Around seven o'clock, I called Sun Jiwei.
The phone rang about ten times before it was finally answered. I smiled and said to him, "Brother, Happy New Year... In the new year, I wish you success in your career and continuous advancement."
Sun Jiwei's laughter mingled with the sound of firecrackers exploding. He said to me, "Thank you... thank you... I also wish you a prosperous new year and that you reach new heights."
After exchanging pleasantries, I fell silent for a moment, then asked him, "Brother, are you in Dali right now?"
"You're spending Chinese New Year at your sister-in-law's house this year... What, are you inviting me to dinner?"
"As long as you're in Dali, you can eat anytime."
"Alright... When I get back to Dali, I'll take your sister-in-law and we'll have a meal together... Your sister-in-law has been saying she wants to treat you to a proper meal. If it weren't for you, my family might really have fallen apart!"
I asked with concern, "When are you going back to Dali?"
"In the next two or three days... I'll be officially back to work on the sixth day of the Lunar New Year, and I'll need to spend another two or three days preparing after I get back."
"Brother..."
I called out to Sun Jiwei, but then felt embarrassed to say it. After all, he had warned me before, but Tie Nan hadn't listened. Now it's the first day of the Lunar New Year, and I've come to bother him again. No matter how I look at it, it seems a bit ungrateful, but I really have no other choice...
I can understand how Tie Nan feels being imprisoned... because I've been imprisoned before, and that kind of closed environment can make you feel extremely depressed and desperate. Thinking about his situation, I can't care about anything else.
Just as I was about to speak, Sun Jiwei took the initiative to say to me, "I knew you would call me... Our colleagues from the Environmental Protection Bureau also participated in this joint enforcement action, so I heard the news as soon as the action ended last night... Your friend probably didn't listen to your advice, right?"
"Yes, the person has been detained..."
Sun Jiwei seized on the core question and asked, "How much money did he earn during the Chinese New Year season?"
"I'm not quite sure."
"Don't hide anything from me."
“I’m not really sure about the exact amount… but judging from his business situation, it should be around 200,000.”
Do you feel it's serious?
I sighed, and after a moment replied, "The amount involved is huge, and it's a crime committed against the wind; it's quite dangerous!"
"It's good that you understand the seriousness of this matter... Brother, let me put it this way: this is a matter personally overseen by the top leader, and no amount of pleading will help." After a slight pause, Sun Jiwei continued, "Protecting Erhai Lake isn't just an empty slogan; it's an order personally given by the country's top leader during his inspection of Dali... Anyone would feel the pressure... These innkeepers are either obsessed with money or truly fearless... The nature of this incident is now very clear: the higher-ups want to catch a group of negative examples, punish them severely, and then re-establish their authority... If the punishment this time is too lenient, it will give others the illusion that the cost of breaking the law is very low, and then protecting Erhai Lake will truly become just an empty slogan."
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