Chapter 275: City-wide Notification

Around 10:30, the research group arrived at Baiqu Village. This was a spot meticulously arranged by Anbao County, having undergone countless inspections. Le Xueyi felt very reassured about this place, assuming Lu Fan would have no way to stir up trouble again!

After entering the village, the research group first went to the village committee to look at poverty alleviation materials.

Looking at the neatly arranged file boxes, Lu Fan picked one up at random and flipped through it earnestly. It felt like it could serve as a template; it seemed Anbao County had put a great deal of effort into this spot.

But Lu Fan knew that no matter how well the superficial work was done, one still had to see if the poverty alleviation measures had been implemented effectively. So, he said to Le Xueyi, "Secretary Le, let's go visit this household!"

Ten minutes later, led by the village party secretary, Lu Fan arrived at a poor household, taking only Le Xueyi and Xia Li inside with him.

He saw an old man lying on the bed and a middle-aged man in his forties cooking. Lu Fan said with a smile, "Brother, busy at work? We are from the city, here to visit your home."

Seeing that they were leaders, the man wiped his hands, greeted the three to sit down, and hurriedly went to pour water.

Lu Fan said, "Brother, don't be so formal. We just drank some. Let's sit and chat for a while. I haven't asked your surname yet?"

"My name is Niu Sanbao. You can call me Old Niu; everyone in the village calls me that!"

Lu Fan asked, "Brother Niu, is the person lying on the kang your mother?"

"Aye, it's my mother. She's riddled with illness!"

"Why haven't you taken her to see a doctor? The reimbursement ratio for hospitalization expenses for poor households in our city can reach 90%."

"Aye, what about that remaining ten percent? Food and lodging expenses are also expensive! I just farm a little land and have no other income. My child is in middle school, and my wife ran off with someone. There's no other way; it's just hard on my old mother!"

Lu Fan immediately took out 500 yuan, firmly pressed it into Niu Sanbao's hand, and said, "It's just a small token of my heart. Please don't mind it; buy a chicken for your mother to nourish herself!"

After gaining Niu Sanbao's trust, Lu Fan began to chat about poverty alleviation work without changing his expression.

"Brother Niu, what is the name of the cadre assigned to help you? How many times have they come this year?"

Niu Sanbao blurted out, "They came twice, but I've forgotten their name!"

"I see three poverty alleviation measures written in your poverty alleviation logbook. Have they all been implemented? For example, this one: helping you find employment."

"Aye, Leader, you can see for yourself. My mother is lying on the bed, and I can't go anywhere. I just scratch a living from the fields!"

"Then where did this 12,000 yuan of employment income come from?"

Niu Sanbao said dismissively, "Calculating accounts? It's just that kind of calculation. It was all calculated for me by the poverty alleviation cadre and the village party secretary!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Le Xueyi glared fiercely at Niu Sanbao, scaring him into silence.

Lu Fan asked again, "I see the house you live in is very dilapidated. Our poverty alleviation measures include relocating a batch of people. Did they not provide you with a house?"

Speaking of this, Niu Sanbao got angry. Ignoring Le Xueyi's sour face, he said, "The houses in the county town were all given to those with connections. They only gave me a house in the town. You tell me, what's the use of that thing? It's too far to farm, and I have to pay for heating. It's pointless, so I didn't take it!"

After chatting for another half hour, the three left the poor household. Lu Fan didn't say a word, but Le Xueyi's complexion was extremely ugly!

Lunch consisted of lamb dishes, which could be considered a specialty of Anbao County. Le Xueyi accompanied the meal, but Lu Fan did not speak throughout. The ancients said: do not speak while eating, do not speak while sleeping!

In the afternoon, according to the itinerary, they were to research key project construction. Le Xueyi simply found an excuse to "escape," as he really didn't want to see Lu Fan's "sanctimonious" and "villainous" face!

At 2:30, Anbao County Head Guo Shanbo knocked on Lu Fan's door and said enthusiastically, "Secretary-General, Secretary Le had to go to the province urgently to coordinate an agricultural project. I will accompany you on the research this afternoon. Please don't mind!"

Lu Fan said with a smile, "Perhaps I am a bit too serious in my work, which displeased Secretary Le! I'm just looking around casually; there's actually no need for anyone to accompany me."

Guo Shanbo said, "How can that be? I will definitely accompany you well this afternoon and show the Secretary-General the true side of Anbao!"

Lu Fan was quite familiar with Guo Shanbo. He was a person used by Secretary Li Mingzhou and could be considered "one of our own." Naturally, he cooperated fully with Lu Fan's research, completely unafraid of losing face, because the projects in Anbao County were all led by Le Xueyi, this "local emperor"!

For the entire afternoon, the research group ran non-stop to 13 government investment projects. According to the statistical reports, the completed investment amount was 1.69 billion yuan, but after on-site inspection by the research group, the actual completed investment was 1.233 billion yuan, with 457 million yuan falsely reported.

This was a serious case of data fabrication. Lu Fan asked Guo Shanbo privately, "County Head Guo, does this affect you? After all, the county government manages the economy."

Guo Shanbo replied with a smile, "Secretary-General, rest assured. Fixed asset investment was 'taken' by Secretary Le and is managed by the Deputy County Party Committee Secretary!"

That was good; Lu Fan didn't have to worry about collateral damage.

That night, Lu Fan coordinated with the Municipal Development and Reform Commission, the Municipal Industry and Information Technology Bureau, the Municipal Statistics Bureau, the Municipal Audit Bureau, the Municipal State Taxation Bureau, and the Municipal Local Taxation Bureau to urgently mobilize 56 staff members. The next day, they conducted a verification of the online reported figures of 28 industrial enterprises above designated size in Anbao County.

After careful and meticulous verification by the staff and cross-referencing with tax data, a shocking conclusion was reached: from January to September 2016, Anbao County reported a total industrial output value of 7.988 billion yuan, which was preliminarily verified to be 5.513 billion yuan, a false report of 2.475 billion yuan.

That afternoon, Lu Fan left Anbao County with the research group, feeling satisfied.

At this time, Le Xueyi was in his older brother Le Xueren's office. After receiving a call from the county, he said with a flustered expression, "Big Brother, that dog Lu Fan specifically ran to Anbao to retaliate against me. He nitpicked and found many problems. The most serious ones are the false reporting of over 400 million yuan in key projects and over 2 billion yuan in industrial output value!"

Le Xueren frowned and said, "Isn't the economy managed by the county government? What are you panicking about?"

Le Xueyi couldn't care about that anymore and said anxiously, "The county government's work was ineffective, so I handed over key projects and economic operations to the Deputy Secretary!"

Hearing this, Le Xueren said angrily, "Do you still care about work principles and procedures? Can you do whatever you want just because you are a County Party Committee Secretary? Then what is the county government for? I think you are blinded by greed, with only those petty gains in your eyes! With the things you've done, won't it blow up sooner or later? Which leader can tolerate you distributing government work randomly? You're in your forties, and your brain is full of mush!"

After his brother finished scolding him, Le Xueyi asked, "Brother, what should I do now?"

"What can you do? Go back immediately and admit your mistakes to Li Mingzhou. Insist that the data contains 'water' and that it was to complete the tasks assigned by the city! This phenomenon is common, but Anbao County has been targeted by Lu Fan, so it will definitely be made public. Even if it wasn't an issue, it has become one. It is estimated that some people will have to be dealt with. You need to handle your Deputy County Party Committee Secretary, the Statistics Bureau Director, and the Economic Development Bureau Director well; don't let them talk nonsense or cause trouble!" Le Xueren was very helpless, hating that his brother didn't live up to expectations!

Le Xueyi said again, "Brother, transfer me to the province. Any department will do. I feel that if I continue to stay in Yingjiang, I will be sent in sooner or later. Li Mingzhou doesn't like me at all; even sending two gifts didn't work!"

After pondering for a while, Le Xueren said, "I'll think of a way. Transferring back isn't difficult, but the key is that Li Mingzhou won't let you go! He is a member of the Provincial Party Committee Standing Committee, and personnel adjustments in Yingjiang definitely require his nod. Even Secretary Chen Deming would respect his opinion. It's not easy to handle!"

Le Xueyi said angrily, "I don't know what trick that dog Lu Fan used to feed Li Mingzhou a love potion. Now he is purely Li Mingzhou's favorite. A rotten deputy division-level cadre is actually managing the huge Municipal Party Committee Office, even more awesome than the Organization Department Head! Brother, if you don't think of a way, that dog will become a monster!"

Le Xueren sighed and said, "Do not bully the young because they are poor! It really is thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river. He has Li Mingzhou backing him, so there's no good way to deal with him for the time being! Aye, some things are too complicated. Xueyi, 'wipe your butt' well. To forge iron, one must be strong oneself. Big brother doesn't want to see you go in again!"

That night, Le Xueyi rushed to the Municipal Party Committee in a panic, but was met with a closed door; Li Mingzhou would not see him.

At this time, the First Section of the Municipal Party Committee Office and the Supervision Office were brightly lit. Section Chief Tan Yin personally took the lead to write a special report on the Municipal Party Committee's supervision based on the problems existing in Anbao County.

At twelve o'clock at night, Lu Fan received the first draft of the special report. He read every word carefully and praised Tan Yin's literary talent. As expected of the top pen in the Municipal Party Committee Office, this special report was not only clear in logic and sharp in language, but also calmly criticized Anbao County and Le Xueyi to the point of being skinless and fleshless!

The next morning, Secretary Li Mingzhou read the special report carefully and gave instructions: In the name of the Municipal Party Committee, notify all counties, districts, and municipal departments in the city, and submit it to the Provincial Party Committee Office and the Provincial Government Office.

By noon, the "Supervision Special Report" regarding Anbao County was issued to all counties, districts, and departments. The notification pointed out the six major problems existing in Anbao County and requested all counties, districts, and departments to draw profound lessons and take them as a warning. It emphasized the need to resolutely put an end to fraud in work, to highly respect and strictly abide by the Statistics Law, to earnestly clean up and abolish documents and practices that interfere with government work, and to strictly prohibit any interference with enterprises reporting statistical data.

It requested Anbao County to make immediate corrections, make corrections as soon as they know, make true and practical corrections, and make comprehensive corrections in light of the existing problems, and to make a profound self-examination at the Municipal Party Committee Standing Committee meeting!

Now Le Xueyi had lost a great deal of face, and Secretary Li Mingzhou instructed the Municipal Discipline Inspection Commission to keep a close eye on the problems existing in Anbao County, dig deep into the roots, and severely investigate the violations of discipline and regulations by relevant responsible persons!

On October 15, the Municipal Party Committee Supervision Office, the Municipal Discipline Inspection Commission, and the Municipal Audit Bureau jointly established a special work team to officially enter Anbao County to conduct special supervision on the instructions made by Municipal Party Committee Secretary Li Mingzhou.

The special team interviewed County Party Committee Secretary Le Xueyi, County Head Guo Shanbo, the Deputy County Party Committee Secretary, and relevant responsible units at the first opportunity, and various investigations were carried out in full swing.

On October 20, the first batch of handling opinions came. The Municipal Discipline Inspection Commission and the Supervisory Commission decided to give the Deputy County Party Committee Secretary, the County Economic Development Bureau Director, and the Statistics Bureau Director of Anbao County the punishment of removal from party posts and administrative dismissal. The entire Anbao County was in a state of panic, with everyone fearing the wind and the cranes! ===== CHAPTER 276 =====