Chapter 101: East Wind and West Wind (Part 5)

Chapter 101 East Wind and West Wind (5)

The quarry owners in Shangqinglin adopted a unified strategy in response to the township government’s decision: they would halt production as required, but they refused to pay the security deposit.

Once all the quarries in Shangqinglin stopped operations, the Shayi Road project was left without essential materials. Construction was forced to grind to a halt. Upon receiving the news, Zeng Zhaoqiang made a single phone call, and Zhu Bing immediately set off for Shangqinglin Township with Liang Bifa.

After hearing the details, Zhu Bing remarked, “How can Qinglin Township Government act this way? Accidents in mining enterprises are inevitable. We cannot shut down every quarry just because one incident occurred. It is like punishing a child who has made a mistake; education and criticism should suffice. To kill them all indiscriminately, without distinguishing right from wrong, is far too extreme.”

Hou Weidong spoke with a sense of grievance. “If we do not stop production, the township government will cut off our water supply and explosives. We are small arms trying to twist a thigh; we have no choice. Furthermore, the Yinggang Quarry and the Goubeiwang Quarry are each required to pay a security deposit of thirty thousand yuan. Director Zhu, since the Shayi Highway project began, our Shangqinglin quarries have been running day and night without a single day off, yet we have not received a single cent in payment. All the quarries are operating on loans. We simply do not have the money to pay these deposits. If the township forces us to pay, the quarries will be drained of their lifeblood, and production will become impossible.”

Liang Bifa, who understood the situation of the quarries best, spoke up in defense. “The Shangqinglin quarries have taken out loans to keep producing. They have done their best. The Bureau should be paying them some money.”

The policy of full advance funding had been established by County Magistrate Li and Director Zeng. As a deputy director, Zhu Bing could not speak as casually as Liang Bifa. He said, “I will go to the township immediately to speak with Mayor Qin. We must restore production under any circumstances. The Goubeiwang Quarry has the best safety measures. Hou Weidong, you must prepare to resume production there.”

Hou Weidong smiled. “With a single order from Director Zhu, I will restore production. However, regarding the security deposit, please speak to the township on our behalf. If they could also pay us some of the money owed, that would naturally be even better.”

Zhu Bing and his party turned around and headed down the mountain.

County Magistrate Ma had led a delegation of ten township leaders, including Qin Feiyue, to Shouguang, Shandong, to inspect agricultural practices. Consequently, the only senior official left in the township was Party Secretary Zhao Yongsheng. After a few polite greetings, Zhu Bing went straight to the point, demanding the resumption of production.

Zhao Yongsheng considered this for a moment before saying, “The Shayi Highway is a key project of the county government, and we certainly intend to support it. However, a safety accident has just occurred at the Shangqinglin quarries. If we do not conduct rectification, and another problem arises, no one will be able to bear the responsibility.”

At this time, the Shayi Road project had entered a critical phase of full-scale construction. Every day of delay added to the costs. Zeng Zhaoqiang had given Zhu Bing a clear directive: ensure the supply of crushed stone under any circumstances.

Zhu Bing continued his persuasion. “Secretary Zhao, safety accidents in mining enterprises are unavoidable. Our safety measures are designed only to minimize accidents to the lowest possible level, which is why the county sets annual mortality quotas. The Shayi Road is a key county project, and County Magistrate Li, as the commander, has instructed that the supply of crushed stone must be guaranteed.”

Zhao Yongsheng leaned back in his large office chair, pondering for a while. “Here is what we will do. We will send the Enterprise Office to Shangqinglin to conduct a safety inspection. Those that meet the safety standards may resume production. Those that do not must undergo rectification within a specified time limit. As for the security deposit, we can delay that requirement.” He added with some irritation, “This time, after the accident at the quarry, Tian Dadao disappeared without a trace. The government had to advance the compensation funds. That is why the township is insisting on collecting security deposits.”

Once an agreement was reached, Mayor Huang and Li Guofu, the director of the Enterprise Office, along with three other staff members, accompanied Zhu Bing up the mountain. After inspection, only the Goubeiwang Quarry met the conditions for safe production.

The Yinggang Quarry was a partnership. Although Hou Weidong attached great importance to safety accidents, any issue involving investment required him to consider Zeng Xiangang’s opinion. Consequently, the safety measures at Yinggang were not as thorough as those at Goubeiwang.

Before Mayor Huang went up the mountain, Party Secretary Zhao Yongsheng had given him specific instructions. Therefore, Huang insisted that only the Goubeiwang Quarry resume production, while the other quarries had to undergo rectification first.

In the following days, the Goubeiwang Quarry was suddenly surrounded by trucks. Vehicles from the previous five quarries were now all concentrated at Goubeiwang. From the quarry’s material yard all the way to the public road, large trucks waited in line to load cargo. Hou Weidian borrowed machinery and workers from the Yinggang Quarry, working overtime around the clock, yet they still could not meet the demand.

The stone from Shangqinglin possessed unique advantages. Its quality was among the best in Yiyang County. The surface soil layer was shallow, which lowered excavation costs and kept prices relatively low. Construction contractors preferred using Shangqinglin crushed stone. With the supply from Shangqinglin quarries insufficient, the progress of the Shayi Road slowed considerably.

Seeing that construction was being severely impacted, Zeng Zhaoqiang personally called Zhao Yongsheng, even invoking the name of County Magistrate Li, who was in charge of transportation. Zhao Yongsheng had no choice but to agree to let all the Shangqinglin quarries resume operations.

With the exception of Tian Dadao’s quarry, the other three quarries restarted work, and the pressure on the Goubeiwang Quarry was immediately relieved.

Amidst the bustling production, 1994 slipped away as quickly as an eel, and 1995 arrived as scheduled. The Shayi Highway entered its final stages, and the demand for stone decreased significantly.

On New Year’s Day, Hou Weidong had originally planned to travel to Shazhou. However, it coincided with the graduation of Xiaojia’s female cadre training class. The Women’s Federation organized a trip to the Huangguoshu Waterfall for the graduates, so Hou Weidong was left behind at the construction site.

On the evening of January 7, Hou Weidong and Xiaojia had a minor argument over the phone, leaving him feeling quite displeased.

By now, Hou Weidong had long forgotten his duties of cleaning the office and meeting rooms. With Qin Dajiang handling the village-stationed work, he saw no need to interfere. He collected his salary from the township government while dedicating himself entirely to his private business. His days were carefree, but his official career was making no progress.

In contrast, Xiaojia had enjoyed a smooth path since her graduation. Although she had rejected Bu Gao’s pursuit, neither Mayor Bu nor the Construction Committee had made things difficult for her. She performed quite well in her position as Deputy Director of the Construction Committee Office and was recommended to attend a female cadre training class organized by Shazhou City. Her future prospects looked promising.

On the 7th, Xiaojia returned from Huangguoshu. During their evening phone call, feeling the warmth of the organization, Xiaojia advised Hou Weidong to work harder. As they spoke, they somehow began to argue. The lack of progress in his official career was a hidden pain for Hou Weidong. After Xiaojia’s advice, his self-esteem was inexplicably hurt. He hung up the phone and felt distressed for a long time.

An hour later, Xiaojia left a message on Hou Weidong’s Chinese pager: “Sorry, husband.” Xiaojia had not actually said anything wrong, so her apology made Hou Weidong feel even more unsettled. He woke up the next morning still feeling depressed. He arrived early at Goubeiwang. Although Goubeiwang was a quarry filled with dust and hard rocks, it was his territory. Here, he had the final say. Besides financial interests, Hou Weidong found confidence and dignity in this place.

The bustling activity of the quarry slightly improved his mood. He Hongfu saw him arrive and hurried over to discuss matters. By the time they finished talking, it was already half past ten.

Just as he was about to rest, a man ran in from outside the quarry, looking panicked. “Bad news! An accident has occurred at Qin Dajiang’s quarry.”

The method used for blasting at the Qinglin quarries involved using air drills to bore holes, loading explosives into them, and igniting them with fuse cords. Fuse cords came in slow-burning and fast-burning varieties. In special circumstances, misfires could occur, which were the most dangerous.

Qin Dajiang’s quarry had two blasters. One held a valid blasting certificate, while the other’s certificate was still being processed. The person on duty that day was the novice whose certificate was pending. He encountered a slow-burning fuse. This particular fuse was unusually slow, delaying the explosion by more than twenty minutes. The novice lost his patience, assuming it was a misfire. Just as he approached the suspected misfire, disaster struck.

This fatal accident was even more gruesome than the previous one. The blaster was blown to pieces, his body torn apart. Several others were injured by flying debris, but fortunately, their injuries were minor.

By the time Hou Weidong reached Qin Dajiang’s quarry, it was already surrounded by many villagers. Hou Weidong disregarded politeness, rudely pushing the villagers aside as he rushed into the quarry.

Qin Dajiang stood like a clay statue, his eyes vacant, in front of the quarry. The quarry face rose more than twenty meters high, cut in layers. Standing at the bottom, one felt a tremendous sense of oppression. At his feet lay a bloody, mangled body. The head was gone; only most of the torso remained.

The previous death had involved a large gash on the head, which Hou Weidong had been able to psychologically endure. But seeing this bloody scene, he could not help but vomit repeatedly until his mouth tasted bitter.

After vomiting, Hou Weidong calmed down. Qin Dajiang remained standing there, motionless. Hou Weidong noticed He Hongfu standing close by and said, “He Hongfu, run quickly to the postal agency in the town and call Li Guofu at the Enterprise Office. Tell them to come up immediately.”

Jiang Shangshan, the director of the Village Committee, also arrived at the scene. He stamped his feet and said, “Go to the town and bring a coffin. We need to collect Jiang San’s remains.”

However, looking at Jiang San’s mangled body, no one dared to approach to collect the pieces. Finally, Jiang Shangshan and Hou Weidong climbed over the pile of rubble, gathering the fragments of the body piece by piece.

Qin Dajiang continued to stare blankly at everything. Hou Weidong knew Jiang San; his two brothers were rough and aggressive men. If they arrived, Qin Dajiang might not be able to handle the situation. Hou Weidong took Qin Dajiang by the arm and led him down along the road, instructing him to stay temporarily at He Hongfu’s house.

When Hou Weidong returned, Jiang’s brothers were frantically searching the quarry for Qin Dajiang. An hour later, Li Guofu from the Enterprise Office arrived at the quarry with his team.

Another coordination meeting was held at the township government. Amidst shouting and arguing, the compensation amount was finally settled at twenty-six thousand yuan.

Within three months, two safety accidents had occurred in succession. Although they did not result in mass casualties, the county government attached great importance to the matter. They dispatched an investigation team composed of the Discipline Inspection Commission and the Township Enterprise Bureau to Qinglin Township to investigate the situation.

Since the deceased, Jiang San, could not produce a blasting certificate, the matter became somewhat delicate. It was no longer merely a safety accident.

Facing the investigation team, Mayor Qin Feiyue spoke with righteous indignation. “When the first accident occurred, I proposed that production must be halted for rectification. If production had truly been halted and rectified, I believe this safety accident could have been avoided. However, the Shangqinglin quarries did not halt production for rectification. We must hold the relevant leaders accountable. People are not leeks; life is given only once. We must never treat it as a game.”

His sharp criticism was directed straight at Party Secretary Zhao Yongsheng, who had approved the resumption of production at the Shangqinglin quarries.