Chapter 12: The Hot Potato

In the interrogation room, Chief Chen sat behind the table, like a thinker, staring at Zeng Yi for over ten minutes without saying a word.

At this moment, he was pondering the words of Deputy Chief Li, who was the "living fossil" of the Erma Road Police Station, having served as deputy chief for twenty years and knowing everything about the affairs of the district. After piecing together the letter of introduction, Deputy Chief Li's first words were: "Trouble, this time we've picked up a hot potato."

According to Deputy Chief Li, whether the expert was real or fake, it shouldn't be the police station's responsibility to arrest him. The expert group was a place where only the most trusted people by the leaders were present; otherwise, the leaders wouldn't entrust their health issues to them. Matters involving the safety of leaders should be handled by the Security Bureau. If the police station were to arrest someone, even one mistake could lead to a catastrophic disaster.

Chief Chen's head ached when he heard this, but the problem was that he had already brought the person in.

Deputy Chief Li suggested a plan: regardless of whether the person was real or fake, they should first flatter him and talk him out of the police station. As soon as he stepped out of the door, they would immediately notify the Security Bureau to take him away. After that, whether he was real or fake, it would have nothing to do with the police station.

Chief Chen thought this was a good idea, but he knew that it was easy to invite someone but hard to send them away. Without a proper explanation, it would be difficult to get rid of the person easily!

"Cough, cough..." Chief Chen cleared his throat and stood up, "Have you thought it through? Don't try to delay, the truth will eventually come out. If you confess now, I can consider it as voluntary surrender. Young man, you're still young, you have a long way to go, think about it carefully."

Zeng Yi found the lines familiar, but he never thought he would hear them himself. He said, "I have nothing to think about."

"Good, then tell me!" Chief Chen picked up the letter of introduction, "Is the seal on this letter forged by you? Why did you pretend to be an expert? What are your ulterior motives? Tell me everything!"

"I've already said it, the letter of introduction was given to me by Secretary Tang, and my inclusion in the medical expert group was decided by Director Feng. If you don't believe me, you can verify it," Zeng Yi sat there calmly.

"We will verify it, of course!" Chief Chen said, but in his heart, he was cursing. "I'll verify my leg. I'm just a small chief of a police station; how can I have the authority to ask the secretary and the wife of the provincial party secretary to assist in the investigation? That would be ridiculous. I'm giving you a chance to confess and be lenient, you must recognize the situation and not be lucky."

"Thank you for your kindness, Chief Chen, but it's not necessary!" Zeng Yi spread his hands and said, "I've said everything I need to say, there's nothing to confess!"

Chief Chen immediately put on a stern face, and a serious atmosphere filled the room. "Alright, I'll ask you. Since you claim to be a medical expert, you must know medicine. How do you prove it?"

"That's easy!" Zeng Yi carefully observed Chief Chen's complexion and said, "Chief Chen, you've been injured recently!"

"Slam!" Chief Chen slapped the letter of introduction on the table and shouted, "What police officer doesn't get injured? Don't try to fool me!"

Zeng Yi sat up straight and said, "Then extend your hand, I'll take your pulse!"

"I'll see what tricks you can pull!" Chief Chen coldly snorted, walked over, and stared at Zeng Yi for a long time before slowly extending his left hand.

Zeng Yi extended three fingers and pressed them down, closing his eyes to carefully feel the pulse. After a while, he said, "I didn't misjudge it, you are indeed injured. You fell and hurt your coccyx about a week ago."

My goodness! Chief Chen's eyes widened. Could this... this be possible? Is this guy really an expert, not just a street fortune-teller?

A week ago, a group of hooligans got drunk and started fighting at a night market. Chief Chen was on duty that day and went to the scene. When he heard the hooligans being disrespectful, he kicked out, intending to knock one of them down, but the hoolin dodged, causing Chief Chen to fall and hit his coccyx on a brick.

At the time, the pain was excruciating, but after a hospital check-up, there was no redness or swelling, and the X-ray showed no issues. The hospital said no treatment was needed. However, after returning home, Chief Chen experienced pain whether sitting or standing, and had to sleep on his stomach. Any accidental touch to his coccyx would make him break out in a cold sweat.

Later, he consulted several famous orthopedic experts, some said it was a soft tissue injury, others said it was a bone injury, and some said it was a nerve injury. The opinions varied, but all agreed that injuries to the coccyx were difficult to recover from, requiring at least a year or more of rest. The thought of enduring such pain for so long made Chief Chen's head spin.

The young police officer taking notes put down his pen and ran over, "Can you also check me? See if I have any problems!"

Zeng Yi glanced at him and said, "You don't need a check. Don't you often worry about your hair falling out, and your feet being cold even in hot weather, but also sweating profusely?"

The young police officer's expression immediately matched Chief Chen's, nodding rapidly, "Yes, yes, can this be treated?"

"It can be treated. I'll give you a prescription. Take a few doses, and your condition should improve significantly."

"Thank you, thank you! I'll get you paper and pen right away!" The young police officer quickly grabbed the notebook from the table.

At this moment, Chief Chen was almost certain that this guy was indeed an expert. The diagnostic skills he had never heard of were truly miraculous. If he wasn't treating leaders, who else could he be treating? Seeing the young police officer's eager attitude, Chief Chen was furious. Is your illness more important than mine? Don't you know the order of things? How dare you cut in front of me?

He shouted, "Is this a place to get a medical check-up!"

The young police officer's face turned red, and he awkwardly moved his foot back, almost forgetting that they were in an interrogation room, "Chief, I..."

"What are you doing? Do you know the rules? When an expert is treating you, you don't even offer a cup of tea!"

"Ah... I'll go right away!" The young police officer immediately turned from worried to happy and quickly ran out.

Chief Chen put on a bright smile and patted Zeng Yi on the shoulder, "Young man, no, Expert Zeng, I knew it all along. How could you possibly be a fake? I'm truly sorry, sorry. This interrogation room isn't a good place to talk. Let's go to my office for a chat!" Chief Chen secretly rejoiced, finally managing to trick this guy out.

However, Zeng Yi raised his eyebrows and said, "Just because I can diagnose, you conclude I'm not a fake expert? Isn't that a bit hasty, Chief Chen? I think I should continue to confess!"

Chief Chen's heart sank to the bottom. He had guessed right; it was indeed hard to send away a god once invited.

Tang Haoran returned to his office, made a cup of tea, and sat there tapping his leg. This morning, he first accompanied the boss on an inspection, then summarized the boss's speech, formed it into text, and distributed it to various departments. His legs were almost worn out.

After taking a sip of tea, Tang Haoran opened his work notebook to check if there was anything he had forgotten.

When he saw the words "Zeng Yi reports," Tang Haoran slapped his head. Oh no, he had given the letter of introduction to Zeng Yi but forgotten to inform the Health Bureau.

He quickly picked up the phone and called Guo Penghui at the Health Bureau. The phone rang once and was answered, with a cheerful voice saying, "Director Tang, hello, do you have some work to assign?"

"Did any experts report this morning?"

Guo Penghui misunderstood, thinking the matter had already reached the ears of the provincial party secretary's secretary. He boasted over the phone, "Director Tang, you know about this? Yes, there was such a thing, but I immediately identified the fake expert and sent him to the Erma Road Police Station!"

Tang Haoran's heart skipped a beat, almost cursing, "Old Guo, how can I describe you! If the police station had mistakenly injured Expert Zeng today, it would have been a disaster. You'd better watch out!"

He scolded Guo Penghui harshly, not waiting for him to react, and hung up. Then he called the city police chief, Du Ruo.

Du Ruo was sitting in a large office chair, writing something. Hearing the phone ring, he quickly picked it up and laughed, "Oh, Secretary Tang, there must be good news. How about we have a drink tonight?"

"Let's talk about drinking later. There's a big problem right now!"

"What big problem?" Du Ruo asked urgently, his heart tightening, and his buttocks slightly lifting off the chair. Could it be that some subordinate had caused a major issue, and the provincial party secretary had found out?

"It's... a friend of mine, who was detained by the Erma Road Police Station due to a small misunderstanding!"

Du Ruo's buttocks fell back onto the chair. This Secretary Tang really scared him to death, "I'll notify them immediately to release him!"

Tang Haoran thought for a moment and said, "It's best if you come in person. I'm on my way!" He hung up, hurriedly took a leave, and rushed downstairs, running so fast that it was hard to tell his legs were sore.

Zeng Yi was just a doctor, and even if his medical skills were high, it wouldn't be enough to make Tang Haoran so concerned. The key was that this matter was assigned by the leader. If he couldn't handle such a small matter, the leader wouldn't trust him with important tasks in the future. Once the leader thought he lacked the ability to handle things, his position as a secretary would be over.

Therefore, Tang Haoran was extremely anxious. He knew the quality of the grassroots police station all too well. Even good people would suffer when they entered.

Tang Haoran urged the driver to drive faster. What he was most worried about was Zeng Yi's attitude. If he felt wronged in the police station and complained to the boss's wife, it would be a disaster for him.

He had asked the city police chief, Du Ruo, to come in person to show the seriousness of the matter and to make Zeng Yi feel the importance and sincerity. He needed to prevent Zeng Yi from making false accusations or reporting him. Tang Haoran's mind was racing, thinking about how to win over and comfort Zeng Yi when he met him.

On the other side, Du Ruo put down the phone and pondered. If it was just a friend, it wouldn't be necessary for the provincial party secretary's secretary and the city police chief to get involved. This person must have a very special background.

Thinking of this, Du Ruo stood up, "Prepare the car!"

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