Chapter 288: Chapter 286: Supporting Agriculture and Investigation

The eldest sister-in-law took care of the children for a month; seeing August 15th approach and the autumn harvest on the horizon, she had to return home with her older brother, Wang Lianqi, who was on harvest break.

In the Ling family’s courtyard, only Wang Liansheng and the children were left.

Hongling had her break, but the school had an agricultural support activity on National Day, where everyone went to the countryside to help the farmers with their autumn harvest.

The students in their class were somewhat unique, with only a small portion coming from rural areas and a few older ones who were educated youths sent down to the countryside, totaling less than half, while the better half were city kids who had never been in touch with farm work. Before setting off and along the way, they were bubbling with excitement, sitting in a borrowed military truck from the district, speeding fast with songs echoing around.

Seven or eight trucks in a line, and the front and back trucks could loudly start singing, while the farmers working in the fields on both sides came out to see the fuss amidst the lively songs and laughter.

Hongling hadn’t done much farm work at home. She studied at the fourth uncle’s house for a year, attending night school, which meant even less exposure to the sun. Her skin was truly good, rosy-white, even fairer than many city kids, more delicate.

Besides, with Ling Chengyan and Zheng Xiaotian, two aunts keen on dressing up the girls at home, Hongling’s attire was also outstanding in the class.

It’s just that her personality was quiet and shy, not taking much of a spotlight, just sitting in the carriage watching her classmates’ antics, clapping along until her palms turned red.

When they arrived at the place, as the truck stopped, the young male students jumped off eagerly, then turned back to help the female classmates from the truck.

Suddenly, there were four or five boys crowding in front of Hongling, and she waved them off: “I can do it myself.”

As she spoke, she lightly supported herself on the truck bed and jumped off gracefully.

The boys were a bit disappointed but felt that Hongling, so straightforward and energetic, was more lovely compared to those on the side who seemed overly delicate, putting on a damsel-in-distress act.

Perhaps because Hongling had attracted much attention from the boys, she had drawn notice from others.

A tall, makeup-wearing girl in a red outfit from the neighboring class came over, her gaze swept from Hongling’s head to her feet, then she chuckled: “Oh my, look at her shoes.”

Hongling glanced at her Liberation shoes with a bit of puzzlement and looked at the girl’s feet, which showcased a pair of polished, black, semi-high heels, her embroidered little socks stark white.

Hongling’s gaze paused, then she calmly looked away.

Two girls from her class approached, pulling Hongling to the assembly, whispering to her, “Ignore her, her father is a leader at the ** bureau, and the young lady has always looked down on other girls.”

“It’s nothing.” Hongling beamed a smile, shaking her head saying, “I’m just worried about her going to the field later… those socks are quite pretty, what a pity.”

Hongling’s two companions had known her since attending night school together, and they got along well, aware that Hongling came from the countryside without looking down on her. Listening to her words, both instinctively turned to look at the embroidered white socks on the girl’s feet, but were inadvertently imagining the scene Hongling described—open shoes filled with mud and sand, embroidered white socks turning pitch-black—and couldn’t help themselves, giggling.

Wang Liansheng, who had gone to work at his unit, was summoned by the disciplinary department leadership.

The investigation team consisted of two people, one in his forties with a mildly plump, amicable expression, while the other seemed around twenty-four or twenty-five, with a notably stern demeanor.

“Comrade Wang Liansheng, there’s been a report accusing you of accepting bribes. We ask for your cooperation in answering our queries,” said the young man.

A flicker of surprise crossed Wang Liansheng’s face, but he soon calmed down: “Alright, go ahead.”

His calm and composed attitude made the investigator somewhat surprised. They had carried out preliminary investigations before questioning the subject, and the findings matched the content of the complaint letter. They had preliminarily concluded the bribery allegations against Wang Liansheng were essentially valid. Yet, instead of panic or fear, he displayed unexpected composure, which seemed a bit off?

The two exchanged glances, and the middle-aged man engaged amicably: “Comrade Wang Liansheng, you went on a business trip to Hai City in mid-to-late August, correct?…”

Wang Liansheng responded calmly, one by one, until the other party asked, “As you mentioned, you took two children with you on the trip, bought quite a few things, and visited Friendship Store, which must’ve entailed a considerable expense. Thus, I want to ask, for a clerk like you with a fixed salary, where did you get the money to support such expenses?”

Wang Liansheng looked at the other party, gently inhaled before replying, “Our family is a dual-career household. My wife… she previously served as the deputy director of the Automobile Company, almost going on trips for more than twenty days a month, most of which are long-distance. You can verify that drivers get travel allowances, and her monthly travel allowances exceeded her stipend. Last year, she was promoted to battalion level, and her allowances increased… She earns more than I do.”

The young man furrowed his brows, speaking coldly, “Even if you and your wife earn more, from what we gather, your wife has a righteous sister, and your niece and nephew also live at your place to study, implying your family’s expenses are higher than the average—still, can you afford the surplus for high-spending trips to Hai City bringing children along?”

Wang Liansheng relaxed a bit more, sat back, leaned on the chair back, and looked frankly at the investigator, “You can inquire about the situation of my two cousins. My elder cousin runs his own construction team, while my second cousin is the first licensed individual entrepreneur in our district; their families are well-off. Hence, though the kids stay with me for schooling, their expenses are covered by their families. Moreover, because the kids stay at my place, my cousins occasionally subsidize us, so in fact, we’ve saved quite a bit.”

The young man was caught off guard by this answer, blankly turning to the middle-aged man, who, however, wasn’t looking at him but softly explained, “Comrade Wang Liansheng, we’re part of the disciplinary and organizational department tasked with investigating when receiving complaint letters; this must be closely examined, not just providing closure to the complainant but also protecting our comrades. We hope you can understand.”

At this point, he shifted his tone slightly, asking, “You’re saying that your family indeed has considerable savings; however, do you have evidence proving your expenses in Hai City came from your own funds?”

Wang Liansheng seemed a tad surprised, momentarily perplexed, and reflexively asked, “Evidence?”

The young man thought he found a loophole, instantly raising his voice, “Without evidence, it proves you can’t clear the suspicion of bribery, and we can thus charge you with bribery!”

Wang Liansheng chuckled lightly, causing both investigators to pause, then the young man grew somewhat irritated, “What’s your attitude? Let me inform you, refusing to cooperate can also result in prosecution!”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep