After all, this kind of matter is a political event, and the local authorities cannot handle it on their own. Thus, the course of the May 15th Incident and that commentary written out of boredom by Edward Faulkner were submitted step by step as evidence, along with the local government's proposed handling of the May 15th Incident.

Once the higher authorities’ reply came down, Grace Bolton would be tried as a political criminal according to the law.

But what puzzled the Panshi Municipal Party Committee and the special investigation team was that after the submitted materials were sent up, there was no further news. This was almost impossible—even during the Cultural Revolution, the efficiency of the entire public security system had never dropped; no matter the outcome, there would always be a clear reply in the shortest possible time.

So what was going on this time?

With no clear statement from above, those below dared not act rashly. They could only keep Grace Bolton under control, providing food and lodging, just dragging things out like this. As a result, everyone waited for more than half a month before realizing that the political winds had shifted.

All the major official media were now openly supporting the views put forward in “Practice is the Sole Criterion for Testing Truth,” and the discussion on this topic was being actively led and supported by most of the central Party leadership. The debate was gradually unfolding nationwide. Leading officials from the central Party, government, and military departments, as well as from the vast majority of provinces, cities, autonomous regions, and major military regions, all published articles or gave speeches, unanimously agreeing that upholding the Marxist principle that practice is the sole criterion for testing truth had great practical significance.

The deputy secretary of the municipal Party committee, Andrew Ford, suddenly realized the seriousness of the issue—he had acted on impulse and actually taken the wrong side!

The head of the city public security bureau also became alarmed. On May 24th, the central government issued a notice: according to the constitution, the People’s Procuratorate was to be re-established, to cooperate with and also check the public security organs and the people’s courts, and to jointly combat all kinds of illegal and undisciplined behavior.

In just half a month, the May 15th Incident, which had caused a huge stir throughout the city and was known everywhere as a “counterrevolutionary event,” had actually turned into a vicious case of a few scheming authorities using their power to persecute revolutionary masses who upheld the truth! This reversal left everyone utterly stunned!

And the imprisoned teacher Grace Bolton suddenly became a hero in the eyes of many. At a time when no one dared to state their position, this female teacher bravely stood up for the truth and instantly became the most famous person in the city.

The actions of the Panshi Municipal Party Committee and the public security bureau in detaining teacher Grace Bolton were immediately magnified and elevated to the level of a political struggle.

“This is what it means to go against the tide! To go against the trend of the times! To go against the will of the people!” At this critical moment, the Panshi Municipal Party Secretary Matthew Warren, who had remained silent throughout the May 15th Incident, finally spoke out, and with his first words, he was already pushing the deputy secretary Andrew Ford toward a dead end.

It was now clear that Grace Bolton should not remain in detention, but since the materials sent up had not yet been approved, the matter remained awkwardly unresolved. Now that the Party Secretary had made his position clear, the public security bureau wanted to smooth things over and discussed with Grace Bolton whether she might as well go home for the time being.

“No way!” Grace Bolton flatly refused. “I was dragged in here by you people without knowing what was going on, and I’m not about to just walk out of here without a clear explanation! There has to be a proper procedure for everything! Don’t think you can just brush people off!”

Chapter 12: Power Struggle

To be honest, after the political winds began to shift, the public security bureau had already relaxed its restrictions on Grace Bolton. The staff knew that this time the trouble had come from above, and there was no need for them to take the fall. As a result, Grace Bolton was actually living quite well inside—she had books and newspapers to read, and the visitation requests from Henry Faulkner and her family were fully accommodated.

However, due to certain people’s requirements, visits were generally conducted with public security personnel present. The cause and effect of the situation was not explained to Grace Bolton by Henry Faulkner, but rather by Edward Faulkner, whom everyone else had simply overlooked, to his own mother.

Henry Faulkner only spoke a few words to Grace Bolton through the glass wall, but since Edward Faulkner was not yet three years old, he was able to enter the room where Grace Bolton was being held and succinctly explain the whole story to her.

It was only at this moment that Grace Bolton understood why she was there, and realized that her youngest son had once again stirred up a major incident. Fortunately, the outcome would not be too bad.

The coping strategy that Edward Faulkner taught Grace Bolton consisted of just four sentences: “Hold firm to your consistent position, demand an official statement, wait for the higher authorities’ reply, and make appropriate requests.”

At this point, Grace Bolton had no more doubts about what her youngest son had said, and resolutely implemented Edward Faulkner’s policy—she clung tightly to the accusation that the public security bureau was suppressing revolutionary masses who upheld the truth, and demanded an official explanation.

Thus, the two sides reached a stalemate on this issue. The situation was now rather delicate. Normally, with the public security bureau’s authority, there was no way they would let a female teacher make a scene. But the strange thing was, at this moment, the Panshi Municipal Party Committee was not united.