Liu Chengyin never dreamed that the first meeting after he and Lu Xiaoying had left the campus of Guangling University would be many years later, in the

    afternoon, at the gate of the old fort-like Chu County Party Committee and County Government buildings, and that their statuses should have dramatically changed. When Liu Chengyin was transferred away from the county after a few years, the scene of the afternoon when they first met at the gates of the County Commission and County Government building, like such a fort facing a crowd of petitioners together would always come into his mind.

    On September 16, 1988, for the bulk of the people in Chu County, it may have just been an ordinary day. But for Liu Chengyin, it was a smash day, as it was the 365th working daywhen he was transferred from Qingjiang to the party secretary of Chu County, the first anniversary of his return to his hometown to work.

    In his hometown of Xianghe, the good people were  strong for such an “anniversary” about whether “l(fā)ife” or “death.” In the eyes of the country folks, “the dead” is always an event, so let’s take the words about “death” first. In Xianghe, when a deceased dies for a year, his family will hold an “anniversary” for him with paper money①   and offerings. Some even invite monks to chant sutra for the dead and give food to hungry ghosts②  to show their remembrance of the deceased. What is more appropriate here is “l(fā)iving.” Especially when a peasant daughter-in-law procreates her kind of a big boy-baby, and a year later, the family must give the little sonny an “anniversary.”③   On thisday, alive with the hurries, all relatives, family members, and village leaders are sheltered in a merry house for a skoal. Guests must always be sozzled into a pleasant coma. There is nothing to discourage the local custom. And all the same, it is quite few not to souse or be soused. It is not because the villagers take to drink, but because it is somewhat of a rarity for the family to tender a banquet in a year. How could they find their pleasures shortened when standing treat for a whole year that skelters? Although there is no such famous liquor as Yanghe, the Baoying Daqu liquor can betaken at a casual will. The country folks entertain the customers postulated with sincerity.

    Through the rush of time, it remains nearly a year since Li Chengyin returned to Chu County to work. At the breakfast table, he was only patronizing Li Yong who, just started kindergarten a few days ago, reminded him to obey the teacher, not as a Skeezix, but with a show of hand to deliver a state to the teacher before he needs to puddle, and not to pee in his pants. Liu Yong also habitually spared wetting at night, for which Liu Chengyin stewed, but his wife Su Hua didn’t give a shit, saying that it was in his subtitle stand for children to wet the bed and he would naturally sort himself out in a few years. Su Hua had been getting on his previous job at No. 1 Middle School of Qingjiang. When Liu Chengyin went to work in Chu County, she was transferred to the teacher training school in Chu County, so that Secretary Liu could run deep in Chu County and not job hopping after a few years. At present, there are not a few aspirants——worked in a place or a sector for a few years before a redeployment or a step-up. Liu Chengyin thought that put my roots down here, not in Chu County, at that rate, “I’d prove unworthy of the organizational training, and then, as a betrayal of my gentle people. Of course, I will submit a satisfactory answer to the organization and my fellow men.”

    Now that he had been in the office for nearly one year, he would always hold a rite for himself. “Down the countryside or to the service boards today? Back for lunch?” Su Hua asked her husband as she spruced up the table. Generally, Liu Chengyin took the initiative to tell his wife whether to go home for lunch. Liu Yong split his lunch at the government kindergarten. If her husband hadn’t returned, Su Hua wouldn’t have to come back to cook at noon. She could have a simple meal in the refectory of the teacher training school——an easy way out. If her husband returned, she had to come back to cook, or else the Secretary Liu, who governed upwards of one million people, would dine with Duke Humphrey.

    “To Yangshan Township, not back at noon.” Liu Chengyin thought about the anniversary in her mind, and troubled himself so little about it, “How can I have the idea of a rite? Just came to Chu County without doing a stroke of work yet. Everything has to start from ‘zero.’” His wife was the one with a good memory, always reminding him of things. Yes, it’s a real statement down to the countryside and into company. So Liu Chengyin told his wife about his whereabouts for the day. Before leaving, he kissed his son and said, “Dad’s gonna go to the country. Your mom will send you to school later. If she doesn’t pick you up after school in the evening,Grandpa Chen will pick you up. Don’t run sculling, clear-cut?”

    At that moment, Su Hua had pushed out the “Forever” bicycle that Liu Chengyin was riding, and the handlebars were hung with a big black fat leather bag. People often say that a secretary’s bag contains the problem of problems. Secretaries spend their days working on various kinds of problems, so it must be questionable inside their bags. Su Hua didn’t know what was in Secretary Liu’s big black leather bag, because she never rummaged her husband’s bag.

    “Goodbye to your dad.” Liu Chengyin took the “Forever” bicycle from his wife, waved to his son, and left.

    “Xiao Jin, it looks like a good harvest this year.”

    “Yeah, yeah, these yellow, seedful rice with erect stalks are growing very strong, the crop won’t be single precarious.”

    “Farmers, busy all year round, just for a throw of a good crop.”

    “That’s right, for farmers, a good harvest develops the broadest value. But, Liu Secretary, a good harvest means not a good income. You just came to our Chu County, the cost of agricultural inputs has risen sharply in recent years, after a quarter, there are some peanuts①  that can enter the pockets of farmers.”

    Liu Chengyin came to Chu County from the post of Deputy Secretary of Qingjiang Municipal Party Committee. After graduating from Guangling University, he was assigned to work in Qingjiang. Although Chu County is his hometown, ordinary people do not know that he is from Chu County because he has no experience working in Chu County. The attendant secretary, Jin Aiguo, has just been with Secretary Liu for a short time. Naturally, he gets a worse view of this. He regards Secretary Liu as an “outlander,” and there are such epithets as “We Chu County” to distinguish local people from Liu.

    Jin Aiguo is not unreasonable to think this way. In his impression, the superior    

    has regulations and the first man of the county can’t be a provincialist, who, to active duty in a strange land, in order to prevent nepotism that would round up to be members of a ring. Secretary Jin also heard that the seniors were still not satisfied with the Weinan gang and Weili gang of the Chu County Party Committee, so a young, vigorous leading cadre from Qingjiang was removed to play first fiddle in Chu County. In general, the superiors did not take a “one-size-fits-all” policy on the issue of transferring Liu Chengyin to be the head of Chu County, but took a “practical and realistic” attitude from the perspective of solving the problem of Chu County.

    Liu Chengyin naturally heard Xiao Jin’s “Our Chu County”, and he smudged. This phrase he was most qualified to say. Why? Known in the parlance of the hometown Xianghe people, it was visibly the lice on the bald head. Liu Chengyin and his secretarial attaché Jin Aiguo pushed their bikes, prowling as they tattled, and were lured to the mature rice in front of them.

    By the roadside,there is a large paddy field forming its running scroll into the infinite distance. Shining golden under the morning sun, the yellow, magnificent rice grains are headed down a little to the dancing waves by the balmy spirit of a gale. The dropping ears of rice seem to be riffling to the passersby. This is the harvest of the farmers. To be their prefecture, Liu Chengyin felt a nameless emotion in their hearts, surely appealed by the good harvest of the hard-working people, and also by Heaven forgiving the farmers the right kind of weather. After all, Heaven is unpredictable, so when he looks down fine, it brings great bounty. The fact is that in the following years, Liu Chengyin truly experienced the might of the heavens in Chu County, leaving him stranded in a swamp. This is a later story, and let’s not mention it for now.

    Starting from the county seat of Chu County, Jin Aiguo must have been chasing Secretary Liu. Jin Aiguo had felt Secretary Liu’s bike riding skills. Secretary Liu, tall and long-legged, drove the bicycle quickly with great endurance, which made the sprat Jin labour his way along. On the way to Yangshan, they had to pass a bridge in front of the phosphate fertilizer plant. The bridge was steep, almost like a semicircle, and impossible to be up withoutstanding on the feet; and to slope downward, it was easy to fall if the handlebar was not stabilized. Generally, he who passed this bridge must get off and push the bike tamely. However, Secretary Liu did not stop over, and whether up or down, his bicycle whooshed past——without much ado——quite a dilemma that arose for Jin. At its beginnings, Jin watched Secretary Liu whoosh up and down, and wanted not to set down; otherwise, as an administrative assistant, he would be too far behind his leader. It was really indecent about Liu’s waiting for him. However, after several attempts, he was either less spanking up, or staggery and tumbled down. At this, Liu had to plead against it, “Forget it, don’t be so stubborn. Don’t get hurt. Push it instead.”

    Liu grew afraid that Jin would fall and hurt himself, while Jin scrupled about breaking the “cellular phone” that Liu couldn’t work without. This brick riot was very heavy and expensive. It cost ten thousand yuan. If broken, how could Jin pay for a reprise? To pay is a straw, but an event to stamp the regular work of the party secretary. The “cellular phone” was so magical that it could talk wherever one went. Jin carried a “cellular phone” bag, and felt to take to other ways from the stew of other county leaders. Because, in the whole leadership of Chu County, only Secretary Liu and Magistrate Liang currently used “cellular phone”. In other words, only two secretaries of the whole county had a “cellular phone” in their hands, and Jin was one of them. How could he not be honored?!

    Look, they just passed the bridge by the phosphate fertilizer plant, pushing their bicycles forward. This demeanor made endearment possible to Jin. The party secretary was so considerate of the staffer around him that Jin dared to say something in his presence. In this way, Liu, with sincerely sentimental love for such a man for it was not easy to tell the truth, especially to the leader. Liu was anxious in need of someone to be sooth to him.

    “Ride a while, quest some farmers.” Secretary Liu waved to Jin, legged up on the black bike, “whoosh” out a good distance. Looking at Secretary Liu’s tall figure flit past, Jin quickly bicycled, only to continue to give chase.

    “Hello, is this the office of County Party Committee? Is secretary Jin Aiguo there?”

    “Hello, please speak. Is Secretary Jin not here? He’s out inspecting work with Secretary Liu down to Yangshan.”

    “To Yangshan? Who am I? I am Secretary Qiu from Yangshan Township!”

    “Oh, oh, right, secretary Jin told me this morning that CPC Secretary Liu will come to our township for investigation and research.”

    “Yes, yes, I haven’t gone anywhere this morning. I’ve just been waiting at the township government for Secretary Liu’s arrival. Not only me, but all the party and government staff in Yangshan are waiting. Yes, yes, for granted.”

    “Near twelve now, Secretary Liu’s still out of sight. Possibly he has other more important work and won’t come to Yangshan? Oh, right, not assure about it, so over phone.”

    “Come to Yangshan? Strange. Almost noon, only a few kilometres from county town. He should have been hereby now. Where is he?”

    “Could something have happened? Secretary Liu rides smart, something prone but never, and traffic is not complicated. And Secretary Jin is with him.”

    “Well, then we’ll be patient and wait. We’re not in a hurry. Okay, goodbye.”

    After finishing the phone call, Qiu Zhiwei was sweating profusely. Cool in autumn, the sun was not as fine as in the summer. He was agog for it. In the meeting room of the township government, there were four or five main township officials of Yangshan who were counting on the good nature of Secretary Liu as requested by Qiu. Several township officials saw that Qiu was in such a lather for his patter of questions, but they didn’t catch a word of what was said on the other end of the phone.

    Noted that the 45 districts and townships of Chu County belonged to a water- side region,i.e., an open-the-door-before-into-the-water region, or no boat no way- ——for which land transportation was not well developed. Even if the CPC secretary maintained close contact with the masses, he couldn’t be sure that he’dvisit every district and township every year. Therefore, the party secretaries of the townships might not be able to host their Secretary in their bounds even once a year, which was why Qiu Zhiwei set too great store by it. Not to mention those ordinary cadres in the township, who may not even have the opportunity to meet the Secretary once a year. Therefore, for the several Yangshan township officials waiting in the township government, it meant that Qiu Zhiwei trusted them; otherwise he wouldn’t have created this opportunity for them to meet with Secretary Liu. In other words, this created opportunities for their future promotion, and then promised well. Working in the township, one couldn’t get promoted without the Secretary’s saying yes.

    In terms of meeting with the CPC county leaders, Yangshan Township with all the pull of it——close to the county seat, directly accessible to the highway. The supers often set up on-site inspections and pilot projects in Yangshan, and the county leaders could conveniently command and conduct on the spot. As a result, the position of the head of Yangshan Township was like a hotcake, implying promotion sooner or later.

    The current party secretary of Yangshan Township, Qiu Zhiwei, who, was around 32 or 33 years old, before coming to Yangshan, was the director of the County Committee Office, mainly serving as the CPC secretary of the county. At that time, the CPC secretary was not Liu Chengyin, but his predecessor, an old worker- peasant cadre who had participated in the revolution before liberation, particularly stood high with the sentiment and relationships in the township and promoted many locals and relatives during his tenure, which made the higher-ups dissatisfied and forced him to retire ahead of schedule.

    Qiu Zhiwei had been serving the old secretary for three or four years. Not only the chiefs of departments, commissions, offices or bureaus in the county, even its members of four leading groups had some intention of getting close to Director Qiu. As a “red person” around the secretary, Qiu could make a big difference by leaking information on key issues or speaking a few good words at critical moments. Despite his youth, Qiu exhibited a mature demeanor, and did not seek to flaunt his own influence by relying on the old secretary’s power of “big red umbrella”①. That was the reason why Liu Chengyin removed several cadres in key positions in less than one year when he came to Chu County while unexpectedly promoted Qiu Zhiwei to be the head of Yangshan Township as the secretary. This caused quite a stir in Chu County at that time.

    In the government circles of Chu County, the newly-arrived Secretary Liu Chengyin had been suggestive of a “l(fā)oose mouth and sloppy action.” Liu’s move was quite perverse. The issue of personnel was an exceedingly important matter. Liu, a newcomer, had not figured out the deep-rooted weight, and yet so hastily transferred and appointed. What was more, even if he was a standup, he should not have promoted the former secretary’s personal confidence so quickly. To open up new working situations, a new leader must establish his own authority on a new path different from the former leader’s clues. Besides, they should try to stay as far away as possible from those close to the former leaders. What was Liu Chengyin thinking when he acted in the opposite way, and how could he open up the work situation?

    At the township government, Qiu Zhiwei and his group waited and waited for

    Liu Chengyin but he just didn’t show up, which made them restless as ants on a hot pan.

    Liu Chengyin and Jin Aiguo leisurely pushed their bicycles off the road and onto a level open space where some villagers were smoothing away, some were weeding, some were leveling the ground, and some were pushing a stone roller around the field. The Jin Secretary explained to Liu Chengyi that the villagers were “preparing the field” because the rice paddies were about to be harvested. If the field weren’t prepared properly, what was cropped would have a place to be threshed or shelled.

    “Let me tell you, little Jin. I’ve done all these you just mentioned. In my hometown, during the rice season, the threshing ground of each production team was bustling. Nothing much was visible during the day, but at night, it was a completely different story: the lights were on, and the whole ground was filled with a great crowd of men and women. Especially when the ox herders on the ground drove to the rhythm of “holl, holl, holl”——loud, clear, melodious——all into the ears of the whole village. Now, output-related, and divide-up, rare to see such scenes.”

    Jin had never thought that his casual sentence would well up in the mind of Secretary Liu.

    “Good folk, busy jointly on the ground?” Secretary Liu parked his black Forever Bicycle by the side of the ground and chit-chatted.

    “Good folk, this is our……” Seeing that Secretary Liu was parking his bicycle and asking questions, Jin hurriedly parked his own bicycle and took out some Huangguo Tree cigarettes, proffering to the villagers one by one while trying to introduce the Secretary Liu to the villagers.

    “Good folk, which village is this in our Yangshan?” Liu darted a look at Jin, addressing himself exclusively to the conversation. This time, Liu was going to ascertain what was true. If his identity came to light, the villagers would feel nothing on earth during the conversation.

    Jin was canny when he should, and, not canny enough when should not. Liu thought to himself and appreciated Jin’s action of handing out cigarettes in his heart. As the proverb went, “Easier to converse when two strangers exchange cigarettes and share a light.”

    The villagers were puffing on the cigarettes from Jin, smelling a fine different odor, they talked to and fro with this tall young man like a cadre.

    “We are from Qi Jia village,” someone said.

    “Output-related and contracted, but crops must be harvested. What if no ground?”

    “To be candid, it’s not good as the big collective days when we harvested wheat and rice on one big ground. What a heart-hot scene! Those good old times!”

    “Yeah, our patches closer join hands for work.”

    “This ground, not prepared by us few, if all done, other folks disagree. They need to harvest their own. If all is not prepared, the rice can’t go in loose order.”

    “Not we are stingy, if we prepare all, the village cadres won’t give it all to us, and we work so hard at nothing.”

    It seemed the contracted production responsibility system couldn’t solve all the problems in the countryside at once. Listening to the villagers, Liu Chengyin could hardly get a word in. He had previously worried that the villagers wouldn’t speak the truth before the leader, but his worry was unnecessary. The villagers really had a lot to say to their leaders. “Jin, get a notebook and write down all the opinions.”

    “Folks, can I take a few minutes of your work time? I’ve got a few questions to ask. And feel free to share with me whatever difficulties or opinions you have. I am the new secretary of the county committee.” Liu was in the mood and announced his identity.

    “This is our new leader, Secretary Liu of the county committee. If you have any thoughts, now is really a rare opportunity to share it.” Jin blurted out the surname of the young secretary.

    “Jin used inappropriate words. It’s just a regular and normal day and I want to make friends with you all.” Liu smiled and gathered the villagers around him and sat down. He then called Jin forward and they had a few whispers. Jin then took out a brick-sized object from his long brown leather bag and tapped the keys.

    “So it’s Secretary Liu of the county committee. Wow, we meet a high official.”

    “Indeed, in the past that would be County Lord.”

    “County Lord? There’s such a young one?”

    “Comrade Jin, why only you two on this visit? Whenever our township chief visits, he’s followed by a crew. Always a big group, what a show-off!”

    “A show-off? Tell us more about this show-off,” Liu interjected, intrigued.

    In the eyes of these villagers, this young secretary had no air at all. No matter what they said, he always had a smiling face. And he kept asking question after question, as if there were endless questions to ask. Such as how often the village cadres came to visit their village, how much the pesticide and fertilizer were this year, how many households of stringency were in the village, how much rice per mu this year, how much money will be left over after the harvest, etc. Once the conversation started, it was as if time had stopped for Secretary Liu and made him forget about those waiting for him in the Yangshan Township Government.

    When Qiu Zhiwei saw Liu and Jin, it was already after 1:00 p.m.

    “Secretary Liu, you’re finally here. You must be starving. The canteen’s chef is still waiting. Have lunch first and then I’ll report.” Qiu Zhiwei said with a forced smile. He couldn’t criticize the secretary, but the village cadres, usually lording it over, were all waiting behind him with an empty stomach and must have been none too well pleased about it. So Qiu Zhiwei felt letdown more gently in front of these village cadres.

    “What? Haven’t you tabled yet? Oh, Jin. We were too busy chatting with the villagers and forgot to give Secretary Qiu a call. We should have starved them.”

    “Ours are nothing of a hunger compared to Secretary Liu’s.” Qiu Zhiwei brought Liu and Jin into the village government’s meeting room, and the other village cadres came to the secretary of county committee, shook hands and chatted politely to show their enthusiasm and courtesy.

    “Oh, Secretary Qiu, eat by yourself. We can talk after the meal.” Liu Chengyin waved at Qiu Zhiwei, indicating that he didn’t need to worry about him. Liu then sat down in the meeting room and picked up a cup of tea.

    “Jin and I have already dined at a villager’s house. Fifty cents a meal, much cheaper than your village government.” Seeing Qiuand the others in a quandary, Liu smiled and took a sip of tea, “Well,this tea is good.”

    “Sorry, Secretary Qiu. Sorry, all leaders. It was my fault for my poor job, forgetting to call you, that made you starve. I’m really sorry. Secretary Liu did tell me to do so, but the mobile phone was out of power. Talking to the villagers, I totally forgot it. I’m so sorry.” At this moment, Jin Aiguo could only research his reins and couldn’t tell Qiu that it was actually Secretary Liu who asked him to turn off the mobile phone to prevent Qiu from finding Secretary Liu. Jin knew that once he was contacted by Qiu, not only would there be a grand welcome, but the peasants would be afraid to speak the truth in the presence of Secretary Liu. In that case, the real situation of the autumn harvest in Yanshan Township could not be understood thoroughly. To be fair, in the face of the inspection from the superiors, not only would Qiu do this, but all party secretaries of other townships would want to be praised in front of the leaders and before their subordinates. They would also be conservative in their work report, and assume freedom of choice in inspection spots. This was natural.

    “Hurry up to dine, Zhiwei! Jin, charge the mobile phone quickly, and don’t mess up anymore,” Liu said with a smile, letting Qiu and the others, who were originally unaware of what to do, go to the canteen. He then gave a look to Jin. Secretary Jin quickly took out the mobile phone from his long bag, and found a socket on the wall of the meeting room to charge it.

    Since Liu was waiting in the meeting room, Qiu Zhiwei, although quite hungry, couldn’t dine leisurely and instead hurriedly ate his meal. He haphazardly placed his chopsticks on the table and left before the canteen’s chef could even offer him a hot towel to wipe his face. Following his departure, the other village cadres also quickly left the canteen, sliding down the hot steps.

    When Qiu Zhiwe and the others stepped into the meeting room, they heard faint snores. They saw that Liu was leaning back on his chair, head slightly tilted, and succumbed to his drowsiness. Secretary Jin was leaning over the table, looking through a notebook and punctuating with a pen, probably subjoining their conversations with the villagers today. So, Qiu Zhiwei quietly came to Jin Aiguo’s side and sat down next to him.

    “Secretary Liu is too tired, and let him rest for a while,” Jin Aiguo said when he saw that Qiu Zhiwei and the others had come back from lunch.

    “Okay, okay, let Secretary Liu rest first. We will talk later,” Qiu Zhiwei politely asked Jin to have a cup of tea. Because he was not talking to Liu, Qiu Zhiwei didn’t use the word “report” but “talk.” Jin Aiguo beheld it with secret admiration: before him, this Qiu Zhiwei was indeed an old secretary, and his words were very well- measured. Naturally, Qiu Zhiwei should use the word “report” when facing Secretary Liu. If he used “report” with Jin Aiguo, it would obviously be “fake.” Not only that, Jin Aiguo himself would have been rather seedy. So Qiu Zhiwei used  “talk,” which was quite tactful.

    During Liu’s nap time, Qiu got a clear understanding from Jin about the conversations between Secretary Liu and those men of Qi Jia Village. For example, the prices of pesticides and fertilizers in the township supply and marketing cooperatives kept increasing, and were often out of stock. Village cadres were scarce to be seen during field management, and the agricultural technical guidance was chaotic and distorted. The summer harvest did realize a good price, and streakily, the coming  autumn harvest poor in a prolific……Of course, Jin did not mention that slatches of Secretary Qiu’s assertive visits to the villages. Jin was surely well- measured in his heart: Secretary Qiu was originally from the county committee and would like to know the conversations between Secretary Liu and the villagers, in order to make better presentation to Secretary Liu. I must help Qiu with that. Otherwise, if the report is still not up to its place, or on its faut, Qiu would count Secretary Liu’s criticism on me. Of course, I couldn’t follow directly, quite as a matter of course. Some words would not been properly mouthed from me.

    When Jin Aiguo and Qiu Zhiwei exchanged the information, other cadres listened and interjected occasionally. Some said that these villagers would inflate a mung bean to the point of watermelon; some said that the villagers’ reflections were not truthful and intentionally made a reproach to Yangshan Township before the county leader; some complained about the rising prices and shortage of pesticides and fertilizers, not just a problem in Yangshan Township and needed to be reported to higher authorities. Other cadres came up to what was for Qiu, and also for themselves.

    At this time, Qiu was wondering how to adjust the scale of the report to Secretary Liu. Some work was not properly done and should be reviewed, but he should mainly focus his report on how to do a good job during the autumn harvest. The summer harvest was already gone, and some lession should be drawn from it to do better next. This was what mattered to Liu! Thinking of this, Qiu Zhiwei had a brand new script in his heart to report to Secretary Liu, all thanks to Secretary Jin. Qiu Zhiwei got up, picked up the thermos from the meeting table, and poured water into Jin Aiguo’s teacup himself.

    “Secretary Qiu, so strain courtesy. I do it. Let me do it.” Jin was quite awed by Qiu’s action. Normally, nothing special for a village party secretary to serve the attendant of the CPC county secretary. But this village party secretary was not always clear: Qiu Zhiwei was the former keeper of the old county committee’s secretary. Even though he was not that old, he was senior to Jin Aiguo.

    In the suave act of the two secretaries, Jin took the teacup from Qiu Zhiwei and swept it to his hand, and the teacup lid fell down upon the table with a “clang”, startling Liu awake.

    “Jin, why stumble so often?” Liu asked,seeing Qiu Zhiwei and others seated around the table, apparently waiting for his fresh awakening. “We had already made Secretary Qiu and others wait for us before lunch. Why not shape me up earlier, and why keep them waiting again?”

    “Don’t blame Jin, I told him not to wake you. You’ve been working too hard. Besides, we were just discussing some things and it only took a few minutes.” Qiu Zhiwei quickly smoothed away the offense and explained to Secretary Liu as he made him a fresh cup of tea.

    “Alright, Secretary Qiu. Then let’s hear about the autumn harvest this year. Comrade Zhiwei, you say first. Other comrades then follow up. Get it?” Liu rummaged through his thick black leather bag, and pulled out a thick notebook with a pen still stuck in it. As he flipped through it, the scene of the villagers taking an active part, or tossing it up to him, seemed to assume vivid proportions again……

    “Little Jin, this day’s a good one!” Liu and Jin rode their bikes on the road back to the county town. Every now and then, people riding bikes or walking past them failed to recognize this official responsible for the well-being of over a million people and his secretary. The setting sun was still dazzling, shining on the golden rice fields and the road on which Liu and Jin were riding, where the long shadows of their bikes were prolonged.

    Liu was satisfied with Qiu’s report today. The situation reported was basically consistent with what he had learned in Qi Jia Village, which showed that Qiu’s work was solidly serious and he had a good grasp on the problems at the base. Unlike some township leaders who barely knew anything about their own jurisdiction and only flattered before the leaders, what made Liu more satisfied was that Qiu Zhiwei was willing to speak the truth. It was very good for a township party secretary to do this nowadays. What Liu didn’t know was that Qiu Zhiwei could do this today partly thanks to Jin.

    “Secretary Liu, it’s that you reach the fields first today instead of the township  government to listen to the report, so you could learn about some actual conditions,” Jin sucked up to it.

    “It doesn’t count for much. If you want to understand the real situation as a leader, the methods and approaches you use are very important. I think the Qi Jia villagers today were very nice and willing to tell the truth,” Liu said, pulling the black bag on the steering wheel away from the wheel to avoid rubbing it.

    “Well, that’s true. But what if Secretary Qiu and the other cadres were present?

    I don’t think the villagers would dare to tell anything,” said Jin, who had fallen behind Secretary Liu by quite a distance and had to pedal hard to catch up.

    “You can’t expect too much from these villagers. It’s already good enough they can tell like this. Though they only talked about the prices of pesticides and fertilizers, problems with the harvest ground, and agricultural technology issues, they reflected the important ‘Three Rurals’①,” said Secretary Liu.

    “The Central Government has issued several ‘No.1 Documents’ on the ‘Three Rural’ problem, hasn’t it?” said Jin, who had worked with Secretary Liu on report drafting and recalled writing speeches about this topic.

    “Yes, the Central Government has identified the problem very early and  accurately. It’s consecutively issued five ‘No.1 Document’ on the  ‘Three Rurals. ’ It’s been two years since the fifth ‘No.1 Document’ was issued, but there are still  many problems in agriculture, rural areas, and farmers. This shows the complexity,  arduousness, and long-term nature of the ‘Three Rural’ work. As those comrades at  the grassroots level, we can’t overemphasize and value them enough,” said Liu, his  face becoming serious.

    “Little Jin, down and walk a while.”

    “Sure, Secretary Liu. To be honest, quite tough to keep up with you one cycle.” Out of the Yangshan Township government, Jin Aiguo and Liu Chenyin had been chatting while cycling. He had fallen behind and his feet never got along quite comfortably due to a sidehow. Now, when Liu suggested a walk, Jin thought Secretary Liu was being considerate of his exhaustion. Jin wiped the sweat off his forehead and felt grateful for Liu’s thoughtfulness.

    Secretary Liu had originally only wanted to understand the situation of autumn grain production, but when he heard specific problems mentioned by the locals, he could clearly feel there were several major problems restricting the development of agricultural production, the implementation of rural work, and the enthusiasm of farmers. The central government repeatedly emphasized that a stable development couldn’t be achieved without agriculture. But to achieve that stability, it had to start from the root. He had some ideas in mind, which needed to be carefully considered afterward.

    “Ding ding, ding ding……” Jin Aiguo’s mobile phone in his bag was ringing.

    “Hello, who is speaking? This is Jin Aiguo. Are you looking for Secretary Liu?”

    “Hello? Hello…… We are on the way back to the county from Yangshan. Can you hear me clearly? The signal may not be very good.” Jin Aiguo then realized that the antenna of his mobile phone was not extended and quickly pulled it out. “Old Chen, can you clearly hear me now?”

    “Secretary Liu, it’s the keeper Old Chen. He says farmers are petitioning outside the county government gate; if head back to the government now, try to avoid them,” Jin turned around and reported to Secretary Liu.

    “Where are the farmers from? Petition for what? Serious? Who handles?” Secretary Liu’s thoughts were retracted by the ringtone of the mobile phone. He was  just brain-childing the next moves for the rural reform in Chu County.

    “Old Chen. Where are the farmers from? What do they petition for? Is it serious? Who is handling it?” Jin Aiguo repeated Secretary Liu’s words.

    “What? Farmers from two villages in Yuduo Town had a mass brawl over aquatic farming?”

    “Someone even got injured, not badly hurt?”

    “No county leaders shown up to handle yet? Only cadres from Bureau of Petitions and Yuduo Town are handling it?”

    “Hurry, let’s head back to the county government. Some leaders only know how to avoid instead of solving problems,” Liu Chengyin listened carefully to the conversation between Jin and Old Chen, and frowned on it somewhat. The county government had leaders specifically responsible for petitions. How come none of them had shown up?

    When Jin mentioned “Yuduo,” Liu Chengyin felt a sharp sting in his heart. Old Chen asked Jin to advise Secretary Liu to shun much as possible. Liu was apparently too dumbfounded: how did this Old Chen know kindly and wisely what he thought about taking sheltering from the “Yuduo” men?

    In fact, this suggestive idea hunted there. Old Chen couldn’t possibly read his mind. It was the province of Old Chen a keeper, reminding Liu Chengyin to be torn by a hard riding for it. After all, to take on the populace was not always easy, especially when they came with to petition out of good humor. Old Chen simply thought that rather than let Secretary Liu face this ordeal, it was better to avoid meeting those swollen petitioners.

    As for Yuduo, Liu Chengyin was gnawed in his heart. After he had been transferred from Qingjiang to Chu County, he learned about someone’s whereabouts. He tried to imagine how he could meet that person, what kind of occasion would be appropriate and what he should say when they met. Over the past year, Liu Chengyin had thought about these questions more than once, but he never found satisfactory answers. So, he could only choose to avoid it!

    Liu Chengyin visited all 45 districts and townships except for Yuduo Twon in Chu County. The secretary and the chief of Yuduo Town understood that Liu must be busy handling various affairs of the entire county. Moreover, Yuduo, a rivery land, and even the town government were roadless but waterways. Quite normal for the county committee secretary not to visit it for two years. Strange that a town could exist in a place where traffic even couldn’t get to its government, but the natives of Chu County all knew that Yuduo was located in the northwest of the county, bordering Baoying and Yancheng, by the institution of a “city” before liberation. Even now, it was a major aquatic location in Chu County.

    Originally, Liu Chengyin did hope to sidestep, but he was not well pleased about what he had heard that no leader from the county government should have shown up to solve the problem. The country committee or the government had its separate leader on the work related to letters and calls of complaints from the people. Why out of professional responsibilities? Were they not in Chu County? It couldn’t be that coincidental. Since no one had shown up, as the head official, Liu had to be in for it. Otherwise, if those “rioters” outside the gate of the county government stayed longer, the government would be primarily visual jokes by all the rank and file. Such jokes toward the government, and in the final analysis, also toward Liu Chengyin himself?

    When Liu and Jin rushed to the entrance of the government house, it was not as tense as Liu had imagined. A group of people came out of the county government courtyard, but there was no extreme language or action. Leading this group was a young female cadre with a shingled, clever and subtle look.

    “Secretary Lu!” Jin saw that the one leading this group of people was Lu Xiaoying, the deputy secretary of the Yuduo Town Party Committee, and quickly went up to greet her. Jin’s normal greeting caused Liu Chengyin and Lu Xiaoying to make eye contact with each other, which shook both of them with surprise. Jin could

    see that Secretary Liu and Secretary Lu were almost equally paralyzed, in wretched suspense.

    “Secretary Liu, I am Lu Xiaoying, the deputy secretary of the Yuduo Town Party Committee. Today, a dispute between two villages in our town over the division of stew water, caused such a factious emulation to the county government. We didn’t do a proper job. Now, their problem has been reported to magistrate Zhu, who has given clear instructions on this matter. I will handle today’s events well. Please rest assured, Secretary Liu.” The magistrate Zhu Lu Xiaoying referred was in fact the Deputy magistrate in charge of agriculture, and like Lu Xiaoying, Zhu was also a woman. On the moment when she met Liu Chengyin, Lu Xiaoying’s mind was focused on not letting others see any abnormalities between herself and the young county committee secretary in front of her. So, she took the initiative to introduce herself, and reported the situation of the petition. Even though as she spoke, all mixed emotions were mottled, and she didn’t know what bit of taste or feeling it actually was.

    “Okay, okay. Let me say a few words to the villagers.” In front of her ever with such gentlest approaches to him, Liu Chengyin couldn’t imagine that after years of separation, it would be such an occasion and such a way of meeting again. Liu initially wanted Lu to take the petitioners away as soon as possible. He was not mentally prepared to see her like this today, and had never even thought about it. But as soon as he spoke, his words became self-contradictory. He couldn’t even figure out why he had said it, it was as if he was possessed by a ghost.

    The petitioners, who had already obediently followed Lu out, suddenly gathered around Liu Chengyin after hearing what the county committee secretary said. At this moment, Lu didn’t know what to do but shut off her racket toward Liu: what on earth would you do?

    At this point, Liu had no way out and asked Jin to park his bike aside as he faced the petitioners. He certainly felt Lu’s resentful eyes, but couldn’t say anything at this point. He didn’t want the whole matter to turn out like this either. God knew how it ended up this way.

    “Dear villagers, I hear you are here about the issue of water for aquaculture. If I remember correctly, it should be Heigao Marsh, right? The water surface there is very large. I see you are all strenuous to engage in aquaculture. We strongly support you! Just now, Comrade Lu said that deputy magistrate Zhu has entrusted her with coordinating and resolving this matter. In my opinion, we should have faith in Comrade Lu, to handle this matter and protect your interests.” Liu had two years of experience as a deputy township secretary in Qingjiang, and once he was up on stage, he demonstrated his leadership skills. The “vacuum” in his head when he first saw Lu quickly became a thing of the past. He faced Lu and said, “Comrade Lu, in front of the villagers present, I give you three days to resolve this matter, and you shall report the results directly to me afterward.”

    A round of applause broke out among the crowd. The fact that the county committee secretary valued their situation so much was something that the petitioners should have never  considered.

    “Everyone, please hold off your applause. Now, even if it may not be too well pleased, I must still take you to task. If there are any problems, you can report them, contact your village, your township, or even your county. But under no circumstances should it escalate into a mass incident. I heard there was even a physical fight? This kind of impact is very bad. What if someone gets injured? And even worse, what if someone dies?” Liu spoke with some emotion, walking up to the villager bandaged to his head and asking, “Is the injury serious?”

    “Just a little torn on my skin, drawn to a head,” the honest villager felt a bit embarrassed when the county committee secretary asked, so he took the bandage off his head. It turned out that the bandage had been wrapped just to stir up interest from the county leaders.

    “Tee-hee-hee……” a laugh broke out.

    “I didn’t expect you smarted up, afraid a mite less luscious for petitioning to the county?” Secretary Liu of the County Committee joked with this villager, causing another burst of guffaws.

    “We believe in your words, Secretary Liu. But if we leave and the town still not solves our problems, what to do?”

    “There, there, Secretary Liu. Come to that, we’ll come direct to you.”

    “Jin, give my mobile phone number to the villagers. If the town can’t still solve it within three days, don’t bother coming to the county anymore. Just give me a call, and I myself will go to Yuduo to help you. How about that?” Liu inadvertently became a model for county-level leaders to smoke out their phone numbers. His action became an important initiative for good, assiduous governance by government officials several years later——something he could not have imagined at the time.

    “Are you satisfied with Secretary Liu’s answer?” Jin guided the crowd to cheer while pulling out Secretary Liu’s mobile phone from the bag. He knew that if he didn’t let them see the phone, they wouldn’t feel at ease.

    “Yes! Yes!” As soon as Secretary Jin asked, the petitioners shouted in unison, their emotions suddenly rising.

    On the side, Lu Xiaoying watched, feeling that this Liu Chenyin in front of her was somehow unrecognizable.