Chapter 596: with translation of chapter title

Lu Fan's thought was not wrong at all; the day after the five-person group meeting ended, Provincial Discipline Inspection Committee Secretary Zhao Lingyun came to "pay a visit".

After taking a couple of sips of tea, Zhao Lingyun sighed: "The 'big boss' just arranged work, with high demands; I need to discuss it with you!"

Lu Fan asked: "Are they giving you a task?"

"You're truly prophetic; how did you guess that?"

Lu Fan replied: "Yesterday at the five-person group meeting, the secretary talked about so many inspection issues, raising the tone so high— isn't it just laying groundwork for anti-corruption? Tell me, where is the scope framed?"

Zhao Lingyun said: "Ten inspection teams, in seven rounds inspected 81 bureau-level units and 136 counties, 13 bureau-level, 320 division-level, and 1,365 section-level and below cadres have problems; the secretary demands all be filed for investigation or organizational handling. How huge is this workload? We don't have that many people; give me a suggestion— how can we get through this task?"

"The secretary has decided, surely wants to see real action and deal with people; you can't easily brush it off. However, you can follow local management responsibility, let the cities handle the 1,365 section-level and below issues— set tasks, set targets, set quotas, let the cities and counties handle the personnel themselves. For the 320 division-level, your focus is provincial-level cadres; the number probably isn't large, right?"

"It seems there are 15 county party secretaries and county magistrates."

"So, your work focus is the 13 bureau-level and 15 provincial-level division-level cadres; everything else can be handed over to the cities, counties, or provincial direct agencies— these 28 leading cadres are what the secretary cares about, you understand!"

"With your analysis like that, I've seen through the fog!" After saying that, Zhao Lingyun called Lin Changping, telling him to send the list of provincial-level cadres involved in the inspection issues to the Organization Department immediately!

"Lu Fan, the secretary is going to use me as a 'blade'!"

"He is the secretary, the first person responsible for Party conduct and clean-government construction; can you still not follow orders? Anti-corruption is purposeful; as long as no innocent are harmed, it's not necessarily bad— at least look at the list first."

Soon after, Lin Changping, head of the Supervision Room of the Provincial Discipline Inspection Committee, came running to Lu Fan's office; after putting down the list, he said with gratitude: "Thank you, Minister, for your patronage!"

Lu Fan laughed and replied: "You truly don't know the scales; Secretary Zhao Lingyun is the real boss!"

Lin Changping hurriedly said: "The leaders' deep affection and patronage toward me I will never forget; I will surely take action in my post, be pragmatic and responsible, forge ahead diligently!"

Lu Fan opened the document and saw the list: Director of the Provincial Housing and Urban-Rural Development Department, Standing Committee member and Secretary of the Luojun Municipal Party Committee, Vice Mayor of Luojun City, Deputy Director of the Provincial Human Resources and Social Security Department, Vice Mayor of Zhongxin City, Deputy Director of the Provincial Natural Resources Department, Secretary-General and Office Director of the Provincial People's Congress Standing Committee, Vice Mayor and Public Security Bureau Director of Zhongxin City, President of the Huayuan Provincial Police Academy, Director of the Provincial Broadcasting Station, Chairperson of the Finance and Economics Committee of the Provincial People's Congress Standing Committee, Deputy Secretary of the Yingtian Municipal Party Committee, Deputy Director of the Provincial Development and Reform Commission.

Just these 13 bureau-level leaders are "full of gold content!" There are many problem leads; if all are verified and strictly handled according to party and government regulations, they will all be transferred to judicial authorities.

Looking at the 15 provincial-level division-level cadres: there are 4 county party secretaries, 5 county magistrates, 2 county People's Congress chairpersons, and 2 county CPPCC chairpersons.

These 28 leading cadres involve none from Nanyuan City or those who have exchanged out of Nanyuan. Nanyuan's problems were already cleaned up by Lu Fan two years ago.

Since it has nothing to do with him, Lu Fan stopped worrying and began, together with Zhao Lingyun and Lin Changping, to conduct a "root-tracing" analysis of each leader on the list, examining the "big trees" behind them.

After a full hour, Lu Fan figured out their backgrounds: four were promoted during Li Mingyang's term; one was transferred from the Propaganda Department; four were promoted when Tang Bing served as secretary; Luojun City has two, likely promoted by Provincial Party Committee Standing Committee member and Municipal Party Committee Secretary Li Jinran; Luojun City has two; one was transferred from the Provincial Political and Legal Affairs Commission; one from the Provincial Public Security Department; six are from the government system, having countless ties with Governor Liu Linghao and Executive Deputy Provincial Governor Huang Chongzhou. The remaining seven are related to various cities; as for those four county-level People's Congress and CPPCC leaders, nobody will pay attention, and they will inevitably become "souls under the blade."

Many say, even if you serve in a county, you must have provincial background; at the very least you need a bureau-level leader to constantly "look after" you, otherwise a "calamity of annihilation" could suddenly show up one day.

After the analysis, Zhao Lingyun asked: "The Political and Legal Affairs Commission transferred out one person, the provincial government sent out six, plus Tang Bing's secretary's four— how should these people be handled?"

Lu Fan thought for a moment, then replied: "If it doesn't concern us, keep it high and out of sight; first pretend not to know, let the bullets fly a while. We're not in a hurry— when the snipe and clam grapple, the fisherman benefits."

Zhao Lingyun smiled slightly: "We'll keep in touch anytime; you control the pace!"

A deputy secretary who also heads the Organization Department, and a deputy secretary of the Provincial Discipline Inspection Committee— when these two "stand together," nobody can ignore them; they can navigate all situations and remain invincible!

After the two left, Zhou Xiang came in to report; West Jia County Chief Li Qian and She County Chief Wang Pan were waiting in the office, wanting to report work.

Lu Fan thought and let them come in together.

Soon after, Li Qian and Wang Pan pushed the door open and entered, saying respectfully: "Secretary, we are here to report work."

Lu Fan smiled and said: "I still don't know what you want? After Xiao Yun and Chang Zhichao were promoted, you two have been presiding over county Party work. If you can't handle the work, don't blame me for not giving you a chance! Leading cadres must always put the Party's cause first, spare no effort to develop the economy well, improve people's livelihood well, then go back and work with peace of mind and down-to-earth diligence!"

Li Qian firmly said: "Please rest assured, Secretary; I will muster my vigor, strive forward, achieve long-term success, accomplish good deeds, and absolutely not betray your trust and cultivation, nor the masses' expectations and entrusted duties, nor my original aspiration and mission!"

Wang Pan immediately followed: "Secretary, I will certainly have a sense of responsibility that cherishes every moment, an enterprising spirit, and a pragmatic work style; I will take responsibility and enforce implementation, contributing strength to advance all undertakings of She County."

Lu Fan replied: "You should be 'practitioners' on your own life's path, not 'giants in speech, dwarfs in action.' No matter how far you go in the future, you must not forget the road you came from. Truly achieve: nourish your original aspiration with sincere people's sentiment; take the people's yearning for a better life as our struggle goal; with the most simple and sincere original aspiration, benchmark against the advanced, and perceive the finest form of the original aspiration."

Great matters of the world must be attended to in detail; undertakings ancient and modern must succeed through substance. Action, practice, implementation are the fundamental solution to the people's difficult problems; they are the source of enhancing the people's sense of gain, happiness, and security; they are the 'good medicine' for overcoming formalism and bureaucratism. I give you a heads‑up in advance: after a while I will go to She County and West Jia County to have a look— don't let me down!

August 24, Wang Jingchen presided over the Provincial Party Committee Standing Committee meeting, heard a report on the situation of openly selecting leading cadres, and studied and confirmed seven candidates for appointment.

Secretary Wang Jingchen pointed out that the Provincial Party Committee, starting from the new situation and tasks and the actual state of cadre team building, adheres to the principle of 'fivefold, five not simple' in selecting and employing people, focusing on selecting the virtuous and capable, to promote the grand undertaking of Huayuan's economic construction; focusing on setting a good direction, to foster a strong atmosphere of loyal duty fulfillment and pragmatic hard work; adhering to openness, fairness, and justice, truly placing excellent cadres in suitable posts.

After the personnel issue was passed, Wang Jingchen again discussed the inspection rectification problem, demanding that inspection work follow the requirements of the Provincial Party Committee and its inspection teams, with a higher stance, greater intensity, and more concrete measures, to thoroughly, completely, and fully rectify problems without compromise, and to present a satisfactory answer sheet to the Provincial Party Committee and all city residents based on the actual effectiveness of inspection rectification.

Wang Jingchen pointed out that we must accurately grasp the rectification goals and tasks, rectify item by item, tackle each one, leaving no loose ends, no aftereffects, and allowing no rebound. The Provincial Discipline Inspection Committee must, with the courage and determination to dare to take responsibility, to break one's wrist like a stalwart warrior, to scrape bone to cure poison, deal with a batch of cadres without hesitation, and eradicate at the source the soil that breeds unhealthy practices.

Now the Standing Committee members suddenly realized: the secretary is going to use the problems discovered in the inspection as a 'knife' to cut!

August 25, the Organization Department of the Provincial Party Committee issued a document requiring Lei Xingxing, Li Bowen, Fang Yang, Lin Changping, Chang Zhichao, Xiao Yun, and other comrades to report for duty within three days.

Lu Fan, representing the Provincial Party Committee, held pre‑appointment talks separately with these seven comrades.

In the pre‑appointment talk with Lei Xingxing, Lu Fan pointed out that newly appointed leading cadres must be politically steadfast, of integrity and cleanliness, advocate pragmatic action, dare to take responsibility, use power according to law, serve as a model for all provincial cadres, and repay the Party and people's trust and entrusted duty with first‑rate performance.

Lei Xingxing responded 'earnestly': "Please rest assured, Minister; I will certainly, with high political awareness, strong sense of responsibility, and solid work style, promote the work of Sanmen City to open a new situation."

Lu Fan said meaningfully: "Comrade Lei Xingxing, to be a person one must be upright and incorruptible; as an official one must be spotless; constantly tighten the master switch, manage oneself, one's relatives, and those around; pass the money test, the beauty test, the friends test, the power test, the interests test; firmly uphold the line of integrity and cleanliness as the bottom line, red line, and high‑pressure line for being a person and an official!"

In work, one should be diligent day and night in public duties, strive hard, leave marks on stone and traces on iron, establish a correct view of political achievements, adhere to starting from reality, take the lead in solving difficult problems, dare to confront problems, be good at solving them, when faced with matters do not evade, when faced with difficulties do not fear, when responsible do not shirk, be responsible for one's post, be accountable for one's post, fulfill one's duties for one's post, and repay the Party and the people with first-rate work performance.

Selecting and employing cadres is merely laying a foundation for constructing high-rise buildings; the Organization Department should devote greater effort to the daily education, supervision, and management of cadres, to the greatest extent prevent the 'falling ill after promotion' phenomenon, and truly manage it down to the details!

Hearing these words, Lei Xingxing thoughtfully considered them, but his attitude was very respectful.