Qi Tongwei: Sign-in relationship started during student days

Chapter 1034 Minister Wu Who Doesn't Want to Take the Blame

Sure enough, Qi Tongwei's posture clearly indicated that he wanted Qi Tongwei to take responsibility for this mess.

Wu Yingjie was as nervous as if he had a rabbit in his heart, but he didn't dare to show it on his face. He just bowed again and stammered, "Tongwei...Mayor, I really can't think of a good solution for this matter right now."

"How about this, I'll go back now and call all the comrades from the propaganda department for an emergency meeting. We can brainstorm and come up with a suitable plan."

Qi Tongwei didn't give Wu Yingjie a way out, and criticized him sternly: "Minister Wu, I remember you've been working on this propaganda front for over thirty years, haven't you?"

"What, a few tabloids making a fuss and you, a seasoned propaganda professional, are stumped?" He paused, his gaze fixed on Wu Yingjie's face like a nail, his tone now laced with sarcasm. "Brainstorming! I mean, when it comes to this crucial moment, can we please stop with all that empty bureaucratic stuff? Huh?"

As you just said, these tabloids have ulterior motives—do you think those people with ulterior motives will wait until we finish our meetings and finalize our plans before taking action? Will they give us time to figure things out?

A cold sweat instantly broke out on Wu Yingjie's back, trickling down his spine and soaking his palms. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something more, but Qi Tongwei didn't give him the chance, cutting him off completely.

"Let me be frank with you. On your way to my office, I made a special call to the Petition Bureau. Just ten minutes ago, they received nearly a thousand complaint letters, all directed at me and the municipal government. The phone lines are practically burning out from all the calls! Minister Wu, tell me, can we afford to keep this up?"

Wu Yingjie felt a tightness in his throat, as if he had returned to the time when He Anxia and Qi Tongwei were in power, feeling oppressed and unable to lift his head.

The form of address changed again, and there was a slight tremor in his voice: "Mayor Qi... Mayor Qi, this... this is the first time I've encountered something like this, and I really... really can't come up with a definite idea right now..."

No matter what Qi Tongwei said, Wu Yingjie was determined not to utter any plan, not even a hint or a solution.

If Qi Tongwei takes this opportunity to adopt his suggestion, and something goes wrong, then I will have to bear the main responsibility.

At that time, even living a peaceful and comfortable old age will become a problem.

A plan can be proposed, but it must be the collective opinion of the publicity department.

You can take the blame, but you should never take it in your own name.

Seeing that the old minister wasn't falling for his tricks, Qi Tongwei cursed the old fox inwardly, but pretended to wave his hand in a show of "furious exasperation."

"Alright, alright, Comrade Wu Yingjie, I'll only give you three hours for the propaganda department."

"Your publicity department must give me a satisfactory answer within three hours."

Wu Yingjie breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly said, "Yes, yes, I will go back immediately to convene an emergency meeting and finalize the plan as soon as possible."

Qi Tongwei didn't want to listen anymore and waved his hand impatiently at Wu Yingjie.

……

As Wu Yingjie left Qi Tongwei's office, the corridor lights reflected the fine beads of sweat on his forehead.

Instead of immediately returning to the propaganda department to convene an emergency meeting as usual, he turned and headed to the top-floor office with the plaque that read "Party Secretary of the Municipal Committee"—he knew that the real eye of this media storm stirred up by the newspapers was not in Qi Tongwei's mayor's office, but on Xia Guanglei's desk.

He knew some of the inside story. The eye-catching headlines in those newspapers, such as "Pollutants in Beishan Chemical Plant Cause Villagers to Fall Ill," and the sharp questions about "Government Oversight Failure," all had Xia Guanglei's shadow behind them.

This newly appointed municipal party secretary has only been in office for a little over a month. He appears gentle and refined, but in reality, every step he takes is sharp and ruthless. This time, by taking action through the media, he is clearly trying to leave his mark on the power structure of Beishan.

He, the head of the propaganda department, had no say in how to formulate the public relations plan and could only follow the "instructions" of the top leader.

"Secretary Xia, what's your opinion on this matter?" Wu Yingjie stood in front of the desk, his back bent even deeper, but his gaze couldn't help but drift towards the "Beishan City Economic Data Statistics" document beside Xia Guanglei's hand.

That was a report that Qi Tongwei had just submitted, but Xia Guanglei was flipping through it casually, as if the numbers on it were just unimportant symbols.

Xia Guanglei looked up and smiled faintly: "How can I possibly understand?" He placed the document on the table and tapped the paper lightly with his fingertips. "In China, we value freedom of speech, especially for newspapers, which are the 'reigning kings' of the industry. It is their duty to monitor the government."

Just because someone reported some 'facts' and exercised their legitimate power, does that mean we can arbitrarily arrest people? Wouldn't that violate our principles?

Wu Yingjie's heart skipped a beat. "That's true, but sometimes the truth is more hurtful and harder to control than rumors."

I'm worried that if this isn't handled properly, it could trigger a mass incident in Beishan.

"What are you worried about?" Xia Guanglei leaned back slightly in his leather chair, his tone full of nonchalant disdain. "If a mass incident really happens, the tall guy will take the blame. Qi Tongwei will be fully responsible for this matter."

Who brought in those polluting companies? The municipal government! It was Qi Tongwei.

Of course, there are also historical issues, which we do not deny.

But Qi Tongwei has been in office as mayor of Beishan for more than a year. Has he not seen these "historical problems"?

I don’t think so.

If he doesn't take the initiative to rectify the situation and doesn't start solving it, isn't that dereliction of duty? Isn't that inaction? I think the label of 'inaction' is quite fitting for him!

Wu Yingjie was secretly startled, thinking to himself that this top leader was really ruthless. "Then... Secretary Xia, what kind of public relations plan do you think our publicity department should come up with?"

Wu Yingjie's voice was a few decibels lower, and his tone was more humble than when he met Qi Tongwei.

Xia Guanglei slightly raised his eyelids and threw the question back at him: "Do I need to instruct you on how to do it?"

According to the usual practices of your propaganda department, and based on your many years of 'experience,' what do you think should be done?

Wu Yingjie said, "In general, in this situation, we will vigorously publicize the municipal government's pollution control plan, show the public that the municipal government is dealing with the situation urgently, and at the same time temporarily block related reports to suppress public opinion. Cooling down is the best approach."

"See, isn't this perfect?" Xia Guanglei said with a cryptic smile, "This plan is very sound and has no flaws. I think you can report it to Comrade Tongwei now."

Wu Yingjie said, "Then I'll go back now and convene a meeting to design a solution."

Xia Guanglei waved his hand, "Okay, go ahead."

Wu Yingjie nodded and turned to leave. As he reached the door, Xia Guanglei suddenly said in an inexplicable tone, "Minister Wu, sometimes you must have firm principles. You must remember that."

Wu Yingjie felt a chill run down his spine, realizing that the top leader was dissatisfied with his self-protective behavior in holding the meeting.

……