44: Chapter 44 Turning Point

Zhao Yang raised his hand and knocked on the door.

He heard a voice from inside ask, "Who is it?" followed by the creak of the door opening.

Seeing a strange young man standing outside, Sun Dehai immediately looked wary.

"Who are you? Why have you come to my home?"

As Sun Dehai questioned him, his arm quietly reached behind the door, gripping the rake his wife used for gardening.

If this person had come to retaliate because of the petitioning, he would fight them to the death right now.

From Sun Dehai's sharp gaze and the movement of his hand, Zhao Yang knew the man was extremely suspicious of him.

Zhao Yang quickly forced a smile. "Master Sun, don't misunderstand. I might have a way to solve the matter you've been reporting."

"You?" Sun Dehai naturally wouldn't believe him easily, but he did put down the rake.

Zhao Yang took out his press card and lowered his voice.

"I'm a reporter from the Television Station. I'm here specifically to investigate this restructuring. Can I come in and talk?"

Seeing the small brownish-red booklet, Sun Dehai was slightly stunned for a moment.

Although he still didn't fully trust Zhao Yang, his guard had dropped significantly.

He stepped to the side, allowing Zhao Yang to enter.

Zhao Yang walked inside and closed the door behind him.

"Master Sun, if you want to protect your legal rights, you must have strong evidence."

Zhao Yang knew he couldn't fool the crew-cut man for long, so he got straight to the point without any hesitation.

"Evidence?" Sun Dehai raised an eyebrow and pointed toward the factory area. "They're claiming such a good factory is insolvent—isn't that evidence enough?"

Zhao Yang sat down on the worn-out sofa and said intentionally,

"I went to the factory yesterday to take a look. There wasn't even a single piece of decent equipment. How is the factory 'good'?"

"How can you say that?! We just bought two large machining centers last year!" Sun Dehai's tone was very blunt.

His eyes blazed as he looked down at Zhao Yang, wishing he could kick this uninvited guest out.

Zhao Yang pointed to the spot beside him with a slight smile, gesturing for Sun Dehai to sit, and said,

"Is it possible that the newcomer, Guo Mingkai, moved the equipment..."

"Impossible!" Sun Dehai interrupted with a wave of his hand. "Those things are huge. It's impossible to move them without making a sound."

Zhao Yang nodded and said seriously,

"As long as you have evidence that the valuable equipment is still in the factory, they cannot dispose of this factory as a negative asset."

Sun Dehai was startled, and then his eyes lit up. He moved to sit down beside Zhao Yang.

He never expected that this young man was actually here to help them.

As soon as he sat down, he quickly stood up again to pour Zhao Yang a cup of water.

"Comrade Reporter, I'm certain those two machining centers are still where they were. If they're moved, all the installation and debugging work done by the foreign experts would be ruined."

Zhao Yang didn't understand the technical side, but from Sun Dehai's certain gaze, he could tell the man wasn't lying.

He reached out to take the yellowed water cup and took a deep drink.

"Master Sun, words alone aren't enough. You need photos, document records, or testimony witnessed by everyone."

At this point, Zhao Yang took a pen and paper from his pocket and wrote down a phone number.

"You must act quickly to prevent Guo Mingkai from playing more tricks. Once you have the evidence, call me directly. I will help you get justice."

Zhao Yang was certain that the crew-cut man who had threatened him with a knife earlier was a local thug leader.

Against these factory workers who had treated the plant as their home for generations, acting tough wouldn't work at all.

As long as Old Sun and the other workers banded together tightly, they would definitely find a way to uncover the hidden equipment.

However, Zhao Yang still warned him, "Master Sun, I was threatened by someone when I came over just now. You must be careful when you take action from now on!"

Hearing this, Sun Dehai's brows shot up in anger.

"They even dare to threaten a reporter? Is there no law left?"

Zhao Yang stood up and waved his hand at Sun Dehai.

"I didn't reveal my identity as a reporter. Remember, everything must be done quietly. It's best not to let any word leak out."

After giving his instructions, Zhao Yang turned to leave.

...

In July in Tongan, the afternoon sun was exceptionally scorching.

The chirping of cicadas in the branches made people feel restless and irritable.

Li Hongyi sat in Director Yuan's office, listening to the cicadas outside, his brow furrowed.

"Director Yuan, I don't think Zhao Yang did anything wrong. Disciplining him directly is not only unfair to him, but it also reflects poorly on us and will dampen everyone's enthusiasm."

After all, Zhao Yang's report had just been used as a teaching video for everyone to study that morning.

The slap in the face had come too quickly; it wasn't just his reputation at stake.

Director Yuan, who had participated in the review, also felt the sting.

Li Hongyi wanted to use this as an excuse to take the opportunity to protect Zhao Yang.

Unexpectedly, Director Yuan's attitude was very firm.

He crushed his cigarette butt in the ashtray and said deeply,

"The disciplinary action doesn't have to be public. Otherwise, the only one left to take the fall will be you."

At this point, Director Yuan paused before spitting out the next few words:

"Or me."

He had no intention of taking the fall; saying this was just giving Li Hongyi some face.

Li Hongyi's expression stiffened. Just as he was about to speak, there was a knock on the office door.

Director Yuan frowned. "Come in!"

Office Director Lu Xuedong pushed the door open and placed an express delivery envelope on Director Yuan's desk.

"Director Yuan, this is Zhao Yang's transfer order."

"Transfer order?" Director Yuan raised an eyebrow in confusion.

Zhao Yang had never mentioned transferring. Why had this suddenly come up?

Which unit was so tactless as to take him in at a time like this?

They were waiting for him to take the fall; there was no way he was letting him transfer now.

He tossed the transfer order aside and said to Li Hongyi,

"Director Li, you draft the disciplinary decision. After the station leadership meeting discusses it tomorrow, file it and report it up."

After speaking, he noticed with surprise that Office Director Lu Xuedong was still standing there, with no intention of leaving.

"Director Lu, is there something else?"

Director Yuan was annoyed, and his expression showed some impatience.

He usually wore a smile for superiors or leaders of various municipal departments.

But with these subordinates, he didn't need to hide his feelings at all.

Seeing this expression, Lu Xuedong quickly bowed and said with a forced smile,

"Director Yuan, the Jianghan Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection called to instruct us to release him immediately upon receiving the transfer order."

"What? The Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection?" Director Yuan asked subconsciously.

Li Hongyi, sitting beside him, was equally astonished and couldn't help but look at the EMS envelope.

"Yes, the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection called this morning. I thought someone was joking, but I didn't expect the transfer order to arrive this afternoon."

Lu Xuedong explained quickly, fearing the station leaders would blame him for reporting late.

Director Yuan nodded slightly, indicating he understood.

He picked up the transfer order and opened it; it was indeed an official letter from the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection.

It clearly stated that the incoming unit was the Education and Training Center of the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection.

His post after the transfer would be Deputy Chief of the News Section of the Education and Training Center—a lateral transfer.

It had only been a few days since Zhao Yang was promoted to Deputy Section Chief, and now the transfer order was here.

Moreover, there had been no prior communication, just a phone notification.

Did this kid have some incredibly powerful background?

Moving his gaze further down, the signature was from the General Office of the Jianghan Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection.

The bright red official seal was particularly eye-catching.

Director Yuan couldn't help but smile; there was no need to hesitate now.

Disciplining someone from the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection? That would be asking for death.

He immediately picked up the phone and called Xiong Dajiang.

"Minister Xiong, we originally intended to discipline Zhao Yang, but a transfer order suddenly came from the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection for him to report there immediately. About this..."

Director Yuan intentionally trailed off at this point, waiting for Xiong Dajiang's reaction.