Nominal: My senior brothers are all big shots

On the tenth day after Lin Feng arrived in Pingjiang, the first meeting of the Standing Committee of the Municipal Party Committee was held.

The meeting notice was issued the afternoon before, and the only agenda item was to study the rectification of the rare earth industry order in the city.

When Qian Shumo was drafting the notice, he specifically asked Lin Feng if he wanted to list more topics. Lin Feng said no, one was enough.

Qian Shumo didn't ask any more questions, but he knew that this one issue was more important than ten others.

The meeting room is on the third floor of the municipal party committee building. It has an oval table that can seat about twenty people.

When Lin Feng arrived, most of the Standing Committee members were already there.

He glanced around—Mayor Liu Zhiyuan sat to his right, his expression calm, flipping through documents; Deputy Party Secretary Du Chenglin sat to his left, head down, lost in thought.

Huang Zhiqiang, secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission, leaned back in his chair, twirling a pen in his hand;

Executive Vice Mayor Li Jianping remained expressionless, writing a few words in his notebook before crossing them out.

Discipline Inspection Commission Secretary Zhao Liangyu sat upright; Organization Department Director Zhou Huiming looked down at his phone.

Propaganda Minister Sun Xiaomei and United Front Work Minister He Yongchang were talking in hushed tones.

Commander Ye Jin of the military sub-district was dressed in military uniform and sat upright.

Qian Shumo, the Secretary-General of the Municipal Party Committee, sat at the end of the table, with a notebook open in front of him and a pen already in hand.

Lin Feng sat down in the main seat, his gaze sweeping over each face, his voice calm: "Comrades, the purpose of this meeting today is to discuss only one thing—rectifying the order of the rare earth industry. Pingjiang's rare earth industry is large in scale and makes a significant contribution, but it also has many problems. Illegal mining, unauthorized production, and smuggling—if these problems are not resolved, Pingjiang's rare earth industry will not go far. I invited everyone here today to hear your opinions."

The meeting room was silent for a few seconds.

Liu Zhiyuan put down the documents in his hand, cleared his throat, and was the first to speak.

His voice wasn't loud, but every word carried weight: "Secretary Lin, I understand your initial intention to regulate the rare earth industry. Pingjiang's rare earth industry does indeed have some problems, I don't deny that. However, we need to consider a practical issue—what does Pingjiang's economy rely on? Rare earth. Thirty percent of the city's GDP, forty percent of its fiscal revenue, and sixty percent of its exports come from rare earth. The rare earth industry is linked to tens of thousands of jobs and hundreds of upstream and downstream companies. How should we regulate it? If the crackdown is too drastic, companies will shut down, workers will lose their jobs, the economy will decline—who will bear that responsibility?"

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the Standing Committee members present, finally settling on Lin Feng's face. "I suggest that the rectification can be carried out, but it should be done step by step and in stages. We should pilot it first, and then promote it. We cannot adopt a one-size-fits-all approach."

Huang Zhiqiang picked up the conversation, his tone even more stern than Liu Zhiyuan's: "Mayor Liu is right. The mining industry involves the employment of tens of thousands of people, most of whom come from rural areas and lack other skills. What will they do when the mines close? Go out to work? Go to the city? What can they do? And what about those small mine owners? Some of them opened their mines with high-interest loans. If the mines close, they will go bankrupt, which may trigger social instability. I suggest that the rectification should be done cautiously and not hastily."

Lin Feng remained silent. He was observing.

When Liu Zhiyuan spoke, Du Chenglin kept his head down and remained expressionless; Li Jianping wanted to say something but held back; Zhao Liangyu frowned slightly; Zhou Huiming put down his phone and wrote a few words in his notebook; Sun Xiaomei and He Yongchang both had calm expressions, showing no particular inclination; Ye Jin was expressionless, like a statue.

Li Jianping finally spoke, his voice not loud but clear: "Let me interject. The problems in the rare earth industry aren't new. Illegal mining, smuggling, and the involvement of organized crime—if these problems aren't resolved, Pingjiang's rare earth industry will never go far. How many times have we investigated in recent years? Each time it's all bark and no bite; after the investigation, things go back to normal. Why? Because some people are unwilling to truly investigate."

Liu Zhiyuan's expression changed slightly, but he quickly regained his composure. Huang Zhiqiang glanced at Li Jianping, his lips twitched, but he said nothing.

Lin Feng said, "Comrade Jianping is right. The root of the problems in the rare earth industry lies in its chaotic order. Chaotic order cannot bring about real development. In recent years, Pingjiang's rare earth production has increased several times over, but how much has tax revenue increased? Who has the profits in their hands? Illegal mining, tax evasion, smuggling out of the country—the state's money has gone into private pockets. And what about the ordinary people? The mines are riddled with holes, the groundwater is polluted, crops can't be grown, and even drinking water has become a problem. What's the point of such development?"

The meeting room fell silent.

Liu Zhiyuan put down his pen, leaned back in his chair, and looked at Lin Feng with a complicated expression.

He didn't expect the new secretary to take action so quickly.

Lin Feng continued, "My suggestion is to establish a leading group for the rectification of the rare earth industry, with myself as the group leader and Mayor Liu and Comrade Li Jianping as deputy group leaders. All relevant functional departments should be included. We should conduct a comprehensive investigation of all rare earth mines in the city within three months. All illegal mining operations should be shut down, all illegal production operations should be rectified, and all those suspected of committing crimes should be transferred to the judicial authorities."

Liu Zhiyuan was silent for a few seconds, then said, "Secretary Lin, I reserve my opinion."

Huang Zhiqiang also said, "I reserve my opinion."

Lin Feng looked at the two of them without saying a word. He knew that this was a showdown.

Liu Zhiyuan and Huang Zhiqiang's opposition was not only against the rectification plan, but also a test of him. They wanted to see just how determined and capable this new secretary really was.

Lin Feng leaned back in his chair, his gaze sweeping over the standing committee members present: "What are the opinions of the other comrades?"

Du Chenglin raised his head and said something ambiguous: "I agree in principle with the direction of the rectification, but the specific measures need to be further refined."

The other members of the Standing Committee all expressed no objection.

Lin Feng turned his gaze to Liu Zhiyuan and Huang Zhiqiang.

Both of them had calm expressions, but deep in their eyes, there was a subtle chill.

Lin Feng knew that he had won this Standing Committee meeting, but he hadn't truly won either.

The plan was approved, but Liu Zhiyuan and Huang Zhiqiang reserved their opinions, which means they could create obstacles at any time during its implementation.

Lin Feng said, "Alright, since the majority of comrades agree, the plan is approved in principle. Comrade Qian Shumo, please revise and improve it based on the opinions expressed at the meeting before printing it out."

He stood up, his gaze sweeping over each member of the Standing Committee before finally settling on Liu Zhiyuan. "Comrades," he said, "Pingjiang's rare earth industry cannot rely solely on mining. We must pursue deep processing, high added value, and green development. This is the direction, and also the bottom line. The rectification is not the goal; the goal is to ensure Pingjiang's rare earth industry goes further. I hope everyone understands this."

Liu Zhiyuan nodded without saying anything.

Back in his office, Lin Feng closed the door and stood by the window.

Outside the window, the sky over Pingjiang was hazy and gray, and the distant mines were shrouded in smog, their outlines obscured.

He knew that the clashes at the Standing Committee meeting were just the beginning.

Liu Zhiyuan wouldn't give up easily, nor would Huang Zhiqiang. They had cultivated their influence in Pingjiang for over a decade, their network of relationships deeply entrenched and intricate, not something that could be shaken by a single Standing Committee meeting. But at least, he had taken the first step.

The phone rang; it was Lei Ming calling. "Secretary Lin, there's something going on. The case of Zhao Xiaojun that you asked me to investigate has made progress. The deputy head of the criminal investigation team who was in charge of the investigation back then was named Wei Guoan. He's now the deputy director."

Lin Feng held his phone, remaining silent for a moment. "Continue the investigation."

He hung up the phone, took out a copy of Zhao Tiejun's letter of complaint from the drawer, and read it again. Outside the window, it was getting dark. Night was approaching again in Pingjiang.