137: Chapter 137 Meeting Minutes

A thin, gaunt man standing to the left of Secretary Qiu Dehai stepped forward.

"This is our town's mayor, Comrade Town Mayor Luo Xingbang, the financial steward of the town."

Town Mayor Luo Xingbang extended his hand. "Comrade Zhu Wenhao, welcome to Heishi Town."

Zhu Wenhao shook his hand, their eyes meeting.

This man had deep eyes and hid his sharp edges—a typical fence-sitter.

Next, Secretary Qiu Dehai introduced the other core leadership members in turn, including the Chairman of the Town People's Congress, the Secretary of the Discipline Inspection Commission, and the Executive Deputy Town Mayor.

With each introduction, Zhu Wenhao responded politely, while secretly taking in everyone's positions and expressions.

Every single one of them showed a subtle hint of awe and fear in their attitude toward Secretary Qiu Dehai.

This showed that Secretary Qiu Dehai's control over Heishi Town had already reached the point where his word was law.

After the pleasantries, Secretary Qiu Dehai suggested, "Deputy Minister Li Ming, Comrade Zhu Wenhao, it's windy out here by the roadside. The Town Government has already prepared a welcome meal. Shall we get in the cars and head to the town to chat at leisure?"

Deputy Minister Li Ming nodded and turned to return to the Passat.

"Secretary Qiu, wait a moment."

Zhu Wenhao spoke up, interrupting everyone's movement toward the cars.

Secretary Qiu Dehai stopped in his tracks and turned to look at him. "Comrade Zhu Wenhao, is there anything else?"

Zhu Wenhao pointed to the police car parked behind them.

"The two villagers who blocked our way just now are in a rather unique situation. They reported some issues regarding grassroots clans forcibly seizing land, which involves a wide scope."

He looked into Secretary Qiu Dehai's eyes. "I suggest that Director Zhao handle the questioning of these two elderly citizens personally. Before the matter is thoroughly investigated, we must ensure their personal safety and keep them free from any external interference."

As soon as he finished speaking, the surrounding chatter ground to a sudden halt.

Town Mayor Luo Xingbang adjusted his glasses, his gaze shifting back and forth between Zhu Wenhao and Secretary Qiu Dehai. The deputy town mayors, who had been whispering to each other, all shut their mouths now.

A newly appointed deputy secretary, who had just parachuted in, was actually dictating police work right in front of the Town Party Committee Secretary, and even subtly hinting at "external interference."

Secretary Qiu Dehai's smile stiffened for a fraction of a second.

Then, he quickly regained his composure. "Comrade Zhu Wenhao is indeed swift and decisive. No matter concerning the public's interest is trivial. This is an excellent suggestion."

Secretary Qiu Dehai turned to look at Police Chief Zhao Gang. "Director Zhao, did you hear Comrade Zhu Wenhao's instructions? You must investigate this case thoroughly. Make sure you don't end up with a miscarriage of justice."

"Understood, Secretary Qiu." Police Chief Zhao Gang saluted.

Seeing the subtle tension, Deputy Minister Li Ming said, "Alright, alright. We can study work matters once we're back in town. Let's get in the cars."

The car doors shut one after another.

The Passat started up, following Secretary Qiu Dehai's Honda toward the center of power in Heishi Town.

Sitting in the back seat, Zhu Wenhao watched the dilapidated single-story houses and dusty mining trucks flash past the window.

He knew very well that his words just now had completely shattered the facade of peace.

"Strike first to gain the initiative, or strike late and be controlled by others," Zhu Wenhao muttered to himself.

In this political game of Heishi Town, he was not only going to participate, but he was also going to enter it in the most aggressive manner possible.

The motorcade drove into the Heishi Town Government courtyard. In front of the three-and-a-half-story tiled office building, a welcome banner with white characters on a red background hung from the second-floor balcony.

The more remote the township, the grander the display—this was often a sign of hollowed-out authority.

Secretary Qiu Dehai walked at the very front, introducing several deputy town mayors, the head of the People's Armed Forces Department, and the chairwoman of the Women's Federation one by one.

Polite greetings and pleasantries ensued. Zhu Wenhao walked down the line, shaking hands with everyone. His fingertips barely touched theirs before parting, and he did not say a single word of polite nonsense.

The small meeting room on the second floor.

At the long conference table, Secretary Qiu Dehai took the head seat, with Town Mayor Luo Xingbang sitting opposite him. Zhu Wenhao was seated in the prime spot on Secretary Qiu Dehai's right.

Secretary Qiu Dehai picked up his teacup and cleared his throat.

"Comrade Zhu Wenhao is a top graduate from the Municipal Organization Department. He has a solid grasp of theory and is exactly the kind of talent our town desperately lacks."

Setting a high tone and praising someone always meant there was a hidden trap to follow.

"After preliminary discussions by the Town Party Committee leadership," Secretary Qiu Dehai took out the division of labor document, "Comrade Zhu Wenhao will be in charge of Party building, political and legal affairs, and public petitions. In addition, he will take on another heavy responsibility and lead the rural revitalization work."

Four heavy burdens, all piled onto one pair of shoulders.

Everyone present knew exactly what this meant. The people of Heishi Town were fierce and unruly, making public petitions a bottomless pit of trouble; political and legal affairs involved mining and clan security, which easily invited trouble from both sides; and rural revitalization had neither funding nor projects.

This division of labor was equivalent to placing all of Heishi Town's minefields directly under this new deputy secretary's name.

Town Mayor Luo Xingbang lowered his head to drink his tea, saying nothing.

Several committee members sat in silent contemplation, eyes lowered.

"Comrade Zhu Wenhao, the organization is giving you more responsibilities as a young man to help you familiarize yourself with the grassroots level as quickly as possible." Secretary Qiu Dehai offered a perfectly high-sounding justification.

Zhu Wenhao opened the division of labor document.

"Secretary Qiu has made very detailed arrangements. Since the Party Committee has assigned these tasks, I will accept them."

"However," Zhu Wenhao closed the document, "a craftsman must sharpen his tools if he is to do his work well. Since I am in charge of these areas, I need to understand our baseline first."

He turned his gaze toward Director Zhou Mei, the Director of the Party and Government Office sitting at the very end of the table.

"Director Zhou. After the meeting, please compile the meeting minutes of the Heishi Town Party Committee, the petition ledgers, and the detailed fund allocation records for rural revitalization-related projects from the past three years, and send them to my office."

A newly appointed official, demanding to audit three years of meeting minutes right off the bat.

Secretary Qiu Dehai's hand holding the teacup froze in mid-air. He had thought this young man would be left reeling by the heavy workload, but he hadn't expected him to target the most core document archives directly.

"Comrade Zhu Wenhao, three years of archives are vast and voluminous. You've just arrived, so there's no need to rush," Secretary Qiu Dehai tried to smooth things over.

"The essence of governance lies in clear observation. If one doesn't look at the path others have walked, how can one spot the pitfalls ahead?" Zhu Wenhao said succinctly. "Director Zhou, can you have them delivered before the end of the day?"

Director Zhou Mei was a capable woman in her early thirties who had spent years handling hospitality and administrative work in the Party and Government Office. She instinctively glanced at Secretary Qiu Dehai.

Secretary Qiu Dehai cleared his throat twice and nodded.

"Cooperate with Comrade Zhu Wenhao's work."

The meeting adjourned.

The Town Party Committee Deputy Secretary's office was located at the easternmost end of the second floor.

The room was simply furnished with a dark faux-leather sofa, a large desk, and two metal filing cabinets against the wall.

At four o'clock in the afternoon.

Director Zhou Mei knocked on the door, holding two heavy kraft paper archive boxes.

"Secretary Zhu, these are the meeting minutes of the Town Party Committee from the past three years that you requested, all photocopied from the originals. The petition ledgers and fund details are in the other box." Director Zhou Mei placed the boxes on the desk and took half a step back.

Zhu Wenhao sat upright at the desk and began reading the documents.

"Thank you for your hard work," he said without looking up.

Director Zhou Mei did not leave.

Having served as the Director of the Party and Government Office in Heishi Town for five years, she had seen many different styles of leadership. Yet this deputy secretary, who was several years younger than her, exuded an understated, internal authority that made it impossible to treat him lightly.

"Secretary Zhu, is there anything else the Party and Government Office can assist you with?"

"Have a seat first." Zhu Wenhao pulled out the first volume of meeting minutes.

He scanned through the documents extremely quickly, reading ten lines at a glance.

Fifteen minutes later, Zhu Wenhao stopped at a meeting record from two years ago.

It was a resolution regarding the disbursement of land acquisition compensation in Heishui Village.

"Director Zhou," Zhu Wenhao said, tapping his finger on the page.

"This resolution mentions that the compensation for the acquisition of thirty mu of land on the southern slope of Heishui Village was to be disbursed by the town finance department directly into the villagers' individual accounts."

He flipped the minutes over. "The main text of the resolution is clear, but where is the appendix? Why weren't the specific roster of compensation recipients and the payment vouchers archived alongside the meeting records?"

Director Zhou Mei's body stiffened slightly.

That compensation fund was a taboo subject in Heishi Town. Her husband had worked in the town finance office back then, and it was precisely because of the whereabouts of this fund that he had been forced to resign and leave for another town.

"To answer Secretary Zhu, this is an old custom in the town. Financial details are usually kept directly in the finance office for bookkeeping, and the Party and Government Office only archives the broad resolution texts." Director Zhou Mei offered a bureaucratic excuse.

Zhu Wenhao did not press further and pulled out a second set of minutes.

"October of last year," Zhu Wenhao read. "A special meeting of the Town Party Committee regarding Heishi Mining's failure to meet environmental protection standards."

"The meeting's conclusion was: agreed in principle to allow Heishi Mining to continue production while undergoing rectification."

He looked up, staring directly at Director Zhou Mei.

"The phrase 'agreed in principle' is very cleverly used. But which specific department was leading the rectification? Who was the supervisor held responsible? And how many days was the rectification period?"

Zhu Wenhao's tone was completely flat. "There is not a single mention of an implementing entity in the entire document. Is this a meeting minute, or a protective shield covering up illegal mining?"

Director Zhou Mei's palms began to sweat. Over the past three years, it wasn't that no one had looked at these documents; it was just that no one had dared to poke through this paper-thin facade.

Zhu Wenhao pulled out a third document.

"These are about the allocation of special poverty alleviation funds." Zhu Wenhao laid several pages side by side. "The town finance department disbursed three consecutive interest-free loans to the 'Qiu's Agricultural Machinery Cooperative' and the 'Heishui Village Stone Cooperative' under the guise of supporting the collective economy."

"The funds were disbursed. Over the past three years, why has there not been a single word of discussion recorded in the Party and Government meetings regarding the collection, dividends, or bad debt write-offs of these loans?"

Zhu Wenhao sneered inwardly. The greatest danger to a nation is not the lack of laws, but the failure to enforce them.

Director Zhou Mei sat on the sofa, her throat dry.

She had thought this young man was only putting on a show by requesting these materials.

"Secretary Zhu," Director Zhou Mei chose her words carefully, "these minutes were all personally reviewed and issued by Secretary Qiu back then. The Party and Government Office was only responsible for recording them faithfully."

Protecting herself by shifting the responsibility to the top leader.

Zhu Wenhao leaned back in his chair. "How many years has Director Zhou worked in the Party and Government Office?"

"Five years."

"Five years. You write steadily and keep the rules strictly." Zhu Wenhao gathered the documents on the desk. "Take these three sets of minutes. Make another copy of them, archive the originals, and keep the photocopies in your hands."

Director Zhou Mei was stunned.

"You don't need to rush to report to Secretary Qiu about what I looked at."

"Smart people know how to read the wind. The accounts of Heishui Village cannot be covered up for much longer. The injustice your husband suffered back then might not go unredressed forever."

His words laid bare the hidden truth.

Director Zhou Mei stood up. Her husband's matter was a taboo in the town, and many newly arrived officials knew nothing about it. How could he know?

Coming from Division Two of the Municipal Organization Department, checking the background and resume of a grassroots cadre was merely a matter of pulling some files. Before coming to Heishi Town, Zhu Wenhao had already thoroughly investigated the backgrounds of those in key positions in the town.

"Secretary Zhu..." Director Zhou Mei's breathing quickened slightly.

"Go on then," Zhu Wenhao said, putting down his teacup and politely dismissing her.

Psychological warfare was the best strategy. No coercion, no promises.

Carrying the documents, Director Zhou Mei backed out of the room.

The door shut tightly.

Zhu Wenhao stood by the window.

On the main street of Heishi Town, several overloaded coal trucks roared past, kicking up a cloud of coal dust.

Mines, clans, and finance.

These three lines intersected within the meeting minutes.

Secretary Qiu Dehai was merely the actor performing on stage, but the real financial backer was still hiding behind the scenes.