Although Du Yuanbing, the head of the Xicheng Police Station, had skeletons in his closet, he understood he should never show his guilt prematurely. He coughed a few times as if to embolden himself, then pressed the button to answer the call from Wang Ye, the director of the Chengyang County Public Security Bureau.

"Director Wang, good evening!" As soon as the call connected, Du Yuanbing greeted him with enthusiastic politeness.

"Yuanbing! I hear your Xicheng Police Station has been busy with cases lately. It must be hard work." Wang Ye had received instructions over the phone from his direct superior, Zhu Qianye, to play it cool and avoid startling the snake. But Du Yuanbing was his subordinate, after all, and overacting might be easily detected. So, Wang Ye steered the conversation toward that topic from the start.

"You're too kind, Director Wang. It's my duty. Does the leadership have any instructions for me?" Sensing nothing was amiss, Du Yuanbing's tone became even more enthusiastic.

"Instructions? No, there's nothing much to instruct. However, I heard your Xicheng Police Station arrested a young man named Yi Shu? A friend called to ask me about it. So, if the young man hasn't committed a serious crime, just lecture him and let him go. Of course, if he really has done something wrong, then ignore what I said and handle it according to the law." Wang Ye wiped the sweat from his forehead as he spoke, trying to maintain a casual tone despite the immense pressure he felt.

After all, this call was from his old superior Zhu Qianye, the very man who had promoted him to his current position as the municipal Public Security Bureau Director. And here he was, downplaying it as a 'friend's' request. If anyone overheard, they would laugh their heads off. But he had no choice; otherwise, the charade would fall apart.

"Yi Shu? Director Wang, are you talking about the kid from the construction team?" Du Yuanbing was naturally taken aback. This was the exact issue weighing on his conscience, but he could tell that Director Wang didn't seem to know the details. He had likely only called as a favor to an acquaintance he couldn't refuse.

If this were an ordinary case, he would have released the person immediately, without a second thought, just as his direct boss wished.

But the problem was that this matter wasn't so simple. It not only involved Wang Yifa, the brother-in-law of the County Party Secretary, Liu Guangrong, but Du Yuanbing himself was also playing a rather dishonorable role.

The public funds that Wang Yifa had embezzled from those construction teams… a portion of that money had been given to Du Yuanbing as a kickback. Damn it, how did I not know that kid had such powerful connections? To think he could find someone to petition Director Wang directly!

"The construction team? I'm not sure. But from your tone, it sounds like there's a problem?" Director Wang deliberately sounded a little dissatisfied. Under normal circumstances, he would have been genuinely angry if Du Yuanbing dared to show him such disrespect.

"A problem? No, no, of course not. Since you, the leader, have personally called to inquire, it must mean we've been careless in our work. Perhaps there's been some misunderstanding. Rest assured, Director Wang, I'll go down and find out what's going on right now. If it's nothing major, we should be able to release him immediately," Du Yuanbing said, a shiver running down his spine.

He had no choice. In Huaxia, there's a saying: 'An official one rank higher can crush you.' In this case, it wasn't just one rank, but two. He was a deputy section chief, while his direct superior was a section chief. Above that was Wang Ye, a deputy division chief.

As the head of a small police station, he simply couldn't muster the courage to refuse his most powerful direct superior in the county's entire public security system. The only exception would be if someone of even higher standing intervened—County Party Secretary Liu Guangrong, for example.

"Alright then. Thanks for your trouble, Yuanbing. I'll hang up now," Wang Ye said faintly, his eyes flashing as he ended the call.

However, after hanging up, he felt rather unsettled. He had clearly heard the higher-ups intended to draw the snake out of its hole and wipe them all out in one fell swoop. If Du Yuanbing released the person so easily, wouldn't it hinder their plans?

Normally, he wouldn't have to worry about such things, but he had no choice. This call had come personally from his old superior, Zhu Qianye. The tone of the conversation implied that even the Municipal Public Security Bureau Director wasn't the origin of the order, and that even the newly appointed Mayor of Northern Mountain City was not high enough up the chain…

Just thinking about it made Wang Ye's back drench with cold sweat. I'm terrified of botching the intentions of those above.

With that thought, he couldn't help but call his old superior Zhu Qianye again to voice his concerns. Zhu Qianye seemed to think his reasoning was sound and in turn called Mayor Huang Tao. The call was thus passed up the chain of command, one level after another, until it finally reached Chen Fei.

"Well, how about this? Give me Director Wang's phone number, and you should probably give him a heads-up too. The most important thing right now is to get him released. Everything else can be dealt with slowly," Chen Fei said after a moment of consideration, then hung up. A short while later, the phone number of Wang Ye, the Director of the Chengyang County Public Security Bureau, arrived on his phone as a text message.

"Xiaofei, about that Yi Shu…" Just as Chen Fei hung up the phone in another bedroom, Aunt Deng, who couldn't sit still in the living room out of anxiety, pushed the door open and asked in a low voice.

"Don't worry, Aunt Deng. My friend said that if there are no surprises, Brother Yi Shu should be released very soon. Just wait for the call," Chen Fei said, reassuring her with confidence.

"Really!?" Aunt Deng exclaimed, overjoyed and in disbelief.

"Young man, are you… are you really not kidding? The Xicheng Police Station is going to release Yi Shu soon?" The fashionable woman also wore a look of utter disbelief.

It was impossible not to be shocked.

For Yi Shu's sake, they had run their legs off, begging for favors from countless friends and so-called influential figures.

But in reality, the moment anyone heard the name of Wang Yifa—the boss of Sheng'an Real Estate Company—coupled with his terrifying background as the brother-in-law of County Party Secretary Liu Guangrong, they avoided them like the plague. They wouldn't even give them a chance to finish a sentence.

But now, Chen Fei had just hidden in a room, made a few phone calls, and was confidently saying the Xicheng Police Station would be releasing him soon. He even told them to just wait for the call. How could she not be astonished?

It wasn't just her. Even Lin Ling, standing just outside the bedroom, was looking at her son with a slightly surprised expression, her eyes twinkling with a strange light, wondering what he was up to.

"Of course, it's tr—"

Before Chen Fei could finish, Aunt Deng's cell phone suddenly rang. The room fell silent. Both Aunt Deng and the fashionable woman instinctively glanced at Chen Fei, a flash of shock in their eyes, before Aunt Deng hurriedly answered the call.

An extremely enthusiastic female voice came from the other end. After a long-winded explanation from the caller, Aunt Deng suddenly cried out in joyous surprise, "What? My son can be released? I should go to the Xicheng Police Station to pick him up right now?"

"Ah, he's really been released?" Hearing Aunt Deng's cry of joy, the fashionable woman couldn't help but exclaim in astonishment.

"That's great, that's great! Thank you so much, officers! Tell that boy of mine to behave and stay put at the station. We're on our way to get him right now," Aunt Deng said, her face flushed with excitement.

"Sister Deng, is Yi Shu really being released?" Lin Ling couldn't help stepping forward to ask. At the same time, she continued to gaze at her son with that same surprised look. That brat… I haven't seen him in just a few months, and he already seems so different.

"It's true, it's true! Little Lin, you're so lucky to have a good son like Xiaofei! He's so capable and accomplished now. He just made a few phone calls and really got the Xicheng Police Station to release him!" As soon as Aunt Deng heard her son was truly free, she was overcome with jubilant excitement, grabbing Lin Ling's hand.

After speaking, she turned to Chen Fei and said with heartfelt gratitude, "Xiaofei, about Yi Shu's situation today… thank you, truly." As she spoke, she looked as if she was about to kneel.

"Don't, don't! Aunt Deng, what are you doing? We're all family. There's no need for such formalities," Chen Fei said, alarmed.

"Exactly, Sister Deng, what are you doing? Get up, get up. The timing is perfect. Why don't we head to the Xicheng Police Station now, bring Yi Shu back, and have a meal together?" Lin Ling said, also moving to help her up.

Aunt Deng nodded excitedly. They all worked together to cover the food on the table, then headed out and got into Chen Fei's Mercedes-Benz GL400, heading straight for the Xicheng Police Station in Chengyang County.

「Meanwhile.」

Du Yuanbing, the head of the Xicheng Police Station, hesitated for a long time before finally dialing the number of Wang Yifa, the brother-in-law of County Party Secretary Liu Guangrong and the boss of Sheng'an Real Estate Company.

"Hey, Yifa! It's me, Du Yuanbing. Just wanted to let you know, I've gone ahead and released that Yi Shu kid," he said into the phone.

"What? Released him?"

On the other end of the line, in a bed at Chengyang County People's Hospital, lay a greasy-faced, dapper-looking man with a bandage wrapped haphazardly around his head. Upon receiving the call, he couldn't help but snap angrily, "Hey, Old Du, I haven't given the green light to release him yet, have I? Why the hell did you let him go?"

Wang Yifa had been planning to use this opportunity to teach that blind, overconfident kid a proper lesson, and maybe squeeze one or two hundred thousand yuan out of him for medical expenses. But now, that damn Du Yuanbing had gone and released the guy, completely ruining his plans.

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