The news of Hou Yongzhi's death had spread throughout Bei Zhou City that night. The secretary of the Municipal Party Committee, Tian Chunqiu, was shocked when he heard the news. He crawled out of bed and rushed to Jiangdong City that very night. The other leaders followed closely behind, rushing to see Hou Yongzhi off. Almost all the leaders of the four departments were there, except for Li Hugang, the director of the Municipal People's Congress.
Tian Chunqiu's appearance did not ease the tension. Instead, it made the atmosphere even more tense. Guo Jinzhu glared at Tian Chunqiu, wishing he could tear him to pieces. Now was not the time to argue about it.
Tian Chunqiu first comforted Hou Yongzhi's family, then discussed the funeral with Guo Jinzhu. Guo Jinzhu's eyes were red and swollen. He said coldly, "Since Secretary Tian said he was a hero who was injured in the line of duty, then we have to hold a funeral according to the standards of a hero."
Tian Chunqiu could tell that Guo Jinzhu was implying something. He held back his anger and said, "Alright, I agree. You make the arrangements. Get Qin Kui to fully cooperate with you."
Li Qinkui, the secretary of the Municipal Party Committee, immediately ran up to him when he heard his name being called. Li Qinkui was very familiar with funerals. He had done it many times, so it should be a walk in the park for him. Tian Chunqiu's face was tense. "Qin Kui, put down your work for the next two days and focus on cooperating with Jin Zhu. Organize the funeral according to the highest standards in our city. I will personally be the leader of the funeral committee and send Yongzhi off on his last journey. "
"Alright, I'll make the arrangements when I get back!" Li Qinkui nodded.
"Wait!" Guo Jinzhu had something to say. "Since Yongzhi is a hero, we should announce the obituary to the whole province. Qin Kui, contact the Xijiang Daily and publish it in an eye-catching spot for three days. Also, get someone to organize the typical materials of Yongzhi's life. We must let everyone know about this hero. "At the same time, inform the provincial leaders in the form of a briefing and send invitations to them to attend the funeral."
"This …" Li Qinkui looked at Tian Chunqiu, embarrassed. He did not know how to answer. Such a high standard had never been done in Xijiang Province, let alone Bei Zhou City. Wasn't this deliberately looking for trouble? Tian Chunqiu was displeased. "Jin Zhu, aren't you going a little overboard?"
"Have you?" Guo Jinzhu raised his head and looked at Tian Chunqiu with anger in his eyes. "If you think I can pass, then ask Secretary Tian to arrange it."
"You …" Tian Chunqiu was at a loss for words. He restrained his emotions and said, "Comrade Yongzhi is indeed a hero, but this is a little too much. I hope you can reconsider."
Guo Jinzhu said nonchalantly, "Yongzhi needs this kind of treatment!"
In the end, Tian Chunqiu could not suppress his anger and left with a flick of his sleeve.
Three days later, Hou Yongzhi's memorial service was held in front of the People's Theater Square. On this day, almost all the members of the city's political and legal system came to pay their respects. The entire square was densely packed with uniformed people. The square was surrounded by police cars. If one did not know, they would think that it was a public trial.
According to Guo Jinzhu's request, a memorial service was held at all costs. The municipal finance allocated special funds to support. Not only that, basically all the units in the political and legal system expressed their support in the form of donations. One was for the funeral, and the rest was for Hou Yongzhi's family to live in retirement. The initial calculation was as high as a few million yuan.
The memorial service officially began amid the hustle and bustle. Li Qinkui, the secretary general of the Municipal Party Committee, presided over by Guo Jinzhu who read the eulogy. Under Guo Jinzhu's insistence, a content was added at the last minute. Li Qinkui had no choice but to comply. Just as Li Qinkui announced the start of the memorial service, the siren lights of all the vehicles at the scene were turned on at the same time. The siren wailed mournfully in the sky above Bei Zhou City, like a baby crying, heart-wrenching and lung-splitting. Even passers-by stopped to pay their respects. Some people with developed tear ducts could not hold back their tears even before the eulogy was read, sending the war hero on his last journey.
Other than the political and legal system that Hou Yongzhi was in charge of, there was also a unique group of people who were particularly eye-catching. This group was wearing mourning clothes. There were old ladies in their seventies and eighties, and toddlers who were just learning how to speak. They knelt on the side and wailed, no less than their own relatives. It turned out that these people were all people that Hou Yongzhi had helped or saved. They bid farewell to their benefactors in this way.
The memorial service was broadcast live on the city's television through satellite. When it was Guo Jinzhu's turn to read the eulogy, he was seen wearing a black suit with a small white flower on his chest. He walked heavily to the microphone and read in a hoarse voice, "Dear guests, dear leaders, the mournful music returns, the north wind wails, the clouds hang low, the world is dull, the flowers are dull, and the trees are desolate." Today, we bid farewell to one of our best friends, a colleague that we got along with day and night, a comrade who passed away at a young age. The past is vague, and tears are blurred. Thousands of words cannot express our longing for him … "
Guo Jinzhu was already sobbing as he spoke, unable to express the sorrow in his heart. The people below the stage all covered their faces and cried. For a moment, it was heartbreaking to see the mournful and sorrowful scene.
At first, Guo Jinzhu read the prepared script in his hand, but later on, he went off the script and recalled Hou Yongzhi's deeds with everyone. The original arrangement of more than ten minutes was dragged on for more than two hours. The leader who was waiting at the side could no longer stand, but Guo Jinzhu did not have the slightest intention of ending his speech. He continued his long speech, and under Li Qinkui's reminder, Guo Jinzhu finally ended his speech.
Next, it was the mourning session. The provincial and municipal leaders had already stood so long that their legs were already numb. In addition, the weather was so cold that they could not stand it anymore. They had grievances in their hearts, but they could not bear to let it out. The original mourning session was changed to a collective one. After the end, they hurriedly left in their cars, accusing Guo Jinzhu of making a fuss over a minor issue. Wasn't it just the secretary of the Political and Legal Committee? Was there a need to mobilize so many people? Moreover, he died an unnatural death. Did he really think he was a hero?
Tian Chunqiu returned to the office and sat on the sofa alone, thinking about it. He was unhappy. Thinking of Guo Jinzhu's summary of Hou Yongzhi's life, and then thinking of himself, he could not help but feel a little sad. A person's life was only a few years. What was the point of fighting and fighting? Everything was fake. Living a good life was the real thing.
It was already noon, and there was still a long line of people to mourn. At this moment, two or three black cars stopped by the roadside. Some men in black suits and sunglasses jumped out of the car in front to clear the road. Huang Jiyang, the secretary of the Provincial Party Committee, got out of the car in the middle and walked slowly to the county town with a heavy expression.
Huang Jiyang's appearance suddenly caused an uproar. They did not expect that the secretary of the Provincial Party Committee would come to mourn in person, giving Hou Yongzhi enough face. When the secretary of the Municipal Party Committee, Li Qinkui, saw Huang Jiyang, he quickly hid in a corner and called Tian Chunqiu. Tian Chunqiu thought it was a joke. After asking for more subscriptions, he finally believed it and rushed to the square.
According to Guo Jinzhu's instructions, Li Qinkui reported to the office of the Provincial Party Committee in the form of an open letter. However, it was a little surprising that Huang Jiyang came in person.
Huang Jiyang sent a wreath according to the relevant etiquette and shook hands with Hou Yongzhi's family members to comfort them. At this moment, Hou Yongzhi's wife suddenly knelt down and shouted, "Secretary Huang, please give justice to our Old Hou. He was killed by someone."
As soon as she said this, the whole place became strangely quiet. It was so quiet that one could even hear the sound of the wreath shaking in the wind. Huang Jiyang frowned and looked embarrassed. He helped his wife up and said, "Get up first."
Hou Yongzhi's wife had already thrown caution to the wind. She gritted her teeth and said, "Secretary Huang, our Old Hou was killed by a car accident. You can't just sit back and do nothing."
Huang Jiyang's face was strangely ugly. As for Hou Yongzhi's death, the official report said that he was injured while saving people. He also personally gave instructions for him to study in the province. However, the information he got in private was exactly the same as his wife's statement. Although Huang Jiyang had a knot in his heart, he had already given instructions. If he went back on his words, where would his prestige be? It was a little inappropriate for Hou Yongzhi's wife to raise this issue in this kind of situation. However, if he did not answer, he would not be able to get out of this situation. Huang Jiyang turned around to look for the secretary of the Municipal Party Committee, Tian Chunqiu, but he was not there. Guo Jinzhu took the opportunity and went up to him.
"Oh, comrade Jinzhu. Can you tell me what happened?" Huang Jiyang asked Guo Jinzhu.
Guo Jinzhu's next words were very important. If Hou Yongzhi was killed by someone, it meant that he did not have a high political awareness and did not understand the intention of his superiors. In a serious case, it was a political issue. But if Hou Yongzhi insisted that he was injured while on duty, how could he face the souls of the deceased? If he had to choose, he would be questioned about his career and his humanity.
Guo Jinzhu chose the third option. He cleverly avoided the sharp edge and ruthlessly stabbed Tian Chunqiu in the back. "Secretary Huang, comrade Hou Yongzhi was indeed injured while on duty. As for the rest, I am not sure. This matter was arranged by Secretary Tian." There was no need to say too much. He just needed to find the key point and he could get someone else to do the dirty work.
Huang Jiyang did not say anything. He maintained his elegant demeanor and said. "Sister, Hou Yongzhi is a good comrade. He is a hero in our hearts. We should learn from him. As for the rest, I will investigate it when I go back and give you a satisfactory answer, okay?"
Under Guo Jinzhu's hint, Hou Yongzhi did not continue to make things difficult. Instead, he thanked Huang Jiyang gratefully and watched Huang Jiyang leave.
It was not until Huang Jiyang was about to get into the car that Tian Chunqiu rushed over. Huang Jiyang looked at Tian Chunqiu who was sweating profusely. He did not say much. Instead, he said. "Comrade Yongzhi is a good comrade. You should send him off." After that, he got into the car and left.
Tian Chunqiu was confused after hearing this inexplicable sentence. Huang Jiyang was speaking to her so politely. What had happened? It was only from Li Qinkui that he learned about the little episode just now. He immediately flew into a rage and was extremely nervous.
Hou Yongzhi's move was obviously to force him into a dead end. He firmly believed that Guo Jinzhu was behind this!
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
