"Heh, what do I mean?"

Liu Zhizhong chuckled with interest, walked over directly, and locked the office door from the inside.

Du Yuesheng's complexion darkened even more. He rose from his office chair and said, "Liu Zhizhong, are you out of your mind this morning? What the hell are you locking the door for?"

"Heh, Secretary Du, I have something private to tell you, you know. Wouldn't it be bad if someone barged in and overheard us?"

Having said that, Liu Zhizhong sat down on the sofa in the reception area and actually gestured to the seat opposite him. "Please, come over here, great Acting Secretary Du!"

Hearing the words "Acting Secretary," Du Yuesheng's mood soured even more. Pointing at Liu Zhizhong, he said, "Liu, are you freaking insane? What kind of madness are you on this morning? I haven't even addressed your tardiness yet, and here you are, acting crazy and itchy for a fight in front of me? And you're telling me to come over? What right do you have to order me around?"

Liu Zhizhong nodded with a smile, seemingly unperturbed by the challenge, and said, "Ah, Secretary Du, am I not doing this for your own good? If we had some private words to exchange and by any chance the walls have ears, that wouldn't be proper, right, right?"

"You..."

Du Yuesheng saw Liu Zhizhong speaking so flippantly yet with such profound meaning that it made him extremely uncomfortable, and he stumbled over his words.

He scoffed nonchalantly, nodded, and actually walked over. Sitting down opposite Liu Zhizhong, he said, "Spit it out. If you've got something to say, say it; if you've got a fart, fart it out. I don't have time this morning to waste here chewing the fat with you. After you finish, you'd better obediently prepare the meeting materials like a good dog. Otherwise, not to mention that Mr. Ma got himself in trouble without implicating you, I can make you get lost and land in jail within minutes!"

Du Yuesheng had completely revealed his true feelings toward Liu Zhizhong. To him, Liu was nothing but an efficient dog who needed to be dealt with if disobedient!

Liu Zhizhong chuckled lightly, an image of composure, and shook his head. "Secretary Du, you can't scare me. I, Liu Zhizhong, wasn't raised to be frightened..."

"Cut the crap and get to the point. My patience with you is limited," Du Yuesheng interrupted Liu Zhizhong, casually picking up a cigarette and lighting it.

Liu Zhizhong nodded, took out his mobile phone, and said, "I have a friend who sent me some recordings that I think Secretary Du would be very eager to hear."

"Hmm? What recordings?" Du Yuesheng glared at Liu Zhizhong with a cold and stern face. "Play it, let's hear!"

Immediately, Liu Zhizhong played the edited wiretap recordings, of course, the conversation between Du Yuesheng and Zhang Hongyang about Luo Yanling and the subsequent recording where Du Yuesheng wanted to deal with Luo Yanling.

Du Yuesheng had listened to only a few sentences before his expression drastically changed, as he realized something, "You... you... cough, cough... cough, cough... cough!! Cough, cough..."

The smoke from his cigarette had choked his lungs, triggering a violent coughing fit. He was in such distress that he dropped the cigarette.

Liu Zhizhong watched him indifferently while the recording continued playing, crystal clear without any loss of the original voice.

Du Yuesheng completely fell apart. Finally unable to bear it any longer, after he finished coughing and with tears welling up, he wiped away a tear and shouted, "Stop it, damn you, stop playing it!!"

He was on the verge of hysteria, beside himself with agitation. It was indeed the end of him.

Liu Zhizhong stopped the playback immediately, then spoke with a faint smile, "Alright, I follow the leader's orders. If the leader says not to play it, then I won't. But I can send it to the leader to listen to at your leisure!"

After saying that, he proceeded to send it directly to Du Yuesheng's personal WeChat!

Du Yuesheng's expression turned extremely ugly, and through gritted teeth, he said, "Liu Zhizhong, what the hell do you mean? Threatening me? You're fabricating things out of nothing?"

Liu Zhizhong smiled, looking very relaxed, and said, "Alright, I am that friend. Sorry, Secretary Du, but for self-preservation, I had no choice but to take this step. Of course, it's nothing unsightly. I have my needs; you have your dirty laundry. We can help each other out, heh..."

"You... you... you son of a bitch, playing a dirty trick! You dare to plant bugs in my office? How bold of you! One phone call and I could have someone take you away, and then..."

Saying that, he actually took out his phone. He had seen the message Liu Zhizhong sent him, and he truly wanted to make a call to have someone take Liu Zhizhong away.

In such a moment, if he could just deal with this kid, all evidence would be destroyed, and nothing would happen.

But Liu Zhizhong smiled and said, "Secretary Du, why the impatience? How can you be the Mayor with such composure? Use your brain and think, before the people you call arrive, I would have had ample opportunity to post this recording online. Netizens these past two years are so incredibly lonely, empty, and angry. They keep a close eye on us officials and love to hear these things! Once they get a hold of a juicy story like yours, what do you think their reaction would be, and how will you handle it?"

"What a big dog you are! You wouldn't dare!!!" Du Yuesheng roared, but his threats had lost their power.

"Heh..." Liu Zhizhong gave a few cold laughs, "I said I'm protecting myself, so... do you think I wouldn't dare? Either put down the phone or dial that emergency number, OK?"