Chapter 440: A Complete Break

Su Yang never looked at those ledgers at all; he gave them all to Xie Siyang and Gao Peixia to examine, since checking ledgers is just an excuse for him.

Anyway, his relationship with Cui Mingjiu is laid out here; sooner or later they'll fall out, and now it's just about finding a suitable chance to make Cui Mingjiu keep digging his own grave.

Sure enough, Gao Peixia said after less than twenty minutes, "All his entries don't add up, and many relief food items aren't specified—who exactly received them? There's no receipt proof either."

"Also, an elder named Li Qihua appears on the list, but when we asked him, he said he never got any relief food or supplies."

"A few other households received items and then had them taken back, only leaving a thumbprint to complete the procedure. How is that different from siphoning subsidies?"

"From a quick glance, the mismatched amounts in this ledger total at least three to four hundred thousand, maybe even up to five or six hundred thousand."

"Should we report this directly to the Discipline Inspection Commission? Or follow the usual county practice: inform them first, communicate, let them propose remedial measures—so we both save face and don't burn all bridges."

"If they cooperate, let them join the rectification. Our goal is to get the poverty‑alleviation supplies to the people. If they refuse, we'll report them to higher authorities."

"Of course, Director Su probably understands the tricks here better. In practice, after a problem is found, local township leaders often give gifts or money to the officials handling it, or offer other perks, and the matter just slides by."

"Otherwise, even though the Civil Affairs Bureau has been shouting slogans about poverty alleviation, its leaders have already reviewed the accounts. Anyone with a clear eye can see the sloppy bookkeeping—how could it pass?"

Xie Siyang said angrily beside him, "This is the so‑called officials protecting each other, colluding like wolves. If this were fully investigated, wouldn't the Civil Affairs Bureau leaders also be implicated, maybe even other current leaders?"

"Director Su, I know you have backers up top, connections. I think we can't tolerate this—we should report to the higher Discipline Inspection Commission right away; we can't handle these bastards ourselves."

"They keep throwing deep‑water bombs in the restaurant, feasting and gorging, while the villagers can't get enough to eat or afford school—they just turn a blind eye."

Su Yang laughed at the angry girl, "You're right; these people should be dealt with. But if we judge everything in black‑and‑white terms like you suggest, I'd guess at least half the officials in Jincheng County would end up dead."

"So your intention is correct, but we still need to consider methods. First, we're a poverty‑alleviation task force; we aim to help them become prosperous and shed the poverty label—not a Joint Investigation Team auditing accounts."

"Of course, that's only part of the work, but it's not the main point."

Before Su Yang could finish, Xie Siyang snapped, "Aren't you just afraid of offending them and losing your own silk hat? The mutual protection among officials is exactly the collusion you're part of, isn't it?"

"When I first started, I heard you were capable, decisive, and held firm to principles, leaving no room for sentiment. You removed two corrupt officials in Huatian Town, then got involved in this poverty work. Now it seems you're scared of trouble just like them."

She even managed to get Su Yang scolded.

Gao Peixia hurriedly said, "Stop it, Director Su isn't like that. You'll understand later—some things can't be rushed, or the work can't move forward at all."

"If you offend people, you can't explain to the higher‑ups, and everything becomes a mess. Remember, this is Within the System, not some other place. You can't act recklessly; you must weigh pros and cons and consider all losses and gains first."

"Of course, those people will definitely be punished."

Su Yang looked at the two, smiled, and said, "Both of you are right, especially Comrade Xie Siyang's ideological awareness is high. I think you're actually more suited for Discipline Inspection Commission work, because you hate evil like a personal vendetta."

"When our work here finishes, or if there's a chance later, I'll recommend you to the Discipline Inspection Commission. I'm sure its leaders will like you—you just want to defend the people, uphold justice for the common people, not become a big official."

"Then you can officially clean them up. Of course, if you truly come from the Discipline Inspection Commission, they won't be so arrogant; they'll probably act timidly, and finding evidence against them will be hard."

"Enough, let's stop talking. Let's go find Cui Mingjiu and have him convene everyone to discuss this issue."

Hearing that, Xie Siyang and Gao Peixia were stunned. Weren't they just saying such matters shouldn't be rushed and shouldn't be treated as an audit of accounts?

"Why suddenly call everyone to a meeting? Doesn't that mean the whole ledger will be made public? Some things everyone knows, but public disclosure and knowledge are two different things."

"Isn't that just a public challenge to Cui Mingjiu, a total breaking of faces?"

Xie Siyang, still indignant, asked Su Yang, "Are you serious? Aren't you afraid of offending them? They protect each other; will someone from above strip your silk hat?"

"And we're stationed here—aren't we afraid they'll smash the windows at night or something?"

Su Yang smiled without replying and simply walked toward Cui Mingjiu's office.

Gao Peixia said, "Siyang, Director Su isn't the kind you think. He has his own way of handling things, and I dare say he's the most decisive person in all of Jincheng County."

"You know the former Standing Deputy Town Mayor Li Tian from Huatian Town, right? He's the son of a Standing Deputy County Magistrate. He said, 'If it can be pushed in, push it in.' And Cui Mingjiu is a local bully‑type township chief. I think his motives aren't only about Cui Mingjiu; there must be other plans."

"We should learn from him while we're by his side. Don't miss the chance to learn."

Xie Siyang pursed her lips, unimpressed, and said, "Then I'll watch his performance, see how he handles this. If he's too soft‑spoken to act, or pretends nothing happened and calls the meeting just to praise people's work, what then? Such polar reversals have happened before."

"I'm not talking about him specifically, but about other places—these things are common. I may lack experience, but I've heard them before."

"Enough, stop talking. Hurry up and follow, then you'll see what kind of person Director Su really is. I'm worried you'll be dazzled by his decisiveness and tactics."

When Su Yang pushed open the door to Cui Mingjiu's office, Cui Mingjiu and a few others were drinking and smoking; the room was thick with foul smoke.

Seeing Su Yang enter, Cui Mingjiu gave a faint smile and said, "Director Su, something on your mind? We happen to be drinking, bring your two female comrades over, and we'll all have wine and meat together."

"There's a saying: shaking hands ten times isn't as good as sharing a drink once. We should use the simplest way of communication to elevate our feelings, don't you think?"

"I knew you'd come today, so I specially had someone bring over a case of Luzhou Laojiao…"