39: Chapter 39 The Iron-Fisted Secretary

At this moment, Zhao Yang was standing outside the Television Station, making a phone call in a corner of Xiushan Park.

"Zhao Yang, you're quite impressive!" It was Jiang Nan calling.

The sentence left Zhao Yang a bit bewildered. He chuckled and said,

"Officer Jiang, those words are far too ambiguous. Could you please be a bit clearer?"

Jiang Nan suspected he was making a dirty joke, but she had no proof.

She gritted her teeth in frustration and snapped,

"Can't you be serious for once? At a time like this, you still have the heart to joke around?"

Jiang Nan had a good impression of Zhao Yang. He was handsome, had a sense of justice, and handled matters with propriety from beginning to end.

Sometimes, she even complained to herself in her heart:

This guy spends all day on QQ; can't he take the initiative to call her?

Precisely because of this inexplicable expectation, Jiang Nan deliberately suppressed herself, refusing to call Zhao Yang unless it was necessary.

The guy was inherently frivolous; she didn't want him getting ahead of himself.

But today, something had happened, and she couldn't hold back.

She hadn't expected that as soon as he picked up, he'd try to flirt. It was with great difficulty that she managed to keep her temper in check.

Hearing the edge in her tone, Zhao Yang asked,

"What happened? Did the investigation run into major resistance?"

Where was he even getting this from? The investigation had always faced great resistance; did she really need to say it again?

Jiang Nan raised her eyebrows and asked,

"Don't you know about the news you filmed yourself? The workers from the Die-Casting Machine Factory went to the Municipal Government to petition. The Municipal Bureau's Patrol Police Detachment received notice as soon as they started work to send people over to maintain order."

So that was it.

Zhao Yang was somewhat surprised, but not entirely unexpected.

What he hadn't expected was that Jiang Nan could connect the news he filmed to the workers' petition.

Zhao Yang asked in a teasing tone,

"Officer Jiang, you actually have the free time to watch 'tongan news broadcast'?"

"Of course. Since the June 11 Case, I watch it every day... to see if there are any reports on the progress of the case," Jiang Nan answered firmly.

Halfway through her sentence, she suddenly changed her wording.

Ever since meeting Zhao Yang that day, she had been watching the TV daily to see if there were any reports by him.

Dammit! She almost exposed herself.

This excuse almost made Zhao Yang laugh.

You're literally in the Special Investigation Team; wouldn't you know if there was any progress?

Could she be paying attention to me?

How could that be? She was so beautiful that her suitors probably stretched all the way to France. Why would she have the inclination?

It was just his own wishful thinking.

Zhao Yang gave a self-deprecating laugh and said,

"Thank you for boosting our show's ratings. Do you have time tonight? I'll treat you to dinner."

"Who cares about your dinner!" Jiang Nan rolled her eyes at the sky. Could this guy not grasp the main point?

She then lowered her voice and said with concern,

"Since this has caused such a huge public outcry, you need to protect yourself."

These words warmed Zhao Yang's heart, and he dazed for a moment.

Subconsciously, he said, "Mm, I will..."

He wanted to continue, but he found that the other party had already hung up.

Public outcry?

This term was a bit professional; it didn't sound like something Jiang Nan would just say casually. Could it be that she had heard something?

Public sentiment is no small matter. Could Ji Hongwen be looking to hold someone accountable?

Damn it, isn't Old Ji overreacting?

What exactly is he trying to cover up?

...

Inside the office building.

Li Hongyi clutched his hot cell phone and stood in the empty corridor for a full minute.

The roar of "son of a bitch" was stuck in his chest, eventually turning into a heavy, muffled groan.

He had watched this news report many times and found no issues.

The use of the on-site recording was appropriate and aligned with the city's current policies.

The reporter didn't know what he wanted to say?

What a load of crap!

A reporter isn't a mind reader; how are they supposed to know what you're thinking?

If you didn't want it said, then you shouldn't have said it!

Thinking of this, Li Hongyi was suddenly startled.

Could it be that when Zhao Yang was writing the script, he made up a section of things Ji Hongwen didn't say?

After all, besides the original sound bites, that report had long segments of voiceover.

The voiceover parts were all read by the announcer according to the script Zhao Yang wrote.

Thinking of this, Li Hongyi felt a wave of panic.

If that were really the case, when the higher-ups investigated, it wouldn't just be Zhao Yang getting disciplined.

The chief editor, the station director who reviewed the footage, and the deputy director were all gatekeepers; not one of them would escape.

Li Hongyi forced himself to remain calm, walked into the meeting room, and turned off the television.

"Everyone should have seen enough by now. Go back to your work."

"In the future, remember that the selection of sound bites in reports must be appropriate and reflect the theme."

Back in his office, he immediately dialed Zhao Yang's number.

"Zhao Yang, I don't care where you are. Now, immediately, right this instant, come to my office!"

"Oh, okay. I'm at the station," Zhao Yang replied calmly.

He wasn't panicked at all; he knew exactly what he had written in his script.

'Ji Hongwen pointed out...' 'Ji Hongwen emphasized...' Those two segments of the script were basically Ji Hongwen's original words.

He had only removed the overly aggressive language and fixed the grammatical errors in the oral expression.

No matter how angry Ji Hongwen was upon seeing the report, he wouldn't be able to find any fault.

On the other end of the phone, Li Hongyi continued,

"When you come, bring your interview notebook from yesterday and today's 'Tongan Daily'."

Zhao Yang arrived at Li Hongyi's office with these two items and found Li Hongyi carefully reading his script from yesterday.

He sat down opposite Li Hongyi and handed over the day's edition of the "Tongan Daily."

The front-page headline was Guan Shan's report on the Secretary's research activities.

Without looking up, Li Hongyi took the newspaper and compared it with Zhao Yang's script.

The main content of the two pieces was almost identical.

It was just that to meet the requirements of television media, Zhao Yang's sentences were shorter and catchier, making them easier to broadcast.

He had also added two on-site recordings as a "finishing touch."

In fact, seeing this, the result was already clear: Zhao Yang hadn't lied.

After all, the report in the newspaper required the personal signature of Cao Zhengchuan, the Secretary-General of the Municipal Committee, before it could be published.

Li Hongyi was still uneasy. He took Zhao Yang's interview notebook and flipped to the latest page.

He saw it was densely packed with notes on the Secretary's speech.

One sentence was particularly shocking:

"If the workers in the factory dare to cause trouble, arrest those who should be arrested and sentence those who should be sentenced!"

Li Hongyi's eyelids twitched. The rumors were true; this Secretary Ji indeed had an iron fist and would sometimes use any means necessary to achieve his goals.

However, Zhao Yang hadn't written a single word of these harsh threats.

The Secretary was dissatisfied with the news report, so a rectification plan had to be produced.

Should he start by making an example of Zhao Yang?

But the problem was, he couldn't find any mistake on Zhao Yang's part at all.

Moreover, when the young man was writing the script, he had already avoided those words that could easily escalate conflicts.

Seeing Li Hongyi's constipated expression, Zhao Yang said seriously,

"Director Li, is there a problem with my report? You don't have to be in a difficult position. If there's an error in my report, I'm willing to take full responsibility."

If there was a mistake, one could only say the television medium itself was at fault.

Watching the television images and hearing the powerful recordings—could that feel the same as reading text in a newspaper?

Li Hongyi waved his hand weakly at Zhao Yang.

"What mistake did you make? Just go and focus on your work for now."

With such a big thing happening, he had to report to the top leader.

After Zhao Yang left, just as Li Hongyi was about to get up, the landline on his desk rang.

He picked up the phone, and a voice with a hint of a smile came from the other end:

"Hongyi, have you thought of a rectification plan? I'll be going to your station in an hour to hear the report."

The caller was Xiong Dajiang, the Deputy Head of the Municipal Party Committee Propaganda Department and Director Xiong Bo's father.

What a total load of crap.

Of all people, it had to be this guy who loved to throw his weight around.