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n“Hello, you must be Xia Zhe. My surname is Chu and I’m the section chief of the Inspection Department. We received a report that there is a large number of restricted items hidden in your house. We came to do a check and hope that you can hand them over,” Section Chief Chu said. Restricted items referred to any items or publicity materials that were detrimental to the country.

n“You must have heard wrong. We don’t have any restricted items,” Xia Zhe said.

n“That’s not for you to say. We won’t know if you’re telling the truth. We’ll only know whether there’s any after we go in and conduct a search,” Section Chief Chu said as he took two more steps forward.

nXia Zhe looked at the people in front of him and thought that they looked legitimate. If he stopped them from entering the house to search the yard, there was a high chance that he would get into trouble for obstructing a public servant. They would also think that he was preventing them from entering because there really were restricted items in the house.

nXia Zhe pondered for a moment before stepping aside to let them in.

nHe realized that this was He Ning’s backup plan to ruin his reputation. As long as anything was found within the Cao family’s section or his section of the house, he would not be able to escape the aftermath.

nThe group of more than 20 people standing outside rushed into the house, but they did not act rashly. Two old men came out of the group with their walking sticks and slowly observed the surroundings with their flashlights.

n“Comrade Xia Zhe, please don’t take offense. These are our old experts who are especially experienced in digging for treasures and doing inspections,” Section Chief Chu explained to Xia Zhe with a smile.

n“Section Chief Chu, you don’t have to explain it to me. I understand. It’s just business, right?” Xia Zhe said as he looked into Section Chief Chu’s eyes.

nThose eyes were filled with murderous intent, scaring Section Chief Chu so much that his back broke out in cold sweat. However, Section Chief Chu still had to stand up straight as he had the He family behind him!

n“Of course it’s just business! We’re all legitimate,” said Section Chief Chu.

n“That’s good. Don’t cause the house to collapse with your digging, like what the Cao family did. That would be a disaster. Am I right, Section Chief Chu?” Xia Zhe said as he looked at the ruins of the Cao family a distance away.

n“Don’t worry, we’re all professional experts,” said Section Chief Chu.

nThe two experts pointed around and exchanged opinions. Finally, they decided to dig in the corner of the courtyard and a few other spots that they deemed special, including inside the well and under the cherry tree.

nJust as they were about to start, Xia Zhe looked at Section Chief Chu and said, “This cherry tree was planted by my grandmother when she was still alive. I don’t want it to be damaged at all.”

nSection Chief Chu ignored what Xia Zhe said and waved his hand to get his subordinates to continue.

nXia Zhe looked coldly at the people who were about to start work. His gaze was even colder than the icy rain that poured down last night.

n“Chu Fan, 42 years old, originally from Zhaocai Village, started working at 17 years old after being introduced by someone…” Xia Zhe stood where he was and quietly narrated details of Section Chief Chu’s resume.

nSection Chief Chu looked at Xia Zhe in surprise. This was only the first time they met and he did not expect Xia Zhe to be able to memorize details of his resume. A small fry like him usually did not attract any attention. There were not many people in the Xia family who were involved in politics and Xia Zhe also never asked about political matters. He did not expect Xia Zhe to know everything so clearly, down to the timeline. There were certain things that even he could not remember clearly by now.

n“Be careful, all of you! Don’t expect to keep your job if you damage anything here!” Section Chief Chu said to his subordinates.

nThe Xia family was indeed not to be underestimated. Even though he had He Ning backing him up, He Ning would not help him if something really happened. A small fry like him was like cannon fodder. It would be no loss to the two families to simply throw him to the wolves.

nXia Zhe stayed with them in the yard and carefully looked at every place they dug. If they managed to throw in any restricted items when no one was paying attention, he would not be able to defend himself at all. After all, it would not be the first time that He Ning had done something like this.

nOver the past few years, as long as He Ning had any doubts, he would get someone to check for restricted items at Xia Zhe’s house. However, his people would be chased out due to inconclusive evidence. He Ning did not believe that Xia Zhe could still be so calm after knowing about the Cao family’s actions, unless… unless Xia Zhe knew that the items were not in the Cao family’s side but in his own yard!

nThis was also the reason why He Ning had asked these people to dig up the house thoroughly. He Ning believed that Old Madam Xia had a very good reason for giving this house to Xia Zhe alone.

nNot long after, another group of people came to the door. These people were not Section Chief Chu’s subordinates, but the Xia family members.

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