Chapter 151: Even Greater Pressure!

“Ha ha, Yan Qing, have you arrived in Kaiyang County?”

Lu Yanqing never expected the call to come from Deputy Team Leader Liu Shan.

Yes, it was his old superior, Deputy Team Leader Liu Shan, who had always valued him and sought to promote him.

Member of the Municipal Discipline Inspection Committee, Director of the Municipal Discipline Inspection Case Review Office.

“Leader, I arrived at noon. Do you have any instructions?”

Holding his phone, Lu Yanqing stood up and moved to the window to answer.

“Ha ha, what instructions could I have? Just calling to check in with you.”

Liu Shan spoke cheerfully, with the tone of casual conversation.

“By the way, Yan Qing, regarding the 19 cadres in Kaiyang County involved in this case, your task force must be extremely cautious in handling the matter.”

“Kaiyang County is an economically significant county in our Lingyun City, accounting for over thirty percent of the economic output. We absolutely cannot let our discipline inspection team’s investigation delay the local development.”

“Places like the Tax Bureau, the Industry and Commerce Bureau, and several townships are all key to investment promotion and economic development.”

“The central government’s directives on economic development must be deeply understood and implemented by our discipline inspection commissions at all levels.”

“We must balance cracking down on corruption and promoting economic growth—handle this with great care.”

“Please convey this message to Comrade Yang Dong. I hope he can manage the 19 implicated cadres in Kaiyang County well. When he returns to the city, as the Deputy Leader of our Municipal Discipline Inspection Team, I’ll personally commend him.”

Liu Shan’s call lasted less than two minutes before he hung up voluntarily.

From start to finish, there were no explicit hints or partisan words—just the usual talk about safeguarding development while cracking down on corruption, achieving both simultaneously.

But Lu Yanqing knew his old superior well; he never spoke too bluntly.

The meaning was clear enough.

The Tax Bureau, Industry and Commerce Bureau, and some townships are key economic areas.

Translated, it meant these places were best left untouched if possible.

“Who was that?”

Yang Dong, sitting some distance away, couldn’t hear the voice on Lu Yanqing’s phone, so he asked seriously.

Lu Yanqing put away the phone, glanced at Yang Dong a few times, and replied with a wry smile: “Deputy Team Leader Liu.”

“No wonder you seemed so nervous.”

Yang Dong suddenly understood Lu Yanqing’s tense demeanor just now.

But then he fell silent.

Resistance was truly formidable—Deputy Team Leader Liu Shan himself had stepped in.

This did not imply anything wrong with Liu Shan, but it did mean that this Kaiyang County case had high-level interference.

“Brother Yang, to be honest, this is just the beginning.”

“You were seconded to the Municipal Discipline Inspection Commission late, so you might not know—back in 2005, when our commission investigated the Executive Deputy County Head of Jieyang County, guess what happened?”

“The former Secretary of the Municipal Discipline Inspection Commission, Lu Zheng, was summoned to the provincial commission and reprimanded. Apparently, provincial leaders even got involved…”

“We here in the city also received a vivid lesson from Secretary Wu of the Municipal Party Committee, themed on protecting grassroots economy, promoting local development, and stabilizing the overall city situation.”

“Not a word was mentioned about the case itself, but the entire speech was full of hints and warnings.”

“In the end, the Executive Deputy County Head was transferred out of Jieyang County, and our municipal commission had two case officers disciplined for procedural irregularities. Isn’t that ridiculous?”

Lu Yanqing had been with the commission for some time and had experienced much.

Now he was willing to share his hard-earned insights with Yang Dong, so Yang Dong could be forewarned.

Discipline inspection work isn’t easy. Do you really think discipline officers wield some imperial sword, cutting down whoever they want?

You may have the sword, but others have immunity cards. How do you deal with that?

After all the turmoil, much effort and expense, you end up with nothing.

“Brother Lu, with what you’ve said, I…”

Ring ring!

Just as Yang Dong was about to respond, his phone rang.

But his was a private phone, previously registered and approved by the municipal commission, so no issues there.

“I understand how you feel now.”

Yang Dong shook his head helplessly at Lu Yanqing, then stood and walked to the window, pressing the answer button.

“Secretary Yin, this is Yang Dong.”

The caller was Yang Dong’s greatest current supporter, Yin Tiejun, Secretary General of the Municipal Government.

Yang Dong never expected Uncle Yin to pressure him, yet here it was.

“Xiao Dong, the mayor is inspecting Kaiyang County tomorrow. Your municipal discipline team must be careful with your methods!”

“I have other affairs and a meeting, so I won’t say more. You must gauge the situation yourself.”

“Also, be smart—don’t just charge forward swinging your big sword. Without the central army guarding your rear, you’ll easily be encircled.”

Beep beep beep…

Yin Tiejun’s call was brief but impactful.

Just three sentences.

Yet the pressure they brought was like a tidal wave.

Each sentence was a heavy blow.

The mayor inspecting Kaiyang County sent a strong signal.

Yang Dong was warned to be clever, not just to rush ahead blindly, and to watch his back.

The “central army” guarding the rear? Naturally, it was Secretary Guan Mushan of the Municipal Discipline Inspection Commission.

Yang Dong felt touched—Uncle Yin still cared about him.

If he hadn’t known about the mayor’s inspection, serious problems could have arisen.

The mayor arrives to inspect, praising Kaiyang’s economic growth, while the discipline team is simultaneously investigating cadres involved in the case.

Even a fool could guess the consequences.

Moreover, though Yang Dong seemed part of the discipline commission, his organizational affiliation, personnel management, and staffing were all with the municipal government.

As a seconded cadre, Yang Dong answered to both the discipline commission secretary and the mayor.

Put simply: it’s like having a girlfriend, going to her home, and then slapping your own parents.

“How’s it looking?”

Lu Yanqing looked at Yang Dong with sympathy. In this moment, both men shared a sense of mutual struggle.

Both faced mounting pressure from their old leaders—each heavier and stronger than the last.

“I thought the situation in Kaiyang County was already complicated, but I was naive. This Zhao Pengcheng case has stirred up the city’s political landscape again.”

“Before, it was Secretary Wu of the Municipal Party Committee clashing with Mayor Hou.”

“Now, the Municipal Discipline Inspection Secretary and the mayor are also at odds.”

At this moment, Yang Dong truly learned a lesson.

He grasped the principle that water has no constant shape or form.

The mayor and the discipline inspection secretary had once been allies, supporting each other.

But because of the Zhao Pengcheng case, they quickly became adversaries.

Mayor Hou Yong was certainly not protecting Zhao Pengcheng—Zhao was a protégé of Wu Xinkai, so Hou would never shield him.

What Hou protected was the economic stability and overall development of Kaiyang County.

As mayor, he was responsible for the economy.

This was his fundamental and core interest.

Meanwhile, Secretary Guan’s role was to magnify the Zhao Pengcheng case as a warning to all city cadres to behave properly—this was his duty and core interest.

When the core interests of these two major leaders diverged fundamentally, their alliance naturally ended.

But Yang Dong felt like a child caught in the middle of divorced parents, unsure how to choose.

No matter what he did, he risked offending one side or the other.

“Don’t put the three deputy section chiefs from the county tax bureau under investigation for now.”

“Tomorrow, I’ll go back to my hometown in Xiashui Town for a visit.”

Yang Dong’s expression was complicated as he informed Lu Yanqing.