The commune election was in March. For Qin Qingman and her colleagues, the snow had not melted yet, and the sky and the earth were still white. The working hours were still based on the winter time, that is, starting work at 8 am and leaving get off work at 4 pm.
Wei Ling has been gone for more than half a month and there is no news at all.
Du Hongyi and his companions only occasionally asked others to send some food or meat to the Qin family, and they never went to disturb them.
Chuchu started out by nagging every day about when Wei Ling would come home, but now she has stopped nagging. Not only has she stopped nagging, she has also become extremely well-behaved in front of Qin Qingman, eager to do housework every day, and studying on her own without Qin Qingman's instructions.
This made Qin Qingman feel very comfortable.
She didn't care about Gao Yefang for the time being, mainly because if the other party didn't take action, she had no reason to take action. After all, when dealing with people, one must stand on the moral high ground at any time to avoid being criticized.
Qin Qingman waited until the commune election.
At that time, school had not yet started and Chuchu had not yet reported to school. The family was peaceful because nothing happened.
The commune election was a big event, and on that day, many people, whether they were from Kaoshantun or from other villages and towns, spontaneously gathered outside the gate of the Hongqi Town Commune.
The commune office is quite large. It is said that it was formerly the mansion of a famous local landlord. After liberation, it was nationalized in accordance with policy, and later became the office of the commune. Offices of various departments of the commune were also set up in it.
Because it was the election day, a lot of people came.
No matter how big the commune was, it was impossible to accommodate so many people, not to mention that the people coming were from sixteen brigades.
The Red Flag Commune administered sixteen brigades, each of which had several production teams under it. Each production team was composed of one or two villages or towns.
The brigade where Kaoshantun is located is a large brigade. It is impossible for a large brigade to have so many people. However, in addition to the brigade leaders leading the teams, each village and village also has a production team leader leading the team. So when you count them, the number of people is not small. Anyway, there are at least more than 50 people in the large brigade that came to the commune.
These people still have some status in the production team.
The courtyard in front of the commune office is quite large and was converted into an activity venue, where the commune election was held.
Countless people are concerned about the election results.
Zheng Anguo and his companions arrived at the commune early in the morning. Before they entered the commune, they saw the streets crowded with people with helpless smiles on their faces. Normally, in addition to the candidates, the commune election would also involve some members of each production team and members led by the team leader. But because it was an open election, the common people could also come to the commune to visit and witness it.
"Comrades, please don't crowd. The election will begin soon. Please don't make any loud noises. Please keep quiet. Otherwise, you may miss the announcement of the Commune."
The first person to stand up and speak to the people was Fang Mingjie, the commune president and secretary.
As soon as Fang Mingjie said this, the scene suddenly became quiet, and everyone looked quietly at the leading cadres of the commune.
Inside the gate of the commune, there is a large renovated square that can accommodate five to six hundred people.
As the commune president Fang Mingjie led a group of commune cadres to sit on the rostrum built in the open air, the production brigade under the commune led the brigade members and the members of the subordinate production teams into the venue.
These people all had stools to sit on, and they were the ones voting for the commune cadres.
The empty space without stools was filled with people from various villages and towns. The largest number of people came from the villages and towns where the candidates were located. For example, many people came from Kaoshan Village because Qin Qingman was one of the candidates for commune cadres.
"Comrades, it's almost time. Let me introduce you. This is Comrade He Jianbai, the deputy head of Baicheng County. Comrade He is here today to represent the county and oversee the election of our Hongqi Commune."
Fang Mingjie glanced at the commune cadres sitting there, stood up and introduced to everyone a comrade sitting next to him who was wearing a cadre uniform.
He Jianbai is in his forties, at the prime of his life.
"Comrades, my name is He Jianbai, and I am the deputy head of Baicheng County. Today I am here on behalf of the county to supervise the election of cadres in Hongqi Commune. I will ensure that the election is open, transparent, and fair."
“Pah, pah, pah—”
There was warm applause in the conference hall, and everyone looked at He Jianbai eagerly.
Outside the commune, the people who couldn't squeeze in did not leave, but stood there and listened carefully, hoping to hear some election news coming from the commune.
The general election has begun, and because it is a general election, the first thing to be announced is the new appointments and dismissals.
In the county's appointment documents, the positions of Fang Mingjie and others have not changed. Everyone still maintains their original positions. The only position left vacant is that of the director of the women's department, which is the position that Qin Qingman is running for.
"Comrades, the election for the position of the commune's women's director is now underway. Based on the candidates reported by the brigades, the commune has screened and selected five comrades who have entered the election."
Fang Mingjie was the party secretary of the commune and presided over the general election.
The deputy county governor from the county is only responsible for supervision.
Because of Fang Mingjie's words, everyone below the rostrum held their breath and looked at the five people standing in front of the rostrum with burning eyes.
Five women.
They are of different ages, and the one that attracts the most attention is Qin Qingman.
One is that Qin Qingman is too young, and the other is that Qin Qingman is beautiful, very beautiful.
Fang Mingjie did not care about the crowd's reaction and continued loudly: "Comrades, these five candidates were elected by the villagers from each production team. The ones with the most votes are Comrade Qin Qingman from Kaoshan Village, Comrade Wei Fan from Shitou Village, Comrade Yao Taohua from Heishan Village, Comrade Wan Ying from Qianjin Village, and Comrade Jintian from Jianshe Village."
"Who is Qin Qingman? I've never heard of this person. Comrade Wan Ying from our village received 90% of the votes in the village. How can he not be ranked first with such a high number of votes?"
"What you said is nothing. Comrade Yao Taohua from our village was only seven villagers short of voting, but she didn't even rank first. Who is Qin Qingman who ranks first? How come she is so powerful? Why have we never heard of her?"
"Yes, I have never heard of Comrade Qin Qingman."
"Voting in the village is supervised by the brigade and the commune. There is no problem with double supervision. He is ranked first and he deserves it. You haven't heard of it because you are ignorant."
"Bullshit, we're all from the same commune. No matter how low-key you are, you can't be so low-key that not many people know you. There might be some problem." Someone began to conspire, and more eyes were fixed on Qin Qingman.
The candidates nominated by the other four villages and towns are all of considerable age, with the youngest appearing to be in his mid-30s or 36s. At this age, not only are they known by people in their own village or town, but they are also more or less known by people in the same brigade and other brigades.
The only person on the podium who was unfamiliar to everyone was Qin Qingman.
I really wasn't familiar with it at first.
Qin Qingman is young and had been studying before. She has just joined the labor force and is in her own production team. The original owner was not talkative and liked to keep her head down all day long. She didn't dress herself up and really didn't attract anyone's attention.
This was the first time that people saw Qin Qingman in the dark world in front of the commune office building.
Qin Qingman was not the original owner, it was impossible for her to bow her head and bend her waist with a timid look. At this moment, she stood straight, with a dignified temperament, and looked at the people who were looking at her with various eyes generously and gently.
Among these people, she only knew some of the people from Kaoshantun, and she didn't know the others.
These strangers looked at her with endless suspicion.
Qin Qingman's expression did not change in the face of these suspicious looks, she remained calm and composed as always, which made Zheng Anguo, who was watching her, breathe a sigh of relief.
They can help Qin Qingman with some things, but they cannot help Qin Qingman face the questioning eyes of the people. Only Qin Qingman can stand up on her own and sit firmly in the position of director of the Women's Department.
On the rostrum, both Fang Mingjie, the commune secretary, and He Jianbai, the deputy county chief, heard the people's whispers, and both of them glanced at Qin Qingman's face.
At the same time, I praised him in my heart. His calm demeanor alone made him better than the other candidates.
Standing on the podium, you will be the center of attention.
Normally, people can handle facing many eyes with ease in a familiar environment, but when they are alone and under the gaze of everyone, they are prone to become nervous and timid.
Once a person becomes timid, he tends to become unstable.
Although the other four comrades are all good comrades and have received a lot of votes in the election, there is still a difference between them standing on the stage and Qin Qingman. It can be seen that the others are trying to act calmly when facing the people.
But their stiff bodies still reveal their true feelings.
"Comrades, the votes for the five women comrades were chosen by the commune cadres and the brigade personnel in each village and hamlet. We can guarantee to the party organization that the election was fair and just. Now I announce that after careful discussion by the commune cadres, the vote for the position of the commune women's director will be held, and the voters will be the leading cadres of the commune."
After announcing the result, Fang Mingjie looked at Comrade He Jianbai.
He Jianbai stood up and nodded to Fang Mingjie, taking over the baton of presiding over the overall situation. "Comrades, today there are ten commune cadres participating in the voting, with a total of twelve votes. Comrade Fang Mingjie and Comrade Zheng Anguo each represent two votes because they hold two positions."
The crowd was originally looking at Qin Qingman and whispering a little, but when they heard He Jianbai's words, they immediately stopped whispering and everyone's attention was focused on the ten people on the podium.
Because voting is about to begin.
"The comrade with the fewest votes will start voting." He Jianbai was very satisfied to see the crowd quiet down. He then looked at Comrade Jintian from Jianshetun and said, "The first candidate, Comrade Jintian, start voting."
In fact, the commune had already discussed and screened the candidates, and everyone had already chosen their ideal candidates in their minds.
Qin Qingman is the candidate favored by Zheng Anguo, and Wei Fan is the candidate favored by Zhou Jingguo.
Apart from these two people whose election will be fierce, the other three comrades are just going through the motions today and are there to serve as foils. So when He Jianbai read out Jianshetun Jintian's name, the commune cadres just cast a few votes as a gesture to ensure that they would not pose a threat to the candidates they favor.
From Jintian to Wanying and Yao Taohua, none of them got many votes.
The faces of the three of them immediately turned very ugly, because they knew deep down that they were eliminated.
And this situation is not limited to this session.
This has been the case in previous years.
After going through so much trouble to win the majority of votes, one ends up being a supporting role in the commune election. No matter who faces this moment, it will be unpleasant, and those who are less cunning will definitely show it on their face.
He Jianbai and others had been keeping an eye on the candidates in front of the rostrum, and they could clearly see who's expression changed.
In fact, in addition to being capable, many other factors are taken into consideration when selecting commune cadres. It is not the case that one can become a commune cadre just because he is good at digging or plowing. Personal ability, adaptability, character, and even cunningness are all within the scope of assessment.
And this is just the beginning of the assessment.
It doesn't necessarily mean that there will be no chance just because there are not enough votes this time. Anything is possible.
"The voting for Comrade Weifan of Shitoutun will now begin." He Jianbai finally announced the start of the fourth round of voting. Only at this point did the voting really enter a white-hot stage.
Almost all the people on Zhou Jingguo's side voted for Wei Fan.
Zheng Anguo and others just watched coldly.
In this case, the vote of the commune leader Fang Mingjie is particularly crucial. Fang Mingjie holds two votes, and who he votes for will affect the next vote.
Fang Mingjie saw that all eyes were on him. He knew that this was not an election for the commune's women's director. It was clearly a struggle between the Revolutionary Committee and the commune. He thought for a few seconds and chose to give up his power.
During these ten years, there are still many people who want to temporarily avoid the limelight.
Zheng Anguo and Qian Xiangyang also knew that this would be the final result, and looked at He Jianbai expressionlessly.
"Comrade Wei Fan received seven votes, the highest number of votes at the moment," He Jianbai announced the result.
At first, there was sparse applause in the crowd, but in the end, the applause became louder and louder, until Wei Fan's face turned red with excitement. The other three comrades only received two or three votes, but she received seven votes, which was a rare high number.
"Now I announce the vote for the last comrade, Comrade Qin Qingman from Kaoshantun." He Jianbai announced the most crucial vote.
In response to Qin Qingman's vote, Zhou Jingguo's team made the same choice as Zheng Anguo and his team had made before. They did not cast a single vote. In the end, everyone's attention was focused on Fang Mingjie's face again.
Qin Qingman currently has the same number of votes as Wei Fan, both seven.
If Fang Mingjie votes, then Qin Qingman will have nine votes, nine to seven, and will definitely win the election for the position of Women's Director of the commune. But if Fang Mingjie chooses to give up again, then...
Zheng Anguo and Qian Xiangyang felt a little heavy-hearted.
They had a feeling that today's election would not be so smooth and there would definitely be many twists and turns.
Fang Mingjie had not chosen to vote for Wei Fan before, so he would not have voted for Qin Qingman either. As the president of the commune and secretary of the party committee, he actually had many constraints and it was not that easy.
So Fang Mingjie also chose to abstain from voting for Qin Qingman.
Seven votes against seven votes, the five candidates are once again on the same starting line.
Now, whether it was the people on the rostrum or the various production teams below, the members of the production teams became nervous, and everyone's hearts were pounding because of this unexpected scene.
Because everyone knew that this was not just about who would be the head of the commune's women's department, but also about the secret struggle between the Revolutionary Committee and the commune.
He Jianbai was also helpless in the face of a 7-7 vote situation. He scanned the faces of all the commune cadres and also looked at Qin Qingman and Wei Fan who were tied.
Qin Qingman's face was still so calm, as if the matter had nothing to do with her.
Wei Fan is almost there.
Because the votes were similar, the forty-something Wei Fan looked at Qin Qingman with a hint of dissatisfaction and disdain. An unknown young wife was competing with her for a position, she was still too young.
He Jianbai calmly read everyone's expressions before announcing again, "I now solemnly announce that the second round of voting will be held. This time it will be a secret ballot, and all members of the production brigades under the jurisdiction of the commune will vote. I and the commune cadres will supervise it."
It has been many years since the Red Flag Commune was established. This is the first time that a second round of secret ballot has been held because the commune cadres could not be elected in the referendum.
The crowd was excited when they heard that there would be a second round of secret ballot.
The discussions became louder, but quieted down after being warned by the militiamen on the scene. Everyone's eyes were focused on Qin Qingman and Wei Fan's faces. Everyone was curious about who would eventually get the position of the commune's women's director.
Because it is anonymous, no one knows who voted for whom.
When everyone got the paper and pen, they immediately chose the person they liked.
There are a lot of people participating in the vote this time. Many of them only know production but are not very literate, so it is absolutely difficult for them to write their names to vote.
But how can a living person be suffocated to death by holding his urine? All the solutions are thought up by humans.
No.
One, two, three, four, five.
According to the voting rankings of each village and town, Qin Qingman is number one, Wei Fan is number two, and so on.
The members of the production team were unable to write the complicated names, but they were able to draw the numbers representing the people by following the same pattern.
After ten minutes of tense and holy waiting, the secret ballot was finally cast.
Now, Jintian, Wanying, and Yao Taohua, who had served as foils before, all had a smile on their faces. They were originally elected by their own production team, so they would definitely get a lot of votes in this secret ballot.
It's March now, and although the snow on the land has not melted yet, the temperature has risen a lot.
The thick ice layer is also melting in many places.
Qin Qingman and the others stood outside for quite a while, but because they were wearing very warm clothes, they didn't feel cold. Instead, they were all very excited.
After the votes are cast, the counting and counting of votes begins.
Qin Qingman was very calm and composed, not looking anxious at all, which made the people who had never known her before or were not familiar with her at all discover Qin Qingman's advantages.
It is easy to calm down when facing someone who is confident about everything.
It took the five candidates half an hour to finish singing the votes.
Seeing the votes become evenly matched again, not only the commune officials were surprised, but the general public as well.
Normally, this kind of situation would never happen.
There are sixteen production brigades in Hongqi Town. The members of these sixteen brigades plus the subordinate production teams total at least several hundred people. With so many people, how could the voting be so evenly distributed? The average is so obviously fake.
It is indeed false.
Because before today, both Zheng Anguo and Zhou Jingguo had done a lot of preparatory work.
In extraordinary times, the balance of power in the commune must never be disrupted.
If the position of the director of the Women's Department was given to Zhou Jingguo's people, then Hongqi Town would definitely not be the peaceful Hongqi Town it is now. It might become like other towns with people from the Revolutionary Committee giving orders everywhere.
Therefore, Zheng Anguo and Qian Xiangyang still made a backup plan, but they didn't expect that Zhou Jingguo would not be able to sit back and relax.
Originally, Zhou Jingguo compromised and allowed Qin Qingman to be elected as the women's director of the commune, but Qin Qingman did not give him face many times.
First, he was embarrassed by Zhao Tiancheng's marriage proposal, and later he had Gao Yefang's support. As a result, Zhou Jingguo was bound to seize all the power of the commune.
Zhou Jingguo certainly hoped that the commune would be as famous as the county revolutionary committee.
Fang Mingjie's giving up of power was within his calculations. As long as Fang Mingjie gave up his own power, he would definitely give up Zheng Anguo's power. Zhou Jingguo had contacted the captains of each production team a few days ago, so the on-site secret ballot once again reached a deadlock.
"Comrade He, what do you think about this?"
Fang Mingjie noticed something unusual and immediately realized that something was wrong and that he might have been tricked.
He Jianbai's face looked ugly, but his expression was a little serious.
Of course, he did not want Zhou Jingguo to gain more power in the commune. He had originally thought that the election would be very stable, but he did not expect that the election would end in a tie twice in a row. How could they elect anyone in this situation?
"Comrade Deputy County Chief, now that things have come to this, how about this? Since the commune cadres are elected by the people, why don't we just let all the people present participate in the election on the spot? This way, we can ensure absolute fairness and justice, and no one will have any objections." Zhou Jingguo planned for a long time, and finally waited for the opportunity, and immediately participated in the speech.
He was a member of the commune revolutionary committee. Not only did he have the right to speak on such occasions, he could also speak at county meetings.
Facing Zhou Jingguo's suggestion, Zheng Anguo and Qian Xiangyang looked particularly serious.
The onlookers saw that most of them were people arranged by Zhou Jingguo, so it was impossible for the votes to be fair.
"Comrade Deputy County Chief, we have gone through two rounds of voting, one by public vote among commune cadres and the other by secret ballot among production brigades. The only thing we can do now is to hold a mass vote on the spot, which is also the fastest, fairest, and most convenient. I ask you to consider my suggestion carefully."
Zhou Jingguo was openly offering He Jianbai the position of deputy county governor, but in fact he was forcing He Jianbai to make a decision quickly.
This was the backup plan he had planned long ago, and he was sure to win.
"Comrade He, it's so cold. If we stay outside for one minute, we will be at risk of frostbite. I think there is nothing wrong with Comrade Zhou Jingguo's suggestion. Otherwise, let's ask the people present to vote on the spot."
The person who spoke this time was the militia captain Jiang Yuankui, whose position allowed him to manage not only the militia of the commune, but also the militia of each village and hamlet.
Originally, the Jiang family became enemies because of the incident between Zhao Tiancheng and Gao Yefang.
But the enemies are only enemies of children. The two sides are tied together tightly in terms of interests and cannot break up just because of the marriage. Jiang Yuankui and the Jiang family are dissatisfied with the Zhou family and the Zhao family, but it is impossible for them to turn against them at the critical moment.
If he were to turn against them, it would mean that his own interests would be damaged.
Jiang Yuankui had no choice but to stand on Zhou Jingguo's side even if he was dissatisfied with him. Fortunately, Zhou Jingguo went to his house last night and promised him a lot of benefits, so he stood behind Zhou Jingguo and cheered at this critical moment today.
He Jianbai was repeatedly coerced by Zhou Jingguo and Jiang Yuankui, two powerful figures in the commune. No matter how dissatisfied he was, he had to express his opinion. Even though he knew that there might be some malpractice in the on-site mass voting, he could not do anything about it.
Who made this a special period? Who made the National Revolutionary Committee so powerful?
"It seems that this is the only way." He Jianbai had no choice but to compromise, and Fang Mingjie and Zheng Anguo's faces also darkened.
"Comrades, please be quiet for a moment. We have come up with a new method for the election."
He Jianbai felt that since a solution had been reached, there was no need to delay any further, as any further delay would not lead to a better solution than the one proposed by Zhou Jingguo.
In the crowd, the people that Zhou Jingguo's side had arranged long ago quickly stopped talking.
Because they know it will be their turn to perform soon.
"Comrades, since the election for the commune women's director has not produced a result in two rounds, after discussion, we have unanimously decided to have all the people present participate in the election, with only one round, and the one with the most votes will win."
He Jianbai didn't intend to delay any longer and announced the decision directly.
"Comrade He Jianbai is wise."
The people arranged by Zhou Jingguo immediately cheered in the crowd. This cheer instantly led the crowd, with the commune as the core point, and the cheers became louder and louder. This made passers-by who didn't know the situation not only look over out of curiosity, but also rush over to eat melons.
Hearing the cheers, Zhou Jingguo's group was overjoyed.
Zheng Anguo and the commune president Fang Mingjie both looked a little gloomy. Even the deputy county chief He Jianbai had a red face due to anger.
Too rampant!
These guys in the Revolutionary Committee are too arrogant.
They actually dared to blatantly exploit and incite the ignorant masses to falsify information in such an election. Their intentions are truly despicable.
He Jianbai was very angry, but he was powerless.
He was now essentially forced into a desperate situation and could only follow the route set by Zhou Jingguo and his team.
Qin Qingman looked at the lively scene indifferently. Ever since she found out that Gao Yefang was accepted by the Zhou family, she knew that there would definitely be problems in the commune election. And now, problems had arisen.
"Comrade He Jianbai, there are too many people. We can't count the votes one by one. If we really want to do it by counting the votes, we probably won't be able to finish counting today's votes by nightfall. I think we should just hold a vote and we can send a few comrades to count them. It will be fine if we have an approximate number."
Zhou Jingguo took the initiative in the first game and of course wanted to seize control of the second game.
He believed that after two rounds like this, today's election would be stable.
Since He Jianbai had made concessions and Zhou Jingguo's current proposal was well-founded, they had no choice but to agree. It would be good for everyone if it ended early.
"Comrade He, please host the meeting again."
Zhou Jingguo knew when to stop and handed over the hosting rights to He Jianbai.
He Jianbai felt even more uncomfortable and felt like a puppet. He looked deeply at Zhou Jingguo. He Jianbai stood at the front of the rostrum with a loudspeaker in his hand and looked at the crowd at the scene with deep eyes as they raised their loudspeakers.
"Comrades, selecting commune cadres is a sacred matter. The five comrades on the rostrum are all comrades with outstanding abilities and personalities. You may not have heard of some of them, but they definitely meet the criteria for running for commune cadres. I hope that everyone will look at the issue with a long-term perspective and elect the commune cadres that you really want in your hearts."
He Jianbai knew that what he said might not work, but as a leader sent by the county to supervise the election of cadres in Hongqi Town Commune, he must exercise his supervisory power.
In response to He Jianbai's words, the crowd remained quiet.
Everyone looked at He Jianbai seriously. No matter what they were thinking in their hearts, they gave He Jianbai respect at this moment.
In fact, not everyone is willing to help Zhou Jingguo. As the saying goes, county officials are not as good as the current managers. Even if He Jianbai is the deputy county magistrate, he is still the leader of the county, far away from everyone. The leaders of the commune still have the final say.
He Jianbai looked at the silent crowd and immediately understood the reason.
During this special era, no one was not afraid of the Revolutionary Committee, and no one was not afraid of being arrested for labor reform or re-education.
"Comrades, this is the last vote. Let's first vote for Comrade Wei Fan from Shitoutun. Please raise your hands if you agree that Comrade Wei Fan should be elected as the women's director of the commune." He Jianbai knew that the victory could only come from Wei Fan and Qin Qingman, so he did not let people vote in the previous order and called out Wei Fan's name.
As He Jianbai finished his words, a group of hands were raised.
It can be said that except for the team members and villagers of Kaoshantun, everyone present raised their hands.
When raising your hands in the face of this overwhelming darkness, you don’t even need to count to know what the result will be.
The three Jintian people were able to accept their defeat to Wei Fan calmly. They no longer asked for votes for themselves and simply stepped down and stood in the crowd, which was equivalent to voluntarily giving up their rights.
The three people from Jintian gave up their rights, and the only one who could compete with Wei Fan was Qin Qingman.
Everyone's eyes turned to Qin Qingman.
"Comrade Qin Qingman, are you still voting?" At this moment, Wei Fan looked at Qin Qingman with the attitude of a winner. There was no need to compete anymore, and her gaze towards Qin Qingman was much calmer than before.
At least there aren't so many sharp thorns.
Qin Qingman looked at Wei Fan calmly and said with a faint smile: "Since we are here now, since it is a necessary election process, I think it is still necessary to vote once, otherwise even if I am elected, people will gossip about me afterwards."
Wei Fan felt that Qin Qingman was right and that she was very considerate of him, so he said gratefully, "Thank you."
Qin Qingman glanced at Wei Fan and smiled faintly without saying anything.
He Jianbai had been standing at the very front of the rostrum, and of course he heard clearly the conversation between Qin Qingman and Wei Fan. To be honest, he thought more highly of Qin Qingman. No matter how he looked at it today, Qin Qingman's demeanor and composure were superior, and she was more suitable for the position of the commune's women's director.
"Comrade He Jianbai, let's get started."
Zheng Anguo had not expected Zhou Jingguo to be so ruthless. Now that things had come to this, even if he lost, he had to lose honorably and fairly, so he did not make things difficult for He Jianbai, but asked He Jianbai to preside over it until the end.
He Jianbai glanced at Zheng Anguo apologetically, then said to the crowd: "Comrades, please put your hands down first. We still need you to vote once more. This time the person you are voting for is Comrade Qin Qingman."
As He Jianbai spoke, the crowd put down their hands. Everyone looked at He Jianbai quietly, then at Qin Qingman.
Qin Qingman is too young.
"Comrades, voting for Comrade Qin Qingman begins now. Those who agree with Comrade Qin Qingman's election as the commune's women's director, please raise your hands." He Jianbai held his breath after making the announcement.
Even though he was used to storms, he was still a little nervous.
Because he knew this was the deciding game.
After He Jianbai stopped talking, no one raised their hands for a long time. In the crowd, everyone looked at each other, but no one raised their hands. Even the villagers in Kaoshantun did not raise their hands.
Zheng Anguo and Qian Xiangyang's brows were all furrowed together.
He had not expected that people were so afraid of Zhou Jingguo of the Revolutionary Committee that even the people in Kaoshan Village did not dare to raise their hands to vote.
"Comrade He, I think we can announce..."
The smile on Zhou Jingguo's face grew bigger and bigger, and finally he couldn't help but remind He Jianbai with a smile.
The people who belonged to Zhou Jingguo's faction also showed celebratory smiles on their faces. Some of them were so anxious that they even walked up to Wei Fan to congratulate him. Now that Wei Fan was elected as a commune cadre, everyone would be colleagues on equal terms.
"Who said the voting is over? We are just waiting for someone!"
At this moment, a very loud voice burst out from the crowd.
"Yes, we are waiting for someone. Just give us a few more minutes." Another loud voice rang out from the crowd.
"Hey, everyone, stop blocking the door. How are our people going to get in? Make way, make way."
Everyone was stunned when they heard the voices coming from the people of Kaoshantun in the crowd.
How can this be done?
Waiting for someone, waiting for whom?
Zhou Jingguo recalled the last time he saw the magnificent performance at the Red Flag Farm. He suddenly had an idea and shouted, "What are you waiting for? Do you think that running for election as a commune cadre is a fight? It should be over when the time is up."
"Comrade Zhou Jingguo, it was your idea to have the masses vote on site, and we all abided by it. So, do the masses who are not in the commune not belong to our masses?" Qin Qingman looked at Zhou Jingguo with a half-smile on her face.
"Report... Report, it's blocked... It's blocked, people who want to vote can't get in."
The person who squeezed out of the crowd to report was Sanmu's father. He had been smart and good at finding loopholes since he was young. Now, he finally squeezed out of the crowd to report this exciting news.
He Jianbai and Fang Mingjie looked at each other and said in unison: "Let's go to the gate of the commune."
After seeing the arrogance of Zhou Jingguo and his group with their own eyes, the two of them finally could no longer sit still.
Sanmu's father waved his hands vigorously at Qin Qingman and finally caught up. He did not hold Qin Qingman back.
Qin Qingman smiled at Sanmu's father, and then followed He Jianbai and the others.
Today's election has just begun, it's still early!
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