Captain Gao was extremely enthusiastic as he shook Tang Hao’s hand. He did not want to let go.
The villagers were all stunned when they saw the scene. They could not believe it.
Since when was Tang Hao acquainted with a police captain? The relationship seemed to extend far beyond mere acquaintances, looking at how the police captain was treating him.
Ma Yongnian was thoroughly dumbstruck. He stared at the scene with round, wide eyes.
How was that possible?
‘Isn’t the kid just a mere peasant from a mountain village? Why does he seem like good friends with Captain Gao?’
Then, he started yelling. “What are you doing, Captain Gao? Why aren’t you arresting him? Didn’t you see what he did to my face?
“It doesn’t matter that the two of you are friends. He’s the one who committed assault, and therefore he should be arrested! You should know who I am right, Gao? Would you believe me if I said that I can end your career with a phone call to the commissioner?”
Captain Gao furrowed his brows. The disdain in his eyes grew stronger.
‘This Ma guy is a shameless one! He brought so many hooligans with him. He should be the one who’s causing trouble,’ Captain Gao thought. He had never wanted to side that bastard.
He considered the backgrounds of the two people. Undoubtedly, Tang Hao had more powerful people behind him.
It was clear to him whom he should side with.
Captain Gao coughed and said, “Well… Mr. Ma, don’t you think that you’re the one who brought trouble to the village?”
“What the f*ck? You must be blind, Gao!” Ma Yongnian was livid. He pointed at Captain Gao and shouted, “Alright, you have balls. You want to cover for the kid, right? I’ll make sure that you’re dead too!”
Then, he took out his phone and dialed Commissioner Xia’s number.
“Hey, Commissioner Xia! Who did you send here? This Captain Gao is harboring the criminal! You have to sack him,” Ma Yongnian roared into the phone.
Commissioner Xia was stunned when he heard that. He was rather confused.
“What’s going on?” Commissioner Xia asked with a serious voice.
“How would I know? That Gao seems to be friends with the kid who punched me, and they seem to be very close too. Commissioner Xia, is that how your subordinate should behave? He isn’t respecting the law. Do you think he’s fit to be a police captain?”
Commissioner Xia was silent for a moment.
He knew very well that Captain Gao was not someone who would put himself above the law and harbor criminals. Furthermore, Captain Gao knew who Ma Yongnian was.
Captain Gao would not have harbored criminals even if they were his friends.
He pondered the issue for a while, then had a sudden brainwave.
The incident happened at Tang Village. Also, the person who had punched Ma Yongnian was quite young.
‘Could it be… him?’
Commissioner Xia felt some unease. “What’s the name of the person who punched you?” He asked urgently.
“Is that important? Isn’t he just some random village peasant? Right, they call him Lil Hao. His name should be Tang Hao!”
Commissioner Xia’s face turned pale when he heard that name. ‘It’s really him!’
He propped his forehead as he felt a headache creeping in.
He dared not cross Tang Hao. Not only did he have Secretary Lin behind him, but the even scarier Old Master He was supporting him too!
He also knew that Tang Hao was a good kid and would not be the aggressor. Ma Yongnian was different though. He was brash and arrogant, and many people disliked him.
It was plain to see who was right and who was wrong.
Even though he was a bastard, Ma Yongnian was the brother-in-law of the new District Secretary. This was a tricky situation!
“I think you should let the matter slide!” Commissioner Xia said after deliberating over the issue.
Ma Yongnian was stunned when he heard that. He thought that he had misheard.
He had expected Commissioner Xia to be instantly furious and immediately take Captain Gao off the force, then order someone else to arrest that kid.
However, Commissioner Xia was playing the mediator now. It was hard to believe.
Was Commissioner Xia also harboring that kid?
How was that possible? Did the kid have someone backing him? Even if he did, was that person ranked higher than the District Secretary?
“What do you mean, Commissioner Xia? Are you covering for the kid too? Isn’t that kid just a peasant from a mountain village?” Ma Yongnian said coldly while holding back his temper.
Commissioner Xia broke into laughter. “Just a peasant? You must be joking, Boss Ma. You don’t know how powerful he is. I’d suggest that you try to make peace with him.”
Ma Yongnian smirked. “I don’t believe that he’s more powerful than me.”
Commissioner Xia furrowed his brows. “I’ve already told you what I need to. You’re on your own now, Boss Ma!”
Then, he hung up the phone.
“Hey! Commissioner Xia!”
Ma Yongnian became even angrier as he looked at the phone. He was raging in his heart.
First, it was Captain Gao, then it was Commissioner Xia who had ignored him. He had never been treated that way before.
Captain Gao looked at him and chuckled. He knew that Ma Yongnian was defeated.
Ma Yongnian became even angrier when he heard someone laughing at him.
Hu Dahai finally opened his mouth. “I want to tell you something, Brother Ma. That Tang Hao… does have someone backing him. He’s connected with the previous Secretary.”
“What?” Ma Yongnian nearly jumped.
He suddenly understood why Captain Gao and Commissioner Xia had ignored him.
“No wonder!” Ma Yongnian laughed viciously. “That was the previous Secretary though. The Secretary now is my brother-in-law! Does that Xia guy dare to oppose me? He’ll have to pay the price.”
Then, he dialed his brother-in-law’s number.
When the call went through, Ma Yongnian started retelling the sequence of events with a lot of made-up details. He made himself the helpless victim of the incident, while the kid who punched him was an irredeemably evil peasant.
As for the police officers, they were accomplices to the evil deed.
Qian Ziqiang was silent for a long time after the story ended.
“So he’s connected with Secretary Lin! It’ll be a little tricky!” Qian Ziqiang mumbled.
Lin Jianjun had been promoted to the city. He wielded a certain level of influence.
“You’ll have to help me, Brother-in-law, you can’t just turn a blind eye on this. That kid is too evil, and that Xia guy isn’t respecting your position as the new Secretary,” Ma Yongnian said maliciously.
Qian Ziqiang was not very happy when he heard that.
“Just a minute, Yongnian. I’ll talk to Commissioner Xia.” Then, he ended the call.
Qian Ziqiang sat on his chair in the office for a very long time. He lifted his hand to pick up the phone.
Before he could call Commissioner Xia, his phone started ringing.
Qian Ziqiang was shocked. He answered the call.
“Who is this?”
“Secretary Qian, I am Lin Jianjun! We’ve met before.” It was Secretary Lin who had called.
Qian Ziqiang was shocked again. “It’s you! Is there anything?”
Lin Jianjun smiled. “Secretary Qian. I’m here to save you.”
Qian Ziqiang nearly burst out laughing when he heard that. “Is this a prank? I’m just fine. Why do I need saving?”
“Secretary Qian, don’t you know what your brother-in-law is doing, or are you pretending to be oblivious? He’s involved in forced eviction, and he brought a bunch of hooligans to disturb the villagers.
“I received a video not too long ago. What do you think will happen if that video finds its way on the Internet?”
Qian Ziqiang was dumbstruck. His expression froze.
Then, his face turned pale as cold sweat rained down his forehead.
He had heard rumors of that happening, but he pretended that nothing happened.
However, once that video is uploaded to the Internet, people might start talking about it and find out that the tyrant in the video was his brother-in-law. That would spell big trouble for him.
“That’s the least of your concerns, Secretary Qian. You should know Old Master He, right?”
“I… I know…” Qian Ziqiang stammered.
“The person who punched your brother-in-law is Tang Hao. He once saved Old Master He’s life. You should know what that means! I’m sure you won’t make any stupid decisions!”
Then, Lin Jjianjun ended the call.
Qian Ziqiang slumped on his chair, trembling.
