The Cruel Reality

In a small breakfast shop filled with the smell of cooking oil, Su Rui held a fried dough stick and pushed a bowl of soy milk towards Peng Guoqiang. "Didn't have breakfast? Have some!"

It was already past the breakfast rush hour, and they were the only customers in the small shop.

Peng Guoqiang didn't stand on ceremony, grabbed a bun from the plate, took a couple of bites, and laughed, "I really didn't expect that a rich person like you would also eat fried dough sticks and drink soy milk in a breakfast shop like this..."

"Then what should rich people eat for breakfast? Braised Northeast Tiger, stir-fried African Elephant?" Su Rui joked casually. "Captain Peng's understanding of rich people seems to be a bit off and biased!"

"Haha..."

Peng Guoqiang also laughed.

The somewhat heavy atmosphere instantly became lighter with Su Rui's few words.

"Do you hate Lin Jiatao?" Su Rui wiped the grease from his hands and got straight to the point. He didn't have much time; he needed to be at the company before 8:30.

Before that, he had to reach an agreement with Peng Guoqiang in the most concise way possible.

"From my position, saying this might be a bit inappropriate, but since you asked, I'll tell you properly." When mentioning this, Peng Guoqiang finished the bun in his hand in a couple of bites, subconsciously reached for a cigarette, but then remembered that he had left his cigarette pack at Su Rui's doorstep just now.

Su Rui smiled and directly took out an unopened pack of Zhonghua Cigarettes from his pocket and handed it over.

"You smoke too?" Peng Guoqiang was surprised because he hadn't smelled the tobacco scent that frequent smokers had on Su Rui, nor were there any signs of his fingers being stained yellow by cigarette tar.

Through the keen observation of a Veteran Detective, he determined that Su Rui likely didn't smoke.

"I don't smoke, but I always keep this kind of thing with me," Su Rui smiled.

He often encountered this kind of situation in life.

Old smokers were definitely no strangers to this scene. When someone's cigarette craving came on but they had no cigarettes, and at this time, when you, a non-smoker, took out a cigarette and handed it over, they would feel that you were very thoughtful and considerate.

Although this action might not have a huge impact at the time, this small gesture could subtly influence the impression others had of you.

Many decisive major events were achieved little by little through these small methods.

This was one of the many ways of interacting.

"Thanks..." After a moment of hesitation, Peng Guoqiang reached out, tore open the packaging, lit one, took a long puff, and his eyes became focused. "I do hate Lin Jiatao, but what I hate is not that he cut off my path to promotion."

"What I hate is unfairness!"

Su Rui nodded calmly. He knew about Peng Guoqiang's experience.

For a Veteran Detective who had solved countless cases and worked diligently for over a decade, this outcome was indeed difficult to accept.

"What kind of person is Lin Jiatao? If you randomly ask people on the streets of Tongzhou City, eight out of ten would say he's from the Underworld! Violent accumulation of wealth, gang fights, disregard for the law! How many deaths and disappearances has he caused in the past few years since he got rich? At least twenty or more!" Peng Guoqiang's voice was very low, but his unconcealed anger could still be heard. "Someone like him, back in the 1980s, would have been shot a hundred times!"

"But the truth is, not only was he not locked up, he put on a suit, drove luxury cars, lived in mansions, and transformed into an Outstanding Entrepreneur," Su Rui continued Peng Guoqiang's words.

"Exactly!" Peng Guoqiang took a deep drag of smoke, his eyes slightly red. "Even someone like him, his company can become a key target of support from the higher-ups; while I, a detective who worked diligently for over a decade, was directly removed from my position as Captain with Real Authority because I had offended him in the past! Tell me, is this fair?"

Peng Guoqiang had kept these words bottled up for several years.

Since being removed from the position of Captain, his life had also undergone drastic changes. He made frequent mistakes at work, his personality became difficult, and he even argued with his wife multiple times over this matter, eventually leading to divorce.

"Officer Peng, let me ask you a question." Su Rui glanced at the time and asked, "How old are you this year?"

"Thirty-seven..."

"Thirty-seven... almost forty years old, which means you're no longer a toddler learning to speak, so..." Su Rui suddenly paused, smiling strangely. "Why do you still believe that there is such a thing as 'fairness' in this world?"

This single sentence stumped Peng Guoqiang.

He remained silent, his throat bobbing slightly.

Fairness, justice.

He used to believe that there was indeed fairness in this world, but reality had given him a hard slap, telling him, "Wake up, this world is not what you think it is!"

"Okay, then let me ask you another question." Seeing that Peng Guoqiang didn't speak, Su Rui continued to ask, "How much power do you think Lin Jiatao needs to mobilize to deal with you?"

"I don't know." Peng Guoqiang's eyes were red, looking very tired.

"Just one phone call," Su Rui extended a finger and said expressionlessly.

"Impossible." Peng Guoqiang stubbornly shook his head. "I am a Captain with Real Authority, I've handled countless major cases. Even if Lin Jiatao wants to touch me, it's not that simple."

"Let's take an example... In the eyes of the higher-ups, who do you think is more important to Tongzhou City, you or Lin Jiatao?" Su Rui's words became increasingly blunt and explicit. "Lin Jiatao's net worth exceeds ten billion, and the taxes he pays every year are astronomical, not to mention his company's investment and development within Tongzhou City. It's no exaggeration to say that with Lin Jiatao around, he can create at least over two billion in fiscal revenue for Tongzhou City every year!"

Su Rui observed the changes in Peng Guoqiang's expression. "Do you know what this means?"

"In the eyes of the higher-ups, with Lin Jiatao around, the provincial government's annual fiscal targets can be easily met. This is the political achievement of whoever is in office!"

"If the higher-ups are planning to develop a certain impoverished area but lack a large amount of funds; and Lin Jiatao says that he is willing to respond to the call and invest, with the only additional condition being your removal from office, do you think the higher-ups will protect you or choose Lin Jiatao?"

"Huaxia doesn't lack Peng Guoqiangs who can catch thieves and solve cases; but there is only one capitalist like Lin Jiatao who actively cooperates with the higher-ups, invests when asked, cooperates when asked, and also contributes a large amount of funds to the government's poverty alleviation fund every year without compensation."

Peng Guoqiang's hand trembled slightly.

"I know you have dirt on Lin Jiatao, and I know you've been secretly investigating him for a long time and are about to wrap it up," Su Rui said. "But believe me, don't submit those materials for now, it will definitely yield no results."

Su Rui knew very well what would happen if Peng Guoqiang submitted the materials he had.

The higher-ups would protect Lin Jiatao. To prevent this matter from escalating, they would use all their power to suppress its impact to the lowest level, and they might even deal with Peng Guoqiang.

But this didn't mean that the higher-ups and Lin Jiatao had any illicit connection or that there was any money-for-power relationship between them. It meant that compared to Peng Guoqiang, Lin Jiatao's weight was more significant to Tongzhou City.

Those who are not in that position do not deliberate on its policies. In the eyes of the higher-ups, the long-term development of Tongzhou City was far more important than solving a few cases.