Chapter 232 Standing Committee Member's Decisive Move: He Xia's Thunderous Suppression of

Yi Xuexi picked up a metal pointer and tapped it on a red circle in the center of the drawing.

"Boss Qi, since you know the rules, I'll be frank with you."

"One hundred grams of tea leaves corresponds to five minutes of reading time."

"In these five minutes, whichever piece of land you fancy, as long as the funds are in place, I guarantee the management committee's approval document will be on your desk tomorrow."

Qi Tongwei stood in front of the blueprints, while a military-style button camera on his collar silently recorded everything.

The high-definition camera not only captured the complete planning map, but also clearly showed Yi Xuexi's greedy face.

"Secretary Yi, can we just pick any of the red circles on these blueprints?"

Yi Xuexi tapped the edge of the drawing with his pointer, appearing extremely confident.

"Aside from the few tough nuts that Tianhe Group and Huarui Heavy Industry have taken, you can point to the rest."

"Once you step through this door and drink my tea..."

"In the Luzhou Development Zone, there is no land that cannot be approved."

Yi Xuexi pointed to a piece of land near the blue line and began to explain in detail.

"Look at this piece of land. It's a wasteland now, and its market value is less than ten million."

"But look at this blue line. In three years, this will be a transfer station for Metro Line 2."

"If you take it now and hold onto it for three years, it will increase in value more than tenfold."

"And this green area will soon be designated as the school district for the city's key high school."

"Building commercial housing will be extremely popular."

Yi Xuexi speaks fluently and clearly, analyzing the potential value of each piece of land.

This seemingly hardworking man is actually the biggest land broker in Luzhou.

He used his power to turn national plans into a tool for personal enrichment.

Qi Tongwei pretended to look around at the blueprints, and finally pointed to the plot of land near the planned future subway line.

"I think this one is pretty good."

Yi Xuexi glanced at it and smiled with satisfaction.

"You have a sharp eye."

"This plot of land will be listed for sale next month, with a starting price of 20 million."

"Just prepare the funds and go through the motions. I'll take care of the other competitors for you."

"The funds don't need to go through a domestic account; they'll be transferred directly to Qingfeng Pavilion's designated overseas account. It's safe and clean."

Qi Tongwei nodded in agreement.

"Secretary Yi is indeed meticulous in his work."

Yi Xuexi put away his pointer, walked over to Qi Tongwei, and patted him heavily on the shoulder.

"Boss Qi, work for me, and I guarantee you'll make a fortune."

"In our Luzhou, Secretary Sha is like a god."

"I am easy to learn, that is, the earth."

3:00 AM, Operations Room of the Handong Provincial Military Region.

Cold rain pattered against the high-rise skylights, making a soft, crisp sound. The huge tactical screen emitted a ghostly blue glow, casting a somber and cold light over the entire space.

The door was pushed open, bringing in a blast of damp, cold air.

Qi Tongwei strode in, wearing his soaking wet black jacket. He didn't even bother to wipe the rain off his clothes, and slammed a heavy brown paper bag onto the heavy control panel.

"Secretary Shen, it's all here."

Qi Tongwei pulled over a tactical chair and sat down. He took out a USB flash drive with a fingerprint lock from his inner pocket, along with a purple clay tea canister with the words "Qingfeng Pavilion" printed on it, and placed them side by side on the table.

"This old ox has been hiding his true strength very well."

"That tea shop on the old street in the south of the city was just a shell company for money laundering. The legal representative was his mother-in-law, and large sums of cash were deposited into the account every day. As soon as the money arrived, it was immediately transferred through underground banks to more than a dozen different accounts overseas. The money chain was completely laundered."

"That dilapidated house holds a lot of secrets. The living room has an old sofa and a broken coffee table, but behind the bookshelf is a temperature-controlled secret room. Inside hangs a panoramic plan of Luzhou for the next ten years. As long as the money is right, you can pick any piece of land you want. One hundred grams of tea leaves starts at five hundred thousand."

Qi Tongwei finished speaking with a series of cold laughs.

Shen Zhong leaned back in his chair, fiddling with the brass bullet casing in his hand. He didn't touch the tea canister; his gaze was fixed on the USB drive that Qi Tongwei had plugged into the computer.

A high-definition video is playing on the screen.

Wearing a faded tank top and ripped socks, Yi Xuexi was pointing a pointer at the Luzhou planning map and spouting nonsense. He analyzed the potential value of every piece of land in great detail, even promising to help people eliminate their competitors.

His greedy and insatiable demeanor was completely different from his righteous and awe-inspiring appearance at the Standing Committee meeting.

The sound of military boots treading the corridor could be heard from outside the door.

Zhou Weiguo pushed open the door and entered, followed by two fully armed Dragon Fang special forces members. Between the members was a portly middle-aged man. This man was none other than Old Liu, the construction subcontractor.

Old Liu was terrified; his legs were weak and he only managed to stay upright because two team members supported him.

"Sir, the person has been brought back."

Zhou Weiguo placed a confession with a red handprint on it on the table.

"This kid confessed everything. He and Xiao Gangyu were college classmates. It was Xiao Gangyu who instructed him to hire thugs to cause trouble at the Luzhou construction site. The final payment was made through the secret accounts of the Jingzhou Municipal Procuratorate and reimbursed under the guise of office expenses."

"Xiao Gangyu guaranteed him that as long as he sabotaged Tianhe Group's project, he would receive 200 million yuan for the civil engineering work afterwards. These two have done plenty of this kind of dirty work involving collusion between officials and businessmen in Jingzhou."

The two irrefutable pieces of evidence were officially presented on the control panel.

On one side are Xiao Gangyu's confession and bank transfer records regarding his involvement in the case and the sabotage of key provincial projects.

On one hand, there are videos and financial records showing that Yi Xuexi used the opportunity to rise to power and was actually a corrupt official.

Looking at the two documents on the table, Qi Tongwei was in a state of extreme excitement. He finally understood the thrill of working under Shen Zhong.

There's no need to wrangle with those old foxes in officialdom, no need to try to maintain a balance of power. Just use the military's intelligence network and special forces to uproot the enemy completely.

This is the true meaning of a dimensional reduction attack.

Gao Yuliang's relinquishment of the position of Secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission, seemingly a gesture of submission to Sha Ruijin, was actually a ploy to use Yi Xuexi to destabilize Lüzhou. Sha Ruijin, in turn, intended to use Yi Xuexi as a tool to completely sever He Xia's political career. Both men harbored their own agendas, yet both were plotting against Shen Zhong.

Unfortunately, in the face of absolute intelligence superiority, all political schemes and calculations seem utterly ridiculous.

Shen Zhong propped the spent cartridge case in his hand up on the table.

"Weiguo, take Lao Liu away and keep him in solitary confinement. No one may interrogate him without my order."

Zhou Weiguo waved his hand, and two team members dragged the limp Lao Liu out.

Shen Zhong picked up the phone on the table and dialed Lu Zhou's number.

The phone was answered after ringing twice.

"Still not asleep?"

Shen Zhong spoke.

The sound of He Xia flipping through documents came from the other end of the phone.

"Yi Xuexi is going to convene a meeting of the Standing Committee of the Lüzhou Municipal Party Committee at nine o'clock tomorrow morning to finalize the decision to suspend work for rectification. I'm currently reviewing the loss reports of Tianhe Group and Huarui Heavy Industry, and I can't sleep."

"The investors only gave us three days. Yi Xuexi, relying on the provincial party committee's authority, is completely unyielding. Several deputy directors of the municipal bureau have already been suspended by him under various pretexts. He now calls the shots in the political and legal system. He's clearly trying to force me out."

He Xia's words revealed exhaustion, but she remained rational.

Shen Zhong took the copy of the file and handed it to Qi Tongwei, who was standing next to him.

"The Standing Committee meeting will proceed as scheduled."

"Let him perform."

"I've already dispatched the Dragon Fang Special Forces to deliver Yi Xuexi's details to Luzhou overnight. The information will be delivered directly to you in three hours."