Chapter 235 A Zero-Sum Game? Shen Zhong Reveals Sha Ruijin's Trump Cards

Office of the Political Commissar of the Provincial Military Region.

Shen Zhong sat behind his large desk, holding a soft cotton cloth in his hand, slowly wiping a black Type 92 pistol.

The strong smell of gun oil permeated the air.

A dozen or so brass bullets were neatly stacked on the table, gleaming with a metallic sheen under the cold light of the table lamp.

A series of hurried footsteps came from outside the door, mixed with the guards' attempts to stop them.

"Director Qi, the leader is in his office; you cannot simply walk in!"

"Get out of the way!"

The door was violently pushed open from the outside.

Qi Tongwei strode in, his clothes damp with sweat, and slammed the door shut behind him, leaving the guards outside.

His black jacket was completely soaked, with rain dripping down the hem.

He walked to the desk, and without any hesitation, bent his knees and slammed them heavily onto the floor.

"Thump!"

A dull thud echoed through the room.

Qi Tongwei knelt on one knee, head bowed, rain dripping down his chin and splashing a small, dark stain on the carpet.

Shen Zhong didn't stop what he was doing; he pulled over a soft cloth and carefully wiped the gun barrel.

"Have you forgotten the rules?"

"They come into my office without even submitting a report."

"Secretary Shen, I'm here to plead for Secretary Gao."

Qi Tongwei raised his head, facing the light of the table lamp, his voice hoarse.

"Gao Yuliang was indeed the mastermind behind Yi Xuexi and Xiao Gangyu's affair."

"But he was also driven to a dead end."

Qi Tongwei spoke very quickly, recounting everything that Teacher Wu had confessed to the special investigation team.

"Sha Ruijin used a video of Gao Xiaofeng and her son being locked in an iron cage and doused with gasoline to force him to defect."

"Chung Siu-ai hired people from the Hong Kong Island North View Tower to hand over the hostages to Sha Rui-jin as leverage."

"Gao Yuliang used the political and legal system to get involved in Luzhou's project in order to save the life of that illegitimate child."

"He could have dragged me down with him and made me do these dirty jobs."

"But he gave up in the end; he didn't want to ruin me."

Qi Tongwei rested his hands on his knees, his back ramrod straight.

"Sir, Gao Yuliang is guilty. He should be sentenced according to the proper punishment."

"But I'll stake my life on him, begging you to give him a chance to atone for his crimes, and not let him fall into Sha Ruijin's hands."

Shen Zhong put down the soft cloth, picked up a brass bullet from the table, and loaded it into the magazine.

The friction of metal produced a crisp "click" sound.

Sha Ruijin made an extremely ruthless move.

Using hostages to blackmail the deputy secretary of the provincial party committee, forcing the secretary of the political and legal affairs committee to become cannon fodder in the battle.

This is a zero-sum game that has completely overturned the table.

He pushed the magazine up heavily, pulled the slide, and loaded the bullet.

He placed the gun on the table, stood up, walked around the large desk, and stood in front of Qi Tongwei.

"stand up."

Qi Tongwei did not move.

Shen Zhong reached out, grabbed his shoulder, and lifted him up with force.

"Do you think I'd just execute Gao Yuliang because he did something stupid?"

"You underestimate me too much, and you overestimate Sha Ruijin."

"Since Sha Ruijin likes to play blackmail games..."

"Let's show him what a 'dimensional reduction attack' really means."

Qi Tongwei stood still, looking at Shen Zhong.

Shen Zhong turned around and walked to the tactical whiteboard.

The whiteboard is covered with photos of key figures from Handong Province, connected by intricate lines.

Shen Zhong picked up a red marker, drew a thick line between the photos of Sha Ruijin and Gao Yuliang, and then heavily crossed it out.

"Gao Yuliang must not be arrested."

"He is now the most important card in Sha Ruijin's hand."

"Take this card and turn it into the final knife that pierces Sarek's heart."

Qi Tongwei stepped forward.

"Sir, Gao Yuliang is currently being held hostage by Sha Ruijin's video, and he dares not resist."

"Sha Ruijin held his last line of defense, so he had no choice but to obey."

Shen Zhong threw the marker on the table.

"This is Sha Ruijin's biggest weakness."

"He thought he had Gao Yuliang cornered, but he didn't know that there is something in this world called intelligence crushing."

Shen Zhong turned around and walked back to his desk, picked up the red secure phone, and dialed the underground operations room directly.

"Weiguo, have you locked onto the cleaning route on Hong Kong Island?"

Zhou Weiguo gave a concise and efficient report over the phone.

"Reporting to the commander, we have locked onto the location."

"The target was moved to an abandoned underground air-raid shelter on the edge of Kowloon Walled City."

"Liu Sheng's gangsters kept watch on the outside, while the Zhong family's cleaners guarded the inside."

"The first squad of the Dragon Fang Special Forces is in position. The Hong Kong gangsters on the outskirts have had their support routes cut off by our people."

"We can storm in at any time, as long as you give the order."

Shen Zhong looked at the pistol on the table.

"Tell them to stay put and wait for my attack order."

"Remember, the absolute safety of the hostages must be guaranteed."

"The news is completely blocked; the Zhong family and Sha Ruijin must not detect any movement."

"clear!"

Shen Zhong hung up the phone and looked at Qi Tongwei.

"Go to Gao Yuliang's house."

"Give him a message."

"The military will rescue Gao Xiaofeng and her son from Hong Kong Island alive within three days."

There is only one condition.

Shen Zhong pressed one hand on the table.

"At the next provincial party committee standing committee meeting, he must completely defect and deliver the most fatal blow to Sha Ruijin."

Qi Tongwei stood at attention and gave a standard military salute.

"Mission accomplished!"

He turned around, strode out of the office, and quickly disappeared at the end of the corridor.

late at night.

The provincial party committee compound, Gao Yuliang's two-story villa.

It was still pouring rain outside, and the wind was whipping the tree branches against the glass.

The lights were off in the living room.

Gao Yuliang sat on the sofa, with an encrypted phone on the coffee table in front of him.

He was completely shrouded in shadow, his fingers tapping erratically on his knees.

The news that Yi Xuexi and Xiao Gangyu had been imprisoned had left him with no way out.

He originally thought that by using Xiao Gangyu to investigate Ouyang Jing and freeze Luzhou's funds, he could force Shen Zhong to comply.

As a result, Shen Zhong did not play by the rules at all, and directly used military force to uproot Yi Xuexi and Xiao Gangyu.

Now he doesn't have a single card left to play.

The phone screen on the coffee table lit up.

The caller ID shows a number with no registered address.

Gao Yuliang answered the phone and held it to his ear.

Sha Ruijin spoke up from the other end.

"Comrade Yuliang, things in Luzhou weren't handled very well."

"He Xia practically got Yi Xuexi admitted directly."

"You, the secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission, have lost your edge."

Gao Yuliang leaned back against the sofa.

"Secretary Ruijin, Shen Zhong's counterattack has exceeded my expectations."

"He used the military's power to bypass local procedures."

"Tian Guofu led his men into the meeting room, and I didn't even have a chance to intervene."

Sha Ruijin chuckled on the other end of the line.

I won't listen to objective reasons.

I only care about the results.

"If you don't take some concrete actions, I might lose control of Hong Kong Island. You're in charge of the province's public security system!"

"The smell of gasoline in that iron cage is getting stronger and stronger."

Gao Yuliang stopped tapping and gripped the sofa armrest tightly.

"I'll think of a way."

A satisfactory reply came from the other end of the phone.

"very good."

"This is the kind of boldness that the deputy secretary of the Hantong Provincial Party Committee should have."

"I'm waiting for your good news."

The phone hangs up.

Gao Yuliang threw his phone back onto the coffee table and slumped onto the sofa.

He took off his glasses, rubbed his throbbing temples, and exuded a sense of utter despondency.

At the corner of the stairs on the second floor.

Qi Tongwei stood in the darkness, holding a black pistol fitted with a silencer, the muzzle pointing diagonally at the ground.

He climbed in through the open back window.

He overheard the entire conversation between Gao Yuliang and Sha Ruijin from upstairs.

Listen to how this former mentor was forced to retreat step by step by Sha Ruijin, and finally completely abandoned his bottom line.

Qi Tongwei started walking down the wooden stairs, step by step.

The soles of the shoes made a very slight friction sound as they stepped on the solid wood floor.

Upon hearing the noise, Gao Yuliang immediately sat up straight and turned to look in the direction of the stairs.

"Who?"

Qi Tongwei emerged from the darkness and, using the faint light from the streetlights streaming in through the window, stood in the center of the living room.

"Teacher Gao, it's me."