Road to Revival

Guo Tao, the chairman of the supervisory board and secretary of the discipline inspection commission, wasn't too concerned with business operations; his focus was on the still unresolved Song Yang case. After the office meeting, Guo Tao went directly to Zhao Qingmin's office. There were some things he had wanted to discuss with the secretary for a long time, but he hadn't had a suitable opportunity until now, and the timing wasn't good either, as there were only a few minutes left before the end of the workday.

"Old Zhao, there are some things I'm not sure if I should say."

"Is it about Han Ruilin?" Zhao Qingmin, who had just washed his face, gestured for him to sit down.

"Not entirely. But this matter is abnormal. President Tao said that Chang Wenhai should investigate, but how can he investigate? Are we supposed to inspect the lifestyle of the cadres? That's ridiculous. You are the secretary, you should have said something just now. In the past, the most appropriate attitude for this kind of thing is to turn a blind eye unless the people complain."

"That's not something a secretary of the Discipline Inspection Commission should say. I think you've heard that Han Ruilin is just a pile of stinking dog shit, and he thinks Red Star doesn't stink enough? He's just making trouble."

"I'm not defending Han Ruilin, but it's not appropriate for the company to handle this matter publicly."

Guo Tao has a somewhat aloof personality and doesn't get along well with the other members of the team, but there are no rumors about his personal conduct, so it's not fair to say that protecting Han Ruilin is protecting himself.

"I know."

"You know, Han Ruilin and Tao Zong were classmates in middle school. It's very inappropriate for Li Luo to bring up Han Ruilin in this situation..." Guo Tao finally got to the point.

"You can't just shut people up. I think President Tao's attitude is quite good. Let's wait for Lao Chang's investigation to come out before making any decisions."

"Secretary Zhao, with the series of incidents at Hongxing, morale is low. If we don't address the aftermath of Yang Wenhuan and Song Yue's actions soon, work cannot return to normal. At this time, what's needed is unity within the leadership team; we can't let trivial matters disrupt the overall production and operation. And we absolutely cannot allow internal strife at this crucial moment..."

"This isn't up to you or me, is it? We're both living in a secluded paradise, it's not convenient for us to talk about this," Zhao Qingmin sighed. After the Yang Song case, although the provincial and municipal discipline inspection commissions did not form an investigation team to be stationed at the company, they still frequently came to the company to summon some personnel. Even Luo Chong and Han Zhiyong had been summoned. At least twenty middle-level and general cadres from relevant departments had been investigated by the discipline inspection commission. Zhao Qingmin could not fully grasp the specific situation. The local discipline inspection department did not communicate with the company's party and government, showing a posture of digging deeper and expanding the investigation, which made him very worried.

"Could you suggest that General Manager Tao convene a meeting of middle-level managers as soon as possible? He can say whatever he wants. The Song Yang case involves more than a dozen departments and branch factories, which destabilizes morale. How can we manage production and operations under such circumstances?"

"President Tao is experienced and capable; otherwise, the higher-ups wouldn't have entrusted him with this responsibility. Alright, I can offer him my suggestions. You are the chairman of the supervisory board and also the secretary of the discipline inspection commission; you are perfectly capable of making your own recommendations."

"I have submitted a self-criticism to headquarters and am prepared to take responsibility. As the secretary of the Discipline Inspection Commission, I cannot shirk my responsibility for such a case. Even if the organization dismisses me, I will have no complaints. But I can assure the organization that I have not committed any disciplinary violations or corruption. I did this for the company, and I have absolutely no selfish motives. Secretary Zhao, you should talk to Li Luo. I think General Manager Tao was right to criticize the marketing department. Some of their past practices were very excessive."

"What's there to talk about? We've been working together for quite some time now." Zhao Qingmin stood up. "You said you submitted a self-criticism to headquarters, and I wrote one too, but not a self-criticism, it was a resignation letter. It's not really appropriate to submit a resignation at this time, but I'm genuinely exhausted..."

"Are you kidding me? This is inappropriate." Guo Tao was taken aback.

"Yes, it's not appropriate..." Zhao Qingmin changed out of his work clothes and prepared to go home. Seeing that the secretary had no intention of continuing the conversation, Guo Tao said goodbye and went back to his office. The bell for the end of the workday had already rung, and the voices in the corridor were gradually thinning out, but Guo Tao didn't want to go home. He lit a cigarette and sat on the sofa, silently thinking about his thoughts.

This is the current situation. If you pay attention to the recent surge in news reports about "tigers" (high-ranking officials) being investigated, you'll find that almost all of these "tigers" are brought down through reports from different channels or by other cases. The same is true for the unresolved corruption case at Hongxing Company. If it weren't for the Shuangqiao Coal Mine, which entered bankruptcy proceedings, bringing down Ji Liqiang, the former deputy director of the Materials Supply Department, Yang Wenhuan wouldn't have fallen from grace. Yang Wenhuan's downfall, in turn, brought down Song Yue, and the storm finally started in the Materials Procurement Department, shaking the highest levels of Hongxing.

As the chairman of the supervisory board and secretary of the discipline inspection commission, he was basically aware of the Song and Yang cases. Ji Liqiang, the deputy director of the materials supply department in charge of energy procurement, embezzled over five million yuan during coal procurement and has been arrested. Yang Wenhuan has confessed to involvement in over ten million yuan, and he was involved in almost every major procurement of materials and disposal of waste materials, reaching a point of utter shamelessness. Details about Song Yue are still unknown, but Song Yue's problems are likely not limited to materials procurement; issues related to infrastructure, equipment, and project construction are probably even greater. It is said that he has been transferred to judicial authorities, and official news is expected soon. A colleague from the provincial discipline inspection commission told him that, on the surface, the company has systems in place and they are being implemented, such as a well-established public bidding process, but in reality, supervision is severely lax. The company purchases as much as 20 tons of coal annually, and even with continuously decreasing coal prices, this business still amounts to 6000-7000 million yuan. The company's discipline inspection commission has never conducted a special audit of this business, indicating serious management loopholes.

Guo Tao felt wronged. He had indeed heard rumors of corruption in the coal procurement sector. Yang Wenhuan's niece, who worked at the company, had publicly stated that her Sonata was a gift from a coal mine owner (this car has since been confiscated). He had requested the supervision department to audit coal procurement, but Song Yue disagreed, leading to a major argument between them. Song Yue ordered the supervision department that any temporary internal audits must be approved by him. This was actually a violation of discipline, but that was the reality. Song Yue was the top leader, wielding the highest power in the company; anything he disagreed with couldn't be done. If the top leader was upright, things were manageable; but if the top leader had problems, the problems below were much bigger… But when problems arose, the disciplinary committee couldn't escape blame—it was outrageous. Now, many within Hongxing were "hoping" for the procuratorate's car to appear at the office building and take away more cadres. Rumors were rampant, saying that the infrastructure department, equipment department, and development planning department were also rotten to the core and would eventually collapse. Some even said that Guo Tao was involved, which saddened him. The widespread distrust of cadres among the masses alarmed him. The unease and panic among the middle-level staff reminded him that he had to resolve the negative impact of the Yang-Song case as soon as possible; otherwise, business would suffer, and stability would be severely compromised. He didn't believe the entire leadership team was corrupt; at least he believed Zhao Qingmin was innocent. Although his superior within the Party was somewhat incompetent, he was still trustworthy in terms of integrity. He hoped Zhao Qingmin would fulfill his duties as Party Secretary, stepping forward at this critical moment to rebuild morale appropriately. However, Old Zhao seemed to have lost all fighting spirit.

Moreover, Guo Tao had already sensed a certain sentiment among the team members; they didn't welcome Tao Tang. Although everyone outwardly showed sufficient respect for Tao Tang, Guo Tao could completely feel the undeniable distance between them.

From his observation, in the few days since Tao Tang took office, almost no one in the leadership team had proactively approached him, except for work-related reports or requests for instructions. This was highly unusual. It wasn't like this when Song Yue took office; in the first week, his schedule was packed with dinners. Except for him and Zhao Qingmin, almost every member of the leadership team had hosted a banquet for Song Yue, either individually or jointly. But so far, he hadn't heard of anyone inviting Tao Tang, who was also single. Even if the rules were stricter after the 18th National Congress, this still didn't seem right.

Today, Li Luo brought up Han Ruilin at the office meeting, which he saw as a way to put Tao Tang in a difficult position. Lü Qi is Tao Tang's classmate, so Han Ruilin is naturally one too. Li Luo did this to vent his dissatisfaction with not being promoted, and it's also possible that Tao Tang criticized the marketing department. What about the others? Ma Guangming, Luo Chong, General Manager Jiang, and Han Zhiyong—Tao Tang's key assistants—why are they behaving this way? What are they worried about? Are they worried that Tao Tang will investigate internal corruption issues?

Judging from all the signs, the newcomer Tao Tang is quite good. Guo Tao noticed some of Tao Tang's actions, such as his frequent absence from the small dining hall and his willingness to pay for meals in the main canteen; Tao Tang's order to return the clothes bought for him by the general manager's office; Tao Tang's visits to the grassroots level on Sundays; Tao Tang's concern for the lives of single employees... and Tao Tang's speech at the general manager's office meeting today, although Guo Tao did not speak, he basically agreed with it and was genuinely pleased.

This could be seen as a newly appointed leader putting on a show, but at least he brought a breath of fresh air. Guo Tao really hoped this breeze would blow even stronger... Thinking of this, he decided to talk to Tao Tang. He wasn't going to avoid suspicion anymore, and he wasn't afraid of being called a fence-sitter.

But Tao Tang had already left the office. Li Zhibin, who was mopping the floor, told him that President Tao had gone to the cafeteria for lunch.

Guo Tao said "Oh" and prepared to go home. He ran into Qiu Lin, who seemed to be going to see Tao Tang as well.

"Is Mr. Tao here?"

"I'm gone."

"Han Zhiyong is always like this, I really can't do this job anymore." Qiu Lin looked furious.

"What's wrong?" Guo Tao asked, somewhat surprised. Qiu Lin was perfectly fine at the meeting just now. Qiu Lin's attitude surprised Guo Tao. Qiu Lin, who had only been promoted to vice president last year and was the least senior member of the team, shouldn't be challenging Han Zhiyong.

"Chairman Guo, you be the judge. General Manager Tao allocated 5000 million to the supply department to buy materials, how could he take 1500 million and give it to the production department? 5000 million sounds like a lot, but the monthly output value is at least several hundred million. What's the profit margin of our products? 5000 million can only be used to tide us over. How could he do such a thing?"

"President Tao went to the cafeteria for lunch. Why don't you go to Xiao Zhao and wait for him?" Guo Tao knew that Han Zhiyong was abusing his power again.

After get off work, Tao Tang still went to the main canteen for lunch; today he went to the third canteen. Compared to lunchtime, there were far fewer people eating there. He bought a stew, a steamed bun, and a bowl of egg drop soup, and found an empty table to eat alone.

The environment in the third canteen is much better than that in the first and second canteens. At least the cleanliness of the floor and tables and chairs is tolerable. The ceiling fans are already turned on, and the air is not as polluted as it is in the first and second canteens, where you can always smell the rotten smell of food.

Several employees pointed and whispered in their direction, as if they recognized him. Tao Tang ate his simple dinner slowly, lost in thought.

A very cheerful young man brought over the food. "Hello, Mr. Tao, is this alright?"

"Of course." Tao Tang nodded. "Meng Fan, right?"

The young man smiled brightly, "You still remember me."

"I remember what you studied at the research institute? What project are you working on now?" Tao Tang took out a tissue to wipe his mouth.

"My specialty is hydraulic transmission, and I work on the hydraulic lifting machine project at the Second Institute." The Red Star Research Institute should be called the main institute, which has four branch institutes. The Second Institute is responsible for the research and development of new products in the agricultural machinery sector.

Tao Tang nodded. "I've heard the reports from General Manager Jiang and Assistant Li. This project is a key project for the company, right? How is it progressing?"

"Things aren't going well... Our upstream supplier, the Sino-US joint venture Dieter, has upgraded its tractors, and all mechanical hoists have been replaced with hydraulic ones. By the end of this year, all the existing products will be phased out, and we can't even produce a prototype. The higher-ups aren't in a rush... Mr. Tao, could you please expedite the process?"

"Of course. I'll look into it."

"That's great!"

"Xiao Meng, how many years have you been working at the factory?"

Three years.

"Why are you in such a hurry?" Tao Tang had finished eating, took out a toothpick from his pocket to pick his teeth, and squinted at the young man in front of him.

"Why aren't you in a hurry? If we can't keep up with the product upgrades, the 13th Factory might go hungry."

"I mean, you're just a technician at the research institute, and you've only been in the factory for three years..."

"President Tao is testing me..." Meng Fan grinned. "You have that much awareness. Since I chose Red Star, of course I hope the company will do well."

"Well said." Tao Tang stood up. "Work hard, you'll amount to something."