Chapter 221: The Note Incident (Part 2)
After lunch with Public Security Bureau Director Shang Guanghua and Tang Xiaowei, Hou Weidong returned to his office. He recalled Shang Guanghua’s offhand remark about “County Mayor Ma’s dissatisfaction with the shuanggui measure against You Hong.” Hou Weidong pondered silently: “Judging by the events of the past two days, the conflict between Secretary Zhu and Ma Youcai runs deep. The arrest of You Hong and the removal of Yi Zhongling both seem to point toward Ma Youcai.”
He drew a sharp breath. “Secretary Zhu appears refined and scholarly, yet his methods are ruthless.” Hou Weidong had not served under Zhu Yan for long and did not fully understand the nature of the rift between Zhu and Ma Youcai. He felt himself involuntarily swept into a hidden current beneath a calm surface, which left him secretly alarmed.
Zhu Yan maintained a steady, routine work pace. In the morning, he held a symposium with retired cadres from Shazhou; in the afternoon, he prepared to receive Zhang Mushan and his delegation.
The Yiyang County Party Committee and Government had implemented a system where each county-level leader was responsible for a key project. The Shangqinglin Cement Plant project was designated as the county’s top priority for attracting investment, with Secretary Zhu Yan personally overseeing it.
After meeting with Zhang Mushan in Lingxi, the two had reached a basic consensus. Subsequent negotiations between Vice County Mayor Gao, Yang Dajin, and Huang Yishu had cleared the few remaining obstacles. Now, Zhang Mushan had brought experts from Beijing for another on-site inspection. These experts were well-connected with the State Planning Commission; if they raised no objections, the cement plant project could move into the operational phase.
Liu Chuanda, Vice Mayor of Shazhou, also attached great importance to the cement plant project. He personally accompanied Zhang Mushan to Yiyang County, bringing along officials from the Shazhou Planning Commission.
According to unwritten rules, a county party secretary usually did not need to drive to the border to receive a vice mayor from the prefecture-level city. However, after some consideration, Zhu Yan instructed Old Liu to drive to the boundary between Shazhou and Yiyang. It was better to be overly polite than rude, especially since Liu Chuanda oversaw industry and controlled numerous projects. Among the vice mayors of Shazhou, he was considered a heavyweight.
At around 2:40 PM, three cars appeared from the direction of Shazhou. Leading the convoy was Liu Chuanda’s unmarked police vehicle with a special license plate, followed by two cars belonging to Zhang Mushan’s delegation.
Liu Chuanda, a former military officer, differed from other leaders in that he always preferred to sit in the front passenger seat. Seeing the police car waiting at the border, he thought to himself: “Zhu Yan is a man of action who also knows how to read the room. With his family background, his chances of promotion in this term change are quite high.”
Zhu Yan was waiting by the car door. As Liu Chuanda stepped out, their two strong hands clasped tightly.
“Mayor Liu, I hope you will visit Yiyang for an inspection once a month,” Zhu Yan said.
Liu Chuanda laughed heartily. “Secretary Zhu, I suspect your intentions go beyond mere inspections. If I came down every month, I wouldn’t have enough good projects to offer.”
Everyone laughed.
Zhu Yan also shook hands firmly with Zhang Mushan. “I heard Qingda Group plans to establish a branch in Shazhou. I suggest locating it in Yiyang. Land prices here are significantly lower than in Shazhou, and we can offer additional incentives.”
Zhang Mushan responded politely and flatteringly, “The investment environment of a region depends largely on the vision of its leaders. With leaders like Mayor Liu and Secretary Zhu, I am confident that more enterprises will settle in Shazhou and Yiyang. I am indeed considering the possibility of locating the branch in Yiyang.”
Hou Weidong stood beside Zhu Yan, smiling. He shook hands with Zhang Mushan and then followed Zhu Yan into the car.
With the police car leading the way, the four vehicles headed toward Shangqinglin in Yiyang.
Hou Weidong sat in the front passenger seat, staring at the familiar road ahead, but his thoughts were fixed on Zhu Yan in the back seat. “What kind of person is Zhu Yan, really? Why can’t I see through him?”
With this lingering doubt, the cars soon arrived at Tiejian Mountain in Shangqinglin. The five vehicles parked by the roadside, drawing a crowd of local residents. Some children, accompanied by dusty yellow dogs, ran around the cars. A few women among the onlookers recognized Hou Weidong. One of them shouted, “Hou the Madman! What are you doing here? Are you going to open a factory? Open a back door for me so I can get a job there later.”
Encouraged by her, others began shouting in a chaotic manner. “Madman, are you going to seize land this time? We’ll charge you for the bamboo and peach trees on our back mountain.”
Seeing the women arguing noisily, Zhu Yan turned to Hou Weidong. “Hou Weidong, how long have you stayed in Shangqinglin? You seem to have considerable prestige. I think you are more popular than the township cadres. If we build a factory here, I’ll leave any disputes to you to handle.”
Hou Weidong replied, “I used to be the grassroots civil servant stationed in Shangqinglin. I’ve walked all over this mountain area, so everyone knows me.”
The group began walking deeper into Tiejian Mountain. Along the way, people constantly greeted Hou Weidong. The pack of Yunyan cigarettes he had brought was already distributed.
Liu Chuanda had met Hou Weidong several times before. His deepest impression was of the young man’s ability to drink; he could consume over a jin of liquor without turning red or losing his composure, displaying the demeanor of a seasoned general. Seeing Hou Weidong move effortlessly among the people in Shangqinglin, Liu Chuanda remarked, “Secretary Zhu, you really know how to choose a secretary. Using a cadre who gets things done is reassuring.”
While Zhu Yan was conducting the on-site inspection at Tiejian Mountain, County Mayor Ma Youcai was invited to the home of Yi Zhongling, manager of the Native Produce Company. It was a small building in the suburbs, with a pond in front and various flowers and plants inside. Yi Zhongling rarely visited this place, making it quite secluded.
In the large room on the top floor of the building, Yi Zhongling sat on the sofa opposite Ma Youcai, looking submissive and dejected. “County Mayor Ma, someone is trying to destroy the Native Produce Company. You must say something.”
Ma Youcai was furious. The Procuratorate had raided the Yiyang Native Produce Company that morning, yet he had only heard the news by noon. “What exactly was found? Why do you look so defeated?”
“All the approval slips signed by leaders over the years, including yours, County Mayor Ma, as well as some IOUs and the true accounts from the past two years.”
A surge of anger rose in Ma Youcai. He snapped, “I’ve told you many times to conduct business openly and honestly. Why did you keep two sets of books?” He added, “And my approval slips? What kind of slips were they?”
Yi Zhongling thought to himself, “If I don’t keep a few tricks up my sleeve, who knows when I might be sold out.”
His expression remained gloomy. “Last year, the factory underwent technical upgrades. The plan was signed and approved by you. The original document was kept there. Also, the signature on the report for allocating land to expand the factory last year was included.”
Ma Youcai pressed, “Those reports are normal; they were processed through the Government Office. Why were you afraid? There was no need to keep them separately. What else was there?”
“Over the years, the Yiyang Native Produce Company has had poor performance. Some mid-level cadres needed money for emergencies and wrote IOUs to the company. Those were also in the safe.”
“How many?”
“Not too many. I remember about a dozen cadres, totaling around one million yuan. To avoid public complaint, we balanced the accounts, but internally we kept track of the IOUs. I have been collecting the debts one by one.”
Ma Youcai’s face turned dark. He pointed at Yi Zhongling. “Yi Zhongling, you are a veteran factory director. How could you do such a thing? This alone is enough to land you in the Procuratorate.”
Yi Zhongling still had much more to say. Besides these items, many secret transaction vouchers had also been seized by the Procuratorate.
He had served as the director of a state-owned factory for seven or eight years and had long been determined to strike out on his own. Using the name of a distant rural relative in Shazhou, he had registered a private enterprise called Shunfa Company. This Shunfa Company had done considerable business with the Yiyang Native Produce Company, naturally taking the lion’s share of the profits while the Native Produce Company lost money for the sake of appearances.
In earlier years, when the Yiyang Native Produce Company was thriving, it had purchased storefronts and real estate in Lingxi Province and Shazhou City to serve as sales offices. In particular, the real estate in Lingxi totaled over a thousand square meters. Eventually, the Yiyang Native Produce Company sold these properties to Shunfa Company at extremely low prices.
Through these maneuvers, Shunfa Company’s business flourished, while the Yiyang Native Produce Company suffered severe losses. Yi Zhongling’s calculations were precise. Once the Native Produce Company officially went bankrupt, he could step forward as the boss of Shunfa Company and become a private entrepreneur. However, to transition smoothly, one condition was necessary: the company must not be targeted by the Procuratorate before its bankruptcy.
Yi Zhongling knew of the discord between Zhu Yan and Ma Youcai. “Market competition has been too fierce in recent years. The copper rod and mushroom canned goods from the Native Produce Company are severely unsalable, and profits are declining. This is a systemic issue; how can we be blamed? I have found out that this audit was specifically arranged by Ji Haiyang. In other words, Zhu Yan is making a move against you. I also received word from the Procuratorate that Zhu Yan sent his secretary there to supervise the case.”
“If one is upright, one need not fear a crooked shadow. Zhu Yan wants to take me down through this, but it won’t be that easy.”
Ma Youcai smoked a cigarette, his mood gradually stabilizing. Although he had taken over two million yuan from the Native Produce Company in recent years, both transactions were point-to-point, and one even took place in the United States. Ma Youcai believed he had left no handles for others to grab. The signatures on those reports were normal approvals; even if the Procuratorate obtained them, they would be of little use.
“Old Yi, I know you are bold. Tell me the truth. Besides these matters, what else was there?”
Yi Zhongling reminded him lightly, “The account books from the past two years are also there, including the $100,000 in the United States. The records reflect it. I also kept the receipts for your mother-in-law’s kidney transplant in Shanghai.”
Ma Youcai gritted his teeth in anger. “Yi Zhongling, what do you mean by this?”
Yi Zhongling looked miserable. “I was careless. I thought keeping these materials separately would be fine. Who knew that a thief within the walls is hard to guard against? Someone must have leaked the information. If I find out who it was, I will tear them apart.”
He added, “County Mayor Ma, rest assured. I am not a pushover. As long as you can hold off Zhu Yan, I have ways to smooth things over. I have always enjoyed making friends, and they will prove useful.”