Chapter 2861 Cannot Leave

"Why do you think Yang Guoqiang wants to save Shao Hongli? Is it because Yang Guoqiang met with Jiang Longjun yesterday?" Yang Yuxin asked.

"No, it's because Ding Wenbo suddenly ran away this morning."

"What's the connection? In my memory, Ding Wenbo's relationship with the Yang family wasn't particularly close, at least not as close as his relationship with Shao Hongli." Yang Yuxin still didn't understand.

"Why did Ding Wenbo run away? Although he knew I would definitely pursue these projects relentlessly, the problems uncovered so far are far from implicating Ding Wenbo. In fact, the disciplinary committee hasn't even been alerted yet. For Ding Wenbo, it's far from the point where he should run away now."

"Don't say I don't have solid evidence to prove he's broken the law. Even if I did, it would be very difficult to bring down a vice mayor like him, and it wouldn't be a quick process. He actually has many opportunities and ways to save himself. Why is he running away now?"

"There's only one possibility: he's convinced he's going to die, or... someone's forcing him to run now," Qin Feng analyzed.

"Who forced him to run?"

"This is the second question I want you to help me understand: what exactly did Shao Hongli and your father talk about yesterday? Did they discuss having Ding Wenbo run away?" Qin Feng asked.

"You mean Yang Guoqiang made Ding Wenbo run away?" Yang Yuxin asked.

"I'm not sure, so I hope you can help me figure out these two issues; they are very important."

"I'll figure something out and call you later," Yang Yuxin said before hanging up.

Qin Feng put down his phone, thought for a moment, then called Zhang Xinming downstairs, got into the car, and headed towards the Municipal Party Committee.

When Qin Feng arrived at the municipal party committee, Chen Guohua also arrived at the airport. At the airport entrance, a deputy director of the public security bureau and a team of police officers were waiting for Chen Guohua.

"Has the plane taken off yet?" Chen Guohua asked as he walked inside.

"We have asked the airport to postpone boarding, citing weather conditions as the reason."

"Where is he? Is he inside?"

“In the waiting hall, Vice Mayor Ding did not use the special channel, but chose to wait for his flight like everyone else.”

Chen Guohua nodded and strode inside.

The police officers led Chen Guohua directly to the waiting room. The flight from Shazhou to Xidu was supposed to start boarding ten minutes earlier, but the airport issued a last-minute announcement that the flight was delayed due to weather conditions and boarding was postponed.

What puzzled these travelers was that the sky was clear and the weather was perfect outside, so what was the reason for the weather?

Sitting there with the ordinary passengers were Ding Wenbo and his wife. Early this morning, Ding Wenbo had told his secretary not to pick him up. He and his wife left for the airport privately, and then he asked his secretary to tell Chen Guohua that he was not feeling well and needed to go to a hospital in Shanghai for a check-up. Whether he actually went to Shanghai or not, only he himself knew.

Ding Wenbo kept a low profile, did not inform anyone, and even took a taxi with his wife when they went out, just like an ordinary person to check in at the airport.

When the flight was suddenly delayed just before boarding, Ding Wenbo had no suspicions, because he was sure that no one would notice him, let alone know that he was at the airport, and even if they did know that he was at the airport, no one would suspect that he was planning to run away.

He's the vice mayor, so it's perfectly normal for him to take a leave of absence temporarily. According to regulations, he should just tell Chen Guohua and ask him to adjust his work schedule. Basically, Chen Guohua wouldn't tell Qin Feng about this kind of thing. What mayor cares about such trivial matters all day long?

Ding Wenbo thought that even if Qin Feng found out, it wouldn't matter; Qin Feng wouldn't suspect that he was trying to run away.

Ding Wenbo knew that Qin Feng was close to finding evidence of his illegal and criminal activities, but there was certainly no conclusive evidence yet. Moreover, Qin Feng was not a member of the Discipline Inspection Commission and could not interfere with his illegal and criminal activities.

So even if Qin Feng knew he was going to run away, he couldn't control him or stop him.

Ding Wenbo was very confident until he saw Chen Guohua leading a group of police officers toward him, at which point he realized there was a problem.

Chen Guohua's appearance at the airport at this time was definitely aimed at him, and he was accompanied by police officers.

As Chen Guohua approached, Ding Wenbo remained calm and composed. Having served as deputy mayor for so many years, he had seen all sorts of storms.

"Is Vice Mayor Ding going on a long trip?" Chen Guohua asked with a smile as he walked up to Ding Wenbo and his wife.

"Yes, I wasn't feeling well, so I made a last-minute appointment at a hospital in Shanghai for a comprehensive physical examination," Ding Wenbo said, giving the same reason he had asked for leave.

"Didn't my secretary inform the Secretary-General about this situation?" Ding Wenbo asked knowingly.

"Tell me, is Vice Mayor Ding alright?" Chen Guohua asked.

"Thank you for your concern. It's nothing serious, I'm just feeling a little unwell, so I was thinking of getting a medical check-up."

“Vice Mayor Ding, actually, the medical level of our Shazhou People’s Hospital is also very good. The city leaders all arranged for them to do their physical examinations.” Chen Guohua’s implication was that he was asking Ding Wenbo why he didn’t have the examination done in Shazhou but chose to go to Shanghai.

"The main reason is that my wife is going there for a check-up. My wife has always had heart problems. She had heart surgery at a hospital in Shanghai a few years ago, and now she's feeling unwell again, so we're planning to go there for a check-up. My physical examination is secondary; my main purpose is to accompany my wife for her heart check-up."

"Secretary-General, is there a problem?" Ding Wenbo asked deliberately.

"No problem, no problem, I was just asking casually," Chen Guohua quickly waved his hand.

"So, Secretary-General, is this a special occasion to see me, or are you here on official business?" Ding Wenbo asked again.

"It's like this, Vice Mayor Ding. According to procedure, your leave request needs the mayor's approval to be complete. Your secretary only called me verbally today. Strictly speaking, you need to apply to the mayor in person, and you can only leave after the mayor approves it," Chen Guohua said with a smile.

Strictly following the procedure is certainly the way it should be, but in reality, who follows it? Does a deputy mayor really have to write an application to take leave? Isn't it just a matter of making a phone call to inform them, and then the office takes care of the process?

Chen Guohua's sudden escalation of the situation caused Ding Wenbo's face to darken instantly.

“So there are indeed some procedural issues. Well then, I’ll fix them when I get back and make sure the Secretary-General doesn’t have to do anything difficult.” Ding Wenbo was also smart enough not to bring up anything else, and he didn’t argue with Chen Guohua about matters of principle.

“Vice Mayor Ding, whether the procedure was supplemented later is not the point. The point is that the mayor did not approve your leave. The mayor said that you are not feeling well and the office will arrange for you to have a comprehensive physical examination at the People’s Hospital. There is no need to go to Shanghai for a medical examination. There are many important tasks that require Vice Mayor Ding to be on duty and directing. At this time, Vice Mayor Ding cannot leave his post.” Chen Guohua said in a serious tone.