Chapter 696: Making an Issue Out of Bad Debts!

Tang Ye dialed Guo Wenhai's phone number.

"Director Guo, come to my office for a moment."

The Finance Bureau was not in the County Party Committee Compound, but it was very close, and before long, Guo Wenhai knocked on the office door.

"Guo, please sit!" Tang Ye took the initiative to pour a cup of tea for Guo Wenhai.

At this moment, the look in Guo Wenhai's eyes as he gazed at Tang Ye held a hint of awe; he held the teacup with both hands and placed it respectfully in front of him.

"Thank you, County Magistrate Tang!"

Tang Ye handed the marked report on special poverty alleviation funds to Guo Wenhai and said, "I called you over mainly to understand some situations and clear up some confusion."

Guo Wenhai took the report, his gaze landing on those red circles, and the more he looked, the more panicked he felt.

Everything circled was a problem within the report.

It was clear that Tang Ye understood data, understood economics, and understood finance...

"County Magistrate Tang, since you have seen these problems, I will tell you the truth: most of them are the mess left behind by the previous County Party Secretary. With so many people in the whole county relying on poverty alleviation funds to get by, there is simply no surplus each year, which has caused poverty alleviation work to never move forward."

Although Tang Ye had long guessed this result, hearing it confirmed from Guo Wenhai's mouth still sent a chill through him.

Just then, a commotion came from outside, and Tang Ye frowned and stood up.

Guo Wenhai pricked up his ears to listen, identified who had come, and could not help but let a bitter smile tug at the corners of his mouth.

Tang Ye was afraid he was about to encounter someone difficult to deal with this time; he wondered how he would handle it.

Tang Ye opened the door and saw Ma Ran blocking a middle-aged woman.

The woman was around fifty years old, not tall, wearing glasses, with a sallow complexion and short hair.

"I'm sorry, County Magistrate Tang is currently meeting with a guest; you cannot go in." Ma Ran stepped forward and blocked her again.

"I just want to say a few words to County Magistrate Tang; it won't take long." The woman insisted and refused to leave.

Ma Ran had intended to persuade her to go back, but did not expect the other party to not listen at all; as the two argued, it actually disturbed Tang Ye inside the room.

Ma Ran looked at Tang Ye with a guilty conscience and said with a face full of shame, "County Magistrate, I'm sorry, I disturbed your talk with Director Guo."

Tang Ye's gaze landed on the woman, and he asked gently, "Do you have something to see me about?"

The woman hurriedly introduced herself: "I am Jin Chunping, the Principal of Dayu Women's High School. I would like to report on our work to you. It won't take up too much of your time; I only ask for five minutes."

"Principal Jin, please come in!" Tang Ye said with a smile.

Jin Chunping walked into the office.

Tang Ye brewed her a cup of Hanzhou Spring tea.

"Principal Jin, it is a pleasure to meet you. Although this is our first meeting, I have heard of your deeds long ago. If there is anything you need help with, just bring it up, and I will certainly try my best to find a way."

Jin Chunping looked at Tang Ye in surprise: "You know me?"

Tang Ye explained with a smile: "I learned about your situation from a teacher at your school named Huang Sitian. I also know that our school has always provided free schooling opportunities for girls from the mountains; this perseverance is admirable."

A flash of surprise crossed Jin Chunping's eyes: "County Magistrate Tang, I didn't expect you to be so well-informed about our school. Then I won't beat around the bush with you. I am here today representing all the teachers and students of Dayu Women's High School; we would like to ask the county to help us build a new dormitory. In addition, our school's teachers haven't been paid for half a year."

Tang Ye glanced at Guo Wenhai in surprise, then turned to Jin Chunping and said, "Regarding the wages, I will find a way to implement them as soon as possible. As for building the dormitory, have you applied through the formal process?"

"County Magistrate Tang, we have applied! This project had an application submitted several years ago, and the county even approved the project, but it has never started construction!"

Jin Chunping had mainly come to ask for the teachers' wages, but seeing Tang Ye take the initiative to bring up the dormitory, she took the opportunity to say it, her tone inevitably becoming a bit agitated.

Hearing this, Tang Ye's brows furrowed slightly: "Alright, I have taken both of these matters to heart and will definitely treat them as top priorities. Are there any other problems that need to be solved?"

Jin Chunping had originally thought that Tang Ye would kick the ball like the previous Executive Deputy County Magistrate, using the county's financial difficulties as an excuse to shirk responsibility.

She did not expect this young County Magistrate before her to agree without hesitation, which actually made her feel a bit unaccustomed to it.

"These two matters are the most urgent at the moment."

"I understand. Please give me some time; at most one week, and I will definitely get things implemented properly."

"Thank you, thank you so much! I thank you on behalf of all the teachers and students of the school!" Jin Chunping said excitedly.

"Principal Jin, you are too polite. This is my responsibility. I know this matter has dragged on for a long time and caused trouble for many people, so I must apologize to you. Please rest assured that we will improve our work efficiency and solve the problem as soon as possible," Tang Ye said seriously.

"Alright, then I won't disturb your work." Jin Chunping stood up to take her leave.

"Wait." Tang Ye stood up, picked up a business card from his desk, and handed it to Jin Chunping, "If you need anything in the future, you can contact me directly."

Jin Chunping gripped Tang Ye's business card tightly, a complex expression flashing in her eyes.

She had dealt with government departments many times, and Tang Ye's pragmatic way of doing things was truly completely different from those cadres in the past.

After Jin Chunping left, Guo Wenhai softly began to butter him up.

"County Magistrate Tang, your temper is truly good."

"Guo, you seem to have an opinion about Principal Jin?" Tang Ye asked calmly.

Guo Wenhai added fuel to the fire, "This Jin Chunping is not just ordinarily difficult to deal with. The Women's High School she is in charge of only recruits female students, and every year she runs through all the enterprises in the county; everyone hides from her.

Previously, the media interviewed her, and after the province found out about this, they turned her into a model for publicity, and only then was the school successfully built.

But in the last few years, the popularity has faded, the school's operations couldn't hold up, and she started running around looking for sponsorships again; many people think she is just chasing fame and fortune..."

Tang Ye's tone turned cold: "Actively striving for better learning conditions for students, how can that be called chasing fame and fortune?"

Guo Wenhai sensed that Tang Ye's tone was off and hurriedly smiled to smooth things over: "I personally still admire her quite a bit; she can be considered a celebrity in our Dayu County, and she is even a Provincial People's Congress Representative."

Tang Ye had some understanding of Guo Wenhai's character.

This person couldn't be called bad; he was just too good at reading the situation and was too slick in his conduct.

He himself was a newcomer and indeed needed manpower to help, but Guo Wenhai belonged to the type who could be used but not trusted with important tasks.

"Is the situation she reported true?" Tang Ye continued to ask.

Guo Wenhai paused and answered with a bitter smile: "To tell you the truth, the funds for the Dayu Women's High School dormitory were approved long ago, but later, in order to build the City Square, a lot of the money was misappropriated at the time, and it is a muddled account."

The Dayu City Square was a project contracted by Dai Kainan.

At the time, it caused a huge stir across the country, claiming an investment of several hundred million.

After this matter was exposed, the former County Party Secretary was transferred away from Dayu County, and Ou Xiye was appointed in a time of crisis to succeed as County Party Secretary.

A large group of people in the Dayu officialdom fell from power; on the surface, the atmosphere had been cleared up.

But the remaining financial hole was still there, and over these past few years, a lot of funds had been poured into this hole.

Tang Ye did not feel that the bad debts were troublesome.

On the contrary, he vaguely felt that quite a lot could be made of this!