official career

Chapter 2966 You're Gambling

"It's like someone robbing you of your money. You might not necessarily fight them with a knife; you'd more likely choose to pay up to avoid trouble. But if they were to kill you with a knife, you would definitely fight them to the death without hesitation, right?" Qin Feng asked Zhao Hongjian.

"What exactly are you trying to say?" Zhao Hongjian asked.

"This time I only cracked down on their casino, but I didn't arrest the eldest son of the Yang family who was in charge of the casino business. As long as I don't arrest their eldest son, this matter can't directly involve the Yang family, and therefore won't pose a threat to the interest group behind the Yang family. For them, it's just losing a big piece of fat meat like the casino, but it's not fatal, so I don't think they would fight us to the death."

"As long as people still have hope and feel that they still have a chance, they won't resort to desperate measures unless they've reached the end of their rope."

"Whether it's Jiang Longjun or the leaders from the province who called me, I clearly explained my stance to them. I told them that this time we only cracked down on an underground casino next to the Lixin Hotel, and it has nothing to do with the Lixin Hotel," Qin Feng said.

Qin Feng meant that this time he would only target the casinos, not the Yang family.

Zhao Hongjian fell silent again, and after a long while asked, "What is your purpose?"

"By cracking down on the Yang family's underground casino, we can force Jiang Longjun and the Yang family to back down regarding the sports center fire," Qin Feng stated his ultimate goal.

"You've already shut down the casino, and you've let the eldest son of the Yang family off the hook, making it clear that this matter has nothing to do with the Yang family. Why are they stopping making a fuss about the sports center fire?" Zhao Hongjian asked again.

"If they stop here regarding the fire at the sports center, then the matter will end here. The police have only shut down an underground casino this time, which has nothing to do with the Lixin Hotel or the Yang family. But if they don't stop here regarding the fire at the sports center, then this underground casino will be related to the Lixin Hotel, the Lixin Group, and the Yang family. At the very least, the eldest son of the Yang family must be arrested and brought to justice."

"Aren't you still trying to completely overturn the table?" Zhao Hongjian asked in a deep voice.

"Yes, if they don't stop, I'll flip the table over completely," Qin Feng replied confidently.

"In the end, aren't you still risking your life against them? And you still say this isn't a gamble?"

“It’s a gamble, but brother, I don’t think they’ll dare to fight me to the death. As long as they don’t dare to die with me, then I’ll be the winner,” Qin Feng said.

“Since it’s gambling, there are wins and losses. Have you thought about the consequences if you lose?” Zhao Hongjian asked.

“I’ve thought about it. At best, I’ll lose my position and my political career will end here. I’ll be kicked out of Shazhou. At worst… I’ll become the second Qi Yaqiu.”

"If you know the consequences, why did you still gamble?" Zhao Hongjian was still very angry.

"Because there is no other way but to gamble. Gambling has a chance of winning, at least in my opinion, it's 50/50. But if you don't gamble, you're sure to lose. It's like an elderly person having surgery. They have surgery because they are old and the risks are high. They may not survive the surgery. If they don't have surgery, they can't be cured, but they can live for another year or two."

"Most people would choose not to have surgery because the risks are too high, but I would choose to have it. If the surgery is successful, I will be completely cured and can enjoy life like a normal person. If the surgery fails, it will only mean that I will die a year or two earlier."

"Moreover, if you don't have surgery, you'll just be living with the disease for the next year or two, suffering from pain every day. It's worse than death. If that's the case, it's better to die sooner." Qin Feng gave another analogy.

"Your analogy is both apt and inappropriate. How do you know that this disease can only be cured by surgery? How do you know that there are no other conservative treatment options?" Zhao Hongjian retorted.

"The fire at the sports center was a conspiracy, but it was also an open conspiracy. We discussed this today, and I have thought about it for a very long time. There is really no way to solve it."

"After get off work, I personally went to Cao Fanyi's house and reached an agreement with him regarding the fire at the sports center," Zhao Hongjian said slowly.

Qin Feng was stunned. This was too big a matter, so big that he had never expected it and had no time to react.

"The matter was already resolved, and I was just about to call you to discuss it, but Cao Fanyi called first, asking me what exactly I meant." Zhao Hongjian's anger hadn't subsided.

"You gave Cao Fanyi a lot of other sacrifices to get him to let me go, didn't you?" Qin Feng asked slowly.

"That's not the point."

"This was a joint effort by the Yang family and Jiang Longjun. It also means that Cao Fanyi and Feng Li'an were working together to deal with you. Now they think they have succeeded, but you were able to get Cao Fanyi to turn against you. This means that the price you paid was definitely greater than killing me. I don't know what you gave him, but what you gave him was definitely more significant than me. So this deal was not worth it."

"I know in my heart whether it's worth it or not," Zhao Hongjian said.

"The reason I did this is that I don't want you to pay such a high price for me, and I don't want you to put our favorable situation in a passive position because of me. Brother, actually, my gamble this time is reasonable. If we win, the situation will still be in our favor, and I will also cut off the Yang family's underground casino profit point."

“I lost the bet, but I did it, and I take the responsibility. It won’t implicate you. At worst, I’ll pack my bags and leave Shazhou. Although it will put you in a passive position temporarily, it won’t affect the overall situation in Ganliang. Brother, this is the best choice.” Qin Feng continued to persuade Zhao Hongjian.

"You bastard, do you think I'm afraid you'll drag me into this?" Zhao Hongjian cursed.

"Alright, now that you've done your job, there's no point in arguing anymore. Since you've already gambled, neither I nor Vice Minister Hong can do anything but gamble with you this time."

"No, no, no... Brother, you shouldn't get involved in this. This is just my personal behavior..." Qin Feng quickly said.

"Your personal actions? How big are your shoulders? Can you handle this? Do you think things are really as simple as you think? Let me tell you this: you can gamble on this within your own Shazhou, but you need to know that what you've done involves the overall situation of the entire Ganliang Province. In their eyes, you're preparing to tear the sky down in Ganliang."

"Do you think Cao Fanyi and Feng Li'an will let you continue like this? Do you think they'll gamble with their lives like this? Do you think that by taking down the Yang family's underground casino, you can keep them firmly under your control?"

"Qin Feng, you're still too green. You might be able to hold your own against Feng Li'an, but if you really anger Cao Fanyi and make him think you're going to cause a major upheaval in Gansu and Liangzhou, you won't even have the right to gamble," Zhao Hongjian admonished.