Chapter 608: Lu Hongjun is Arrested
Chapter 608: Lu Hongjun is Arrested
Lu Hongjun was in the park, sharing tips on bird-keeping with a few elderly men, when several people in uniform approached them. After confirming his identity, they handcuffed him and took him away.
One of the elderly men, who had a grudge against Lu Hongjun, coldly huffed, "I told you her daughter's money didn't come from honest means, and you accused me of being jealous. Well, who's right now? I told you so!"
A kind-hearted old man among them said, "We don't know the details yet. It might all be a false alarm."
The first old man started to say more, but another interjected, "It's getting late. I should head home."
In the interrogation room, Lu Hongjun adamantly denied any knowledge of the ancient artifacts. He insisted that he had lived a blameless life and that this was all a setup by his enemies.
Hearing this, Guo Qingqing burned with anger and laid out the evidence they had found. "You profited by selling important state-owned artifacts. The evidence is conclusive, so your denials are futile. If you want leniency, you must come clean about that batch of artifacts."
Lu Hongjun was not intimidated by her words. "I've never done anything like that, young lady. You can't just make things up to slander me."
Not many people knew about the batch of ancient artifacts he had acquired, and even fewer had seen them. As long as the bodyguards around Jia Xin didn't speak out of turn, he could deny it all and, without evidence, they couldn't touch him.
Seeing that he wasn't going to confess, Guo Qingqing left the room, her face dark with frustration.
Soon after, Lu Jia Zong was summoned to assist in the investigation. When asked about the artifacts, he initially claimed ignorance. However, under the interrogator's pressure and enticements, he eventually caved and told the truth.
Lu Jia Zong explained, "I learned about my Uncle San having a batch of old artifacts from Jia Xin. But I've never seen those items myself. As far as I know, they were all given to Jia Xin."
"I don't know what they are because I've never seen them. But my Uncle San has high standards, so they must be valuable. Jia Xin is the same; she wouldn't settle for anything ordinary."
Guo Qingqing probed further, trying to get Lu Jia Zong to implicate Lu Jia Xin, suggesting that the money she used for her business came from Lu Hongjun. However, this attempt failed.
Lu Jia Zong clarified, "As for where Jia Xin got her start-up capital... She found an ancient painting in an antique market in the ancient capital. That girl is clever. Knowing that people in Si Jiucheng wouldn't be able to afford it, she took it to Yangcheng, where she sold it to Nie Zan, the third young master of the Nie family, who is now her fiance."
"Master Nie is very generous. He gave Jia Xin several thousand yuan, which she used as capital to start a leather shoe business, and she made a fortune from it."
"Even my Uncle San didn't know she had made so much money. With her newfound wealth, she became bolder and turned against my Uncle San."
"So, Jia Xin's business capital did not come from selling those artifacts? No, it didn't. My Uncle San only gave her those artifacts a couple of years ago, by which time Jia Xin had already been in Hong Kong for several years and was already very wealthy."
Lu Jia Zong's testimony confirmed that Lu Hongjun had received a batch of priceless antiques, which he had then given to Lu Jia Xin. However, the capital for her business did not come from these antiques.
Despite this testimony, Lu Hongjun remained defiant and continued to deny the charges, offering his own explanation. "I only have one daughter, Jia Xin, and she's settled in Hong Kong now and won't be coming back. Of course, I have to make arrangements for my retirement. After much thought, adoption seemed like the best option."
"Among my grandchildren, Lu Ping, as the eldest son, cannot be adopted out. Lu An's future in the public security bureau is too uncertain, and Lu Zhang is too young for his temperament to be settled. Only Lu Shan is steady and reliable, and his wife, Da Mai, is also a kind-hearted person. Most importantly, they already have two sons and a daughter, so I don't have to worry about continuing the family line."
Lu Jia Guang waited an entire day, initially thinking that things would play out as they had before, with a minor issue being smoothed over. However, not only was Lu Hongjun's second brother called in to assist with the investigation, but he himself was also summoned soon after.
When it came to Lu Hongjun's misappropriation of supplies and cultural relics, Lu Jia Guang feigned ignorance, leaving Guo Qingqing exasperated.
Subsequently, Lu Ersao, Lu Shan, and Da Mai were all summoned for questioning, but they all claimed to be unaware of the situation and had neither heard nor seen anything about it.
Realizing something was amiss, Lu Jia Guang immediately called the butler and became anxious upon hearing that Jia Xin was still abroad and hadn't returned. "Tell Jia Xin that her father, San Shu, has been arrested by the police, and everyone in the family has been called in for questioning. The matter is very serious."
Meng Butler knew how to prioritize matters: "What happened?"
Lu Jia Guang briefly explained the situation.
After hearing this, Meng Butler immediately called Nie Zan: "Mr. Nie, Jia Guang just called and said that his father has been arrested by the police."
"Arrested by the police? Do they know why?" Nie Zan asked.
Meng Butler relayed that Lu Jia Guang hadn't provided a reason but emphasized the seriousness of the matter. Even though his boss had a strained relationship with his father, he was still his biological parent, and he wouldn't just stand by and let him be imprisoned. At the very least, he would hire an excellent lawyer. As long as it wasn't a major case involving loss of life, things should be fine.
Nie Zan didn't call Jia Xin immediately. Instead, he consulted Su He Yuan first. No matter how strained Jia Xin's relationship with Lu Hongjun was, he didn't believe she would wish for him to be imprisoned or come to harm.
Reflecting on the butler's words, Nie Zan said, "He has been taken away by the relevant authorities on charges of misappropriating supplies and colluding with Jia Xin to sell national cultural relics. I'm not clear on the first charge, but the accusation of Jia Xin selling cultural relics is completely baseless."
"I'll call and find out exactly what's going on," Nie Zan added.
Nie Zan continued, "Also, remind those people that my father-in-law is elderly and cannot withstand harsh treatment. If anything happens to him, Jia Xin and I will definitely get to the bottom of it."
Su He Yuan readily agreed: "Alright, I'll call back and inquire."
Half an hour later, Su He Yuan called Nie Zan back and explained the whole situation: "It was the stepdaughter, Huang Xiaoyu, who reported it. The authorities are investigating, and they'll likely find evidence for the misappropriation of supplies. As for the sale of cultural relics, they haven't found any contraband, so as long as Lu Hongjun denies the accusations and claims that Huang Xiaoyu is fabricating the story out of revenge, things should be fine."
There were some things left unsaid, as they involved Lu Jia Xin. Ultimately, the matter of selling cultural relics would likely be downplayed and resolved quietly.
(End of Chapter)
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