Reborn as a Noble’s Son
Chapter 1106 - Chapter 1106 Chapter 1062 Praise from the Leader

Chapter 1106: Chapter 1062: Praise from the Leader Chapter 1106: Chapter 1062: Praise from the Leader As Nie Zhenbang entered his office, Fang Yuanshan and Qin Guanghan both stood up. In today’s Jingcheng, everyone was very clear about what Nie Zhenbang represented. That was absolute authority.

“Governor Fang and Comrade Guanghan have arrived, please take a seat,” said Nie Zhenbang with a smile, waving his hand to indicate the two men to sit down.

At this moment, both Fang Yuanshan and Qin Guanghan felt somewhat uneasy. In Hongjiang Province, such a significant incident had just occurred, and not much time had passed since then. Now, Secretary Nie had summoned them together again. Just now, Hong Feng said that Gong Zheng would be coming over too.

This made both of them extra cautious. After a moment of contemplation, Fang Yuanshan started to speak, “Secretary Nie, I don’t know…”

Before he could finish his inquiry, before he could make himself clear, Nie Zhenbang raised his hand to stop him and said with a smile, “Governor Fang, please forgive me for keeping you in suspense for now. In a moment, you will understand.”

As they were speaking, Gong Zheng walked in from outside. Gong Zheng appeared somewhat excited; after the major case in Hongjiang, Gong Zheng had received praise from Liu Zhenjun, the Secretary of the Discipline Inspection Commission. This excited Gong Zheng a great deal. At their level, no matter who it was, especially someone like Liu Zhenjun who was a core member of the Jiuding group, a national leader in their own right, criticism and praise were both given with utmost caution. He would not make such statements lightly.

In this way, it meant that Liu Zhenjun truly appreciated him, and for Gong Zheng, this implied that in March, there was a great possibility for him to take a step forward, to be transferred to the central government, to assume a position in the Discipline Inspection Commission. For Gong Zheng, this was undoubtedly the greatest news.

Seeing that not only Nie Zhenbang was present in the office but also Fang Yuanshan and Qin Guanghan, a look of surprise briefly crossed Gong Zheng’s face before disappearing as he smiled and said, “Secretary Nie.”

Nie Zhenbang also stood up and, after inviting Gong Zheng to sit down, Hong Feng also walked in, preparing hot tea for Gong Zheng and refilling water for Fang Yuanshan and Qin Guanghan.

After Hong Feng left, Nie Zhenbang smiled and said, “Gentlemen, the main reason for calling you here today is one matter. Today, I accompanied Comrade Li Youquan from Wenchun City to attend a group visit meeting at the Agriculture Department.”

Nie Zhenbang’s opening statement caught the three men off guard, indeed a novel approach. For the head of the provincial party committee to accompany a city secretary to attend a subordinate department’s group visit meeting was unusual. Looking across the country, probably only Nie Zhenbang would do such a thing.

At this point, Nie Zhenbang took out the red envelope he had just received at the Agriculture Department and placed it on the coffee table, looking at the three men and said, “Based on my understanding, such group visit meetings take place every year, organized by various ministries, commissions, and municipal governments. Additionally, the normal practice for secretaries is around five hundred. As for the leaders who attend? Anywhere from five thousand to ten thousand. This is quite serious.”

The room was filled with astute individuals; with Nie Zhenbang mentioning this, they all basically understood what he implied. Without going into detail, a leader attending forty such events, perhaps even without the need to be personally present, just as a matter of formality at these departmental gatherings. Not only the officials in charge but also various deputy leaders would be involved. To put it conservatively, for one group visit event, the number of leader cards could be at least one hundred or even more than two hundred. The cost of each event could be millions.

And after such a round of events, the money that ended up in the hands of the officials was quite substantial.

Thinking of this, all three men’s expressions turned somber. Fang Yuanshan looked at Nie Zhenbang and said, “Secretary Nie, my view is that we must take a serious stance on such matters at the provincial level and resolutely put a stop to them.”

Fang Yuanshan had a clear understanding of Nie Zhenbang’s thoughts. If Nie Zhenbang had no intention of dealing with this issue, there was no need to bring it up. Now that Nie Zhenbang had gathered them and mentioned this matter, it was apparent that he was prepared to suppress this trend.

Gong Zheng took a sharp breath and slowly said, “Secretary Nie, I agree with Governor Fang’s view. We must severely crack down on such unhealthy tendencies.”

Qin Guanghan also expressed his stance, adding, “At the central government’s anti-corruption and pro-integrity work conference, and again at the meetings before the end of the year, the central government repeatedly emphasized and reaffirmed its stance, and specifically prohibited ending year summary meetings or group visit meetings from taking place in five-star hotels or luxurious venues and forbade the arranging of souvenirs, among other things. I believe that we must take a clear stance on such issues at the provincial level.”

The three men were in unanimous agreement, something Nie Zhenbang had anticipated. He understood that with evidence in hand, if there were any disagreements and things escalated, the one to lose face would be himself. Rather than that, it was better to offer direct support.

Moreover, among the three of them, Qin Guanghan is a typical opportunist, while on Gong Zheng’s side, as the Secretary of the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection, he would naturally support himself. The better Hongjiang Province does in the anti-corruption work, the greater the benefit for Gong Zheng.

After the previous incidents, Fang Yuanshan now understands one thing. Moreover, at this moment, Fang Yuanshan’s prestige within Hongjiang Province has plummeted to its lowest level. At this juncture, Fang Yuanshan naturally would not seek trouble for himself.

Nie Zhenbang nodded and said, “In my view, this matter is no small issue. It is a form of disguised corruption, and it is absolutely not allowed. My opinion is that, the province should immediately introduce policies. First, strictly prohibit holding any form of gatherings. Second, have a tight control over the audit of various departments and municipal finances to strictly forbid the behavior of rush spending at the end of the year. Every case discovered should be reported and criticized throughout the province, and the responsibility of the chief officials should be investigated. Third, increase the strength of supervision, establish a task force composed of the Provincial Committee Reform Office, the Provincial ‘Three Public’ Office, and the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection to inspect various units. Adopt the leadership responsibility system–where problems arise, directly investigate the respective unit. Fourth, for the group gatherings that have already been held, all participants must voluntarily return shopping cards, cash cards, gifts, and other properties. Those found without having returned them will be prosecuted for bribery. These four measures should be carried out simultaneously to rigorously curb this unhealthy trend. What do you think?”

Nie Zhenbang’s firm words startled everyone. Qin Guanghan and Fang Yuanshan exchanged glances and also nodded, saying, “I have no objections to Secretary Nie’s thoughts.”

It was only Gong Zheng who hesitated a bit and said, “Secretary Nie, I have no problem with this decision, but by doing so, will the impact be too great? Might the higher-ups have some view on us in Hongjiang?”

Hearing this, Nie Zhenbang also fell into contemplation; Gong Zheng’s concern was indeed valid. Hongjiang Province had just experienced a major incident, and now, another regulation had been put forth. This could raise questions externally about how Hongjiang Province is viewed–whether the perception would be that the leaders of Hongjiang Province are incompetent.

Moreover, what’s even more important is how the leadership above would view the leaders in Hongjiang. The consecutive problems in Hongjiang Province signify something–it signifies that the leadership team in Hongjiang is not effective.

After some thought, Nie Zhenbang also raised his head and said, “Having concerns is one thing, but action is necessary. This matter is beneficial from all aspects. I, as well as we, cannot become hesitant due to personal worries. It is precisely because there are problems that we need to act. My stance remains the same.”

With Nie Zhenbang’s resolve, Gong Zheng said nothing more. Immediately afterwards, the Provincial Committee issued the documents. The four points raised by Nie Zhenbang were fully reflected in them.

At the same time, the Provincial Reform Office quickly formed teams and dispatched them to various cities for surprise inspections.

The initiative of Hongjiang Province, once announced, immediately caused a huge sensation across the entire province and even the whole country.

Online, it sparked a heated discussion among netizens. Some enthusiastic internet users even used this information to deduce the approximate earnings of each leader after attending these end-of-year meetings. When this estimate was published, it generated an even greater uproar among netizens.

On the internet, Hongjiang Province’s four regulations were jokingly referred to by netizens as the “Red Four Articles.” The voices of approval were in the majority.

However, as with any issue, if there are those who praise, there will be those who criticize. Just like with these “Red Four Articles.” Although the introduction of the “Red Four Articles” indeed curbed an unhealthy tendency, there were also those who said it was erasing Huaxia’s cultural traditions. The custom of giving and receiving gifts is a common practice among our people, particularly the tradition of visiting and giving New Year’s greetings at the end of the year.

Of course, the majority of the public clearly understood that this was a positive and constructive measure, and these dissenting voices were quickly drowned out amidst the crowd.

What Nie Zhenbang did not expect was that while the public was discussing this issue, the core leadership in Jingcheng, the Jiuding Core, was also deliberating over it.

In the West Flower Hall at Forbidden Sea, the meeting room of the Political Bureau was solemn and sacred, void of green plants and fresh flowers, with only a cup of green tea on the table–everything was designed for simplicity and practicality.

The members of the Jiuding Core sat upright in this room. Mu Dingjian glanced around and began, “The appearance of these ‘Red Four Articles’ in Hongjiang Province is very good, in my opinion. It fully exposes the bad practices and common maladies within our country’s government, party organizations, and relevant departments. A dike is destroyed by an ant’s nest. I think the regulation enacted by Hongjiang Province is well formulated; it eradicates these unhealthy tendencies and is very pragmatic, full of positive energy. I suggest that this regulation can be taken as a reference, adjusted and modified, and be implemented nationwide.” (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, please visit NovelFire.net to vote for recommendation tickets or monthly tickets, your support is my greatest motivation.)

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