Ouyang Jing dared to oppose Lin Yanzhou

Just as Ding Yizhen felt he had reached the end of the road and began secretly preparing a way out, he received a call from Municipal Party Secretary Li Dakang's secretary, asking him to come to the office.

With an uneasy heart, Ding Yizhen walked into Li Dakang's office. The harsh reprimand he had expected never came. Li Dakang even had him sit on the sofa and asked his secretary to make him a cup of tea.

"Yizhen," Li Dakang said in a rare, almost soothing tone, "I understand that you have some thoughts about the recent adjustment of responsibilities. But you need to view the organization's decision correctly. This is both a work requirement and a way of protecting cadres."

Ding Yizhen lowered his head, but inwardly he did not believe a word of it.

Li Dakang walked over and patted his shoulder, speaking earnestly. "The Guangming Peak Project is currently my greatest political capital, and yours too. I know you've been wronged, but the more things are like this, the more you need to keep your composure and help Comrade Qinghua make this project a success! As long as the project succeeds completely, it will be the brightest achievement to both our names!"

He lowered his voice, yet it carried a powerful allure. "I promise you, as long as Guangming Peak is completed smoothly and delivers results, I'll do everything I can to recommend you for deputy municipal Party secretary! What does this little setback amount to? You need to look further ahead!"

This pie in the sky was like a shot in the arm, rekindling a flicker of twisted hope in the eyes of the previously despondent Ding Yizhen.

That's right. As long as Li Dakang is still willing to protect me, as long as the project succeeds, I might yet have a chance to rise again! Deputy secretary-that's the genuine number-three position!

"Secretary, I understand! Rest assured, I'll put aside my personal feelings and cooperate fully with Mayor Lin and Mayor Wu to make the Guangming Peak Project a success!" Ding Yizhen solemnly pledged.

When he left the municipal Party committee office, Ding Yizhen seemed to stand a little straighter again. But that false confidence was soon shattered by a phone call.

The call came from Zhao Guifa, the owner of Guangming Chemical Plant.

"Mayor Ding-oh, no, Standing Committee Member Ding," Zhao Guifa said, his tone both teasing and anxious. "I heard your responsibilities have been adjusted? What exactly is happening with that cleanup payment now? We've got the money ready, but transferring it out just like that really cuts into my flesh! Do you think..."

Previously, Ding Yizhen would have tried to maneuver around the problem. But now, his panic at being unable to save even himself, combined with the warped stimulation of Li Dakang's "pie in the sky," drove him into the madness of smashing an already cracked pot.

He suddenly felt that, since he was no longer in charge of anything and had neither duties nor power, a barefoot man had no reason to fear one wearing shoes. Why not stir things up one last time? He could give Lin Yanzhou some trouble too!

An idea flashed through his mind, and he lowered his voice to tell Zhao Guifa, "Guifa, don't pay yet!"

"Huh? But Secretary Li and Mayor Lin..."

"Listen to me!" Ding Yizhen's tone carried a gambler's ruthlessness.

"Don't they want to follow procedure? Then we'll follow it with them all the way! Have your company's legal team immediately apply to the city government for administrative reconsideration of the legality and reasonableness of the Qingshui River cleanup levy! If reconsideration doesn't work, file an administrative lawsuit in court! Muddy the waters for me. Every extra day we can drag this out counts! With over eighty million sitting in the bank, the interest alone is a fair bit of money, isn't it?"

Zhao Guifa's eyes lit up as he listened. This really was a solution! They could use legal procedures to delay things with full justification, and no one could find much fault with it. "Brilliant! Standing Committee Member Ding, absolutely brilliant! I'll arrange it right away!"

Soon, Guangming Chemical Plant formally applied to the Jingzhou City Government for administrative reconsideration, challenging the basis and amount of the cleanup levy.

But Lin Yanzhou had already given instructions. There were also documents from the on-site office meeting and personal instructions from the mayor, and the facts of the case were clear. The reconsideration upheld the original decision without any suspense. What they had expected to drag out for a month took just two days.

Immediately afterward, the chemical plant filed a complaint, taking the Jingzhou City Government to court in an administrative lawsuit.

When the news reached Lin Yanzhou, he immediately realized that Ding Yizhen was pulling strings behind the scenes, trying to stall for time and create trouble. Before absolute power, such tricks were nothing but a mantis raising its forelegs to stop a chariot.

"Playing legal procedure games with me?" Lin Yanzhou snorted coldly and immediately issued instructions. "Notify the court that this case involves major public interests and must receive special handling, with green lights all the way. Expedite the hearing! At the same time, prepare an application for compulsory enforcement!"

Under his forceful intervention, the court held a hearing with astonishing speed and soon delivered its first-instance judgment, dismissing all the chemical plant's claims and upholding the legal validity of the city government's levy decision.

As soon as the judgment was issued, Lin Yanzhou demanded that the court initiate compulsory enforcement proceedings and instructed Jingzhou City Bank to transfer the corresponding funds directly from Guangming Chemical Plant's account, based on the effective judgment and city government documents.

However, resistance emerged.

Ouyang Jing, vice president of Jingzhou City Bank, refused to transfer the funds directly, citing the fact that "the litigation process has not yet fully concluded, and the other party is still appealing at second instance."

Lin Yanzhou was furious when he heard. He did not know whether this had Li Dakang's tacit approval or was merely the result of Ding Yizhen's lobbying.

He forced down his anger. Considering Ouyang Jing's special status, he did not lash out directly but immediately took organizational measures instead.

He promptly summoned the principal officials from the municipal public security bureau, municipal procuratorate, municipal intermediate people's court, municipal financial affairs office, and Jingzhou City Bank for an emergency coordination meeting.

At the meeting, Lin Yanzhou's tone brooked no argument. "The Qingshui River cleanup is a major decision of the municipal Party committee and city government. It concerns the well-being of a million residents and is a prerequisite for the Guangming Peak Project! Now that the legal judgment has been issued, some people still want to exploit procedural loopholes to stall and resist. This is absolutely unacceptable!"

His gaze swept across every official present. "I require the court to issue an enforcement ruling immediately, with the public security bureau and procuratorate providing full cooperation. As for the bank, once you see the ruling, you must transfer the funds immediately and unconditionally!"

He looked pointedly at Ouyang Jing. "Bank President Ouyang, I want a clear answer from you. Can you carry this out?"

Ouyang Jing still tried to argue. "Mayor Lin, it's not that we won't carry it out. The court has only issued a judgment, not an enforcement order, and the other party really is still appealing. Procedurally..."

"Procedure?" Lin Yanzhou abruptly cut her off, his voice suddenly rising with a biting chill. "Ouyang Jing, I didn't call this coordination meeting to discuss procedure with you! I'm here to give you orders! I'm asking you just one thing: will Jingzhou City Bank carry out the city government's decision and the municipal court's judgment or not? Is your Jingzhou City Bank still under the leadership of the municipal Party committee and city government?"

Seeing that things were going badly, the president of Jingzhou City Bank spoke up. "Mayor, there's no need to wait for the court. We'll transfer the funds as soon as we get back."

Ouyang Jing wanted to say more, but the bank president stopped her. After the meeting, still unconvinced, Ouyang Jing went to Lin Yanzhou's office and asked to see him.

Considering the implications, he agreed and had Li Ze bring him in. Ouyang Jing's very first words were, "Mayor Lin, won't you give me even this much face? The chemical plant is still going through its second-instance appeal. Can't you wait a little?"

Lin Yanzhou raised his head. "Ouyang Jing, is it? Strictly speaking, someone at your rank isn't qualified to speak to me. The fact that you can stand here means I've already given the person behind you face. I hope you know when to stop and leave that person some face."

Ouyang Jing seemed not to understand what Lin Yanzhou had said. "Mayor Lin, Secretary Dakang also attaches great importance to the chemical plant. Surely you have to give him face. I'm not asking you to violate procedure, only to wait until the procedure is complete before transferring the funds."

Lin Yanzhou stood up and stared down at Ouyang Jing. "Let me make this clear today! Never mind you, Ouyang Jing-even if Secretary Dakang were sitting here, he would have to respect the decisions I make within my responsibilities as mayor! I'm a member of his leadership team, not his subordinate! The city government coordinates the Guangming Peak Project, and I have full responsibility for it!"

"If this money arrives even a day late, I'll consider the entire leadership team of Jingzhou City Bank guilty of collective inaction and resistance to the decisions of the municipal Party committee and city government! If I don't see proof of a successful transfer within one day, I'll have your entire leadership team replaced! I mean what I say!"

This merciless reprimand, which even carried a hint of a challenge to Li Dakang's authority, left Ouyang Jing deathly pale. She had never seen Lin Yanzhou so forceful, so utterly heedless of personal considerations.

She understood that Lin Yanzhou was truly angry, and that he had both the ability and the determination to do exactly what he had said.

"Mayor Lin, please don't be angry. I'll arrange it as soon as I get back. We'll transfer the funds immediately!" Ouyang Jing made the promise with difficulty.

Lin Yanzhou directly instructed his secretary to see the visitor out. Watching Ouyang Jing leave, he suddenly found himself reflecting on how someone as shrewd as Li Dakang had married such a foolish wife, without the slightest political awareness or sensitivity.

At this rate, Li Dakang would fall at his wife's hands. After all, as her husband, could Li Dakang really not know that his wife was swaggering around and swindling people under the banner of being the municipal Party secretary's wife?

If Li Dakang really knew and tacitly condoned this behavior, he would have to consider whether continuing their cooperation was necessary. Could a man who could not even manage his own household manage Jingzhou?

Under Lin Yanzhou's crushing pressure, every procedural obstacle was instantly swept away. The court issued its enforcement ruling at maximum speed. Upon receiving it, Jingzhou City Bank dared not delay another moment and immediately froze and transferred the more than eighty million in cleanup funds from Guangming Chemical Plant's account.

The funding shortfall for the Qingshui River cleanup was finally plugged completely. The last obstacle Ding Yizhen had tried to create by exploiting the rules was also utterly smashed by Lin Yanzhou in an almost domineering fashion.

After this battle, Lin Yanzhou's authority within the Jingzhou City Government reached unprecedented heights. Everyone saw clearly that this young mayor possessed not only outstanding political acumen and powerful backing, but also the iron fist to break with convention at critical moments and drive things forward by force.