The Official Ladder: I ascend to the pinnacle of power, wielding the power of life and death.

“You’re right. These grass roots are deep and they grow back after being cut. It would be better to put our energy into building a decent road and cleaning up the ditches.”

Jiang Yiming nodded in agreement.

The old man exhaled a puff of smoke and nodded in agreement, saying, "Yes, the road into our village is so bumpy that even a tractor would fall apart. On rainy days, the mud is ankle-deep. Last year, our neighbor's grandson fell into a mud pit while riding his bicycle and had to get seven stitches in his knee. He still has a scar. We complained to the village several times, but they said the town didn't have the money to fix it. I find it strange that they spend money like water on those fancy projects. Last year, they built a rockery and a fountain in front of the town government. I heard it cost over a million yuan."

"That was a long time ago. Let's talk about something more recent. All the houses along the provincial highway were painted white, the trees along the road were cut down, and the weeds were cleared clean. That must have cost a lot of money. But what's the use? From the front and the side, the houses look pretty white on the outside, but if you look from the back, the paint has already peeled off. It looks like a two-tone facade. It's awful and unlucky. My fifth son's house is right by the road. He didn't want to have it painted two-tone and almost got into a fight with the township officials. In the end, the township compromised and painted all four sides of it white before he agreed. The problem is, it looks nice on the outside, but it still leaks inside."

The old man was very talkative; once he started talking, he couldn't stop.

Do you know where the money comes from?

Jiang Yiming inquired.

“They asked us to contribute money before, but we all strongly opposed it and didn’t collect it. I heard that the money is still owed. Anyway, it’s common for the town to owe money. It’s not like it will stay indefinitely. Let them get promoted first. As for the money owed, it’s not their personal debt, it’s the government’s debt. Once they’re gone, they won’t care about the money owed.”

Jiang Yiming said, "If the town and village hold a meeting of village representatives to solicit your opinions, where do you think the environmental remediation should begin?"

"The simplest thing is to fix the road first, but fixing the road will cost a lot of money, and I don't think the town can afford that much. So let's clean up the ditches, install more garbage cans, and clean them regularly. Ten years ago, you could wash clothes and take a bath in the ditch in front of my house. Now, all kinds of garbage and pig manure are dumped in it, and the water is black and smelly. I don't dare to go near it. I think it will change a lot once it is cleaned up."

The old man finished his cigarette and said, "I can't chat with you anymore, I have to get back to work."

"Thank you, sir."

Jiang Yiming offered him another cigarette before turning and leaving.

"You old geezer, how come you can talk so much? I've never seen you talk this much before!"

As soon as the old man returned to the field, his wife started complaining.

"What do you know? I'm reporting this problem to the leadership; it might actually work."

The old man said, "I think this person looks like a cadre from the city. He speaks politely, doesn't use bureaucratic jargon, and asks practical questions. He might be a good official, and the things we report might actually work."

"If he were really a high-ranking official, he wouldn't have come here alone. Besides, even if he were a high-ranking official, how could he be so easily enlightened by a few words from us common folk?"

The two elderly people argued back and forth.

Jiang Yiming returned to the crowd, and Huang Mingxiang, the Party Secretary of Xijiang District, quickly came to greet him.

"Mayor, I have just learned that some officials are engaging in deception and only seeking superficial results, without truly addressing the potholes, stinking ditches, and peeling paint in front of people's homes. I bear some responsibility. Upon returning, I will immediately convene a special meeting to conduct a comprehensive investigation of all environmental remediation projects in the district. Any projects that have not been approved based on the actual needs of the people, have not followed democratic deliberation procedures, or have not publicized the source and purpose of funds will be halted and rectified. Simultaneously, accountability procedures will be initiated, and those responsible for typical formalism issues such as 'dual walls,' 'parade-style greening,' and 'whitewashing walls next to stinking ditches' will be dealt with severely and swiftly."

Huang Mingxiang reacted very quickly; in the short time Jiang Yiming was away, he had already come up with a set of excuses.

After all, he was somewhat aware of the situation below, and in fact, he tacitly approved of the actions taken below.

But since the mayor himself discovered the problem, he naturally had to absolve himself of primary responsibility and take responsibility for inadequate supervision.

Avoiding the important issues and focusing on the trivial ones is their specialty.

"For the rest of the research, your district and town officials don't need to come along. We'll go and explore on our own."

Jiang Yiming said, "You should also take a good look at the real needs of the people and stop doing superficial projects. I'll give you two days to resubmit a rectification report and an environmental remediation implementation report."

After saying that, he ignored them and turned to leave.

He was very disappointed with the practices of Xijiang District, but he also knew that this was not a problem in any one place and that many districts and counties were doing the same thing.

This requires further optimization of the guidance and assessment schemes at the municipal level.

Following that, they conducted research in urban villages and urban communities to understand the actual situation.

Upon returning, he instructed the publicity department to publish a report exposing the typical practices of Xijiang District's perfunctory rectification efforts.

After learning the news from the Publicity Department, Huang Mingxiang, the Party Secretary of Xijiang District, immediately went to find Lei Liang.

“Secretary Lei, Mayor Jiang visited our Xijiang District today and found some problems. I made a profound self-criticism on the spot and immediately deployed rectification. However, Mayor Jiang reported on us as a negative example, which is very unfair to us. It’s not like only our Xijiang District is doing this.”

Huang Mingxiang said, "I think Mayor Jiang is doing this deliberately to target our Xijiang District."

How could you have such an idea?

Lei Liang inquired.

“A while ago, he demanded that we carry out environmental remediation, so we strictly followed his requirements. However, we went too far and caused conflicts. The province called off the environmental remediation campaign, and I heard that Mayor Jiang was criticized for it. Do you think he will hold us, Xijiang and me, accountable for this?”

Huang Mingxiang said, "He came to Xijiang District this time with a lot of anger. He found problems and didn't give us a chance to rectify them. Instead, he used us as a typical example in the report, hoping that we would become a warning case for the whole city and make an example of us. Secretary, you have to put in a good word for us."