Chapter 479: Lu Fan

Back in the city, Lu Fan went straight to the Municipal Party Committee to report the chaos in the poverty‑relief sector to Secretary Wang Haiyang.

After describing how impoverished households threw away the consolation gifts, Lu Fan sighed, "Secretary, I have to say that there really are formalism and bureaucracy in poverty‑relief work; at the root it's utilitarianism and pragmatism at play, fundamentally a distortion of the view of power, a misalignment of performance metrics, and a lack of responsibility. I suggest we launch a special governance action targeting the problems, pursue accountability rigorously, strengthen supervision and discipline, and adopt a Zero Tolerance attitude to resolutely punish dereliction of duty, abuse of power, and illegal or disciplinary violations!"

Wang Haiyang thought for a moment and said, "What a disgrace! What are Gu Yu and Bai Yunpeng up to? There are indeed some irregularities in poverty‑relief work; they need proper rectification. Lu Fan, this task is to be handled concretely by the City Government, so make the arrangements. My view is that anyone who schemes with the poverty‑relief funds or extends a black hand, and anyone whose conduct is insincere or who is derelict, should be dealt with severely."

Lu Fan wanted to stress that style construction is the Party Committee's primary responsibility! Even if retirement is near, one must hold the last post, right? Ah, never mind! If you don't manage it, I will!

Lu Fan replied, "Alright, Secretary, we may need Discipline Inspection Committee cooperation."

"You handle the arrangements, Lu Fan. I have only a few months left before I retire, and Nan Yuan will eventually be handed over to you. My energy has been waning badly, my eyesight is failing, minor ailments cling to me, I'm often in the hospital. Take extra care of the city's big and small matters; make decisions when needed without consulting me—your ability is evident to all!"

Lu Fan said, "Secretary, I can run errands, but many matters need you at the helm."

From the Municipal Party Committee Secretary, Lu Fan always sensed something off. People's fascination with power is innate; normally, the closer one gets to retirement, the more one clings to authority and seeks visibility. Yet Wang Haiyang is an exception—could he truly be disheartened, or does he have ulterior motives?

The Discipline Inspection Committee is covertly investigating Wang Haiyang, and combined with his abnormal behavior, Lu Fan can't help but become wary—this old fellow isn't planning to flee, is he?

Lu Fan's suspicion proved correct; Wang Haiyang indeed plans to act on the day of the New Year.

After work, Wang Haiyang called Water Bureau Director Ma Li, inviting her to a hotel for a night together, intending to give Ma Li one last chance. After nearly a decade of relationship, Wang Haiyang knows that without his care, Ma Li will eventually go in.

The soon‑to‑retire old fool, Ma Li reluctantly arrived at the hotel; after an honest conversation she felt utterly uncomfortable.

Having satisfied his spiritual needs, Wang Haiyang embraced his old lover and said, "Ma Li, I'm about to retire and plan to spend my old age abroad. Will you come with me? You won't need to worry about daily life."

Having just tasted the flavor of power, how could she willingly stay a widow with the old fool? Yet she replied, "Secretary, transportation is convenient now; whenever you miss me, I'll fly to you at once. I'm only just past forty—one can't retire so young, that would be boring. I'll work a few more years; wherever you are, I'll come find you!"

Wang Haiyang fully grasped Ma Li's stance; everyone has their own aspirations, no forcing, but he kindly warned, "Ma Li, you are a highly watched figure in Nan Yuan. If you don't mind your words and deeds, you'll attract jealousy and unforeseen calamities, bringing unnecessary trouble. Remember, fortune hides disaster and disaster leans on fortune; for you, becoming the Functional Bureau Director may not be a good thing!"

Ma Li immediately became wary and asked, "Secretary, is someone spreading false rumors about me?"

Wang Haiyang asked, "One must be strong oneself to forge iron! Lu Fan's background is special; he comes to Nan Yuan with lofty ambitions and can't tolerate any sand in his eyes. Think about it—if he learns of your recent actions, will you reap any good fruit? As far as I know, he's already got his sights on you!"

"Huh?" Ma Li panicked completely, grabbing Wang Haiyang's arm and pleading, "Secretary, is Lu Fan really after me? What should I do? Should I bribe him?"

"How much could you give? Do you think he cares about money? Stop being childish; he cares about his future. Such a person cherishes every feather and is extremely cautious financially—this path won't work. Think it over; letting you come with me is for your own good; I don't want to see you get into trouble!"

"Secretary, give me some time to consider."

The next morning, Lu Fan invited Discipline Inspection Committee Secretary Fang Yang, Executive Vice Mayor Wang Hong, and Vice Mayor Zhu Xinlan to his office to discuss a special anti‑corruption action in the poverty‑relief sector.

Yesterday the mayor's visit to impoverished households spread throughout the city, and Wang Hong said, "We must clean this up properly, especially in She County; other work drags on and has the most problems. I propose that, with a Zero Tolerance attitude, we punish disciplinary and illegal acts in the poverty‑relief field, rein in 'willful power.' Conduct city‑wide inspections and audits of the poverty‑relief sector, ensure the poverty‑alleviation policy is truly implemented, and focus on investigating and holding accountable issues such as delayed relief, embezzlement, diversion, fraudulent acquisition of poverty‑relief funds, and nepotism."

Lu Fan looked at Zhu Xinlan and said, "Xinlan, you began overseeing poverty‑relief work two months ago; share your view."

Zhu Xinlan organized her thoughts and said, "From my observations, the poverty‑relief sector indeed suffers severe corruption and style issues, such as 'account‑based poverty alleviation,' 'numeric poverty alleviation,' perfunctory assistance measures, imprecise exits, chaotic fund allocation, bid‑rigging, building big households, stacking bonsai, and vanity projects. These have inflamed public resentment. I think it's time to 'draw the sword' against corruption in the sector, tightening the ideological strings during the poverty‑eradication push."

Lu Fan told Fang Yang, "I have reported this to Secretary Haiyang; the City Government will lead, with Discipline Inspection Committee cooperation, a special rectification action. We'll focus on the fairness of fund use and policy implementation, keep our eyes wide and ears long, dig deep for corruption and style problems in the poverty‑relief sector—trace every clue, examine every area, and strictly punish disciplinary and illegal acts. We'll enforce swift, severe investigations; any criminal cases will be handed to judicial organs for further prosecution, with criminal liability pursued according to law."

Fang Yang's face showed difficulty, and he said, "Mayor, I have no problem with the work, but the municipal Discipline Inspection Committee is severely understaffed! The special action against corruption in student cafeterias has just launched, and we're simultaneously handling special governance in finance, tobacco, medicine, grain procurement and sales, and statistics—these are this year's 'hard tasks' assigned from above, with the provincial Discipline Inspection Committee also allocating targets. Mayor, I'm not shirking responsibility; after removing the case‑handling layer, the municipal Discipline Inspection Committee can't spare five people. Either the municipal committee leads while county‑district committees cross‑inspect, but I fear the results won't meet expectations."

Lu Fan nodded and said, "Even if we assign you another 100 people, you'll still be short‑handed, which alone shows how severe the anti‑corruption situation is. Here's the plan: you pull elite cadres from the counties and districts; I'll draw personnel from the City Audit Bureau, the City Government Supervision Office, the Municipal Political‑Legal Committee, and the two judicial inspection courts, and cooperate with you on the special governance action. I'll provide all the staff you need, and I'll also demand that the 100 targets be met!"

Those one‑hundred positions, once freed, Lu Fan plans to consolidate and use them for his own purposes.

After the work discussion, the others left; Fang Yang stayed behind and said in a low voice, "Mayor, I employed some methods and uncovered clues of Ma Li's embezzlement and bribery."

Lu Fan asked, "Is the evidence chain complete?"

Fang Yang shook his head and said, "We're still at the investigation stage; some issues must be formally filed before they can be verified."

Lu Fan instructed, "Then continue the deep investigation, but for now don't alert anyone."

Fang Yang continued, "Regarding the special governance of student cafeterias, we also have some leads: problems involve six county‑district Education Bureau directors and twenty‑one principals. Some only involve tens of thousands, others up to a few hundred thousand, all amounting to minor officials' minor corruption. Mayor, how should we handle this?"

Lu Fan thought for a moment and said, "High‑level officials, high‑level corruption; low‑level officials, low‑level corruption—that's the saying 'no official without talk.' 'Small‑official, small‑corruption' often occurs in livelihood sectors; seemingly minor posts and departments become 'rogue horses' that harm the people's interests. Ice three feet thick doesn't form in one day; even tiny corruption reflects a serious lack of supervision. If no one warns or stops it in time, 'small‑official, small‑corruption' can become 'small‑official, huge‑corruption'! Only by letting painful lessons sink into ears, brains, and hearts, and by establishing a long‑term anti‑corruption mechanism, can we create a clean political ecology and better safeguard the fundamental interests of the masses. We must act strictly according to Party discipline, state regulations, and laws—investigate when needed, sentence when warranted!"

"Alright, Mayor, I'll follow your instructions! I'll report to the City Government whenever there's an update."

After Fang Yang left, Lu Fan had Secretary Cheng Haohao summon Vice Mayor and Public Security Bureau Director Tian Xuan to the office for work discussion.

Twenty minutes later, Tian Xuan arrived at the mayor's office and asked, "Mayor, what are the instructions?"

Lu Fan looked up and said, "Come in, have a seat. I'd like to know whether we have any triad organizations in Nan Yuan."

This question is hard to answer; admitting there is one would mean my work is inadequate, knowing it exists yet ignoring it, condoning it. Denying it would be deceiving the leader; the mayor wouldn't have only one source of information, making things even more awkward later. Moreover, why would the mayor suddenly ask this question?

One should know that the city's leaders now share a consensus: the mayor is exceptionally capable and at the peak of his influence, and is highly likely to succeed the Municipal Party Committee Secretary. Tian Xuan, of course, does not want to offend the future secretary because of his work.

After thinking, Tian Xuan's face grew solemn and he said, "Nan Yuan has nearly ten million residents, so society inevitably has some dark corners. Our police force is limited and hasn't eradicated all the chaos. Mayor, I must admit our work has not been fully up to standard!"