Chapter 1181: Robbery on the Road
Afternoon.
On the way back to Zhen Shui County.
The road in front was a secluded dirt road in poor conditions. It was between high gra.s.ses and full of potholes.
Inside the Land Rover.
Jiang Fangfang looked up. "Drive slower."
"Yes, Mayor Jiang." Chen Xiaomei slowed down.
"The road in front is b.u.mpy." Jiang Fangfang helped Dong Xuebing up. "Can you take it?"
Dong Xuebing forced a smile. "Thank you for your concern, Mayor Jiang. I am fine. These injuries are nothing."
Jiang Fangfang looked at him and said. "You had suffered seven to eight fractures. How can it be nothing?"
Dong Xuebing felt Jiang Fangfang"s concern for him and did not stop her from helping him.
A few moments later. The three cars traveled on the small b.u.mpy road. Zhang Feng, driving in front, was forced to slow down. The second car Old w.a.n.g was driving felt his car would break apart. He felt the car"s undercarriage sc.r.a.ped against the uneven road. Only Dong Xuebing"s Land Rover could travel on this road normally. It only moved up and down slightly because of its suspension.
One minute….
Three minutes….
Five minutes….
The three cars got further from the City and entered the neighboring County"s jurisdiction. This place is about a twenty-minute drive from Zhen Shui County.
Beep… beep… beep….
Suddenly, they heard car honks.
It was Zhang Feng sounding his car honk.
A while later, Dong Xuebing felt the car slowing down and came to a stop. He looked up and saw a vehicle blocking the road.
Beep… beep… beep….
Chen Xiaomei also sounded her honk.
Jiang Fangfang asked. "What is it?"
Chen Xiaomei looked in front. "There’s a vehicle blocking the road?”
Zhang Feng pressed the honk for a while, but the car did not move. He and Yan Yizhi got out of the car. Old w.a.n.g also got out. A tractor had stopped and blocked the road. A few men were sitting on the tractor, and two were standing in front. Some were holding metal spades, and some were holding hoes. They looked at the three cars quietly and continued to smoke.
Zhang Feng shouted. “Hey!”
Those few men looked at him and did not say anything.
Zhang Feng got mad. “Hey! I am talking to you! Move your tractor!”
Those men pretended not to hear him and continued to ignore him.
Yan Yizhi shouted. “What are you all doing? How can you all block the road?”
A middle-aged man looked at them and walked over slowly. He should be the leader of those men. “The tractor had broken down, and we can do nothing. Go by another road.”
Yan Yizhi said. “How can the tractor break down on the road?”
Old w.a.n.g added. “This road is the only road. How can we turn around?”
There were no other roads. If they want to get past the tractor, they must reverse and make a big detour. It’s fine if it was only them. But Mayor Jiang and Mayor Dong were with them. Moreover, they need to send Mayor Dong to the hospital. His injuries might worsen if he travels through the b.u.mpy road again.
Old w.a.n.g frowned. “Are you all doing this on purpose?”
The middle-aged village shrugged his shoulders. “Didn’t I tell you the tractor had broken down? What can we do? Oh, how about you all giving us money? We will find someone to fix it.”
Money?
Fix the tractor?
These people are extorting money.
Yan Yizhi, Zhang Feng, and the rest heard this and knew what these villagers were up to. Such incidents frequently occur near poor villages. Dong Xuebing encountered a similar incident in Yan Tai County. But the situation improved after the City cracked down on these people a year later.
Zhang Feng knew how to handle these hooligans. You must be more aggressive than them. “Don’t you all recognize these are Zhen Shui County Party Committee’s leaders’ cars?!”
That middle-aged village replied without hesitation. “I don’t know anything about Zhen Shui County. I have not been there.”
Zhang Feng looked at him. “Are you finding trouble with us? Do you want me to call your Mayor Li now?”
That villager smacked his lips and leaned against the tractor. The other villagers were chatting and joking among themselves.
Chen Xiaomei got out of the car. “I will take a look.”
Zhang Feng was furious and took out his phone to call their County’s Mayor, Li. He is Party Secretary Meng’s secretary and has interacted with the neighboring Counties’ leaders. Mayor Jiang is in one of the cars behind him, and Mayor Li should take action. But he called twice, and Mayor Li did not answer. Mayor Li’s secretary also did not answer.
Zhang Feng thought they were in a meeting and tried calling this County’s Public Security Deputy Chief.
The Deputy Chief did not answer too.
Are they all in a meeting?
Did something happen in their County?
Yan Yizhi asked. “What happened?”
“No one is answering.” Zhang Feng looked terrible.
Chen Xiaomei heard what happened and returned to the car. “Mayor Jiang, some villagers are collecting fees from the cars traveling along this road. They refuse to let us pa.s.s, and none of the County leaders answered Secretary Zhang’s calls.”
Jiang Fangfang took out her phone and dialed a number.
Ring… ring… ring….
Ring… ring… ring….
No one answered.
That middle-aged villager looked at Zhang Feng and Yan Yizhi. “Are you all done with your calls? If you are done, pay us the repair fees. It’s not a lot. 10,000 RMB is enough.”
Zhang Feng looked at him coldly. “Are you all trying to rob us?”
Yan Yizhi shouted. “Your tractor does not even cost 10,000 RMB!”
The other villagers shouted and swore at them.
“Shut up!”
“Are you all paying us or not?”
“Don’t think of getting past us with paying us the repair fees!”
The middle-aged man waved, and the other villagers stopped. He said. “That car at the back looks expensive, and I don’t think 10,000 RMB is a lot to you all. Give us the money, and we will send the tractor for repairs. We will not bother you all once we get the money. Haha….”
Yan Yizhi shouted. “Don’t even think about it!”
Zhang Feng added. “You all dare to block the leaders’ cars?!”
The middle-aged villager scoffed. “We are not robbing you all and are only asking for repair fees. You can continue your way, and we can repair our tractor. This is a win-win situation.”
Although the Land Rover is the last car, Dong Xuebing and Jiang Fangfang can hear them.
Dong Xuebing narrowed his eyes and felt something was wrong. He had worked at the gra.s.sroots level for a long time and knows how these people think. Most people who do such things are local villagers whose only aim is to get money. They knew which cars to stop and will not stop people who might get them into trouble. Most of these people are smart and alert. However, these villagers were different. They were too open and did not react when they saw these were Zhen Shui County Party Committee’s cars. They also said nothing when they saw Secretary Zhang calling their Mayor. Most people usually demand a few hundred or one thousand RMB at most. But they demanded 10,000 RMB. Most people will not bring so much cash with them.
“Mayor Jiang.” Dong Xuebing looked at her.
Jiang Fangfang nodded. “Something is wrong, right?”
Dong Xuebing nodded. “They seemed to be targeting us.”
“It’s unconfirmed.” Jiang Fangfang’s expression remained calm. “But it is possible.”
Zhang Feng and Yan Yizhi continued to argue with the villagers. They were furious.
Anyone, who encountered a tractor blocking the road and getting extorted 10,000 RMB, would be angry.
These people are too much!
They cannot give them the money!
Where would Mayor Jiang stand if they gave in and gave them the money? A County Mayor, Deputy Mayor, two Finance Department Chiefs, and a County Party Secretary’s secretary, paying some villagers to use the road is a laughing stock.
They must not and cannot pay these villagers.
Zhang Feng tried calling the local leaders again, but no one answered. He stared at the villagers and called the police.
Someone answered.
“h.e.l.lo, police?” Zhang Feng said. “I am from Zhen Shui County Party Committee. Some people are blocking Nan s.h.i.+ Road and demanding money from us. Send someone here to settle this.”
Zhang Feng ended the call, and the villagers were furious.
“You dare to call the police?!”
“You are asking for it!”
“We are not going to let you all off!”
Ding… ding… dang… dang…. The villagers started hitting the tractor with their spades and hoes.
The middle-aged villager ordered the other villagers to surround Zhang Feng, Yan Yizhi, and Old w.a.n.g. One of the villagers ran off and started shouting. A few moments later, almost a dozen villagers rushed out. All of them were youngsters with weapons like spades and hoes. They immediately surrounded the three cars.
Zhen Shui County peoples were shocked.
Not only Dong Xuebing and Jiang Fangfang noticed something was off, but even Chen Xiaomei, Yan Yizhi and the rest also noticed it.
They had called the police, and they dared to call more villagers. This was planned, and they were waiting for them.