The Tempting Road to Becoming an Official

The screen flickered for a moment.

The image of Song Keyun appeared on the screen.

In the interrogation room of the Shanghu District Public Security Sub-Bureau.

Song Keyun, the Deputy Director of the Municipal Bureau and the Captain of the Criminal Police Brigade, had already been handcuffed. The contrast between his white police uniform and his current state was strikingly evident.

Even now, he remained quite arrogant.

Opposite him.

Sat two staff members from the Disciplinary Committee.

During the half-hour-long inquiry before, Song Keyun said nothing, even mocking the investigators, sarcastically suggesting they had no evidence and that he would be out in 24 hours.

Then.

Chen Fang personally entered the interrogation room.

Even so.

He remained arrogant.

In his view, nothing he had done could be substantively proven by the Disciplinary Inspection and Supervision Committee.

Then.

Chen Fang took out a cellphone found in his office.

The appearance of this phone was the first time Song Keyun felt a sense of panic.

Of course.

He was sure to deny everything vehemently.

Refusing to admit he had murdered Qiu Feihong and Yang Mu.

Chen Fang paused.

He said, "Song Keyun, the 626 case has reached a point where an explanation is necessary. Since you're unwilling to confess, it doesn't matter. Based on the current evidence, it is already sufficient to prove your connection with the 626 case. Qiu Feihong and Yang Mu were both your subordinates, and there were prior reports of inappropriate relationships between you. Even if the evidence chain isn't complete, you must be the murderer. Your life is over."

"I didn't kill anyone. You can't frame and incriminate me!"

Song Keyun's mind was already in turmoil as he shouted at Chen Fang.

Chen Fang laughed coldly and said, "Even if you didn't kill them, you need to provide evidence. Until new evidence emerges, you are the murder suspect. You know the organizational rules. With suspicion, your political career as Deputy Director is over. Do you really think, under these circumstances, anyone will come to save you?"

Having said that.

Chen Fang spun his laptop screen around.

Aiming it at Song Keyun.

The screen was split into two sections.

The left section showed footage of Pang Dahai being interrogated.

The protagonist in the right section was Cen Qingmin, the Executive Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Discipline Inspection Committee.

Seeing that even a principal-level cadre had been arrested.

Song Keyun's expression became even more panic-stricken.

He intertwined his hands and rubbed them vigorously.

"You're a senior cadre too. You should know very well, for someone of Cen Qingmin's level, could we detain him without substantial evidence? If you don't speak, someone else will. You already know the policy on meritorious service. Since you're stubbornly silent, let someone else do the talking."

After saying this.

Chen Fang stood up.

To be honest.

Chen Fang's words didn't shake Song Keyun.

But Cen Qingmin's arrest dealt a serious blow to his psyche.

He originally thought that as long as Cen Qingmin arrived, he would be freed. But now that Cen Qingmin was also handcuffed, didn't that mean all his hope was shattered?

Seeing Chen Fang about to leave.

He could no longer hold it together.

Suddenly, he shouted, "Wait, I'll say it... I'll say it... It was... It was Minister Li Xuan of the City Committee who asked me to do it..."

With a roar.

Everyone in the conference room turned again to look at Li Xuan.

Li Xuan shuddered.

She loudly defended herself, "He's accusing me baselessly. It's not like that at all... He's lying... It was Chen Fang who induced him to say this."

"Comrade Li Xuan, if it's a false accusation, then calm down. What are you panicking for? With so many leaders here, they'll decide for you. What are you afraid of?"

Chen Fang said coldly.

For a moment.

Li Xuan was speechless, too afraid to speak.

The truth of the matter was far more brutal than imagined.

Song Keyun told Chen Fang that his career had always been closely tied to Li Xuan.

Back when he was the Deputy Director of the Public Security Sub-Bureau in Shanghu District, Li Xuan was the Deputy District Mayor in charge of finance in Shanghu District.

Later, when Li Xuan was transferred to Zhongji County as the Head of the Propaganda Department, Song Keyun, under her manipulation, was transferred to Zhongji County as the Political Commissar of the Public Security Bureau.

Years later.

Li Xuan returned to Shangqing City as the Deputy Mayor.

Song Keyun was transferred to the Shangqing City Police Department as the Captain of the Criminal Police Brigade.

Immediately following that.

Li Xuan was appointed as a standing member of the City Committee and Minister of Publicity.

As the saying goes, "When the water rises, the boat floats." In the same year, Song Keyun was promoted to a member of the Party Committee of the Municipal Public Security Bureau, Deputy Director, and concurrently the Captain of the Criminal Investigation Brigade.

In other words.

Song Keyun reached his current position thanks entirely to Li Xuan's personal promotion.

As the saying goes, "Relying on a big tree gives a good shade."

When a leader shows such kindness, it's only natural to help them resolve some minor issues.

This included shielding Pang Dahai.

As another close associate of Li Xuan.

Pang Dahai committed many heinous acts over the years, but with Song Keyun's protection as Criminal Police Captain, Pang Dahai managed to remain at large in Shangqing City.

After these backstories were told.

Song Keyun finally returned the topic to the 626 case.

The incident occurred around June 20th.

That night, Li Xuan invited him to a private room in a club owned by Pang Dahai.

It was there that Li Xuan directed Song Keyun to find a woman to seduce Qi Kang, then kill this woman and frame Qi Kang, ultimately trapping him.

Upon hearing this plan, Song Keyun felt shocked.

He didn't know what kind of conflict existed between Li Xuan and Qi Kang, but such a method was indeed too risky. If anything went wrong, everyone involved would be doomed.

Moreover.

There were two problems.

Firstly, regarding the first problem, wasn't Pang Dahai's entourage full of beautiful women? Wouldn't it be more appropriate for them to do this?

Secondly, if the aim was to ruin Qi Kang, it wasn't necessary to kill someone. After the act, he could simply send someone to catch him in the act and convict him of soliciting prostitution. That would also give Qi Kang a hard time.

Li Xuan provided explanations for these two issues.

Tackling the second problem first.

She said Qi Kang had Qi Shouting backing him. Such incidents of solicitation could be resolved with a single phone call, leaving no real impact.

Moreover, catching someone for soliciting seemed too cliché and could easily expose vulnerabilities to be exploited.

For the first problem, Li Xuan also explained.

She originally considered having Pang Dahai find someone.

But women like that had complicated social ties. Once a body was discovered, it could invite suspicion, in other words, the conviction wouldn't carry much weight, and others might suspect an attempt to frame.

If the victim were a female officer, the consequences would clearly be different.

Causing a public uproar, even Qi Shouting would find it difficult to shield Qi Kang.

When Song Keyun spoke these words on screen.

Qi Shouting glanced sidelong at Li Xuan.

At that moment, his gaze was already a bit complicated.