Chapter 253 - Political Scene

During the night, the rumors about Lin Xiao started spreading. The news began in the town where he lived, and spread outwards with the power of word-of-mouth.

Some claimed that they had heard the rumors in their bars and others at their upper scale banquets.

No one knew exactly where the rumors started, but they were not helping Lin Xiao at all.

In fact, they claimed that he made use of his political powers for personal gain, that he engaged in shady deals, and that he was corrupt.

Although these were merely word-of-mouth rumors, they were tarnishing his reputation, and by the time he was told about it, many had already spoken out about it.

Lin Xiao had gone to sleep early the previous day, he was simply too angered by Han Qingshan and Jiang Yingyue, but he was woken up in the middle of the night by a few phone calls.

"Big Brother Xiao, you are in a tough position right now. You have to strike fast before they find proof."

"Brother Lin, you need to deal with this fast, and don't let them trace it back to me."

"Dear friend, we need to know who is spreading this news and what their purpose is."

Many called, and all of them had a different agenda. Luckily no one had found any evidence yet, and thus he still had space to maneuver.

He was no longer in the mood to sleep upon hearing about the rumors that were flourishing outside.

He knew that what he had done was illegal, it was not enough to lose his position for now, but it would undoubtedly bring him to jail if someone were to find all the evidence for his crimes; he would face a lifetime of imprisonment.

His teeth were clenched tightly as he was full of anger. What on earth could have caused his favorable situation to suddenly turn like this?

Not even once did he consider Han Qingshan and Jiang Yingyue being behind it. Instead, he began assuming it was some political opposition.

He called all his partners. He was well aware that it was not them who had ratted him out. If they had, they would do more damage to themselves than help.

They would be known as someone who bribed others, someone who fed corruption. In a strict business world, that was not a good reputation to have at all.

Upon discussing with his comrades, Lin Xiao sat in front of his computer. Fortunately, the rumors were still relying on spreading from mouth to mouth, online he had only found very small traces of the rumors, and he had instantly taken a strong stand against the ones who were spreading the news.

Although he was aware that the accusations were correct, he could never admit to it.

As such, he wrote to the ones who had claimed to hear about his so-called scandal and warned them that one had to take responsibility for their words.

If he did not see them take down their absurd rumors, he would sue them in court for slander.

Many were scared by this threat, and the few people who were spreading the rumors online quickly deleted their posts.

But a fire was hard to extinguish. Although Lin Xiao did everything in his power to kill the rumors but many still spread them behind his back.

His opposition was not aware of who had started spreading these rumors. However, it was a godsent opportunity for them.

The following day, Lin Xiao had no time to look for Han Qingshan and Jiang Yingyue.

He hurried to his office, where he was summoned by his superior. It was clear that although he had taken a strong stance and claimed the rumors as slander, the opposition was not going to let him go so easily.

As he reached his superior's office, he took a deep breath, put on an expression of grievances, and pushed the door open.

Inside were the men who were usually against him, alongside his superior.

While his superior's expression was solemn, the others had gloating expressions on their faces, looking as if they were watching a play.

"Mayor Yan, please bring me justice!" Lin Xiao was able to gain his current position because he was shrewd, and the moment he saw those gloating expressions, he had an epiphany.

"Mayor Yan, politics is meant to be fought for righteously, straightforwardly and honorably! We exist to better society and help our country encounter wealth and growth, but some unknown politicians have put their sights on me. They are filled with jealousy and have spread unfounded rumors about this hardworking official!

"This hardworking official has already shown his stance; anyone who wishes to slander me will be faced with a lawsuit! No one has been able to produce any proof, and this signifies that no shady deals are going on. It is obvious that someone is framing this hardworking official just because he is more successful than them!"

Mayor Yan looked at Lin Xiao and contemplated his words. There was some sort of logic to what he said, but he was a politician for so many years because he was prudent.

The faces of the opposition, on the other hand, were ugly to the extreme. Anyone could sense what he meant with his words; it was clear that he was targeting them, making them the ones who used underhanded means to deal with their opponent.

Major Yan looked at the two sides and sighed. "We will investigate," he finally decided.

"We will find the origin of the rumor,and at the same time, investigate Lin Xiao's business."

This was clearly giving both of them a punishment. By investigating the origin of the rumors, the opposition would be unable to steer clear, as they had fanned the flames of the rumor so actively, but Lin Xiao was not much happier.. He was, after all, a criminal.