Chapter Seventy: Provocation at the Tobacco Station

  All cadres and staff in the district know that Xu Shaojie has a girlfriend, and his girlfriend is very beautiful and outstanding. She works in the public security agency in the provincial capital. Everyone envies him at the same time, but also can't help but suspect this relationship. Maybe she was his university girlfriend? What will happen next is still unknown.

  Xu Shaojie did not make any explanation, nor did he mention this matter. Deep down, Xu Shaojie did not identify with Tang Wanrou. The gap between the two was still quite large. Judging from Tang Wanrou's personality and behavior, her father's position would definitely not be lower than Zheng Yuxin's father, and even not lower than Liu Hong's father.

  After March, the most important work in Yulin Township is tobacco seedling cultivation. This link is very critical, and the quality of tobacco seeds directly determines the quality of tobacco. At this time, the work of township government officials is extremely hard, not only to inspect tobacco seedling cultivation but also to go door-to-door to persuade farmers to plant tobacco.

  Zhao Deli once said that township government officials have always been "turtle grandsons" in the development of tobacco, and their performance at this time is the most prominent. Of course, some regions take compulsory measures, which exist in Yudu District. However, after an incident last year where a farmer's wheat seedlings were forcibly removed from his field to plant tobacco, leading to the farmer's suicide by drinking pesticide, the actions of local officials have been greatly restrained.

  Farmers are very poor and can hardly make any income from their fields. Although planting tobacco is looked down upon, especially when selling it, it is still much better than planting grain. At least they can earn some cash, whereas the price of grain is pitifully low.

  Xu Shaojie also entered the village to do work, and all cadres in the district could not be exempted, including those from the station. Tobacco planting is related to the district's financial revenue, so it cannot be neglected. As Yudu District, which mainly relies on tobacco income, it has always been a political task to implement tobacco planting area. The township government's cadres are not many, and they are assigned to 12 villages, with very thin forces. In addition to the village cadres, every day from morning till night, they enter farmers' homes, household by household, to implement and record tobacco planting areas. It is not ordinary hard work. After a day, I don't know how many words were said, some of which are clearly insincere, but still have to be said. Farmers selling tobacco are also under pressure, taking this opportunity to vent their frustrations, and all cadres must listen, although it has nothing much to do with the cadres themselves.

  Half a month has passed, and the work is almost done. Some villages have already started to tidy up the tobacco fields. Tobacco fields have requirements, needing flat land, deep plowing, and ridging. The time for transplanting is generally from April to May. There's a common saying in rural areas: "Don't plant June tobacco." Transplanting requires covering with plastic film. The weather from April to May is very bad, with plenty of rain, so it's essential to seize the time when the weather is clear to start transplanting tobacco seedlings. You mustn't be lazy; otherwise, you'll have no choice but to plant June tobacco, which will significantly affect the quality and grade of the tobacco leaves.

  Seeing that the work was almost done, Xu Shaojie and Zhao Deli, Dong Guihua discussed, letting the cadres rest for a day. Even iron bodies need to rest, and metal also has times of fatigue. Although the district committee repeatedly required doing a good job, during this period, never mentioning vacation things, but Xu Shaojie didn't think so, work and rest combined is the right reason. Zhao Deli and Dong Guihua were hesitant, last time the city tobacco company leaders came to inspect the tobacco leaf procurement point's work, it was because they didn't see the township government cadres, so some things happened, this time will they encounter problems again? Xu Shaojie considered for a moment, thinking that the two people's worries were also reasonable, and then discussed, resting in batches, arranging good times, after three people deliberated, they set three batches, each batch taking a day off, Zhao Deli and Dong Guihua rested on the last batch.

  Xu Shaojie didn't rest, he wasn't very familiar with the cultivation of White Rib tobacco. When he went to do the work and understand the situation, he found out that planting tobacco requires labor. One mu (about 0.0667 hectares) of White Rib tobacco can sell for over 300 yuan per year, exceeding 400 yuan is a miracle, most are just over 100 yuan, and 200 yuan or more is still considered good. A household that plants several mu of tobacco will still have some money to use after a year. The investment in tobacco planting is not small, one mu of land requires an investment of around 30-50 yuan, mostly for plastic film and fertilizer. The tobacco station provides the plastic film and fertilizer, which will be deducted from the cost when purchasing the tobacco leaves. Nowadays, farmers are easily satisfied as long as the purchase of tobacco leaves is slightly fair, but in reality, it's not that simple.

  It was a coincidence that when Zhao Deli and Dong Guihua were resting, the manager of the Municipal Tobacco Company came to Yudu District to inspect the tobacco planting and development work.

  As usual, such inspections should be notified in advance, and the district government will make corresponding arrangements, and the lower levels will make certain preparations. In the past, it was always done this way, but this year's situation is very strange, and the district government did not make any arrangements. When the manager of the tobacco company arrived at the Yulin Township Government, Xu Shaojie was still investigating in Huolong Village and had no idea.

  Zhang Shi-kui and Huang Zhan-chang, the director of the tobacco station, accompanied the manager into the township government. However, they did not see anyone come to greet them, which immediately made Huang's brow furrow. The tobacco station was located in a very special position between the district and town stations. Due to its importance, the leaders of the district committee and district government had always attached great importance to it. Generally, the director of the tobacco station only looked up to the district party secretary and district head, and did not even bother to look at other district committee and government leaders with a straight face. The tobacco station also had another special aspect - it belonged to a vertical unit, with organizational relationships, salary relationships, and personnel relationships all managed by the superior tobacco department, which was beyond local jurisdiction. The director of the tobacco station was directly appointed by the municipal tobacco company. Therefore, when Huang did not see Zhao De-li and Dong Gui-hua from Yulin Township, he felt angry in his heart.

  The duty officer was Liu Mu, the deputy secretary of the township party committee. Liu Mu saw the manager of the municipal tobacco company enter with Zhang Shi and Huang Zhan, and instinctively felt that something was wrong, as the township government had not received any notification of a superior inspection. In a very short time, Liu Mu made a decision, without thinking that this decision would put Xu Shaojie in a passive situation and also make Zhao Deli directly accept punishment.

  "Where have Secretary Liu, Secretary Zhao and Mayor Dong gone?"

  "Director Zhang, they went down to the village to inspect the tobacco seedling situation."

  "Oh, which village did you specifically go to check?"

  "I'm not too clear, Secretary Zhao and Township Head Dong are in charge of the work for the whole township, often going to different villages to check on the situation, I don't know which village they went to today."

  Zhang Shikui's face was very solemn, and Liu Mu felt that something was not right. Rural work sometimes cannot be taken too seriously, just like the tobacco planting area, the target number issued by the district committee and government is very large, and the allocated numbers to the township are also not small. When reporting, each township has completed development and planting.

  The area is, but when it comes to tobacco leaf procurement, the situation may not be the same. Tobacco leaves are lost, damaged, and cannot be counted in detail. Even if we talk about development areas, land is scattered, and no one will go from household to household to count and verify planting areas. Long-term grassroots cadres know this situation, and sometimes when superiors come for inspection, they also can't be too serious.

  "Secretary Liu, since you said that, Secretaries Zhao and Dong have a strong sense of work responsibility. Today, the manager of the Municipal Tobacco Company came to our place for inspection, and the leaders saw our cadres working so hard, they must be very happy. Secretary Liu, don't you really know which village they went to? The leader of the Municipal Tobacco Company wants to talk to them."

  "I really don't know."

  Zhang Shi-kui's tone made Liu Mu feel that something was not quite right. In the past, Zhang Shi-kui had inspected work and knew about the situation below, knowing that they were just going through the motions and wouldn't take it too seriously, especially when superiors came to inspect their work. But today, Zhang Shi-kui seemed to be grasping at this matter.

  "Huang Zhan Chang, let the technical staff go to each village in Yulin Township to take a look and implement it. Secretary Zhao and Mayor Dong are guiding in the village, working very hard. Your technical staff must assist more, developing tobacco is a big thing."

  After finishing, Zhang Shiqiu reported to the manager of the tobacco company in a low voice. The manager nodded while listening, and the group did not stay at the township government but left directly. Huang Zhan Chang was the last to leave, and before leaving, he coldly said a few words to Liu Mu.

  "Director Liu, I haven't had a chance to congratulate you on your promotion yet. Today our technicians will go to 12 villages in Yulin Township to learn from Secretary Zhao and Mayor Dong. Hopefully they can find them."

  The car started, and Liu Mu was already stunned. A vague premonition came, and since the beginning of the year, there have been some bad omens. First, the commendation in Yulin Township fell through, followed by the bloody case in Huolong Village. Liu Zhihua mentioned it several times at relevant meetings, emphasizing social security issues. Today, he came to inspect the tobacco development work with such a serious attitude. According to the Municipal Tobacco Company's leadership, Zhang Shikui shouldn't have been like this.

  Liu Mu vaguely felt that he might have done something wrong, but there was no way to make up for it. Today, Zhao Deli and Dong Guihua were both on leave. If the truth be told, the problem would be very serious. Liu Mu hadn't fully recovered from his daze yet. He instructed another cadre who was on duty with him and hastily left the township government, heading towards Huolong Village. This matter had to be reported to Xu Shaojie as soon as possible, at least so that Xu Shaojie could mentally prepare himself.

  Liu Mu was still reporting to Xu Shaojie when something happened at the district committee and government.

  After the leaders of the Municipal Tobacco Company finished their meal and left Yudu District, Zhang Shikui reported to Liu Zhihua on the inspection situation. Then, Huang Zhanzhang from the tobacco station began to add oil and vinegar to report on the situation in Yulin Township. He said that Zhao Deli and Dong Guihua of Yulin Township were both resting. At this critical moment, the secretary and township head were resting, while the higher-level leaders came down to inspect the work. Moreover, Liu Mu, the deputy secretary of the township party committee, lied in front of many leaders, saying that Zhao Deli and Dong Guihua were inspecting work in the village. The technical personnel from the tobacco station found people at their homes respectively, and Zhao Deli and Dong Guihua both admitted that they were resting at home today.

  Liu Zhihua flew into a rage.

  Liu Zhihua's confidence has increased significantly. Xu Yunfei has become the mayor, and county officials are no match for him now. Xu Shaojie has connections in Huaiyang City, but his background is not as strong as Liu Zhihua's. Xu Yunfei is the mayor of Huainan City and has been increasingly supportive of Liu Zhihua. Xu Shaojie has just started working and doesn't have any special background. His file has been reviewed by Liu Zhihua, and there are no notable figures in his family. It's possible that some leader said a few words, and he got lucky. This kind of situation where someone relies on others' influence is not new to Liu Zhihua. Therefore, Liu Zhihua's attitude has changed since last year, and he will no longer tolerate Xu Shaojie. With such a good opportunity now, Liu Zhihua won't let it slip away.

  "Damn it, this is still a Communist Party cadre? Deceiving the top and fooling the bottom, what kind of work are you doing? Director Zhang, notify the several secretaries at home, we will hold a meeting immediately to study the handling method. I don't believe it, Yulin Township has turned upside down."

  It so happened that except for Xu Shaojie, all the other deputy secretaries were in the district office, and thus a secretary's office meeting without Xu Shaojie was convened.

  Xu Shaojie initially didn't think much of it, as his superiors came to inspect their work, which wasn't a big deal. However, when Zhao Deli and Dong Guihua arrived at Huolong Village, saying they were going to ask the tobacco station's technical personnel about the situation, Xu Shaojie felt that something was off. From all angles, it seemed like everything had been planned out, as if by coincidence. Moreover, Zhang Shiqiu's actions were very unusual. In rural work, what matters is the effect, and the process is just a bunch of empty words. If the final result isn't good, then it's pointless. But now, people are focusing on the process, engaging in formalism, and nobody really cares about the outcome anymore.

  Song Tao rushed to Huolong Village and told Xu Shaojie that the district committee was holding a secretary's office meeting, and the whole district government had spread the news. The secretary and township head of Yulin Township were resting at home at the critical moment of developing and implementing tobacco leaf area, and the deputy secretary who was on duty at the township government lied in front of the leaders of the municipal tobacco company. Now the district is studying ways to deal with it.

  Xu Shaojie was greatly surprised, the matter was too sudden, he had not thought of a way to respond. Liu Zhihua convened a secretary's office meeting at this time, and it was held when Xu Shaojie was not in the district government office. He didn't need to think about how to deal with it, Xu Shaojie knew the result wouldn't be good. The key was that things were difficult, originally taking a day off for rest wasn't a big problem, just discussing this matter at the meeting, and he could also explain himself. After working continuously for half a month, taking a day off to rest was also for better work arrangements. Liu Zhihua couldn't say no to resting, as long as it didn't affect work. Moreover, when higher-level leaders came to inspect work, the office should notify in advance so that everyone could prepare. But Liu Zhuo's answer gave Xu Shaojie a headache. Xu Shaojie knew that if it weren't for Liu Zhuo's answer, things wouldn't have developed to this point. However, Liu Zhuo was kind-hearted and made judgments based on years of rural work experience, so he couldn't be said to be wrong. At the time, the leader of the city tobacco company was present, and Liu Zhuo told the truth, which had an even worse impact.

  Xu Shaojie had already been convinced through a brief analysis that this was a well-planned conspiracy, the reason being simple: it was time to take action against his own trusted confidants. Among them, Zhao Deli and Dong Guihua were the secretary and township head, although they didn't have much authority, but they were still in charge. First, they would target them, and next would be himself. Xu Shaojie had thought about it before, but he hadn't expected Liu Zhihua to make his move so quickly, seizing the opportunity so swiftly. This time, there was really going to be trouble.

  Xu Shaojie fell into deep thought.