Chapter 35 - 34 Position Swap_l
“What? The 79th Army has been mobilized and detained the local government officials? What exactly is happening?” Upon hearing this, Xue Ligong immediately sat up, shaking off most of his drowsiness.
After a moment, Xue Ligong promptly made a decision, “Comrade Zheng Nan, notify the standing committee members at home to rush to the provincial committee conference room for a meeting immediately.”
While the incident sent shockwaves throughout Yuedong province, Nie Zhenbang was currently sitting in the guest house of the Ninth Army stationed in Nanhai City.
Cheng Bangguo, the commander of the 79th Army, was sitting next to him at this moment. Despite being the commander, he didn’t try to assert his authority. Instead, he acted as though they were having casual small talk.
Despite the young man before him not even being eighteen years old yet, Cheng Bangguo didn’t look down on him. With a smile, he said, “Zhenbang, I’ve heard about you from Guodong before. And seeing you in person now, you truly are outstanding. These people were arrested by me for you. So, what do you plan to do next?”
Before coming, Nie Zhenbang had already got some information from Luo
Pingan. Wei Wenhai’s elder brother, Wei Wenoge, is the head of Kou’an
District, which directly borders Hong Kong, and is also known as the “Inner Gate”. As the most important district in Nanhai, its secretary also serves as a standing member of the city committee. And standing behind Wei Wenoge is Li, the deputy secretary of the Nanhai Municipal Committee.
Nie Zhenbang never believed in staying clean while involved in a dirty situation. There’s a saying in the military, “If your leader is corrupt, the whole team is corrupt”. If Deputy Secretary Li were a good person, would Wei during a special period dare to be so rampant? Obviously, that’s impossible.
Then, Nie Zhenbang said with a smile, “Uncle Cheng, I’d like to take this opportunity to thank you on behalf of my parents for this matter. I ask that you press on with the investigation and unearth the evidence of these people’s illegal activities. I’ve already called my parents. They’re on their way and should arrive around midnight tonight.”
This statement surprised Cheng Bangguo. Initially, he thought it was simply a childish fight, with the adult members of the Nie family just supporting their descendant. But now, he saw that the matter wasn’t as simple as he had imagined.
The fact that Nie Zhenbang could mobilize Nie Guowei’s couple alone was enough to clarify the issue.
Right after, Cheng Bangguo also said seriously, “Zhenbang, rest assured. In my investigative team, no matter who someone is, or how hard they resist, I guarantee they’ll spill everything within three hours.”
As he spoke, a hint of pride appeared on Cheng Bangguo’s face. It’s known that the Ninth Army was one of the few domestic forces that had seen real combat and shed blood, having participated in the counterattack against Vietnam several years ago.
The army had its own methods. In this era, there weren’t any specific rules against torture, and Nie Zhenbang wasn’t about to say anything about that. He nodded slightly and said, “Uncle Cheng, thank you in advance.”
“Sir, several government vehicles have stopped outside the military region.
They claim to be from the Kou’an District Committee and they want to see you. What do you think?” At this moment, an officer walked in from outside and spoke to Cheng Bangguo.
Cheng Bangguo made a slight hand gesture, a hint of annoyance appearing on his face. District Secretary Wei Wenoge seemed to be taking himself too seriously. Cheng termed himself as a high-ranking officer equivalent to the commander of the Yuedong Provincial Military Region. He waved it off, saying to an aide next to him, “Comrade Gu, reply to them for me. Say that I’m currently attending an emergency meeting of the Yuezhou Military Region and I don’t have time.”
Wei during a special period was showing a face of urgency right now. Knowing his brother was in trouble, Wei Wenoge immediately took action. He knew what Wei Wenhai had done over the years. Apart from being spoiled by their mother, Wei Wenhai had also helped him significantly. This was why Wei Wenoge was anxious.
It was already past eleven at night. Right then, a car with a Yuehai license plate drove into the 79th Army’s garrison, making Wei Wenoge even more anxious.
At this moment, the lights were still on in the guest house. As soon as Nie Guowei and Ye Shuxian entered, Nie Zhenbang rose to his feet and saw the concerned look on Ye Shuxian’s face. It moved him. This stepmother of his, to be honest, was quite good. Regardless of whether it was in his previous life or now, she had fulfilled the responsibilities of a stepmother.
At this moment, this attitude could not be feigned. Thinking of this and seeing Cheng beside him, Nie Zhenbang smiled and said, “Mom, why did you have to come, too? Ziyu might be scared alone at home.”
Nie Zhenbang’s words made Ye Shuxian stand stiffly, shaking slightly. Looking at Nie Zhenbang, her expression became quite emotional. She nodded, her eyes filling with tears.
Nie Guowei looked surprised too. His relationship with his son was not the best. As a father, he had failed his duties. He didn’t understand what Nie Zhenbang thought, did, or needed. Even his own political career relied on his son’s strategizing, making Nie Guowei feel quite embarrassed. His attitude was gradually changing.
At this moment, Nie Guowei was quick-witted. He immediately smiled and said, “Shuxian, sit down first. It must be tiring to rush over like this. Zhenbang, don’t worry about Ziyu. I’ve asked my secretary to look after her in Yuehai.
There will be no problems.”
Ye Shuxian came back to her senses. As one who grew up in a major family, the Ye family was a scholarly family, with Ye Lao being a famous scholar-general of his time. Thanks to the strict upbringing, Ye Shuxian gently said, “Ziyu will be fine. But Zhenbang, you didn’t get hurt, right? When we received the call from Brother Cheng, we rushed over. This situation is outrageous. How could anyone dare to misuse state institutions for personal service!”
Then, looking at Cheng, Ye Shuxian said, “Brother Cheng, you must investigate this thoroughly.”
Cheng nodded at this moment. He could disregard Nie Guowei’s words, but he had to listen to Ye Shuxian’s. He used to be a guard under Ye Lao and was promoted by the Ye Family. As the saying goes, ‘Gratitude begets service’, and the key lies in crucial moments like this.
Seeing that the family seemed to have something to discuss, Cheng very prudently said, “Guowei, I’ll leave you all to chat. I have some things to take care of, so I’ll take my leave.”
After Cheng left, Nie Guowei said seriously, “Zhenbang, what on earth are you doing? Even if you were bullied, with Old Cheng here and your uncle backing you up, you couldn’t be in any real trouble. So why did you call us over?”
Seeing the puzzled look on Ye Shuxian’s face, Nie Zhenbang smiled and said, “It was a spur-of-the-moment decision when I noticed certain individuals walking right into my hands.. Mom, don’t you think that now is the perfect time for Dad to secure a better position?”