Half an hour later.

Xu Liang led his group to the hotel where they were staying.

Xu Dong and Zhang Tianlai had received the news and had been waiting at the hotel for a long time.

In the magnificent dining room, Wuliangye liquor was already prepared, and Zhang Tianlai personally hosted a welcome dinner for Xu Liang.

"Team Leader Xu, your presence in Harbin is truly an honor for our city. Your achievements in the inspection work are evident to the people of the whole country. You are the most intelligent, talented, capable, and visionary person I have ever met, without exception! Come, let me toast you!" Zhang Tianlai stood up and raised the first glass of wine.

That's some seriously good flattery.

Xu Liang was a vain man, so he was naturally very pleased to hear this.

However, as a young master from a noble family and a seasoned veteran of officialdom, he remained calm and composed.

“Mayor Zhang, I’m just a small team leader. You don’t need to flatter me. I’m here to inspect. I’ll inspect as I see fit, you know what I mean!” Xu Liang said with a serious expression.

"I understand, I understand! How could I not understand?" Zhang Tianlai smiled and poured himself a glass of wine, saying, "Team Leader Xu holds a high position and is extremely discerning. If he wants to investigate something, it's a piece of cake. Don't even mention our small place; even the northern and southern provinces, the three provinces and six ministries, can't escape your discerning eyes!"

"It would be a waste of your talents to have you come here!"

Zhang Tianlai leaned closer and said, "You're usually so busy, you should relax and enjoy yourself here. Investigating these minor issues is none of your business. As the official in charge of Harbin, I know these people very well. Our team also conducts regular self-examinations. Don't worry, I'll put all the problematic people on your list. You just need to approve it!"

Xu Liang frowned slightly. "Mayor Zhang, what do you mean by this? I already broke the rules by agreeing to have this meal with you today. Are you trying to undermine my authority?"

"No, no!"

Zhang Tianlai looked embarrassed and quickly explained, "You misunderstood. We just received some reports and held a meeting. The results are in now, so you don't have to go through the trouble yourself!"

As he spoke, he glanced at Xu Dong, who immediately understood and nodded, saying, "Yes, yes, yes! Team Leader Xu, isn't this a perfect coincidence? Mayor Zhang usually enforces strict discipline and resolutely fights against violations of rules and regulations. This time, he just happened to catch two typical cases, which saves you some trouble!"

Xu Liang chuckled lightly. Save me energy? More like finding two lowly pawns to take the blame for you, isn't it?

He'd been doing patrol work for several years and had seen all sorts of strange and unsavory characters. Judging from the behavior of these two men today, he didn't believe Zhang Tianlai was innocent.

However, since Xu Dong had instigated this, he had to give him face.

He thought for a moment and said, "Patrol work is not child's play. There are some situations that I must report truthfully, otherwise I can't bear the responsibility if problems arise later! If there really is a problem, it's not something that can be explained away by one or two grasshoppers!"

His words couldn't be clearer: he had to catch two big fish, otherwise what was he doing in Harbin? And how would his achievements be demonstrated?

Xu Dong chuckled and said, "Don't worry about that, it has to be a big fish! When we do revolutionary work, we must be serious and rigorous, and at critical moments we must have the courage to cut off our own arm! This time, in order to fight against corruption, our Mayor Zhang really had to bear the pain and cut off his own left and right arms!"

"Oh?" Upon hearing this, Xu Liang's eyes flashed, and he looked at Zhang Tianlai.

Zhang Tianlai sighed and shook his head, saying, "Sigh, I treat the comrades in the team like family. They are all capable officers, and I usually protect them. But this time, what they did was really too much! Team Leader Xu, I really had to make a huge decision to deal with them this time!"

As Zhang Tianlai spoke, he glanced at Xu Dong.

Xu Dong immediately took out several letters of complaint and handed them to Xu Liang.

Xu Liang's secretary, Ding Hao, took it and then handed it to Xu Liang.

Xu Liang glanced through it and was slightly surprised.

"The second-in-command of the government and the head of the police force, they really are two big fish!"

Xu Liang couldn't help but nod. His main purpose in coming to Harbin this time was to identify two exemplary individuals. These two were of high rank, and if their identities were exposed, it would cause quite a stir. Not bad, not bad at all!

He tossed the whistleblower letter onto the table, glanced at Zhang Tianlai, and said, "Mayor Zhang, I can see your efforts. I've also seen your determination in the fight against corruption. Leaders with such courage and resolve are rare these days!"

Zhang Tianlai quickly and modestly waved his hand, saying, "Team Leader Xu, please don't humiliate me. Alas, with such a serious corruption problem, I, as the top leader, also bear a great responsibility! Through this incident, I will reflect on myself and conduct a thorough self-examination, and resolutely fight corruption to the end!"

Xu Liang smiled and said, "I naturally trust Mayor Zhang's words. However, with such a serious problem in the team, others will inevitably have doubts about you as the top leader. How about this, I will also conduct a public investigation for you. Let's just treat it as a formality. The main purpose is to set an example for the public and show how clean and honest Mayor Zhang really is!"

"Uh, huh?"

Zhang Tianlai was stunned, and cold sweat poured down his face.

Investigate him?

Can he withstand scrutiny?

Moreover, it's the inspection team that's doing the investigation. With the strength of the inspection team, they can find out everything, even the crotch!

How many rounds can he last? I'm afraid he won't even last one!

The atmosphere suddenly became awkward. Just then, Xu Dong stood up with a smile and personally poured Xu Liang a glass of wine. "Team Leader Xu, our Zhang City has been a veteran revolutionary for decades. He's got a solid revolutionary background and can definitely withstand any test. Of course, we also welcome the inspection team to come and guide our work. But as you know, we've just gone through a round of self-examination and self-reflection. If we do another round, it will inevitably cause panic and fear among everyone. This is not conducive to the team's development. Now that the year is almost over, it's the stage for the economic sprint. As a superior leader, you know even more about the importance of economic development!"

“What if the growth rate in Harbin slows down this year? People will say it’s because of the inspections that caused the delays. That wouldn’t be good for you, would it?” Xu Dong said with a smile as he poured Xu Liang a glass of wine.

Xu Liang sneered, "As expected of someone from the Xu family, you always manage to grasp the big picture. However, I still need to report to my superiors. If I don't figure out how deep the water is, how am I supposed to write this inspection report?"

As Xu Liang spoke, he subconsciously tapped the table.