, gloves, and at that moment, it was impossible to distinguish who was who.
Xu Dayuan was still assigning tasks, distributing temporary communication phones directly. Mr. Zeng was tasked with leading a team, mainly to expand external investigative forces, taking over the monitoring duties from last night’s investigation team.
Another team followed Mr. Hu to the two companies related to the Beishan Group.
The remaining group followed Xu Dayuan and got into the vehicle directly.
The team wasn’t large, but each person was visibly shaken when they heard the words "Beishan Group." He Chunyang, in particular, showed a mixture of shock and delight on his face. Everyone got into their vehicles, with Zhou Ning and his group naturally getting into the Iveco, and He Chunyang, unable to concern himself with much else, also squeezed in with Xu Dayuan.
The vehicle started, and He Chunyang bumped into Xu Dayuan.
"Boss, spill it, what’s going on? Why all the secrecy? When we came, they told us it was temporary special training. I felt there was something happening, so I left Zhang Haohao and Mr. Feng to hold down the fort, and brought everyone else."
Xu Dayuan passed the recent document to He Chunyang. After all, this was his old subordinate, and he was very clear about what kind of person he was. After reading the content, He Chunyang turned pale.
Seeing that none of them changed their expressions, his gaze swept over them.
"Did you guys stir up this case?"
Mr. Zhao, who was driving, nearly burst out laughing.
"I’m saying, Mr. He, save some grace. What do you mean we ’stirred it up’? It’s us and the boss who are unlucky, catching two cases in a row. During the investigation, we found anomalies, and then it led to a third victim. Afterwards, we uncovered a pile of evidence.
The amounts are enormous, and there are also many officials involved. The relationships are intricate. Never mind, I won’t go into detail with you. Just adjust your mindset. If anyone messes up, Mr. Xu really will give them a dressing-down!"
Xu Dayuan laughed, Mr. Zhao’s humorous remarks had clearly conveyed what he meant.
"We’re here to scare the snakes out. It’s even better if we find problems. If not, we’ll just serve them a warning shot. However arrogant they want to be is fine, right? If we cause a big fuss, then they’ll start to make moves, won’t they?"
He Chunyang nodded, looking at Xu Dayuan as if understanding but not quite getting it.
"Forget it, I won’t ask with my intelligence. Just tell me what to do, and I’ll do it!"
The car sped off quickly, and half an hour later, they arrived at Guanghai Pharmaceuticals. Several police cars arrived with sirens blaring and lights flashing, and the display was quite imposing. The security guards didn’t dare to stop them and immediately lifted the barrier.
As soon as they got out of the car, Xu Dayuan looked towards Mr. Qu.
Mr. Qu held up his phone, evidently tapped something, and gave Xu Dayuan a thumbs-up gesture. Then, Xu Dayuan received a message on his phone.
[Vice President’s Office on the 20th floor.]
Xu Dayuan adjusted his coat and straightened his police uniform.
A man in a suit hurriedly ran towards Xu Dayuan and the others, his eyes rushing over the crowd in a panic, as if he didn’t see any familiar faces. Finally, his gaze settled on Xu Dayuan, who had the highest rank.
"Boss, is this an investigation by the police station, or is something else going on?"
