Chapter 341: Should I Enter the Tiger’s Den?

“Director Zhang, why did you get me out of there?” Chairman Xi Jinping hurriedly asked Zhang Hui, Chief of the Central Committee Secretariat, the moment they got into the limousine.

Zhang Hui did not answer the Chairman’s question immediately. He merely ordered the driver to get moving. Only after the limousine began gliding smoothly along the road did he finally speak in a measured voice.

“I noticed something suspicious in Vice Chairman Tang’s answers.”

“And what exactly seemed suspicious to you? Speak.”

“Vice Chairman Tang’s greed for money is practically legendary. The fact that he didn’t pocket the gold stored at Deputy Secretary Zhang’s safe house is extremely suspicious.”

Chairman Xi Jinping looked at Zhang Hui with an expression that was equal parts pity and irritation.

“Deputy Secretary Zhang intended to give that gold to me. Tang must have known that. Would he have dared touch it without permission?”

“Vice Chairman Tang’s personal unit was the one sent to Deputy Secretary Zhang’s safe house. If he had forced them to keep quiet, no one outside would ever have learned that the gold existed.”

“Hmm... Now that I think about it, you’re right. Then why didn’t he steal the gold?”

“That’s exactly what I can’t figure out... Ah!”

Zhang Hui suddenly exclaimed as if a realization had struck him, then fell deep into thought. Chairman Xi Jinping stared at him intently, waiting for him to continue.

After a while, the Secretariat Chief finally spoke.

“It seems Vice Chairman Tang used Deputy Secretary Zhang Jinan’s gold to bribe you, Chairman.”

“What makes you think that?”

“He’s aiming for a seat on the Standing Committee as well.”

“So Deputy Secretary Zhang did all the work, while Tang harvested the ripe fruit.”

“You are absolutely right, Chairman. By the way, are you planning to appoint him to the Standing Committee?”

Vice Chairman Tang Guochang held more than two million soldiers of the People’s Liberation Army of China firmly in his grasp.

Because of that, even Chairman Xi Jinping himself was somewhat wary of him.

Making Tang a member of the Standing Committee would be the same as giving him wings.

In such a dangerous situation, how could Xi possibly take such a step?

“Director Zhang, you know perfectly well why I keep Vice Chairman Tang at a distance.”

“I do, but right now he’s demonstrating his loyalty to you.”

“All right, enough. Surely you didn’t drag me out of the hospital just because of that?”

“How could that be? I’m troubled by doubts about why Politburo Member Liu Peiqi killed Secretary Deng Zhiping.”

Politburo Member Liu Peiqi had borrowed 4.5 billion dollars from Secretary Deng.

That was precisely the fact Zhang Hui was hinting at.

“You mean there was another reason?”

“He knew that Secretary Deng managed your party fund.”

At that moment, Chairman Xi Jinping’s heart began pounding wildly.

There was a terrifying implication hidden in Zhang Hui’s words.

Politburo Member Liu Peiqi might have embezzled his secret funds.

Taking a deep breath to calm his accelerated breathing, Xi continued.

“Are you saying Liu really stole my party fund?”

“The surveillance footage from Deputy Secretary Zhang’s safe house showed Chief Pu pointing a gun at Secretary Deng. In addition, there was a laptop on the table that appeared to belong to Secretary Deng.”

“My God...”

Overcome by a dark premonition, Chairman Xi Jinping looked up at the ceiling and let out a heavy sigh.

Zhang Hui tried to console him sympathetically.

“Chairman, Secretary Deng is a man who can keep his mouth shut more securely than any stone.”

“Who knows whether his tongue would remain that secure when faced with death?”

“If you put it that way, I have nothing to say.”

“This won’t do. Contact Vice Chairman Tang and ask him to send over the surveillance footage.”

“What if, instead, we summon Vice Chairman Tang to your office?”

“He has a gunshot wound. Will he be able to come?”

“The bullet only grazed his side, so moving around won’t be a problem.”

“I see. Call him immediately.”

Without delay, Zhang Hui called Vice Chairman Tang Guochang and relayed Chairman Xi Jinping’s instruction.

The moment he hung up, the Chairman asked curiously,

“What did Vice Chairman Tang say?”

“He said they’re changing his bandages right now and that he’ll leave in an hour.”

Xi Jinping nodded and ordered the driver,

“Get us back to Zhongnanhai quickly.”

“Yes, sir.”

The driver answered briefly and pressed down on [N O V E L I G H T] the accelerator.

***

The moment Vice Chairman Tang Guochang ended the call, Commander Wang Dazhong asked anxiously,

“Why is the Chairman summoning you?”

“Looks like he realized Politburo Member Liu stole his party fund.”

“How could this happen... This really is a disaster.”

Deep anxiety filled Commander Wang’s voice.

Tang Guochang realized he needed to calm his frightened ally.

“The alibi is flawless. You have nothing to worry about.”

“Is that really true?”

“When have I ever deceived you? The Chairman may summon you too, so stay alert and be prepared for anything.”

“Understood. I will.”

“I need to get ready. Go back to your ward.”

After being gently dismissed, the limping Commander Wang Dazhong left the room.

Tang Guochang gave his retreating figure a brief glance, then immediately called Cha Jiham.

A voice came through the speaker at once, as though the protagonist had been waiting specifically for this call.

“Vice Chairman Tang, have Chairman Xi and Director Zhang left?”

Tang Guochang tilted his head slightly.

Chairman Xi Jinping had visited the hospital secretly, without an entourage.

And yet Cha Jiham somehow knew about it.

When the Vice Chairman cautiously asked how, the answer came through the phone.

“The CIA is monitoring Chairman Xi’s every move.”

“Ah, I see.”

“I’m curious what happened during Chairman Xi’s visit.”

“Just as you said, sir, I called Director Zhang Hui in first.”

Tang Guochang recounted his entire conversation with Director Zhang Hui and Chairman Xi Jinping to Cha Jiham without leaving anything out.

“...It seems Director Zhang sensed that something was wrong and hurriedly took Chairman Xi out of the hospital.”

“What exactly made him suspicious?”

“He called me and said Chairman Xi wants to see the surveillance footage.”

“Hmm...”

Cha Jiham fell silent as though considering the situation.

Tang Guochang patiently waited for him to collect his thoughts.

After some time, Jiham’s confident voice came through again.

“That means Chairman Xi realized Politburo Member Liu had embezzled his secret funds, right?”

“I think the same, sir. How should I avoid his suspicion?”

“If you do exactly as I told you, everything will proceed smoothly without unnecessary trouble.”

At those words, the last remnants of anxiety in Tang Guochang’s heart disappeared entirely.

So far, everything had unfolded exactly as Cha Jiham had predicted.

Because of that, the Vice Chairman would have believed him even if he had claimed that soybean paste could be made from beans.

If he sounded this confident, was there any reason to worry?

“After hearing you say that, I feel like I’ve gotten my second wind.”

“Ha-ha, is that so? Vice Chairman Tang, I edited the recording of the interrogation of Politburo Member Liu’s group.”

“I just warned Chairman Xi that we’re trying to recover the data from the SD card.”

“Excellent work. As soon as we finish this call, I’ll send you the video file. Watch it.”

“I’ll be waiting.”

“After you finish watching it, you must delete it immediately.”

Tang Guochang genuinely did not understand that instruction.

In order to dispel Chairman Xi Jinping’s suspicions, wouldn’t they need to hand the file over to him?

Why was Jiham insisting that he delete it?

He asked directly.

“There’s a very high chance Chairman Xi will ask whether you managed to recover the SD card.”

“Of course.”

“If you hand him the file immediately, it’ll have the opposite effect.”

“Why?”

“Didn’t you already tell him that recovering the data from the SD card might fail?”

“Ah, right... I completely forgot about that.”

“Now listen carefully to what you need to do.”

“Go ahead. I’m listening.”

“When Chairman Xi asks about the SD card...”

As Tang Guochang listened to Cha Jiham’s instructions, he unconsciously nodded along.

The proposed plan was perfectly suited to wiping away all of Chairman Xi Jinping’s suspicions in a single stroke.

While Tang Guochang marveled at the elegance of the idea, the instructions came to an end.

“...And just in case, you should coordinate the story with Vice Chairman Wei Chen.”

“Tell Vice Chairman Wei that I’ll call him a little later.”

“I will. Good luck.”

Click.

Not long after the call ended, Cha Jiham sent over the video file.

Tang Guochang downloaded it to his phone and started playing it.

The footage had been edited flawlessly, exactly the way he needed it.

After watching the recording to the end with satisfaction, he muttered to himself,

“Heh-heh. So, should I enter the tiger’s den now?”

***

“Director Zhang, hurry up and check!” Chairman Xi Jinping urged him in an agitated voice.

At the order, Secretariat Chief Zhang Hui immediately opened the bank’s website and logged in.

He quickly entered the username and password, then pressed Enter with trembling anticipation.

Chairman Xi Jinping immediately moved closer.

“Director Zhang, is my party fund still there?”

“This... I’ll check the other accounts right now. Please wait a moment.”

“All right, check them quickly!”

Zhang Hui examined the remaining secret accounts.

The result was the same.

“All the accounts are empty.”

“Haa...”

Chairman Xi Jinping let out a long, devastated sigh, sank deeply into the sofa, and lit a cigarette.

Secretariat Chief Zhang Hui sat silently beside him, understanding exactly how he felt.

A moment later, the Chairman stubbed out the cigarette in the ashtray and spoke with a dark expression.

“Director Zhang, how much was in my party fund in total?”

“75.6 billion dollars.”

“You bastard!!”

Chairman Xi Jinping suddenly erupted into vicious profanity.

Unable to contain his rage, he grabbed the crystal ashtray from the table and hurled it against the wall with all his strength.

Crash!

Crystal shards flew in every direction.

The pile of cigarette butts heaped inside the ashtray scattered across the carpet and table.

But even that failed to calm his fury.

Breathing heavily, Xi swept his office with a wild gaze.

Finding nothing suitable, he jumped up from the sofa and stormed outside.

Soon he returned carrying an iron pipe.

Panting heavily, he swung it with all his strength and began smashing everything in sight.

Bang! Bang!

Crash!

Crack!

The first thing to shatter was Zhang Hui’s laptop lying on the table.

Next came the display cabinet, the luxury television, and the rest of the furniture.

Only the sofa and work desk were left more or less untouched.

Zhang Hui simply stepped farther away and watched the rampage from the sidelines.

At last, the Chairman threw the iron pipe onto the floor and collapsed weakly onto the sofa.

Zhang Hui quickly hurried outside and returned with a glass of ice water.

The Chairman snatched the glass, drained it in one gulp, and then hurled the glassware against the wall with all his strength.

Crash!

The glass struck the wall and exploded into thousands of tiny fragments.

Pulling a handkerchief from his pocket, Xi wiped the sweat from his forehead and spoke heavily.

“Haa... Director Zhang, is there any way to recover the party fund that bastard Liu stole?”

“First, we need to find out exactly where your secret funds were transferred, Chairman.”

“And how do we do that?”

“The Ministry of State Security should be able to trace it.”

“Right. Summon Minister He Lifen immediately.”

Zhang Hui immediately called He Lifen, the recently appointed Minister of State Security.

After exchanging a few brief words with him, Zhang Hui ended the call.

Chairman Xi Jinping asked impatiently,

“What did Minister He say?”

“He said he’ll come as quickly as possible with financial-crimes experts.”

Chairman Xi Jinping looked over the wrecked office and said,

“We’ll meet Minister He in the reception room.”