Reborn as a Noble's Son-Chapter 830 - 786 Tofu-dreg Project
Chapter 830: Chapter 786 Tofu-dreg Project
Chapter 830 -786 Tofu-dreg Project
Called out by Nie Zhenbang like that, the old man’s somewhat desolate and lonely figure turned around, looking at Nie Zhenbang. By this time, the staff of Xingzhou City had already approached and said something to the old man, bringing him over.
As to what was said, Nie Zhenbang didn’t even need to think about it to guess. It was nothing more than an introduction to who the various leaders were on his side. They would remind the old man to mind the impact of his words, what should be said and what shouldn’t be, and to have this in mind.
However, Nie Zhenbang did not care about this. His visit to the dike was motivated by his feelings. It was just that instinct told him that for Xingzhou City in its current position, the flood-control dike was critical. He had no other thoughts.
Once he was atop the dike, he saw the old man’s desolation and became curious. The elder’s gaze focused on Dajiang and the abandoned old city.
At that moment, on the edge of a river beach, part of the old city had already been submerged. The depths varied, some reaching the rooftops, others just barely covering the steps.
This kind of desolation sparked curiosity. Inside the dike there was a brightly lit, bustling world, while outside it was like an abandoned city cut off from the world, gradually vanishing from human history and memory.
The old man walked up, and the leaders from Xingzhou City beside him were all smiling joyfully, looking at the elder. Nie Zhenbang spoke up before the old man could, “Elder, just now, I noticed you looking at the abandoned district of Xingzhou City with great melancholy. It was presumptuous of me to ask you to come over, please forgive me.”
Putting aside status and position, it was inappropriate for Nie Zhenbang to display any pretensions in front of an elderly man with a head full of white hair.
The old man sighed, “All will be submerged. The eight hundred years of Xingzhou’s history will gradually be drowned in the river of time within the next six months.”
This was a sigh of regret. As his words fell, Li Yunhe was about to speak when the old man’s tone suddenly shifted. He looked at Nie Zhenbang, “Are you the governor? Our new Governor Nie from Bashu Province?”
Nie Zhenbang was somewhat baffled. He hesitated for a moment but then nodded affirmatively, “Old sir, no counterfeit, I am Nie Zhenbang.”
The old man looked at Nie Zhenbang’s expression, uncertainty and flickers of hesitation in his gaze. After a pause, he said in a grave voice, “Governor Nie, there is something I would like to report to you.”
No sooner had he finished speaking than a leader from Xingzhou City suddenly scolded, “Old man! What are you talking about? Mind the occasion. The governor is a busy man; he doesn’t have time to listen to you express your regrets here. The submergence of the abandoned city in the river is the pace of society’s development; we must look forward.”
Nie Zhenbang was very displeased with the man’s words, and said to him, “Secretary Yun He, who is this?”
At this moment, Li Yunhe was also somewhat anxious. Despite all his caution, he had not expected an issue to arise here on the flood dike.
However, he could not ignore the governor’s question and immediately reported, “Governor, this is Comrade Li Zigui, the Executive Deputy Mayor of Xingzhou City.”
Then, Li Yunhe seriously said, “Comrade Zigui, what is the meaning of this? Mind the impact and your status.”
Nie Zhenbang did not bother with this Li Zigui anymore, merely glancing at him indifferently before turning to the old man, “Old sir, please speak freely. I believe, with me here, there is nothing you need to fear in speaking up. Today, we shall speak and listen without reserve.”
Although his words were spoken lightly, the assertiveness and authority revealed between the lines made everyone around take note. Li Zigui, too, broke into a cold sweat. What was he doing? He had lost his senses and spoken out of turn in front of the governor.
The old man’s gaze was deep and wise as he stared at Nie Zhenbang, fell silent for a while, and then pointed to the levee on the left, “Governor Nie, I am a retired employee of the Xingzhou City Water Conservancy Bureau. Now, this magnificent flood prevention levee right beside us, this levee that cost more than three hundred million to build, to put it bluntly, is nothing but a shoddy construction project.”
This statement, like a bolt from the blue, stunned everyone present, Nie Zhenbang, Sun Jialuo, and other provincial leaders were all dumbfounded. The leaders from Xingzhou City were even paler, their faces ashen.
Li Yunhe was somewhat annoyed. You can eat indiscriminately, but you can’t talk nonsense. This old man, by saying this, wasn’t he framing Xingzhou City? If the flood prevention levee turned out to be a shoddy project, that would be a huge case indeed.
Nie Zhenbang was also somewhat shocked, but even more so, he was excited. He had always felt that something was going to happen. Now, his intuition was confirmed, a shoddy construction project? Such a major project, and one that was under national scrutiny. If it really was so, it would be a sensational case of national magnitude. This could implicate all aspects, and if things went wrong, people from the provincial government could get dragged into it as well.
After a pause, Nie Zhenbang looked at the elderly man and said word by word, “Old sir, do you realize the consequences of what you said? If it’s true, it will cause a terrible storm in both Xingzhou City and the entire Bashu. If it’s false, your actions would be equivalent to slander. In that case, you would have to take legal responsibility.”
Nie Zhenbang couldn’t understand. The flood prevention levee seemed fine. Hexagonal concrete slabs fitted tightly together, with concrete poured between them, how could it be a shoddy construction project?
At this moment, the old man, Luo Hongwen, was also fired up and nodded, “Even though I, Luo Hongwen, do not understand the ways of officialdom and have led an unremarkable life, I still know what’s right. Forget legal responsibility, even if it costs me my head, I’m willing to stake it. The levee looks fine, but if you, Governor Nie, do not believe it, just give me a crowbar, and I’ll pry it open for you to see.”
Nie Zhenbang waved his hand and said to Li Yunhe beside him, “Comrade Li Yunhe, have someone bring over a few iron bars immediately.”
With things having reached this point, there was no longer any room for reversal. Li Yunhe’s face was livid, his gaze dark and angry as he glared at Li Zigui beside him and gestured to the back. Soon, workers brought over two iron rods.
The elderly Luo Hongwen took one of the iron rods, walked up to the top of the levee, and pried at the gap between the hexagonal concrete slabs. Quickly, a thin layer of concrete was pried up, revealing a dark hole beneath, and the whole concrete brick was moved aside, exposing a sight that made Nie Zhenbang’s face turn grim at once.
Luo Hongwen didn’t stop there; he continued prying along that line, the full six-meter vertical height of the levee. Down the slope, which extended for over thirty meters, the entire interior of the levee was laid bare before everyone’s eyes.
Luo Hongwen, now somewhat breathless, said, “Governor Nie, look, the lower three meters of the levee’s body is somewhat up to standard, but it’s quite obvious that the compaction is not dense enough. Still, it could be considered passable. Yet the top part of the levee is a complete mess. It is merely a pile-up of rubble and soil, with some boulders laid on the outer edge. Such a levee won’t last half a year before settling occurs. By then, the entire area above three meters of the levee will be riddled with holes.”
“Once the reservoir reaches its full storage level, the water will completely flood the old town as it’s only one and a half meters below the levee. Come flood season, historical hydrological data from Xingzhou City show that water levels have risen as much as six or seven meters. Typically, it is around five meters. In the event of a major flood, such a levee would be virtually useless. At that point, you’ll see piping everywhere. The entirety of Xingzhou City outside the levee will be utterly submerged.”
These words were certainly not alarmist, as Nie Zhenbang furrowed his brow deeply. Sun Jialuo and Zhou Yining also had very serious expressions on their faces.
After a moment of silence, Nie Zhenbang bowed deeply and said solemnly, “Mr. Luo, on behalf of the provincial party committee and government, I thank you for your righteous words, for your care and support for the government, and for saving the lives and property of four million people in Xingzhou City. Please be assured that we will thoroughly investigate this matter. No matter who is involved or at what level, we will get to the bottom of it. This is simply a disregard for human life, utter malice!”
Turning around, Nie Zhenbang looked at the leaders of Xingzhou City. With such incontrovertible facts before them, all the leaders had bowed their heads. Seeing this, Nie Zhenbang roared, “What now? Have you all gone mute? Looking at this levee, what does it make you think? Don’t think that because you’re high up in the city committee or government, you can act with impunity. There is no seniority or privilege in the face of natural disasters. I’m telling you, if the levee breaks, not just the common people, even you yourselves could be swallowed by the raging flood. This is a crime; it’s irresponsibility towards yourselves and towards the four million people of Xingzhou City.”
“Li Yunhe, Hu Baoguang, which leader in the city was in charge of this project? Take control of them and start an investigation immediately. I will personally report the follow-up procedures to Secretary Zeng. Additionally, immediately organize a team to inspect the entire levee. I want to see just how corrupt and dark this whole operation is.”
In the face of such facts, so-called procedures were meaningless. The iron-clad truth of the shoddy construction project meant that the city leaders in charge of this project bore an inescapable responsibility for the entire undertaking. Whether or not they knew, whether or not they had participated, the investigation was a necessary step. The extent of their involvement would determine the subsequent actions taken.
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Li Yunhe turned and said in a deep voice, “Secretary Wei, contact the municipal disciplinary committee staff immediately, and take Li Zigui into custody. Additionally, take control of the responsible persons from the Bashu Success Engineering Group’s branch in Xingzhou, and immediately take action against the managers of the Bashu Province Hydroelectric Engineering Supervision Company.”(
