Chapter 175: Prosperity 175: Taking Sides

Seeing his firm attitude, Chu Dai did not try to persuade him any further: "I will listen to you, Master."

Although Han Lianxin and Zhang Yuqing were a little disappointed, they changed their minds and thought that it was good for one of them to go, because Qingqing was worried about her brother. But they would have to ask later which of the four people in the family would go.

The meal was harmonious. During the meal, Gu Jin mentioned some things that the production team would do after the new year and asked for everyone's opinions. Gu Tiezhu gave some suggestions from time to time.

Gu Qingqing didn't listen much and let the men chat. Chu Dai didn't need to hold the child. He put one hand on the back of the chair behind her and the other hand casually on the table. After eating, he chatted with the brothers of the Gu family.

Through chatting, he learned that Gu Xiong, the eldest son of his second uncle's family, and Yuan Chao of his third uncle's family did not plan to go to the military area. They were about to get married and wanted to stay at home. Now there were many things to do in the production team. They were strong and could earn a lot of centimeters every day.

"We have some surplus cement in our team now. I was thinking that we should repair the road and grow something together with the Hongqi Production Team next door. Then the road will be easier to travel on and it will be convenient to transport the cement in the future." Gu Jin scratched his head and expressed his idea.

The labor is ready, and the Chinese New Year is just over a month away, when we will have to distribute grain, meat, fish, and money. I think we have already been clearing the accounts for this year in the past two days.

Chu Dai listened silently, his eyes occasionally falling on the two brothers held in the arms of grandma and mother. Uncle San specially cooked rotten noodle and minced meat porridge for the two little guys, and Tuan Tuan enjoyed it every year.

"Cement is not in short supply now. You can buy it from the Material Bureau and cement sales factories. Normally, the village doesn't need much of it. It's only when the government builds roads and projects that it uses it in large quantities. The government doesn't even look down on the little cement we have. I've already applied to the commune and told them what it's for, and the organization has agreed."

Gu Jin still had that innocent smile on his face: "I was thinking of starting construction after the Chinese New Year, so that there won't be bumpy and dirty muddy roads when it rains."

Gu Tiezhu breathed a sigh of relief when he heard that he had submitted an application report and the commune agreed.

We need to be careful with all these things.

"Bang——" The tightly closed door of the main room was slammed loudly, and it was obvious that someone was very anxious.

After dinner, the Gu family members who were happily chatting stopped talking one after another, and Chu Dai got up to open the door.

The cold wind from outside blew in. Chu Dai looked at the tall and strong young man outside the door and recognized him, "Brother Qin Hu?"

"It's me." Qin Wu knew they were back, but he didn't have time to talk about the past. He ran to Gu Jin and said, "Uncle, someone from above has come. He's been visiting the village and said someone reported that you and my father embezzled money. My father asked me to come find you as soon as possible."

Gu Jin was stunned for a moment. He couldn't sit still any longer. "Dad, I'll go take a look."

Gu Tiezhu couldn't sit still, "I'll go with you."

Chu Dai saw that everyone in the house, young and old, had gone out in a hurry. He said to Gu Qingqing, who looked worried, "It's okay. I'll go check it out. You stay at home and don't come out. It's cold outside."

Gu Qingqing nodded: "Do you want to put on more clothes?"

"No need." The man strode out.

Gu Qingqing closed the door to the main hall. Seeing that her mother was absent-minded, she went over and sat beside her. "Don't worry. The uncles and aunts in the village know what kind of person my father is. The leaders from above will also investigate clearly."

Shi Rushuang's brows were furrowed, but as she looked at her grandson's clear eyes, they slowly relaxed: "Mother knows."

There was heavy snow outside, with only a last ray of light left in the sky. There was no need for a flashlight, as the snow was the best street light.

Chu Dai followed behind his father-in-law, walking forward with one foot deep and one foot shallow.

Before they got to the Zhang family, they saw a group of people gathered around. Qian Guihua's husband Zhao San saw Gu Jin and quickly pulled him aside: "I don't know who is so wicked. I guess they are jealous of our production team's good life. These people are all from the province. There are two turtle cars parked at the entrance of our village. You should be careful."

Gu Jin nodded, and when the villagers saw him coming, they automatically split into two sides to let him pass.

This time, it was someone who came from the province, and he did not inform the commune, because the report said that the captain of the Invincible Production Team and the secretary of the Party branch bribed the commune to secure this position.

When Chu Dai saw a dozen people in black Zhongshan suits with police officers behind them, he knew that this matter was not simple.

If the police can't get to the bottom of this matter today, they will just take the person away.

A comrade in charge of recording held a thick leather notebook in his hand, in which he wrote down all the questions asked by the villagers, and then handed it to the leader next to him helplessly.

The leader took a look under the warm light of the Zhang family's courtyard, his expression unchanged, and he said in a warm tone: "Dear members, if you have any problems, you can boldly report them to us. Seek truth from facts. There is no need to worry about retaliation. The public security comrades are here."

Qin Wu had just arrived. When he heard the letter, he immediately asked his son to find Gu Jin. Gu Jin looked simple on the surface, but he had a quick mind and was eloquent.

I didn't expect to hear such words as soon as I arrived. I almost got angry.

He was a retired soldier with a bad temper. He pushed through the crowd and walked towards the leader in the Mao suit: "What do you mean by that?!"

Seeing that he could no longer control himself, Gu Jin quickly stepped forward and grabbed his arm, whispering, "Mengzi, these comrades are from the province to understand the situation. Are you holding back?"

After that, he smiled and walked forward to shake hands with the Zhongshan suit leader at the head: "Hello, comrade, I am Gu Jin, the captain of the Wudi Production Team, and the one next to me is Qin Wu, the party branch secretary. We are both honest peasants, we have no power or influence, and we will not bully our neighbors, so you can rest assured."

Qin Wu, who was standing next to him with an angry face, snorted coldly when he heard this, "We are all ordinary people who follow the party's instructions and are incapable of doing such dirty things."

The Zhongshan suit leader was visibly stunned, then apologized sincerely: "It was our mistake. We cannot speak without checking the facts. However, a letter of accusation was sent directly to the provincial government two days ago, bypassing the city. It said that you have been abusing your power for personal gain during the two years you have been in office, planting cash crops on a large scale, and in the end all the money went into your pockets..."

"Bullshit!" Qin Wu couldn't help it. He felt wronged. He had been running around in the past two years, quarrying stones in the mountains, repairing riverbanks, and working in the fields to reclaim wasteland, plant rice, and pick cotton. He had done everything, and this was what he got? Just as he was about to curse, Gu Jin stepped on him hard.

Gu Jin still had that silly smile on his face, scratching his head and saying, "This is slander. Leaders, you must have asked a lot of villagers, right? Did you find out anything?" His eyes fell on the comrade holding the cowhide book.

"Can I see the charges against us?"

Chu Dai stood behind him, and seeing that his father-in-law was handling the matter with ease, he did not say anything.

He just felt that the commune was good at arranging people, pairing his father-in-law and Uncle Qin together.

The comrade holding the book was a little hesitant. Zhang Bufan poked his head out from behind him and said, "Old customer, I didn't say anything bad about you. I just mentioned that you stepped on my feet when my eldest brother beat me for stealing chickens. Isn't this taking sides?"

Zhang Ren pulled him aside by the ear with a cold face, "Stop embarrassing me."

"It hurts, it hurts - I'm married now, can you please give me some face?!"

The leader in the Zhongshan suit nodded slightly and said, "Comrade Xiao Wu, please show it to Comrade Gu Jin."

This time he did not hesitate and handed the document to Gu Jin.

Gu Jin took advantage of the light outside to take a look, nodded, and returned the notebook with both hands.

Chu Dai relied on his height advantage and stood at the back to easily see the beautiful handwriting on the leather notebook, which were all words praising his father-in-law and Uncle Qin.

His brows relaxed and he tilted his head to talk to Gu Bao behind him.

"Have the leaders had their meal yet?"

No one expected him to ask such a question. Some people frowned subconsciously, thinking that he was trying to bribe the leader from the provincial capital again. Just as they were about to speak, they heard him say, "If you eat, let's walk around the village together. The leaders probably haven't seen the economic crops we grow yet."

The Zhongshan suit leader at the head looked at the heavy snow outside that was like falling goose feathers and nodded: "Okay."

He was deeply impressed by this invincible production team, and Anping Commune often praised this production team to the leaders above.

Seeing this, Gu Jin said to his younger brother behind him, "Abao, go to your brother Suanpan's house and ask him to take the account book to the brigade headquarters and wait. We will go over later."

"Yeah! Okay." Gu Bao disappeared in a flash.

The group of people came out of Zhang's yard again. Gu Jin followed the leader in a Mao suit with his hands in his pockets and a smile on his face: "If you came last year, we still lived in a thatched house. This year is different. Under the call of the Party, we are all willing to work hard to ensure that all members have a good life with enough food and warm clothes."

After hearing this, the leader in the Zhongshan suit turned his attention to the neat two-story red brick building next to him.

I didn't pay attention to it just now, but now I'm stunned when I take a closer look.

The path they walked along was lined with red brick houses, painted white on the outside to blend in with the snow.

He frowned slightly. "I have seen people building red brick houses in the countryside. Most of them have workers in state-owned factories. It takes several years of wages to build a red brick house, and it is a flat one. Are there many people in your team working in state-owned factories?"

As soon as he said this, the villagers who followed him laughed: "We are all farmers who work hard in the fields. We have been poor for generations. Our children have to work in the fields before they finish their education. How can we be workers?"

The leaders in Zhongshan suits were even more puzzled.

At this time, two commune leaders who heard the news also rode over on their bicycles. One of them parked his bicycle aside and the other jumped off the back seat.

They approached him and asked, "Secretary Zhou, why are you here?"

The Zhongshan suit leader glanced at them and said, "Someone reported that the commune and the captain of the Wudi Production Team colluded to embezzle collective property and enrich themselves. We came to take a look."

The commune leader who was questioning the case saw the police behind them and his expression straightened. "Let the police investigate freely. We will fully cooperate." He did not make any further excuses.