Qi Tongwei: Sign-in relationship started during student days

Chapter 982 Qu Zhengping's Crisis

The Han River, the provincial party committee compound.

Qu Zhengping knocked on Pei Yihong's office early in the morning, intending to sound him out.

His former secretary, Li Yongbao, has been in jail for two days.

He has been very cautious these past two days, using many methods to finally understand the situation.

The current situation is relatively optimistic. The person in charge of the Hongqi Grain Depot who was taken away only mentioned the previous leaders. When asked about Li Yongbao's case, he always replied with the six-word phrase: "I don't know, I'm not clear."

It's likely that this group of people also considered his situation. After all, they had Li Yongbao backing them. Whether dragging Li Yongbao down would lessen their crimes was still unknown, but their own fate would certainly not be good. That much was certain.

Therefore, with this concern in mind, no one dared to speak up.

This is also a very common political situation.

The secretary led me in and gave me a brief report.

Pei Yihong then lifted his face from his desk, expressionless, seemingly unaffected by Qu Zhengping's arrival.

I don't know if I had already guessed it, or if my senses have become dulled because of Lee Yong-bo's affair.

"Ah, it's Zhengping. Please sit down. You've come at the right time. I have something to tell you."

Qu Zhengping pondered the matter, guessing that it must be related to Li Yongbao.

Qu Zhengping sat down. "Secretary Pei, please speak."

Pei Yihong straightened his posture, leaned forward, and gently pressed his two large hands on the wide desk, as if he was having some difficulty speaking.

"Zhengping, you need to be prepared. This news might not be good for you."

Seeing Pei Yihong's serious expression, Qu Zhengping's heart tightened, but he still forced a calm smile and asked, "It's about my secretary, isn't it? What, are you going to suspend me from my post?"

This was Qu Zhengping's worst-case scenario. Although he wasn't directly involved in many things, not being involved didn't mean it didn't matter.

In any case, he benefited from Li Yongbao's mistakes.

Because of this benefit, he even climbed to the position of member of the Provincial Party Committee Standing Committee and Executive Vice Governor.

Pei Yihong waved his hand. "No, his problem, although serious, is not enough to affect you. I'm talking about your wife, Comrade Zhang Mingjie."

Qu Zhengping's face stiffened. "What's wrong with her?"

Pei Yihong said, "A few days ago, the Discipline Inspection Commission received an anonymous letter of complaint, which listed some issues about your wife and Li Yongbao taking advantage of their positions to embezzle and amass wealth."

In the past few days, after investigation and verification by the disciplinary committee comrades, the facts have been basically confirmed. Therefore, the disciplinary committee personnel will take measures later.

I am now informing you, and also speaking on behalf of the Central Committee and the Provincial Party Committee, about your wife. What do you know about her situation?

Alarm bells rang in Qu Zhengping's heart.

He understood Pei Yihong's implication: this was giving him a chance to confess.

However, he also understood that the disciplinary committee probably found that the problem had little to do with him, otherwise Pei Yihong would not have been so easy to talk to.

Having figured this out, Qu Zhengping secretly felt relieved, though he still looked shocked.

"What?! I really didn't expect them... they would actually do something like this!"

Pei Yihong remained silent, quietly watching the other person's performance.

Unexpected means unaware. Is it genuine ignorance or feigned ignorance? He didn't know. As the provincial party secretary, he was in control of the overall situation and wouldn't judge anyone or any issue based on subjective biases.

Qu Zhengping took a deep breath and continued his performance, "Now that things have come to this, Secretary Pei, I will no longer hide anything from you."

In fact, my relationship with my wife had already developed cracks. Although we still lived under the same roof, we were like strangers.

To put it bluntly, our sex life stopped several years ago.

If it weren't for the impact on my daughter, I would have divorced her long ago.

Moreover, as you know, our work involves a lot of separation.

Therefore, I don't really know much about what she did.

Of course, it's no use me saying all this; we still need to ask the central comrades and the provincial party committee to investigate.

I will fully cooperate with the organization's investigation and will take full responsibility for everything I have said.

Pei Yihong nodded. Qu Zhengping's account was largely consistent with the results of their provincial party committee's investigation; otherwise, he wouldn't have only conducted a verbal interview.

Cases like Qu Zhengping's are not uncommon.

Many leading cadres are relatively upright themselves, but they cannot resist the greed of those around them, which ultimately leads them to become deeply mired in corruption and unable to extricate themselves.

"Comrade Zhengping, the Provincial Party Committee still has full trust in you, but given the current situation, some of your important work will have to be suspended."

Does this count as suspension?

"No, it's just to be on the safe side. You can continue with your daily work as usual, but it's best to report to Comrade Anbang more often. This is also to protect you."

Qu Zhengping looked grateful. "Yes, Secretary Pei, I understand."

"Okay, you go."

Qu Zhengping took his leave.

After leaving Pei Yihong's office, Qu Zhengping returned to his provincial government office with a normal expression.

Throughout the journey, he kept pondering Pei Yihong's words.

Someone reported him—oh, no, it should be said that someone reported his wife and former secretary.

Of course, everyone knows perfectly well who they're after.

Fortunately, he was clean, so it wouldn't be so easy for that person to bring him down.

However, he knew he couldn't get his secretary out of trouble.

This is a new situation, and he needs to pass it on to his secretary.

It wasn't that he didn't want to help, but the situation had changed so quickly that he hadn't anticipated it.

……

Detention room of the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection.

In the blink of an eye, Li Yongbao had spent three days in what is commonly known as a "private room".

These short three days caused Li Yongbao's once confident face to lose its composure and calmness.

He was used to being in control of everything, but at this moment, for the first time, he felt like Sun Wukong was trapped in the palm of the Buddha.

Here, he became deaf, blind, and mute.

Not a single piece of information from the outside world could be transmitted to him, and he was even more unable to utter the warnings he wanted to convey. In the past three days, he had been able to speak no more than three sentences freely.

This is hell, a hell of power.

Anyone who wields immense power outside will be stripped of all honors, titles, and authority here, becoming an ordinary person.

Ordinary people who are not even as good as farmers.

After all, farmers can still decide for themselves when to work and when to rest.

But he couldn't even get a simple request to turn off the lights and go to sleep, because he had to be constantly under surveillance.

I used to hear people say how terrifying this place was, and that most people, except for a very few, couldn't even stay for a week.

He scoffed at it at the time.

He believes that without violent persecution, a room alone cannot bring much pressure.

But it wasn't until he was actually in this space that he realized how terrifying it was, a terror that touched his very soul.

Because you can no longer control your destiny, your body, or anything about yourself.

You'll feel an urgent need to connect with people, to go outside, to see the sun, to look at the clouds, and to breathe fresh air.

Even for a brief moment, you would be willing to pay any price.

Li Yongbao was jolted awake by someone patting him while his mind was in a daze.

"Eat your meal." The young guard, looking slightly tired, brought over the food.

In theory, Li Yongbao wasn't the only one detained in this room; there were two other people.

Those two were watching over him 24 hours a day; in a sense, they were no different from being detained.

The same kind of "treatment" that Li Yongbao enjoys is the same kind of treatment they enjoy.

In such a space, freedom does not exist—not for anyone.