Chapter 0003: Is this the end of our paths diverging

Xiao Li's expression caused a sharp pain in Shen Huai's heart, and he could only silently call out in his heart: Xiao Li, I am your brother!

In the blink of an eye, Zhou Dazui's face had swollen up, smeared with blood, appearing both comical and terrifying

Shen Huai rubbed his slightly aching right hand, thinking to himself that his physical stamina was truly poor. After just a few more moves, he was already a bit out of breath, and his fists felt weak. He was indeed a young master whose body had been drained by indulgence in wine and pleasure; unlike his previous physique, which had been trained in the workshop, where he could easily handle several hundred pounds of small steel ingots and work alongside ordinary laborers for half a day without feeling tired

Ge Yongqiu is from the municipal steel plant and often accompanies Mayor Gao Tianhe on inspections at the steel plant. The veteran employees from the production safety department all recognize him, but most of them still do not understand the situation clearly

Regardless of the consequences, it is best to put the blame on someone else; it cannot be wrong. Shen Huai looked at the report, which had several copies printed, and handed one to Secretary General Ge Yongqiu: "Secretary General Ge, can you accept such a conclusion from the investigation?"

Since we cannot keep the peace, we must not appear weak in our presence

Shen Huai's eyes glinted with menace, causing Zhou Dazui, who was about to struggle to his feet, to shudder and hesitate, not daring to stand up.

Let go of your hand; if you hit this bastard again, I will find your hands dirty

On the desk near the door, several documents are placed, with the cover printed with the words "Investigation Report on the Fatal Accident in the Continuous Casting Workshop of Donghua City No. 1 Steel Plant on September 16"

At this moment, speaking in the capacity of Secretary to Vice Mayor Chen Mingde, although it is unlikely to immediately change the situation at the municipal steel plant, it nonetheless provided a significant outlet for frustrations, and Shen Huai felt much more at ease.

Shen Huai embraced Zhao Dong around the waist and called out to Ge Yongqiu, who also calmed down after a series of stern shouts

In the blink of an eye, Zhao Dong regretted it again, thinking that he should have kicked Zhou Dazui a couple more times to truly feel satisfied

Once these words are spoken, it is as if the bundle of straw that has been lodged in my chest for many years has finally been expelled

As the head of the Technical Department of the Chief Engineer's Office, Vice Mayor Chen Mingde led a team to inspect the municipal steel plant. Zhao Dong was also among the reception staff and was present at the scene during the fatal accident, thus he recognized Shen Huai, who sustained minor injuries in the incident.

Ultimately, it is also due to the intense emotional suppression experienced in recent days, and since yesterday, I have been constantly worried about whether Xiao Li can cope with his "unexpected passing".

Even if he were to be dismissed from public office tomorrow, the opportunity to give Zhou Dazui a good beating and to speak so freely would still make Shen Huai feel it was worth it

Not only the steel mill, but also more than 300 state-owned enterprises in Donghua City have fallen into losses in recent years, with about 80 to 90 percent of them facing deficits. The remaining few enterprises are merely struggling to earn minimal profits

Although both individuals are following their respective bosses, this is an unspoken rule that cannot be brought to the forefront

"Secretary Ge, why are you favoring the municipal steel plant?" In the face of Ge Yongqiu's questioning and threats, Shen Huai showed no signs of weakness, his eyes sharply fixed on him, as if physically assaulting someone was not a serious matter for him at all. "When Director Xiong Wenbin was the plant manager, the municipal steel plant made a profit of 300 million a year; in just three years since Director Xiong was transferred to the city, what a mess has the municipal steel plant become? As a pillar enterprise of the city, Mayor Chen has also been perplexed by the rapid decline of the municipal steel plant. Secretary Ge, you also came from the municipal steel plant; can you understand why it has declined so quickly? Seeing such an investigation report, isn't the answer already quite obvious?"

Shen Huai was concerned that Xiao Li, dressed in tattered clothes, would attract strange looks from others while taking the bus home

At the age of twenty-two, I graduated from university and entered the municipal steel plant, dedicating the most beautiful seven years of my youth to this factory. Watching it fall into the hands of a group of parasites, rapidly declining from its peak, how can Shen Huai not feel indignant?

Ge Yongqiu's nose was almost crooked from anger as he questioned Shen Huai about why he had hit someone. However, Shen Huai countered by asking whether he accepted the conclusion of the incident investigation.

Shen Huaixin felt a pang of pain as she stared at Zhou Dazui, who was about to stand up: "You, a grown man, have the audacity to hit a little girl..."

Ge Yongqiu entered the office of the Production Safety Department at the city steel plant with a sullen expression, slamming his hands on the desk and sternly reprimanding Shen Huai

Xiao Li resembled a frightened deer; in the face of such significant changes over the past few days, even though she wished to confront everything with strength, she still found it impossible to do so

Seeing Ge Yongqiu speechless with anger, Shen Huai knew that his words still held a certain deterrent effect on him

Zhou Dazui turned black into white, shifting all the responsibility for the fatal accident onto Sun Haiwen alone, and even attempted to evade the compensation that should be given to Sun Haiwen's sister. Zhao Dong was infuriated by this, wishing he could confront Zhou Dazui directly. However, unexpectedly, Secretary Shen Huai of Vice Mayor Chen Mingde suddenly appeared and violently beat Zhou Dazui.

He did not accept the report, but calmly continued to question Shen Huai: "I have objections to the investigation conclusion, we can make it require the city steel plant to conduct further investigation. Who allowed you to hit people at will? I need to report this matter to Mayor Chen!"

The little girl has become as sensitive as an injured beast, and I hope she can grow strong and endure this period of time

In the office of the Production Safety Department at the municipal steel plant, Shen Huai suddenly erupted in anger in front of Ge Yongqiu, violently assaulting his brother-in-law and a mid-level manager of the municipal steel plant. Even if Ge Yongqiu wished to settle the matter quietly, it was impossible to do so.

Someone was originally going to call the security to apprehend a person, but at that moment quietly set the phone down.

Shen Huai, momentarily gaining the upper hand, stunned Ge Yongqiu with his imposing presence. He turned his head and saw Xiao Li and his sister-in-law still standing at the doorway, looking on at all of this with a pitiful expression.

As he looked at Chen Dan's haggard oval face and her graceful figure as she turned to leave, Shen Huai felt an even deeper bitterness of parting ways; however, when Xiao Li turned back to cast a grateful glance at him just before stepping out, it brought him a considerable sense of comfort

Zhao Dong was initially taken aback; once he regained his senses, he felt that Zhou Dazui had been somewhat wronged. Instinctively, he, along with the other staff members in the office, tightly embraced Shen Huai to restrain him.

Hmph! Shen Huai let out a cold snort, slamming the report on the desk in frustration, and said: "In the case of the fatal accident, both Mayor Chen and I witnessed it firsthand—yet despite this, the city steel plant still presents such a report on the accident investigation. Are they trying to fool Secretary Ge, fool Mayor Chen, or fool the municipal party committee and government?"

At this moment, Shen Huai could not bear to see his younger sister, Xiao Li, suffer any more grievances. He took off his coat and walked over to hand it to her, saying: "Regarding the incident involving your brother, Sun Haiwen, the city will conduct further investigations. You should return home and wait for news..."

Shen Huai retracted his hand with bitterness: indeed, he was just an irrelevant person. He wanted to express concern, but it could easily be misinterpreted as a display of false sincerity or ulterior motives on behalf of the city.

When Shen Huai saw Xiao Li being roughly pushed out, her sleeve torn and her arm marked with blood, it felt to him as if a spark had jumped into a boiling pot of oil; no matter how strong his self-control was, it was impossible to restrain himself from erupting.

Ge Yongqiu did not expect that Shen Huai would be so knowledgeable about the situation at the municipal steel plant, but he was even more concerned that there might be other complex factors behind Shen Huai's remarks

Ge Yongqiu is, after all, the Secretary-General of the Municipal Government, the chief steward of the Municipal Government, and the direct leader of all personnel in the Municipal Government Office

Thank you, Secretary Shen. However, when my sister-in-law Chen Dan left, she bowed slightly to express her gratitude

Shen Huai ignored Ge Yongqiu's reprimand and walked into the office with a sullen expression

On the contrary, due to the lack of background and power, no matter how capable one is, they still have to endure being looked down upon and mistreated by incompetent juniors like Gu Houzi and Zhou Dazui

Looking at the coat being offered by the older brother in front of her, although there was a kind of concern in his eyes that felt familiar and reassuring, her heart at this moment was sensitive and easily hurt, making her uncertainly glance at Zhao Dong, who was standing beside her

Shen Huai's left shoulder abrasion has not yet healed, making it impossible for him to exert force. However, with his right fist, he struck Zhou Dazui repeatedly, landing five or six blows that connected solidly, knocking him to the ground. He then followed up with kicks. By the time Ge Yongqiu, Zhao Dong, and others regained their senses, someone finally managed to grab him around the waist and pull him away

Unfortunately, in the past, when he witnessed such events, despite feeling immense resentment towards the books, he had no opportunity to vent or effect any change

Shen Huai picked up these documents and casually flipped through a few pages. The content of the report was consistent with what he had just heard from Ge Yongqiu while standing outside the door.

Shen Huaixin thought that just a moment ago, Zhou Dazui was probably sitting behind this desk, discussing the matter of accident compensation with Zhao Dong, Xiao Li, and his sister-in-law Chen Dan

Shen Huaiyu calmly urged Zhao Dong to release his grip, yet other security personnel still stood between him and Zhou Dazui; it was at this moment that he noticed his sister-in-law, Chen Dan, standing in the office, presumably accompanying Xiao Li.

Then shall I send Sun Haiwen's sister and cousin-in-law away first? Zhao Dong did not take the coat that Shen Huai offered, and seeing that Shen Huai made no further gestures, he took Xiao Li out first

Seeing Xiao Li standing at the door seemingly startled, Shen Huai recalled how he had just barged in without a word, knocked Zhou Dazui to the ground with several punches, and then kicked him with a change of foot, which was indeed somewhat insane

Ge Yongqiu's face glistened with moisture, and the few white spots on his face twitched rhythmically.

However, the immediate task is not to confront Zhou Dazui, but to deal with Ge Yongqiu

The young man who rushed in to beat Zhou Dazui is the secretary from the city government who came with Ge Yongqiu

Her half-torn sleeve revealed her slender arm, the snow-white skin resembling flawless white porcelain. However, the whiter and more tender the skin, the more glaring the bloodstain pulled out by the doorknob appeared.

Shen Huai's words struck like a steel spear directly into Ge Yongqiu's heart, causing him a sharp pain in his chest

It is both anger and surprise

... ...

Nonsense! Secretary Shen, what do you take this place for, a venue for thugs to brawl? You've completely disgraced the city government