Rebirth: I Became Mr.President's Beloved-Chapter 1140: The Price the Li Family Paid Back Then [Part 1]
This outcome is unexpected.
It is even more difficult to accept than when Tang Shen was shot dead by Lai Wenyan.
That involved twenty lives...
"The day the bodies were retrieved, Li Hao had already met with the Siamese ambassador to state S and informed him that the anti-drug operation in the state involved a Siamese undercover agent."
Tang Li, hearing this, could also surmise the development of events that followed.
Li Ruan had mentioned that the former prime minister of Siam was removed from office on less than honorable charges.
"Just as Li Hao was about to embark on his trip to the state, turmoil erupted in Siam, and more than a dozen key officials, including Li Hao, were detained. In the same month, the Anti-Corruption Committee announced the dismissal of the Siamese Attorney General for negligence, accusing Li Hao of exploiting his position for personal gain during various measures."
When Tang Li looked at him again, Li Ruan spoke again: "Half a month later, the investigation into the floating corpse case yielded results, directly implicating Li Hao’s only son, Li Chengyu. Witnesses came forward, claiming to have seen Li Chengyu meeting with Sang Bo’s men outside the city bureau the night before the operation."
Tang Li found this accusation somewhat absurd: "If it were really him, how could he—"
The words ’tragically died’ were words she never managed to utter.
"The investigation report indicated that he made outrageous demands from Sang Bo, which ultimately angered him, leading to both of them not making it back alive."
This explanation didn’t convince Tang Li.
"That’s not right," she quickly pointed out the flaw: "Sang Bo was arrested in the state during that transaction and subjected to their interrogation. If he had killed those twenty people, he would have confessed, not to mention, there was no other firefight discovered on the Mihesha River."
News about that transaction can still be found online today.
Because of the sheer volume of white powder involved, it was the second-largest case in the state’s history.
The level of public concern was high, and the official reports tried their best to restore the facts.
Yet the Siamese task force was never mentioned.
"Indeed, it wasn’t Sang Bo," Li Ruan spoke.
As Tang Li looked at Li Ruan, she learned the remaining truths: "It was Isa."
"Isa and Sang Bo have always been arch-enemies, even though they both served Third Miss Lin; privately, they competed for business and territory, often resulting in armed conflicts. That transaction was a path to the underworld that Isa paved for Sang Bo."
With ten billion worth of goods missing, Isa had long suspected Sang Bo and Tang Shen.
He was almost certain that one of them had hijacked the goods.
While Kun was searching everywhere for the goods, Isa had already orchestrated a grand scheme.
"Isa had always wanted to seize Sang Bo’s influence in the Golden Triangle, but Third Miss Lin, in her later years, disliked unnecessary conflicts, and the loss of the ten billion in goods gave Isa just the excuse he needed."
"Even if your grandfather hadn’t told Li Hao about the time and place of the transaction, Isa would have leaked it to the Siamese authorities. On the day of your grandfather and Sang Bo’s trade, he ambushed the entire task force midway, then rushed to the Mihesha River to exploit the situation, escalating the conflict between Siam and Sang Bo. The only thing Isa failed to calculate was the involvement of the state’s authorities."
Ultimately, however, Isa got his wish.
Sang Bo was captured by the state and never returned to Northern Myanmar.
These matters, of course, weren’t uncovered two decades ago.
If the truth had been revealed back then, her grandfather wouldn’t still be labeled as a ’drug lord.’
Li Ruan’s continued words dispelled the last bit of confusion in Tang Li’s heart. "After Li Hao was detained, he was held under house arrest at the base. There was never sufficient evidence for the so-called negligence case. Thirteen years ago, when the current prime minister ascended, Li Hao was acquitted and released, but this also marked the end of his political career."
In Siam, a constitutional monarchy is in place.
As prime minister, one does not wield military power.
Once tumult occurs, the outcome is predictable.
"After becoming prime minister, Li Hao implemented a series of measures benefiting the lower and middle classes, which infringed upon the interests of those at the top of the pyramid. The massacre of the task force became the perfect opportunity for those people to target Li Hao."
Therefore, it wasn’t that Li Hao didn’t exonerate her grandfather, but that he himself was unable to protect himself.
Li Ruan recounted with a calm tone, "In the eyes of most Siamese politicians, the fact that Li Hao didn’t have to flee abroad and can now reside in Chiang Mai Prefecture is seen as a proper ending. Only the Li Family clan knows the true price the Li Family paid because of that transaction."
The most promising successor of the younger generation of the Li Family died stigmatized.
Years of effort Li Hao put into his anti-drug initiatives came to naught.
His brother was implicated, losing his life.
Even Li Hao himself nearly perished in the ordeal.
"After leaving the base, Li Hao immediately approached the prime minister, pleading with him to contact the state authorities, hoping to allow his brother’s ashes to return home and locate his brother’s descendants."
Tang Li clutched the letter tightly in her hands.
The fact that she is still in the state suggests that Li Hao’s wish wasn’t fulfilled then.
"On the same day Li Hao was detained, the safe at his home containing important documents was also taken away and destroyed by the military. So, when the prime minister asked him to provide proof that his brother wasn’t the real drug lord at all, Li Hao had no relevant written evidence to show."
Li Ruan added, "If it weren’t for the incident with Li Chengyu, it wouldn’t be so difficult for your grandfather to restore his identity."
Tang Li caught the implication in his words: "Are you saying Li Chengyu still hasn’t been cleared of his charges to this day?"
"Yes."
Li Ruan nodded—
"The task force was ambushed; no evidence was left at the scene."
If he hadn’t stayed by Kun’s side for many years and gained Kun’s complete trust, Kun would never have drunkenly confided in him that Isa schemed to murder twenty Siamese policemen to seize territory from Sang Bo back then.
Afterward, he followed the trail for half a year before fully confirming that Isa was indeed responsible for the deaths of Li Chengyu and his teammates.
"The only way to overturn the case is to capture Isa and bring him back to Siam."
Tang Li had heard of Isa but never met him in person.
Recently, she had searched online for Isa’s profile.
She found only a photo of Isa in his younger days.
Isa, originally from Yun Province, fled to Northern Myanmar with his family after his parents were wanted by the state for smuggling ’pork.’ He became the biggest drug lord in Northern Myanmar after Third Miss Lin’s death. Since then, he hasn’t stayed in Shan State but moved to Nanwa State, forming an alliance with the local armed forces.
Currently, Isa is a personal economic advisor to the chief of Nanwa.
He even established a company in Nanwa, posing as a legitimate businessperson.
Li Ruan’s visit to her wasn’t for reminiscing.
If they wanted her to acknowledge her roots, there was no need to be so discreet, just send a Li Family branch member to the state to find her.
Tang Li asked her cousin, "Why are you telling me all this, what do you want me to do?"
Li Ruan gazed at her, and without beating around the bush, said, "Isa has already become aware of your existence. For now, he believes Kun’s words, thinking you can refine Number 6 goods."
Li Ruan continued, "Isa’s parents lived in Southern Shan State before their deaths, and were buried there after. Southern Shan State borders Siam, and is a region where various armed forces intermingle. Isa visits their graves every October; this year will be no exception."
