Chapter 1074 - 1074:

"Flying into a rage for a beauty, huh. Didn't expect that kid Dirk Carter to be quite the romantic."

Driscoll Hawkins said with a bit of a sneer.

Colter Hall chuckled, "You went to see Hadley Thorne, right? What did he say?"

"You guess what he'd say?"

Driscoll Hawkins asked.

Colter Hall thought for a moment, then said, "What else can he do? Of course he has to arrest him. Dirk Carter beat someone up, that's already against the law. Astrid Giles is his hatchet woman—if he still keeps shielding her in a situation like this, isn't he afraid of chilling the hearts of the people below?"

"Heh heh, he's already signed off on the arrest. I've already sent Lance Lane over personally with a team. Now this is great—Dirk Carter is done for. Old Liu, next up there's a Deputy Party Secretary of the Municipal Committee and a Discipline Inspection Secretary on the table. Which one do we grab?"

"That we'll have to weigh very carefully…"

Right at this moment.

Colter Hall was in an excellent mood.

Lane Quincy's business had left him swallowing his anger, and he'd been fretting over how to make things difficult for Dirk Carter. Never expected the guy to "court death" on his own. Now it might not stop at just making things difficult—he could very well end up in handcuffs.

Around three in the afternoon.

Astrid Giles was taken to the hospital.

Because Dirk Carter had knocked out one of her teeth, plus contusions to the soft tissue in her abdomen and swelling in her face, it already constituted a Level Ten minor injury, which meant Dirk Carter would at minimum be facing administrative detention next.

It wasn't a big case.

If Astrid Giles was willing to settle, Dirk Carter would at most get a disciplinary action.

But would Astrid Giles be willing to settle?

Of course not!

Around three-thirty.

Municipal Public Security Bureau Chief Lance Lane personally stepped in, barged into Dirk Carter's office, and took him away in handcuffs.

No need to ask to know: next Dirk Carter would not only have to bear legal responsibility—because of trespassing into a private residence and sending people to tail municipal leaders, all serious violations of regulations and discipline, he might very well also be facing disciplinary and regulatory sanctions.

His post as Discipline Inspection Secretary was basically finished.

By contrast, the kidnapping of Megan Goodman was something no one even mentioned.

After Elbert Rivers reported the case on the scene, the officers from the local station just went through the motions. As for follow-up handling, they didn't have that authority anyway; the odds of it simply being left unresolved were quite high.

Four-thirty in the afternoon.

Astrid Giles's injuries had already been treated.

Once she learned Dirk Carter had been arrested, her mood naturally became very cheerful.

At the same time, the State Committee had also just finished its meeting.

After discussing the situation reported by Hadley Thorne, the main leaders at the state level decided to temporarily suspend Dirk Carter from his duties pending investigation.

When this news reached the Municipal Committee, the workday wasn't over yet.

Naturally it triggered another wave of commotion.

Five in the evening.

Hadley Thorne convened a Municipal Standing Committee meeting again.

At the meeting he formally announced the State Committee's handling decision regarding Dirk Carter.

Five-thirty.

Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection Executive Deputy Secretary Sidney Lewis also convened a leadership team meeting.

He ordered that Erastus Hamilton, Athena Meyer, and Heath Woods—who had helped Dirk Carter look for the missing person—all be temporarily suspended from duty pending investigation.

After Dirk Carter arrived on the scene, Sidney Lewis's limelight had been suppressed; now he was once again riding high.

Even his voice in meetings sounded exceptionally loud and bright.

After the meeting ended, Erastus Hamilton didn't particularly care. After all, he was close to retirement; even if the higher-ups pursued the matter, as long as he said it had been under Dirk Carter's orders, he could muddle through.

Athena Meyer's face, however, was full of worry.

It wasn't herself she was worried about.

She was worried about Dirk Carter.

A perfectly fine Discipline Inspection Secretary had now become a prisoner in the dock; it was hard not to feel a certain sense of regret.

Because she was preoccupied.

She didn't even hear Sidney Lewis announce the adjournment.

She just sat there dazed.

Right at that moment, Jasmine Summers suddenly sat down beside her.

"Do you need something?"

Athena Meyer asked.

Jasmine Summers wore a contemptuous smirk on her face and said, "Picked the wrong horse, and now you're eaten up with regret, huh?"

"What do you mean? I don't understand."

Athena Meyer didn't want to waste time on her, and stood straight up.

Jasmine Summers suddenly grabbed a fistful of her hair, making Athena Meyer cry out softly in pain.

"What are you doing? Are you crazy?"

Athena Meyer snapped.

Jasmine Summers slowly rose to her feet and said with contempt, "Bitch, didn't you like going against me? It won't be long before I'm Executive Deputy Secretary. When that time comes I want to see how you still plan to oppose me. Don't worry, I'll make sure to dump all the dirtiest, most exhausting work on you. Just you wait… hahaha…"

With those words.

Jasmine Summers swaggered off.

In Hadley Thorne's office.

He and Municipal Committee Secretary-General Brenton Sullivan were also laughing and joking.

Because in their eyes, this round had been won very comfortably.

First Dirk Carter took down Lane Quincy, removing a major thorn in their side; then Dirk Carter got himself killed politically, and the Discipline Inspection Secretary's seat was now vacant.

That provided favorable conditions for further tightening their grip on the situation.

The two were chatting away happily.

Secretary Jules Reid knocked and walked in, saying, "Leaders, Mayor Giles is here."

"Mayor Giles is here? Isn't she supposed to be at the hospital?"

Brenton Sullivan was taken aback.

Astrid Giles walked in bent at the waist, her steps slow.

"Oh, oh, oh, Comrade Astrid, why aren't you resting in the hospital? What are you doing back so soon?"

Seeing this, Brenton Sullivan immediately stood to greet her.

Looking at Astrid Giles's swollen cheek, it was frankly kind of funny, but out of courtesy he managed to hold back his laughter.

"I'm fine."

Astrid Giles sat down on the sofa and hurriedly asked, "Secretary Thorne, I heard Dirk Carter's been arrested?"

Hadley Thorne nodded.

He tossed a red-letter document in front of her and said, "Next the State Commission for Discipline Inspection will also be stepping in to investigate. You've won. You won't be seeing him again at the Municipal Committee."

"Hahaha… oh, oh, oh, that hurts, it hurts so much…"

After reading the document, Astrid Giles couldn't help bursting out laughing.

But that laughter tugged at the injured soft tissue, making her bare her teeth in pain.

The physical pain couldn't compare to the comfort in her heart. To her, it was all worth it.

"That Dirk Carter really is an idiot. Making such a huge fuss over a woman—someone like that really isn't cut out for officialdom."

Brenton Sullivan said from the side.

Hadley Thorne stretched lazily.

He said, "All right, anyway this trouble's been eliminated. We won't have to see someone like that again. Next we need to discuss nominations for the two vacant posts…"

According to Hadley Thorne's plan.

Astrid Giles would fill Lane Quincy's Number Three slot.

Municipal Committee Secretary-General Brenton Sullivan would be promoted to Discipline Inspection Secretary.

That way, both of them would count as having been promoted.

What could you do? Hadley Thorne was Municipal Committee Secretary and he held the nomination power.

Just as the three of them were chatting and laughing, envisioning a bright future.

Ring ring ring.

The red internal line phone on the desk suddenly rang.

Hadley Thorne stood up and took a look—turns out it was State Committee Secretary Brian Caldwell calling.

Smiling, he said, "Guess Secretary Caldwell is checking in about the situation."

Then he made a shushing gesture to the other two.