Qi Tongwei at the start: Not relying on Liang Lu, but winning by a single move against Heaven.

Without notifying anyone, Baimaiti arrived.

At nine o'clock in the evening, a Volkswagen Santana drove up to Dongweizi, and Bai Maiti appeared in front of Qi Tongwei.

When he saw Baimaiti get off the Volkswagen Santana, Qi Tongwei was taken aback, and then quickly went to greet him.

He had anticipated that someone from above would be sent down to deal with such a big problem in Heshan.

But he didn't expect Baimaiti to come. The director of the municipal party committee office was present, which made things much more complicated.

Qi Tongwei shook hands with Baimaiti and asked in a low voice.

"Director Bai, what brings you here? You didn't even call ahead..."

Baimaiti looked serious and applied slight pressure with his hand.

"We've finally found you! Don't speak yet, Secretary Wang wants to speak with you."

Qi Tongwei was taken aback and tentatively asked a question.

"Shall we go back to the county committee?"

Baimaiti didn't answer, but waved to someone behind him.

An armed police officer ran over, carrying a green box on his back and holding a receiver in his hand.

Qi Tongwei recognized it at a glance; it was a military walkie-talkie.

He pressed the earpiece to his ears, took a deep breath, and shouted into the microphone:

"Secretary Wang, this is Qi Tongwei. Please give me your instructions."

This isn't just a figure of speech; Qi Tongwei was genuinely shouting.

The scene was very noisy, and the walkie-talkie was full of static, so he had to shout to speak.

Wang Quanyou's voice came through the headphones, somewhat distorted, but still fairly clear:

Are you familiar with the situation in Heshan?

Qi Tongwei frowned slightly and replied:

"I don't know the details, but I do know that the Bianxi Railway and the national highway suffered heavy losses..."

He hesitated for a moment, then added another sentence.

"Secretary Qin has contacted Heshan, and Leishan can temporarily resettle some of the disaster-stricken people."

A static crackled through the walkie-talkie, and Wang Quanyou spoke slowly again:

"Well done. The second flood peak is coming soon, what are your plans?"

He paused slightly, his voice becoming lower:

"At this moment, don't think about anything else, just spit out whatever's on your mind."

Since Wang Quanyou had already said so much, Qi Tongwei dared not keep anything to himself.

He gritted his teeth and answered in a deep voice:

"The flood discharge channel in Heshan cannot be completed in three days. There is only one solution now."

"Extend the flood control dike so that Heshan and Leishan can share the flood discharge channel. But the risks are huge!"

On the other end of the walkie-talkie, Wang Quanyou immediately pressed for answers:

"What risks? Explain clearly!"

Qi Tongwei took a deep breath, spoke slowly, his voice low and deep:

"With the peak flow doubling, the flood control canal in Leishan may not be able to hold up."

As soon as he finished speaking, the static on the walkie-talkie started up again.

After a long silence, Wang Quanyou finally spoke again, his voice visibly weary:

"We have to hold on, even if we can't! We can't let Heshan be flooded again."

After saying this, his voice rose a few decibels, returning to its usual tone.

"Qi Tongwei, you are now in full charge of flood control work in Heshan."

"Go for it! If anything goes wrong, I'll take responsibility!"

"If it's inconvenient to make a phone call, please tell me all your difficulties and requests."

Qi Tongwei hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth:

"I need sandbags, at least 400,000 bags, delivered within two days!"

"That's all?"

On the walkie-talkie, Wang Quanyou's voice sounded somewhat hesitant.

In his estimation, Qi Tongwei should have asked for much more—supplies, personnel, equipment...

Qi Tongwei grinned, his voice tinged with bitterness:

"The 108th Regiment is here, the 109th Regiment is in Santai County, and the 110th Regiment is responsible for flood control in its garrison area..."

"We can't mobilize the people from the Sixth Division, and I'm short-handed on my side, so I have to find a way myself."

Silence fell again on the walkie-talkie, with only the crackling of static breaking through the wires.

After a long silence, Wang Quanyou's voice rang out again, carrying a hint of determination:

"Tomorrow morning, I'll give you another thousand armed police officers!"

"But listen to me carefully! If Heshan gets even a single drop of water, or if another room collapses..."

"I don't care what others do, you'll be the first one I deal with!"

Qi Tongwei was taken aback, then unconsciously straightened his back and answered loudly.

"yes!"

After the call ended, Qi Tongwei lit a cigarette and took a deep drag.

He knew perfectly well that even the armed police had been mobilized; Wang Quanyou was now gambling on his position.

If this job goes well, I'll be promoted to the provincial level ahead of schedule; if I don't, I'll most likely only reach the level of a department head.

He handed Baimaiti a cigarette and asked in a low voice.

"The Party Secretary is truly angry this time."

Baimaiti lit a cigarette, took a deep drag, and slowly exhaled.

"It's already been determined that it's dereliction of duty..."

Qi Tongwei was taken aback, took a drag of his cigarette, and didn't dare to respond.

Baimaiti patted his shoulder and whispered in his ear:

"This year marks Secretary Wang's fifth year..."

Qi Tongwei's hand trembled, and he nodded emphatically.

......

It was early morning on the 23rd, before dawn.

One after another, military green trucks drove to Dongweizi Grassland.

The headlights blended together in the darkness, and the roar of the engines broke the silence of the Gobi Desert.

Squad leader Li Shixian jumped out of the car and walked quickly to Qi Tongwei.

"County Magistrate Qi, the person has arrived. Please give your orders."

Qi Tongwei grinned, his smile genuine:

"You are our saviors, I dare not give you orders."

He glanced at Li Shixian's epaulets, looking somewhat troubled.

Liang Maosan is at the same level as Zhao Aiguo, so it's inappropriate for either of them to be in charge of the other.

After a moment's thought, he decided to pull Zhao Aiguo over as well.

The three of them stood on the flood control embankment, and Qi Tongwei pointed to the embankment that wound its way upwards and said.

"Commander Zhao, Captain Li. The mission is simple, but the workload is enormous."

"Extend the flood control dike on the west side to encompass Heshan..."

He paused slightly, looking at the two of them with a wry smile:

"I'll take care of the logistical support, but the key tasks will depend entirely on the two of you."

Both of them were straightforward and didn't mince words; they immediately began discussing specific plans.

After some discussion, the two quickly agreed on a division of labor.

The Corps was responsible for delivering and transporting sandbags, while the Armed Police Detachment was responsible for building flood control dikes.

With the plan finalized, the two teams each took on their respective roles and immediately began operating at high speed.

Baimaiti did not participate in the discussion of the plan; he left his walkie-talkie behind and left just as dawn broke.

He also had his own mission: to go to Heshan to understand the actual situation.

In late March, the temperature difference between day and night in Bianxi is huge.

During the day, the temperature is a few degrees above zero, but at night it drops to minus ten degrees Celsius.

These past few days have seen a rapid rise in temperature, with midday temperatures reaching 15 or 16 degrees Celsius.

Although the temperature was not high, the ultraviolet radiation was unusually strong.

In just one day, Qi Tongwei's face was sunburned and his lips were covered in bloody cuts.

Compared to the soldiers fighting on the front lines, his situation is nothing.

The soldiers carried sandbags and moved back and forth in the snow.

Their clothes and shoes were already soaked through, and steam rose from their bodies as they ran.

Many people developed blisters on their hands and feet.

When one team was exhausted, the next team would take their place, just like a tireless machine.

Qi Tongwei didn't hesitate either, staying with the soldiers for two days and two nights.

He lived in a yurt with the soldiers, eating compressed biscuits and roasted naan bread together.

In his spare time, he also served as a temporary political commissar.

He told the soldiers on leave about the history of the Party, the future, Zuo Zongtang, and the history of the western border region.

The soldiers loved listening to him; no one cared that he was the county magistrate, and they quickly became one of the group...

At dawn on the 25th, Qi Tongwei was dozing in his yurt.

He had been working for almost forty hours straight and couldn't hold on any longer.

In a daze, a deafening cheer suddenly erupted outside.

Qi Tongwei suddenly woke up. He was stunned for a moment, then immediately jumped up.

He knew that the flood diversion embankment had been closed!