Chapter 1771
Song Guanchao didn’t go to the interrogation room, where there were surveillance cameras recording every moment. The content he was about to discuss with Lin He couldn’t be recorded.
He went to Director Ma’s office, waited a few minutes, and Lin He, wearing handcuffs, was brought in.
Lin He was currently a suspect in an arson case, and since arson was one of the eight major crimes, handcuffs were standard procedure.
"Mr. Lin, have a seat." Song Guanchao tapped the floor with his toe, pushing his chair to the side. He smiled at the disheveled Lin He.
Lin He was not in good spirits, filled with confusion, yet still maintained a calm demeanor.
He glanced at Director Ma, walked over, and sat beside Song Guanchao.
Director Ma stood up at the right moment and said, "You two talk."
Although Lin He couldn’t figure out the situation, he roughly understood that his arrest seemed to be related to Song Guanchao.
Thinking about how last night it was Song Guanchao who led him to that room, only to be knocked unconscious by that woman... he suspected Song Guanchao had set him up.
In a flash of thought, he analyzed a possible scenario, and rage surged in Lin He’s heart as he squinted his eyes at him.
"Does Mr. Lin know why he was arrested?" Song Guanchao asked.
Lin He said, "Director Song, you are not an honest person."
"Oh? How so?"
"I sincerely came to discuss a partnership with you, but you tricked me. My elders are not yet aware of this matter. Once they find out, you won’t be able to set foot in Jiangzhou."
His tone was calm, as if merely stating an inevitable truth.
Song Guanchao chuckled, "Tricked you? Mr. Lin, I suggest you first listen to the situation before drawing any conclusions."
"The person who knocked you out is Su Rong, a member of the Central Inspection Team stationed in Jiangzhou."
"She mistook you for me, and what was meant for me, you ended up stepping into. Hmm, you say I tricked you, and perhaps you’re not wrong. I indeed used you to test the waters and see what that woman was planning against me."
"To blame, it was just unfortunate timing that you called me at that moment. Considering the series of things you’ve done to me before, I just used you once; it’s a fair exchange."
Lin He frowned, the person who attacked him was an inspector?
He didn’t think Song Guanchao would deceive him about this, as there would be no point.
What puzzled him was that even if he had stepped into a trap meant for Song Guanchao, he was still a victim. Why was he arrested?
Not letting him wonder for too long, Song Guanchao continued to explain the subsequent events.
"After you were knocked out, Su Rong poured gasoline from a mineral water bottle around the room and set it on fire. It was this close to burning the entire guesthouse to ruins."
"You need to know that there were over a dozen members of the inspection team staying on that floor."
"If the fire couldn’t be controlled in time, everyone could have been burned to death!"
"Oh, and by the way, just a friendly reminder: the police found your fingerprints on the mineral water bottle."
"So..." Song Guanchao grinned at him, smiling maliciously, "Based on the physical evidence at the scene and Inspector Su Rong’s testimony, after a failed attempt to assault Su Rong, you set fire to her room."
"You are the arsonist!"
"Tsk tsk tsk~" Song Guanchao made a strange noise, "Burning down the imperial envoy, Mr. Lin, your courage is truly remarkable, worthy of having the Jiangzhou Lin Family backing you!"
Lin He listened, his heart trembling uncontrollably.
At this moment, he wasn’t angry, only terrified.
He was too clear about how vile the nature of this matter was and the huge impact it could have.
The Lin Family’s network in Jiangzhou was extensive, but no matter how large, it was still just a local family.
Burning down the imperial envoy... even ten Lin Families couldn’t withstand this!
"Song Guanchao, do you want me dead?" Lin He suddenly lifted his head, eyes bloodshot, lost all composure, clearly emotionally out of control.
Song Guanchao smiled without speaking.
Lin He took a deep breath, quickly reining in his emotions.
Song Guanchao was still willing to talk to him, indicating the situation hadn’t reached an irreparable point.
This matter still had a chance of being salvaged.
He closed his eyes, contemplated for a few seconds, then opened them and asked, "What do you want?"
Song Guanchao took out a cigarette and tossed one to him, "Have a smoke to calm down, and we’ll talk about another matter."
Lin He now needed nicotine to calm himself.
He picked up the cheap cigarette he usually wouldn’t even look at, leaned towards the flame Song Guanchao lit, and took a deep drag.
"Yanghe Petrochemical’s accounts have been unfrozen," Song Guanchao said.
Lin He was taken aback, not responding immediately, "What?"
He had just experienced such a massive emotional swing, and his reaction under these circumstances was the most genuine.
Therefore, he wasn’t the one who unfroze the Yanghe Petrochemical accounts.
This surprised Song Guanchao.
However, whether it was him or not didn’t matter.
This happened, and tens of billions in cash from the account were transferred out.
This tangible loss needed someone to cover it.
Lin He happened to step into this, and if he didn’t cover it, who would?
And Lin He, in the few seconds of pondering, realized what he was talking about and immediately said, "It’s not related to me!"
Song Guanchao chuckled, "Just because you say it’s unrelated doesn’t make it so?"
"Song Guanchao..."
"The joint complaint to the Central Disciplinary Inspection Committee, that’s your doing, isn’t it?"
"..." Lin He remained silent.
"The one million to buy my arm, that’s your doing, isn’t it?"
Lin He still said nothing.
"You also called in the bank, didn’t you?"
Song Guanchao’s tone became increasingly cold, "After doing so much, you tell me that this one thing wasn’t you? Is there such a coincidence? Mr. Lin, are you taking me for a fool?"
Lin He felt both angry and indignant, wanting to explain but knowing from Song Guanchao’s fierce expression that any explanation now would be futile.
"Director Song, just say it, what exactly do you want? I’ll cooperate." Lin He gave up on explaining. After all, it wasn’t his first time dealing with people.
Though backed by the Lin Family, managing a Lin Family subsidiary independently at forty-four was testament enough to his abilities.
Faced with such a situation, there was no need to get entangled.
Since Song Guanchao was willing to talk, it indicated there was room for negotiation, just the price might be steep.
Song Guanchao chuckled and placed his phone on the table, "Call someone in your family who can make decisions and have them come see me."
Lin He said, "Whatever it is, you can discuss with me."
"You can’t make the decisions."
"Director Song..."
"With three to four billion cash transferred out of Yanghe Petrochemical, can you make this decision?"
"..." Lin He’s face changed dramatically, "You want my Lin Family to bear this?"
"What else?"
"Song Guanchao..."
"What did you call me?"
"...Director Song!" Lin He’s forehead veins throbbed, struggling to hold back his anger, "I can help contact Yanghe Petrochemical’s shareholders to try and recover the funds..."
"Help me?" Song Guanchao raised a finger, shaking it, "Mr. Lin still doesn’t understand the situation. You’re not helping me; you’re helping yourself."
"This loss, someone has to bear it. Whatever negotiation your Lin Family has with Yanghe Petrochemical, it’s not my concern. I just want the money. If it doesn’t come through, I’ll hand you over to the Central Disciplinary Inspection Committee."
"You..."
"Don’t waste time, make the call." Song Guanchao tapped the phone with his finger.