Chapter 338: Isn’t There a Good Way?

“I can’t exactly say I’m over the moon with happiness,” Vice Chairman Tang Guochang said.

NIS Director Om Giyeon simply could not understand his response.

To seize supreme power, Tang Guochang desperately needed to cut off Chairman Xi Jinping’s tentacles.

And with their help, he had successfully eliminated his political opponents: Deputy Secretary Zhang Jinan, Commissioner Liu Peiqi, and Secretary Deng Zhiping.

On top of that, 75.6 billion dollars from Xi Jinping’s secret fund had fallen into his hands.

Taking all that into account, Om Giyeon had asked how he was feeling, only to receive a rather lukewarm response.

Suppressing his curiosity, he cautiously asked why.

“Once Chairman Xi finds out that his secret funds have vanished, he’ll undoubtedly fly into an indescribable rage.”

“Well, that goes without saying.”

“And there’s a very high chance he’ll suspect that I was the one who took the money.”

“But Department Head Cha already suggested a solution to that problem, didn’t he?”

“Of course, but objectively speaking, there are holes in my version of why I eliminated the Liu brothers and Director Pu. He’ll undoubtedly look at the matter with prejudice and through a lens of suspicion.”

“Hmm... I suppose you’re right. Department Head Cha, isn’t there some way to relieve Vice Chairman Tang of these worries?”

The story was supposed to go like this: Commissioner Liu Peiqi had blackmailed Secretary Deng Zhiping and stolen Xi Jinping’s secret funds.

Vice Chairman Tang Guochang, with our support, had gotten those funds back.

And Commissioner Liu Peiqi himself had died at Tang Guochang’s hands.

Now Tang Guochang was seriously worried that Xi Jinping would see him as nothing more than a murderer who had decided to erase the evidence and pocket the money.

I decided to confirm whether my guess was right.

“Department Head Cha’s guess is exactly right. Isn’t there any way to divert Chairman Xi’s suspicions away from me?”

‘Hmm... Isn’t there some elegant way to handle this?’

The moment I thoughtfully rubbed my chin, a brilliant idea flashed through my mind.

After quickly organizing the plan in my head, I answered Vice Chairman Tang Guochang’s request.

“Vice Chairman Tang, you know the meaning of the expression ‘sacrifice the flesh to break the bone,’ don’t you?”

“You mean sacrificing something small to deal a crushing blow—giving up flesh in order to break bone.”

“Exactly. If Vice Chairman Tang himself is wounded, Chairman Xi won’t be able to suspect you.”

“I see what you’re getting at. Tell me the details.”

“Commissioner Liu Peiqi tried to commit the perfect crime, but Vice Chairman Tang exposed him. And in a desperate ‘all or nothing’ attempt, he...”

As Cha Jiham’s scheme unfolded, goosebumps rose across Tang Guochang’s skin.

If everything happened exactly as this man described it, Xi Jinping would have absolutely no reason left to doubt him.

For an outcome like that, he could easily endure a wound, as long as it wasn’t fatal.

While Tang Guochang shook his head in amazement at the depth and cunning of Cha Jiham’s plan, the briefing came to an end.

“...Since there’s a risk to your life, you absolutely have to entrust this to someone reliable.”

“Of course. Naturally.”

Vice Chairman Tang Guochang nodded and immediately dialed Commander Wang Dazhong.

As though he had been waiting for the call, Wang Dazhong picked up after the very first ring.

[I’m listening, Vice Chairman.]

“Wang, there’s a problem... I did something stupid.”

[What happened? Please report.]

“During the interrogation of Commissioner Liu’s clique, I lost my temper and accidentally...”

[Don’t tell me... you eliminated them?]

Commander Wang Dazhong’s voice became extremely cautious.

“You guessed it. We urgently need to cover our tracks, so come to the safe house in an hour.”

[In an hour? Not right now?]

Tang Guochang was deliberately stalling for time so that the bodies of Commissioner Liu Peiqi and the others could be moved to the People’s Liberation Army safe house.

He did not reveal the real reason and offered another excuse instead.

“You understand how important this place is, don’t you?”

[You mean I should first make sure security here is flawless before leaving?]

“You catch on quickly. I’ll expect you in an hour.”

Click.

After hanging up, Vice Chairman Tang Guochang turned to Vice Chairman Wei Chen.

“I’d like to move the bodies of Commissioner Liu and Director Pu Zhenghua to the PLA safe house.”

“Director Pan, you heard Vice Chairman Tang?”

“Yes, sir.”

After giving a crisp reply, Director Pan Kai went down into the basement.

Some time later, Triad fighters came back carrying the corpses of Commissioner Liu Peiqi and Public Security Bureau Chief Pu Zhenghua over their shoulders.

Vice Chairman Tang Guochang briefly said goodbye to us and hurried after them.

Watching them leave, Vice Chairman Wei Chen sighed.

“What a mess. Everything is happening at lightning speed.”

“Tell me about it. Ah, wait!”

“Department Head Cha, what is it?” Wei Chen asked anxiously.

“Director Liu Haoran’s body needs to be moved to the PLA safe house too, doesn’t it?”

***

PLA Safe House.

After sitting down on an empty sofa, Commander Wang Dazhong lowered his voice and asked Tang Guochang,

“Vice Chairman, how did you end up killing them?”

Tang Guochang instinctively glanced around before speaking almost in a whisper.

“Everything you’re about to hear, you take with you to the grave.”

“Vice Chairman, you know perfectly well how good I am at keeping my mouth shut.”

“I trust you, which is why I’m telling you. I learned the real reason Liu killed Secretary Deng.”

“Didn’t he kill him so he wouldn’t have to repay the 4.5-billion-dollar debt?”

“That too. But more importantly, Secretary Deng managed the Chairman’s secret funds.”

“Don’t tell me...”

Wang Dazhong stopped himself as he realized where the conversation was going.

“Exactly. That bastard killed Deng to get his hands on the Chairman’s money.”

“So that’s what happened.”

“Now you understand why I interrogated him separately?”

“How could I not? And were you able to recover the Chairman’s funds that he stole?”

Tang Guochang considered this point crucial. How he answered would determine everything that followed.

“As far as I knew, the Chairman’s secret fortune amounted to around 75 billion dollars.”

“Whoa, he hid that much?”

“That’s exactly what I thought. But then that bastard started feeding me some ridiculous bullshit.”

Commander Wang Dazhong felt that he now understood why Commissioner Liu had been killed.

Tang Guochang must have intended to squeeze every last cent out of him, while Liu Peiqi stubbornly refused to hand over what he had stolen.

During the resulting argument, Tang Guochang had simply lost control and shot him.

Wanting to confirm his guess, Wang Dazhong looked at him questioningly.

“You’re thinking along the right lines. I only managed to squeeze 35 billion dollars out of him.”

“Damn... What a waste,” Wang Dazhong sighed bitterly.

In reality, Tang Guochang had taken every last cent of the full 75.6 billion dollars.

But he was driven by simple greed and wanted to keep the lion’s share for himself.

“I interrogated his brother and Director Pu, hoping to squeeze the rest out of them, but it was useless.”

“To let 40 billion dollars disappear into thin air... What a loss.”

“Exactly. I plan to give you 10 billion dollars.”

“What?!”

Completely unprepared for that, Wang Dazhong sprang to his feet with a shout.

Catching Tang Guochang’s heavy gaze, he immediately sat back down on the sofa, looking embarrassed.

“My apologies... I was just caught off guard.”

“It happens. You understand why I’m giving you those 10 billion, don’t you?”

“Of course I do! I’ll remain loyal to you until the day I die, Vice Chairman.”

“I’m counting on you. Now then, how should we fabricate an alibi for eliminating Liu’s clique?”

“Let’s think.”

“I already have one idea.”

“I’m listening!” Wang Dazhong’s voice became eager.

“Commissioner Liu understood perfectly well that after killing Zhang and Deng, he was a dead man walking either way.”

“That’s for sure.”

“And with the thought that he had nothing left to lose, he...”

Tang Guochang retold Cha Jiham’s cunning plan, adapting it to his own needs.

“...So in short, I need to suffer a gunshot wound.”

“But Chairman Xi might suspect that you shot yourself and staged the whole thing.”

“He certainly might. So how do we solve that problem?”

“If both of us are wounded—you and me—then the Chairman won’t have any doubts.”

“Hmm...”

Tang Guochang paused thoughtfully, pretending to weigh the risks.

Wang Dazhong silently waited for his decision.

A few moments later, Tang Guochang gave an affirmative nod.

“You’re sure you’re prepared to do this?”

“As long as no vital organs are hit, I can endure the rest.”

“Agreed. Let’s go down to the basement.”

After following Tang Guochang down into the basement, Commander Wang Dazhong suddenly frowned in confusion.

The bodies of Director Liu Haoran and Public Security Bureau Chief Pu Zhenghua looked far too untouched.

“Vice Chairman, didn’t you torture Director Liu and Director Pu?”

“What would be the point of torturing small fry?”

“I understand, but if their bodies remain in perfect condition, it’ll create a hole in our alibi.”

“I don’t particularly want to dirty my hands on these corpses, but you’re right. We’ll have to do some work.”

Some time later, the bodies of Liu Haoran and Pu Zhenghua had been made to look exactly like Commissioner Liu Peiqi’s corpse.

“Well then... Shall we each empty a round into the other?”

***

Ring-ring-ring.

Zhang Hui, Chief of the Central Committee General Office, who had been sleeping deeply, felt an intense wave of irritation.

Some shameless bastard was calling him in the middle of the night.

Still half asleep, he fumbled for his phone and glanced at the screen, only to freeze.

Vice Chairman Tang Guochang was calling.

His drowsiness vanished instantly. Zhang Hui sat up in bed, cleared his throat, and answered.

“Vice Chairman Tang, can’t you sleep or something?”

[Zhang, I’m in the hospital right now.]

“What?! How did you end up there?”

[Something horrifying happened last night. A monstrous crime.]

“What the hell happened for you to put it like that?”

[Deputy Secretary Zhang Jinan was murdered...]

“What are you saying?!” Zhang Hui interrupted him in shock.

[Zhang, I’m already in damn pain. Don’t yell into my ear.]

“Sorry, my fault... But Zhang Jinan is really dead?!”

[Would I lie to you about something like that?]

“So it’s true...”

[Yes. But something far more horrifying happened than Deputy Secretary Zhang’s death.]

“There’s more?!”

[Don’t faint. Secretary Deng Zhiping was murdered too.]

Zhang Hui felt as though the ground had disappeared beneath his feet.

Deng Zhiping enjoyed Xi Jinping’s absolute trust and personally managed his secret funds.

Just imagining having to report his death to the Chairman sent a shiver through Zhang Hui’s body.

“My God... This is a disaster.”

[I completely agree.]

“Vice Chairman Tang, do you know who committed this monstrous crime?”

[Of course I do. Commissioner Liu Peiqi.]

“Commissioner Liu?!”

[Exactly. We need to meet urgently and discuss what to do next.]

“Of course! Where should I go?”

[I’m in Beijing, in a private ward at the Naval Hospital.]

“Understood. I’m leaving immediately.”

***

Click.

The moment Tang Guochang ended the call, Commander Wang Dazhong, who was lying in the neighboring bed, spoke up.

“Vice Chairman, Zhang Hui is coming here?”

“What answer do you want me to give you?”

“Looks like I asked a stupid question.”

“Good that you realize it. How are you feeling?”

Wang Dazhong had taken a bullet in his left thigh, courtesy of Tang Guochang.

He had been rushed to the hospital and operated on, with the bullet removed.

Looking over his heavily bandaged leg, Wang Dazhong answered,

“The anesthesia hasn’t completely worn off yet, so I don’t feel any pain for now. What about you, Vice Chairman?”

“Thanks to your marksmanship, the bullet only grazed the fold of skin on my side.”

In other words, he had gotten away with little more than a scare.

“Understood.”

“Zhang Hui is an extremely sharp man. You understand what I’m getting at, don’t you?”

“Of course.”

“Let’s go over our stories one more time before he arrives. So, yesterday evening, Secretary Deng...”