Colorful years

Based on the distance traveled, he should have paid 1 yuan for the fare—that was obvious. However, he only offered 5 jiao (0.5 yuan), his stingy manner truly baffling. Seeing his unwillingness, the driver's dissatisfaction gradually grew.

The driver thought to himself, "The passenger buses to the countryside are subsidized by the government, and the fares are very low. If everyone were like him, refusing to pay according to the distance and cheating, the passenger transport company would go bankrupt."

In a fit of anger, the driver stopped the car halfway to the destination and unceremoniously told him to get out and walk back.

The middle-aged man initially thought he had gotten a small advantage, but he never expected this outcome. He was instantly enraged and, in a fit of rage, swung his fist and punched the driver hard.

The driver's face immediately became red and swollen. This punch not only hit the driver's face, but also shattered the previously peaceful situation.

The driver, feeling deeply aggrieved, returned to the city and then went on strike, citing a facial injury. From that time on, the bus service to Luoshui only went as far as Jiaoziya and stopped there. This sudden change caused great inconvenience to the people of Luoshui.

Previously, residents of Luoshui could easily take bus services to the county seat for errands, shopping, or visiting relatives and friends. However, the suspension of these bus services has disrupted their lives, forcing them to change many plans. Those who frequently travel are particularly distressed.

In response, the leaders of Luoshui Commune repeatedly negotiated with relevant departments, hoping to resolve the issue as soon as possible and restore the normal operation of the passenger buses. However, after several rounds of negotiations, no substantial results were achieved.

Zhang Cong was indignant about this. He felt that it was clearly wrong to ignore the interests of the vast majority of people and suspend the Luoshui passenger bus service simply because of a few individuals or one incident. He decided to seek justice for the people of Luoshui.

After returning to the city, Zhang Cong immediately threw himself into work, writing a letter from a reader to report the issue to the media.

In the letter, he described in detail what he had seen and heard firsthand, as well as the facts he had learned through in-depth investigation.

He vividly described the inconvenience and trouble caused to the people of Luoshui by the suspension of passenger bus services, while also expressing his strong dissatisfaction and criticism of this unreasonable phenomenon.

To make the letter more persuasive, Zhang Cong also incorporated his own profound feelings. In the letter, he wrote: "As an observer, I have witnessed firsthand the helplessness and suffering of the people of Luoshui. Their originally peaceful lives have been disrupted by this sudden change, and travel has become extremely difficult."

All of this stems from one person's selfish behavior and the inaction of relevant departments. I believe this situation must change, and the interests of the vast majority of the people must be respected and protected.

Zhang Cong's letter to a reader, titled "Dayong Bus Station Unreasonably Stops Cairo Water Transport Buses," was stamped with the official seal of the county party committee's news reporting team and sent to the Hunan Daily's social and mass work department. He hoped to use the power of the media to attract widespread social attention and promote a solution to the problem.

A week later, Zhang Cong's efforts finally paid off. The letter was published in a prominent position in the lower right corner of the front page of the Hunan Daily, with the title unchanged but the text slightly shortened.

In addition, the newspaper added an editor's note titled "No Issue Is Too Small for the Masses," which severely criticized the decision to suspend passenger bus services.

This report caused quite a stir throughout the county. After all, Dayong County had always done an excellent job in its work with the masses, and had never been publicly criticized by name in the provincial party committee's official newspaper in the past twenty years.

The county party committee attached great importance to this matter and immediately ordered the Transportation Bureau to establish a special working group to investigate and rectify the situation.

Upon receiving instructions from the county party committee, the Transportation Bureau acted swiftly and decisively. They quickly organized an investigation team composed of experienced staff to conduct an in-depth field investigation in the Luoshui area.

The investigation team learned in detail about the course of events and the reasons behind them by visiting local residents and talking to relevant personnel.

After a thorough investigation, the investigation team discovered that the suspension of the bus service was not solely due to the conflict between the driver and passengers, but also stemmed from several management loopholes and problems. In response, the Transportation Bureau formulated a series of corrective measures, including strengthening driver management and training, improving the bus operation system, and enhancing service quality.

Thanks to the efforts of the Transportation Bureau, the rectification work progressed smoothly. Three days later, the passenger bus service to Luoshui Commune finally resumed. When the bus slowly pulled into Luoshui Station again, the local people cheered and beamed with joy.

Zhang Cong's actions not only solved a practical problem for the people of Luoshui, but also earned him widespread praise. From then on, both superiors and subordinates looked at Zhang Cong with new respect and admiration.

At the end of that year, Zhang Cong, with his outstanding writing skills, was successfully selected for the county party committee's annual three-level cadre expansion meeting material preparation team, becoming one of the most outstanding writers and shouldering the important task of writing materials on advanced models for the county party committee. He proved his ability and value through his actions and set a good example for the vast number of cadres and the masses.

The topic returned to the correspondent training course.

Time flew by, and it was already late November. The training for key rural correspondents had only one stop left—Yuanguping District. What was different this time was that Zhang Cong would not only co-host the training course with Teacher Man, but also fulfill a long-cherished wish.