Several uniformed officers immediately responded and came over.
With a wave of his hand, Shi Jixing led his men, guided by Xu Jianguo, towards Hongqi Village with great momentum.
As the sun set, the group quickly arrived at the village entrance and headed straight for Xu Kuo's courtyard.
Xu Jianguo walked at the front, his face filled with undisguised smugness and ferocity, as if he could already foresee Xu Kuo's unfortunate end.
He pointed to the familiar courtyard gate ahead and whispered obsequiously to Shi Jixing, "Secretary Shi, we've arrived. That's Xu Kuo's house!"
"Bang! Bang! Bang!" The urgent and rough knocking broke the tranquility of the courtyard.
Xu Kuo frowned slightly, put down his work, and walked a few steps to the back of the courtyard gate.
Through the crack in the door, he saw the people standing outside—Xu Jianguo's repulsive face, and behind him several strangers in uniforms with arrogant expressions, the middle-aged man in the lead exuding an air of officialdom.
A sense of foreboding flashed through his mind.
With a creak, Xu Kuo opened the courtyard gate, his cold gaze sweeping over the people outside before finally settling on Xu Jianguo. His tone was flat but carried a hint of chill: "What is it?"
Xu Jianguo shrank back under Xu Kuo's cold gaze, but the thought of Deputy Secretary Shi backing him up emboldened him again.
He stepped forward, pointed at Xu Kuo's nose, and shouted shrilly, "Xu Kuo! Stop pretending! I'm asking you, where is that huge pile of treasures you brought back from the county town this afternoon? I saw you move them into the warehouse with my own eyes! How come when I went in just now, most of them were gone!"
His face was filled with smug satisfaction, as if he had already seized a huge handle on Xu Kuo.
Upon hearing this, Xu Kuo's eyes flashed with anger, quickly replaced by deep contempt and disgust. This Xu Jianguo, a leopard can't change its spots! Caught stealing vegetables, he dared to sneak into the warehouse while Xu Kuo was away?! Truly incorrigible!
"Oh?" Xu Kuo's lips curled into a mocking smile, and his voice suddenly rose, "Xu Jianguo, you better explain to me how you 'went in and took a look' at my warehouse? Do you want to show off your dirty tricks in front of the whole village again?"
Xu Jianguo choked, his face turning red and white in turns, and he stammered, unable to speak.
At this moment, the middle-aged man in the lead, Shi Jixing, the deputy secretary of the town, stepped forward, pushed aside Xu Jianguo, and looked Xu Kuo up and down with an air of official authority, letting out a cold snort: "Xu Jianguo, you had better tell the truth about what you reported! Where are those things you brought back now?"
Xu Kuo sneered inwardly. Sure enough, they were after those things. Judging by this, Xu Jianguo was going to report him to the town authorities.
"Explain?" Xu Kuo met Shi Jixing's gaze without flinching, his tone laced with undisguised mockery. "Secretary Shi, do I need to explain to you where I keep my own things? Aren't you being a bit too nosy? Even if you're the deputy secretary, you probably don't have the right to inquire about the private property of an ordinary villager."
Shi Jixing's face darkened. He hadn't expected this country bumpkin to dare to talk back to him like that! He sneered, his tone sinister: "Ordinary villager? Hmph! Where would an ordinary vegetable farmer get so much money to buy those priceless antiques and paintings? I think your things are of dubious origin! You're suspected of speculation and profiteering, or even stolen goods! Now, I suspect you of receiving and concealing stolen goods, and you must cooperate with the investigation!"
He deliberately made his words extremely serious, slapping one accusation after another on Xu Kuo, all to escalate the situation and make it impossible for Xu Kuo to escape unscathed.
"Of dubious origin? Stolen goods?" Xu Kuo laughed angrily. "Secretary Shi, you can eat whatever you want, but you can't say whatever you want! Those things were bought legitimately from the largest auction house in the county! It's all in black and white, with all the receipts! If you don't believe me, you can come with me to Jubaozhai to confront them face to face!"
He refused to believe that such a large auction house as Jubaozhai couldn't even provide this much proof!
Shi Jixing's eyes flashed slightly. An auction house? This was unexpected.
However, he immediately seized on another suspicious point and pressed on: "Fine! Even if what you said is true, that you bought it from an auction house, where did you hide it now? Why is the warehouse empty? If you have nothing to hide, why would you secretly move the things away? This is like trying to hide something obvious!"
His tone was certain, as if he was convinced that Xu Kuo was guilty: "Let me tell you, Xu Kuo! Those things are definitely smuggled goods that can't be brought to light! If you know what's good for you, hand them over now! Otherwise, don't blame us for being impolite!"
Hand it over? No way! He'd already stored those things in his system; they were his biggest secret. How could he possibly expose them to these people!
Xu Kuo's face turned completely cold, and he refused decisively: "Secretary Shi, I'll say it again, those are my personal belongings, and it's my freedom to keep them wherever I want! I have no obligation to explain to you! If you want to investigate, go ahead! Produce the evidence!"
"Evidence? Humph!" Shi Jixing was completely enraged by Xu Kuo's tough attitude. He suddenly waved his hand, pointed at Xu Kuo, and almost roared.
"You're just a poor farmer, where would you get so much money to buy antiques? Can you even afford something worth hundreds of thousands or millions? The only explanation is that these so-called 'antiques' are just tools you use to launder illicit funds! You've got some nerve, kid! Daring to do this kind of thing right under my nose!"
A ruthless glint flashed in his eyes as he growled at the security officers behind him, "Go in and search! Find everything he's hidden!"
"Let's see who dares!" Xu Kuo's eyes flashed with cold light, and he moved swiftly to block the courtyard gate, stopping the few eager security officers.
"You've gone too far!" Shi Jixing trembled with rage. "Xu Kuo! You dare to violently resist the law?!"
"Violent resistance to law enforcement?" Xu Kuo sneered, his gaze sweeping over the few security officers who were intimidated by his imposing presence and dared not step forward.
"Secretary Shi, I advise you to think this through! Without a search warrant or solid evidence, forcibly breaking into a private residence and searching for personal property—who is breaking the law here?!"
After saying that, he suddenly turned to the side, clenched his right fist, and slammed it hard into a poplar tree next to him that was as thick as a bowl!
A muffled thud!
Everyone only saw a blur before their eyes, and Xu Kuo's fist had already been withdrawn, leaving a clearly visible fist imprint on the trunk of the poplar tree! The bark was cracked, and wood chips flew everywhere!
hiss--!
A collective gasp of astonishment erupted at the entrance of the courtyard!
Shi Jixing and the security officers he brought, including Xu Jianguo, stared dumbfounded at the fist mark. Then they looked at Xu Kuo, who had calmly withdrawn his fist, and a chill ran from the soles of their feet to the top of their heads!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
