Xu Chunliang hugged her and spun around twice on the spot, and because he spun too fast, both of Mei Ru Xue’s shoes were thrown off.

Mei Ru Xue said, "My shoes, my shoes."

Xu Chunliang said, "With me here, what are you afraid of?"

Mei Ru Xue’s eyes rippled like spring water, "Afraid of you."

Xu Chunliang laughed heartily, "You still dared to come."

Mei Ru Xue sighed softly, "Afraid of the lamb entering the tiger’s den, and afraid you’ll harm other girls, after thinking about it, if I don’t go to hell, who will?"

Xu Chunliang said, "Secretary Mei, your merits are boundless."

Mei Ru Xue laughed, "Put me down."

Xu Chunliang pretended to drop her, and Mei Ru Xue hugged his neck tightly in fright. Xu Chunliang deliberately let her slip down a little bit, and Mei Ru Xue, unable to reach her shoes, could only step on his feet while wrapping her arms around his neck.

Xu Chunliang lowered his head to capture her cherry lips, and Mei Ru Xue’s pretty face flushed with embarrassment. This rascal was truly calculating; now she suspected he intentionally shook off her shoes so she’d have no way to escape.

Having no escape, she could only let him have his way. While Xu Chunliang was savoring, his hands were also not idle, wandering freely over Mei Ru Xue’s delicate body.

Mei Ru Xue wanted to grab his increasingly presumptuous hand, but her body lost balance, and she let out a delicate cry, feeling she was about to fall backward onto the ground. Xu Chunliang timely hooked her slender waist, pulling her back into his embrace. Mei Ru Xue tightly hugged him, murmuring dreamily, "You’re such a big bad guy."

Xu Chunliang said, "You’ll only know if it’s big after touching it."

Mei Ru Xue was so angry that she bit him hard on the shoulder. She bit down hard, but immediately relaxed, wanting to punish his indulgence but also worried about hurting him.

The phone rang continuously, it was Mei Ru Xue’s phone. Xu Chunliang held her, "Don’t answer it, it’s annoying."

His phone also rang, even more persistently than Mei Ru Xue’s.

The two exchanged a look and laughed. Mei Ru Xue said softly, "We’d better answer it, what if it’s something important."

Xu Chunliang nodded, hooking Mei Ru Xue’s slender waist with one hand while pulling out his phone with the other.

Mei Ru Xue also took out her phone to see who was calling. With Xu Chunliang’s arm around her, she felt very secure.

While talking about love, Town Mayor Xu, who never forgets his official duties, answered the call, "Mr. Li, what’s going on? Ah? Really?"

After Xu Chunliang hung up, Mei Ru Xue hadn’t finished replying to her WeChat messages. After she replied, put away her phone, and held Xu Chunliang’s neck, "What’s wrong?"

Xu Chunliang said, "Something happened at the winery!"

Li Chengbo hurriedly called Xu Chunliang. Xu Chunliang told him not to panic; it’s not a big deal like someone getting killed. If there aren’t enough people, they can first borrow some from the Comprehensive Law Enforcement Office.

In Xu Chunliang’s view, the winery had already closed down, so where would there be any workers? Without a labor relationship, they’re just making unreasonable trouble.

A group of sparrows in the sky were flitting around a big tree at the entrance, seemingly watching the commotion. A large beehive hung on the southern branches of the tree, but because the weather hadn’t warmed up, there were no hornets active yet; they were probably still dormant.

Xu Chunliang, with difficulty, squeezed through the crowd to the gate, where six police officers stood ready. Zhao Hong was personally on the scene commanding, his voice hoarse from shouting, "Everyone, don’t get excited, go back first. We will figure this out... we will definitely give everyone a reasonable answer..."

Seeing Xu Chunliang coming over, Zhao Hong greeted him with a wry smile, "Town Mayor Xu, she really stirred up a hornet’s nest."

Xu Chunliang said, "Hornets can sting people, but people can’t stir up their nests?" He couldn’t help glancing at the beehive as he spoke.

Zhao Hong immediately knew Xu Chunliang was siding with Mo Han. Although the incident was caused by the winery workers making trouble, Mo Han hitting someone was an indisputable fact.

Xu Chunliang walked into the police station, where both the assailant and the assaulted were giving their statements.

The injured had been examined; all were minor skin injuries, not even a single case of minor injury, proving Mo Han was very restrained.

Xu Chunliang had long known Mo Han was skilled in martial arts. Today, she single-handedly took on ten, showing she hadn’t planned to hide her strength any longer.

Li Chengbo invited Xu Chunliang to his office, sighing, "It’s not a big deal, just a lot of trouble. This Miss Mo has too big a temper; how could she hit people?"

Xu Chunliang said, "Trespassing on someone’s territory without permission is illegal. Just because there are many of them doesn’t mean they’re above the law."

Li Chengbo said, "I know the workers were wrong first, but anyway, Miss Mo should have controlled her temper and not hit people!"

"Mr. Li, if dozens of people came threatening to cause trouble, what would you do? Which law says you can’t act in self-defense?" Xu Chunliang straightforwardly classified Mo Han’s actions as self-defense.

Li Chengbo said, "Weren’t there security officers on the scene? How come no one else acted, only she did?"

Xu Chunliang said, "I think Mo Han shouldn’t bear any responsibility for this matter. If anyone is to be held accountable, it should be those troublemakers. They no longer have a labor relationship with the Weishan Lake Winery, and even if they did, grievances have specific parties to blame. Why are they going after the contractor?"

Li Chengbo said, "I wonder too. It’s been so long since the contracting, why stir up trouble now? Is it because they discovered the hot spring and also want a piece?"

Xu Chunliang said, "Who led this?"

Li Chengbo said, "The former deputy director Yan Zhongmin."

Xu Chunliang said, "This person needs a good investigation."

Li Chengbo said, "What’s there to investigate? I know this person quite well; he’s honest and kind, good to the workers. After the winery closed, he continually volunteered to help watch over it. I also asked him earlier. He said he originally didn’t want to go, but the workers insisted he accompany them; he never expected things to escalate to this point."

Xu Chunliang said, "You seem well-acquainted with him?"

Li Chengbo smiled somewhat sheepishly, he and Yan Zhongmin should be considered drinking buddies.

Xu Chunliang asked him to bring Yan Zhongmin over, wanting to ask a few questions face-to-face.

Yan Zhongmin was just at the police station, and he came over shortly. Yan Zhongmin wasn’t beaten, but while escaping, he sprained his foot. He walked with a limp, and perhaps feeling confident in his numbers, he was also quite assertive, "Town Mayor Xu, you’re here at the right time, you can adjudicate for us. Is there any rule of law in Hu Shan Town? Can people do whatever they want just because they have money?"

Xu Chunliang said, "Everyone is equal before the law. Having money doesn’t mean you can do whatever you want, and having no money doesn’t either."

Li Chengbo was stunned; the words seemed off, as if implying having no money is even more restrictive, but upon closer thought, it seemed very logical. There’s a big difference between having money and not having money.

Yan Zhongmin said, "Is having money so remarkable? Can having money let them occupy our factory and beat our workers?"

Xu Chunliang said, "Don’t get agitated. You used to be the deputy director of the winery. You should know some laws and principles. Having reason isn’t about being loud. In front of Director Li, can I ask you a few questions?"

Yan Zhongmin confidently said, "Ask away."

"Has the Weishan Lake Winery closed down?"

"Yes!"

"After the factory closed, was the labor relationship between you and the factory still existent?"

Yan Zhongmin said, "You all say whatever you want. It was you who made us close down. The facts prove our winery was sold off cheaply, and that’s a loss of state assets. We’re asking for compensation."

Xu Chunliang laughed, "Let’s handle one thing at a time. Aren’t we discussing today’s dispute? Why are you bringing up state asset losses? Well then, let’s talk about it. Why did the winery close? Wasn’t it because of your leadership’s mismanagement? If only you had paid more attention and worked a little harder, the winery wouldn’t have ended up closed. Instead of finding faults within, you’re blaming the government."

Yan Zhongmin said, "The current market environment is what it is. We’re just a township winery; we couldn’t reverse the situation. You can’t put all the blame on us."

Xu Chunliang said, "Alright, then let me ask you, after the winery closed, wasn’t the key to the main gate always in your hand, are you aware of the theft incident that happened later?"

Yan Zhongmin shouted, "Town Mayor Xu, what do you mean? I didn’t even know there were artifacts below."

"Did I mention artifacts?" Xu Chunliang stared intensely at Yan Zhongmin, who jumped in fright. Xu Chunliang turned to Li Chengbo, "Mr. Li, did I say anything about artifacts?"

Li Chengbo shook his head.

Yan Zhongmin said, "Now everyone on Weishan Island knows there are artifacts beneath the winery, and you’ve listed the winery as a key cultural relic of Hu Shan Town."

Xu Chunliang laughed, "True, there’s no absolute secret nowadays. After the winery closed, Director Yan did a good job guarding it. If it weren’t for you, the winery’s three ancient wine cellars might have been stolen."

Thanks to ally Chen Zucheng’s generous support, and to all the brothers and sisters who tipped to support Octopus, extra updates are offered. Requesting guaranteed monthly tickets! Portal for monthly tickets!