Absolute power in officialdom

Chapter 294 The Conscience of Officials

Yin Xueyao lowered her head, her heart filled with turmoil.

She had considered divorce; such a marriage, existing in name only, was actually meaningless.

She was just clinging to a sliver of hope, fantasizing that her husband would get tired of playing around and come home one day.

However, she also knew that the probability of this was even smaller than the probability of Mars colliding with Earth.

Wu Zhiyuan pressed his advantage: "Sister Yin, actually, I personally think you should take the second path."

Logically speaking, I shouldn't advise you to divorce your husband, but to be honest, if a marriage has reached this point, forcibly maintaining the relationship is just self-deception.

If you and your husband divorce, you have the right to pursue happiness.

To put it another way, no one can interfere with you being with A-Yu.

Of course, if you don't want a divorce, you can take the first option.

Secretary Lin has worked in discipline inspection for so many years, and he can clearly distinguish right from wrong.

You were coerced, and you took the initiative to stand up and expose the shady dealings. We will never hold this minor matter of your lifestyle against you.

Even if you receive a punishment, it will be the lightest possible one and won't affect your fundamental character.

Yin Xueyao finally made up her mind: "I'll listen to you and choose the second path."

Since you call me "elder sister," I won't call you County Chief Wu anymore; I'll just call you Zhiyuan.

Over the years, I've been clinging to an empty marriage, turning myself into a lonely island.

I always thought I should be patient and wait until he'd had enough fun and got tired, then he'd come back.

But now I understand that some people's hearts have long since left this home, and you can wait a lifetime, but they will never come back.

Yin Xueyao wiped away her tears with a tissue and then smiled through her tears: "I feel relieved now that we're divorced."

I'm fifty years old. I shouldn't have to pay for other people's mistakes anymore, and I shouldn't have to suffer for a marriage that's already dead.

I am a woman, and I have the right to pursue warmth and sincerity with dignity.

Wu Zhiyuan nodded: "Sister Yin, it's more important that you can understand this."

Once the divorce is finalized, the videos in Bi Yuan's possession will no longer be able to hold you hostage.

If they dare to distribute it, it constitutes the dissemination of obscene materials, a criminal offense. We can easily put them in jail.

"Zhiyuan, now that you say that, I feel even more confident."

I'm taking the day off tomorrow to go through the divorce proceedings with my husband.

Actually, he had wanted to divorce me for a long time, but I had always disagreed.

He'd be ecstatic if I suddenly agreed to a divorce.

According to Jiang Xiaoli's plan, the investigation report will be formally completed the day after tomorrow, and everyone will have to sign and confirm it.

"Sister Yin, once you complete the divorce proceedings tomorrow, you'll have completely eliminated Bi Yuan's biggest bargaining chip."

The signing ceremony the day after tomorrow will be your perfect opportunity to retaliate.

"Zhiyuan, I understand. I will continue to play along until I sign the contract."

By the way, should I speak with Zhou Guohua alone?

Although he was timid, he still had a conscience.

I'll give him a heads-up first, telling him that I've already gone all in and that I have Secretary Lin Xue backing me up, so he knows I'm not taking the fall alone.

Moreover, I know that Zhou Guohua actually obtained a lot of first-hand information during the investigation.

These documents provide strong evidence of the quality of the bridge project.

However, Jiang Xiaoli spoke with him privately and asked him to write about the bridge collapse being due to force majeure.

"Oh, and there's that third-party testing agency, the one that tests the extracted concrete and steel bars. The person in charge is a friend of Bi Yuan. What kind of independence or impartiality can such a testing agency possibly have?"

Wu Zhiyuan was not surprised by the information Yin Xueyao revealed.

The investigation report must include the testing results to prove that there are no problems with the quality of the project. Therefore, the tests on building materials such as concrete and steel bars must be qualified.

In fact, the bridge was a shoddy construction project, and the building materials were definitely substandard. To issue a certificate of conformity, it was necessary to falsify the documents.

"Sister Yin, which testing company sent the sample for testing this time?"

"Longcheng Chengjian Engineering Quality Testing Co., Ltd., the boss is called Feng Dayou."

Feng Dayou used to work in engineering, and he was in the same industry as Bi Yuan. Later, he started this testing company.

Feng Dayou is driven by profit; he'll issue any false report as long as he's paid.

The concrete core samples and steel bar samples tested this time were not randomly selected from the collapse site. They were qualified materials prepared in advance by Bi Yuan and then switched and sent over.

Feng Dayou turned a blind eye and issued a qualified test report directly, which became their key pretext for classifying the accident as force majeure.

"Sister Yin, this is probably an unspoken rule in the industry. It's not just Bi Yuan who does this."

Wu Zhiyuan is not surprised by the falsification of test results.

Many construction projects, including residential buildings, are done this way.

Just like the foreign Spiderman who successfully climbed a tall building without any protection, some people joked that if he had climbed it in China, he might have fallen to his death long ago.

Because many residential buildings in China cut corners on their exterior wall insulation and curtain wall framing, it's no wonder they can't hold their structures firmly.

"Zhiyuan, it's clear you're very knowledgeable about the construction industry. That's true."

Construction quality and food safety are both long-standing and difficult problems.

For example, in construction projects, there are various standards, regulations, and systems, but shoddy workmanship, substandard materials, and data falsification are rampant.

From bridge and bridge infrastructure to residential buildings, from the grade of steel and cement to the materials used for exterior wall insulation and the welding of curtain wall keel, there are many quality problems, and supervision is practically non-existent.

The same applies to food safety. Excessive additives, counterfeit ingredients, and mass-produced falsified test reports allow businesses to reap huge profits, while ordinary people ultimately pay the price for their health and lives.

"Sister Yin, I completely agree with what you said."

I suddenly realized that the false test report issued by Feng Dayou's company is just a self-deception.

The key question is, is anyone willing to take this seriously? Because retesting is not difficult at all.

The wreckage of the collapsed bridge is still piled up at the site and cannot be cleared away in a short time.

Those broken concrete cores and rusted, deformed steel bars are living evidence, which Bi Yuan cannot simply erase by replacing a few qualified samples.

Wu Zhiyuan paused for a moment, then continued, "The amount of debris at the scene is so large, and the concrete pouring texture, steel bar grade, and welding process are all in their original state."

If we switch to an authoritative, independent third-party testing agency, conduct random on-site sampling, and record and seal the entire process, Feng Dayou's fabricated report will be exposed in no time.

The difficulty has never been in the technical testing itself, but rather in whether anyone dares to take it seriously and whether anyone can withstand the pressure.

Yin Xueyao's eyes lit up: "Zhiyuan, what you said hit the nail on the head!"

As long as the wreckage remains at the scene, the irrefutable evidence will stick, and Feng Dayou's false report will be nothing but a piece of waste paper!

Wu Zhiyuan shared his thoughts: "Sister Yin, why don't you talk to Zhou Guohua privately and try to get him on our side?"

One of you is the deputy head of the investigation team, and the other is an industry authority. If you both refuse to sign the report and publicly question its scientific validity and impartiality, the report will not be effective.

I will report to Secretary Lin immediately, and then Secretary Lin can officially intervene and supervise the case on the grounds that the investigation procedure was irregular, key evidence was questionable, and the public reaction was strong, and start a new investigation procedure in a legitimate and justifiable manner, so that no one can find fault with it.

Conversely, if none of you speak up, and Secretary Lin intervenes, Mayor Wen will say she's overstepping her bounds.

Yin Xueyao was moved: "Zhiyuan, you're absolutely right!"

If Zhou Guohua and I jointly refuse to sign, this report will become a waste of time and will not pass the review process. Jiang Xiaoli will not be able to cover it up.

When the time comes, Secretary Lin will intervene, which will be based on both legal grounds and public opinion. Even if Mayor Wen is inclined to favor him, he will not dare to openly step forward to obstruct him.

I'll try to talk to Zhou Guohua privately tonight.

I believe he is a person with a conscience, otherwise he wouldn't have complained to me privately.

I want him to know that he is not fighting alone, that I am leading the way, and that the organization is there to support him.

He was an authority in the city's construction quality field; the moment he spoke, the weight of the criticism increased tenfold, and no one could easily dismiss it.

……

The investigation team held its final meeting.

The main task of this meeting was for all members of the investigation team to sign the investigation report, which would then be finalized before heading back to report to the municipal party committee and government.

Jiang Xiaoli chaired the meeting: "After days of hard work by all members of the investigation team, and with the strong cooperation of the Qingshan County Party Committee and County Government, we have finally completed this final investigation report on the technical causes of the Wanshan Bridge collapse."

The report details the meteorological, hydrological, and geological background of the accident, provides a comprehensive and objective analysis of all aspects of the project, including design, construction, supervision, and material testing, and draws scientific and rigorous conclusions.

This report embodies the hard work of everyone involved and reflects the high importance the municipal Party committee and government attached to this accident, as well as their pragmatic, scientific, and rigorous work attitude.

He paused, then continued, "Now, according to procedure, please sign the report to confirm."

This is both the final recognition of our previous work and a solemn commitment we have made to the municipal party committee and government, to the people of Qingshan County, and to history.

Please review and sign this document with an attitude of being responsible to the facts, to the organization, and to the people.

After speaking, he took the lead in picking up a pen and signed his name in a flowing, elegant style on the last page of the report, in the column for the head of the investigation team. His movements were smooth and fluid, completed in one go.

Seeing this, the other group members also picked up pens and began signing their names.

Yin Xueyao did not sign, and Zhou Guohua kept watching her.

He had thought it through before the meeting.

If Yin Xueyao signs, he will definitely sign.

If Yin Xueyao doesn't sign, he won't sign either.

Jiang Xiaoli reminded Yin Xueyao: "Comrade Xueyao, it's your turn."

After signing the papers, our trip to Qingshan can now come to a perfect end.

Yin Xueyao refused to sign, coldly stating, "I cannot sign this! This is about being responsible for the facts, for the organization, and for the four lives lost!"

Jiang Xiaoli was stunned; she hadn't expected Yin Xueyao to pull this stunt.

He couldn't help but get angry, and his tone became more forceful: "Can't I sign? Comrade Xueyao, what do you mean by this?"

The report is the result of collective discussion and expert review by the investigation team; it is a scientific and objective conclusion! What reason do you have not to sign it?

Yin Xueyao did not back down and said, word by word, "My reason is very simple! I believe that the core conclusion of this report on the cause of the accident, namely that the accident was mainly caused by force majeure natural factors, lacks sufficient evidence to support it."

In particular, the independence and impartiality of the sampling procedures and testing processes in the third-party testing report, which is one of the key pieces of evidence, are highly questionable!