Absolute power in officialdom

Chapter 128 A Pawn? A Sacrifice!

Wu Zhiyuan said with a serious expression, "Zhao Zhao! According to the Supervision Law, detention measures can be taken against those suspected of bribery or joint duty-related crimes!"

We have sufficient evidence to prove that you are suspected of bribing Chen Zhenglei, the former deputy secretary of the Longdong District Committee, and are suspected of serious bribery crimes!

You think you're above the law just because you're not a leading cadre? You think you can act with impunity? Take him away!

"What evidence do you have?" Zhao Zhao asked, his voice stern but his tone weak.

Wu Zhiyuan was too lazy to explain, and he and several discipline inspection cadres simply dragged him away.

In the detention room, Zhao Zhao forced himself to remain calm, displaying his usual nonchalant attitude.

He yelled at Wu Zhiyuan, his arrogance blaming him: "Wu Zhiyuan, let me tell you, don't waste your energy!"

I don't know anything, and I have nothing to explain! Let me out right now, or you'll be sorry!

Wu Zhiyuan sat down in front of Zhao Zhao and softened his tone: "Zhao Zhao, this is the Longcheng City Discipline Inspection Commission's case-handling point. We are interrogating you in accordance with the law."

You should know why you were brought here. Confessing your problems is your only way out now.

Wu Ruolan accompanied Wu Zhiyuan during the interrogation.

Wu Ruolan was still a recorder.

"I have nothing to explain." A contemptuous smile flashed across Zhao Zhao's face. "By the way, I have a problem with my lifestyle. I have a wife, but I slept with Zhu Datong's wife, Liu Yan."

This woman has a fucking amazing figure, she's a real gem.

Sleeping with a woman like that would be worth it, even if it shortened my lifespan by a year!

"Wu Zhiyuan, I slept with Liu Yan dozens of times, shouldn't I be sentenced to more than ten years in prison?"

This is blatant provocation!

Wu Zhiyuan suppressed his anger. He knew that Zhao Zhao was deliberately provoking him, trying to escalate the interrogation into a low-level emotional confrontation and disrupt the rhythm.

He slammed his hand on the table and said sternly, "Zhao Zhao! You better wake up! This is a disciplinary committee office, not a place for you to act up and cause trouble!"

Your sordid deeds will be judged by morality! What we are going to talk about now is the serious issue of your alleged bribery!

Last June, you purchased a landscape painting attributed to a famous modern artist for 300 million yuan at the Jubaozhai Auction House in a neighboring province. What happened?

Zhao Zhao felt a pang of panic, but she remained defiant: "I enjoy collecting paintings, what's wrong with buying one? Is it illegal?"

Wu Zhiyuan stared at him and continued, "After the auction, the 300 million yuan ultimately went into the personal account of Wang Xingxing's mother, the owner of Rising GG Company. How do you explain that?"

Zhao Zhao's forehead began to sweat; he hadn't expected the Discipline Inspection Commission to have investigated the flow of funds so thoroughly.

His defense was weak: "That was money I lent to Wang Xingxing's mother, is that wrong?"

"Wang Xingxing's mother is a rural woman, what would she do with three million?"

And this happened after the painting was purchased? Is there a loan agreement for this loan? What is the agreed interest rate? What is the repayment plan?

Wu Zhiyuan's series of questions came like a machine gun, each one hitting the nail on the head.

"Zhao Zhao! Chen Zhenglei has already confessed! Your stubborn resistance will do you no good!"

You know perfectly well what happened with that painting! It was a fake I bought at a street stall, worth a thousand dollars!

The so-called auction was nothing more than a carefully orchestrated scheme by you and Chen Zhenglei to cover up your corrupt dealings!

Wu Zhiyuan is using interrogation strategies and taking advantage of information asymmetry.

To date, Chen Zhenglei has not truthfully confessed to the problems.

But Zhao Zhao was unaware of this.

"What did Chen Zhenglei confess? He's talking nonsense!" Zhao Zhao remained firm, but his confidence was clearly waning. "That painting has nothing to do with me. I was just helping out."

"Help?" Wu Zhiyuan keenly seized the looseness and flaw in Zhao Zhao's words, and pressed his advantage, "Help whose help? How will you help?"

Zhao Zhao, now that things have come to this, who else do you want to protect? Chen Zhenglei is barely able to protect himself, do you think anyone else will come to your rescue?

You are nothing more than a pawn in his hands, to be discarded once he's done with you!

He's saying everything to protect himself! Are you still going to take the blame for him?

Wu Ruolan also put pressure on him from the side: "Zhao Zhao, our policy has always been to be lenient for those who confess and severe for those who resist."

The only way to seek leniency is to proactively confess your problems and actively cooperate with the investigation.

If you continue to resist stubbornly and conceal the truth, the consequences are predictable.

Bribery, especially large-scale bribery, carries a heavy sentence. Think carefully about the consequences.

Wu Zhiyuan did not give Zhao Zhao any more chances to argue. He instructed Wu Ruolan to place copies of several key pieces of evidence that he had prepared beforehand on the interrogation table in front of Zhao Zhao.

One is a copy of the auction confirmation letter from Jubaozhai Auction House, one is a copy of the bank's transaction record, and one is a copy of a family photo of Chen Zhenglei, Wang Xingxing, and their child.

Wu Zhiyuan said sternly, "Chen Zhenglei has already confessed that this was a bribery scheme you meticulously planned!"

Using the auction of counterfeit goods as a cover, they transferred huge sums of money!

Every word you utter in your defense only increases your guilt and eliminates any chance of leniency!

Under a combination of coercion and persuasion, Zhao Zhao's psychological defenses completely collapsed, and she finally lowered her proud head: "Chen Zhenglei made me do this..."

After successfully breaking through Zhao Zhao and obtaining crucial testimony regarding bribery in the auction of calligraphy and paintings, Wu Zhiyuan knew that the real battle was just beginning.

Unlike the arrogant but relatively simple-minded Zhao Zhao, Chen Zhenglei is a seasoned veteran of the officialdom, with a strong sense of counter-surveillance and a more solid psychological defense.

Wu Zhiyuan proceeded cautiously, "inviting" Chen Jun to the investigation site.

It was inconvenient to detain Chen Jun, since he was not involved in the case.

Chen Jun is disabled, with a large hunchback, less than 1.5 meters tall, walks with a limp, and is thin. Given his physical condition, if he could marry a beauty like Wang Xingxing, there's only one possibility: his family must be incredibly wealthy.

But in reality, his family only had a few acres of poor land.

Chen Jun had never experienced anything like this before. After being coerced and lured by Wu Zhiyuan with a few words, he spilled the beans, telling him everything about his fake marriage with Wang Xingxing.

The reward is a commission of 100,000, plus an annual reimbursement for the stationery store's rent.

For a disabled person, receiving so many benefits without spending any money is a great deal.

Wu Zhiyuan decided to interrogate Chen Zhenglei.

The lighting inside the detention room was somewhat glaring.

Chen Zhenglei calmly watched Wu Zhiyuan and Wu Ruolan walk in, still fantasizing that someone would bail him out.

If you don't rescue him, he'll bite you.

Wu Zhiyuan first looked at Chen Zhenglei's self-written materials.

The materials went on to describe how frugal and honest he was, for example, commuting to get off work by bicycle; eating only a bowl of vegetable noodles at restaurants on weekdays; wearing his underwear with holes in it; living in the same old house and using the same old bulky television from over ten years ago; and handing over gifts, cash, and other valuables to the disciplinary committee more than fifty times over the years.

As for the problem, he downplayed it and gave some trivial details.

According to his own account, he was not a corrupt official, but an honest one.

Wu Zhiyuan sneered inwardly, "This guy won't shed a tear until he's in his coffin!"