Chapter 91

Chapter 47: Investigation

The Lianshui River is a tributary of the Xiangjiang River, the mother river of Lianshui County, which has silently flowed for generations, nourishing and irrigating the people on both banks.

Within the Lianshui River basin, there are two towering mountains. One is Phoenix Mountain, located in Liulin Town, and the other is Xishan, the mountain before them, standing majestically and grandly. Two smaller mountains stand on either side, resembling the paws of a lion about to pounce. The winding Lianshui River flows past the foot of Xishan.

The designers of the reservoir built a large dam, enclosing the two "lion paws" and the "lion's body" in a bowl-like shape. They also constructed a water diversion channel to intercept the Lianshui River midstream, diverting the water into the reservoir. Together with underground springs and mountain streams, this provides sufficient water storage for the reservoir.

The reservoir project was halted due to funding issues. The once picturesque foot of Xishan is now covered in yellow mud. The large reservoir pit, like a gaping mouth, seems to mock the officials of Lianshui County.

The dam is already half-built, with a shallow pool of water in the reservoir, formed by mountain springs and groundwater. The water from the Lianshui River will only be diverted after the dam is completed.

The accompanying water engineer, worried, said, "Now, the mountain water is scarce, and this half-built earth dam can still hold. But after next spring, when the plum rains come and the mountain floods burst, the reservoir will surely overflow. This hard-earned earth dam will be of little use. At that time, we will have to release the flood, but the corresponding drainage channels have not been dug yet. How will we release the flood? Below the reservoir are thousands of acres of good farmland and hundreds of houses. If the rainy season is longer and the rainfall is heavier, the consequences will be unimaginable."

The listeners were moved.

Xue Xue, full of anger, said, "If we don't solve this problem soon, we will all become sinners to the million people of Lianshui County!"

The officials all lowered their heads in shame, not daring to speak.

The mountain wind was fierce, making the mountains groan.

A farmer carrying firewood walked by, looked at the well-dressed officials, and began to sing a mountain song: "Lianshui has good officials, running around every day for projects. They raised fifty million, and used half to build the reservoir. They requisitioned land and labor, digging a yellow spring well."

Qiu Feng, hearing this, said angrily, "Who is singing nonsense? I'll catch him!"

"Ridiculous!" Xue Xue shouted, her face turning even darker.

The farmer, carrying his firewood, laughed and walked away.

Li Yi said, "From the song, it seems the reservoir project did requisition the farmers' land. County Chief Xue, I want to visit the local area."

Xue Xue said, "Let's go together."

Li Yi pondered, glancing at the surrounding officials.

Xue Xue understood and said to Xie Limin and others, "You all go back. The county can't have so many bureau chiefs away at once. People will be desperate if they can't find anyone. I'll stay behind!"

Li Yi then smiled and said, "I'll follow County Chief Xue's arrangements."

Xue Xue thought to herself, "What arrangements? If it suits you, you'll follow my arrangements; if not, you won't even acknowledge me! Humph! But this is part of his job, so I can't blame him."

When everyone had left, Xue Xue asked, "Director Li, have you noticed anything?"

"County Chief Xue, don't you see it too?" Li Yi countered.

Xue Xue just nodded and pointed to the houses below. "Let's go and visit some households."

The two descended the dam, stepping on the grass and wiping the mud off their shoes.

In the old houses of the southern province, there is usually a hall used for family rituals and important ceremonies.

They came to a farmhouse. The door to the hall was open, and a group of free-range chickens clucked, while a large yellow dog lazily squatted on the ground. Seeing strangers enter, the dog suddenly stood up and barked at Li Yi and Xue Xue. The hens, with their chicks, scattered, and feathers and dust flew everywhere.

Xue Xue was clearly startled, grabbing Li Yi's arm and hiding behind him.

Li Yi comforted her, "Don't be afraid, this dog won't bite."

The dog indeed only barked loudly but did not come closer.

Xue Xue asked curiously, "How do you know?"

Li Yi chuckled, "A dog that bites doesn't bark. Look at its tail, it's standing up, which means it's a healthy dog without any diseases and won't bite people randomly."

Xue Xue still hid behind him, laughing, "I didn't know you understood dogs so well!"

An old woman, about sixty or seventy years old, came out of the house, scolded the dog, and it calmed down, stopping its barking and wagging its tail, looking at Li Yi.

The old woman spoke in a local dialect, but fortunately, Li Yi had learned a bit from Fang Fang and could understand the gist. After a few exchanges, he asked, "Grandma, do you know if the Xishan Reservoir has compensated the villagers?"

"What? Shoes?" The old woman was a bit hard of hearing and didn't quite understand.

Xue Xue couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Li Yi glared at her and had to end the conversation. They then went to another house, where a young woman was holding a baby and breastfeeding. Seeing the two enter, she looked at them curiously.

Li Yi said, "Hello, I'm an investigator from the provincial government..."

"What do you want?" The woman was very cautious, hugging her baby tightly and shouting, "I only have one child, I'm not breaking any laws!"

Li Yi quickly explained, "We're not from the family planning office, we don't deal with that. We're here to investigate the compensation for the Xishan Reservoir. Do you know anything about it?"

"Is there compensation for building the reservoir?" The woman clearly didn't know about it. "My husband worked at the reservoir for half a year, but he only received two months' salary. The rest hasn't been paid."

Li Yi glanced at Xue Xue, who frowned. Li Yi took out a notebook and quickly wrote down the information.

Li Yi asked, "Have you heard of any families receiving compensation, like for the land and mountains they lost?"

The woman thought for a moment and shook her head. "I haven't heard of that."

Li Yi asked about her husband's work at the reservoir and his name.

The woman said, "Since you're from the provincial capital, can you help with the salary issue? Can you make them pay the wages quickly? We need the money."

Li Yi replied, "We will report it. Don't worry, the overdue wages will be paid. The difficulties are temporary, and you should trust the government."

After a few minutes, they left and visited several more households. The situation was similar in all of them—no one had heard of compensation, and almost every household had unpaid wages. Finally, they came to a small mud house with a thatched roof and asbestos tiles. Xue Xue wrinkled her nose. "This house is too shabby, isn't it?"

Li Yi said, "Farmers' lives are very hard now. Look, most of the houses in the village are mud-brick. Relying solely on farming, it's difficult to improve their lives. Many families are just above the poverty line, and eating meat is a luxury, let alone building new houses."

Xue Xue said with a sad expression, "You don't know the hardships of farmers until you visit the countryside!"

Inside the house, there was only one old man, about seventy years old, with gray hair. He was very friendly and offered them hot tea.

Li Yi said gratefully, "Thank you, Grandpa! Please sit down. I'm an investigator from the provincial government, here to understand the situation of the Xishan Reservoir."

"Oh! You're high-ranking officials from the provincial government, welcome!" The old man seemed very talkative and could speak passable Mandarin, suggesting he had traveled widely in his youth.

"Grandpa, are you living alone?" Xue Xue looked around and asked.

"Alas, just me. I served in the army when I was young, and when I came back, I was too old to find a wife, so I've been living alone!" The old man chuckled, not showing any signs of unhappiness.

"You're a revolutionary veteran! I apologize for not recognizing you!" Li Yi sat up straight, showing respect.

"I'm also an old party member. Don't look at my age, but I'm still in good health and can work. I've been helping with the reservoir construction these past two years." The old man spoke loudly and happily.

Li Yi said, "With your conditions, you should be a recipient of the Five Guarantees, and as a revolutionary veteran, you should receive state assistance, so you shouldn't need to work, right?"

"I can work and farm, supporting myself without spending a penny of the state's money." The old man, in high spirits, insisted on brewing a pot of wine, but Li Yi firmly stopped him. "We're working, we can't drink. When we have free time, I'll definitely drink with you. I have a question: Has the Xishan Reservoir taken any land or mountains from the villagers?"

"Yes, of course it has. The mountains, the land, and the soil were all allocated to each household by the production team, and now they're all taken. I have a piece of land at the foot of Xishan, where I used to grow sweet potatoes and radishes." The old man had a good memory and could name the owners of each piece of land.

Li Yi asked, "Has the government given any compensation?"

The old man waved his hand. "What compensation? Building the reservoir is for our own good. Giving up some land is nothing. Besides, the land belongs to the state, and now it's being used to build the reservoir, which is a great benefit for the people. Who would ask for compensation?"

Li Yi asked, "Has the government ever mentioned this to you?"

"The village cadres did. They said the same thing!" The old man remembered something and got up to bring a bowl of peanuts, placing it in front of them. "I grew these myself, have some, they're sweet."

Li Yi said, "Grandpa, did the village cadres say that the land belongs to the state, and now it's being taken back to build the reservoir, which is a benefit for the people?"

"Exactly!" The old man realized something. "What? Is there something else to it?"

Li Yi said, "No, we're just conducting a survey. So, no household in the village has received any compensation?"

"No," the old man shook his head vigorously. "The state is spending money to build the reservoir for us. How can we ask for more money from the state?"

"Have you received your wages?" Li Yi asked.

"Two months, the rest hasn't been paid. They said there's a funding issue and we have to wait." The old man's answer was consistent with most of the villagers.

"Thank you, Grandpa. We'll come back to visit you when we have time!" As they left, Li Yi, without the old man noticing, slipped a few hundred yuan under the bowl of peanuts.

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