The driver, Xiao Liu, was still somewhat unaware of what was happening. When he saw the police officers take out handcuffs, he quickly got out of the car to stop them.
"Police officers! You must have made a mistake. This is our Deputy Minister Xu from the Construction Department!"
It's not something you can just grab any Tom, Dick, or Harry.
The police officers were acting under orders, and at this point, no one else could help.
One of them opened the car door, his attitude neither humble nor arrogant, "Comrade Xu, please get in the car."
Even after the driver introduced himself, the other party still maintained this businesslike attitude, and Vice Minister Xu knew what was going on.
This incident is clearly aimed at him.
The problem seems to be quite significant.
There's no point in saying anything more at this point.
Just before getting into the car, Vice Minister Xu gave the driver a wink, "Xiao Liu, go back to your unit first and be sure to report the situation here truthfully to Minister Zhao."
“I’ll go with the police officers to cooperate with their investigation. I think there must be some misunderstanding here, and it will be fine once it’s cleared up.”
The driver quickly sighed and, seeing that Vice Minister Xu had been taken to another car, didn't dare to delay and hurriedly stepped on the gas back to his unit.
Unfortunately, Minister Zhao had to leave unexpectedly and was not at the office.
The remaining leaders are not as qualified as Vice Minister Xu, so their presence wouldn't make a difference.
The director of the General Office did say that if there was any urgent matter, he could help contact Minister Zhao.
Being taken away by the police for investigation is not something to be proud of.
The driver dared not reveal this information, so he could only wait anxiously at the entrance of the unit for Minister Zhao to return.
On the other side, after the police officers brought Vice Minister Xu back to the Municipal Bureau, they took him directly to the interrogation room on the second floor.
The person in charge of this interrogation was transferred from the Ministry of Public Security. After all, Vice Minister Xu's rank is considerable, and ordinary people don't have such good psychological resilience.
Knowing that the other party had come prepared, Vice Minister Xu didn't bother with beating around the bush.
After sitting down, he looked directly at the two police officers and asked, "I wonder what brings you here today in this way?"
The lead interrogator was Director Wei from the Criminal Investigation Department of the Ministry of Public Security, who looked up upon hearing this.
“We have recently received several whistleblower letters, in which the whistleblowers say that you are directly related to the accidental death of Tan Mingkai.”
"Officer, this is a complete fabrication!"
Vice Minister Xu frowned and said, "Secretary Tan was a good comrade. We are all very saddened by his passing, but I had no professional dealings with him and no personal contact with him. How did this matter get dragged into me?"
"Whether it's a false accusation or not, we will investigate that ourselves."
Director Wei cut straight to the point: "Where were you between 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. on the day of the incident, which was the 16th of last month?"
When masters clash, even a single punctuation mark requires careful consideration.
This question seems simple, but it is clearly misleading.
Secretary Tan was not from his department, and the two had no personal relationship.
At this point, more than a month had passed since the incident. It would be strange if he could remember everything that happened that day perfectly.
After pondering for a long time, Vice Minister Xu shook his head and said, "I don't remember very clearly, but generally speaking, if there are no social engagements at work, I go straight home after work."
As he spoke, he pulled a leather-bound notebook out of his briefcase.
There are some itinerary arrangements on it.
After searching for a while, Deputy Minister Xu said, "There wasn't much going on at work that day, so I went straight home after get off work."
The staff quarters of the Construction Department are very close to the unit, only about a ten-minute bike ride away.
I get off work at 5:30 and get home around 5:40.
"What did you do after you got home?" Director Wei pressed.
"What else can I do when I get home? Wash vegetables, cook, chat with my wife after dinner, listen to the radio, and then go to bed around 8:30."
"Are there any witnesses? Who can prove that you stayed home after you went back and didn't go out?"
"Officer, what kind of question is that? My son and daughter-in-law don't live at home. It's just my wife and me at home. Where am I supposed to find witnesses?"
"Besides, so much time has passed, how could I possibly remember clearly what exactly happened that night?"
In fact, he did have witnesses.
But he can't say it out loud, otherwise it would seem too deliberate.
The police officers themselves need to investigate this for it to be credible.
"So, besides your spouse, no one else can prove that you stayed in the family compound after get off work that day, right?"
Vice Minister Xu steadied himself and replied, "Yes!"
Upon hearing this, Director Wei stared at him for a few more moments.
Then he asked a few more questions.
They only stopped when they had no more questions to ask.
Vice Minister Xu didn't sit idle either. Taking advantage of the break, he quickly went through all the questions he had just asked in his mind.
Only after confirming that his answers were all correct did he speak.
"I have cooperated in everything that was required. May I leave now? There is still a lot of work waiting for me in the department."
"I'm sorry, you can't leave yet."
"Why?" Vice Minister Xu asked, puzzled. "I've said everything I needed to say, why won't you let me leave?"
"Just because of a few anonymous whistleblower letters, you're going to restrict my personal freedom?"
His tone was very dissatisfied as he spoke.
Director Wei, however, remained unfazed and said, "According to the 'Law of Arrest and Detention in China,' the public security organs may detain criminals caught in the act or those who are highly suspected of serious crimes. The detention period is generally three to seven days."
Vice Minister Xu was truly stunned.
He had always thought that this regulation only applied to ordinary people.
Having spent so many years navigating the officialdom, the other party should at least show some consideration for their feelings.
I never expected them to go to such extremes.
He was angry, but the police insisted on following the rules, and there was nothing he could do.
Suppressing his anger, Vice Minister Xu said, "Since you want to follow the rules, fine, I'll cooperate!"
"But could you please inform my wife and ask her to send me some toiletries and clothes?"
"Furthermore, I urge you to investigate the truth as soon as possible and give me justice!"
“I have a lot of things to take care of here. If there is any delay, I’m afraid you won’t be able to bear the responsibility.”
"Please rest assured, we will find out the truth as soon as possible and will never let any bad element get away with it!"
After tidying up the interrogation report, Director Wei said, "We will notify the family members, but according to regulations, it will take 24 hours."
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