215: Chapter 215 Hu Da Kuan's Escape

At a teahouse in the city, General Manager Hu Dakuan drank pot after pot of tea, but his phone never rang.

The calls he made were like stones thrown into a deep pool, not even causing a splash.

Deputy Director Gao Qiang's phone rang but went unanswered, Deputy Director Li Wenfu's phone was powered off, and he dialed Zheng Ze's number over and over again, but the receiver was always met with that cold female voice.

"The user you have dialed is currently unavailable."

He gradually realized that he had become a discarded pawn.

Those who used to call him brother, those who patted their chests in front of him and claimed that General Manager Hu's business was their own, had all vanished when he needed them the most.

News of the sealing of Cuican Fireworks spread quickly in Changyuan County. Workers were surrounding the company's main gate demanding their wages, suppliers were arriving with contracts to settle accounts, and the bank's account manager was politely inviting him to discuss loan repayment issues.

General Manager Hu Dakuan slipped out the back door of the teahouse; he didn't go home, but headed straight to the airport.

He had a secret account at a foreign bank, Citibank, which he had transferred money into via underground banks a few years ago, containing nearly twenty million.

This money was enough for him to live lavishly abroad for a long time. He comforted himself with this thought, but his footsteps did not stop; he walked faster and faster.

The departure hall was crowded with people coming and going. No one recognized that the man in the baseball cap rushing through the security checkpoint was the same boss of Cuican Fireworks who had been all-powerful in Changyuan County just a few days ago.

As the plane took off, General Manager Hu Dakuan looked out the porthole at the city below.

The lights of ten thousand homes spread out beneath his feet, the dense lights resembling a giant net.

He knew he had broken free from this net, but he didn't feel the relief he had imagined.

He had spent half his life struggling in Changyuan County, building it up from a small workshop to the largest fireworks enterprise in the county, going from rags to riches.

Those factory buildings were built brick by brick by him, those machines were bought one by one by him, and those clients were won over through dinner party after dinner party.

Now, it was all gone, leaving only a plane ticket to a foreign country and a cold bank account.

He closed his eyes and leaned back in his seat. The plane pierced through the clouds, and the lights of Lüjiang City were gradually swallowed by the sea of clouds, disappearing from sight.

Xu Weidong learned the news on the morning of the second day after General Manager Hu Dakuan had flown away. When Bureau Chief Yang Desheng came to report on the follow-up work of the seizure, he mentioned in passing that General Manager Hu Dakuan could not be contacted.

His phone was disconnected, there was no one at home, and people at the company didn't know where he had gone.

Xu Weidong was silent for a moment, closed the file in his hand, and spoke in a calm, flat tone.

"If he ran, then let him run. After all, the sealing of Cuican Fireworks was not because of General Manager Hu Dakuan as an individual, but because of the major safety hazards that existed in this enterprise."

"General Manager Hu Dakuan has run away, but the enterprise is still here, the factory buildings are still here, and the problems are still here."

"Carry out the rectifications that need to be made, and process what needs to be processed. Do not stop just because the person has run away."

Bureau Chief Yang Desheng acknowledged this and then reported on other problems existing at Cuican Fireworks.

These included illegal occupation of cultivated land, unauthorized construction of factory buildings, tax evasion, and illegal storage of explosives.

Every single one of these issues would have been enough to get General Manager Hu Dakuan in serious trouble. Now that he had run away, all the debts were recorded under his name.

After listening, Xu Weidong did not immediately express his stance.

"Since it has been discovered, write it up in a report in full detail and submit it to the County Party Committee, the County Government, and the city's Safety Supervision Bureau."

"Not a single cent of the fines should be missed, and not one instance of accountability should be overlooked."

"General Manager Hu Dakuan has run away, but the mess he left behind cannot run away with him. This matter must have a conclusion—a conclusion for the workers, a conclusion for the suppliers, and a conclusion for the common people of Changyuan County."

In the following days, Bureau Chief Yang Desheng and the people from the Safety Supervision Bureau, coordinating with comrades from the Audit Bureau and the Tax Bureau, dove headfirst into the ledgers and files of Cuican Fireworks.

The more they investigated, the more alarmed they became; the more they investigated, the more shocking it was.

Besides issues related to production safety, a whole heap of illegal and disciplinary violations were dug up.

Regarding the illegal occupation of cultivated land, the actual area occupied by the factory was dozens of acres more than the approved area. That extra land had been forcibly rented from villagers; the rent was absurdly low, and the lease term was absurdly long.

Regarding the unauthorized construction of factory buildings, there were no planning permits or construction permits. He had just drawn a sketch himself and started building. The fire lanes were so narrow that not even a fire truck could enter.

Regarding tax evasion, through means such as keeping fake accounts, inflating costs, and concealing income, he had evaded over ten million in taxes over several years.

Regarding the illegal storage of explosives, the gunpowder in the warehouse far exceeded the designed capacity. Some of it had even passed its shelf life, posing a danger of spontaneous combustion and explosion at any time.

When Xu Weidong received this investigation report, the Standing Committee of the County Party Committee was discussing the final resolution plan for Cuican Fireworks.

Secretary Wei Kuan presided over the meeting, County Mayor Bai Weijun sat at his right hand, Xu Weidong sat next to County Mayor Bai Weijun, and the other Standing Committee members were seated in order.

Bureau Chief Yang Desheng had made several copies of the investigation report, placing one in front of each Standing Committee member.

Secretary Wei Kuan waited until everyone had finished reading, then cleared his throat and said: "Comrades, everyone has seen the issues with Cuican Fireworks. This is not just a problem of production safety, but a serious problem involving multiple fields and multiple levels."

"Illegal occupation of cultivated land, unauthorized construction, tax evasion, and illegal storage of explosives—every single one of these is a red line, and every single one touches the bottom line of the law."

"General Manager Hu Dakuan has run away, but his assets are still in the country, and his shares are still in the company."

"Xu Weidong has proposed a suggestion, and after hearing it, I feel it is feasible."

"Confiscate General Manager Hu Dakuan's assets, nationalize his shares, and then find a capable and reputable state-owned enterprise to take over Cuican Fireworks, rebuild the factory, re-rectify it, and resume production."

"The workers cannot lose their jobs, the suppliers cannot lose all their capital, and the fireworks industry in Changyuan County cannot just collapse like this."

After saying this, Secretary Wei Kuan's gaze fell on Xu Weidong, asking him how to operate this specifically.

Xu Weidong opened the notebook in front of him and spoke item by item.

"I propose confiscating all assets under General Manager Hu Dakuan's name, including his real estate and luxury cars in the county, as well as other fixed assets."

"After liquidating these assets, combined with the previously frozen working capital, we should prioritize paying the outstanding wages of the workers and the payments to the suppliers, with the remaining portion turned over to the state treasury."

"General Manager Hu Dakuan's 100% stake in Cuican Fireworks will be nationalized, held on behalf by the County State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Office, and then opened for public bidding to select a qualified, capable, and reputable state-owned enterprise to take over."

"This enterprise must promise to strictly carry out rectifications according to national standards, must complete the rectifications and pass inspection within the stipulated time, must accept the majority of the original workers, and must ensure their legitimate rights and interests are not infringed upon."

"The bidding process must be open and transparent, subject to social supervision; there must be no backroom deals, and no room for gossip."

"The rectification plan must undergo expert evaluation. We cannot make decisions on a whim, and we cannot sacrifice safety to rush the schedule."

"The timeline must be clear, responsibilities must be assigned to individuals, and dereliction of duty must be held accountable."

The Standing Committee passed Xu Weidong's plan unanimously. A few days later, a fireworks manufacturing enterprise with state-owned assets background from the province won the bid.

This enterprise had a history of several decades, strong technical capabilities, and strict management, ranking highly in the national fireworks industry.

After winning the bid, they immediately dispatched an expert group to station themselves at Cuican Fireworks, conducted a comprehensive assessment of the factory area, and then produced a detailed rectification plan.

That plan was as thick as a dictionary. From factory layout to production processes, from equipment selection to personnel training, from raw material procurement to finished product storage, every link was considered, and every detail was not overlooked.

The rectification project started a month later. The old factory buildings were torn down, and new factory buildings were rebuilt on the original site. The design drawings were provided by a Grade-A design institute, the construction unit had special-grade qualifications, and the supervision unit was recommended by the province.

The factory area was expanded, but this time it was the green belts and safety distances that were expanded, not the production area.

Sufficiently wide fire lanes were left between the factory buildings, the warehouse location was moved to the side furthest from the residential area, the walls were heightened, and surveillance was fully covered. Every person entering the factory area had to undergo strict security checks, and not even mobile phones could be brought in.

The new production line introduced the most advanced equipment in the country, with a high degree of automation and good safety performance. The labor requirement was lower than before, but the efficiency had increased.

The workers underwent retraining and could only take their posts after passing assessments; those who failed were strictly forbidden from entering the workshop.

Xu Weidong went to visit the new factory area once; that day happened to be the day of the new production line's trial run.

The workers were wearing uniform work clothes and protective masks, busy in an orderly manner on the assembly line.

The workshop windows were open, the air circulation was good, and the scene of gunpowder dust filling the air like before could not be seen.

A "No Unauthorized Personnel" sign hung at the warehouse entrance, fire equipment was neatly arranged, and eye-catching safety warning slogans were posted on the walls.

He stood at the workshop entrance for a while, did not go in, turned around, and left.

The heavy burden of production safety could finally be set down.