The lawyer's words caused a rare mont of panic for Guo Tong.
He sat in the interrogation chair in silence, quickly reflecting in his mind.
He had always been very cautious in his dealings, especially when he first started interacting with officials, treating every step as if walking on thin ice.
As he dealt with more and more officials, he accumulated a wealth of experience, able to ascertain an official's character with a brief conversation and strategize accordingly.
Every interaction and bribe was conducted in cash and always in an absolutely safe location to ensure no evidence was left with the other party.
After quickly contemplating, he confird that he had left no evidence whatsoever.
But as the lawyer said, the police would not lie to him.
Moreover, if there was no evidence, the police wouldn't risk alarming him.
So the question arose, what exactly was the evidence the police had?
His first reaction was that soone close to him had betrayed him!
Yet again, even his closest people couldn't possibly have evidence of his bribery given his caution.
Regaining his composure, he whispered, "Contact Mr. Xu for , tell him about the situation here."
"Alright." The lawyer asked, "Is there anything else you need to relay?"
Guo Tong shook his head.
Being restricted in freedom, there wasn't much he could do.
Besides, he was well aware that whether he committed a cri was irrelevant; the crucial point was whether Mr. Xu could overpower Song Guanchao.
This was a battle of backgrounds.
He could only pin his hopes on Mr. Xu now.
He hoped Mr. Xu could suppress Song Guanchao, instill fear in him, and minimize the impact of the issue.
"By the way," Guo Tong said, "Help apply for bail pending trial."
"I will apply, but it may not succeed."
With Guo Tong's special status, the police wouldn't normally touch him.
Once they did, however, they wouldn't give him any chances.
Therefore, the odds of bail pending trial were minimal.
The lawyer returned to the car and imdiately called Mr. Xu to inform him of the situation.
"I see."
Mr. Xu was quite surprised that the police had actually arrested Guo Tong.
He pondered for a long ti before deciding to visit the City Committee.
At two in the afternoon, he arrived at the City Committee and t Zhou Zheng.
"Secretary Zhou, long ti no see." Mr. Xu, in his forties, smiled and placed a box of tea leaves on the table.
"Authentic rock tea, try it if you have ti."
Zhou Zheng opened the box in front of him, confirming it was rely tea leaves, before accepting it.
Seeing his actions, Mr. Xu felt speechless: "You're already sitting as City Secretary, do you really need to be this cautious?"
Power is money—who enters politics without this aim?
However, even after years of interaction, Mr. Xu couldn't successfully give gifts to Zhou Zheng, which honestly left him feeling quite frustrated.
Zhou Zheng didn't continue the conversation but instead asked, "You wouldn't co without reason, what brings you here?"
Mr. Xu replied, "A friend of mine was arrested by the police, and I wanted to inquire about the situation with Secretary Zhou."
Zhou Zheng replied matter-of-factly, "I can help you inquire."
Implicitly, he could only inquire, not intervene.
Mr. Xu, accustod to dealing with him, said, "His na is Guo Tong, just recently arrested today for bribery."
Zhou Zheng acknowledged, picked up his phone, thought for a mont, and dialed Wen Ru's number instead of Liang Jianfeng's.
For such matters, it was best not to contact Liang Jianfeng, lest he anger himself unnecessarily.
"Political Commissioner Wen, could you check if soone nad Guo Tong was arrested today?"
"Yes." Wen Ru answered directly.
Zhou Zheng knew imdiately that what Guo Tong committed must be significant.
It was said to be bribery, but if Wen Ru didn't even need to check to know this person, it ant she was personally handling the case.
"What's the situation with this Guo Tong?"
"He bribed Secretary Qiu of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission." Wen Ru said, "Secretary Zhou should be aware of the recent situation at the commission?"
Zhou Zheng was surprised; was it this case?
"Is the evidence solid?"
"Solid."
"Is the case being handled by Director Song?"
"Yes, the evidence was also provided by him."
"Alright, understood."
After hanging up, Zhou Zheng looked at Mr. Xu with a sharp gaze: "Is the state-owned enterprise restructuring and sale your doing?"
Mr. Xu feigned ignorance: "I don't understand what Secretary Zhou is talking about."
Zhou Zheng snorted, "I can't handle this case, if you want to help soone, you'll have to find another way."
Mr. Xu expressed surprise: "You can't handle matters in Jiangzhou, Secretary Zhou?"
Zhou Zheng's face darkened, that comnt was... quite embarrassing.
But he wasn't wrong.
He was in charge, yes, but it wasn't as glamorous as it seed.
At least, he couldn't ddle with the City Governnt, and had plenty of opposition.
Besides, they have backing, while he had nothing at his back.
He had just managed to hold talks with Secretary Gao; he didn't want to have any conflicts with Wu Qiangwei or Song Guanchao at this crucial mont.
"Can't handle it."
"Alright, I won't trouble Secretary Zhou then."
Mr. Xu stood up: "You must be busy, Secretary Zhou, I'll take my leave."
After he left, Zhou Zheng hesitated about whether or not to ntion it to Wu Qiangwei.
After much consideration, he called Wu Qiangwei.
"Mayor Wu, how's Director Song's case coming along?"
"I haven't asked, if Secretary Zhou wishes to know, I can have Director Song report to you."
"Alright, please inform him."
...
"Reporting to him?"
Receiving the call, Song Guanchao was visibly displeased.
Wu Qiangwei said, "I know you don't wish to deal with him, but he's still the Secretary, and since he called personally, we should give him so face."
"Got it, I'll head over shortly."
After hanging up, Song Guanchao said, "To the City Committee."
"Okay." Wu Yun drove to the City Committee and asked, "Shall I accompany you?"
"Together."
There's no need to be overly polite to Zhou Zheng, and besides, Wu Yun represents the Disciplinary Committee, which was also a reminder that this matter involved the cooperation of the City Governnt, police, and the Disciplinary Committee.
"Knock knock." The secretary opened the door: "Secretary Zhou, Director Song has arrived."
"Invite him in."
Song Guanchao and Wu Yun entered and waited for the secretary to leave before beginning his report imdiately.
After he finished, Zhou Zheng said, "Soone asked about this case."
Knowing Guo Tong had backing didn't surprise Song Guanchao at all.
A businessman wouldn't dare such actions without support.
What surprised him was why Zhou Zheng was discussing it so openly with him.
Was he trying to pressure him?
Without responding, he gazed at Zhou Zheng, trying to understand his intentions through maintaining silence.
Zhou Zheng felt displeased, as he was indirectly fostering goodwill, intending to ease tensions.
But dealing with soone like Song Guanchao, who was like a stone from a latrine—slly and stubborn—left him feeling his goodwill was wasted.
"The person behind Guo Tong may contact you, be prepared."
Zhou Zheng paused, then added, "The officialdom isn't about fighting; it's about etiquette, fostering many friends and minimizing enemies. Handling matters isn't solely about conflicts."
With a cold laugh, Song Guanchao sneered internally: Are you teaching how to do my job?
Evidently, the old fox wanted to act as a diator, hoping he would drop the case against Guo Tong.
He couldn't be bothered; rising, he said, "If there's nothing else, Secretary Zhou, I'll take my leave."
Zhou Zheng twitched with irritation, realizing Song Guanchao had misconstrued his intentions.
He felt almost at a loss for words because he was sincerely offering counsel. Not only was it unappreciated, but this attitude was completely unwarranted.
Taking a deep breath, Zhou Zheng told himself not to get angry.
"The person behind Guo Tong, surnad Xu, has connections in Beijing."
"You can choose to give him face or not. This is Jiangzhou, they won't dare cross you excessively."
Hmm?
Those words, Song Guanchao understood.
Why was he suddenly standing by his side?
Was this guy hedging his bets?
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