I asked with concern, "What's wrong, Peach?"
Peach's tone was panicked: "Something's happened... Michael, something's happened... Our inn has been raided. The enforcement team says we're operating illegally and that our illegal profits are huge. They're going to take Tie Nan away and detain him!"
When did this happen?
"Just now... what should I do?"
I quickly analyzed the situation in my mind: the enforcement team's choice to enforce the law at this time was definitely planned, because most of the guests had already returned to their inns to rest, and it would be too late to move... The reason for delaying the enforcement until now was to find a reason to punish these innkeepers who were operating illegally... At this point, the peak season of the Lunar New Year was already more than halfway over, and those innkeepers who had secretly opened their businesses until now had basically made a fortune, and all of this was illegal income, so the more they earned, the heavier the punishment would be... It seems that Sun Jiwei's words were not false at all; the higher-ups were determined to crack down on these innkeepers who challenged authority because they were taking chances... Otherwise, they wouldn't have carried out the enforcement in such a planned and purposeful manner.
Tetsuo has really messed up this time!
I finally spoke in a low voice to the out-of-control Peach, "I'll go take a look right away, don't rush."
"Um... hurry up, I'm really panicking!"
...
Riding my "Little Ninja," I sped to "Majiuyi," where the Iron Man Inn was located. Usually at this time, it was so quiet you could hear people breathing, but this time it was unusually noisy, especially with the flashing lights of the law enforcement vehicles in the dark, which was quite awe-inspiring.
At this moment, not only Tie Nan's guesthouse, but other illegally operating guesthouses in the vicinity have also been shut down... Looking at the several buses parked by Erhai Lake, I am even more convinced that this operation was pre-planned, because these buses were prepared in advance to transfer tourists who stayed in illegal guesthouses... Presumably, they will transfer unsuspecting tourists to hotels in the city.
The worst off are the innkeepers; some of them have already been locked in law enforcement vehicles.
...
She rushed into the inn in a panic, only to find Peach slumped on the ground and a few other guests packing their luggage, but Tie Nan was nowhere to be seen.
Where's Tetsuo?
Peach stared at me blankly for a long time before finally replying, "She was taken away."
What did they say?
"Let me wait patiently for the outcome."
The floor was cold, so I helped Peach up and brought her a chair to sit on. The moment she sat down, Peach suddenly broke down. She covered her face with her hands and sobbed uncontrollably, "Michael...this time something terrible has happened, right?...The inn is finished, I'm finished, and Tie Nan is finished too..."
Peach's heartbreaking appearance made me extremely sad, but I couldn't panic. I gently comforted her, "It's okay... Don't worry too much, I'm here for you... I'll figure something out... If this can be solved with money in the end, then it's not a big deal."
"If money can't solve the problem, why do they insist on putting Tie Nan in jail?"
"No... So many innkeepers, and they're all from out of town. When they make a decision, they'll definitely consider the social impact."
Peach grasped at a straw, nodding repeatedly and saying, "Yes, you're right... the law doesn't punish the masses."
I nodded in agreement, but the so-called "the law does not punish the masses" does not exist in legal theory. But at this time, this was the only way to comfort Taozi. And at this moment, she really needed to rely on this kind of wishful thinking to support her... rather than when she was forcibly running the inn before.
...
I left the inn and walked back to the scene of the law enforcement operation under the deep night sky. Various law enforcement vehicles were parked there, indicating an unprecedented joint law enforcement operation... Just then, a police car drove past me... I saw Tie Nan inside the car.
He saw me the next moment, and in that brief exchange of glances, I sensed his fear and unease...
I wanted to make a gesture to reassure him... but the next moment, the police car was already far away from me, and then another law enforcement vehicle drove past me... In the flashing police lights, I saw a familiar face.
It was the policewoman named Wang Xiaoling whom I met last night, and the old lady who was collecting bottles was her grandmother... We had met once before, and I never expected that she would also participate in this law enforcement operation.
I didn't place my hopes on her, after all, she was just a grassroots police officer who couldn't control the situation... I just felt that there really is such a thing as fate between people; and to solve Tie Nan's troubles, the only one I could really count on was Sun Jiwei.
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