Title: Reborn Qi Tongwei, who defies fate by half a move and refuses to kneel

Chapter 53 The Imperial Envoy Arrives, A Punch Hits Cotton

"rule?"

Qi Tongwei repeated the two words, his fingers gently stroking the Type 92 pistol that had just drunk blood—even though it was now lying quietly in the drawer.

He looked at Hou Liangping, who had an upright and righteous expression, as if he were looking at a child who hadn't been weaned yet, holding a wooden sword and about to slay a dragon.

"Liangping, do you think that with the imperial sword, you can just execute orders without consulting anyone?" Qi Tongwei stood up, walked around the desk, and wore that standard, impeccable smile. "I want to follow the rules, but Zhao Ruilong resisted arrest with a gun, assaulted police officers, and even tried to blow up the Dafeng Factory warehouse. If I don't detain him, am I supposed to just let him tear a hole in the sky in Jingzhou?"

Hou Liangping was taken aback. He hadn't expected Qi Tongwei to slap such a huge accusation on him.

"That's a different matter!" Hou Liangping loosened his tie, his tone firm. "Zhao Ruilong's case is another matter. I'm here mainly for Ding Yizhen's case. The Supreme People's Procuratorate has already approved the unconditional cooperation of the Handong Provincial Public Security Department and the Jingzhou Municipal Public Security Bureau. I now demand the immediate transfer of all case files related to Ding Yizhen, as well as the right to interrogate relevant personnel involved in the case."

He stared intently at Qi Tongwei, trying to detect any panic or resistance on his old classmate's face.

If Qi Tongwei dares to say even half a word of "no," he has a reason to report to his superiors and charge him with "obstructing the investigation."

However, Qi Tongwei's smile only grew wider.

"OK."

Qi Tongwei agreed readily, even with a hint of relief and satisfaction. "I was just worried that this case was too complicated for the city bureau, which is too small to handle. Since Director Hou is willing to take it on, he's done us a huge favor."

Hou Liangping was stunned. His punch, which he had been holding in with all his might, felt like he had punched a pile of cotton, leaving him feeling empty and uncomfortable.

"Donglai!" Qi Tongwei called out from outside the door.

Zhao Donglai pushed open the door and entered, followed by a young policewoman.

This policewoman is named Lin Hua, and she's the most beautiful girl in the city bureau's archives.

She wore a fitted navy blue police uniform, the fabric of which seemed barely able to contain her curvaceous figure. The buttons on her top were taut, outlining a breathtaking curve that rose and fell slightly with her breath, as if challenging the uniform's resilience.

When Lin Hua walked in, his long legs, encased in black uniform trousers, were straight and slender, each step carrying a subtle rhythm.

As she bent down to place a stack of documents on the coffee table, her firm hips instantly tightened, like a ripe peach, exuding a unique charm of a mature woman.

"Director Qi, you wanted to see me?" Lin Hua's voice was soft and sweet, but her eyes only dared to fall on Qi Tongwei's chin, with a hint of admiration and shyness.

Qi Tongwei, without looking to the side, pointed to Hou Liangping: "This is Director Hou from the Supreme People's Procuratorate. Notify the archives department to move all the files from the '116' major corruption case to Conference Room One. Remember, all of them."

"Yes," Lin Hua replied, turning and leaving, leaving a faint scent of gardenias in the air.

Hou Liangping frowned, his gaze lingering on the beautiful figure for half a second before he regained his composure: "Tongwei, don't try to fool me. I need the core case files."

"Don't worry, it's absolutely core." Qi Tongwei gestured for them to proceed. "Let's go to the conference room; Chen Hai is waiting for you there."

……

Conference Room 1.

When Hou Liangping pushed open the door, he was dumbfounded.

Chen Hai was sitting at one end of the long table when he saw Hou Liangping enter. He was excitedly about to stand up and greet him, "Monkey, you've finally arrived..."

Before he could finish speaking, the scene before him silenced him.

Four burly male police officers were pushing in two fully loaded flatbed carts. The carts were piled high with man-sized manila envelopes, teetering on the edge.

"Bang!"

The first stack of files slammed onto the conference table, dust swirling in the sunlight.

"Bang!"

The second stack.

In the blink of an eye, the mahogany conference table that could seat twenty people was piled up into a small mountain.

"This..." Hou Liangping stared in disbelief, pointing at the pile of things. "This is Ding Yizhen's case file? How could he have so much to do all by himself?"

"This is only the first batch." Qi Tongwei casually pulled out a document, dusted it off, and said, "Liangping, as you know, Ding Yizhen is the vice mayor in charge of urban construction. In the years he's been in office, he's approved thousands of projects, big and small, in Jingzhou. The approval process, fund flow, bank statements, and tax records for each project are all here."

Qi Tongwei turned to a page and pointed to the densely packed tables: "Look, this is the preliminary review opinion on the land approval for the Guangming Peak project. According to the procedure, you need to verify the records of each signatory. This involves twelve departments, including land, planning, environmental protection, and fire protection, and one hundred and sixty-three people involved."

Hou Liangping felt a chill run down his spine.

He grabbed a few papers and flipped through them.

All of these are compliant and legal administrative documents!

It even includes the expense report for Ding Yizhen's purchase of a few bottles of mineral water during a site visit!

"I need evidence of crimes! Clues to bribery!" Hou Liangping slammed the folder on the table, his anger barely contained. "Why are you showing me this tedious record of events?"

"Liangping, that's where you're wrong." Qi Tongwei pulled out a chair and sat down, even casually crossing his legs. His tone was so sincere it made you want to punch him. "It's about procedural justice. How can you prove those illegal activities are illegal if you don't go through all the legal procedures? What if some document contains something fishy that gets missed? Who takes the responsibility? You, or me?"

"You..." Hou Liangping was speechless with anger.

He wanted to refute it, but found that Qi Tongwei's logic was impeccable.

This is Yang Conspiracy.

Use your most cherished "rule of law" and "procedural justice" to work yourself to death in piles of documents.

"Chen Hai!" Hou Liangping turned to his old classmate, trying to find an ally. "You've been in the bureau for so long, haven't you come up with anything of substance?"

Just as Chen Hai was about to speak, Qi Tongwei gave him a dismissive glance.

That gaze was calm and non-threatening, yet it was like a bucket of ice water, instantly extinguishing Chen Hai's simple enthusiasm.

Chen Hai recalled the rumors circulating in the bureau these past few days, Zhao Ruilong's fate, and Qi Tongwei's words from last night: "I don't want anyone to fall behind."

He swallowed hard, lowered his head to avoid Hou Liangping's gaze, and mumbled, "This... monkey, Ding Yizhen, that old fox, is indeed cunning. He's made sure the accounts are airtight. We're investigating as well, and currently... we're still going through the procedures."

Hou Liangping looked at Chen Hai in disbelief.

Even Chen Hai has become like this?

Is this what the officialdom of Handong is like?

"Fine, very well." Hou Liangping sneered, tucking his briefcase under his arm. "I'll take my time reviewing the files. I'm going to interrogate Cai Chenggong and the CFO of Shanshui Group now. Surely this won't require going through thousands of procedures?"

"That... I'm afraid that won't work either."

The speaker was Zhao Donglai.

He stood at the door, rubbing his hands with a troubled expression. "Director Hou, this is really unfortunate. The detention center just reported that there's an outbreak of influenza. According to the epidemic prevention regulations, the entire facility is under lockdown, with no entry or exit allowed. We can't even see lawyers, let alone conduct interrogations."

"The flu?" Hou Liangping laughed angrily. "Why did I have to get the flu as soon as I arrived? Zhao Donglai, are you kidding me?"

"Oh dear, Director Hou, this is a matter of life and death." Zhao Donglai said with a serious expression, "How about you issue a certificate proving you are immune to all diseases? Or you can sign a waiver, in case you get infected inside, or bring germs in and cause the death of a prisoner, the responsibility..."

Zhao Donglai didn't finish his sentence, but his meaning was clear: You want to force your way in? Fine, then you can take the blame.

Hou Liangping's chest heaved violently.

He looked at the files filling the room, at Chen Hai who was bowing his head and remaining silent, and then at Qi Tongwei who had a smile on his face and seemed to be detached from the matter.

He finally realized that his punch had not only hit cotton, but that cotton also contained a steel needle.

……

It was late at night on the streets of Jingzhou.

The lively atmosphere of the food stalls rose into the night, with the aromas of cumin lamb and grilled chives mingling together.

Qi Tongwei took off his jacket, leaving him in only a white shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, revealing a section of his muscular forearm. He skillfully opened two bottles of beer, pushing one towards Hou Liangping and taking a swig of the other himself.

"Alright, stop with the long face." Qi Tongwei picked up a piece of peanuts with his chopsticks. "Having gotten used to state banquets in Beijing, is this street food a bit hard to swallow?"

Hou Liangping didn't touch the wine, but just looked at him coldly: "Tongwei, you've changed. You've become slippery, you've become...a stranger to me."

"People always change." Qi Tongwei put down his wine bottle, his eyes somewhat profound. "In this land of Handong, trees that are too straight are easily broken by the wind. If I want to live and do something, I have to learn to hide my thorns."

"Hiding the thorn was to protect myself, not to go along with the corrupt!" Hou Liangping slammed his fist on the table. "Your actions today clearly show who you're protecting. Zhao Ruilong? Or Gao Yuliang?"

"I won't protect anyone."

Qi Tongwei leaned forward, lowered his voice, and his eyes shone frighteningly bright in the dim light, "I'm protecting you."

"Protect me?" Hou Liangping scoffed.

"Ding Yizhen ran away. You think it's just because someone tipped him off?" Qi Tongwei dipped his chopsticks in wine and drew a circle on the table. "The Guangming Peak project, a huge deal worth 28 billion. Ding Yizhen was just a front desk manager. Even if you keep an eye on him and devour all these files, you still won't find anything out."

Hou Liangping frowned: "Then what do you mean?"

Qi Tongwei smiled, not answering directly, but casually mentioning, "I heard that Sun Liancheng from Guangming District has recently become obsessed with astronomy? He spends all his time looking at the stars through a telescope, and doesn't even care who's acquired land in the district."

"Sun Liancheng?" Hou Liangping was taken aback.

"The last piece of land Ding Yizhen signed before he fled was in Guangming District," Qi Tongwei said slowly. "The change of land use for that plot was personally approved by District Chief Sun. And the person who acquired the land..."

Qi Tongwei paused, his gaze sweeping over Hou Liangping's face almost imperceptibly. "It has nothing to do with the Zhao family, but it does involve some people in Beijing."

Hou Liangping's heart skipped a beat.

Beijing?

Qi Tongwei's words were loaded with meaning!

"Of course, that's all hearsay." Qi Tongwei wiped the wine stains off the table, resuming his languid demeanor. "You're the imperial envoy, you have the imperial sword. I'm just a bureau chief guarding the place. All I can do is ensure you don't get shot in the back in Jingzhou, as for the rest..."

He raised his bottle and touched the untouched bottle in front of Hou Liangping.

"It's all in the wine."

Hou Liangping looked at Qi Tongwei's calm face, feeling both surprised and uncertain.

Sun Liancheng? Guangming District? Beijing background?

These keywords, like hooks, caught his professional instincts.

He originally thought that Qi Tongwei was protecting the Zhao family, but now it seems that this guy is playing a bigger game, or even... wants to use him as a tool to kill some people that Qi Tongwei dares not kill.

"it is good."

Hou Liangping finally picked up the bottle and took a big gulp. The cold beer flowed down his throat, but it couldn't quell the burning heat in his heart.

"Qi Tongwei, I'll trust you this once. But I'll still investigate this case file. If I find out you've been tampering with it..."

"Director Hou is welcome to come and arrest me anytime," Qi Tongwei said with a frank smile.

As Hou Liangping took out his notebook and wrote down the three characters "Sun Liancheng" heavily, Qi Tongwei's lips curled up slightly.

Silly monkey.

Some roads, once you embark on them, no longer allow you to choose your own direction.

Tonight's drinks are just the beginning.

The real show will begin when the star-gazing district head takes the stage.