Reborn in 2000: I'm the Boss's Driver

As the inspection team progressed into its second week, problems began to surface.

On Tuesday morning, Lin Fan was reviewing the self-inspection reports submitted by various units when Xiao Chen knocked on the door and came in, looking rather grim.

"Team Leader Lin, there's something going on."

"Sit down and let's talk." Lin Fan put down the materials in his hand.

Xiao Chen, a man in his early thirties on secondment from the audit department, is meticulous in his work. He opened his notebook: "I have preliminarily verified the issues raised in those complaint letters, and three of them are basically true."

Which three?

"The county education bureau misappropriated funds intended for dilapidated building renovation to pay salaries, amounting to about 200,000 yuan; the district health bureau falsely reported the purchase of epidemic prevention materials, embezzling 150,000 yuan; and..." Xiao Chen paused, "The municipal culture bureau used special funds to organize cadre tours and issued invoices for meeting expenses."

Lin Fan frowned. The first two were common questions, but the third was a bit sensitive—the Cultural Bureau was part of the propaganda system, and its director was said to have a good relationship with a certain city leader.

Is the evidence conclusive?

"The Education Bureau and the Health Bureau have accounting records, which are relatively clear," Xiao Chen said. "The Cultural Bureau's invoice only has the meeting notice and travel photos. The invoice does show the meeting fee, but the time and location don't match."

Lin Fan pondered for a moment: "The Education Bureau and the Health Bureau will be the focus of our inspection. As for the Culture Bureau... let's put them aside for now and gather more evidence."

"Understood." Xiao Chen nodded. "There's one more thing. Yesterday, I went to the Transportation Bureau to retrieve the maintenance fund usage ledger, but their finance department head wasn't very cooperative and said he needed to consult his superiors."

"Which leader?"

"They didn't specify, but their attitude was quite tough." Xiao Chen was somewhat indignant. "We're an inspection team sent by the bureau, why aren't they cooperating?"

Lin Fan laughed: "Why? Because they are a powerful department, and because they think the inspection team is just going through the motions. Okay, I'll go with you this afternoon."

"You're going in person?"

"Okay." Lin Fan glanced at his watch. "Go and prepare the car. We'll leave at two o'clock."

After Xiao Chen left, Lin Fan called Zhou Wenyuan and briefly reported the situation.

Zhou Wenyuan was silent for a few seconds on the other end of the phone: "The Transportation Bureau... Director Zheng is my classmate from Party School, a good person, but the people below him might have some reservations. Go and see them, be polite, and stick to your principles."

"clear."

At lunchtime in the cafeteria, Lin Fan ran into Section Chief Wu from the Budget Department. Wu sat down beside him and lowered his voice, "Lin, I heard you're going to the Transportation Bureau?"

The news travels fast. Lin Fan thought to himself, but remained calm on the surface: "Yes, Section Chief Wu, retrieve some information."

"The situation at the Transportation Bureau... is a bit complicated," Section Chief Wu said tactfully. "Old Zheng was only recently transferred there, and the section chiefs under him are all veterans who aren't very obedient. You might encounter resistance when you go to inspect."

"Thank you for the reminder, Section Chief Wu," Lin Fan said. "We will follow the procedures, investigate what needs to be investigated, and cooperate where necessary."

Section Chief Wu glanced at Lin Fan and smiled: "Young man, you have composure. Okay, let me know if you need any coordination. I'm fairly familiar with Old Zheng."

"Okay, definitely."

After finishing his meal and returning to his office, Zhao Xiaowen was organizing materials. Seeing Lin Fan enter, she stood up: "Team Leader Lin, the self-inspection reports are mostly collected. I've done a preliminary review, and the problems mainly focus on three areas..."

She handed him a summary sheet. Lin Fan took it and looked at it carefully: untimely fund disbursement accounted for 35%, misappropriation or embezzlement of funds accounted for 28%, non-standard invoices accounted for 22%, and other issues accounted for 15%.

"The proportion of misappropriation and embezzlement is not low," Lin Fan said.

"And the problems are concentrated in just a few departments," Zhao Xiaowen said, pointing to the table. "The Education Bureau, the Health Bureau, and the Agriculture Bureau account for 60% of the issues."

Lin Fan noted it down. These three bureaus were all major financial entities and were the focus of the investigation.

At 2 PM, Lin Fan and Xiao Chen set off for the Transportation Bureau. The car was a Santana assigned to the inspection team, with ordinary license plates.

The Transportation Bureau office building was very impressive, twelve stories high, with the plaza in front filled with cars. Lin Fan parked the car and walked into the lobby with Xiao Chen.

The finance department was on the fifth floor. The two knocked and went in. In the department head's office sat a man in his forties, who was on the phone.

Seeing someone enter, he covered the microphone: "What is it?"

"We are from the Finance Bureau's special inspection team for budget execution, here to retrieve the maintenance fund usage records," Xiao Chen said, showing his work ID.

The other party glanced at them and continued making the call: "...Okay, that's settled then, we'll talk about it later."

After hanging up the phone, he slowly stood up: "The inspection team... have a seat. I'm Old Ma, the head of the finance department."

Lin Fan and Xiao Chen sat down opposite each other. Old Ma poured a cup of tea and pushed it in front of Lin Fan: "Comrade Lin, right? I've heard Section Chief Wu mention you; you're young and promising."

"You flatter me, Section Chief Ma." Lin Fan accepted the tea. "We need to review the maintenance fund usage records and vouchers from last year to the present for our work."

"Well..." Old Ma looked troubled. "We do have the ledgers, but the vouchers are all archived, and it will take time to retrieve them. Besides, some of them involve engineering projects, and the data is with the engineering department."

"Let's look at the ledger first, and we can schedule a time to look at the vouchers later," Lin Fan said.

Old Ma hesitated for a moment, then got up and walked to the filing cabinet. After rummaging through it for a while, he took out a thick ledger: "This is it, the whole year's."

Lin Fan took the ledger and looked through it. The ledger was very well-organized, with detailed expenditures, receiving units, and approval procedures all included. But when he turned to a few pages in the middle, he found a problem—several large expenditures, all paid to the same construction company, and all for the reason of "road maintenance," were significantly higher than advertised.

"Section Chief Ma, do you have contracts and acceptance reports for these expenditures?"

"There should be..." Old Ma mumbled, "We'll have to check with the engineering department."

"Shall we go check out the engineering department?" Lin Fan stood up.

Old Ma's expression changed: "The engineering department is having a meeting this afternoon, so it might not be convenient. Why don't you come another day?"

Lin Fan smiled: "Section Chief Ma, our inspection team is short on time and has a heavy workload. Since we're here today, we hope to see the documents. If you find this difficult, we can ask Director Zheng to coordinate."

Mentioning the bureau chief, Old Ma's face darkened even more. He gritted his teeth: "Fine, I'll take you to the engineering department."

The engineering department is on the seventh floor. The department head wasn't there, so the deputy department head received them. When asked to check maintenance engineering data, the deputy department head hesitated and said he needed to consult his superiors.

"We'll wait here." Lin Fan sat down on the sofa. "Please ask for instructions as soon as possible."

The deputy section chief left. Only Lin Fan, Xiao Chen, and two staff members from the engineering department remained in the office, heads bowed, pretending to be busy.

Xiao Chen leaned closer and whispered, "Team Leader Lin, they're clearly stalling."

"I can see that," Lin Fan said calmly. "Let them drag it out, let's see how long they can."

After waiting for twenty minutes, the deputy section chief returned, followed by a man in his fifties with thinning hair.

"This is our engineering section chief, Lao Zhao," the deputy section chief introduced.

Old Zhao shook hands with a smile: "Comrades from the inspection team, thank you for your hard work. We are currently compiling the materials you need, which may take a day or two. Why don't you go back first, and I'll have someone send them over once they're ready?"

"Section Chief Zhao," Lin Fan stood up, "our inspection team was dispatched by the Party Committee of the Bureau, and the timeframe is very tight. If we can't see the documents today, I can only report to Section Chief Zhou Wenyuan and ask him to coordinate with Director Zheng."

Old Zhao's smile froze. Zhou Wenyuan's name carried weight in the finance system; and explaining it to Director Zheng was even more difficult.

"Well... Comrade Lin, don't be in such a hurry." Old Zhao rubbed his hands together. "I'll have them look for it right now. Please have a seat."

He turned to the deputy section chief and said, "Go and find all the contracts and acceptance reports for last year's maintenance projects."

After another half hour, the documents finally arrived—two large boxes piled on the table.

Lin Fan and Xiao Chen began to peruse the documents. The more they read, the more their brows furrowed—the contracts were not standardized, the acceptance reports were simplistic, some projects were clearly split up to circumvent bidding, and the signatures on several contracts were similar, suggesting they were made by the same person.

"Section Chief Zhao," Lin Fan pointed to one of the contracts, "this 'Dongfeng Road Maintenance Project' has a contract amount of 300,000 yuan, but the acceptance report only says 'completed,' without specifying the amount of work done, and there is no signature from the supervision unit."

Old Zhao's forehead was sweating: "Well... we were rushing to meet the deadline back then, so the procedures might have been a bit simplified."

"This isn't simplification, it's a violation of regulations." Lin Fan closed the contract. "We need to take these documents back for further verification."

"Take them back?" Old Zhao asked anxiously. "These are original files; they can't be lent out."

"We've followed the borrowing procedures," Lin Fan said. "Brother Chen, issue the borrowing slip."

Xiao Chen immediately took out the prepared receipts. Old Zhao's hand trembled slightly as he looked at the pen handed to him.

"Section Chief Zhao," Lin Fan's tone softened, "our purpose in inspecting is to standardize management, not to find fault. If there are indeed problems, it's not too late to rectify them proactively. Once our formal report is released, the nature of the matter will be different."

His words were a mix of soft and firm. Old Zhao wiped his sweat and finally signed the borrowing slip.

As Xiao Chen carried the two boxes of documents downstairs, he couldn't help but say, "Team Leader Lin, you were really tough just now."

"It's not about being tough, it's about having confidence," Lin Fan said. "We have authorization from the Party Committee of the Bureau, and we have Section Chief Zhou backing us up. We're just following procedures, so there's nothing to be afraid of."

"But... what if they retaliate?"

Lin Fan laughed: "How can they retaliate? The inspection team is a temporary organization; it will be disbanded after the inspection. Even if they really want to retaliate, they'd have to be able to find someone."

It was already past 5 p.m. when they returned to the Finance Bureau. Lin Fan asked Zhao Xiaowen and Xiao Chen to organize the documents first, while he went to report to Zhou Wenyuan.

After listening, Zhou Wenyuan lit a cigarette: "The problems at the Transportation Bureau are more serious than I imagined. Splitting projects to circumvent bidding is a deliberate act."

"Section Chief, what's the next step?"

"Keep digging deeper." Zhou Wenyuan exhaled a puff of smoke. "But be careful with your methods. I'll give Lao Zheng a call tonight to let him know. He just took office and wants to clean up his staff, so we're helping him out."

Lin Fan understood. The inspection team discovered the problem, the Transportation Bureau rectified it, and the new director established his authority—it was a win-win-win situation.

"Also," Zhou Wenyuan said, "go to the Education Bureau and the Health Bureau tomorrow and verify the issues raised in the complaint letter. Be serious, but also give them a chance to rectify the problems."

"Yes."

"Oh, right," Zhou Wenyuan remembered something, "there's progress on the matter of the Industrial and Commercial Bureau. Liu Jianguo's brother-in-law's reassignment plan has been submitted to the meeting, and he'll most likely be going to the CPPCC Committee on Culture and History, a sinecure."

Lin Fan's eyes lit up: "Then Liu Jianguo..."

"When the tree falls, the monkeys scatter," Zhou Wenyuan said calmly. "We'll deal with this after the inspection team finishes their work. For now, let's focus on doing a good job with the inspection."

"clear."

It was already dark when Lin Fan left Zhou Wenyuan's office. Back in his own office, Zhao Xiaowen was still working overtime organizing documents.

"Xiaowen, you haven't left yet?"

"It'll be done soon." Zhao Xiaowen looked up, her eyes a little red. "Team Leader Lin, I've looked at the Transportation Bureau's documents, and there are quite a few problems. If they're all verified, it'll be enough to punish a whole bunch of people."

"Investigation is one thing, and handling it is another." Lin Fan sat down. "In government affairs, we often have to weigh things. Those who should be dealt with will be dealt with, and those who should be protected will be protected."

Zhao Xiaowen seemed to understand, but not quite.

"Simply put, it's about focusing on the major issues and letting the minor ones go," Lin Fan explained. "Those with serious offenses must be dealt with; those with minor offenses who voluntarily rectify them can be treated leniently. This is how we can advance the work, rather than escalate conflicts."

"I understand a bit now." Zhao Xiaowen nodded. "Like the Transportation Bureau, if they take the initiative to rectify the situation, our report can say 'rectification completed' instead of 'serious problems exist'."

"Yes," Lin Fan praised, "You have a high level of comprehension."

Zhao Xiaowen smiled shyly: "It's because of Lin's excellent teaching."

"Alright, let's go home." Lin Fan glanced at his watch. "I have to go to the Education Bureau tomorrow, so get some rest."

"You should get some rest too."

After Zhao Xiaowen left, Lin Fan busied himself for a while. He made a list of questions he would ask the Education Bureau the next day, devised solutions for potential obstacles, and listed the documents he needed to access.

After finishing all this, it was already eight o'clock in the evening. He turned off the lights, locked the door, and went downstairs.

I called Wang Juan on the way. The West District store had just opened and business was good, but Wang Juan sounded a little tired.

"What's wrong? Are you tired?"

"A little," Wang Juan said. "The Industry and Commerce Bureau came again today, this time with a different person. They said we had goods piled up at the entrance and needed to rectify the situation."

Lin Fan frowned: "Is it serious?"

"It's not serious, just a few boxes of goods temporarily placed there, they've already been moved," Wang Juan sighed. "But I still feel... they're looking for trouble."

"Don't overthink it," Lin Fan comforted her. "Just make the necessary changes as they ask. If a similar situation occurs again, write it down: the time, the people involved, and what was said."

"Hmm." Wang Juan paused. "Lin Fan, have you offended someone?"

"Why do you ask that?"

"It's my intuition," Wang Juan said. "The local industry and commerce bureau used to come once a month, but now they come twice a week. And it's always about minor issues; they're clearly nitpicking."

Lin Fan's heart sank. Wang Juan's intuition was accurate; this was very likely related to Liu Jianguo—although her brother-in-law was about to lose power, his influence remained, and it was possible that he would make things difficult for Lin Fan.

"Don't worry, I'll handle it," Lin Fan said. "You focus on your business, leave the rest to me."

"You need to be careful too," Wang Juan said softly. "The government offices are complicated; don't let my situation affect you."

These words warmed Lin Fan's heart: "Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."

After hanging up the phone, Lin Fan's eyes turned cold. Liu Jianguo was ungrateful; did he really think he could do whatever he wanted just because he had a brother-in-law?

But he quickly calmed down. Now was not the time to act impulsively; the inspection team was at a critical stage and could not afford to be distracted.

We'll settle this score after the inspection team finishes its work and after Liu Jianguo's brother-in-law is officially transferred.

The inspection team's work acted like a mirror, reflecting various problems within the system: objective difficulties, subjective negligence, and collusion of interests. His task was to find a balance between principle and reality.

It's difficult, but it has to be done.

When he got home, his parents were already asleep, and there was food left on the table. He heated it up and ate it quietly.