Chen Yang stared wide-eyed at the branch chief before him, who was twisting the truth and spouting nonsense, finding it both laughable and absurd.
"This… sir, what do you think…" Bai Ming looked at Han Lingfei with difficulty.
Now both sides had their own version of events. Bai Ming was inclined to side with Liao Yongchang, after all, he was one of their own! But Han Lingfei was clearly targeting these young men, so Bai Ming simply passed the buck to Han Lingfei.
Han Lingfei remained calm, a gentle smile on his face, and said to Bai Ming:
"Director Bai, as far as I know, according to regulations, the entire interrogation process is recorded. Wouldn't it be clear the truth if we just went back and reviewed the recording?"
"Sir..." Liao Yongchang said, "The recording equipment in Interrogation Room Number One broke down a few days ago and hasn't been repaired yet... However, there was a police officer named Xiao Song in the interrogation room at the time. You can ask him to testify for me!"
"You..." Bai Ming was immediately speechless with anger. "What's going on? Why wasn't the interrogation recorded?"
Bai Ming knew immediately that Liao Yongchang was up to something. Having been through similar experiences, Bai Ming knew all too well the tricks they were playing. The ridiculous thing was that Liao Yongchang actually suggested having Xiao Song testify. Xiao Song was Liao Yongchang's subordinate; if he were to testify, would Liao Yongchang dare accuse Liao Yongchang of lying? "Director Bai, the branch office has been very busy lately, so we haven't had time to deal with equipment repairs. Besides, the station has more than one interrogation room; it's just that the security team brought four people back tonight, so… we had to use interrogation room number one," Liao Yongchang continued, his head bowed in a submissive manner.
Liao Yongchang had no other choice but to stubbornly deny everything. He was determined to deny everything, otherwise, the situation would escalate significantly. He knew that now that things had blown up, he couldn't expect Fan Zihong to clean up his mess; those spoiled brats were all like that. However, if he managed to get through this, Fan Zihong would definitely compensate him afterwards.
What Liao Yongchang never expected was that Zheng Laoxi was afraid of Fan Zihong's reprimand, so he was using Fan Zihong's name to approach him. Fan Zihong had no idea about this at all.
If Liao Yongchang knew the inside story, he would probably be furious.
At this moment, Du Changsheng, the head of the public security brigade, also stepped forward and said:
"Director Bai, sir, our branch responded to the report as usual. We have the victim's report and statement at the station. We also found several eyewitnesses at the scene and took their statements. All the evidence indicates that tonight's incident was caused by these people arguing with Zheng Laoxi, which escalated into a physical altercation. As for why he dared to be so arrogant after arriving at the branch, not only resisting interrogation but also assaulting Director Liao and trying to seize his police gun, I think he probably has some powerful backing!"
After speaking, Du Changsheng glanced at Han Lingfei intentionally or unintentionally, his meaning very clear.
Du Changsheng was subtly pressuring Han Lingfei, making it difficult for him to use his power to intimidate him. Now, Du Changsheng and Liao Yongchang were in the same boat. If Liao Yongchang was finished, Du Changsheng's fate would likely be even worse, since he was the first person involved in the case. Therefore, he couldn't worry about anything else for the time being. Moreover, Du Changsheng shared Liao Yongchang's view, hoping that Fan Zihong would smooth things over for them afterwards.
Han Lingfei remained unmoved by this, his smile unchanged. He watched Chen Yang with interest, wanting to see how he would handle the current situation.
At this moment, footsteps echoed down the corridor. Han Lingfei's secretary, Chen Xiuqi, led in a middle-aged man in his fifties. This man was slightly overweight, wearing black trousers and a striped short-sleeved shirt. He had a standard square face and exuded an air of authority.
Bai Ming, Liao Yongchang, and the others immediately stood at attention and saluted upon seeing this man, calling out:
"Secretary Weng!"
The man was none other than Weng Zhonghe, a member of the Standing Committee of the Beijing Municipal Party Committee and Secretary of the Municipal Political and Legal Affairs Commission.
Han Lingfei stepped forward, extending his hand and saying with a smile, "Secretary Weng, I'm so sorry to trouble you to come all this way so late!"
A smile appeared on Weng Zhonghe's stern face. He shook hands with Han Lingfei and said half-jokingly, "Political Commissar Han, no need for formalities. Anything involving the military is highly sensitive! One call from you, Political Commissar Han, and I wouldn't dare not come!"
After saying this, Weng Zhonghe's expression darkened, and he turned to Bai Ming, asking, "Director Bai, what's going on? I saw the anti-terrorism team members at the door!"
Bai Ming quickly stepped forward and concisely explained the situation to Weng Zhonghe, focusing on the conflicting accounts from both sides.
Weng Zhonghe listened while glancing at Chen Yang. The young man before him was somewhat unfamiliar; he probably wasn't from one of the major families in Beijing. However, Xu Haoran and Liu Zhengyi behind him were more familiar to Weng Zhonghe. He thought to himself: Since Han Lingfei came personally, it's probably because of those two.
After listening to Bai Ming's report, Weng Zhonghe said sternly to Liao Yongchang:
"Comrade Liao Yongchang, regardless of which side is telling the truth, regarding the case-handling procedures alone, I must seriously criticize you. We have repeatedly emphasized that the interrogation process must be video-recorded in its entirety. Why didn't you insist on this? This easily gives others ammunition! I think you didn't take it seriously enough, which is why your actions weren't resolute enough!"
"Yes, yes, yes! Secretary Weng, I will definitely reflect deeply!" Liao Yongchang nodded obsequiously in reply.
Inwardly, however, he felt a surge of joy. Although Secretary Weng's words were harsh, he completely avoided the core of the dispute, only criticizing his case-handling procedures.
What did this mean? Weng Zhonghe wanted to smooth things over! Sure enough, after criticizing Liao Yongchang, Weng Zhonghe's expression softened immediately. He turned to Han Lingfei and said,
"Political Commissar Han, although today's incident caused quite a stir, it didn't result in any serious consequences. As for the previous assault case, I think it was just a typical fight. The Changjie branch should mediate and not file a case. As for what happened at the branch, since both sides have conflicting accounts and there's no further evidence, I think it would be better if..."
"Excuse me, Secretary Weng, but I believe the Changjie branch has serious problems. Moreover, everything Director Liao said was a complete distortion of the truth. We cannot accept such a simplistic approach!" Chen Yang interrupted Weng Zhonghe before he could finish.
Weng Zhonghe's face immediately showed displeasure. He thought to himself, "This kid is too arrogant! If it weren't for Han Lingfei's sake, he could be sentenced for assaulting a police officer!" Upon hearing this, Liao Yongchang jumped out and pointed at Chen Yang's nose, shouting:
"Don't push your luck! Secretary Weng has already dropped the matter of you holding a gun to a police officer, and you still want to turn the tables on me! Fine! What's the point of empty words? Show me the evidence!"
Liao Yongchang could tell that Bai Ming and Weng Zhonghe were actually biased towards him. He knew that the leadership didn't want things to escalate, because if Liao Yongchang were to get into trouble, it would be a disgrace to the entire political and legal system! Therefore, Liao Yongchang felt more confident and spoke with more force.
"Young comrade, we police officers also rely on evidence. No one can prove the veracity of your accusations against Lao Liao, but your act of seizing a police weapon and holding a police officer at gunpoint is something everyone witnessed!" Bai Ming chimed in, his words carrying a hint of threat.
"Sigh..." Chen Yang sighed, turned to Xu Haoran, and said, "You're a real shrewd strategist, I'm impressed!"
Xu Haoran grinned and said:
"Alright! Stop hiding it, hurry up! After we're done, let's go take a good bath to get rid of the bad luck!"
Chen Yang turned to Liao Yongchang and stared into his eyes, saying calmly:
"Director Liao, didn't you want to see the evidence? Don't worry, you'll get your wish soon!"
Liao Yongchang suddenly felt a sense of foreboding.
Chen Yang walked towards the interrogation table, saying:
"Political Commissar Han, Secretary Weng, esteemed leaders, please come over and take a look!"
With that, Chen Yang magically pulled a pen from his pocket, deftly unscrewing the cap. Instead of a pen nib, a USB port was revealed.
When Chen Yang pulled the pen-shaped device from his pocket, Han Lingfei's eyes narrowed involuntarily. He subtly glared at Xu Haoran, thinking: This kid is incredibly audacious, actually bringing out standard equipment without permission and even lending it to Chen Yang…
This was a concealed camera device used by special forces. The Garrison Command's Special Forces Brigade, as an emergency response unit for urban counter-terrorism, was equipped with many such special devices. This camera device was mainly used for undercover reconnaissance, somewhat similar to a pinhole camera. Of course, its specifications were many times better than those so-called "spy camera gadgets" sold on the market.
Xu Haoran shrank back, pretending not to see Han Lingfei's stern gaze. He was completely unfazed; since Han Lingfei's appearance meant this matter couldn't be handled discreetly, he figured he might as well take the blame for bringing out the standard equipment. Chen Yang plugged the storage device into the computer's USB port and then skillfully began working on it. He quickly found the video footage from earlier that day, showing him entering the interrogation room.
"In this small territory of the Changjie branch, I, Liao Yongchang, call the shots! If I say you're a suspect, you're a suspect!"
"Evidence? There isn't any here!"
"I, Liao Yongchang, am the law! Evidence? Evidence is worthless!"
…
The entire scene, Liao Yongchang's arrogant words, was faithfully recorded. Chen Yang's camera angle was excellent; the shots of Liao Yongchang throwing his phone and suddenly preparing to hit Chen Yang were all very clear and unmistakable.
Liao Yongchang's face turned deathly pale, large beads of sweat instantly appeared on his forehead, his legs trembled uncontrollably, and he collapsed to the ground…