Chapter 870: Too late, there is no room for redemption

A moment later, Yao Daya, his face ashen, followed Shi Haoyun inside.

As soon as he entered, he said respectfully, "County Magistrate Su, hello, I'm here to report on work."

Just as his words fell, he saw Mo Tai sitting opposite Su Yang; his complexion changed again, and Su Yang even detected a hint of hatred in his eyes.

Exactly, in Yao Daya's view, if it weren't for Mo Tai's appearance, he as vice chair of the People's Congress would have no competition; once his appointment was approved, no one would use those past messy affairs to cause him trouble.

That's how it is within the system: rowing against the current, you either advance or fall back; but he is rowing against the current, not retreating means "advancing."

Lao Mo Tai had no intention of greeting Yao Daya; he was simply lowering his head to drink tea.

Under these circumstances, if only Su Yang were in the office, Yao Daya might find it a bit easier, after all, this is a matter of lowering his head and admitting defeat.

He had kept his spine straight for most of his life; suddenly having to soften, he did not want anyone to see him do so.

But reality gave him no choice; he couldn't very well say, "Old Mo, please recuse yourself—I need to admit defeat first."

Then Su Yang said, "Oh, Secretary Yao, what a rare visitor; if I'm not mistaken, this might be your first time coming to my office. Last time I seem to have gone to Guantan Gou Zhen for research, and at that time your work condition didn't seem very good."

Yao Daya said with a mournful face, "County Magistrate Su, I'm sorry; that day I truly failed to control myself, drank a few extra cups, and unintentionally offended you. I'm not normally like that; regarding the spirit of the county's documents, I also demanded that the entire township implement them thoroughly."

As for the county government's plan to set up a dairy farm and breeding industry in our Guantan Gou Zhen, I have fully cooperated; I have even met with those cattle-raising households. If the county wants to implement it, I will expedite it and ensure the county incurs no extra expense.

Moreover, regarding road repairs in our county, I have limited ability elsewhere, but in Guantan Gou Zhen I can mobilize the town Party Committee and government staff to donate money and labor. I personally take the lead, donating the wages I've saved over the years—about two hundred thousand yuan. Furthermore, I will fully implement all directives from the county Party Committee and government.

If Lao Mo weren't here, Yao Daya would probably have knelt down right away.

Su Yang understood Yao Daya's meaning: he wanted to spit out what he had taken in, i. e., hand over the money and then protect himself.

But at this point, is there any room for redemption? Certainly not.

Back when they called for the whole county to tighten belts, eradicate extravagance and waste, and issued the alcohol ban, they already had a plan to severely punish a few disobedient individuals.

Originally they only intended to issue a criticism notice, the harshest being a major demerit.

But Yao Daya brought this on himself; he has too many skeletons in his closet.

Su Yang said, "Secretary Yao, I understand what you're saying, but coming to report work at this time seems too late. What you want to say should go to Secretary Hou; I've already sent someone to fetch him. Of course, in consideration of your many years of work, I will also suggest that the judicial authorities handle your case leniently."

After hearing this, beads of sweat on Yao Daya's forehead trickled down his deeply lined old face, his body swayed several times, and he nearly collapsed.

He struggled to steady himself and said, "County Magistrate Su, I was wrong; I shouldn't have opposed you then, nor should I have openly led the violation of the county's directives. Please give me a chance, will you? I will definitely obey you from now on."

"'I… I will kneel before you directly—would that not be enough? I ask for nothing else; I only hope to retire safely, and I dare not hope for anything more.'"

Saying this, he actually knelt down.

When one reaches this point, so-called dignity and face are not worth mentioning.

Su Yang's expression changed; he spoke solemnly, "Secretary Yao, we are both Party cadres; don't play this game. If you've done wrong, you must bear the responsibility. As I said, the only thing I can do is speak a few words for you when handing you over to the judicial authorities, striving to give you a fair and just outcome."

Lao Mo stepped forward in a stride, directly helping him up; meanwhile, he secretly rejoiced, having ultimately held to his bottom line and principles, not colluding with Ye Xianggao and the others, and having expressed his stance to Su Yang at the first opportunity.

As they spoke, Hou Junlai entered; seeing the scene before him, he immediately knew what had happened.

At this moment, Su Yang seized the chance to say, "Secretary Hou, you've come! Secretary Yao here has some situation; he wanted to proactively report to you. But what is the Discipline Inspection Commission? I suppose no one wants to go there voluntarily, so he came to me instead—making a detour, so to speak."

Although Su Yang has zero tolerance for such illegal and disciplinary violations, he still granted Yao Daya a final semblance of dignity.

Clearly, Yao Daya came to him intending to vomit out the corrupt money and even spend some of his own to buy peace.

But once it came out of his mouth, it turned into Yao Daya's voluntary surrender, which for him might be the best outcome.

Hou Junlai naturally understood the situation; if it were truly a voluntary surrender, he would have gone straight to his own office—why come to Su Yang?

It seems that after this Standing Committee meeting ended, Yao Daya already knew the content; otherwise he wouldn't have come so quickly, which is good—saves time.

He said, "Secretary Yao, it's good that you could come here; although you didn't go directly to my office, since County Magistrate Su said that, I can also interpret your action as a voluntary surrender."

"'This is beneficial for your subsequent handling; as for your matter, I think I needn't say more—everyone is clear. But my stating it and you stating it yourself are two different things, leading to two different outcomes. Have you thought it through clearly?'"

Yao Daya looked at Hou Junlai without speaking, then gave Su Yang a complicated glance.

He knew that if it weren't for his opposition to Su Yang, perhaps the Discipline Inspection Commission wouldn't have targeted him.

For an old secretary like him, whose backside isn't stained with a pile of 'shit'? Yet within the system lies a vast web of personal favors and complex relationships; at their age, generally no one would make a move.

He relied on this, thus acting senior and entitled, deliberately putting on airs before Su Yang.

He overestimated Zhao Nanxing's ability and underestimated Su Yang's methods.

On his way here, he called Zhao Nanxing several times; all were rejected, and finally he was even blocked.

Throughout, even if Zhao Nanxing could have taken his call and exchanged a few words, he would have felt somewhat better.

After all, in his view, it was precisely because Zhao Nanxing arrived that he let loose, wanting to act as a troublemaker to prop up the facade for this new county magistrate.

The result was that he implicated himself, yet this County Magistrate Zhao still showed no appreciation.

But he wasn't discouraged; he called other known county leaders, only to be similarly rejected without mercy.

Finally he planned to call Ma Su to arrange some family matters, but was likewise blocked.

The indifference and coldness of human nature revealed themselves in this moment as all too real.

He could hardly imagine that just last night, everyone was still there congratulating him on his impending appointment as vice chair of the People's Congress.

This morning he also received congratulatory calls from the Party secretaries and heads of all townships, as well as some bureau chiefs in the county.

Even the banquet arrangements had been set for next month.

Yet only a few hours later, they had become utter strangers; he didn't even need to doubt that, when necessary, these people would throw him into the well and stone him.

This is humanity; this is the people within the system—truly three parts more snobbish than he imagined.

Compared to the young County Magistrate Su, although this incident arose because he opposed Su Yang, essentially it is also because his own side bears too much blame.

Nevertheless, even so, they still gave him face, describing his conduct as a voluntary surrender and promising to speak a few words for him when handing him over to the judicial authorities.

Compared to Zhao Nanxing, the difference is clear. Finally he self-mockingly chuckled: "Thank you, County Magistrate Su; I've lived a lifetime, spent most of it in the system, always thinking I was quite shrewd, but only now do I realize I'm merely a clueless fool. My present situation is wholly my just deserts—I have no one to blame but myself."

"'I have fallen this time, but I still want to say two things, setting aside objective facts: our Lieshan Xian has a leader as wise and astute as County Magistrate Su, which is absolutely a blessing for the common people. I hope County Magistrate Su can remain in our county for a few more years, thoroughly enabling the populace to live well.'"

"'Finally, I have a USB drive in my pocket; it contains records of my communications with the county, the various townships, and Ma Su. I hope it may help you at critical moments.'"