Absolute power in officialdom

Chapter 342 Mengde's Comprehensive Symptoms

Lu Xinghua recommended Fang Cheng, firstly because Fang Cheng was already very outstanding, and secondly because he had a good relationship with Fang Cheng.

Seeing that Wu Zhiyuan was interested in Fang Cheng, he pressed his advantage: "County Chief Wu, I have a suggestion, but I don't know if it's appropriate."

Next week, the provincial on-site meeting on agricultural mechanization and agricultural machinery safety supervision will be held in our county.

The county government office is currently preparing for this work, and the timeframe is tight with a heavy workload.

As is customary, when faced with such large-scale events, key personnel are drawn from other units to provide assistance.

We could consider transferring Fang Cheng over here, so County Chief Wu can observe him closely.

If it works out, we'll find an opportunity to formally transfer him later.

If it doesn't work, it won't affect you or the other party much.

Lü Xinghua was not only well-informed, but also adept at devising strategies.

Wu Zhiyuan increasingly felt that he needed someone like this by his side.

"Xinghua, your suggestion is excellent." Wu Zhiyuan suddenly recalled the situation of Yu Jinxing, the former county head who had been taken away by the Longcheng City Discipline Inspection Commission. "I heard that Yu Jinxing was set up?"

"Yes, County Chief Wu, there are many rumors in Qingyan County about Yu Jinxing's accident."

To be fair, Jin Xing is ambitious and capable, but she gets caught up in a power struggle with Secretary Yuan Jin.

Secretary Yuan Jin was too controlling and interfered too much with the county government, while Yu Jinxing didn't want to be held back by him, leading to a major conflict between the two.

To be fair, Jin Xing cannot be considered a corrupt official.

I heard that the disciplinary committee ultimately determined the amount to be only a little over one million yuan.

Whether this sum of over one million can pass through the courts is still hard to say.

Let alone a county magistrate, even a township magistrate can easily collect a million or so yuan these days.

Moreover, it has only amounted to a little over a million over the years, and I have heard that Yu Jinxing does not agree with some key issues.

I worked at the county discipline inspection commission for many years and know many people from the municipal discipline inspection commission.

I heard from them privately that of Yu Jinxing's more than one million yuan, the main part involved a property in Jiangzhou.

Yu Jinxing's insistence on denying it is indeed reasonable.

Wu Zhiyuan was very interested: "Oh, tell me about it."

"That house cost around 1.4 million."

The disciplinary committee's investigation determined that the purchase contract was signed in the name of Yu Jinxing's brother-in-law, but the payment came from the owner of a construction company in Qingyan.

From the perspective of fund flow, this constitutes a transfer of benefits, and logically, it is reasonable to conclude that Jin Xing received bribes through specific intermediaries.

Wu Zhiyuan asked, "Why is Yu Jinxing protesting her innocence?"

Yu Jinxing insisted that he did not know that his brother-in-law had bought a house in Jiangzhou, let alone that the money for the house came from the boss.

He said that his brother-in-law had gone into business in his early years and had some savings, so it was perfectly reasonable for him to buy a house in Jiangzhou.

Moreover, his brother-in-law and the boss were high school classmates and had a good personal relationship. The boss lending money or helping with cash flow was a matter of personal friendship.

Yu Jinxing admitted that he had neglected to discipline his relatives, but firmly denied that he had instructed or been aware of the specific real estate transaction.

He even offered to personally raise the money to return the house purchase price, along with interest, to the landlord to prove his innocence.

Wu Zhiyuan frowned and said, "Why would that boss provide the money for Yu Jinxing's brother-in-law's house purchase? Is it just because they are classmates? That doesn't seem to make sense."

Did Yu Jinxing seek personal gain for that boss?

Lu Xinghua nodded and said, "Yes, so the Discipline Inspection Commission believes that Yu Jinxing is making excuses and trying to sever his personal economic ties with his relatives."

That boss did indeed win some bids for projects in Qingyan County, including county town roads and township health center outpatient buildings.

The disciplinary committee's investigation revealed that Yu Jinxing had made phone calls to leaders of relevant departments, requesting preferential treatment.

But County Chief Wu's phone call wasn't a written approval. If it wasn't recorded, there would be no evidence; we could only rely on the statements of the parties involved.

The relevant department leaders admitted that Yu Jinxing made the phone call.

However, Yu Jinxing denied it, saying that the phone call was to discuss normal work.

In my opinion, it's understandable that Yu Jinxing would call the relevant department leaders to plead on his behalf, out of consideration for his brother-in-law.

This construction company has the proper qualifications and followed the normal bidding process.

Wu Zhiyuan continued, "The Discipline Inspection Commission emphasizes the chain of evidence in handling cases. The current situation is that the transfer path of real estate funds is clear and the destination is obvious."

Yu Jinxing made phone calls to construction companies to put in a good word, which has been confirmed by some of the parties involved.

Each of these two events may have room for interpretation when viewed individually, but when considered together, especially in terms of their temporal relationship, they are interconnected.

The act of making prior arrangements, followed by the gift of real estate to the relatives, constitutes a relatively complete and logically sound chain of power-money transactions.

The disciplinary commission's finding that Yu Jinxing accepted bribes through a person with a special relationship is also plausible.

Lü Xinghua said, "But this is also where Jin Xing's grievance lies."

He said that he called to inquire about those projects because the county was focusing on the progress and quality of the projects at the time. As the county head, it was perfectly normal for him to routinely supervise and inquire about the progress of key projects, and he had inquired about more than just that one company.

Whether the phone call implied any special consideration or not depends entirely on how the person answering the call interprets it.

He said he never explicitly asked for any violations.

The company's qualifications and bid did meet the requirements, and the final decision on the winning bid was made by the bid evaluation committee.

He believes that the disciplinary committee forcibly linked his normal performance of duties with economic problems of his relatives that he was completely unaware of, thus constituting a presumption of guilt.

Wu Zhiyuan smiled slightly: "This is a Rashomon-like situation, with each side sticking to its own version of events."

I agree with your point that Yu Jinxing did indeed hint to the relevant department leaders that they should take care of the construction company owner.

However, how to interpret it is controversial.

Even the most tactless leader wouldn't directly ask relevant department leaders for favors; they'd usually phrase it tactfully and leave it at that.

Lu Xinghua wholeheartedly agreed: "County Chief Wu, you are absolutely right!"

The leader's inquiries and hints are often hidden in these seemingly ordinary work exchanges.

A simple statement like "Take a look into the situation of Company X," or "Under the same conditions, we should support more high-quality local enterprises," or even a more subtle statement like "This project is very important, so we need to choose a reliable and capable team," carries vastly different weight depending on who hears it.

Subordinates who receive the call will naturally try to figure out their leader's true intentions, preferring to believe it's true.

Yu Jinxing can now argue that he was merely speaking generally, emphasizing project quality and progress, and didn't mean anything particularly special.

"What did the boss and Yu Jinxing's brother-in-law say?"

"The boss said that he provided the money for Yu Jinxing's brother-in-law to buy a house mainly because Yu Jinxing had helped him win several bids for projects before."

Moreover, Yu Jinxing is the county magistrate, and there will be many things that need to be done for him in the future.

When Yu Jinxing's brother-in-law said he wanted to buy a house but didn't have the money, he offered to pay for it.

The boss's testimony was key evidence that led to the investigation of Jin Xing.

Yu Jinxing's brother-in-law said it was a loan, and that he and the boss were high school classmates.

However, no IOU was written at the time; he only rushed to write one after Yu Jinxing was arrested.

Wu Zhiyuan was too lazy to think about the Rashomon-like situation of whether Yu Jinxing or the Discipline Inspection Commission was more in the right.

Yu Jinxing made at least two mistakes: First, she failed to properly restrain those around her, allowing relatives to use her name to conduct activities outside;

Secondly, in engineering projects, he may have indeed skirted the rules and given some preferential treatment, even if he himself thought it was just normal work communication.

These two mistakes, if seized upon in a specific context and combined with that house, would be enough to bring him to ruin.

But one thing is certain: Yu Jinxing really cannot be considered a corrupt official.

As Lin Xue said, some village officials were involved in cases involving millions of yuan.

If it weren't for the infighting between Yu Jinxing and Yuan Jin, the Discipline Inspection Commission would generally not have filed a case for this amount of money; at most, they would have simply returned the money, dismissed the county head, and given him a disciplinary punishment.

The disciplinary committee must also consider the costs involved in handling cases.

Setting up a special task force would require at least twenty or thirty people. Even setting aside the investigation itself, just having two people working in shifts around the clock to watch over the detained officials would require a lot of manpower.

Dozens of people spent several months on accommodation and travel allowances, which could amount to one or two million yuan. In the end, it was found that the cost was over one million yuan, which was not even enough to cover the expenses.

The key issue is that many larger cases lack manpower.

Generally speaking, if the amount involved is less than two million yuan, the case will usually not be filed. The money will be handed over and a disciplinary action will be taken.

Of course, just like the case of Yu Jinxing, if the disciplinary committee keeps a close eye on it, filing a case would be entirely justified.

"Xinghua, what caused Yu Jinxing's misdeeds to be exposed?"

"Because of women. I don't think Yu Jinxing is a corrupt official, but he is lecherous and particularly fond of other men's wives."

There's a popular saying that Venus possesses all the characteristics of Cao Cao (the founder of the Ming Dynasty).

Wu Zhiyuan was taken aback: "Mengde's comprehensive syndrome?"

Lü Xinghua laughed and said, "He has the same quirks as Cao Cao, also known as Cao Mengde."