Qi Tongwei at the start: Not relying on Liang Lu, but winning by a single move against Heaven.

That evening, Qi Tongwei had just finished a phone call with Zhong Xiaoai when Baimaiti called.

As soon as the call connected, Baimaiti's voice rang out, immediately launching into a tirade of complaints.

"Tongwei, what are you doing? Talking on the phone with your wife again? I can't get through..."

Qi Tongwei's face flushed from his words, so he chuckled and changed the subject.

"How's it going on your end? Any good news? Did your application to resume work get approved?"

Is my funding application stuck again?

On the other end of the phone, Baimaiti was taken aback, and replied in a deep voice.

"Hey, nothing can be kept from you. How did you guess...?"

The application to resume work has been submitted. I asked Mayor Wang for the seizure order for Li Guofu, but he didn't agree...

After listening, Qi Tongwei nodded and tentatively asked a question.

"Did he suggest reapplying for funding from the city...and going to a meeting to discuss it?"

Baimaiti was taken aback again, sighed, and asked a question instead of answering.

"Hey friend... tell me, how did you guess it...?"

After saying that, he paused slightly and added another sentence.

"I'm afraid I'll have to stay in the city for a few more days. Until the funding is secured, I won't be going back..."

Qi Tongwei smiled and nodded, then said softly.

"Absence makes the heart grow fonder. You haven't been home for two months, so spend some quality time with your wife..."

However, I estimate you won't be staying in the city for long... the funding should be approved soon.

Baimaiti caught the sarcasm in his words and replied with a retort.

"Sigh, we've been married for ages, we can't compare to you... you're so lovey-dovey..."

After speaking, he paused slightly and immediately changed the subject.

"How's it going in the county? If they're too busy, I'll hurry back... I can always make a few more trips."

Qi Tongwei pondered for a moment, sighed, and said in a deep voice.

"The project hasn't even officially started yet, but the county isn't busy, so things are flowing smoothly..."

However, the water diversion project may not be simple. I'll go to the site tomorrow and we'll talk about it when you get back.

Don't rush back. I've asked the Planning Commission to prepare the project proposal for small thermal power plants.

Once it's all set up, you'll still need to run around for the project... I'm worried the Planning Commission won't be able to handle it all..."

When they started talking about work, they both became quite interested.

The call lasted for almost an hour before it was finally ended.

After hanging up the phone, Qi Tongwei lit a cigarette and muttered something under his breath.

"Press down the gourd and the ladle floats up... We must hope that nothing else goes wrong."

"I've only just arrived in Fuyuan and one thing after another has happened. What am I going to do about my reputation...?"

......

The next morning, led by Zharta, Qi Tongwei and his group traveled light and headed straight for Bailong Gorge.

Qi Tongwei knew nothing about geology, but he still specially invited Li Guangran along.

Although Li Guangran was transferred to the city, his work focus remained on Fuyuan, and he did not leave Huoshaoliang.

Qi Tongwei called him, and he arrived in less than twenty minutes.

They traveled in silence, and Santana quickly led the group to Bailong Gorge.

The group searched along the canyon wall and soon found the stone steps from back then.

Over the course of three years, the stone steps remained largely unchanged, except that they were now obscured by weeds.

Climbing up the stone steps, the group finally found the water diversion culvert that had been dug years ago.

Qi Tongwei wanted to go in, but was stopped by Zharta.

"Secretary Qi, there has been a landslide here. For safety's sake, it's best not to go in..."

Qi Tongwei, however, didn't seem to care. He looked at Li Guangran and asked with a smile.

"You're a geology expert, could you assess this for us... Is there a risk of collapse here?"

Li Guangran didn't answer, but took out a small pickaxe from his canvas bag.

After tapping on the culvert entrance for a while, he shook his head and said softly.

"This section will definitely be fine; it's all rock, so the risk of a landslide is very low."

He pointed into the culvert and said in a deep voice.

"The collapse must have occurred inside, probably in a layer of rubble or mortar..."

Seeing that Li Guangran spoke with certainty, Qi Tongwei ignored Zharta and led the way inside.

"Look, even the experts have spoken. Nothing ventured, nothing gained; let's go in and take a look."

Seeing that they couldn't stop Qi Tongwei, Zharta and the others had no choice but to hurry up and follow.

As you enter the culvert, the light gradually dims.

Li Guangran had experience going down into the cave and was very well prepared.

He took a flashlight out of his canvas bag and quickly walked in front of the group to lead the way.

Li Guangran wasn't walking very fast; as he walked, he kept tapping and striking the stone wall.

The faint, intermittent knocking sounds echoed inside the culvert, sending chills down the spines of those who heard them.

As he continued to tap, his steps slowed and his brows furrowed more and more.

After walking about twenty meters, Li Guangran gradually stopped.

He glanced at Qi Tongwei, pointed ahead with the small pickaxe, and said in a deep voice.

"Secretary Qi, don't go any further... it's dangerous if we go any further..."

The structure in this section is already starting to loosen; the area ahead should be a collapse zone.

Qi Tongwei nodded, glanced at Li Guangran, and said in a deep voice.

"The reason we came here is to find out the cause of the collapse. How can we find out the cause if we don't go inside?"

Upon hearing this, Li Guangran sighed and used a small pickaxe to scrape the stone wall.

As the tooth-grinding sound rang out, fine powder began to fall from the stone wall.

Li Guangran reached out and forcefully pried off a grayish stone from the rock wall.

He stretched out his hand to Qi Tongwei and said with a wry smile.

"While I can't be 100% certain, this is most likely the reason for the collapse..."

Qi Tongwei glanced at him, puzzled.

He reached out and took the stone from Li Guangran's hand, tentatively asking a question.

"This color...is this cement?"

Before Li Guangran could answer, Qi Tongwei exerted a little force, and the stone in his hand was crushed.

He was taken aback at first, then immediately looked at Li Guangran and asked in a deep voice.

Was the collapse due to substandard cement or shoddy workmanship?

Li Guangran frowned, rubbed the powder in his hand hard, and answered in a deep voice.

"Not only was the grade wrong, but it also contained a large amount of lime... and there was no steel reinforcement..."

Qi Tongwei didn't respond, a fierce glint flashing in his eyes.

"Keep moving forward. I'm determined to find out today whether it was a natural disaster or a man-made one!"

Seeing that he was about to walk forward, Zarta grabbed him and reminded him with a pained expression.

"Secretary Qi, even if we want to get to the bottom of this, we should at least let the construction team in..."

The collapse site is right ahead; it's too dangerous. You really don't need to go there yourself..."

Qi Tongwei gently pushed him away, his voice carrying a hint of determination.

"Since you're already here... how can you sleep if you don't get to the bottom of this?"

After saying that, he patted Zarta's arm and offered words of comfort.

"Let's be gentle, we're not doing any construction work, there won't be any problems, don't worry..."

Seeing Qi Tongwei's resolute attitude, Zharta looked distressed and didn't know what to say.

Just as he was hesitating, Li Guangran spoke up before Qi Tongwei could.

"Secretary Qi, please wait here for a moment. I have experience working in mines, I'll go take a look..."

Qi Tongwei glanced at him, snatched the flashlight from his hand, and said in a deep voice.

"You go first, I'll light the way... Zharta will cover the rear, if there's any trouble, go ask for help..."

After saying that, he ignored their reactions and walked away.

Seeing that Qi Tongwei had made a move, the two of them did not hesitate any longer and immediately followed.

The three walked very slowly, their hearts pounding with anxiety the entire way.

After walking for a while, they finally arrived at the landslide site.

Seeing the culvert filled with rubble and slag, Qi Tongwei dared not make any rash moves.

He glanced at Li Guangran and asked in a low voice.

"Guangran, take a look, is it because of the cement?"

Without him even asking, Li Guangran had already pried a large chunk of cement off the stone wall.

He stared at the log structure supporting the culvert and said in a deep voice.

"Secretary Qi, this section is a layer of gravel... The collapse was caused by construction problems."

The geological issues were taken into account in the design, and a solution using cement reinforcement was proposed...

But the cement grade was wrong, and there was no steel reinforcement cage... which led to the collapse..."

At this point, he pointed to the log structure and said in a deep voice.

"The log supports were specifically installed here... This indicates that the construction team discovered the problem..."

The designers and construction teams both discovered problems...and a collapse still occurred...

Before he could finish speaking, Zalta immediately interrupted him.

"Secretary Qi, Director Li... It's good that you've discovered the problem. Shall we go outside and talk about it?"

This isn't a meeting room, this is a landslide site...it could collapse at any moment...