PCJ – Chapter 632 The Secretary Jumped Off the Building

“Thanks to the care and support of the County Party Committee and County Government, our town’s plan for addressing soil salinization in Yingpan Village has been approved. However, to implement this plan, further detailed work is still required. Details determine success or failure! We must carefully and meticulously formulate a comprehensive remediation plan to ensure smooth implementation—striving to resolve Yingpan Village’s long-standing issues once and for all. Departments involved must closely cooperate, produce actionable implementation steps, not fear difficulties or trouble, and be bold enough to overcome obstacles…”

No one knew what had gotten into Yang Yongqiang. From the moment the meeting started, he spoke nonstop for half an hour without getting to the main point.

Zhu Qingdong frowned but didn’t say anything. After all, Yang Yongqiang was the top official—if he wanted to ramble on purpose, Zhu Qingdong couldn’t really challenge him. But Zhu understood why Yang was doing this. The plan to treat the salinization in Yingpan Village was submitted directly to the county by Zhu himself. If it succeeded, Zhu would naturally get the main credit. Even though Yang wouldn’t be left out completely, others would talk—and the county would form a clearer picture of the respective capabilities of Zhu and Yang.

Zhu had considered this beforehand, but even if he had the chance to do it over, he’d still do it the same way. It’s not news that the town mayor and the Party secretary don’t always see eye to eye.

Zhang Jiaohua didn’t give the matter much thought. He just wanted to do his job well.

Yang Yongqiang clearly didn’t plan to let either Zhu Qingdong or Zhang Jiaohua speak. After a long string of empty words, he read out the official instructions from the county, then concluded, “That’s the county’s directive. I hope all relevant personnel take immediate action, work efficiently, and handle this matter well. Time’s almost up—this meeting is adjourned. I have some documents to deal with.” With that, Yang stood up to leave.

The town officials were all confused, but since the meeting was called over, they started getting ready to leave.

“Hold on—don’t rush off just yet. If Secretary Yang has important documents to attend to, he can go ahead. I still need to discuss some of the specifics of this renovation project,” said Zhu Qingdong, with a hint of fire in his tone.

Yang’s expression darkened. But in that moment, he couldn’t say anything, so he simply grunted, “Then I’ll leave this matter to Mayor Zhu. I’ll just be providing support.”

Zhu’s face turned steely. “The soil salinization project in Yingpan Village is the town’s most critical task right now. It directly impacts the issue of food security for two of our poorest villages—Yingpan and Wanyao Tree Village. I hope all comrades present can treat this seriously. People’s livelihood is of utmost importance. If the villagers can’t even get enough to eat, no matter how hard we work, we won’t gain recognition from the Party or the people. This is not the responsibility of just one person in the town—it’s the top priority for all Party members and officials in Tianbaqiao Town.

There’s a saying in Daihua County: 70% of the county’s beggars come from Tianbaqiao Town, and 70% of Tianbaqiao’s beggars come from Yingpan and Wanyao Tree Village. That’s not a reputation to be proud of. Every time I attend a county meeting, I feel ashamed. I wonder if any of you feel the same.”

Zhang Jiaohua had never heard it put this way before. He didn’t even know there were people from Yingpan Village who had resorted to begging. But thinking about it, he wasn’t surprised—no land to farm, mountain products and medicinal herbs were monopolized and sold for dirt cheap. If they didn’t beg, they’d starve.

“Well, now that I’m here, I might as well help Yingpan Village solve its food problem,” Zhang thought to himself.

“Next, let’s hear from the university graduate village official from Yingpan Village—Comrade Xiao Zhang—to share his ideas,” said Zhu Qingdong.

Zhang Jiaohua glanced around the room full of township officials, cleared his throat, and began: “After my investigation of Yingpan Mountain over the past period, I believe that the remediation plan can focus on a few key aspects…”

Zhang had already gained a deep understanding of Yingpan Mountain and proposed a well-thought-out solution to the village’s water problem. As he laid out a plan specifically tailored to Yingpan’s conditions, the township officials, including Zhu Qingdong, nodded continuously in agreement.

Even Guo Baishui found it odd. Zhang Jiaohua had only been in Yingpan a short time, yet he seemed to know the village’s conditions inside out—more than a local like him. Some things even he wasn’t clear on, but Zhang spoke about them like he knew them by heart.

“Secretary Guo, is what Xiao Zhang said really accurate?” Li Lin whispered to Guo Baishui.

Guo nodded. “More or less. Yingpan Mountain is so big—there are parts I’ve never been to. I didn’t expect Zhang to have gone to all of them.”

“This Xiao Zhang isn’t simple. He’s made for bigger things,” Li Lin remarked.

Guo nodded again. Some of the places Zhang mentioned, he hadn’t been to because he didn’t dare go.

Zhu Qingdong, now firmly in charge of the meeting, efficiently organized all aspects of the salinization treatment project. With the county’s full backing, he wasn’t afraid of Yang Yongqiang sabotaging things—he was ready to go all-in.

Yang Yongqiang, however, was furious. After returning to his office, he smashed several teacups. He sulked for a long while, and just as he was about to leave, Zhu’s meeting happened to end too.

Seeing Zhu walk out of the meeting room looking smug and triumphant, Yang cursed out loud. He then kicked the side railing by the steps—but unfortunately, that railing was a shoddy “tofu-dreg” construction. In fact, it had been one of the projects he had overseen personally—and he had taken a hefty cut from it.

That one kick broke the railing. Yang’s foot missed, and his center of gravity shifted, causing him to fall down the staircase.

Fortunately, Yang was blessed with good fortune. He flipped in mid-air and managed to land feet-first.

“Crack!”

A sharp snap echoed—it was the sound of a bone breaking. His leg was broken!

“Something’s wrong! Secretary Yang jumped off the building!”

No one knew who shouted it, but Yang, lying on the ground, wanted nothing more than to crawl up and kick that person a few times. Unfortunately, his leg was broken. The pain sent cold sweat pouring down his body.

He couldn’t even tell where exactly he was hurt—both legs were numb.

And with that shout, his rage surged, and he lost consciousness.

People rushed down the stairs to check on him.

“What happened to Secretary Yang? Why would he jump?”

“Sigh… I heard he got a serious scolding from the county this time. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be butting heads with Mayor Zhu like this.”