Chapter 464

As soon as she said these words, Zhou Hongtao immediately realized that Fang Jingwen was actually still competing with Zhou Ruohan.

Just now Zhou Ruohan slapped her in the face, and she immediately reacted; she wanted to clarify this matter before questioning Cui Mingjiu and Lu Kai.

Such a decisive and vigorous work style truly earned his admiration; if all the county's government cadres were this proactive and vigorous, who knows how much work efficiency would improve.

Zhou Ruohan snorted coldly inside, "Who are you putting on a show for? Hitting your own child, trying to embarrass me, a guest who came to your door—there's no way."

Never mind you exposing your wounds at this moment to save face; even if you went down and stabbed each of them, I wouldn't budge.

The cadres present were all silent as cicadas; some had already started cursing in their hearts, thinking, "Damn, which idiot is this?" The situation in Jincheng County had already changed, and even the county Discipline Inspection Commission's situation had changed.

Usually they'd take a little here, a little there, a little something, and at critical moments they'd tip someone off or pass along news; in the past, doing such things was not unheard of.

Even if they did it, the impact wouldn't be big, because everyone is in the same circle; nobody can guarantee they won't slip up one day, so they help each other out—it's only natural.

Moreover, the Discipline Inspection Commission's case-handling process is very long precisely to leave enough time for some people to leak the news, giving the parties involved a chance to maneuver.

This is what everyone considers the proper case-handling process—'you scratch my back, I scratch yours, everybody's happy'—but with Secretary Fang, it's not like that.

The law is the law, personal feelings are personal feelings, and the two are separate.

No one is allowed to practice favoritism and pervert the law here; anyone who openly does so will surely face consequences, as some have already learned before.

Nevertheless, some still can't help but act base; the reason is simply that the lower-level cadres receive too much, especially the township cadres, who, even if remote and poor, still oversee tens of thousands, or even seventy to eighty thousand people in larger townships.

The profits they obtain are not comparable to those of the cadres sitting in offices.

So although they sound glamorous and have decent benefits, when it comes to actual profits, the difference is worlds apart; serving as a secretary or township head down there could outweigh a lifetime spent in government offices.

This is precisely why everyone scrambles to get a position of authority down below.

Here you're nobody, but down there, if you just manage things a little better, you become a local tyrant.

To be a local tyrant, there are several necessary factors: first, you need someone above you; second, you must maintain good relations with the big and small cadres in the government units, even the clerks.

Especially in the Discipline Inspection Commission and the Organization Department, anyone who is even slightly useful will be given face; even the doormen of these two units will show considerable respect, and occasionally they'll even offer a couple of cigarettes to curry favor.

Let alone those cadres holding key positions.

Fang Jingwen stared at them with a frosty face, clearly aware that these people were definitely the ones who leaked the information.

Because the people she promoted are unlikely to do so; of course, those people are currently busy elsewhere with other work.

"I'm giving you only ten minutes; if you haven't confessed by then, don't blame me."

After speaking, she added, "I have the call records of everyone's mobile phones, PHS phones, and office landlines."

"I know exactly who you called and when, even which units—better than you do. Since you can't manage yourselves, I'll help you."

As soon as she said that, their already grim faces darkened further, for they knew Fang Jingwen wasn't just trying to scare them—let alone that she is a dignified deputy county party secretary and Discipline Inspection Commission secretary.

These people themselves, if necessary, could go straight to the telecom company to pull out those call records, and the telecom company would have to cooperate unconditionally.

But saying this in front of the county party secretary and the county magistrate, if they actually stepped forward to admit it, there would be no room for maneuver; strictly speaking, their iron rice bowls could be finished.

Some also disagreed with Fang Jingwen's handling, saying that family disgrace should not be aired publicly; by exposing it, she showed no regard for her own reputation, let alone anyone else's.

Such a person is either an impeccably fair and excellent Discipline Inspection Commission secretary, or just a superficial fool, because this approach easily offends everyone and will likely lead to being sidelined, possibly slinking away in disgrace.

And nobody present doubted that Fang Jingwen was a fool or a lunatic.

Time ticked by second by second, and finally a man in his forties, drenched in sweat, stood up.

"Secretary Fang, it's possible that this leak came from me, but I didn't deliberately tell them about it. Cui Mingjiu kept calling me, asking what work we've been doing lately; I didn't say our personnel had gone to Xiushui Xiang, I just told him we might have been busy with some work…"

"Shut up; go right now to where you need to be and clarify the issue. Otherwise I can take you right now to see Cui Mingjiu and have you two face to face to explain things to me."

The man in his forties, hearing this, turned deathly pale; he had thought he could speak tactfully and objectively to excuse himself, anyway pinning everything on Cui Mingjiu, who had originally taken the initiative to inquire.

He never expected Fang Jingwen to give him no face or room to maneuver.

The man collapsed onto the table, "Secretary Fang, I'm sorry. I was the one who told Cui Mingjiu about this; please give me a chance…"

Fang Jingwen didn't let him finish, merely fixing him with a cold stare and saying, "I tell you, remember your duties—don't reach out or you'll be caught; you've repeatedly provoked us."

"I believe it wasn't just you who passed this news to Cui Mingjiu; there are others."

"If you step forward now and confess, I might still give you a chance; otherwise I can guarantee that your public office is finished."

After her words fell, another two or three people, unable to bear the pressure, stood up; they weren't afraid of punishment and had prepared for it, but if they were outright dismissed from their posts, that would be unbearable for them.

After seeing this, Fang Jingwen turned to Zhou Ruohan and said, "County Mayor Zhou, these are the very insiders we discussed in the standing committee meeting who leaked information to Cui Mingjiu."

"Now they themselves have admitted it; my suggestion is to dismiss them from office outright. What do you think?"