Chapter 29 Someone Came to Visit

  The office of Yuan Weihua, head of Xinqiao District.

  Due to Chen Gong's refusal to back down, Wang Guoqiang's brother-in-law Liu Yadong was increasingly harsh on him. Adding the unspoken implication of District Director Yuan Weihua's private room incident, both men had basically reached a consensus in their attitude towards Chen Gong - they absolutely could not let him jump even higher.

  "Yuan District, this Chen Gong really has some connections, he actually managed to get funds for infrastructure construction from the Provincial Transportation Department again. The district leaders all know about it, this kid is really showing off." Liu Yadong said so, trying to stir up Yuan Weihua's discontent.

  "Yes, good luck, knowing to surround Wei and rescue Zhao, thinking of other ways to make money, clever. However, clever people generally don't have much development, a big tree attracts wind. Director Liu, it seems we need to think of a way to deal with him, or he will be truly arrogant." Yuan Weihua also seemed to be jealous.

  "Alright, Yuanqu, I'll think of a plan and report back to you when the time is ripe."

  The two of them stood on the same starting line from then on.

  In the letters and visits office of Qinghe Town, a staff member was receiving a woman in her 40s. The woman was tall, with small eyes and short hair, giving off an evil aura from her body. "Look, this agreement is written clearly in black and white, 10 mu of land, 70,000 yuan per mu. This is the receipt for the 700,000 yuan I paid."

  The staff are really helpless, this agreement was signed in 2001, it has been 12 years since now in 2013. The people in the town have come and gone, some retired, some transferred, who knows what happened back then. "Sister, don't get agitated, as long as it's valid, our government will definitely recognize it."

  "Then you say, find who? Forget it, as a staff member, you can't make decisions. I'll go find your town head." After finishing speaking, he turned around and was about to walk upstairs.

  "Stop it, big sister, we have to follow the procedure." The staff member was really afraid that he would go find their leader, and if the leader found out, they would blame themselves for not handling even this small matter properly.

  "What did you say? What should I do? Who should I look for? I'll go right away." The woman was very angry.

  "Excuse me, miss, what's your surname?" The staff member pulled out a notebook.

  "My surname is Jia, I'm Jia Shufang. Who are you trying to scare with that notebook? I'm a local from Qinghe." Jia Shufang felt very uncomfortable seeing the staff member holding a notebook.

  "I've gone through the formalities, Sister Jia, what problem do you want to reflect?" The staff member looked at Jia Shufang.

  "Hey kid, I'm telling you, where did your ears and eyes go? I've already said it so clearly. Say it again, if you don't understand, change the leader to listen. In 2001, I signed an agreement with your town and chose 10 mu of land to build a kindergarten. Later, for some reason, that land was given to someone else, now it's the Qinghe Town Vegetable Factory. The 700,000 yuan land fee, I paid after signing the agreement, but now there's no news about it. You say this matter is handled? Now nobody cares about me, the money is gone, the land is gone, that was my hard-earned savings from running a shoe workshop. Now even eating is a problem for me, who else can I find to help?! Ah! You say, can we ordinary people still live?" Jia Shufang's tone became heavier and heavier, while the staff member kept saying "bad luck", why did this shift fall on him today?

  "Alright, Sister Jia, take a look and see if the situation you reflected is like this. If it is, sign your name here."

  Jia Shufang signed her name and said, "What's next? Is that it?"

  The staff immediately explained, "No, the petition requires us to give you a reply within one month after investigation and handling. Leave your phone number again, and I will contact you as soon as the reply is ready."

  "What's taking so long? How can your efficiency be so low? Are all of you who are being fed by the country's money just good for nothing?"

  Director Luo Qingguo of the Party and Government Office happened to pass by, "Comrade, there are regulations for letters and visits. If you're really in a hurry, I can ask them to speed up the process and try to give you a reply within two weeks, how about that?"

  The staff looked at Luo Qingguo with a wronged expression, "Director Luo, look at her."

  "Alright, just two weeks, what if I'm not satisfied?" Jia Shufang seemed to know about the petition system.

  "If you're not satisfied, just report it directly to the district and there will be a solution." After finishing speaking, Director Luo turned around and left.

  "Come on, young man, hurry up. Otherwise, I'll have to come and bother you again." Jia Shufang patted the staff member's shoulder and left the government office.

  A week later.

  Luo Qingguo walked into Chen Gong's office, "Director Chen, take a look at this petition reply opinion, I'll come back for it later." Luo Qingguo had watched Chen Gong rise step by step since his transfer from the Land Bureau, and sighed that the Yangtze River pushes forward with each new wave. Fortunately, they hadn't had any conflicts in the past.

  "Oh, it's Director Luo, okay, you sit here, I'll take a look right away, and if there's anything we need to discuss, we can communicate." Chen Gong was very respectful of "old people", they understood many things.

  Chen Gong looked at the materials and said, "Huh? Is what Jia Shufang reported really true?"

  Luo Qingguo replied, "It's true. I knew about this matter before, but at that time I was just an ordinary staff member and didn't know the specifics. Anyway, it is a fact that the land for building the kindergarten was given to the Da Tou Cai factory."

  The town has not yet set up a special letters and visits office, there is only one duty room for receiving letters and visits, the party and government office is currently in charge of this area.

  "Which factory is the big-headed vegetable built?" Chen Gong continued to ask about the situation.

  "It was around 2002, I think. At that time, township enterprises in various regions were developing rapidly, but Xinqiao District was relatively backward. It wasn't until after 2000 that they realized the need to develop some township enterprises. Qinghe Town also set up a big-headed cabbage factory at that time. Now, after restructuring, Xinqiao Big-Headed Cabbage Co., Ltd. has become a pillar enterprise in Qinghe Town, with products sold throughout the province."

  "Director Luo, do you think the complainant will give up if we write the reply like this?" Chen Gong looked at the opinion and felt that even an idiot wouldn't be fooled.

  Reply as follows: Ms. Jia, you reflected that the kindergarten's land was used by the Da Tou Cai factory without any compensation. After our town's careful verification, it is true that the situation you reflected exists. Our town suggests that you and Xin Qiao Da Tou Cai Co., Ltd. negotiate a solution together, and our town will actively cooperate.

  "Director Luo, do you think this kind of content can solve the problem?" Chen Gong was unhappy with Luo Qingguo's attitude, but he didn't dare to lash out at him. In his heart, he felt that this way of handling things was also too unreliable.

  "Town Chief Chen, we're also having a hard time. I've already asked all the old employees in town about what happened before, but none of them are very clear." Luo Qingguo scratched his head.

  "Director Nuo, I'm asking you, do you think we should be the ones to compensate or should it be Da Tou Cai company?" Chen Gong was also trying his best to clarify the relationship.

  "I personally think that the original Da Tou Cai factory was a township enterprise established by the town, and later it was transformed into a joint-stock company. The money for this land has never been given to the town by their company, so it's also possible for them to give the money at the original price to Jia Shufang." Luo Qingguo expressed his opinion.

  "Director Luo, I think this matter is not urgent, I'll give you two more days. Go to the finance department and check if our town has ever returned the money to Jia Shufang. Once it's verified, we can discuss further." When it comes to matters involving money, Chen Gong couldn't afford to be careless.

  Chen Gong called Lu Feng, his secretary and driver, "Let's go out for a trip to the big-headed vegetable company in town."

  Although the Da Tou Cai factory has been converted into a joint-stock company and sales are not bad, in order to save costs, the original old factory building is still used. The four sides are surrounded by red bricks, with only one big gate. Next to the guard room, there is even a large dog being raised, and it's unknown how this company can survive under such outdated management.

  Lu Feng drove Chen, taking Chen Gong to the Big Head Cabbage Company and circled three times before stopping at the gate. The vigilant old security guard seemed to feel that something was off and walked out of the gate.

  The old man was also a car expert, looking at it was just a broken Jetta. "Hey, what are you doing here, circling around?"

  Lu Feng poked his head out and asked, "Is your leader in?"

  "Our leader? Not here, not here, went out of province on a business trip, come back next month to take a look." The old man said and then returned to the factory.

  Lu Feng looked at Chen Gong in the passenger seat and said, "Leader, what's going on?"

  "Let's go back then." Lu Feng started the car and headed towards the town.

  At this time, Li Fenghua gave Chen Gong a call, "After becoming the town head, you don't care about your brothers anymore, do you have anything going on tonight? Come to my house for dinner, my dad insists on inviting you to drink."

  "Tonight. Nothing's up, I'll definitely go." Chen Gong thought for a moment, it was indeed some days since he last looked for Li Fenghua, can't let others think that just because he became a leader he doesn't care about his buddies anymore.

  "I just went to your office and saw that you weren't there, so I gave you a call. You're not in a meeting, are you?" Li Fenghua loved to chat idly, and it seemed like he didn't intend to hang up the phone yet.

  "We didn't have a meeting, we went to the big vegetable company in town to find their leader, but the old man at the gate said the leader was on a business trip and told us to come back next month. Ah, what a waste of time, I'll be going back to town soon." Chen Gong told Li Fenghua truthfully.

  "What? Going out? Isn't that old man ill, Chen Gong, listen to me, their leader must be in the company, and it's the biggest one, Huang Zong, you must not have told them your identity, you go again, he will definitely be there." Chen Gong listened to Li Fenghua's words, feeling that Li Fenghua was so sure, that the big head vegetable company leader must be in the company, so he let Lu Feng turn the car around.

  Jieda car arrived at the entrance of Da Tou Cai company again. Lu Feng stuck his head out and said, "Hey, we're looking for your Huang Zong, is he in?"

  "What's going on with you guys? Didn't we just say no earlier? Nobody, nobody." The old man gave the same response as before.

  "We've asked you before, Huang Zong is inside, don't think about cheating us." Lu Feng continued to talk with the old man.

  "I said you're looking for trouble, I told you we're going out on a business trip, if you don't leave now I'll call someone." The old man was stubborn.

  Chen Gong also got off the car and said, "Old man, we are from the town government. We have come to find you, Huang Zong, about something. Please let us pass."

  "You're a sensible young man." Just as the old man was saying this, a middle-aged man wearing a suit and looking quite dignified walked to the entrance. The old man immediately went up to greet him, bowing his head and bending at the waist.

  The middle-aged man glanced at Chen Gong and his group, then looked at their car, before turning around. "Old Xu, the town's Mayor Chen will be arriving soon. When he does, bring him to my office immediately." Having said that, he turned around and left.

  "Wait a minute." Chen Gong stepped forward, "You're the leader, right? Why did we only see the mayor and not us?"

  The middle-aged man's face immediately turned unpleasant. "When did you ever hear me say I'm the leader? Wherever I go, wherever I go, I don't have time to bother with you."

  "I'm leaving, and the mayor won't be able to come," Chen Gong said seriously to the middle-aged man.

  "You're..." middle-aged people can't quite get it right.

  "Chen Gong, the head of Qinghe Town, should be able to go to your office now." Chen Gong shrugged.