Chapter 776: Ginger is still old and spicy

Su Yang felt a chill deep down. If his bad reputation spread in the county, in the places where he once worked, that would be fine. Even in Jinzhou City, he didn't think it was outrageous; after all, the facts are right before his eyes, he's done those things, what's it to others if they say a couple of words? But if such matters reach the ears of the provincial bigwigs, and are even pointed out to his face by the Provincial Party Secretary, that might not be a good thing.

However, he still forced himself to say: "Secretary Sha, I know my reputation is terrible now, but these things are not what I wanted. I also want to be adept at maneuvering, I also want to find success everywhere, I also don't want to offend anyone, and even less want to innocently ruin others' futures. But likewise, I cannot tolerate those who have no bottom line, infringing on the interests of the common people and violating party discipline and state law."

The higher the rank of officials in key positions, the more likely they are to develop corrupt practices because of the power they hold. If it were merely petty graft—taking bribes, extorting, demanding—perhaps I could turn a blind eye.

To put it bluntly, every level of official nowadays is like this; all that I have experienced or seen are no exception.

However, this situation isn't considered serious; generally, timely reminders or even warnings can correct it. But if one uses the power in their hands to harm the common people, endanger lives, or even seek huge personal gains, that is intolerable.

Take our Lieshan County as an example: if we let Geng Miao continue developing like this, what hope do the common people of Lieshan County have? The hundreds of thousands of common people in the county have all become Geng Miao's leeks—he can harvest them whenever he wants.

Merely harvesting would be bad enough, but they actually, through various means, force good people into prostitution, control underage girls to provide paid services, forbid anyone else in Lieshan County from engaging in business, and directly co-opt local officials as protectors, truly forming that kind of evil gang where those who follow them prosper and those who oppose them perish.

Even the secretary of our county has become his lackey—how outrageous! If, for rooting out such a tumor, I were labeled as a tumor myself, I wouldn't object. As long as I can do practical things for the common people, solve problems, and improve livelihoods, even if I'm called a tumor, or even if the accusations are exaggerated, I can accept it.

Similar to Geng Miao's situation, like the corrupt colleagues I encountered while working in townships before, even if they speak ill of me behind my back, I will still step forward without hesitation.

If everyone pretends to be deaf and dumb, that is indulging corruption, that is nourishing illegal and disciplinary violations. Unless I haven't heard or seen it, I will absolutely fight such illegal and disciplinary behavior to the end.

Finally, I want to make a self-criticism. I believe my time in politics is still short and my work experience insufficient, so I am lacking in handling relationships with comrades, which has made many people unwilling to associate with me, leaving me relatively isolated in the team. I have realized this problem and have already begun to change it.

After listening, Secretary Sha neither affirmed nor denied, but said: "Doing this will make enemies. At your level, perhaps the reaction isn't very obvious; if you move up later, even if you have evidence of others' corruption, even if you think other comrades' behavior is improper, you alone cannot change anything."

Moreover, this should have been the Discipline Inspection Commission's job, but you've done it all—what would the Discipline Inspection Commission do then? Otherwise, consider this: you could go directly to the Discipline Inspection Commission—the municipal or provincial one; if you want to go, I can help coordinate.

Su Yang broke out in a cold sweat on his forehead: "I certainly wouldn't go to the Discipline Inspection Commission—going there is obviously asking to make enemies. Moreover, he truly doesn't agree with some viewpoints, such as thinking the whole team has problems; he chooses to keep a low profile and protect himself."

Speaking of it, regarding Liu Zhengyang's earlier incident, if he had acted early, the later accident wouldn't have happened. As the top leader, he weighed too many factors, to the point that things eventually became uncontrollable. Of course, Su Yang only thought this to himself; he wouldn't dare say it out loud.

"Uncle Sha, just this has made me a thorn in others' eyes, a sting in their flesh, they'd love to see me dead. If I really went to work at the Discipline Inspection Commission, I estimate I wouldn't last a few years before I'm done for. Moreover, I know my own nature—I'm fundamentally unsuited for Discipline Inspection work, and the cadres don't want me there either; otherwise, it would likely dampen their work enthusiasm."

After hearing this, Secretary Sha finally gave a slight nod; it seems he essentially agrees with Su Yang's sharp conduct, but does not fully support it.

"So I'll give you a few pieces of advice: first, always protect yourself; second, whenever possible, unite with comrades who are upright, capable, and principled; third, hold onto this enthusiasm of yours, stay true to your original aspiration, but also stay vigilant—don't become a target for others, don't let yourself be unwittingly dragged into trouble, or even fall into others' traps."

Su Yang said: "Thank you, Uncle Sha; I will keep every word of yours in my heart."

But after he finished speaking, Secretary Sha seemed to have no intention to speak either, and the two just stared at each other, eyes wide.

Su Yang was bewildered again: What is this? Are we supposed to let him start a topic? That wouldn't be appropriate either—we're not at that level to chat about daily life, and we have no qualifications to discuss work.

Talking about Old Zhou's affairs, talking about how Old Zhou is in Jiangnan Province—wouldn't that seem like trying to curry favor? In this situation, it's best to wait for Secretary Sha to speak, but he seems unwilling to do so; instead, he's waiting for Su Yang to speak.

After a long while, Su Yang finally realized: they're waiting for him to bring up Department Head Lu's matter. But can he really bring it up like that? Isn't that essentially just seeking promotion?

After a long while, Secretary Sha said: "If there's nothing else, let's leave it at that for today. Outside, there are still many people waiting to report work; we can't spend all our time on you alone, or they'll have opinions."

Su Yang finally couldn't hold back, knowing that Secretary Sha was waiting for him to speak first, and having reached this point, he saw no need to hesitate any longer. He said: "Uncle Sha, I actually have another matter on this trip, but I don't know whether I should say it or not."

As soon as his words fell, Secretary Sha said: "If you don't know, then don't say it. Later, let Little White take you to the cafeteria for a meal; our government cafeteria's food is still decent."

"Ginger is still old and spicy," as Old Zhou said, this face will definitely be given, after all Old Zhou stands behind this, and he had already said hello beforehand. But as Old Zhou said, the matter should be handled for him, but also let him know how great the pressure is.