Li Yan chuckled coldly, "Ha, looks like I shouldn’t have expected too much. Mayor Yu may have the resolve to handle special cases, but the process is still too bureaucratic."

"What do you mean by that?" Yu Hong was a bit annoyed. He already had a short temper due to Xiao Di’s issues, and now Li Yan was accusing him of being bureaucratic! Would a bureaucrat accept and inquire about your unfounded accusations during their break time?

"I’ve only been here a day as a tourist. Carefree Island is run by a vested group, and they’ve been developing it for years. What do you think the chances are that a stranger would wander in to take some photos and remain unnoticed? If caught, even if I send you the photos, you’ll wait until after your holiday rest, verify the photos’ authenticity, wait for meeting approval, set up an investigation team, and schedule a visit. Tell me, can you get all that done before the New Year?"

Yu Hong frowned, admitting that even with special approval, suddenly forming such an investigation team wasn’t an immediate task.

"If you were the owner here and knew you were exposed, would you keep mining in an orderly fashion or use every resource to cover it up day and night? After handling the evidence, would you dig up those six surviving witnesses and make them swim to their deaths at sea?"

Li Yan continued, being more blunt: "Of course, as long as real experts come, even if the rare earths are concealed here, they can be discovered, and the government can still obtain this mineral treasure. If what you want is merely the leftovers from their illegal mining over years, allowing them to smuggle thousands or tens of thousands of tons out without consequence, then you needn’t bother disturbing them at all!"

Once you form the investigation team as usual, believe me, the bosses here will hear about it before the experts do, resulting in the same outcome. In that case, I won’t be implicated, and more importantly, those six miners can continue hiding in the mountains, surviving till the government takes over, allowing them to escape."

Yu Hong fell silent. Li Yan had already said everything he wanted to, waiting for him to make a decision. Seeking out Yu Hong was an attempt to rely on his power to act on this special case; if he maintained a bureaucratic style, it would lose much of its significance.

...

After a while, Yu Hong laughed and cursed, "Kid, your tongue is sharp! Though some of what you said makes sense, the way you express it is truly unpleasant. Even if a commissioner makes a suggestion to me, they’d do it tactfully. If someone less tolerant heard this, your attitude would have ruined everything!"

Li Yan felt a bit speechless. This guy has thicker skin than I do! He’s praising his own magnanimity in a roundabout way!

But from his tone, Li Yan could tell he’d taken in what was said earlier. Li Yan also wanted the matter resolved well, and due to Xiao Di, he couldn’t afford to sour relations. He smiled and said, "I just know Mayor Yu, you have the capacity of a prime minister, to endure much? I’m aware you’re a straightforward person who won’t let national resources slip or disregard human life just to avoid offending big bosses, so I spoke frankly!"

"Hmph! Are you laying traps for me in your speech? If I don’t agree, if I don’t satisfy you, then I become the corrupt official ignoring national resources and human lives out of fear of offending big bosses?" Yu Hong was somewhat angry.

"Uh... no hidden meanings! I genuinely believe you’re a straightforward person, at your age still having the leisure for such and such at your desk, it shows you’re not the inflexible type." Li Yan said with a smile, but after speaking, he felt it was inappropriate, wasn’t he exposing a personal secret?

Yu Hong was stunned for a moment, leisure for such and such at the desk? Though his encounters with Li Yan were few, despite being very busy, the once instance with his wife Chen Mingying at the office desk, nearly caught by Li Yan and his daughter, left a deep impression on him, and he soon remembered. His face flushed; it turned out Li Yan found out! Did he tell Xiao Di?

"Ahem... not sure what you’re saying, but I’m definitely not inflexible! About this matter... don’t reveal it yet, tonight I’ll finalize a plan, tomorrow we’ll form an impromptu investigative team under the guise of a government-funded tour to the island! But at least give me the general location of the illegal mine, Carefree Island isn’t small, you can’t have the investigation team wander endlessly!"

"No problem, I’ll stay here until midday the day after tomorrow. If you can come over, I’ll provide the approximate location and can even accompany them." The general area was already explained by Lao Kang and the others.

Yu Hong sighed, "I hope you’re not mistaken! If they are illegally mining rare earths, you’ll be a hero; if you’ve been played, they’ll see me as misusing authority and offending major bosses and officials with vested interests!"

Listening to his heartfelt sigh, Li Yan too sighed inwardly. It seems even as a mayor, one can’t do as they please, legal restraints aside, there are many checks outside the law!

"Rest assured! If you fall, I’ll treat you like a father-in-law and care for you; if we succeed, I won’t take credit, it’ll all be attributed to your foresight, for Xiao Di, for family!"

"Get lost! It’s you who will fall!" Yu Hong thought when Li Yan said ’rest assured,’ he’d take the plunge tonight to determine the truth. But unexpectedly, he heard this nonsense, intent on Xiao Di all along! Even whispered things that touch a nerve.

"Hehe..."

After Yu Hong angrily shouted, he wanted to hang up, then remembered something, "About... that lingering matter, forget it, keep quiet!"

Li Yan knew he referred to the desk matter, and quickly replied with a smile, "Alright, send my regards to Aunt Chen. Recently I’ve been busy, haven’t seen Xiao Di for a while, will visit your family soon!"

How could Yu Hong not hear the hint of a threat, of negotiation? He directly hung up the call.

(Thanks for yesterday’s rewards from: Yagami Light II, Feng→Following the Wind, Li Fanshow丶, Ajackson, Obba, dongmin8061, Cp Pampas, Snowflake Crimson) (To be continued, to know what happens next, please log into www.qidian.com, more Chapters available, support the author, support legitimate reading!)