Chapter 179 - 174: Heavenly Dragon Meat (Part 2)

Chapter 179: Chapter 174: Heavenly Dragon Meat (Part 2)

"No need. Those things can’t fly far. General and the others are more than enough."

Sure enough, a moment later, the three dogs came trotting back, each with a Flying Dragon in its mouth. They strutted with an arrogant swagger, tails wagging happily as they gathered around Zhao Wendong to show off their prizes. Zhao Wendong patted each of them on the head as a reward.

’The dogs have been doing a great job lately,’ he thought. ’I’ll give them an extra meal tonight.’ Besides bones, the dogs also loved offal and meat. Eating more would help them grow stronger, and he couldn’t just feed them coarse grains all day.

While Zhao Wendong and his group were heading for the hot springs in the mountains, several leaders were meeting in the county committee office. In the center seat was a man well on in years, wearing a pair of reading glasses and slowly sipping hot water. Jiang Weimin was presiding over the meeting.

"We have three main items on the agenda today," Jiang Weimin began. "First, a discussion on how the county will cope with the disaster year this winter. Second, Dragon King Pond Production Team wants bricks and has proposed trading grain for them. However, they must first settle their resold grain debt, and only then can they trade the remainder to the county. The third item is the Li Guangming case."

"Let’s start with the first item. My recent trip to Qianjin Commune was very enlightening. A single production team there knows not to wait for or rely on outside help, but to find its own ways to solve its practical problems. They know exactly how much grain each family has left. But what about our county committee? And the various Communes? Do we know the situation of every single household? This is a question worth our reflection, comrades. Please, share your opinions."

After everyone had shared their opinions, the old man in the center seat—the county’s First Secretary, who was approaching retirement—set down his enamel tea mug.

"You’ve all made excellent points, comrades. Let’s move forward in these directions and formulate guiding opinions as quickly as possible. Have the various Communes and production teams actively discuss them and, based on their individual circumstances, devise feasible self-rescue plans. Comrade Weimin, please elaborate on the second item."

"Of course. The situation is this: Dragon King Pond Production Team heard the county has a surplus of bricks this year, and they’re interested in trading grain for them to use in their village. However, the specific exchange ratio and the matter of their prior resold grain debt are details that still need to be negotiated."

"I agree!"

"I agree as well. When Secretary Weimin first proposed this, I thought it was a great idea. Using those idle bricks to get even a few hundred pounds of grain for the county is a good thing!"

"Exactly. It was that fellow Li Guangming who kept objecting. Why would anyone object to something so beneficial?"

Everyone present readily agreed. Who didn’t understand the current political climate? With Li Guangming out of the picture, Jiang Weimin was the clear favorite to succeed the old Secretary. Naturally, no one would object to his ideas. After all, the fate of the last person who opposed this plan, Li Guangming, was on display for all to see. It was a classic case of everyone wanting to carry the winner’s sedan chair. At that moment, they all unequivocally showed their support, and the old Secretary nodded in approval.

"Secretary Weimin, I’ll have to trouble you to hammer out the details. Then we can hold a formal vote and just give it a try. Even if it doesn’t work out, we don’t stand to lose anything, right?"

"Right!"

"The Secretary is correct."

Sitting in a corner, Director Fei of the Public Security Bureau, who had been specially permitted to attend, watched this scene unfold. He grew even more certain in his heart. ’The connection between Jiang Weimin, Dragon King Pond, and Zhao Wendong is definitely not a simple one. This is so obviously a move to help Dragon King Pond!’

"Old Fei!"

Startled by Jiang Weimin’s sudden call, Director Fei, who had just been mulling things over, jumped to his feet and stood at attention.

"You can report on the Li Guangming case now."

"Yes, sirs. Based on the evidence from the scene, the killer used a Nambu Type 14 pistol. There are a great many of these in civilian hands, making the weapon very difficult to trace. The shoe prints and other tracks collected at the scene have yielded no useful leads. With the assistance of the clinic staff, we can confirm the perpetrator was a lone, young male, approximately one-point-seven meters tall..."

"We don’t need to hear all that. Just tell us when you can catch the man, or at least identify the killer! This happened days ago, and you’ve made no progress whatsoever. How can you justify that?"

The old Secretary cut Director Fei off impatiently. Director Fei quickly laid out his next plan.

"We’ve been searching and investigating around the clock, but it’s like the man vanished into thin air. We’ve already scoured every possible place in the county. Our next step is to conduct a county-wide-sweep, searching every single household door-to-door. We will also issue an assistance request to the regional authorities to seek their help. I’m confident we’ll be able to find a trace of the killer."

"Making such a big scene... what if you still don’t find him? What then? And what if he’s hiding? Or what if he’s just a normal resident of the county—how would you even tell? And what if he’s already fled the area? What’s your plan for that?"

"Well..."

The old Secretary’s questions had Director Fei breaking out in a cold sweat. Just as he stood there, completely at a loss, the door was thrown open violently.

An old man strode in, flanked by several soldiers. The old Secretary immediately shot to his feet to greet him, a humble smile plastered on his face.

"General, what brings you here so suddenly?"

"Oh, nothing much. I just came to take a look. My grand-niece and her family... they were living perfectly fine in your county. How is it that they’re just... gone, all of a sudden?"

The old man had a powerful presence. He unceremoniously plopped himself down in the seat the old Secretary had just vacated. His first words left everyone staring at each other in stunned silence. After he spoke, he shot a look at Jiang Weimin.

Jiang Weimin’s heart skipped a beat. ’He’s here to hold someone accountable,’ he thought. ’The fact that he looked at me means he came prepared. Is Zhao Wendong going to become a target again? I’m afraid things are about to get ugly for me, too.’

The next moment proved his fears correct. A sharp-looking young man standing beside the old general—likely an aide or a staff officer—stepped forward. He spoke in a calm, measured tone, his words clear and methodical as he addressed the room.

"We familiarized ourselves with the situation on our way here. The man named Zhao Wendong, who had a conflict with Li Guangming on that day, is the primary suspect. Although he has an alibi, the possibility that he orchestrated the murder still exists. You can proceed by investigating the people around him. Check if anyone in his circle of acquaintances has gone missing!"

"Furthermore, I was outside just now and overheard the Director here say that the Nambu Type 14 is difficult to trace due to its prevalence among civilians. That’s also easily solved. Simply investigate whether Zhao Wendong himself or anyone he might know possesses such a weapon. This is the conclusion reached by our staff officers after discussion. Please trust our professional expertise. If you proceed in the direction we’ve indicated, I believe you will find a lead or identify the killer very quickly!"

When the young man finished, the old general slammed the butt of his cane onto the floor. A sharp CRACK echoed through the room, and everyone instinctively sat up straighter.

"Did you hear that? Investigate along those lines. I want you to investigate this Zhao Wendong. Now..."

Before the old general could finish, a clamor erupted outside. The deafening sound of gongs, drums, and popping firecrackers was incredibly festive. The old general’s face instantly darkened with fury.

"Who is that? What are they doing!"

The old Secretary was furious as well. ’What do they think this is?’ he fumed. ’The county committee compound isn’t some marketplace where anyone can just show up and cause a scene!’

"What’s going on? Who’s setting off firecrackers out there!"

The old Secretary rose and bellowed, about to order someone to go check, when the door was pushed open once more. A man in his fifties, dressed in a neat cadre’s uniform, walked in with a group of people.