142: Chapter 142 Secretary Zhu's First Fire

Inside the conference room.

There was only the rustling sound of ballpoint pens moving across paper. Over a dozen elderly villagers leaned over the long table, writing down their names and the acreage of their requisitioned land, one stroke at a time.

Zhu Wenhao sat calmly in the center of the podium. He did not urge them, did not strike a pose of being close to the people to offer empty concern, and certainly did not make empty promises.

When governing a chaotic situation, the authority of those in power is always greater than cheap appeasement.

Director Zhou Mei stood behind him to the side. Watching the scene before her, she saw that the mass petitioning that had always been the biggest headache for the Town Government had been resolved by a few thin sheets of A4 paper.

No shouting, no commotion; everyone was honestly bowing their heads to fill out the forms.

"Secretary Zhu," Director Zhou Mei lowered her voice to ask for instructions. "Are we just letting them fill these out? The Town Government's treasury is an empty shell. When it comes time to verify the shortfall and we can't come up with the money, the backlash will be even fiercer."

"The way of governance is to judge by heart, not by traces," Zhu Wenhao picked up his white porcelain teacup. "What the common people want is a place that reasons with them. If you close the door, they think officials are protecting each other; if you open the door and record it in black and white, that is called due process."

His voice was steady. "Public grievances are like water; blocking them causes the dam to burst, while guiding them forms a channel."

The forms were filled out one after another.

An old man with graying temples held the form with both hands and walked to the front of the podium. His hands were rough, and dirt was stuck in his fingernails.

"Secretary Zhu, I've finished," the old man pointed to the numbers on the paper. "Heishui Village, Group Two, Li Er. Three fen of land on the South Slope. The village said they would give eight thousand per mu, but when it got to my hands, they only gave one thousand five."

Zhu Wenhao took the form.

He did not pat his chest with empty guarantees, nor did he blindly take on everything.

He picked up a fountain pen, signed his name in the upper right corner of the form, and then opened the red ink paste box next to him.

"Old Li," Zhu Wenhao pointed to the space under his name. "Press your fingerprint here."

The old man did as instructed, and a bright red fingerprint was pressed onto the white paper.

Zhu Wenhao placed the form separately into a folder on his left.

"I have received the materials. The town will open a case," Zhu Wenhao looked at him. "Go back and wait for news. In as little as a week or as much as half a month, the town will send a verification team to the village to check the accounts. If it is your money, not a cent will be missing; if it is not your money, even if you demand an extra hair's breadth, the law will not tolerate it."

The old man nodded repeatedly, the stone in his heart finally falling to the ground, and turned to walk out.

With someone having taken the lead, the remaining villagers stepped forward to submit their forms one by one.

Behind the line stood several young men who hadn't filled out any forms. These people were left behind by Political Commissar Zhang Qiang to keep watch.

Seeing that the old men and women were so easily dismissed, one of the men with dyed yellow hair couldn't sit still.

He started shouting loudly: "Don't fall for his tricks, everyone! What good is collecting a few pieces of scrap paper? This is just stalling for time! Once we walk out this door, they'll just throw the papers into the shredder. Who will we go to for justice then?"

This incitement caused the few villagers who hadn't submitted their forms to stop, their faces showing hesitation.

Seeing that it had an effect, the yellow-haired man took two steps forward and pointed at Zhu Wenhao on the podium.

"The mouths of officials are ghosts that deceive people. If we don't see real gold and silver today, we'll sleep right here in the Town Government!"

Zhu Wenhao sat in his original seat, spinning his fountain pen half a turn between his fingers before clicking it down on the desk.

He did not get angry; he just watched the yellow-haired man jumping around quietly.

Outside the door, heavy leather shoe sounds came from the corridor.

The two solid wood doors were pushed open. Police Chief Zhao Gang led San Qiang, followed by two uniformed police officers, and walked into the conference room with large strides.

Dressed in police uniforms with full duty equipment. This pressure made the air in the conference room feel a bit stagnant.

Police Chief Zhao Gang walked to the long table and clicked on the body-worn camera on his chest.

"We received a notification from the Party and Government Office that someone is creating a disturbance in the Town Government compound," Police Chief Zhao Gang locked his gaze on the yellow-haired man.

He stepped forward and reached out his hand.

"Those who are here to report problems, bring your ID cards. The Police Station will register and file them to protect legal petitioning," Police Chief Zhao Gang's tone was cold and hard. "Those who don't fill out forms, don't report problems, and are here shouting, are disturbing the office order of a state organ. Take out your ID cards!"

The yellow-haired man's arrogance vanished, and he took a step back. "Officer, I... I'm just here to watch the excitement."

"Watching the excitement?" San Qiang approached from behind, his hand resting on his duty equipment. "Is a state organ a vegetable market? You come and go as you please? Come back to the station with us, and we can have a good chat about how you 'watch the excitement.'"

Seeing that the police were really taking action, the few troublemakers turned pale with fear and tried to sneak out along the wall.

"Stop."

Zhu Wenhao spoke.

The yellow-haired man and the others froze at the door.

Zhu Wenhao pointed outside the door. "In a state organ, there are rules for coming and going."

"Director Zhao," Zhu Wenhao gave the order. "Have the security guards watch the gate. Everyone in this conference room today, those who want to leave must have their identities verified and registered before being released. Those who refuse to provide their real names will be taken back to the Police Station for questioning."

Combining kindness with severity.

Since they had entered this door, they shouldn't think about just walking away. Without leaving some leverage, this kind of farce would be endless.

The yellow-haired man and the others had bitter faces as they honestly took out their IDs for registration under San Qiang's supervision. After registering, they scurried away like whipped dogs.

The remaining villagers who had filled out forms finished their handover.

Zhu Wenhao neatly organized the dozen or so forms.

Through the glass window of the conference room, he saw a figure in the corridor outside.

It was a middle-aged man in his fifties, wearing a navy blue jacket, with his hands behind his back, peering inside through the glass.

This person was the Town Peoples Congress Chairman Zhang Jianming, Zhang Jianming.

Zhu Wenhao noticed a detail.

The few Heishui Village villagers who had just finished submitting their forms and were preparing to leave happened to run into Zhang Jianming in the corridor. Their eyes met for a split second. One villager even lowered his head in a submissive posture.

It wasn't the polite interaction between cadres and the masses; it was the awe of a subordinate toward a superior, carrying a hint of hierarchy within the clan.

The Zhang Clan of Heishui Village. The Town Peoples Congress Chairman Zhang Jianming, Zhang Jianming.

The grass snakes and gray lines were hidden in silence.

Zhu Wenhao retracted his gaze.

He tapped the folder on the desk to align the papers.

"Director Zhou," Zhu Wenhao picked up the folder and handed it to Director Zhou Mei.

"Make two copies of today's records. Keep the copies for me, and take the originals to the Petitions Office to be filed."

He raised his voice, loud enough to pass through the open door and into the corridor.

"This file will be for the Municipal Party Committee and the County Party Committee to see in the future," Zhu Wenhao's words were sharp as the wind. "It is not for some clan elder or some cadre in the town to see. Whoever dares to tamper with this file will have their official hat removed!"

Zhang Jianming outside the door stiffened, and he lowered the hands he had behind his back. He did not enter the room to greet them, but turned and walked away quickly, his back carrying a hint of panic.

A mass incident that was on the verge of spiraling out of control had calmed down in less than an hour.

No shots were fired, and not a penny was spent.

Instead, they had collected over a dozen pieces of ironclad evidence of land compensation in Heishui Village.

Director Zhou Mei held the folder, her palms covered in sweat.

She had worked in the Town Government for several years and had seen Secretary Qiu Dehai's tai chi evasions and Mayor Luo Xingbang's tendency to avoid the important and dwell on the trivial.

The twenty-four-year-old Deputy Secretary before her had methods completely different from ordinary people.

Two o'clock in the afternoon.

The Town Government compound had returned to its usual peace.

Police Chief Zhao Gang left two police officers on duty in the guard room and followed Zhu Wenhao into the office.

"Zhu Wenhao, that was a beautiful move," Police Chief Zhao Gang poured himself a glass of water. "Those troublemakers had their IDs registered, so they'll have reservations about inciting villagers in the future."

Zhu Wenhao stood by the window, looking outside.

"It treats the symptoms, not the root cause," Zhu Wenhao turned around. "This is just the first move; it only stabilizes the footing."

He walked behind his desk and sat down.

"The Zhang Clan of Heishui Village dares to intercept land compensation funds so blatantly; where does their confidence come from?" Zhu Wenhao tapped the copied meeting minutes.

"Because that compensation fund never went through the formal financial direct payment channel from the start. Instead, it went through the Town Government and was transferred to the public account of some cooperative or village committee."

Police Chief Zhao Gang nodded: "A common path for money laundering."

"Town Peoples Congress Chairman Zhang Jianming, Zhang Jianming—have someone investigate him," Zhu Wenhao instructed. "Focus on checking his social connections and how deep his involvement with the Zhang Clan of Heishui Village really is."

"Zhang Jianming?" Police Chief Zhao Gang thought for a moment. "Okay, I'll let San Qiang handle it. That kid is best at digging into people's backgrounds."

"The clan values face. We embarrassed them today, and they won't just let it go."

Police Chief Zhao Gang put down his water cup: "If they dare to cause trouble, I'll take my men and crush them."

"Don't be reckless," Zhu Wenhao waved his hand. "The clan forces can take root in the countryside because of blood ties and the mentality that the law won't punish the masses."

"What we need to do is divide them."

"The 'Order to Extend Favors' is the best open strategy to disintegrate clans. Go and find out which surnames other than Zhang are in Heishui Village. Within the Zhang Clan, find out which branch members are being suppressed and not receiving benefits."

"Find these people," Zhu Wenhao pushed the white paper to Police Chief Zhao Gang.

"Turn them into our people. Go."

Police Chief Zhao Gang nodded and walked out of the office.

Before long, Director Zhou Mei knocked on the door.

"Secretary Zhu, the Town Party Member and Cadre Integrity Education Meeting is about to start, and the attendees have all arrived."

Zhu Wenhao stood up and straightened his collar.

He walked out of the office and headed toward the large conference room.

His pace was steady, neither hurried nor slow.