Absolute power in officialdom

Chapter 317 Another Shoddy Construction Project 2

Ding Yi was deeply worried. The Wanshan Bridge collapsed, resulting in the deaths of four people.

If the Qinghe River dike were to collapse during the flood season, it would endanger the lives and property of more than 100,000 people.

Bi Yuan, that unscrupulous boss, dares to make money through any dishonest means.

It's one thing for him to take on more projects and make more money by using his special relationship with Geng Dongqing, but at least he should ensure the quality of the projects and not endanger the lives and property of the people.

Ding Yi pondered for a moment, then said firmly, "Zhiyuan, no amount of research can compare to seeing it for yourself. Let's go to the construction site of the Qinghe Dam right now and see just how many shady things are hidden in this shoddy project!"

Wu Zhiyuan quickly said, "Seeing is believing. It's very necessary to go to the site and take a look."

Lang Wenping said with some concern, "County Chief Ding, going directly like this will make too big a target and might alert the enemy."

Furthermore, if the construction team recognizes this, will they be prepared, or even obstruct the work?

Wu Zhiyuan said from the side, "Secretary Wenping's concerns are reasonable."

However, undercover investigations have their advantages, and overt investigations are also necessary.

As the head of the county, it is only natural for County Chief Ding to check on the progress of key projects when he goes to the countryside for research. The construction team has no reason to obstruct him.

Of course, Bi Yuan's men are capable of anything.

Ding Yi calmly replied, "I'm just going to take a look. They're not going to eat me, are they?"

Wu Zhiyuan knew that Ding Yiyi, the seemingly gentle and weak female county head who looked like a kindergarten teacher, was a complete action-taker.

The two got into the same car.

The driver was Lao Zhou, the driver of Ding Yiyi's car.

Old Zhou is a veteran; he's not a talkative person, but he's reliable.

The reinforcement project of the Qinghe River embankment is mainly concentrated in the section of Qinghe County, stretching for several kilometers on both banks. It is a key barrier to protect Qingshan County and several towns along the river.

The car was parked at an intersection about 500 to 600 meters from the dam.

Ding Yi didn't let Lao Zhou go with her.

It was winter, the sky was overcast, and the temperature was around zero degrees Celsius.

Ding Yiyi was in her thirties, neither fat nor thin, neither tall nor short.

She's not the kind of beauty that's stunning at first glance, but she's very pleasing to the eye. If a woman's looks are scored out of ten, she'd get at least an eight.

She was wearing a knee-length white down jacket and a light gray cashmere scarf, looking like the girl next door.

The dam is just ahead.

From a distance, figures could be seen moving about on the embankment, and machinery could be heard roaring.

The two walked forward along a bumpy dirt road.

They were stopped at a fork in the road.

There is a simple guard post at the intersection, and a sign next to the post reads "Construction Area, No Unauthorized Personnel Allowed".

Two workers wearing work clothes and safety helmets were squatting by the guard post smoking. When they saw Ding Yiyi and Wu Zhiyuan approaching, they looked up, their eyes full of vigilance.

One of the workers, who had a scar on his face, stood up, dusted himself off, walked over, and blocked the road, speaking in a thick local accent: "Hey, you two, what are you doing? There's construction going on ahead, you can't go in."

Wu Zhiyuan stepped forward and said loudly, "We're here from the county to conduct research and check on the project's progress."

"A survey?" The scarred man sized Wu Zhiyuan up and down, then looked at Ding Yiyi, asking with some skepticism, "Which organization are you from? Do you have a letter of introduction? Do you have any paperwork?"

The other man was thin and tall, like a skinny bamboo pole.

He yelled from the side, "So what if you're from the county? What are you looking at? What's so interesting?"

This is a construction site, very dangerous, not a place for you. Get out of here! Get out of here!

Ding Yiyi began, "We are from the county government, conducting a routine inspection. Please cooperate."

"County government?" The skinny guy sneered. "I don't care if it's the county government, the city government, or the provincial government!"

The boss said that no one is allowed in except for construction workers and material delivery personnel!

Who will be responsible if a safety accident occurs? Can you afford to take responsibility?

"Don't cause trouble here, get out of here!"

Several more men in overalls gathered around.

Wu Zhiyuan shouted, "Which construction team are you from? Who is in charge?"

The county magistrate himself came to inspect the work, and you dare to stop him?

Scarface paused for a moment, then looked Ding Yiyi up and down.

He knew that a female county magistrate had come to the county, but he didn't care what she looked like.

Ding Yiyi, standing before me, was gentle and frail, like a little woman, making it hard to associate her with a female county magistrate.

Moreover, when the county head comes to conduct research, he is always surrounded by a large entourage, and he is notified in advance.

The skinny man said arrogantly, "You think the county magistrate is the county magistrate? Who knows if it's true or not?"

We only recognize the site access pass and the project manager's words!

No one is allowed in without the project manager's permission!

If you're really in charge, call our project manager. If he agrees, we'll let it go immediately!

Ding Yiyi was too lazy to waste any more words with him and started to walk forward, saying, "Get out of my way!"

Scarface hadn't expected this seemingly frail woman to be so assertive, and instinctively stepped in front of Ding Yiyi, saying, "I told you not to come in! Why won't you listen to me?"

Wu Zhiyuan strode forward and pulled the scarred man aside: "The county magistrate wants to see the site, what right do you have to stop him? Get your project manager here!"

Scarface was furious. He waved his thick arm, pointed at Wu Zhiyuan, and cursed, "Damn it! You dare to push me?"

"Brothers, these two guys are from nowhere and they're trying to force their way into the construction site. Stop them!"

Several workers nearby were muttering curses.

The skinny bamboo pole tried to grab Ding Yiyi's arm.

"Stop!" Wu Zhiyuan shouted angrily. "If you dare to lay a hand on me, I will call the police immediately!"

Let's see if your boss's rules are more powerful, or the country's laws!

Just as the standoff was reaching its conclusion, a middle-aged man wearing a black leather jacket arrived.

This person is none other than project manager Liu Chengbao.

Liu Chengbao probably saw Ding Yiyi and Wu Zhiyuan in the media.

Before he even arrived, a shout came: "What are you doing! Stop it all! Get out of the way!"

"Are you all blind?! You dare to stop even County Chief Ding and County Chief Wu? Don't you want to work here anymore?"

After berating his subordinates, he immediately put on a fawning smile: "Two county magistrates, our men were ignorant and didn't recognize your importance. They offended you, and I apologize on their behalf!"

After introducing himself, Liu Chengbao explained, "Your Excellencies, this construction site is indeed dangerous. There are deep pits, scaffolding, and machinery operating everywhere. If anything happens, we can't bear the responsibility!"

Ding Yiyi said coldly, "Since Manager Liu is here, please show us inside. We'll take care of our own security."

Liu Chengbao was also in a difficult position, because Bi Yuan had ordered that no unauthorized personnel be allowed to enter the construction site. Ostensibly, this was for safety reasons, but in reality, it was to prevent more people, especially media reporters and officials, from discovering problems with the quality of the dam reinforcement.

But since things had come to this point, it was obviously impossible to forcibly stop them, so Liu Chengbao could only force a smile and say, "Please come this way, leaders!"

However, the construction site is indeed messy, so I had someone bring two hard hats. It's mandatory, as required.

Ding Yiyi and Wu Zhiyuan took the helmets and put them on.

The hat was a bit too big, so Ding Yiyi had to pull the scarf down and adjust the straps before the hat could be held in place.

Surrounded by Liu Chengbao and several of his managers, Ding Yiyi and Wu Zhiyuan entered the core area of ​​the dam construction site.

Once inside the construction site, even ordinary people who don't understand engineering construction can sense that something is wrong.

Liu Chengbao led the way, explaining as he walked: "You two county heads, look, this is a concrete retaining wall being poured. It's all C25 grade concrete, strictly following the design requirements."

That's the stone storage area, full of fresh granite, transported from Shandong. The quality is absolutely top-notch...

He intentionally or unintentionally led the two towards the completed section of the embankment.

The surface of that section of the embankment was flat, and the concrete was smooth; it certainly looked like the real thing.

But Ding Yi didn't let him lead her by the nose.

She knew that Liu Chengbao was taking her to visit a model section.

Even the worst shoddy construction projects have model sections, which are prepared for leaders to visit and for project acceptance.

Ding Yiyi stopped at a fork in the road and looked in another direction—there was a small mountain of stones, which looked black from a distance and were completely different from what Liu Chengbao had described.

Ding Yi pointed to the pile of stones: "What's that over there?"

Liu Chengbao explained, "Those are just scraps temporarily piled up; we haven't had time to clean them up yet."

Ding Yi walked straight to the pile of stones.

The stones varied in size, the largest being as big as a washbasin and the smallest only the size of a fist.

The surface is severely weathered, the edges have long been rounded, some are covered with moss, and some crumble into stone powder when touched.

Wu Zhiyuan squatted down, picked up a stone, rubbed it, and stone dust kept falling off.

"This is weathered material, it doesn't even qualify as rubble. If you use this to build a dam, it will collapse in the flood season."

Liu Chengbao explained, "Sir, this is the foundation layer, not the main structure. Concrete will be poured on top later."

"Subbase?" Wu Zhiyuan pointed to the already poured foundation of the dam not far away. "Is this what's underneath that foundation?"

Liu Chengbao opened his mouth, but couldn't say a word.

Ding Yi didn't say anything and continued walking forward, discovering a whole host of problems.

The retaining stones were loosely laid, the mortar was thin like mud, and the gaps between the stones were huge;

The concrete is whitish in color, with little aggregate, and after pouring, a large number of honeycomb-like pits appeared on the surface, raising questions about its strength.

In some sections of the embankment, the reinforcing steel bars are sparse or even missing.

Construction work was carried out directly on soft soil without compacting the foundation;

The site management was chaotic, the workers were perfunctory, and no supervisors were seen.

The entire project was done with shoddy workmanship and of poor quality, resembling shoddy tofu.

Upon hearing the news, Bi Yuan rushed over.

He walked up to Ding Yiyi and warmly extended his hand: "County Chief Ding! I've heard so much about you! I've wanted to visit you for a long time, but I haven't had the chance."

It is my honor, Bi Yuan, to have you personally come to the construction site to guide our work today!

Bi Yuan shook hands with Wu Zhiyuan again.

Bi Yuan smiled broadly: "Leaders, the construction site conditions are rudimentary and unsafe."

How about we go sit in the project office?

I'd also like to give the two leaders a detailed report on the project's progress.

Ding Yi shook his head: "I won't drink the tea. President Bi, County Chief Wu and I just took a walk around the construction site and saw some things. We'd like to ask you about them in person."

Bi Yuan said calmly, "County Chief Ding, please speak. I will tell you everything I know."

Ding Yi pointed to a pile of severely weathered stones beside him: "President Bi, are these the stones you're using to reinforce the dam? Do they meet the strength requirements?"