Let them offer their loyalty!

Hearing Tang Feifei's words, Qiu Tu's expression turned solemn.

He asked, "What kind of incident has occurred?"

At that moment, Tang Feifei was in the study of her villa.

Compared to Yan Chen's grim study, hers was much brighter, not only equipped with ceiling lights but also surrounded by spotlights.

Additionally, the cool-toned modern decor gave off a sense of grandeur and ambition!

Sitting behind a light-colored solid wood desk, Tang Feifei looked somewhat serious.

While reviewing a document in her hand, she explained to Qiu Tu,

"My second uncle reported it according to the plan we discussed earlier."

"Although Jia Shu didn't side with the Evil God or betray humanity, he did collaborate with the Evil God."

"Moreover, considering the attack on you and the suspected murders over the years, Sanctuary has been asked to relieve him of his duties and conduct further investigation and observation."

"But after the report was submitted, there was substantial resistance."

"Apart from the lack of comprehensive evidence and Jia Shu's own confession, there was also interference from the person behind Jia Shu."

In this world, due to the chaotic times, not much energy could be spent on thoroughly investigating individual cases; many relied on "heavy testimonies, light evidence."

This method of case handling was prone to false accusations: as Jia Wei mentioned, being brainwashed into confessing by Jia Shu and turning into a real criminal was a common occurrence.

Therefore, with Jia Shu keeping his mouth shut during the attack on Qiu Tu, not cooperating with the Disciplinary Department, and not providing any testimony, the case inevitably encountered various obstacles, such as… allowing those behind him to cause trouble.

With this in mind, Qiu Tu asked, "Who is the person behind Jia Shu? What's their identity?"

Hearing Qiu Tu's question, Tang Feifei from the other side of the phone lifted her head, her beautiful face filled with hesitation.

After carefully weighing her words, she finally spoke, "The person behind Jia Shu is named Huang Shangzong."
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"He is one of the 36 members of Sanctuary's council, and also one of the founders of the General Investigation Bureau."

"During his years working at the General Investigation Bureau, he nurtured many mid-level and lower-level backbones, which is why his influence in the Investigation Bureau's system is significant."

"The reason Jia Shu was able to come to the Planning Area this time also has to do with his support."

"Although life in the Planning Area is tough and resources are scarce, it is a place where one can train to the utmost, and act like a Local Tyrant beyond the reach of the Emperor, and also instantly elevate one's rank. So it's considered a lucrative position."

"Without Commissioner Huang's help, Jia Shu would have never obtained this position."

As she said this, Tang Feifei hesitated for a moment and then added, "Additionally, you might not be aware…"

"Lately, in order to better rebuild the Planning Area and for the seamless integration of the three major power institutions, Sanctuary is considering establishing higher-level administrative units in the Planning Area."

"When it happens, Xinjie City, Eastern City, and several other cities will likely merge into a 'state'."

"At that time, like Sanctuary, a State Council will be formed as the highest governing body of the entire state."

"The bigwigs of the three major power structures from the dozen or so cities will automatically become council members. In addition to the 36 council members, there will be three Deputy Speakers and one Speaker."

"Sanctuary's current consensus is that 1-2 Deputy Speakers will be elected from among the 36 council members. The Speaker, however, will be appointed by Sanctuary's council."

Having said this, Tang Feifei paused, then added softly, "And according to the current public opinion, Huang Shangzong is very likely to become the first Speaker of the Dongye State Council…"

Hearing this shocking news, Qiu Tu's pupils on the other end of the phone couldn't help but constrict slightly.

Truthfully, this news took him by surprise!

What could be more shocking than finding out your enemy's 'backer' is about to become your boss's boss?

'This is really leaving me no way out!' he thought indignantly.

With this in mind, Qiu Tu felt almost anxious. A State Council Speaker, even without a deep understanding of the political system of this world,

could still be equated to those Senior Frontier Officials seen only on television in his past life.

Now such a powerful figure was standing in his way.

Truth be told, at that moment, Qiu Tu felt tempted to back off: should he let Jia Shu off the hook?

But no sooner had this thought surfaced than he quashed it.

It wasn't that he didn't want to let Jia Shu go, but rather that Jia Shu wouldn't let him go.

Jia Shu's 'Shadow Devouring' cataclysmic ability could not change its target once chosen, and it had to devour the target before it could select another one.

In such a scenario, as long as Jia Shu wanted to enhance his own strength, he would have to devour Qiu Tu.

Thus, the two of them were caught in a deadlock, where only one could survive…

'Damn it… I still have to kill him!'

'And, I cannot change the plan. With such a powerful person behind him, giving him a chance to start over would spell even more trouble for me!'

With these thoughts in mind, Qiu Tu suppressed the trepidation and unease in his heart and then said gravely, "What happened next? How did Huang Shangzong end up handling this case?"

Tang Feifei, sensing the change in Qiu Tu's emotions, went straight to the point upon his inquiry, "Huang Shangzong didn't alter the outcome of the case."

"He merely tweaked the wording slightly."

"He changed Jia Shu's charge from 'collaborating with the Evil God' to 'mutual exploitation with the Evil God.'

"As for the attack on a colleague, that part was simply removed."

"According to him, since you weren't yet listed in Sanctuary's records at the time, you couldn't be considered Jia Shu's colleague."

"Regarding the suspected murders by Jia Shu in previous years, since there was no evidence and only conjecture and inference, they can't serve as the basis for conviction. So those were also dismissed…"

Upon hearing Tang Feifei's explanation, Qiu Tu burst into sardonic laughter. He "heh" and then remarked, "Not considered a colleague…"

"Actually… for Sanctuary, unless listed in their records, one is not considered a 'person,' right?"

"After all, for us who have silently perished in the Planning Area or the Disaster Zone, there isn't much difference."

Hearing Qiu Tu's words, Tang Feifei's gaze fell, but she didn't retort.

After all... in the Era of Disaster, no one knows how many people will die each day. The Sanctuary indeed doesn't have the energy to save or even count each person who dies.

To the Sanctuary, those people aren't even numbers...

After briefly exchanging pleasantries, Qiu Tu forcefully exhaled a clouded breath and then asked, "So, in the end, did the Disciplinary Department agree?"

Tang Feifei uttered a confirmation and said, "The Disciplinary Department, in fact, cares more about the result than the process."

"As long as the result doesn't change, even if Huang Shangzong lightened Jia Shu's responsibility, it's still acceptable to them."

"After all... politics is the art of compromise."

Listening to Tang Feifei's conclusion, Qiu Tu nodded slightly.

Politics truly is the art of compromise. Seriously speaking, even he was satisfied with such a result.

After all... no matter how light Jia Shu's responsibility is, he's lost the position and Sanctuary status that he relied on for his life. So, killing him would not break any laws besides possibly provoking the people behind him...

After all, according to Huang Shangzong's words: Without the status of the Sanctuary, how could one be considered a colleague...

Thinking this way, Qiu Tu fell into silence for a few seconds before he finally spoke up, "Feifei. Jia Shu's dismissal notice will be issued tomorrow, right?"

"When will he be expelled from Xinjie City?"

Hearing Qiu Tu's words, Tang Feifei calculated briefly, then responded, "Actually, in theory, he should leave tomorrow morning."

"However, the Disciplinary Department might process some related paperwork. So, it is likely that he will leave tomorrow night."

"Tomorrow night, huh..." Qiu Tu quickly made some calculations.

'There's enough time!'

With that thought, Qiu Tu finally made up his mind. He smiled and said, "Understood. I got it."

Hearing the implied meaning in Qiu Tu's words, Tang Feifei pondered for a moment before she said, "Qiu Tu... Huang Shangzong is no simple character."

"Jia Shu is considered his prized protégé. You... you must be very careful."

Tang Feifei didn't understand the deep-seated issues between Jia Shu and Qiu Tu, so Qiu Tu knew she meant well for him.

Therefore, Qiu Tu just smiled and said, "Don't worry. I won't make an enemy of such a high-level boss."

After speaking, Qiu Tu sincerely added, "Thank you, Feifei."

On the other end of the line, Tang Feifei fell silent for two seconds before saying coldly, "I've recently taken a liking to drinking ice water."

Qiu Tu: ???

This wasn't even a hint, it was a declaration.

Qiu Tu paused for a second, then reached for his "kidney area."

Indeed... some debts can't be avoided.

Forget it... Tang Feifei has indeed been very helpful during this period, and he indeed should put in effort for her!

With that thought, Qiu Tu braced himself and agreed, "Okay. I'll come over to your place tonight to let you drink lots of 'hot water.'"

Hearing the implied meaning in Qiu Tu's words, Tang Feifei's lips curled into a smile, "I'll wait for you."

After speaking, she hung up the phone.

On the other end, Qiu Tu set down the communicator, then took a deep breath, knowing that a fierce battle awaited him tonight!

At this moment, as he was thinking this, the voice of Liu Fuping suddenly reached his ears, "Qiu Tu, is something wrong? Why do I sense that your expression is a bit grave?"

Upon hearing this, Qiu Tu turned to look and saw Liu Fuping coming out from the adjacent interrogation room with a communicator in hand.

He carelessly replied, "Nothing's wrong. It's just that a friend's house has a broken water pipe, it's constantly leaking and can't be stopped, and they wanted me to help fix it."

Liu Fuping gave a somewhat puzzled "oh" not quite understanding what was so serious about fixing a water pipe.

But right now, she clearly had more pressing matters to attend to, so she put this strange excuse to the back of her mind and told Qiu Tu, "Director Liu has agreed to speak with you. He wants to hear your opinion on what Jia Wei said about the past."

"But you only have three minutes."

"If you can't convince him within three minutes, he will hang up the phone."

Upon hearing this, Qiu Tu glanced at the communicator in Liu Fuping's hand and then nodded.

He adjusted his emotions, then confidently said, "Don't worry."

"To say nothing of three minutes, I'll convince Director Liu within one minute."

Hearing Qiu Tu's words, Liu Fuping handed over the communicator.

Qiu Tu took the communicator, then walked into the vacant interrogation room next door, shut the door, and said into the microphone, "Hello, Director Liu."

On the other side of the line, a robust and oppressive male voice came through, "Hello, Chief Qiu."

"..."

....

Liu Fuping stood outside the interrogation room, keeping watch for Qiu Tu while also worrying about him in her heart.

Director Liu, Liu Xiongyuan, was never an easy person to deal with. Especially since the death of his son, he had become even more solitary and capricious.

And managing to rise to his current status from a background with no Sanctuary backing, his abilities were clearly extraordinary, something that couldn't be ignored by others.

Even in the eyes of most, he was someone even more troublesome to deal with than Yan Chen.

After all, although Yan Chen has deep seniority and tremendous influence, he still came from the Academic Faction, always possessing some pride in his armchair strategies.

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Three chapters of ten thousand words, ha. One more update around 20:00. Please vote for the Monthly Ticket!