Chapter 988

Although his eyes lit up briefly, it was only a brief flash; having experienced this incident of being bruised at the Municipal Party Committee Standing Committee meeting, his current focus is more on work.

After all, he had seen fine grain; his thoughts immediately returned to the proper track.

"Regarding what you said, I understand; this is the Public Security Organs' matter—let them handle the trial."

"Moreover, regarding illegal sand mining, it's like this: who told you it's in their town, then it belongs to their town? Who told you it belongs to the Common People of their town?"

"You are a government official—don't you know this is all state property? Their nice-sounding excuse is that they're forced by livelihood; the harsh truth is that they're embezzling state property."

"If we pursue this matter seriously, not only the villagers but also the town leaders must all be held responsible."

"I ask you, who allowed them to cause such a disturbance? Do they have the relevant permits? If they do, I'll naturally greet the Public Security Bureau; if not, does whatever they say just become law?"

"If they were smart, they'd pay the fines, admit guilt—such behavior wouldn't even warrant a criminal sentence."

"As for the Village Party Secretary, village head and the like, they probably will have to bear some responsibility."

"His lofty words sound like pleasantries, and indeed they are. Being able to say this much to Ma Su is entirely because of the brief bright moment just now."

"Otherwise, what would a Deputy Secretary of the Municipal Party Committee have to say to you, a Deputy Director of the County Government Office?"

"Ma Su found his words wasted, gesturing helplessly for a while; they had no interest, so he could only say: 'This matter probably isn't that simple; I heard they said County Magistrate Su arranged for the Public Security Bureau people to come over.'"

"If he keeps harping on this, the lower-level cadres will probably find it hard to bear."

"Moreover, the county still regards him as the leader in charge of overall county work; he has superficially stated that he's only doing his own duties, but in fact he maintains very good relations with key departments like the Public Security Bureau and the Finance Bureau, especially the Public Security Bureau, which listens only to Su Yang."

"Now some township leaders only recognize Su Yang; do you think their brains are also messed up? Although he previously presided over work, now you and County Magistrate Zhao Nanxing are here, yet they still do this."

"This is nothing but them eyeing our important project approvals and fiscal allocations; I even feel that even the judiciary, prosecution, and law enforcement are whatever Su Yang says, which is why they act this way."

"If this continues, your prestige will surely be affected."

"Originally Zhang Jiangbo thought it didn't matter; to him, this kind of thing was basically a dog-eat-dog situation—whether Su Yang takes care of that gang or they take care of Su Yang, either is fine."

"He even hopes the situation becomes more serious—namely, that gang drives Su Yang to desperation, whereupon he angrily flips the table, cementing his reputation as an officialdom killer, a label that would stick to him permanently."

"In that case, wouldn't his task also count as a breakthrough?"

"Otherwise, why would that gang have initially tried to frame Su Yang over this project, yet he chose to acquiesce? The fundamental reason is that, no matter who gets whom, it's beneficial to him."

"But unexpectedly, Su Yang actually got wind of the sand mining matter. Originally he hadn't planned to get involved, but after being provoked by that woman, he suddenly felt anxious."

"Indeed, why couldn't this be made into an issue? He said: 'I underestimated the impact of this matter. Let's do this: you first report it to County Magistrate Zhao Nanxing, and then convene the County Party Standing Committee in two hours.'"

"We will specifically study and analyze this sand mining incident in depth. Comrade Su Yang's approach seems reasonable, is legal and compliant, but actually harms the actual interests of the Common People."

"What is our work for? It's to improve the livelihood of the Common People. Some situations are inherently ambiguous; we should turn a blind eye."

"Such things happen everywhere from time to time, and no government department has ever launched a major crackdown over them."

"He has essentially set the tone for this matter; all that's needed is for Ma Su to convey it to Zhao Nanxing."

"Ma Su was obviously taken aback; listening to Secretary Zhang's tone, it seemed he wanted to intervene in this matter. Earlier, when he reported, Secretary Zhang had been indifferent—what's going on?"

"Could it be that he mentioned Su Yang pulling strings behind the scenes, and that Su Yang's standing in the county affected Secretary Zhang's prestige? If so, then his stimulus really does have an effect."

"It seems they've now got a handle on Secretary Zhang's weakness. Whenever something involves their interests, they simply rigidly pin it on Su Yang; Secretary Zhang surely cannot tolerate anyone challenging his authority."

"Thinking this way, he felt quite pleased; as long as Secretary Zhang states his position, County Magistrate Zhao Nanxing will surely have no objection, so Su Yang definitely won't gain any advantage at this Standing Committee meeting."

"Then this matter will surely be blown down from a major issue to a minor one; it's even possible that the Public Security Bureau comrades and Comrade Su Yang will be criticized, possibly even punished—truly a turnaround victory."

"Little did she know, she was only thinking of her own thoughts, while Zhang Jiangbo naturally had other considerations in mind."

"Even if she could push her own meager abilities to the limit, intelligence is another matter entirely."

"After all, she's merely a Deputy Director of the Government Office who rose from the township level; her vision, perspective, and political judgment are far lacking."

"After Ma Su left, Zhang Jiangbo called Jia Guolong."

"Jia Guolong's mood has never been high; lately he's been unable to hold his head up in his circle, because those matters of his have been investigated by someone with ulterior motives, especially the illness he contracted abroad, which has indeed been uncovered."

"These days, not only has he been inspected by the ministry's internal inspection department, but he also has to endure constant talks from various leaders."

"This is only because his father still holds the position of Provincial Party Secretary of Jiangnan Province; otherwise, his job would basically be finished, likely to be kicked out to some obscure post, at least the Ministry of Commerce wouldn't want him."

"He even thought about finding an opportunity to apply for an inspection trip to a remote area, but the ministry simply cannot let him leave now."

"Of course, some things require looking beyond the surface to the essence; if he were just an ordinary deputy division chief of the ministry, with no background, this matter wouldn't stir up any big waves, and nobody would pay much attention."

"Unless his political rivals target him."

"But his flaw is that he blatantly carries his own family's label; given such a big incident, someone will naturally take the opportunity to go after him. As for the pros and cons, the benefit comes from his father's identity, and the drawback is the same."

"Now he's like a frost‑bitten eggplant, dragging out each day as if it were a year. Every time he's mocked by others, every time the inspection squad summons him for a talk, that sneer Su Yang directed at him that night pops into his mind."

"He had told Zhang Jiangbo that he must act against Su Yang as soon as possible. Seeing that the call was from Zhang Jiangbo, he thought there must be good news and immediately answered."