"Station Chief Qin, I'll change it! I'll change it for you right now!"
Sun Chao swiftly began to take down the doorplate. He didn't call for help, but did it himself.
His motive, naturally, was to avoid a beating.
At the same time, Sun Chao didn't want to make a mortal enemy of Qin Shou.
*How dare Sun Chao betray me?*
Gou Zhongcheng's face contorted with rage. He pointed at Sun Chao's nose and threatened loudly, "Sun Chao, you damn well stop right now! If you dare change that doorplate, you can forget about being the head of the logistics department!"
Qin Shou took a drag from his cigarette, blew out a smoke ring, and casually dangled a carrot. "Little Sun, if you change this doorplate properly, I can let bygones be bygones and let you continue as the head of the logistics department.
If you perform well enough, I might even make you Deputy Station Chief in the future. Of course, making you Station Chief directly isn't out of the question either!"
Qin Shou had no intention of ever giving a man like Sun Chao any real responsibility, but he could certainly be used.
Sowing discord between him and Gou Zhongcheng, making Gou's own lapdog turn and bite him—now that would be amusing.
Gou Zhongcheng couldn't help but roar with laughter at Qin Shou's words.
"Hahahaha..."
After he finished laughing, Gou Zhongcheng pointed at Qin Shou's nose and mocked, "Qin Shou, you really prove that old saying: it costs nothing to brag! Do you think you're still the County Party Secretary's chief secretary?
Even when you were, you didn't have the authority to appoint the Station Chief of Jigong River Hydroelectric Station, did you? And you're talking about making Sun Chao the Station Chief directly? You've got some nerve."
Qin Shou said no more. He just stood there smoking, watching Sun Chao with a meaningful gaze.
Sun Chao was a shrewd man. Qin Shou's Oscar-worthy performance made his heart pound with uncertainty.
*Could it be that Qin Shou is actually fine?*
It had been many days since Sun Changsheng jumped to his death, yet all that had happened to Qin Shou was getting kicked out by his wife. Then, he was demoted to Station Chief at the Jigong River Hydroelectric Station. At the same time, he was also demoted to a second-level staff member.
This was precisely what puzzled Sun Chao.
The Station Chief of the Jigong River Hydroelectric Station should, by rank, be a section-level chief position. But Qin Shou had been demoted to a second-level staff member, so how could he still be appointed Station Chief here?
It was too strange.
The inner workings of the system were a labyrinth, and Sun Chao was one to analyze them.
The more he thought about it, the more he felt that Qin Shou hadn't truly fallen from power. In fact, it was very likely that Qin Shou's backer wasn't Sun Changsheng at all.
Otherwise, how could Qin Shou still be standing when Sun Changsheng was already gone?
Although Sun Chao was Gou Zhongcheng's lackey, he knew deep down that there was no future in following him.
So, Sun Chao made a decision. He wasn't going to put all his eggs in one basket anymore; he decided to move some of them into Qin Shou's.
Sun Chao didn't dare to speak. He just worked in silence, carefully taking down the doorplate.
His own dog was disobeying him. Of course, Gou Zhongcheng couldn't tolerate that!
Just as Gou Zhongcheng's iron fist was about to connect with Sun Chao's face, Qin Shou's leg shot out, kicking Gou Zhongcheng square in the stomach and sending him flying.
*Thud!*
With a dull sound, Gou Zhongcheng landed heavily on the ground.
"Ouch!"
"Aiyo!"
...
Gou Zhongcheng cried out in pain again and again.
Qin Shou glared at him and warned in a cold voice, "Gou Zhongcheng, as long as I'm the Station Chief at Jigong River Hydroelectric Station, you will not lay a hand on any colleague. If you dare to, I'll be the one to beat you up!"
By now, Sun Chao had already finished changing the doorplate.
Qin Shou pointed at the things inside the Station Chief's office and asked Gou Zhongcheng, "Are you going to move this stuff out yourself, nice and quick, or should I give you a thorough beating first, and then you can move it out after I've knocked some sense into you?"
How could Gou Zhongcheng dare to talk tough now?
He may not have even graduated from middle school, but he wasn't an idiot. He knew for a fact that Qin Shou would really beat him.
Following the principle that a wise man doesn't fight a losing battle, Gou Zhongcheng started moving his things, muttering curses under his breath.
A quick look at will leave you more fulfilled.
After Gou Zhongcheng, panting and puffing, had moved all his belongings into the restroom, Qin Shou dangled another carrot.
"Deputy Station Chief Gou, for the next month, you can work out of that restroom. When you've passed my evaluation and shown me you've learned to turn over a new leaf, I might consider getting you a different office."
Qin Shou knew he couldn't fire Gou Zhongcheng.
After all, Gou was the County Mayor's brother-in-law; his backing was rock solid.
Since he couldn't be fired, he had to be subdued.
Only then could Qin Shou, as Station Chief, effectively carry out his duties.
Just then, a beautiful woman in a blazer, accompanied by two staff members, walked up to Qin Shou.
"Are you Qin Shou?" the woman asked.
Qin Shou nodded. "I am."
The woman flashed her credentials. "I am Leng Xiangmei, Director of the Eighth Review and Investigation Office of the Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection. You've been reported for corruption and bribery. Please come with us to cooperate with the investigation."
"Alright."
...
Gou Zhongcheng was dumbfounded, unable to process what had just happened.
Taken away for corruption and bribery?
When the Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection came to arrest someone, they definitely had solid evidence. They would never make a move without ironclad proof!
Qin Shou was finished. He was going to prison!
Once the realization dawned on him, Gou Zhongcheng dragged Sun Chao over.
*Slap!*
*Slap! Slap!*
...
He landed several hard slaps across Sun Chao's face.
Still not satisfied, Gou Zhongcheng unleashed a flurry of punches and kicks on Sun Chao, leaving him with a bruised and swollen face, his body covered in injuries.
"Change that damn doorplate back for me! Then, move all this shit back into my office! If you want to have an easy time from now on, you'll buy me two cases of Maotai and get me twenty cartons of He Tianxia!"
When Gou Zhongcheng demanded things from his subordinates, he always named his price upfront.
Two cases of Maotai? A case held six bottles, so that was twelve bottles in total. Even though the price of Maotai had dropped recently, a single bottle still cost 2,500 yuan, making twelve bottles 30,000 yuan.
A pack of He Tianxia retailed for 100 yuan, and a carton was 850 yuan. Twenty cartons would be another 17,000 yuan!
Sun Chao's entire annual take-home pay wasn't even 50,000 yuan, and now, because of today's events, he had to cough up 47,000 yuan for a "gift" to Gou Zhongcheng?
He was filled with such bitter regret he could taste it.
If he had known, he never would have moved his eggs into Qin Shou's basket.
Now, they were all broken.
Having suffered such a huge loss in silence, Sun Chao could only swallow his pride and bear the humiliation.
...
Meanwhile.
Leng Xiangmei took Qin Shou back to Unit 5-1, Building 6 of Xingfu Garden.
As Qin Shou watched with his own eyes, the Disciplinary Committee staff pulled a large leather suitcase from under his bed.
The moment the suitcase was opened, Qin Shou was blinded by the sight.
It was filled to the brim with 100-yuan bills, with several gold bars laid on top.
A Disciplinary Committee staff member did a quick assessment. There were 2 kilograms of gold bars in total. At the current gold price of seven to eight hundred yuan per gram, they were worth 1.5 million yuan. In addition, there was over a million yuan in cash.
Furthermore, the suitcase also contained a significant amount of US dollars and euros.
There was even an offshore bank card.
Not counting the unknown funds in the offshore account, the total amount involved in the case was nearly 3 million yuan.