Chapter 62: Inquiring for News

Anyone serving in the officialdom must understand the politics of the officialdom; one step forward and the chickens and dogs ascend to heaven, one step back and the seven armies are flooded. Throughout the dynasties, the officialdom has never been able to escape the strange circle of patronage. Since the inception of the imperial examination system, even those from the very bottom of society could enter the hall, but as long as the dynasty persists, patronage will continue to propagate through descendants.

Politics serves the officialdom, and the officialdom derives political connotations. It is endless and continuous.

When it reaches a certain period, the officialdom becomes so wrapped in politics that not even water can leak through, like an iron bucket. The Zhang family's son goes to serve as an official in Li County, the Li County magistrate's daughter comes to the Zhang family to hold power; at the slightest sign of trouble, pulling a single hair moves the whole body. Thus, you attack and I defend, employing every possible means, regardless of morality, law, human ethics, or principles.

Those who do not understand the Dao of officialdom and rush in blindly will be left without a shred of armor in an instant; the lucky ones keep their lives and linger on, while the unlucky ones implicate their entire families and die without a way to heaven. In ancient times, there was Han Xin, who helped Bang gain the world, but the monarch left no one by his side, first detaining and then killing him, with the disaster reaching the nine degrees of kinship; thus, a clan that was originally one branch of the Han surname now spreads across the world. Investigating the root cause, it was all to avoid death, escaping to preserve connections. Recently, there was a sovereign surnamed Liu; due to political disagreements, he ended up dying without a name and his corpse left without a burial ground.

The two of us were drinking in a small private room at the County Committee guesthouse. Huang Qishan said to me with red-rimmed eyes and a hoarse voice.

I am here to ask for help. Secretary Liu Quanshu has been brought to the County Commission for Discipline Inspection for nearly half a month, and not a single result has leaked out. Zhao Jinming brought his wife, Jin Feng, to find me, saying that Old Zhao left in such a hurry that he didn't even bring a change of clothes, and they wanted to send some clothes over. Unfortunately, after asking around for several days, I couldn't find where Old Zhao was, so I had to come and beg me.

I have basically nothing to do now. Zhu Shizhen wanted me to hand over the company to the Enterprise Office, but the Enterprise Office never came to find me; they directly sent people to Hengyue City to take over the retail department I had set up in the city.

I went to find Zhu Shizhen, wanting to get my money back, but Zhu Shizhen smiled and said, "The company is a township-run enterprise, how could there be personal assets?"

I didn't say anything more; the company I had painstakingly managed for two years was just handed over to others in this unclear manner, and thinking about it gave me the urge to vomit blood. Everyone has moments of helplessness, and when one is helpless, even the sky looks gloomy.

I went to find Zhu Shizhen and said I wanted to take a trip to the county.

Zhu Shizhen looked at me very vigilantly and asked me what I was going to do.

I told him, "County Youth League Committee Secretary Huang Qishan is the leader of my social education work group; he is the one looking for me."

Zhu Shizhen clearly didn't dare to offend Huang Qishan yet, so he had to wave his hand and let me go. That led to the scene of the two of us drinking.

"Tell me, Chen Feng, what is going on now? How did it become such a situation?" Hearing this, I knew he really didn't know the inside story. For someone who had just arrived in Chunshan County to serve as an official and hadn't yet figured out the officialdom map of Chunshan County, I expressed my deep understanding and sympathy.

I said, "Secretary Qishan, I am also confused."

He waved his hand and said, "What kind of Secretary? Just call me Huang Qishan. We are brothers, why be so formal?"

I said, "I wouldn't dare. Calling you Secretary is a sign of respect for your responsibilities. I am very grateful that you can treat me as a brother, so I will hide nothing from you; I will say everything I know and say it all."

Huang Qishan smiled with satisfaction and said, "If you insist, I have nothing to say. But from now on, as long as the two of us are together, let's not be so polite. Too much politeness just makes things feel awkward."

Halfway through the drinking, both of us were feeling tipsy. What people fear most is drinking alone, as solitary drinking makes one easily drunk. Huang Qishan's drunkenness was because he couldn't hold his liquor, which, to me, was easier to deal with than a small dish of appetizers.

I told him my intention for coming to the county. Huang Qishan pondered for a long time and said, "Stay at the guesthouse tonight, and I will go and ask around. No matter what the result is, I will give you an answer."

After opening a room to stay in, I called my aunt.

After listening to everything I had to say, my aunt only said one sentence: "Little Feng, don't be afraid. True gold fears no fire; as long as your aunt is here, the sky won't fall."

After hanging up the phone, I wanted to cry. I lay on the bed looking at the ceiling, not knowing the situation with Meizhu and Xiaoqin. I picked up the phone again and called the retail department; Xiaoqin answered, and when she heard it was me, she burst into tears with a wail.

I didn't dare to comfort her. Ever since Secretary Liu was taken away, my phone had been turned off, and they couldn't find me even if they wanted to.

"Where are you? Are you ignoring us?" Xiaoqin questioned me over the phone.

I smiled bitterly and said, "How could I ignore you? I will definitely take care of it. Don't worry."

Xiaoqin lowered her voice and said, "Two people came to the retail department, claiming to be cadres from the Township Enterprise Office, and they want us to hand over the shop to them."

I asked nonchalantly on purpose, "Did you hand it over?"

"Impossible," Xiaoqin said decisively. "Not to mention that we don't know them, even if we did, without you present, no one is going to take the shop."

I said, "They went with orders from the township government; wouldn't it be bad not to hand it over?"

"None of my business!" Xiaoqin switched to a giggling tone and said, "These two people, they come at dawn and sit until dark; it's been three or four days now. Meizhu and I don't even pay them any mind."

I asked her to call Meizhu to the phone. After a rustling sound, Meizhu's tired voice came through the phone: "So you still remember us."

I laughed it off and said, "How could I not remember? Two beauties—if I didn't remember you, there would be something wrong with me."

Meizhu chided, "You still have the mood to joke."

I said, "The sky won't fall; life is just about laughing and joking."

After chatting for a few sentences, I said, "Meizhu, is it convenient for you to talk?"

Meizhu said in a low voice, "Go ahead, it's convenient."

I said, "Take all the account books to my house tonight. Do you understand?"

Meizhu didn't speak and hung up the phone. I wanted to call back, but I was afraid there might be a situation on her end, so I suppressed the urge and looked helplessly at the ceiling lamp. The dim light enveloped me, and I felt like a wolf licking its wounds, helpless and fierce.

It was nearly twelve o'clock at night when Huang Qishan came over with a refined young man surnamed Li, introducing him as a cadre from the Commission for Discipline Inspection, currently specifically responsible for the investigation and evidence collection of the Suxi Township public fund embezzlement case.

No one talked about the case; they only discussed trivial street gossip. I was anxious inside; having come all this way, there had to be a result.

I probed, "Cadre Li, have you been busy lately?"

Cadre Li looked at me with a smile and said, "Busy. So busy that I have to find time just to eat a meal."

"What are you busy with? Just busy for nothing," Huang Qishan glared at him and said, "Let me tell you, Little Li, this matter has reached the Municipal Committee now; it's not that simple. Do you know where County Magistrate Liu has gone during this time?"

Cadre Li smiled apologetically and said, "Brother, don't you know me? I'm just a small cadre. I'm just busy for nothing."

"It's good that you know. Your Sister Weiwei said, don't go looking for trouble, and be able to endure loneliness. Otherwise, how can your sister and uncle help you?" As soon as Huang Qishan's words came out, I immediately understood why he could become the Youth League Committee Secretary. Thinking of Huang Weiwei's skirt-hem temptation, my heart felt a sharp pain. Huang Qishan, you really got there first!

"Let me tell you, Chen Feng, everyone present today is family. Some things need to be digested right here. As far as I know, the problem in your Suxi Township is not just an economic issue, but involves a political struggle." Huang Qishan looked around alertly and lowered his voice, saying, "Secretary Guan and County Magistrate Liu are at odds; everyone in Hengyue City knows this. The matter of building roads and providing electricity in Suxi Township is all because of your report, Chen Feng. Your report has even been printed and circulated at the Municipal Committee; you didn't know that, did you? You are now a person on the crest of the storm."

My heart skipped a beat; I hadn't expected such a situation to arise. A report from a remote township being able to attract the attention of the Municipal Committee was truly no small matter.

"The report was submitted by Minister Huang. You know, Minister Huang is a member of the Standing Committee of the Municipal Committee and also a cadre who came out of Chunshan County. Regarding the current situation in Suxi Township, it can be described as heartbreaking. That's why he called County Magistrate Liu to the city to understand the situation. Municipal Committee Secretary Chen also had a talk with him." Huang Qishan seemed to know these things like the back of his hand, which caught me off guard.

"Secretary Chen scolded Secretary Guan, saying he didn't care about the hardships of the people. So after Secretary Guan returned, he convened a joint meeting. Originally, the Suxi Township electricity and road construction plan had already been listed as a key project of the county, and it had always been under the charge of County Magistrate Liu. Even if the project exists, how can you reach heaven without money? Even a clever housewife cannot cook without rice.

It is precisely because the person in charge is different that if Secretary Guan doesn't intervene, it's impossible to even cast a shadow in Chunshan County. Now it's better; the project has been changed to be under Secretary Guan's sole control—there's money if you want money, and people if you want people. For such a political achievement, who besides Secretary Guan would dare to stick their head out to replace him? But to change the person in charge in a logical way, you have to use a few people as scapegoats, right? Otherwise, it wouldn't make sense! So, do you understand now?" Huang Qishan sighed and said, "Anyway, I'm just passing through in Chunshan County, so I'll just play the blind man."