Chapter 231: The Confrontation (Part 1)
After meticulous preparation, the Standing Committee meeting convened as scheduled. Hou Weidong took a seat in the back row.
Zhao Lin presided over the meeting. Once Zhu Yan had taken his seat, Zhao Lin announced, “We have four agenda items today. First, the establishment of the Management Committee for the South City New District. Second, personnel matters. Third, the year-end assessment, specifically regarding the establishment of the Target Office. Fourth, the three-year propaganda work outline.”
The first item concerned the establishment of the Management Committee for the South City New District. This issue had been brewing for some time and generated little controversy. After Zhao Lin, the Deputy Party Secretary in charge of organization, raised the topic, the committee members discussed it briefly and passed the motion smoothly.
The second item was personnel matters, which was the issue the Standing Committee members cared about most.
The most tangible power of the County Party Committee lay in the authority to appoint personnel. Whoever controlled this power controlled the entire situation. Each member of the Standing Committee had their own hidden agenda, so when Minister Liu began to speak, everyone immediately pricked up their ears.
Vacancies had appeared for the Deputy Director of the Personnel Bureau and the Deputy Director of the Transportation Bureau. One candidate was the nephew of the former County Party Secretary, and the other was Liu Tao, the Chief of the Comprehensive Section. Both were familiar faces to the committee, so their appointments passed without difficulty.
The third appointment, however, was special. It concerned the management team of the Yiyang Native Produce Company.
The Yiyang Native Produce Company was a county-owned enterprise, and its management appointments were made directly by the County Party Committee. There had been disagreement between Zhu Yan and Mayor Ma Youcai regarding Yi Zhongling’s position. Zhu Yan had wanted to replace Yi Zhongling a year ago, but Yi had only kept his job due to Mayor Ma Youcai’s insistence.
When Zhu Yan had visited his former leader, Li Yongguo, Li had advised him to be more ruthless, implicitly referring to this very situation.
Hou Weidong knew that the first two appointments were merely a smokescreen. The real focus of the day was the appointment at the Yiyang Native Produce Company. His seat allowed him to clearly observe the expressions of both Zhu Yan and Ma Youcai.
As soon as Minister Liu finished speaking, Ma Youcai turned on his microphone and said, “I have a different view on this matter.”
The agenda request form for this Standing Committee meeting had explicitly stated that it would discuss relevant personnel issues. Gui Gang had specifically called Ji Haiyang to inform him, so Ma Youcai assumed they were only discussing the two deputy positions and had not taken it too seriously. He had never expected Zhu Yan to launch a sudden attack.
Adjusting his glasses, Ma Youcai said, “Last year, the government invested four million yuan in technological upgrades. This year, those projects have begun to show good results. The new products from the Native Produce Company have received initial market recognition. The company is currently at a critical stage of climbing out of its difficulties. It is on the verge of turning things around. Replacing the three factory directors and the chief accountant at this moment will inevitably bring unpredictable consequences. The County Party Committee must fully recognize this. If the Native Produce Company goes bankrupt, it will affect the livelihoods of thousands of people. We must be extremely cautious.”
Minister Liu offered no explanation. He kept his head down, flipping through the materials in his hands.
The arson and poisoning cases at the Procuratorate had made Zhu Yan fully determined. He decided to cut through the red tape with a swift blade, cleaning out the toxic tumor of the Native Produce Company’s management with lightning speed. Breaking with convention, he did not give other committee members a chance to speak. Instead, he jumped in right after Ma Youcai, saying, “I agree with Minister Liu’s opinion. We must replace Yi Zhongling, Li Hu, and Yang Weige.”
Ma Youcai glanced at Zhu Yan and said, “What logic is there in replacing the entire leadership team?”
Zhu Yan countered sharply, “There are two reasons. First, the Yiyang Native Produce Company is insolvent, and its management bears undeniable responsibility. You don’t need to look at the financial statements. Just take a walk around the factory grounds and the residential area, and the situation will be clear at a glance. In the past, the name ‘Yiyang Native Produce’ represented vitality and wealth. Now, it signifies decay and poverty.”
Hou Weidong reached behind his seat and pulled out seven large photographs. The first photo showed the production situation in the factory. In the workshop, most of the machines were idle. A dozen workers were sitting together, and four of them in the back were playing cards with intense concentration.
Hou Weidong explained, “This photo was taken yesterday afternoon. It shows the actual production scene in Workshop One.”
The second photo was a panoramic view of the factory buildings and the residential quarters. Weeds grew wild everywhere. Except for the administrative office, most of the buildings were dilapidated and old.
Pointing to the image, Hou Weidong said, “The residential area is essentially a shantytown. The hygiene, transportation, and living conditions still follow the layout from the 1960s. Due to years of neglect, the vast majority of the houses are dangerous structures.”
The third photo showed the four official cars belonging to the factory, shining brightly in the sunlight.
The fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh photos revealed the current state of the Yiyang Native Produce Company from various angles.
Ma Youcai had not expected Zhu Yan’s stance to be so clear-cut or his preparation so thorough. His face turned dark as he said, “The transition from a planned economy to a commodity economy happened overnight. How many state-owned enterprises across the country have gone bankrupt in just one year? The decline of the Yiyang Native Produce Company is historically inevitable. The system is flawed, and the mechanisms are rigid. That is the root of the problem. Blaming all the negative effects of the system on the managers is an attitude that disrespects history and shirks responsibility.”
Zhu Yan held up two fingers and said, “The second issue: Deputy Factory Director Yang Weige has already violated criminal law. The problems reflected in his case are numerous.” He emphasized his words, “A large number of vouchers and account books were seized from No. 115 Zhongshan East Road. These documents are shocking. The management of the Yiyang Native Produce Company has engaged in collective corruption, embezzling state assets to a degree that is simply insane.”
At this point, he suddenly slammed his fist heavily on the table and said, “These pieces of evidence were stored in the Procuratorate’s evidence room, yet they were burned to the ground. This is a crime. It is a challenge by criminals to the people’s regime.”
Zhu Yan and Ma Youcai had long been at odds, but their conflicts usually took place behind the scenes. Today, however, they had laid their contradictions directly on the table, throwing away the fig leaf that had previously covered their faces. The members of the Standing Committee instinctively chose silence.
“Thirdly,” Zhu Yan continued, “Yi Zhongling, as the person in charge, must be held responsible for the current state of the Yiyang Native Produce Company, even if he has not committed illegal acts. His removal from office is beyond doubt. Yang Weige has already broken the law and will soon be in prison, so I won’t dwell on him. As for Li Hu, his morality is bankrupt, his conduct is rotten, and he is a thoroughly corrupt element. Is there really any need to keep such a leadership team?”
Hou Weidong immediately stood up and distributed a set of documents to each member of the Standing Committee. Inside were the investigation materials from the police station regarding Li Hu’s solicitation of prostitutes.
“Look at Li Hu’s shameful behavior. The Discipline Inspection Commission must pursue this to the end and handle it seriously.”
A copy of the materials was placed in front of Ma Youcai as well. He did not look at it, cursing inwardly: “Yi Zhongling, you brought this disaster upon yourself. Don’t blame me for not saving you.” But then he thought of the two million yuan, and it felt as though a heavy mountain had pressed down on his chest, making it hard to breathe.
The tactic of exposing solicitation of prostitutes was highly lethal in Chinese official circles. The idea had originated with Hou Weidong. After discussing it with Shang Guanghua, Shang had ordered his officers to conduct a secret investigation. The police from the Public Security Section did not even need to interview many people before several women recognized the person in Li Hu’s photo. Li Hu denied the allegations, but with multiple women identifying him simultaneously, the investigation materials were easily compiled.
Zhu Yan continued, “Comrade Gu Tiejun graduated from the Southwestern University of Finance and Economics and has always been engaged in economic work. He is familiar with the business and has an upright style. He is suitable to serve as the General Manager of the Yiyang Native Produce Company. I agree with the arrangement made by the Organization Department.”
Minister Liu of the Organization Department spoke up at the right moment, “Does anyone have any objections to this appointment?”
Zhao Lin took the initiative to state his position, “I agree with the Organization Department’s opinion.”
Caught off guard, Ma Youcai saw that Zhao Lin, who was in charge of organization, also supported Zhu Yan. Realizing that he could not turn the tide in this confrontation, he said, “I reserve my own viewpoint, but I unconditionally support the final resolution of the Standing Committee.”
Minister Liu said, “If there are no objections to this appointment, it is passed.”
Hou Weidong looked at Ma Youcai’s ashen face and thought to himself: “A few years ago, I saw Ma Youcai on television, always looking radiant and speaking with a visionary air. Who would have thought it would come to this?”
Distance creates beauty; distance creates reverence. Just as the emperor sat on high steps, and ministers could only see him from afar during morning court, they found the dragon throne awe-inspiring. But the eunuchs, who saw the emperor eating, drinking, and using the toilet every day, witnessed his constipation, diarrhea, premature release, and impotence. In their eyes, the emperor was just an ordinary person.
Having gotten closer to the County Party Committee leaders, Hou Weidong realized they were also ordinary people—just ordinary people with more experience in officialdom.
After the meeting adjourned, he held several photographs and followed behind the Standing Committee members, thinking: “From today on, I am branded with Zhu Yan’s mark. I can only hope that Zhu Yan rises in his official career; otherwise, my own path will be difficult.” He then thought: “I am already a millionaire. Why do I need to wade into this deep, muddy water of officialdom?”
Yang Weige’s sudden death at the Procuratorate gave Hou Weidong a deeper understanding of the complexity of this world: “When money reaches a certain level, quantitative change inevitably leads to qualitative change. Money will inevitably combine with power to form a new privileged class. However, for most businessmen, even small merchants with assets of a million yuan, they remain extremely fragile in the face of the organs of dictatorship.”
Hou Weidong had just returned to his office when Jia Dagang from the Petition Office came looking for him. Jia first handed Hou Weidong a cigarette and then said, “Secretary Hou, does Secretary Zhu have time? I want to report on the recent petition work.” He looked worried and said, “After we brought Yang Weige’s family back from Shazhou, Yang died at the Procuratorate. His family is furious. Now, many of them have gone to the Shazhou Municipal Government, and some even plan to go to the Provincial Government and Beijing. This matter is difficult to handle, so I need to report it to Secretary Zhu.”
To an outsider hearing only one side of the story, there would be full sympathy for the deceased. The Yiyang Procuratorate, as well as the County Party Committee and County Government, would find themselves in a very passive position.
Hou Weidong felt a headache coming on. He said, “Director Jia, please sit for a moment. I will go check Secretary Zhu’s office.”