Reborn as a Noble's Son-Chapter 831 - 787 Li Ziguis Suicide
Chapter 831: Chapter 787: Li Zigui’s Suicide
Chapter 831 -787: Li Zigui’s Suicide
Xingzhou City Municipal Party Committee Reception House.
The Xingzhou City Municipal Party Committee and City Government building are newly constructed. The office tower is grand and luxurious, with a sculpture plaza in the green space front of the door. There stood an extremely abstract sculpture of a male figure drawing a bow and aiming an arrow, representing Xingzhou’s thriving and upward-aiming city spirit, full of confidence and grandeur.
The reception house of the Xingzhou City Municipal Party Committee, located right next to the Committee building, overlooks Xingzhou Avenue at the front, and is a twenty-story building. The main building, together with the skirt building and the small garden at the entrance, covers a relatively large area and appears very prestigious.
The sign hanging on the building reads “Xingzhou Hotel,” rated as four-star. However, it might not really live up to a four-star standard; a three-star would be more appropriate. Behind the hotel, once you enter, amidst the greenery, there’s a sense of tranquility in the midst of the bustling city. This place is the City Committee’s reception house.
At this moment, Nie Zhenbang was sitting inside the No.1 courtyard of the City Committee’s reception house. Seated on the sofa in the living room, Nie Zhenbang held the phone, discussing something with the Party Secretary, Zeng Taiping.
Nie Zhenbang’s face looked rather grim at the moment. The flood dike was a matter of great importance to the nation’s economy and the people’s livelihood, a critical issue concerning the safety of the city’s residents. Yet, these people, with their conscience shrouded in darkness, were taking their chances on such a crucial project. Undoubtedly, this stirred deep emotions within Nie Zhenbang.
“Secretary Zeng, the current situation is roughly as follows: out of the total 4,263 meters of the dike, only 63 meters were built to the national flood dike construction standards. The rest of the dike is purely shoddy work. I believe that now it’s necessary for the Provincial Party Committee to take immediate action. A joint investigation team comprising the Provincial Disciplinary Inspection, Supervisory Department, Public Security Department, and Water Resources Department should be assigned to move into Xingzhou City at once to start a comprehensive investigation,” Nie Zhenbang’s voice was firm, leaving no room for negotiation.
On the other end of the phone, Zeng Taiping fell silent. After a long pause, Zeng Taiping finally said, “Zhenbang, regarding the investigation in Xingzhou City, in my view, we need to be careful. The flood dike is a crucial part of the flood control project along the entire reservoir area. This matter has the support of the central government, and the Dajiang Water Resources Committee has also inspected it several times. I think we should handle the issue in Xingzhou City prudently. We should not cast the net too widely.”
Zeng Taiping’s words immediately made Nie Zhenbang’s eyebrows rise, understanding full well the implication of his words. All this talk about ‘being careful’ and ‘not casting the net too widely’ had only one purpose, one meaning: don’t blow things out of proportion. Don’t let it become nationally known or let the higher-ups find out. It would not reflect well on Bashu Province.
This was the common practice of cover-up. Sometimes, within the system, a cover-up does not necessarily mean there are any explicit connections, as in the current case of Xingzhou City’s flood control project. It was dubious whether Zeng Taiping was involved, but why would he want a cover-up? The objective was nothing more than his own self-interest.
With such an incident, naturally, the leadership of the Xingzhou City Municipal Party Committee and City Government would suffer, but the Bashu Provincial Party Committee and Provincial Government could not absolve themselves of involvement either.
Without much consideration, Nie Zhenbang directly refuted, “Secretary Zeng, I must disagree with your viewpoint. I think now is not the time to discuss whether to cover this up. It is a massive project that is a part of the national Three Gorges construction plan that the central government regards with great importance. Such a grave incident where the entire dike is substandard, according to some experts’ estimates, the project now has spent at most one billion in funds. In other words, these people have pocketed profits of at least two billion yuan. Such behavior is absolutely unforgivable. They’re playing with human lives.”
Nie Zhenbang’s tone and attitude naturally exuded a sense of righteous indignation. On the other side, Zeng Taiping’s brows furrowed as he listened, letting out a sigh, “Governor Zhenbang, stay calm, please calm down.”
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“Secretary Zeng, I cannot stay calm. It is unimaginable that such a huge oversight went unnoticed, which is definitely not normal. It is certain that the Xingzhou City Flood Control Project Command is involved, and furthermore, the supervisors from the Water Conservancy and Hydropower Supervision Company, as well as some officials from the Water Resources Department, whether they played a part in this remains unclear. This is definitely a case of collusion. Now, Comrade Li Zigui, the Executive Deputy Mayor of Xingzhou City, has been placed under shuanggui measures. The Jiesheng Engineering Construction Group also needs to undergo a simultaneous investigation. We must investigate thoroughly until everything is brought to light.”
Nie Zhenbang’s words resonated strongly, causing some dissatisfaction in Zeng Taiping. After silence fell for a moment, Zeng Taiping’s voice came through again, “Comrade Zhenbang, regarding this matter, I still suggest that you consider it carefully and prudently. Remember, stability is of utmost importance. Think it over yourself; I have some matters to attend to here, let’s stay in touch.”
After hanging up the phone, Nie Zhenbang shook his head resignedly, and beside him, Executive Deputy Governor Sun Jialuo also chimed in, “Zhenbang, it seems that Secretary Zeng has some different opinions.”
Hearing Sun Jialuo’s inquiry, Nie Zhenbang’s mouth curled slightly with disdain and dissatisfaction, sneering, “What else is there to say? It’s the same old story. They are hoping to contain the impact within a certain limit. It is certain that the Provincial Committee Propaganda Department has also issued a gag order to the media across the province by now. It’s all about keeping things under wraps, minimizing the big issues and trivializing the small ones.”
In the end, the official-centric mentality is too prevalent, and self-interest too ingrained. To ensure their own career prospects, for a smooth path in their official journey, is punishing the primary offenders the only concern?
What constitutes the primary offenders? They are merely some small-time contractors, construction supervisors, and the leaders of a few districts in Xingzhou. By doing this, the real culprits remain dignified in public, above the law. This is not resolving the issue; it’s a slap in the face—a slap in Nie Zhenbang’s face.
Nie Zhenbang was quite indignant, and his words tumbled directly out of his mouth. Hearing Nie Zhenbang’s words, Sun Jialuo also nodded and said, “Zhenbang, what do you mean?”
At that moment, Nie Zhenbang hesitated not a whit, nodding solemnly, “Investigate! No matter who is involved, even if it’s the emperor himself, I must continue the investigation. If I don’t, I won’t be able to get over it myself. It would also betray the studies I undertook at the Party School earlier this year.”
Nie Zhenbang made this statement with deliberate intent. At the end of last year and the beginning of this year, during the short training course for provincial and ministerial level cadres at the Central Party School’s spring session, they covered the content on anti-corruption, clean governance, and discipline. He said this also as a way to align himself with Sun Jialuo, since they were classmates after all.
Sun Jialuo understood the implication behind Nie Zhenbang’s words and smiled inwardly before saying, “Zhenbang, I’ve heard about the flood dike issue in Xingzhou City before. This Jiesheng Group is quite influential. It’s said to have Jingcheng’s backing. This time, the Dajiang Committee was able to allocate 3.25 billion funds to Xingzhou, which is said to have a certain connection with Jiesheng Group. Moreover, this company has deep ties within the province as well. It might not be so easy to investigate.”
These were surprising words to Nie Zhenbang. He was aware of the deep connections Jiesheng Group had within the province. As the proverb goes, “Without a three-part cunning, one dares not climb Liangshan.” Applied here, the sentiment was similar. Could Jiesheng Group be so brazen in embezzling assets and committing such unconscionable acts without some connections or background?
But to have ties in Jingcheng too? That was somewhat unexpected. Looking at Sun Jialuo beside him, Nie Zhenbang spoke with profound meaning, “Old Sun, you know my character. I don’t want to say much. My stance on this matter remains the same, regardless of who is involved, I don’t care what prince he may be, I must investigate rigorously. Whatever happens, I, Nie Zhenbang, will bear it.”
With these words, Nie Zhenbang’s attitude was clear, and it was precisely this determination that Sun Jialuo wanted. He then nodded and said, “Governor, I understand.”
Outside the door, Li Jupeng walked in, looking at Nie Zhenbang and Sun Jialuo, “Governor, Deputy Governor Sun, dinner is ready. Would you like to have it brought in, or?”
Nie Zhenbang stood up and said to Sun Jialuo beside him, “Old Sun, I think we should go to the cafeteria to eat. It’s unnecessary trouble otherwise.”
No sooner had he finished speaking than Ning Bojun, the Provincial Discipline Inspection Committee Secretary who had arrived in Xingzhou City in the afternoon, and Xiang Shuguang, the Director of the Provincial Supervision Department, walked in through the door.
Both men wore grave expressions, and their faces showed a deep solemnity. Looking at them, Nie Zhenbang said, “Secretary Ning, Director Xiang are both here. Let’s go have dinner together.”
Ning Bojun, though he had broken ties with Long Genghua over certain issues and allied with Zeng Taiping, generally adhered to his own principles and resolve. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be able to maintain his position as the Secretary of the Discipline Inspection Committee.
At this moment, Ning Bojun appeared very serious and said in a deep voice, “Governor, I’m afraid there’s no time for dinner. This time, there might be big trouble in Xingzhou City. We received a message that an emergency meeting of the Provincial Discipline Inspection Committee was called at two in the afternoon, and immediately a special task force was formed. They departed at three sharp and arrived in Xingzhou City by five. At six twenty, they took over the work with Xingzhou City Municipal Party Committee and City Government. But just moments ago, in the room arranged by Xingzhou City Discipline Inspection Commission, the city’s Executive Vice Mayor Li Zigui committed suicide.”
Suicide?
Suicide!
These were the exclamations of Nie Zhenbang and Sun Jialuo. They were very surprised, very astonished.
Beside them, Xiang Shuguang also nodded in confirmation, “Governor, it’s true, Li Zigui hanged himself. In the bathroom, he used a bedsheet tied to the ceiling to commit suicide. Secretary Ning and I believe that there’s something very unusual about this case. Li Zigui must have known something crucial; otherwise, he wouldn’t have been so desperate. This case is not going to be easy to handle.”
Beside him, Ning Bojun also nodded and said, “As they say, it’s better to live a wretched life than to have a good death. The extreme action of Li Zigui surely indicates major underlying issues.” (
