Xiang Wentian, feeling guilty about his misdeeds and aware that Miao Qifeng's wife was about to arrive, had no mood to examine the large stack of documents Miao Qifeng had brought. He merely glanced at them, found no significant issues, and hurriedly signed all of them.
"Old Xiang, all signatures are done. Perhaps you should double-check," Miao Qifeng said, feigning composure.
According to his plan, once the signatures were complete, he would leave the office immediately. However, Chen Feng had mentioned that Xiang Wentian was a very cautious person, and showing excessive eagerness to leave would only arouse his suspicion. Therefore, to ensure everything went smoothly, it was best to deliberately let Xiang Wentian review the documents. This way, Xiang Wentian would have no reason to suspect anything.
"There's no need to check. These are just routine documents that require signatures; it's merely a formality. I have many other documents to review. You can go back now," Xiang Wentian urged Miao Qifeng to leave quickly.
Miao Qifeng did not linger and left Xiang Wentian's office immediately.
A short while later, Miao Qifeng's wife discreetly entered Xiang Wentian's office. Miao Qifeng watched from a distance, not feeling angry at all. Instead, he was quite pleased. With his wife keeping Xiang Wentian occupied, he could calmly finalize the matter of getting Xiang Wentian's signatures. As for his wife being taken advantage of by Xiang Wentian, it wasn't a major issue, as he had no emotional attachment to her; it was merely a political marriage. Once he was done with Xiang Wentian and successfully secured the position of leader in the provincial capital, with so many women in the city, he could have whomever he desired.
Xiang Wentian was completely unaware of all this. He believed that although Chen Feng was capable, his experience in political arenas was too shallow, and he could not possibly outmaneuver him, an old hand and astute player in politics.
A month later, on the surface, everything was proceeding according to Xiang Wentian's expectations. Utilizing the vast rare earth mineral resources of Wuzhou District, he secured significant foreign investment. This foreign capital was then used to develop the provincial capital's economy, which grew at an 18% rate. By economic development standards, an 8% growth rate was already impressive. An 18% growth rate made the provincial capital the fastest-growing economy in China. With this outstanding achievement, Xiang Wentian successfully entered the political arena in the capital.
Seeing that the matter was settled, Xiang Wentian did not hesitate and immediately made a phone call to report the illegal sale of major rare earth mineral resources in Wuzhou District. Xiang Wentian reasoned that such a significant matter could not be kept hidden forever. The sooner it was exposed, the better. After making the report, Xiang Wentian hypocritically called Chen Feng, reassuring him to continue working diligently in Wuzhou District. He claimed that now that he was a prominent figure in the capital's political scene, he had the capability to promote Chen Feng rapidly.
Chen Feng did not expose Xiang Wentian's delaying tactic and instead played along, thanking Xiang Wentian for his cultivation.
"Idiot, plotting to ruin him while he's thanking me. With such little experience in the political arena, if I don't plot against him, who else would I plot against?" Xiang Wentian muttered to himself excitedly after hanging up the phone.
To further solidify his image as a hero protecting China's rare earth mineral resources, Xiang Wentian also issued a strict order for a nationwide survey of mineral resources to commence immediately.
While Xiang Wentian was in his office fantasizing about Chen Feng being caught and sentenced to death, looking bewildered, a group of strangers in suits suddenly barged into the office.
"Who are you people? Who let you barge in here? Have you no rules?" Xiang Wentian shouted at the intruders.
"Comrade Xiang Wentian, we are from the China Security Bureau. You are suspected of colluding to sell China's rare earth mineral resources, causing immeasurable losses to China. You must come with us for an investigation," the strangers said with sharp gazes.
"Comrades, you must have made a mistake. It wasn't me who sold China's rare earth resources; it was Chen Feng. Chen Feng, the head of the Wuzhou District Development and Reform Bureau. I saw Chen Feng sign it with my own eyes," Xiang Wentian replied dazedly.
"Comrade Xiang Wentian, the signatures on the documents are yours. This is irrefutable fact. We hope you will face reality and not resist. Seek leniency. You may now remain silent. Take him away." In less than a minute, the strangers forcibly took Xiang Wentian away.
To ensure Xiang Wentian could not escape repercussions, Chen Feng had deliberately leaked the details of Xiang Wentian's case through short videos. If the matter had not been exposed and Xiang Wentian had been tried behind closed doors, he might have been able to leverage his connections and potentially escape. If Xiang Wentian had escaped, then he and Miao Qifeng would have been the ones to suffer. Therefore, Miao Qifeng was more than willing to pay to embellish and leak Xiang Wentian's case.
Within a day, the entire country knew that Xiang Wentian had sold precious rare earth mineral resources for personal gain.
In a hotel room in the Chinese capital, a mysterious person was having a private conversation with Xiang Wentian.
"Xiang Wentian, originally, I intended to help you get out. Frankly, you've sent me a lot of money over the years. However, someone wants you dead, and I cannot save you even if I wanted to," the mysterious person said, shaking his head.
"Elder Xue, I don't want to die. I can give you all my money to use for connections, just spare my life. I can leave politics forever and never return. Elder Xue, I haven't been sent to a detention center yet; I'm still in this hotel room explaining matters. This is the best time to be released," Xiang Wentian said urgently.
"Xiang Wentian, is this your first time in politics? Why are you so naive? You've failed in political struggles, and you still want to save your life? Is that possible?" the mysterious person said, glaring at Xiang Wentian impatiently.
"But..."
"There's no 'but.' Since someone wants you dead, and they quickly exposed your dealings of Wuzhou District's rare earth resources, you can only die a final death."
"Elder Xue, tell me, who is so ruthless to want to ruin me like this?" Xiang Wentian asked indignantly.
"Who else but the person you tried to trap, Chen Feng. I must say, this time, you've provoked the wrong person. Chen Feng may look very young, but he's not someone to be trifled with. To put it bluntly, you've been outmaneuvered and killed by this young man, Chen Feng," the mysterious person said calmly.
"Elder Xue, how is that possible? Chen Feng is just a naive young lad, and he managed to trap and kill me like this?" Xiang Wentian asked, unwilling to accept it.
"That's how politics works. The price for misjudging someone is paying with your life. If you had judged people more accurately, hadn't provoked Chen Feng, or had continued to mutually utilize and coexist with Chen Feng as before, it would have been fine. But you let your ambition for power go unchecked and provoked a formidable character that should absolutely not be provoked. In that case, there's nothing that can be done; you can only die. I came here to advise you: if you commit suicide in this specific hotel room now, the capital will announce that you died of illness. With your death, the rare earth mining issue will be closed, and your family can enjoy favorable treatment. However, if you insist on resisting until the end, then I'm sorry, your family will also be implicated. I've said enough. You'll have to fend for yourself."
After explaining, the mysterious person left the hotel room. Xiang Wentian collapsed onto the floor. Just a moment ago, he was fantasizing about Chen Feng's bewildered and fearful expression before death, but in the next moment, the roles had reversed, and it was his turn to face death with bewilderment and fear. After a long internal struggle, Xiang Wentian decided that since he had failed in the political struggle, suicide was his only option. Suicide was for the best for everyone: for the influential figures behind him, for his family, and for the reputation of the Chinese political arena. In other words, he had no choice but to take his own life.
"Chen Feng, you've won, but don't celebrate too early. After I die, someone will come back to seek revenge..." After muttering to himself, Xiang Wentian cleanly drank the poison and committed suicide.